Dielectric breakdown during Cs+ sputtering of polyvinyl chloride

Thin films of insulating polymers are sometimes analyzed by secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) or by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) without the use of an electron gun. In this work, both SIMS and XPS have been used to study the chemical and structural modifications due to the charge effect during Cs+ sputtering of a thin film of polyvinyl chloride (PVC). The kinetic energy distribution study shows that at a small primary fluence ∼1015 Cs+ ions/cm2, the dielectric breakdown voltage of the PVC film is reached, i.e. the minimum voltage that causes a portion of an insulator to become electrically conductive. XPS study indicates that the conducting phase created in the PVC film after energetic Cs+ bombardment consists of graphitized carbon and metallic cesium clusters. After the dielectric breakdown of the film, the positive charge, previously accumulated on the surface, is neutralized through the conductive regions, which are created in the insulating film. During Cs+ sputtering of a PVC film, the chemical structure of the analyzed surface is completely modified and some ionic bonds such as CsC and CsCl are also created. © 2013 Elsevier B.V

Hypermethylation of RASSF1A in Human and Rhesus Placentas

The pseudomalignant nature of the placenta prompted us to search for tumor suppressor gene hypermethylation, a phenomenon widely reported in cancer, in the human placenta. Nine tumor suppressor genes were studied. Hypermethylation of the Ras association domain family 1 A (RASSF1A) gene was found in human placentas from all three trimesters of pregnancy but was absent in other fetal tissues. Hypermethylation of Rassf1 was similarly observed in placentas from the rhesus monkey but not the mouse. An inverse relationship between RASSF1A promoter methylation and gene expression was demonstrated by bisulfite sequencing of microdissected placental cells and immunohistochemical staining of placental tissue sections using an anti-RASSF1A antibody. Treatment of choriocarcinoma cell lines, JAR and JEG3, by 5-aza-2′-deoxycytidine and trichostatin A led to reduction in RASSF1A methylation but increased expression. These observations extend the analogy between the primate placenta and malignant tumors to the epigenetic level