bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Chromium inhibition and size-selected Au nanocluster catalysis for the solution growth of low-density ZnO nanowires
Authors: Errico Vito , Arrabito Giuseppe , Plant Simon R. , Medaglia Pier Gianni , Palmer Richard E. , Falconi Christian 
Published: July 2015

AbstractThe wet chemical synthesis of nanostructures has many crucial advantages over high-temperature methods, including simplicity, low-cost and deposition on almost arbitrary substrates. Nevertheless, the density-controlled solution growth of nanowires still remains a challenge, especially at the low densities (e.g. 1 to 10 nanowires/100 μm2) required, as an example, for intracellular analyses. Here, we demonstrate the solution-growth of ZnO nanowires using a thin chromium film as a nucleation inhibitor and Au size-selected nanoclusters (SSNCs) as catalytic particles for which the density and, in contrast with previous reports, size can be accurately controlled. Our results also provide evidence that the enhanced ZnO hetero-nucleation is dominated by Au SSNCs catalysis rather than by layer adaptation. The proposed approach only uses low temperatures (≤70 °C) and is therefore suitable for any substrate, including printed circuit boards (PCBs) and the plastic substrates which are routinely used for cell cultures. As a proof-of-concept we report the density-controlled synthesis of ZnO nanowires on flexible PCBs, thus opening the way to assembling compact intracellular-analysis systems, including nanowires, electronics and microfluidics, on a single substrate.
Identification of Drosophila Mutants Affecting Defense to an Entomopathogenic Fungus
Authors: Lu Hsiao-Ling , Wang Jonathan B. , Brown Markus A. , Euerle Christopher , St. Leger Raymond J. 
Published: July 2015

AbstractFungi cause the majority of insect disease. However, to date attempts to model host–fungal interactions with Drosophila have focused on opportunistic human pathogens. Here, we performed a screen of 2,613 mutant Drosophila lines to identify host genes affecting susceptibility to the natural insect pathogen Metarhizium anisopliae (Ma549). Overall, 241 (9.22%) mutant lines had altered resistance to Ma549. Life spans ranged from 3.0 to 6.2 days, with females being more susceptible than males in all lines. Speed of kill correlated with within-host growth and onset of sporulation, but total spore production is decoupled from host genotypes. Results showed that mutations affected the ability of Drosophila to restrain rather than tolerate infections and suggested trade-offs between antifungal and antibacterial genes affecting cuticle and gut structural barriers. Approximately, 13% of mutations where in genes previously associated with host pathogen interactions. These encoded fast-acting immune responses including coagulation, phagocytosis, encapsulation and melanization but not the slow-response induction of anti-fungal peptides. The non-immune genes impact a wide variety of biological functions, including behavioral traits. Many have human orthologs already implicated in human disorders; while others were mutations in protein and non-protein coding genes for which disease resistance was the first biological annotation.
Rap2B promotes proliferation, migration and invasion of human breast cancer through calcium-related ERK1/2 signaling pathway
Authors: Di Jiehui , Huang Hui , Qu Debao , Tang Juangjuan , Cao Wenjia , Lu Zheng , Cheng Qian , Yang Jing , Bai Jin , Zhang Yanping , Zheng Junnian 
Published: July 2015

AbstractRap2B, a member of GTP-binding proteins, is widely upregulated in many types of tumors and promotes migration and invasion of human suprarenal epithelioma. However, the function of Rap2B in breast cancer is unknown. Expression of Rap2B was examined in breast cancer cell lines and human normal breast cell line using Western blot analysis. Using the CCK-8 cell proliferation assay, cell cycle analysis and transwell migration assay, we also elucidated the role of Rap2B in breast cancer cell proliferation, migration and invasion. Results showed that the expression of Rap2B is higher in tumor cells than in normal cells. Flow cytometry and Western blot analysis revealed that Rap2B elevates the intracellular calcium level and further promotes extracellular signal-related kinase (ERK) 1/2 phosphorylation. By contrast, calcium chelator BAPTM/AM and MEK inhibitor (U0126) can reverse Rap2B-induced ERK1/2 phosphorylation. Furthermore, Rap2B knockdown inhibits cell proliferation, migration and invasion abilities via calcium related-ERK1/2 signaling. In addition, overexpression of Rap2B promotes cell proliferation, migration and invasion abilities, which could be neutralized by BAPTM/AM and U0126. Taken together, these findings shed light on Rap2B as a therapeutic target for breast cancer.
Multiple B-cell epitope vaccine induces a Staphylococcus enterotoxin B-specific IgG1 protective response against MRSA infection
Authors: Zhao Zhuo , Sun He-Qiang , Wei Shan-Shan , Li Bin , Feng Qiang , Zhu Jiang , Zeng Hao , Zou Quan-Ming , Wu Chao 
Published: July 2015

AbstractNo vaccine against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has been currently approved for use in humans. Staphylococcus enterotoxin B (SEB) is one of the most potent MRSA exotoxins. In the present study, we evaluated the efficacy and immunologic mechanisms of an SEB multiple B-cell epitope vaccine against MRSA infection. Synthetic overlapping peptide ELISA identified three novel B-cell immunodominant SEB epitopes (in addition to those previously known): SEB31–48, SEB133–150 and SEB193–210. Six B-cell immunodominant epitopes (amino acid residues 31–48, 97–114, 133–150, 193–210, 205–222 and 247–261) were sufficient to induce robust IgG1/IgG2b-specific protective responses against MRSA infection. Therefore, we constructed a recombinant MRSA SEB-specific multiple B-cell epitope vaccine Polypeptides by combining the six SEB immunodominant epitopes and demonstrated its ability to induce a robust SEB-specific IgG1 response to MRSA, as well as a Th2-directing isotype response. Moreover, Polypeptides-induced antisera stimulated synergetic opsonophagocytosis killing of MRSA. Most importantly, Polypeptides was more effective at clearing the bacteria in MRSA-infected mice than the whole SEB antigen and was able to successfully protect mice from infection by various clinical MRSA isolates. Altogether, these results support further evaluation of the SEB multiple B-cell epitope-vaccine to address MRSA infection in humans.
One Dimensional Graphitic Carbon Nitrides as Effective Metal-Free Oxygen Reduction Catalysts
Authors: Tahir Muhammad , Mahmood Nasir , Zhu Jinghan , Mahmood Asif , Butt Faheem K. , Rizwan Syed , Aslam Imran , Tanveer M. , Idrees Faryal , Shakir Imran , Cao Chuanbao , Hou Yanglong 
Published: July 2015

AbstractTo explore the effect of morphology on catalytic properties of graphitic carbon nitride (GCN), we have studied oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) performance of two different morphologies of GCN in alkaline media. Among both, tubular GCN react with dissolved oxygen in the ORR with an onset potential close to commercial Pt/C. Furthermore, the higher stability and excellent methanol tolerance of tubular GCN compared to Pt/C emphasizes its suitability for fuel cells.
Highly sensitive transient absorption imaging of graphene and graphene oxide in living cells and circulating blood
Authors: Li Junjie , Zhang Weixia , Chung Ting-Fung , Slipchenko Mikhail N. , Chen Yong P. , Cheng Ji-Xin , Yang Chen 
Published: July 2015

AbstractWe report a transient absorption (TA) imaging method for fast visualization and quantitative layer analysis of graphene and GO. Forward and backward imaging of graphene on various substrates under ambient condition was imaged with a speed of 2 μs per pixel. The TA intensity linearly increased with the layer number of graphene. Real-time TA imaging of GO in vitro with capability of quantitative analysis of intracellular concentration and ex vivo in circulating blood were demonstrated. These results suggest that TA microscopy is a valid tool for the study of graphene based materials.
Spider foraging strategy affects trophic cascades under natural and drought conditions
Authors: Liu Shengjie , Chen Jin , Gan Wenjin , Schaefer Douglas , Gan Jianmin , Yang Xiaodong 
Published: July 2015

AbstractSpiders can cause trophic cascades affecting litter decomposition rates. However, it remains unclear how spiders with different foraging strategies influence faunal communities, or present cascading effects on decomposition. Furthermore, increased dry periods predicted in future climates will likely have important consequences for trophic interactions in detritus-based food webs. We investigated independent and interactive effects of spider predation and drought on litter decomposition in a tropical forest floor. We manipulated densities of dominant spiders with actively hunting or sit-and-wait foraging strategies in microcosms which mimicked the tropical-forest floor. We found a positive trophic cascade on litter decomposition was triggered by actively hunting spiders under ambient rainfall, but sit-and-wait spiders did not cause this. The drought treatment reversed the effect of actively hunting spiders on litter decomposition. Under drought conditions, we observed negative trophic cascade effects on litter decomposition in all three spider treatments. Thus, reduced rainfall can alter predator-induced indirect effects on lower trophic levels and ecosystem processes and is an example of how such changes may alter trophic cascades in detritus-based webs of tropical forests.
“Do-it-yourself in vitro vasculature that recapitulates in vivo geometries for investigating endothelial-blood cell interactions”
Authors: Mannino Robert G. , Myers David R. , Ahn Byungwook , Wang Yichen , Margo Rollins  , Gole Hope , Lin Angela S. , Guldberg Robert E. , Giddens Don P. , Timmins Lucas H. , Lam Wilbur A. 
Published: July 2015

AbstractInvestigating biophysical cellular interactions in the circulation currently requires choosing between in vivo models, which are difficult to interpret due in part to the hemodynamic and geometric complexities of the vasculature; or in vitro systems, which suffer from non-physiologic assumptions and/or require specialized microfabrication facilities and expertise. To bridge that gap, we developed an in vitro “do-it-yourself” perfusable vasculature model that recapitulates in vivo geometries, such as aneurysms, stenoses and bifurcations and supports endothelial cell culture. These inexpensive, disposable devices can be created rapidly (<2 hours) with high precision and repeatability, using standard off-the-shelf laboratory supplies. Using these “endothelialized” systems, we demonstrate that spatial variation in vascular cell adhesion molecule (VCAM-1) expression correlates with the wall shear stress patterns of vascular geometries. We further observe that the presence of endothelial cells in stenoses reduces platelet adhesion but increases sickle cell disease (SCD) red blood cell (RBC) adhesion in bifurcations. Overall, our method enables researchers from all disciplines to study cellular interactions in physiologically relevant, yet simple-to-make, in vitro vasculature models.
Predominant structural configuration of natural antibody repertoires enables potent antibody responses against protein antigens
Authors: Chen Hong-Sen , Hou Shin-Chen , Jian Jhih-Wei , Goh King-Siang , Shen San-Tai , Lee Yu-Ching , You Jhong-Jhe , Peng Hung-Pin , Kuo Wen-Chih , Chen Shui-Tsung , Peng Ming-Chi , Wang Andrew H.-J. , Yu Chung-Ming , Chen Ing-Chien , Tung Chao-Ping , Chen Tzu-Han , Ping Chiu Kuo , Ma Che , Yuan Wu Chih , Lin Sheng-Wei , Yang An-Suei 
Published: July 2015

AbstractHumoral immunity against diverse pathogens is rapidly elicited from natural antibody repertoires of limited complexity. But the organizing principles underlying the antibody repertoires that facilitate this immunity are not well-understood. We used HER2 as a model immunogen and reverse-engineered murine antibody response through constructing an artificial antibody library encoded with rudimentary sequence and structural characteristics learned from high throughput sequencing of antibody variable domains. Antibodies selected in vitro from the phage-displayed synthetic antibody library bound to the model immunogen with high affinity and specificities, which reproduced the specificities of natural antibody responses. We conclude that natural antibody structural repertoires are shaped to allow functional antibodies to be encoded efficiently, within the complexity limit of an individual antibody repertoire, to bind to diverse protein antigens with high specificity and affinity. Phage-displayed synthetic antibody libraries, in conjunction with high-throughput sequencing, can thus be designed to replicate natural antibody responses and to generate novel antibodies against diverse antigens.
Lead-free epitaxial ferroelectric material integration on semiconducting (100) Nb-doped SrTiO3 for low-power non-volatile memory and efficient ultraviolet ray detection
Authors: Kundu Souvik , Clavel Michael , Biswas Pranab , Chen Bo , Song Hyun-Cheol , Kumar Prashant , Halder Nripendra N. , Hudait Mantu K. , Banerji Pallab , Sanghadasa Mohan , Priya Shashank 
Published: July 2015

AbstractWe report lead-free ferroelectric based resistive switching non-volatile memory (NVM) devices with epitaxial (1-x)BaTiO3-xBiFeO3 (x = 0.725) (BT-BFO) film integrated on semiconducting (100) Nb (0.7%) doped SrTiO3 (Nb:STO) substrates. The piezoelectric force microscopy (PFM) measurement at room temperature demonstrated ferroelectricity in the BT-BFO thin film. PFM results also reveal the repeatable polarization inversion by poling, manifesting its potential for read-write operation in NVM devices. The electroforming-free and ferroelectric polarization coupled electrical behaviour demonstrated excellent resistive switching with high retention time, cyclic endurance and low set/reset voltages. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy was utilized to determine the band alignment at the BT-BFO and Nb:STO heterojunction and it exhibited staggered band alignment. This heterojunction is found to behave as an efficient ultraviolet photo-detector with low rise and fall time. The architecture also demonstrates half-wave rectification under low and high input signal frequencies, where the output distortion is minimal. The results provide avenue for an electrical switch that can regulate the pixels in low or high frequency images. Combined this work paves the pathway towards designing future generation low-power ferroelectric based microelectronic devices by merging both electrical and photovoltaic properties of BT-BFO materials.
Third type of domain wall in soft magnetic nanostrips
Authors: Nguyen V. D. , Fruchart O. , Pizzini S. , Vogel J. , Toussaint J.-C. , Rougemaille N. 
Published: July 2015

AbstractMagnetic domain walls (DWs) in nanostructures are low-dimensional objects that separate regions with uniform magnetisation. Since they can have different shapes and widths, DWs are an exciting playground for fundamental research and became in the past years the subject of intense works, mainly focused on controlling, manipulating and moving their internal magnetic configuration. In nanostrips with in-plane magnetisation, two DWs have been identified: in thin and narrow strips, transverse walls are energetically favored, while in thicker and wider strips vortex walls have lower energy. The associated phase diagram is now well established and often used to predict the low-energy magnetic configuration in a given magnetic nanostructure. However, besides the transverse and vortex walls, we find numerically that another type of wall exists in permalloy nanostrips. This third type of DW is characterised by a three-dimensional, flux closure micromagnetic structure with an unusual length and three internal degrees of freedom. Magnetic imaging on lithographically-patterned permalloy nanostrips confirms these predictions and shows that these DWs can be moved with an external magnetic field of about 1 mT. An extended phase diagram describing the regions of stability of all known types of DWs in permalloy nanostrips is provided.
Direct observation of a Fermi liquid-like normal state in an iron-pnictide superconductor
Authors: Tytarenko Alona , Huang Yingkai , de Visser Anne , Johnston Steve , van Heumen Erik 
Published: July 2015

AbstractThere are two prerequisites for understanding high-temperature (high-Tc) superconductivity: identifying the pairing interaction and obtaining a correct description of the normal state from which superconductivity emerges. The nature of the normal state of iron-pnictide superconductors and the role played by correlations arising from partially screened interactions, are still under debate. Here we show that the normal state of carefully annealed electron-doped BaFe2−xCoxAs2 at low temperatures has all the hallmark properties of a local Fermi liquid, with a more incoherent state emerging at elevated temperatures, an identification made possible using bulk-sensitive optical spectroscopy with high frequency and temperature resolution. The frequency dependent scattering rate extracted from the optical conductivity deviates from the expected scaling M2 (ω, T) ∝ ("Equation missing")2 + (pπkBT)2 with p ≈ 1.47 rather than p = 2, indicative of the presence of residual elastic resonant scattering. Excellent agreement between the experimental results and theoretical modeling allows us to extract the characteristic Fermi liquid scale T0≈ 1700 K. Our results show that the electron-doped iron-pnictides should be regarded as weakly correlated Fermi liquids with a weak mass enhancement resulting from residual electron-electron scattering from thermally excited quasi-particles.
Graphene Plasmonic Metasurfaces to Steer Infrared Light
Authors: Li Zubin , Yao Kan , Xia Fengnian , Shen Sheng , Tian Jianguo , Liu Yongmin 
Published: July 2015

AbstractMetasurfaces utilizing engineered metallic nanostructures have recently emerged as an important means to manipulate the propagation of light waves in a prescribed manner. However, conventional metallic metasurfaces mainly efficiently work in the visible and near-infrared regime and lack sufficient tunability. In this work, combining the pronounced plasmonic resonance of patterned graphene structures with a subwavelength-thick optical cavity, we propose and demonstrate novel graphene metasurfaces that manifest the potential to dynamically control the phase and amplitude of infrared light with very high efficiency. It is shown that the phase of the infrared light reflected from a simple graphene ribbon metasurface can span over almost the entire 2π range by changing the width of the graphene ribbons, while the amplitude of the reflection can be maintained at high values without significant variations. We successfully realize anomalous reflection, reflective focusing lenses and non-diffracting Airy beams based on graphene metasurfaces. Our results open up a new paradigm of highly integrated photonic platforms for dynamic beam shaping and adaptive optics in the crucial infrared wavelength range.
Carbon hybridized halloysite nanotubes for high-performance hydrogen storage capacities
Authors: Jin Jiao , Fu Liangjie , Yang Huaming , Ouyang Jing 
Published: July 2015

AbstractHybrid nanotubes of carbon and halloysite nanotubes (HNTs) with different carbon:HNTs ratio were hydrothermally synthesized from natural halloysite and sucrose. The samples display uniformly cylindrical hollow tubular structure with different morphologies. These hybrid nanotubes were concluded to be promising medium for physisorption-based hydrogen storage. The hydrogen adsorption capacity of pristine HNTs was 0.35% at 2.65 MPa and 298 K, while that of carbon coated HNTs with the pre-set carbon:HNTs ratio of 3:1 (3C-HNTs) was 0.48% under the same condition. This carbon coated method could offer a new pattern for increasing the hydrogen adsorption capacity. It was also possible to enhance the hydrogen adsorption capacity through the spillover mechanism by incorporating palladium (Pd) in the samples of HNTs (Pd-HNTs) and 3C-HNTs (Pd-3C-HNTs and 3C-Pd-HNTs are the samples with different location of Pd nanoparticles). The hydrogen adsorption capacity of the Pd-HNTs was 0.50% at 2.65 MPa and 298 K, while those of Pd-3C-HNTs and 3C-Pd-HNTs were 0.58% and 0.63%, respectively. In particular, for this spillover mechanism of Pd-carbon-HNTs ternary system, the bidirectional transmission of atomic and molecular hydrogen (3C-Pd-HNTs) was concluded to be more effective than the unidirectional transmission (Pd-3C-HNTs) in this work for the first time.
Blockade of Wnt/β-catenin signaling suppresses breast cancer metastasis by inhibiting CSC-like phenotype
Authors: Jang Gyu-Beom , Kim Ji-Young , Cho Sung-Dae , Park Ki-Soo , Jung Ji-Youn , Lee Hwa-Yong , Hong In-Sun , Nam Jeong-Seok 
Published: July 2015

AbstractThe identification of cancer stem cells (CSCs) represents an important milestone in the understanding of chemodrug resistance and cancer recurrence. More specifically, some studies have suggested that potential metastasis-initiating cells (MICs) might be present within small CSC populations. The targeting and eradication of these cells represents a potential strategy for significantly improving clinical outcomes. A number of studies have suggested that dysregulation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling occurs in human breast cancer. Consistent with these findings, our previous data have shown that the relative level of Wnt/β-catenin signaling activity in breast cancer stem cells (BCSCs) is significantly higher than that in bulk cancer cells. These results suggest that BCSCs could be sensitive to therapeutic approaches targeting Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. In this context, abnormal Wnt/β-catenin signaling activity may be an important clinical feature of breast cancer and a predictor of poor survival. We therefore hypothesized that Wnt/β-catenin signaling might regulate self-renewal and CSC migration, thereby enabling metastasis and systemic tumor dissemination in breast cancer. Here, we investigated the effects of inhibiting Wnt/β-catenin signaling on cancer cell migratory potential by examining the expression of CSC-related genes and we examined how this pathway links metastatic potential with tumor formationin vitroandin vivo.
Ultra Wideband Polarization-Selective Conversions of Electromagnetic Waves by Metasurface under Large-Range Incident Angles
Authors: Yin Jia Yuan , Wan Xiang , Zhang Qian , Cui Tie Jun 
Published: July 2015

AbstractWe propose an ultra-wideband polarization-conversion metasurface with polarization selective and incident-angle insensitive characteristics using anchor-shaped units through multiple resonances. The broadband characteristic is optimized by the genetic optimization algorithm, from which the anchor-shaped unit cell generates five resonances, resulting in expansion of the operating frequency range. Owing to the structural feature of the proposed metasurface, only x- and y-polarized incident waves can reach high-efficiency polarization conversions, realizing the polarization-selective property. The proposed metasurface is also insensitive to the angle of incident waves, which indicates a promising future in modern communication systems. We fabricate and measure the proposed metasurface and both the simulated and measured results show ultra-wide bandwidth for the x- and y-polarized incident waves.