163 research outputs found
Circularly polarized microwaves for magnetic resonance study in the GHz range: application to nitrogen-vacancy in diamonds
The ability to create time-dependent magnetic fields of controlled
polarization is essential for many experiments with magnetic resonance. We
describe a microstrip circuit that allows us to generate strong magnetic field
at microwave frequencies with arbitrary adjusted polarization. The circuit
performance is demonstrated by applying it to an optically detected magnetic
resonance and Rabi nutation experiments in nitrogen-vacancy color centers in
diamond. Thanks to high efficiency of the proposed microstrip circuit and
degree of circular polarization of 85% it is possible to address the specific
spin states of a diamond sample using a low power microwave generator.Comment: 4 pages, 7 figures, nitrogen-vacancy, microwave circular
polarization, spin-state addressin
Microwave saturation spectroscopy of nitrogen-vacancy ensembles in diamond
Negatively-charged nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamond have
generated much recent interest for their use in sensing. The sensitivity
improves when the NV ground-state microwave transitions are narrow, but these
transitions suffer from inhomogeneous broadening, especially in high-density NV
ensembles. To better understand and remove the sources of broadening, we
demonstrate room-temperature spectral "hole burning" of the NV ground-state
transitions. We find that hole burning removes the broadening caused by
magnetic fields from C nuclei and demonstrate that it can be used for
magnetic-field-insensitive thermometry.Comment: Main text: 5 pages, 4 figures. Supplement: 6 pages, 3 figure
Ultra‐long lived luminescent triplet excited states in cyclic (alkyl)(amino)carbene complexes of Zn(II) halides
The high element abundance and d10 electron configuration make ZnII-based compounds attractive candidates for the development of novel photoactive molecules. Although a large library of purely fluorescent compounds exists, emission involving triplet excited states is a rare phenomenon for zinc complexes. We have investigated the photophysical and -chemical properties of a series of dimeric and monomeric ZnII halide complexes bearing a cyclic (alkyl)(amino)carbene (cAAC) as chromophore unit. Specifically, [(cAAC)XZn(μ-X)2ZnX(cAAC)] (X=Cl (1), Br (2), I (3)) and [ZnX2(cAAC)(NCMe)] (X=Br (4), I (5)) were isolated and fully characterized, showing intense visible light photoluminescence under UV irradiation at 297 K and fast photo-induced transformation. At 77 K, the compounds exhibit improved stability allowing to record ultra-long lifetimes in the millisecond regime. DFT/MRCI calculations confirm that the emission stems from 3XCT/LEcAAC states and indicate the phototransformation to be related to asymmetric distortion of the complexes by cAAC ligand rotation. This study enhances our understanding of the excited state properties for future development and application of new classes of ZnII phosphorescent complexes
Suppression of p53 function in normal human mammary epithelial cells increases sensitivity to extracellular matrix–induced apoptosis
Little is known about the fate of normal human mammary epithelial cells (HMECs) that lose p53 function in the context of extracellular matrix (ECM)–derived growth and polarity signals. Retrovirally mediated expression of human papillomavirus type 16 (HPV-16) E6 and antisense oligodeoxynucleotides (ODNs) were used to suppress p53 function in HMECs as a model of early breast cancer. p53+ HMEC vector controls grew exponentially in reconstituted ECM (rECM) until day 6 and then underwent growth arrest on day 7. Ultrastructural examination of day 7 vector controls revealed acinus-like structures characteristic of normal mammary epithelium. In contrast, early passage p53− HMEC cells proliferated in rECM until day 6 but then underwent apoptosis on day 7. p53− HMEC-E6 passaged in non-rECM culture rapidly (8–10 passages), lost sensitivity to both rECM-induced growth arrest and polarity, and also developed resistance to rECM-induced apoptosis. Resistance was associated with altered expression of α3-integrin. Treatment of early passage p53− HMEC-E6 cells with either α3- or β1-integrin function-blocking antibodies inhibited rECM-mediated growth arrest and induction of apoptosis. Our results indicate that suppression of p53 expression in HMECs by HPV-16 E6 and ODNs may sensitize cells to rECM-induced apoptosis and suggest a role for the α3/β1-heterodimer in mediating apoptosis in HMECs grown in contact with rECM
Mutations associated with a 17-gene leukemia stem cell score and the score’s prognostic relevance in the context of the European LeukemiaNet classification of acute myeloid leukemia
© 2020 Ferrata Storti Foundation. Leukemia stem cells (LSC) are more resistant to standard chemotherapy and their persistence during remission can cause relapse, which is still one of the major clinical challenges in the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). A better understanding of the mutational patterns and the prognostic impact of molecular markers associated with stemness could lead to better clinical management and improve patients’ outcomes. We applied a previously described 17-gene expression score comprising genes differently expressed between LSC and leukemic bulk blasts, for 934 adult patients with de novo AML, and studied associations of the 17-gene LSC score with clinical data and mutation status of 81 genes recurrently mutated in cancer and leukemia. We found that patients with a high 17-gene score were older and had more mutations. The 17-gene score was found to have a prognostic impact in both younger (aged \u3c 60 years) and older (aged ≥60 years) patients with AML. We also analyzed the 17-gene LSC score in the context of the 2017 European LeukemiaNet genetic-risk classification and found that for younger patients the score refined the classification, and identified patients currently classified in the European LeukemiaNet Favorable-risk category who had a worse outcome
Complex karyotype in de novo acute myeloid leukemia: typical and atypical subtypes differ molecularly and clinically
© 2019, Springer Nature Limited. Complex karyotype (CK) with ≥ 3 abnormalities is detected in 10–12% of patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and associated with poor prognosis. The most common unbalanced abnormalities found in CK result in loss of material from the 5q, 7q, and/or 17p chromosome arms. The presence of 5q, 7q, and/or 17p abnormalities denotes typical CK and their absence denotes atypical CK. Since molecular features of CK-AML are not well characterized, we investigated mutational status of 81 leukemia/cancer-associated genes in 160 clinically well-characterized patients. They included 136 patients with ≥ 3 exclusively unbalanced chromosome abnormalities, 96 of whom had a typical CK and 40 atypical CK, and 24 patients with ≥ 1 balanced abnormality in addition to ≥ 2 unbalanced ones. Patients with atypical CK-AML differed from those with typical CK-AML: they carried TP53 mutations less often (P \u3c 0.001) and more often PHF6 (P = 0.008), FLT3-TKD (P = 0.02), MED12 (P = 0.02), and NPM1 (P = 0.02) mutations. They were younger (P = 0.007), had higher WBC (P = 0.001) and percentages of marrow (P \u3c 0.001) and blood (P = 0.006) blasts, higher complete remission rates (P = 0.02), and longer overall survival (P \u3c 0.001), thus indicating that atypical and typical CK-AMLs constitute distinct disease subtypes. We also identified smaller patient subsets within both typical and atypical CK-AML that differed molecularly and clinically
MicroRNAs: new players in acute myeloid leukaemia
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short non-coding RNAs that have key functions in a wide array of critical cell processes, including haematopoiesis by regulating the expression of multiple genes. Aberrant miRNA expression has been described in acute myeloid leukaemia suggesting a role in leukaemogenesis. In this review we summarise the current knowledge
The long non-coding RNA <i>HOXB-AS3</i> regulates ribosomal RNA transcription in <i>NPM1</i>-mutated acute myeloid leukemia
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