Frequent type 2 neurofibromatosis gene transcript mutations in sporadic intramedullary spinal cord ependymomas.

OBJECTIVE: To further investigate the role of Type 2 neurofibromatosis (NF2) gene transcript mutations in the sporadically occurring counterparts of NF2-associated tumors. METHODS: Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction followed by agarose gel electrophoresis, single strand conformation polymorphism analysis, and automated deoxyribonucleic acid sequence analysis were used to screen for mutations in the NF2 gene transcript in seven unrelated patients with sporadic intramedullary spinal cord ependymomas. RESULTS: Five of seven intramedullary spinal cord ependymomas harbored detectable mutations. All of these mutations occurred in the region of the transcript that is homologous to known cytoskeletal proteins and resulted in significant truncation of the predicted protein product. CONCLUSION: Mutations of the NF2 transcript occur in the majority of sporadic intramedullary spinal cord ependymomas. These mutations are frequent in a region of the transcript that is homologous to a family of cytoskeletal proteins, and they probably render the protein product inactive. These results add to the body of knowledge concerning the role of the NF2 gene transcript in tumorigenesis

Research on stable, high-efficiency amorphous silicon multijunction modules

This report describes the progress made during Phase 1 of research and development program to obtain high-efficiency amorphous silicon alloy multijunction modules. Using a large-area deposition system, double-and triple-junction cells were made on stainless steel substrates of over 1 ft{sup 2} area with Ag and ZnO predeposited back reflector. Modules of over 1 ft{sup 2} were produced with between 9.2% and 9.9 initial aperture-area efficiencies as measured under a USSC Spire solar simulator. Efficiencies as measured under the NREL Spire solar simulator were found to be typically 15% to 18% lower. The causes for this discrepancy are now being investigated. The modules show about 15% degradation after 600 hours of one-sun illumination at 50{degrees}C. To optimize devices for higher stabilized efficiency, a new method was developed by which the performance of single-junction cells after long-term, one-sun exposure at 50{degrees}C can be predicted by exposing cells to short-term intense light at different temperatures. This method is being used to optimize the component cells of the multijunction structure to obtain the highest light-degraded efficiency