Resolving spin, valley, and moir\'e quasi-angular momentum of interlayer excitons in WSe2/WS2 heterostructures

Moir\'e superlattices provide a powerful way to engineer properties of electrons and excitons in two-dimensional van der Waals heterostructures. The moir\'e effect can be especially strong for interlayer excitons, where electrons and holes reside in different layers and can be addressed separately. In particular, it was recently proposed that the moir\'e superlattice potential not only localizes interlayer exciton states at different superlattice positions, but also hosts an emerging moir\'e quasi-angular momentum (QAM) that periodically switches the optical selection rules for interlayer excitons at different moir\'e sites. Here we report the observation of multiple interlayer exciton states coexisting in a WSe2/WS2 moir\'e superlattice and unambiguously determine their spin, valley, and moir\'e QAM through novel resonant optical pump-probe spectroscopy and photoluminescence excitation spectroscopy. We demonstrate that interlayer excitons localized at different moir\'e sites can exhibit opposite optical selection rules due to the spatially-varying moir\'e QAM. Our observation reveals new opportunities to engineer interlayer exciton states and valley physics with moir\'e superlattices for optoelectronic and valleytronic applications

Overtaking Safety Evaluation and Setting of Auxiliary Lane on Two-Lane Highway in China

Overtaking experiments on four two-lane highways were conducted. The data of overtaking conflict time (the time difference between the time of driving back to the original lane and the time of meeting with the first opposing vehicle) and experimental drivers’ risk feeling were observed. Membership was adopted to denote the experimental drivers’ risk feelings which also denote the severity of traffic conflict. Membership ranges from 0 to 1 and corresponding risk becomes higher; that is, traffic conflict becomes more serious. According to the observed relationship between overtaking conflict time, and drivers’ risk feeling membership, Cauchy distribution function was adopted as membership function. The thresholds of the severity of traffic conflict were determined through Delphi method. The relationship model among traffic volume, overtaking conflict time and design speed was established according to experimental data. Then the idea of setting auxiliary lane on two-lane highway in China was presented. And the traffic volume values that need setting auxiliary lane corresponding to different design speed and traffic conflict degree were given according to the established model. It is expected to improve the traffic safety level of two-lane highway in China through setting auxiliary lane

Systematic Comparison of Constitutive Promoters and the Doxycycline-Inducible Promoter

Constitutive promoters are used routinely to drive ectopic gene expression. Here, we carried out a systematic comparison of eight commonly used constitutive promoters (SV40, CMV, UBC, EF1A, PGK and CAGG for mammalian systems, and COPIA and ACT5C for Drosophila systems). We also included in the comparison the TRE promoter, which can be activated by the rtTA transcriptional activator in a doxycycline-inducible manner. To make our findings representative, we conducted the comparison in a variety of cell types derived from several species. We found that these promoters vary considerably from one another in their strength. Most promoters have fairly consistent strengths across different cell types, but the CMV promoter can vary considerably from cell type to cell type. At maximal induction, the TRE promoter is comparable to a strong constitutive promoter. These results should facilitate more rational choices of promoters in ectopic gene expression studies.</p

Systematic Comparison of Constitutive Promoters and the Doxycycline-Inducible Promoter

Constitutive promoters are used routinely to drive ectopic gene expression. Here, we carried out a systematic comparison of eight commonly used constitutive promoters (SV40, CMV, UBC, EF1A, PGK and CAGG for mammalian systems, and COPIA and ACT5C for Drosophila systems). We also included in the comparison the TRE promoter, which can be activated by the rtTA transcriptional activator in a doxycycline-inducible manner. To make our findings representative, we conducted the comparison in a variety of cell types derived from several species. We found that these promoters vary considerably from one another in their strength. Most promoters have fairly consistent strengths across different cell types, but the CMV promoter can vary considerably from cell type to cell type. At maximal induction, the TRE promoter is comparable to a strong constitutive promoter. These results should facilitate more rational choices of promoters in ectopic gene expression studies

Rapid detection of newly isolated Tembusu-related Flavivirus by reverse-transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification assay

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>From April 2010 to January 2011, a severe new viral disease had devastated most duck-farming regions in China. This disease affected not only laying ducks but also meat ducks, causing huge economic losses for the poultry industry. The objective of this study is to develop a one-step reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) assay for the detection of the new virus related to Tembusu-related Flavivirus.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The RT-LAMP assay is very simple and rapid, and the amplification can be completed within 50 min under isothermal conditions at 63°C by a set of 6 primers targeting the E gene based on the sequences analysis of the newly isolated viruses and other closely related Flavivirus.The monitoring of gene amplification can also be visualized by using SYBR green I fluorescent dye. In addition, the RT-LAMP assay for newly isolated Tembusu-related Flavivirus showed higher sensitivity with an RNA detection-limit of 2 copies/μL compared with 190 copies/μL of the conventional RT-PCR method. The specificity was identified without cross reaction to other common avian pathogens. By screening a panel of clinical samples this method was more feasible in clinical settings and there was higher positive coincidence rate than conventional RT-PCR and virus isolation.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The RT-LAMP assay for newly isolated Tembusu-related Flavivirus is a valuable tool for the rapid and real-time detection not only in well-equipped laboratories but also in general conditions.</p

High-level expression and purification of soluble recombinant FGF21 protein by SUMO fusion in Escherichia coli

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) is a promising drug candidate to combat metabolic diseases. However, high-level expression and purification of recombinant FGF21 (rFGF21) in <it>Escherichia coli (E. coli) </it>is difficult because rFGF21 forms inclusion bodies in the bacteria making it difficult to purify and obtain high concentrations of bioactive rFGF21. To overcome this problem, we fused the <it>FGF21 </it>with <it>SUMO </it>(Small ubiquitin-related modifier) by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and expressed the fused gene in <it>E. coli </it>BL21(DE3).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>By inducing with IPTG, SUMO-FGF21 was expressed at a high level. Its concentration reached 30% of total protein, and exceeded 95% of all soluble proteins. The fused protein was purified by DEAE sepharose FF and Ni-NTA affinity chromatography. Once cleaved by the SUMO protease, the purity of rFGF21 by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was shown to be higher than 96% with low endotoxin level (<1.0 EU/ml). The results of <it>in vivo </it>animal experiments showed that rFGF21 produced by using this method, could decrease the concentration of plasma glucose in diabetic rats by streptozotocin (STZ) injection.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This study demonstrated that SUMO, when fused with FGF21, was able to promote its soluble expression of the latter in <it>E. coli</it>, making it more convenient to purify rFGF21 than previously. This may be a better method to produce rFGF21 for pharmaceutical research and development.</p

Nonlinear Dispersion Relation and Out-of-Plane Second Harmonic Generation in MoSSe and WSSe Janus Monolayers

Janus transition metal dichalcogenides are an emerging class of atomically thin materials with engineered broken mirror symmetry that gives rise to long-lived dipolar excitons, Rashba splitting, and topologically protected solitons. They hold great promise as a versatile nonlinear optical platform due to their broadband harmonic generation tunability, ease of integration on photonic structures, and nonlinearities beyond the basal crystal plane. Here, we study second and third harmonic generation in MoSSe and WSSe Janus monolayers. We use polarization-resolved spectroscopy to map the full second-order susceptibility tensor of MoSSe, including its out-of-plane components. In addition, we measure the effective third-order susceptibility, and the second-order nonlinear dispersion close to exciton resonances for both MoSSe and WSSe at room and cryogenic temperatures. Our work sets a bedrock for understanding the nonlinear optical properties of Janus transition metal dichalcogenides and probing their use in the next-generation on-chip multifaceted photonic devices.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures. SI: 8 pages, 5 figure

Reaching the Excitonic Limit in 2D Janus Monolayers by In Situ Deterministic Growth.

Named after the two-faced Roman god of transitions, transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD) Janus monolayers have two different chalcogen surfaces, inherently breaking the out-of-plane mirror symmetry. The broken mirror symmetry and the resulting potential gradient lead to the emergence of quantum properties such as the Rashba effect and the formation of dipolar excitons. Experimental access to these quantum properties, however, hinges on the ability to produce high-quality 2D Janus monolayers. Here, these results introduce a holistic 2D Janus synthesis technique that allows real-time monitoring of the growth process. This prototype chamber integrates in situ spectroscopy, offering fundamental insights into the structural evolution and growth kinetics, that allow the evaluation and optimization of the quality of Janus monolayers. The versatility of this method is demonstrated by synthesizing and monitoring the conversion of SWSe, SNbSe, and SMoSe Janus monolayers. Deterministic conversion and real-time data collection further aid in conversion of exfoliated TMDs to Janus monolayers and unparalleled exciton linewidth values are reached, compared to the current best standard. The results offer an insight into the process kinetics and aid in the development of new Janus monolayers with high optical quality, which is much needed to access their exotic properties