Optimised co-electrodeposition of Fe-Ga alloys for maximum magnetostriction effect

AbstractThe article reports the electrochemical deposition and characterisation of a 600nm thick Fe–Ga alloy film plated on a 20μm thick copper cantilever. The co-electrodeposition process was optimised for the production of Fe–Ga in the ratio of 81% Fe to 19% Ga, which is known to maximize the magnetostriction (MS) effect. The foil was cut into 1mm wide and 5mm long cantilevers and the deflection was measured with DC co-planar magnetic field intensities ranging from 0 to 60kA/m. The maximum strain coefficient λ was measured to be 96ppm for a field strength range 58kA/m. The field strain plot over exhibits a typical second order magnetically induced strain curve, as seen in other magnetostrictive materials

Microcalorimetry and spectroscopic studies on the binding of dye janus green blue to deoxyribonucleic acid

The interaction of the phenazinium dye janus green blue (JGB) with deoxyribonucleic acid was investigated using isothermal titration calorimetry and thermal melting experiments. The calorimetric data were supplemented by spectroscopic studies. Calorimetry results suggested the binding affinity of the dye to DNA to be of the order of 105 M-1. The binding was predominantly entropy driven with a small negative favorable enthalpy contribution to the standard molar Gibbs energy change.The binding became weaker as the temperature and salt concentration was raised. The temperature dependence of the standard molar enthalpy changes yielded negative values of standard molar heat capacity change for the complexation revealing substantial hydrophobic contribution in the DNA binding. An enthalpy–entropy compensation behavior was also observed in the system. The salt dependence of the binding yielded the release of 0.69 number of cations on binding of each dye molecule. The non-polyelectrolytic contribution was found to be the predominant force in the binding interaction. Thermal melting studies revealed that the DNA helix was stabilized against denaturation by the dye. The binding was also characterized by absorbance, resonance light scattering and circular dichroism spectral measurements. The binding constants from the spectral results were close to those obtained from the calorimetric data. The energetic aspects of the interaction of the dye JGB to double stranded DNA are supported by strong binding revealed from the spectral data

In Vivo Characterization of a Wireless Telemetry Module for a Capsule Endoscopy System Utilizing a Conformal Antenna

This paper describes the design, fabrication, packaging, and performance characterization of a conformal helix antenna created on the outside of a 10 mm ×30 mm capsule endoscope designed to operate at a carrier frequency of 433 MHz within human tissue. Wireless data transfer was established between the integrated capsule system and an external receiver. The telemetry system was tested within a tissue phantom and in vivo porcine models. Two different types of transmission modes were tested. The first mode, replicating normal operating conditions, used data packets at a steady power level of 0 dBm, while the capsule was being withdrawn at a steady rate from the small intestine. The second mode, replicating the worst-case clinical scenario of capsule retention within the small bowel, sent data with stepwise increasing power levels of –10, 0, 6, and 10 dBm, with the capsule fixed in position. The temperature of the tissue surrounding the external antenna was monitored at all times using thermistors embedded within the capsule shell to observe potential safety issues. The recorded data showed, for both modes of operation, a low error transmission of 10−3 packet error rate and 10−5 bit error rate and no temperature increase of the tissue according to IEEE standards

Autoinflammatory periodic fever, immunodeficiency, and thrombocytopenia (PFIT) caused by mutation in actin-regulatory gene WDR1

The importance of actin dynamics in the activation of the inflammasome is becoming increasingly apparent. IL-1β, which is activated by the inflammasome, is known to be central to the pathogenesis of many monogenic autoinflammatory diseases. However, evidence from an autoinflammatory murine model indicates that IL-18, the other cytokine triggered by inflammasome activity, is important in its own right. In this model, autoinflammation was caused by mutation in the actin regulatory gene WDR1 We report a homozygous missense mutation in WDR1 in two siblings causing periodic fevers with immunodeficiency and thrombocytopenia. We found impaired actin dynamics in patient immune cells. Patients had high serum levels of IL-18, without a corresponding increase in IL-18-binding protein or IL-1β, and their cells also secreted more IL-18 but not IL-1β in culture. We found increased caspase-1 cleavage within patient monocytes indicative of increased inflammasome activity. We transfected HEK293T cells with pyrin and wild-type and mutated WDR1 Mutant protein formed aggregates that appeared to accumulate pyrin; this could potentially precipitate inflammasome assembly. We have extended the findings from the mouse model to highlight the importance of WDR1 and actin regulation in the activation of the inflammasome, and in human autoinflammation

A Coarse-Grained Biophysical Model of E. coli and Its Application to Perturbation of the rRNA Operon Copy Number

We propose a biophysical model of Escherichia coli that predicts growth rate and an effective cellular composition from an effective, coarse-grained representation of its genome. We assume that E. coli is in a state of balanced exponential steadystate growth, growing in a temporally and spatially constant environment, rich in resources. We apply this model to a series of past measurements, where the growth rate and rRNA-to-protein ratio have been measured for seven E. coli strains with an rRNA operon copy number ranging from one to seven (the wild-type copy number). These experiments show that growth rate markedly decreases for strains with fewer than six copies. Using the model, we were able to reproduce these measurements. We show that the model that best fits these data suggests that the volume fraction of macromolecules inside E. coli is not fixed when the rRNA operon copy number is varied. Moreover, the model predicts that increasing the copy number beyond seven results in a cytoplasm densely packed with ribosomes and proteins. Assuming that under such overcrowded conditions prolonged diffusion times tend to weaken binding affinities, the model predicts that growth rate will not increase substantially beyond the wild-type growth rate, as indicated by other experiments. Our model therefore suggests that changing the rRNA operon copy number of wild-type E. coli cells growing in a constant rich environment does not substantially increase their growth rate. Other observations regarding strains with an altered rRNA operon copy number, such as nucleoid compaction and the rRNA operon feedback response, appear to be qualitatively consistent with this model. In addition, we discuss possible design principles suggested by the model and propose further experiments to test its validity

The human body at cellular resolution: the NIH Human Biomolecular Atlas Program

Abstract: Transformative technologies are enabling the construction of three-dimensional maps of tissues with unprecedented spatial and molecular resolution. Over the next seven years, the NIH Common Fund Human Biomolecular Atlas Program (HuBMAP) intends to develop a widely accessible framework for comprehensively mapping the human body at single-cell resolution by supporting technology development, data acquisition, and detailed spatial mapping. HuBMAP will integrate its efforts with other funding agencies, programs, consortia, and the biomedical research community at large towards the shared vision of a comprehensive, accessible three-dimensional molecular and cellular atlas of the human body, in health and under various disease conditions