The Properties of Specific Binding Site of 125I-Radioiodinated Myotoxin α, a Novel Ca++ Releasing, agent in Skeletal Muscle Sarcoplasmic Reticulum

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Transient Analysis of Warm Electron Injection Programming of Double Gate SONOS Memories by means of Full Band Monte Carlo Simulation

In this paper we investigate "Warm Electron Injection" as a mechanism for NOR programming of double-gate SONOS memories through 2D full band Monte Carlo simulations. Warm electron injection is characterized by an applied VDS smaller than 3.15 V, so that electrons cannot easily accumulate a kinetic energy larger than the height of the Si/SiO2 barrier. We perform a time-dependent simulation of the program operation where the local gate current density is computed with a continuum-based method and is adiabatically separated from the 2D full Monte Carlo simulation used for obtaining the electron distribution in the phase space. In this way we are able to compute the time evolution of the charge stored in the nitride and of the threshold voltages corresponding to forward and reverse bias. We show that warm electron injection is a viable option for NOR programming in order to reduce power supply, preserve reliability and CMOS logic level compatibility. In addition, it provides a well localized charge, offering interesting perspectives for multi-level and dual bit operation, even in devices with negligible short channel effects

A Model of Curvature-Induced Phase Transitions in Inflationary Universe

Chiral phase transitions driven by space-time curvature effects are investigated in de Sitter space in the supersymmetric Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model with soft supersymmetry breaking. The model is considered to be suitable for the analysis of possible phase transitions in inflationary universe. It is found that a restoration of the broken chiral symmetry takes place in two patterns for increasing curvature : the first order and second order phase transition respectively depending on initial settings of the four-body interaction parameter and the soft supersymmetry breaking parameter. The critical curves expressing the phase boundaries in these parameters are obtained. Cosmological implications of the result are discussed in connection with bubble formations and the creation of cosmic strings during the inflationary era.Comment: 12 pages, 3 figures, REVTe

Three-dimensionally Ordered Macroporous Structure Enabled Nanothermite Membrane of Mn2O3/Al

Mn2O3 has been selected to realize nanothermite membrane for the first time in the literature. Mn2O3/Al nanothermite has been synthesized by magnetron sputtering a layer of Al film onto three-dimensionally ordered macroporous (3DOM) Mn2O3 skeleton. The energy release is significantly enhanced owing to the unusual 3DOM structure, which ensures Al and Mn2O3 to integrate compactly in nanoscale and greatly increase effective contact area. The morphology and DSC curve of the nanothermite membrane have been investigated at various aluminizing times. At the optimized aluminizing time of 30 min, energy release reaches a maximum of 2.09 kJ∙g−1, where the Al layer thickness plays a decisive role in the total energy release. This method possesses advantages of high compatibility with MEMS and can be applied to other nanothermite systems easily, which will make great contribution to little-known nanothermite research

Kank Is an EB1 Interacting Protein that Localises to Muscle-Tendon Attachment Sites in Drosophila

Little is known about how microtubules are regulated in different cell types during development. EB1 plays a central role in the regulation of microtubule plus ends. It directly binds to microtubule plus ends and recruits proteins which regulate microtubule dynamics and behaviour. We report the identification of Kank, the sole Drosophila orthologue of human Kank proteins, as an EB1 interactor that predominantly localises to embryonic attachment sites between muscle and tendon cells. Human Kank1 was identified as a tumour suppressor and has documented roles in actin regulation and cell polarity in cultured mammalian cells. We found that Drosophila Kank binds EB1 directly and this interaction is essential for Kank localisation to microtubule plus ends in cultured cells. Kank protein is expressed throughout fly development and increases during embryogenesis. In late embryos, it accumulates to sites of attachment between muscle and epidermal cells. A kank deletion mutant was generated. We found that the mutant is viable and fertile without noticeable defects. Further analysis showed that Kank is dispensable for muscle function in larvae. This is in sharp contrast to C. elegans in which the Kank orthologue VAB-19 is required for development by stabilising attachment structures between muscle and epidermal cells

Criterion for traffic phases in single vehicle data and empirical test of a microscopic three-phase traffic theory

A microscopic criterion for distinguishing synchronized flow and wide moving jam phases in single vehicle data measured at a single freeway location is presented. Empirical local congested traffic states in single vehicle data measured on different days are classified into synchronized flow states and states consisting of synchronized flow and wide moving jam(s). Then empirical microscopic characteristics for these different local congested traffic states are studied. Using these characteristics and empirical spatiotemporal macroscopic traffic phenomena, an empirical test of a microscopic three-phase traffic flow theory is performed. Simulations show that the microscopic criterion and macroscopic spatiotemporal objective criteria lead to the same identification of the synchronized flow and wide moving jam phases in congested traffic. It is found that microscopic three-phase traffic models can explain both microscopic and macroscopic empirical congested pattern features. It is obtained that microscopic distributions for vehicle speed difference as well as fundamental diagrams and speed correlation functions can depend on the spatial co-ordinate considerably. It turns out that microscopic optimal velocity (OV) functions and time headway distributions are not necessarily qualitatively different, even if local congested traffic states are qualitatively different. The reason for this is that important spatiotemporal features of congested traffic patterns are it lost in these as well as in many other macroscopic and microscopic traffic characteristics, which are widely used as the empirical basis for a test of traffic flow models, specifically, cellular automata traffic flow models.Comment: 27 pages, 16 figure

Curvature-induced phase transitions in the inflationary universe - Supersymmetric Nambu-Jona-Lasinio Model in de Sitter spacetime -

The phase structure associated with the chiral symmetry is thoroughly investigated in de Sitter spacetime in the supersymmetric Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model with supersymmetry breaking terms. The argument is given in the three and four space-time dimensions in the leading order of the 1/N expansion and it is shown that the phase characteristics of the chiral symmetry is determined by the curvature of de Sitter spacetime. It is found that the symmetry breaking takes place as the first order as well as second order phase transition depending on the choice of the coupling constant and the parameter associated with the supersymmetry breaking term. The critical curves expressing the phase boundary are obtained. We also discuss the model in the context of the chaotic inflation scenario where topological defects (cosmic strings) develop during the inflation.Comment: 29 pages, 6 figures, REVTe

Assisted evolution enables HIV-1 to overcome a high trim5α-imposed genetic barrier to rhesus macaque tropism

Diversification of antiretroviral factors during host evolution has erected formidable barriers to cross-species retrovirus transmission. This phenomenon likely protects humans from infection by many modern retroviruses, but it has also impaired the development of primate models of HIV-1 infection. Indeed, rhesus macaques are resistant to HIV-1, in part due to restriction imposed by the TRIM5α protein (rhTRIM5α). Initially, we attempted to derive rhTRIM5α-resistant HIV-1 strains using two strategies. First, HIV-1 was passaged in engineered human cells expressing rhTRIM5α. Second, a library of randomly mutagenized capsid protein (CA) sequences was screened for mutations that reduced rhTRIM5α sensitivity. Both approaches identified several individual mutations in CA that reduced rhTRIM5α sensitivity. However, neither approach yielded mutants that were fully resistant, perhaps because the locations of the mutations suggested that TRIM5α recognizes multiple determinants on the capsid surface. Moreover, even though additive effects of various CA mutations on HIV-1 resistance to rhTRIM5α were observed, combinations that gave full resistance were highly detrimental to fitness. Therefore, we employed an 'assisted evolution' approach in which individual CA mutations that reduced rhTRIM5α sensitivity without fitness penalties were randomly assorted in a library of viral clones containing synthetic CA sequences. Subsequent passage of the viral library in rhTRIM5α-expressing cells resulted in the selection of individual viral species that were fully fit and resistant to rhTRIM5α. These viruses encoded combinations of five mutations in CA that conferred complete or near complete resistance to the disruptive effects of rhTRIM5α on incoming viral cores, by abolishing recognition of the viral capsid. Importantly, HIV-1 variants encoding these CA substitutions and SIVmac239 Vif replicated efficiently in primary rhesus macaque lymphocytes. These findings demonstrate that rhTRIM5α is difficult to but not impossible to evade, and doing so should facilitate the development of primate models of HIV-1 infection