1,646 research outputs found
Numerical simulations of a ballistic spin interferometer with the Rashba spin-orbital interaction
We numerically investigate the transport behavior of a quasi one-dimension
(1D) square loop device containing the Rashba spin-orbital interaction in the
presence of a magnetic flux. The conductance versus the magnetic field shows
the Al'tshuler-Aronov-Spivak (AAS) and Aharonov-Bohm (AB) oscillations. We
focus on the oscillatory amplitudes, and find that both of them are strongly
dependent on the spin precession angle (i.e. the strength of the spin-orbit
interaction) and exhibit no-periodic oscillations, which are well in agreement
with a recent experiment by Koga et al. [cond-mat/0504743(unpublished)].
However, our numerical results for the ideal 1D square loop device for the node
positions of the amplitudes of the AB and AAS oscillations are found to be of
some discrepancies comparing with quasi-1D square loop with a finite width. In
the presence of disorder and taking the disorder ensemble average, the AB
oscillation in the conductance will disappear, while the time-reversal
symmetric AAS oscillation still remains. Furthermore, the node positions of the
AAS oscillatory amplitude remains the same.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figure
The Last Stages of Terrestrial Planet Formation: Dynamical Friction and the Late Veneer
The final stage of terrestrial planet formation consists of the cleanup of
residual planetesimals after the giant impact phase. Dynamically, a residual
planetesimal population is needed to damp the high eccentricities of the
terrestrial planets after the giant impact stage. Geochemically, highly
siderophile element (HSE) abundance patterns inferred for the terrestrial
planets and the Moon suggest that a total of about 0.01 M_Earth of chondritic
material was delivered as `late veneer' by planetesimals to the terrestrial
planets after the end of giant impacts. Here we combine these two independent
lines of evidence for a leftover population of planetesimals and show that: 1)
A residual planetesimal population containing 0.01 M_Earth is able to damp the
eccentricities of the terrestrial planets after giant impacts to their observed
values. 2) At the same time, this planetesimal population can account for the
observed relative amounts of late veneer added to the Earth, Moon and Mars
provided that the majority of the late veneer was delivered by small
planetesimals with radii <10m. These small planetesimal sizes are required to
ensure efficient damping of the planetesimal's velocity dispersion by mutual
collisions, which in turn ensures that the planets' accretion cross sections
are significantly enhanced by gravitational focusing above their geometric
values. Specifically we find, in the limit that the relative velocity between
the terrestrial planets and the planetesimals is significantly less than the
terrestrial planets' escape velocities, that gravitational focusing yields an
accretion ratio Earth/Mars~17, which agrees well with the accretion ratio
inferred from HSEs of 12-23. For the Earth-Moon system, we find an accretion
ratio of ~200, which is consistent with estimates of 150-700 derived from HSE
abundances that include the lunar crust as well as mantle component. (Abridged)Comment: accepted for publication in ApJ, 9 pages, 4 figures; minor
corrections, additional references adde
Quantitative and functional post-translational modification proteomics reveals that TREPH1 plays a role in plant thigmomorphogenesis
Plants can sense both intracellular and extracellular mechanical forces and
can respond through morphological changes. The signaling components responsible
for mechanotransduction of the touch response are largely unknown. Here, we
performed a high-throughput SILIA (stable isotope labeling in
Arabidopsis)-based quantitative phosphoproteomics analysis to profile changes
in protein phosphorylation resulting from 40 seconds of force stimulation in
Arabidopsis thaliana. Of the 24 touch-responsive phosphopeptides identified,
many were derived from kinases, phosphatases, cytoskeleton proteins, membrane
proteins and ion transporters. TOUCH-REGULATED PHOSPHOPROTEIN1 (TREPH1) and MAP
KINASE KINASE 2 (MKK2) and/or MKK1 became rapidly phosphorylated in
touch-stimulated plants. Both TREPH1 and MKK2 are required for touch-induced
delayed flowering, a major component of thigmomorphogenesis. The treph1-1 and
mkk2 mutants also exhibited defects in touch-inducible gene expression. A
non-phosphorylatable site-specific isoform of TREPH1 (S625A) failed to restore
touch-induced flowering delay of treph1-1, indicating the necessity of S625 for
TREPH1 function and providing evidence consistent with the possible functional
relevance of the touch-regulated TREPH1 phosphorylation. Bioinformatic analysis
and biochemical subcellular fractionation of TREPH1 protein indicate that it is
a soluble protein. Altogether, these findings identify new protein players in
Arabidopsis thigmomorphogenesis regulation, suggesting that protein
phosphorylation may play a critical role in plant force responses
Regression of atherosclerosis in cholesterol-fed rabbits: Effects of fish oil and verapamil
AbstractPrevious studies have shown that either fish oil or verapamil can attenuate the development of atherosclerosis in the lipid-fed rabbit. The present study was designed to evaluate the individual and combined effects of these two interventions on regression.Seventy New Zealand rabbits in seven groups (10 each) were fed a 0.3% cholesterol diet for 10 weeks. Control group C10 was then killed. Control group C20 was fed a 0.3% cholesterol diet and the other five groups were fed a normal diet for an additional 10 weeks. Group F in three treated groups received 2 ml/day of fish oil (Proto-Chol, eicosapentaenoic acid, 180 mg/ml and docosahexaenoic acid, 120 mg/ml) by gavage. Group V received verapamil, 2 g/1,000 ml drinking water, and group FV received both fish oil and verapamil for an additional 10 weeks. Group CF (control for fish oil) received 2 ml/day of water by gavage and group CV (control for verapamil) received water without gavage for an additional 10 weeks.The percent of aortic and pulmonary atherosclerosis was measured by planimetry of sudanophilic lesions. The percent of aortic lesions in the four control groups (C20, C10, CF and CV) was 57 Ā± 22, 40 Ā± 15, 40 Ā± 14 and 33 Ā± 25%, respectively. The fish oil or verapamil groups (F, V, FV) showed a significant reduction in aortic lesions: 15 Ā± 17%, p < 0.05; 16 Ā± 12%, p < 0.05; and 26 Ā± 24%, p = NS, respectively. The area of pulmonary artery lesions was significantly higher in the control group (CF, 24 Ā± 9%) than in group F (11 Ā± 9%, p < 0.05), group V (12 Ā± 9%, p < 0.05) and group FV (17 Ā± 14%, p = NS).These data demonstrate that either fish oil or verapamil can decrease atherosclerosis in cholesterol-fed rabbits placed on a normal diet. However, there was no additive effect of fish oil and verapamil. Although not statistically significant, there was a suggestive antagonistic effect between fish oil and verapamil
The MSDIN family in amanitin-producing mushrooms and evolution of the prolyl oligopeptidase genes
The biosynthetic pathway for amanitins and related cyclic peptides in deadly Amanita (Amanitace ae) mushrooms represents the first known ribosomal cyclic peptide pathway in the Fungi. Amanitins are found outside of the genus in distantly related agarics Galerina (Strophariaceae) and Lepiota (Agaricaceae). A long-standing question in the field persists: why is this pathway present in these phylogenetically disjunct agarics? Two deadly mushrooms, A. pallidorosea and A. subjunquillea, were deep sequenced, and sequences of biosynthetic genes encoding MSDINs (cyclic peptide presursor) and prolyl oligopeptidases (POPA and POPB) were obtained. The two Amanita species yielded 20 and 18 MSDINs, respectively. In addition, two MSDIN sequences were cloned from L. brunneoincarnata basidiomes. The toxin MSDIN genes encoding amatoxins or phallotoxins from the three genera were compared, and a phylogenetic tree constructed. Prolyl oligopeptidase B (POPB), a key enzyme in the biosynthetic pathway, was used in phylogenetic reconstruction to infer the evolutionary history of the genes. Phylogenenies of POPB and POPA based on both coding and amino acid sequences showed very different results: while POPA genes clearly reflected the phylogeny of the host species, POPB did not; strikingly, it formed a well supported monophyletic clade, despite that the species belong to different genera in disjunct families. POPA, a known house-keeping gene, was shown to be restricted in a branch containing on Amanita species and the phylogeny resembled that of those Amanita species. Phylogenetic analyses of MSDIN and POPB genes showed tight coordination and disjunct disdistribution. A POPB gene tree was compared with a corresponding species tree, and distances and substitution rates were compared. The results suggested POPB genes have significant smaller distances and substitution rates were compared. The result suggested POPB genes have significant smaller distances and rates than the house-keeping rpb2, discounting massive gene loss. Under this assumption, the consistently cluster Galerina and Amantia POPB genes, while Lepiota POPB is distant. Our result suggests that horizontal gene transfer (HGT), at least between Amanita and Galerian, was invovled in the acquisition of POPB genes, which may shed light on the evolution of the a-amanitin biosynthetic pathway
Retraction Note: A novel polymorphism of the GP78 gene is associated with coronary artery disease in Han population in China
Quantitative Proteomic Study of Human Lung Squamous Carcinoma and Normal Bronchial Epithelial Acquired by Laser Capture Microdissection
Objective. To investigate the differential protein profile of human lung squamous carcinoma (HLSC) and normal bronchial epithelium (NBE) and provide preliminary results for further study to explore the carcinogenic mechanism of HLSC. Methods. Laser capture microdissection (LCM) was used to purify the target cells from 10 pairs of HLSC tissues and their matched NHBE, respectively. A stable-isotope labeled strategy using iTRAQ, followed by 2D-LC/Q-STAR mass spectrometry, was performed to separate and identify the differential expression proteins. Results. A total of 96 differential expression proteins in the LCM-purified HLSC and NBE were identified. Compared with NBE, 49 proteins were upregulated and 47 proteins were downregulated in HLSC. Furthermore, the expression levels of the differential proteins including HSPB1, CKB, SCCA1, S100A8, as well as S100A9 were confirmed by western blot and tissue microarray and were consistent with the results of quantitative proteomics. Conclusion. The different expression proteins in HLSC will provide scientific foundation for further study to explore the carcinogenic mechanism of HLSC
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