Probe Footprint Estimation in Eddy-Current Imaging

Eddy-current imaging has been described in detail in previous publications [1,2,3]. As with other imaging systems, the image of an object represents blurring of the structures of the object by the system point spread function (PSF). Differing from other imaging systems, the PSF is very large and causes great spatial blurring of the object. This is because the eddy-current probe is a coil; its active area is much greater than the size of a beam of light, sound, or x-ray

Genome-wide association of multiple complex traits in outbred mice by ultra-low-coverage sequencing

Two bottlenecks impeding the genetic analysis of complex traits in rodents are access to mapping populations able to deliver gene-level mapping resolution and the need for population-specific genotyping arrays and haplotype reference panels. Here we combine low-coverage (0.15×) sequencing with a new method to impute the ancestral haplotype space in 1,887 commercially available outbred mice. We mapped 156 unique quantitative trait loci for 92 phenotypes at a 5% false discovery rate. Gene-level mapping resolution was achieved at about one-fifth of the loci, implicating Unc13c and Pgc1a at loci for the quality of sleep, Adarb2 for home cage activity, Rtkn2 for intensity of reaction to startle, Bmp2 for wound healing, Il15 and Id2 for several T cell measures and Prkca for bone mineral content. These findings have implications for diverse areas of mammalian biology and demonstrate how genome-wide association studies can be extended via low-coverage sequencing to species with highly recombinant outbred populations

Functional appliance therapy - the experimental and clinical perspective

Eddy current imaging has been used in eddy current nondestructive testing in order to identify small surface flaws in conducting materials [1–5]. However, the conventional pancake coil probes provide blurred flaw images because the eddy current in the test material induced by the probe spreads over a larger area than the coil size. The authors first applied popular deconvolution method to blurred ECT flaw images to get clear flaw images. However, it did not work well because a small drill hole signal does not correlate linearly to slit flaw signals. So the authors have devised a new ECT method utilizing a tangential coil and computerized tomography inversion technique in order to obtain clearer ECT flaw images

Expression of phosphorylated eukaryotic initiation factor 2 alpha in neuronal apoptosis beta-amyloid toxicity

Inhibition of protein synthesis has been demonstrated in experimental ischemia. Increasing lines of evidence show that inhibiting protein translation results in apoptosis. Translation of protein is initiated by binding of initiator Met-tRNA to the 40S ribosomal subunit, which subsequently joins the 60S ribosomal subunit by hydrolyzing the GTP into GDP. The eukaryotic initiation factor 2 alpha (eIF2a)-GDP complex is released in exchange for GTP. Phosphorylation of eIF2a blocks the exchange of GTP and shutdowns protein synthesis leading to apoptosis. Since apoptosis of neurons is considered to be the one of death pathways in Alzheimer's disease (AD), this study aims to investigate whether phosphorylation of eIF2a is the key-signaling pathway leading to neuronal apoptosis in AD. Human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells treated with the calcium ionophore A23187 underwent apoptosis, as reported by other laboratories. Early after treatment of A23187, phosphorylation of eIF2a was markedly increased. Flavonoids such as genistein and quercetin suppress tumor growth by inhibiting protein synthesis. Treatment of cells with both drugs induced a marked increase in eIF2a phosphorylation. Condensation and disintegration of DNA in cells shown by nuclear staining were found after 24 h. Furthermore, cells treated with b-amyloid peptide (Ab25-35) led to phosphorylation of eIF2a, and eventually resulted in apoptosis. Taken together, the results suggest that phosphorylation of eIF2a may be a key molecular pathway leading the neuronal apoptosis. Elucidation of this pathway may reshape the therapeutic interventions against AD. Supported by Research Grant Council, Hong Kong SA

Ultrathin niobium nanofilms on fiber optical tapers – a new route towards low-loss hybrid plasmonic modes

Due to the ongoing improvement in nanostructuring technology, ultrathin metallic nanofilms have recently gained substantial attention in plasmonics, e.g. as building blocks of metasurfaces. Typically, noble metals such as silver or gold are the materials of choice, due to their excellent optical properties, however they also possess some intrinsic disadvantages. Here, we introduce niobium nanofilms (~10 nm thickness) as an alternate plasmonic platform. We demonstrate functionality by depositing a niobium nanofilm on a plasmonic fiber taper, and observe a dielectric-loaded niobium surface-plasmon excitation for the first time, with a modal attenuation of only 3–4 dB/mm in aqueous environment and a refractive index sensitivity up to 15 μm/RIU if the analyte index exceeds 1.42. We show that the niobium nanofilm possesses bulk optical properties, is continuous, homogenous, and inert against any environmental influence, thus possessing several superior properties compared to noble metal nanofilms. These results demonstrate that ultrathin niobium nanofilms can serve as a new platform for biomedical diagnostics, superconducting photonics, ultrathin metasurfaces or new types of optoelectronic devices