Divergence and conservation of SUP2(SUP35) gene of yeasts Pichia pinus and Saccharomyces cerevisiae

SUP2(SUP35) is an omnipotent suppressor gene, coding for an EF-1α-like protein factor, intimately involved in the control of translational accuracy in yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. In the present study a SUP2 gene analogue from yeast Pichia pinus was isolated by complementation of the temperature-sensitive sup2 mutation of S. cerevisiae. The nucleotide sequence of the SUP2 gene of P. pinus codes for a protein of 82·4 kDa, exceeding the Sup2 protein of S. cerevisiae by 6 kDa. Like the SUP2 gene product of S. cerevisiae, the Sup2 protein of P. pinus represents a fusion of a unique N-terminal part of a region homologous to EF-1α. The comparison of amino acid sequences of the Sup2 proteins reveals high conservations (76%) of the C-terminal region and low conservation (36%) of the N-terminal part where, in addition, the homologous correspondence is ambiguous. Proteins related to the Sup2 of S. cerevisiae where found in P. pinus and some other yeast species by the immunoblotting technique. The relation between the evolutionary conservation of different regions of the Sup2 protein and their functional significance is discussed.     

Gold nanorods with a hematoporphyrin-loaded silica shell for dual-modality photodynamic and photothermal treatment of tumors in vivo

Nanocomposites （NCs） consisting of a gold nanorod core and a mesoporous silica shell doped with hematoporphyrin （HP） have been fabricated in order to improve the efficiency of cancer treatment by combining photothermal and photodynamic therapies （PDT ＋ PTT） in vivo. In addition to the long-wavelength plasmon resonance near 810-830 nm, the fabricated NCs exhibited a 400-nm absorbance peak corresponding to bound HP, generated singlet oxygen under 633-nm excitation near the 632.5-nm Q-band, and produced heat under a 808-nm near-infrared （NIR） laser irradiation. These modalities were used for a combined PDT ＋ PTT treatment of large （about 3 cm3） solid tumors in vivo with a xenorafted tumor rat model. NCs were directly injected into tumors and irradiated simultaneously with 633-nm and 808-nm lasers to stimulate the combined photodynamic and photothermal activities of NCs. The efficiency of the combined therapy was evaluated by optical coherence tomography, histological analysis, and by measurements of the tumor volume growth during a 21-day period. The NC-mediated PDT led to weak changes in tissue histology and to a moderate 20% decrease in the tumor volume. In contrast, the combined PDT ＋ PTT treatment resulted in the large-area tumor necrosis and led to dramatic decrease in the tumor volume.     

Mechanism of fine ripple formation on surfaces of (semi)transparent materials via a half-wavelength cavity feedback

The mechanism of the fine ripples, perpendicular to laser polarization, on the surface of (semi)transparent materials with period smaller than the vacuum wavelength, λ, of the incident radiation is proposed and experimentally validated. The sphere-to-plane transformation of nanoplasma bubbles responsible for the in-bulk ripples accounts for the fine ripples on the surface of dielectrics and semiconductors. The mechanism is demonstrated for 4H:SiC and sapphire surfaces using 800 nm/150 fs and 1030 nm/300 fs laser pulses. The ripples are pinned to the smallest possible standing wave cavity inside material of refractive index n. This defines the corresponding period, Λ = (λ/n)/2, of a light standing wave with intensity, E(2), at the maxima of which surface ablation occurs. The mechanism accounts for the fine ripples at the breakdown conditions. Comparison with ripples recorded on different materials and via other mechanisms using femtosecond pulses is presented and application potential is discussed.     

Relationship between peptide selectivities of human transporters associated with antigen processing and HLA class I molecules

Efficiency of presentation of a peptide epitope by a MHC class I molecule depends on two parameters: its binding to the MHC molecule and its generation by intracellular Ag processing. In contrast to the former parameter, the mechanisms underlying peptide selection in Ag processing are poorly understood. Peptide translocation by the TAP transporter is required for presentation of most epitopes and may modulate peptide supply to MHC class I molecules. To study the role of human TAP for peptide presentation by individual HLA class I molecules, we generated artificial neural networks capable of predicting the affinity of TAP for random sequence 9-mer peptides. Using neural network-based predictions of TAP affinity, we found that peptides eluted from three different HLA class I molecules had higher TAP affinities than control peptides with equal binding affinities for the same HLA class I molecules, suggesting that human TAP may contribute to epitope selection. In simulated TAP binding experiments with 408 HLA class I binding peptides, HLA class I molecules differed significantly with respect to TAP affinities of their ligands. As a result, some class I molecules, especially HLA-B27, may be particularly efficient in presentation of cytosolic peptides with low concentrations, while most class I molecules may predominantly present abundant cytosolic peptides.     

Thermoelectric effects in superconductors

The possibility of observing thermoelectric effects in high-temperature superconductors (HTS) is discussed.I am grateful to V. Z. Kresin for an interesting discussion.     

Ferromagnet/Superconductor Hybridization for Magnonic Applications

In this work, a new hybridization of superconducting and ferromagnetic orders is demonstrated, promising for magnonics. By measuring the ferromagnetic and spin wave resonance absorption spectra of a magnetostatically coupled permalloy/niobium bilayer at different temperatures, magnetostatic spin wave resonances with unconventional dispersion are observed. The mechanism behind the modified dispersion, confirmed with micromagnetic simulations, implies screening of the alternating magnetostatic stray fields of precessing magnetic moments in the ferromagnetic layer by the superconducting surface in the Meissner state.     

Behavior of Tl(2212)-Normal Metal Point Contacts under Microwave Irradiation

Current-voltage characteristics and their derivatives of S-c-N point contacts formed by Tl₂Ba₂CaCu₂O_8–x anvil - niobium needle have been studied in the temperature range from 4.2 to T_c under microwave irradiation of wide frequency range. At frequencies of order 10¹⁰ Hz two types of excess current (I_exc) dependence on irradiation power level P was observed. In one case at temperatures near T/T_c 0.5 an excess current oscillates with increasing of P as the square of zero order Bessel function. In another case closer to the critical temperature (mainly at T/T_c 0.9) the enhancement of I_exc by the microwave power was revealed. Observed effects demonstrate complicated dynamics of quasiparticles in Tl-based HTS.     

Enhanced performance of FeOOH/ZnIn2S4/Au nanosheet arrays for visible light water splitting

Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Electronics - Carrier separation, charge transport, and visible light absorption are the main factors affecting the solar water splitting performance of a...     

Investigation of magnesium fluoride crystals for imaging acousto-optic tunable filter applications

Results of an investigation of acousto-optic (AO) cells using single crystals of magnesium fluoride (MgF2) are presented. Two acousto-optic tunable filter (AOTF) cells for imaging application have been designed and tested in the visible and ultraviolet (UV) regions of the spectrum from 190 to 490 nm. The two imaging filters were developed by using the wide-angle AO interaction geometry in the (010) and (11 0) planes of the crystal. These filters were used to obtain spectral images at the shortest wavelengths achieved so far. Advantages and drawbacks of this crystal are discussed and photoelastic, acoustic, and AO properties of MgF2 are examined. The investigation confirmed that MgF2-based AOTF cells can be used in the deep UV region up to 110 nm.