Intraperitoneal pyrophosphate treatment reduces renal calcifications in Npt2a null mice

Mutations in the proximal tubular sodium-dependent phosphate co-transporters NPT2a and NPT2c have been reported in patients with renal stone disease and nephrocalcinosis, however the relative contribution of genotype, dietary calcium and phosphate, and modifiers of mineralization such as pyrophosphate (PPi) to the formation of renal mineral deposits is unclear. In the present study, we used Npt2a-/- mice to model the renal calcifications observed in these disorders. We observed elevated urinary excretion of PPi in Npt2a-/- mice when compared to WT mice. Presence of two hypomorphic Extracellular nucleotide pyrophosphatase phosphodiesterase 1 (Enpp1asj/asj) alleles decreased urine PPi and worsened renal calcifications in Npt2a-/- mice. These studies suggest that PPi is a thus far unrecognized factor protecting Npt2a-/- mice from the development of renal mineral deposits. Consistent with this conclusion, we next showed that renal calcifications in these mice can be reduced by intraperitoneal administration of sodium pyrophosphate. If confirmed in humans, urine PPi could therefore be of interest for developing new strategies to prevent the nephrocalcinosis and nephrolithiasis seen in phosphaturic disorders

Partial Coherence in modern optics: Emil Wolf's legacy in the 21st century

We highlight the impact of Emil Wolf's work on coherence and polarization on an ever increasing amount of applications in the 21 st century. We present a brief review of how partial coherence at the level of increasing order of coherence functions is leading to evolution in the better methods for microscopy, imaging, optical coherence tomography; speckle imaging; propagation through random media. This evolution in our capabilities is expected to have wide ramifications in Science and Engineering.Comment: In Press at Progress in Optic

Plasmonics for Super Resolution Optical Imaging

Imaging with resolution beyond the diffraction limit has attracted great interest in recent years. In this work, new tools for super resolution optical imaging using plasmonics are developed and demonstrated theoretically and/or experimentally: Localized Plasmonic Structured Illumination Microscopy (LPSIM) and the hyperlens.The LPSIM technique offers a significant improvement in resolution performance over existing structured illumination microscopy (SIM) methods. An array of plasmonic nano-antennas provide dynamically tunable near-field excitations, which result in a finely structured illumination pattern for a given fluorescent object of interest. The illumination pattern feature sizes are limited only by the antenna geometry, and reconstruction from simple far-field images yields deeply subwavelength resolution. In the initial theoretical and experimental demonstrations shown, resolution is improved 3-fold relative to the diffraction limit. LPSIM is attractive among competing tools due to its wide field of view, bio-compatibility, and video-rate speed capability.Imaging applications of the hyperlens are also shown in this work. A spherical, metal-dielectric multilayer geometry is used to numerically demonstrate unprecedented radial resolution at 5 nm scale for both imaging and lithography applications. Accuracy far beyond the diffraction limit in the radial direction indicates potential for three-dimensional imaging and lithography applications. Design optimization with regards to several important hyperlens parameters is explored in detail

Analisi del concetto nella prospettiva fenomenologica

Coordinamento SIBA - Università del Salent

Plasmonics for Super Resolution Optical Imaging

Imaging with resolution beyond the diffraction limit has attracted great interest in recent years. In this work, new tools for super resolution optical imaging using plasmonics are developed and demonstrated theoretically and/or experimentally: Localized Plasmonic Structured Illumination Microscopy (LPSIM) and the hyperlens.The LPSIM technique offers a significant improvement in resolution performance over existing structured illumination microscopy (SIM) methods. An array of plasmonic nano-antennas provide dynamically tunable near-field excitations, which result in a finely structured illumination pattern for a given fluorescent object of interest. The illumination pattern feature sizes are limited only by the antenna geometry, and reconstruction from simple far-field images yields deeply subwavelength resolution. In the initial theoretical and experimental demonstrations shown, resolution is improved 3-fold relative to the diffraction limit. LPSIM is attractive among competing tools due to its wide field of view, bio-compatibility, and video-rate speed capability.Imaging applications of the hyperlens are also shown in this work. A spherical, metal-dielectric multilayer geometry is used to numerically demonstrate unprecedented radial resolution at 5 nm scale for both imaging and lithography applications. Accuracy far beyond the diffraction limit in the radial direction indicates potential for three-dimensional imaging and lithography applications. Design optimization with regards to several important hyperlens parameters is explored in detail

Numerical study of hyperlenses for three-dimensional imaging and lithography.

The development of nanostructured metamaterials and the ability to engineer material dispersion has led to impressive advances in the diverse field of nanophotonics. Of interest to many is the enhanced ability to control, illuminate, and image with light on subwavelength scales. In this letter, we numerically demonstrate a hyperlens with unprecedented radial-resolution at 5 nm scale for both imaging and lithography applications. Both processes are shown to have accuracy that surpasses the Abbe diffraction limit in the radial direction, which has potential applications for 3D imaging and lithography. Design optimization is discussed with regards to several important hyperlens parameters

Numerical study of hyperlenses for three-dimensional imaging and lithography.

The development of nanostructured metamaterials and the ability to engineer material dispersion has led to impressive advances in the diverse field of nanophotonics. Of interest to many is the enhanced ability to control, illuminate, and image with light on subwavelength scales. In this letter, we numerically demonstrate a hyperlens with unprecedented radial-resolution at 5 nm scale for both imaging and lithography applications. Both processes are shown to have accuracy that surpasses the Abbe diffraction limit in the radial direction, which has potential applications for 3D imaging and lithography. Design optimization is discussed with regards to several important hyperlens parameters

Encountering Christ Through Service:

In this panel discussion moderated by Dan Ponsetto, panelists share the various ways that effective community service can lead to a stronger connection with God