The effect of surface preparation on the protective properties of Al2O3 and HfO2 thin films deposited on cp-titanium by atomic layer deposition

Atomic layer deposition (ALD), a method that allows the formation of thin and conformal films on substrates of interest, was employed to prepare thin films of alumina (Al2O3) and hafnia (HfO2), with the aim of protecting the surface of the commercially pure titanium (cp-Ti) used in biomedical applications. Prior to deposition, cp-Ti specimens have been prepared in two ways \u2013 grinding and grinding followed by polishing. Such surfaces have been denoted as rough and smooth, respectively. The thickness, composition, morphology and topography of alumina and hafnia films have been determined using ellipsometry, focused ion beam microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry and 3D profilometry. A homogeneous stoichiometric composition of alumina and hafnia was obtained with a layer thickness of ca. 150 nm. The anti-corrosive properties of ALD thin films were measured in simulated body fluid solution, using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and potentiodynamic polarization curves. The roughness of the cp-Ti surface plays an important role in the protective properties of these films, especially those of hafnia. In general, when deposited on a smooth surface, ALD films with better anti-corrosive properties were obtained, as evidenced by EIS long-term, 40-day tests. ALD films showed very low porosity, calculated from electrochemical parameters, and significantly lower corrosion current densities, compared with those from bare cp-Ti specimens. Lower porosity and slightly better protective properties were provided by films of hafnia. On the other hand, according to EIS long-term tests, alumina retained slightly greater impedance values than hafnia. Since both alumina and hafnia are biocompatible materials, this study confirms the possibility of their use to reduce the risk of failure of medical implants made of cp-Ti, in the human body environment

Implementation and performance of SIBYLS: a dual endstation small-angle X-ray scattering and macromolecular crystallography beamline at the Advanced Light Source.

The SIBYLS beamline (12.3.1) of the Advanced Light Source at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, supported by the US Department of Energy and the National Institutes of Health, is optimized for both small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and macromolecular crystallography (MX), making it unique among the world's mostly SAXS or MX dedicated beamlines. Since SIBYLS was commissioned, assessments of the limitations and advantages of a combined SAXS and MX beamline have suggested new strategies for integration and optimal data collection methods and have led to additional hardware and software enhancements. Features described include a dual mode monochromator [containing both Si(111) crystals and Mo/B(4)C multilayer elements], rapid beamline optics conversion between SAXS and MX modes, active beam stabilization, sample-loading robotics, and mail-in and remote data collection. These features allow users to gain valuable insights from both dynamic solution scattering and high-resolution atomic diffraction experiments performed at a single synchrotron beamline. Key practical issues considered for data collection and analysis include radiation damage, structural ensembles, alternative conformers and flexibility. SIBYLS develops and applies efficient combined MX and SAXS methods that deliver high-impact results by providing robust cost-effective routes to connect structures to biology and by performing experiments that aid beamline designs for next generation light sources

Global Waste Management Outlook

The Global Waste Management Outlook, a collective effort of the United Nations Environment Programme and the International Waste Management Association, is a pioneering scientific global assessment on the state of waste management and a call for action to the international community. Prepared as a follow up to the Rio+20 Summit and as a response to UNEP Governing Council decision GC 27/12, the document establishes the rationale and the tools for taking a holistic approach towards waste management and recognizing waste and resource management as a significant contributor to sustainable development and climate change mitigation. To complement the Sustainable Development Goals of the Post-2015 Development Agenda, the Outlook sets forth Global Waste Management Goals and a Global Call to Action to achieve those goals

Software for the high-throughput collection of SAXS data using an enhanced Blu-Ice/DCS control system

The Blu-Ice GUI and Distributed Control System (DCS) developed in the Macromolecular Crystallography Group at the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory has been optimized, extended and enhanced to suit the specific needs of the SAXS endstation at the SIBYLS beamline at the Advanced Light Source. The customizations reported here provide one potential route for other SAXS beamlines in need of robust and efficient beamline control software

GAME: Grb and All-sky Monitor Experiment

We describe the GRB and All-sky Monitor Experiment (GAME) mission submitted by a large international collaboration (Italy, Germany, Czech Repubblic, Slovenia, Brazil) in response to the 2012 ESA call for a small mission opportunity for a launch in 2017 and presently under further investigation for subsequent opportunities. The general scientific objective is to perform measurements of key importance for GRB science and to provide the wide astrophysical community of an advanced X-ray all-sky monitoring system. The proposed payload was based on silicon drift detectors (~1-50 keV), CdZnTe (CZT) detectors (~15-200 keV) and crystal scintillators in phoswich (NaI/CsI) configuration (~20 keV-20 MeV), three well established technologies, for a total weight of ~250 kg and a required power of ~240 W. Such instrumentation allows a unique, unprecedented and very powerful combination of large field of view (3-4 sr), a broad energy energy band extending from ~1 keV up to ~20 MeV, an energy resolution as good as ~300 eV in the 1-30 keV energy range, a source location accuracy of ~1 arcmin. The mission profile included a launch (e.g., by Vega) into a low Earth orbit, a baseline sky scanning mode plus pointed observations of regions of particular interest, data transmission to ground via X-band (4.8 Gb/orbit, Alcantara and Malindi ground stations), and prompt transmission of GRB / transient triggers.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figures, published in International Journal of Modern Physics

Genomic characterization of pediatric B‐lymphoblastic lymphoma and B‐lymphoblastic leukemia using formalin‐fixed tissues

BackgroundRecurrent genomic changes in B‐lymphoblastic leukemia (B‐ALL) identified by genome‐wide single‐nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) microarray analysis provide important prognostic information, but gene copy number analysis of its rare lymphoma counterpart, B‐lymphoblastic lymphoma (B‐LBL), is limited by the low incidence and lack of fresh tissue for genomic testing.ProcedureWe used molecular inversion probe (MIP) technology to analyze and compare copy number alterations (CNAs) in archival formalin‐fixed paraffin‐embedded pediatric B‐LBL (n = 23) and B‐ALL (n = 55).ResultsSimilar to B‐ALL, CDKN2A/B deletions were the most common alteration identified in 6/23 (26%) B‐LBL cases. Eleven of 23 (48%) B‐LBL patients were hyperdiploid, but none showed triple trisomies (chromosomes 4, 10, and 17) characteristic of B‐ALL. IKZF1 and PAX5 deletions were observed in 13 and 17% of B‐LBL, respectively, which was similar to the reported frequency in B‐ALL. Immunoglobulin light chain lambda (IGL) locus deletions consistent with normal light chain rearrangement were observed in 5/23 (22%) B‐LBL cases, compared with only 1% in B‐ALL samples. None of the B‐LBL cases showed abnormal, isolated VPREB1 deletion adjacent to IGL locus, which we identified in 25% of B‐ALL.ConclusionsOur study demonstrates that the copy number profile of B‐LBL is distinct from B‐ALL, suggesting possible differences in pathogenesis between these closely related diseases.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/137353/1/pbc26363.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/137353/2/pbc26363_am.pd