Reply to ``Comment on ``Lateral Casimir Force beyond the Proximity Force Approximation'' ''

We reply to the comment arXiv:quant-ph/0702060 on our letter arXiv:quant-ph/0603120 [Phys. Rev. Lett. 96, 100402 (2006)]Comment: 1 pag

Lateral Casimir force beyond the Proximity Force Approximation

We argue that the appropriate variable to study a non trivial geometry dependence of the Casimir force is the lateral component of the Casimir force, which we evaluate between two corrugated metallic plates outside the validity of the Proximity Force Approximation (PFA). The metallic plates are described by the plasma model, with arbitrary values for the plasma wavelength, the plate separation and the corrugation period, the corrugation amplitude remaining the smallest length scale. Our analysis shows that in realistic experimental situations the Proximity Force Approximation overestimates the force by up to 30%.Comment: 4 pages. Identical to v1, which was accidentally replaced by a different paper (quant-ph/0610026

Engineered non-invasive functionalized dendrimer/dendron-entrapped/complexed gold nanoparticles as a novel class of theranostic (radio)pharmaceuticals in cancer therapy

Nanomedicine represents a very significant contribution in current cancer treatment; in addition to surgical intervention, radiation and chemotherapeutic agents that unfortunately also kill healthy cells, inducing highly deleterious and often life-threatening side effects in the patient. Of the numerous nanoparticles used against cancer, gold nanoparticles had been developed for therapeutic applications. Inter alia, a large variety of den drimers, i.e. soft artificial macromolecules, have turned up as non-viral functional nanocarriers for entrapping drugs, imaging agents, and targeting molecules. This review will provide insights into the design, synthesis, functionalization, and development in biomedicine of engineered functionalized hybrid dendrimer-tangled gold nanoparticles in the domain of cancer theranostic. Several aspects are highlighted and discussed such as 1) dendrimer-entrapped gold(0) hybrid nanoparticles for the targeted imaging and treatment of cancer cells, 2) dendrimer encapsulating gold(0) nanoparticles (Au DENPs) for the delivery of genes, 3) Au DENPs for drug delivery applications, 4) dendrimer encapsulating gold radioactive nanoparticles for radiotherapy, and 5) dendrimer/dendron-complexed gold(III) nanoparticles as technologies to take down cancer cells.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Superstructured poly(amidoamine) dendrimer-based nanoconstructs as platforms for cancer nanomedicine: a concise review

Poly(amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimers, as a family of synthetic macromolecules with highly branched interiors, abundant surface functional groups, and well-controlled architecture, have received immense scientific and technological interests for a range of biomedical applications, in particular cancer nanome dicine. However, due to the drawbacks of single-generation dendrimers with a quite small size (e.g., gen eration 5 (G5) PAMAM dendrimer has a size of 5.4 nm) such as limited drug loading capacity, restricted tumor passive targeting based on enhanced permeability and retention effect, and lack of versatility to render them with stimuli-responsiveness, superstructured dendrimeric nanoconstructs (SDNs) have been designed to break through these obstacles in their applications in cancer nanomedicine. Here, we review the recent advances related to the creation of SDNs such as dendrimer dumbbells, core–shell tecto den drimers, dendrimer nanoclusters (NCs), dendrimer nanogels and dendrimer-templated hybrid NCs, and how these SDNs have been designed as nanoplatforms for different biomedical applications related to cancer nanomedicine including MR imaging, drug/gene delivery, combination therapy and theranostics. This review concisely describes the latest key developments in the field and also discusses the possible challenges and perspectives for translation applications.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Carbon and water vapor fluxes over four forests in two contrasting climatic zones

AbstractThe inter- and seasonal patterns of water vapor and canopy carbon fluxes were compared for four forest ecosystems in two contrasting climatic zones in Europe. The eddy covariance and ancillary data were taken from the Carboeurope and FLUXNET databases and a linear modeling statistical analysis was made. The four sites were a high-density poplar (Populus spp.) short rotation coppice plantation (in Lochristi, Belgium) and a mature Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) forest (in Brasschaat, Belgium) in the Temperate climate versus a fast-growing Eucalypt (Eucalyptus) plantation (in Espirra, Portugal) and a Holm oak (Quercus ilex) forest (in Puechabon, France) in the Mediterranean climate.•The Eucalypt stand showed an efficient stomatal control in response to changes in vapor pressure deficit (VPD), suggesting an ideal adaptation of this species to the severe Mediterranean climate.•The fast-growing poplar stand did not show a similar stomatal control under conditions of moderate water stress. But during an intensive dry period a decrease in the development of the leaf area index (LAI) was observed.•The Holm oak stand showed a low GPP, which is typical for a low productive species with a long rotation cycle. The GPP showed low diurnal variability, even under high solar radiation. This behavior suggested a strong stomatal control caused by the severe water stress, a mechanism that allowed this stand to cope with diurnal and seasonal water deficits.•The mature Scots pine forest in the Temperate climate showed no variation in the GPP – radiation relationship. In this forest no water stress was observed, probably because the trees always had access to the water table. Irrespective of the climate the evapotranspiration of the Scots pine forest presented a tight coupling with the atmosphere, i.e. a low decoupling factor, Ω, comparable with the Holm oak and the Eucalypt forests.The high Ω values of the young poplar plantation were not typical for forest canopies. These values confirmed the strong influence of solar radiation and available energy on evapotranspiration and on the dynamics of this fast-developing canopy. At all four sites the forests showed their capacity to react to the environmental drivers, characteristic from their respective climatic types. However, drastic climatic changes – such as heat waves or long drought spells – may compromise the productivity of fast-growing plantations such as the Eucalypt and poplar stands. The response of the poplars to these events is mainly achieved through LAI control in contrast to the stomatal control in the Eucalypts

Refining understanding of working memory buffers through the construct of binding:Evidence from a single case informs theory and clinical practice

International audienceBinding operations carried out in working memory enable the integration of information from different sources during online performance. While available evidence suggests that working memory may involve distinct binding functions, whether or not they all involve the episodic buffer as a cognitive substrate remains unclear. Similarly, knowledge about the neural underpinnings of working memory buffers is limited, more specifically regarding the involvement of medial temporal lobe structures. In the present study, we report on the case of patient KA, with developmental amnesia and selective damage to the whole hippocampal system. We found that KA was unable to hold shape-colours associations (relational binding) in working memory. In contrast, he could hold integrated coloured shapes (conjunctive binding) in two different tasks. Otherwise, and as expected, KA was impaired on three relational memory tasks thought to depend on the hippocampus that are widely used in the early detection of Alzheimer's disease. Our results emphasize a dissociation between two binding processes within working memory, suggesting that the visuo-spatial sketchpad could support conjunctive binding, and may rely upon a large cortical network including sub-hippocampal structures. By contrast, we found evidence for a selective impairment of relational binding in working memory when the hippocampal system is compromised, suggesting that the long-term memory deficit observed in amnesic patients may be related to impaired short-term relational binding at encoding. Finally, these findings may inform research on the early detection of Alzheimer's disease as the preservation of conjunctive binding in KA is in sharp contrast with the impaired performance demonstrated very early in this disease

Casimir torque between corrugated metallic plates

We consider two parallel corrugated plates and show that a Casimir torque arises when the corrugation directions are not aligned. We follow the scattering approach and calculate the Casimir energy up to second order in the corrugation amplitudes, taking into account nonspecular reflections, polarization mixing and the finite conductivity of the metals. We compare our results with the proximity force approximation, which overestimates the torque by a factor 2 when taking the conditions that optimize the effect. We argue that the Casimir torque could be measured for separation distances as large as 1 $\mu{\rm m}.$Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures, contribution to QFEXT07 proceeding

Identification of Differential Responses of Goat PBMCs to PPRV Virulence Using a Multi-Omics Approach.

Peste des petits ruminants (PPR) is an acute transboundary infectious viral disease of small ruminants, mainly sheep and goats. Host susceptibility varies considerably depending on the PPR virus (PPRV) strain, the host species and breed. The effect of strains with different levels of virulence on the modulation of the immune system has not been thoroughly compared in an experimental setting so far. In this study, we used a multi-omics approach to investigate the host cellular factors involved in different infection phenotypes. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from Saanen goats were activated with a T-cell mitogen and infected with PPRV strains of different virulence: Morocco 2008 (high virulence), Ivory Coast 1989 (low virulence) and Nigeria 75/1 (live attenuated vaccine strain). Our results showed that the highly virulent strain replicated better than the other two in PBMCs and rapidly induced cell death and a stronger inhibition of lymphocyte proliferation. However, all the strains affected lymphocyte proliferation and induced upregulation of key antiviral genes and proteins, meaning a classical antiviral response is orchestrated regardless of the virulence of the PPRV strain. On the other hand, the highly virulent strain induced stronger inflammatory responses and activated more genes related to lymphocyte migration and recruitment, and inflammatory processes. Both transcriptomic and proteomic approaches were successful in detecting viral and antiviral effectors under all conditions. The present work identified key immunological factors related to PPRV virulence in vitro

Dendrimers toward translational nanotherapeutics: concise key step analysis

The goal of nanomedicine is to address specific clinical problems optimally, to fight human diseases, and to find clinical relevance to change clinical practice. Nanomedicine is poised to revolutionize medicine via the development of more precise diagnostic and therapeutic tools. The field of nanomedicine encompasses numerous features and therapeutic disciplines. A plethora of nanomolecular structures have been engineered and developed for therapeutic applications based on their multitasking abilities and the wide functionalization of their core scaffolds and surface groups. Within nanoparticles used for nanomedicine, dendrimers as well polymers have demonstrated strong potential as nanocarriers, therapeutic agents, and imaging contrast agents. In this review, we present and discuss the different criteria and parameters to be addressed to prepare and develop druggable nanoparticles in general and dendrimers in particular. We also describe the major requirements, included in the preclinical and clinical roadmap, for NPs/dendrimers for the preclinical stage to commercialization. Ultimately, we raise the clinical translation of new nanomedicine issues.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio