24 research outputs found
Developing optofluidic technology through the fusion of microfluidics and optics
We describe devices in which optics and fluidics are used synergistically to synthesize novel functionalities. Fluidic replacement or modification leads to reconfigurable optical systems, whereas the implementation of optics through the microfluidic toolkit gives highly compact and integrated devices. We categorize optofluidics according to three broad categories of interactions: fluid-solid interfaces, purely fluidic interfaces and colloidal suspensions. We describe examples of optofluidic devices in each category. ©2006 Nature Publishing Group
Entropic Tightening of Vibrated Chains
We investigate experimentally the distribution of configurations of a ring
with an elementary topological constraint, a ``figure-8'' twist. Using vibrated
granular chains, which permit controlled preparation and direct observation of
such a constraint, we show that configurations where one of the loops is tight
and the second is large are strongly preferred. This agrees with recent
predictions for equilibrium properties of topologically-constrained polymers.
However, the dynamics of the tightening process weakly violate detailed
balance, a signature of the nonequilibrium nature of this system.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Knots in Charged Polymers
The interplay of topological constraints and Coulomb interactions in static
and dynamic properties of charged polymers is investigated by numerical
simulations and scaling arguments. In the absence of screening, the long-range
interaction localizes irreducible topological constraints into tight molecular
knots, while composite constraints are factored and separated. Even when the
forces are screened, tight knots may survive as local (or even global)
equilibria, as long as the overall rigidity of the polymer is dominated by the
Coulomb interactions. As entanglements involving tight knots are not easy to
eliminate, their presence greatly influences the relaxation times of the
system. In particular, we find that tight knots in open polymers are removed by
diffusion along the chain, rather than by opening up. The knot diffusion
coefficient actually decreases with its charge density, and for highly charged
polymers the knot's position appears frozen.Comment: Revtex4, 9 pages, 9 eps figure
Theory and experiments in polymer physics with single molecules of DNA
SIGLEAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre- DSC:D181892 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo
Single-cell DNA-methylation analysis reveals epigenetic chimerism in preimplantation embryos
10.1126/science.1240617Science34161501110-1112SCIE
Role of epithelial to mesenchymal transition associated genes in mammary gland regeneration and breast tumorigenesis
Experimental cancer immunology and therap
Single-cell dissection of transcriptional heterogeneity in human colon tumors
Cancer is often viewed as a caricature of normal developmental processes, but the extent to which its cellular heterogeneity truly recapitulates multilineage differentiation processes of normal tissues remains unknown. Here we implement single-cell PCR gene-expression analysis to dissect the cellular composition of primary human normal colon and colon cancer epithelia. We show that human colon cancer tissues contain distinct cell populations whose transcriptional identities mirror those of the different cellular lineages of normal colon. By creating monoclonal tumor xenografts from injection of a single (n = 1) cell, we demonstrate that the transcriptional diversity of cancer tissues is largely explained by in vivo multilineage differentiation and not only by clonal genetic heterogeneity. Finally, we show that the different gene-expression programs linked to multilineage differentiation are strongly associated with patient survival. We develop two-gene classifier systems (KRT20 versus CA1, MS4A12, CD177, SLC26A3) that predict clinical outcomes with hazard ratios superior to those of pathological grade and comparable to those of microarray-derived multigene expression signatures