Revolving Vernier Mechanism Controls Size of Linear Homomultimer

A new kind of the Vernier mechanism that is able to control the size of linear assembly of DNA origami nanostructures is proposed. The mechanism is realized by mechanical design of DNA origami, which consists of a hollow cylinder and a rotatable shaft in it connected through the same scaffold. This nanostructure stacks with each other by the shape complementarity at its top and bottom surfaces of the cylinder, while the number of stacking is limited by twisting angle of the shaft. Experiments have shown that the size distribution of multimeric assembly of the origami depends on the twisting angle of the shaft; the average lengths of the multimer are decamer, hexamer, and tetramer for 0°, 10°, and 20° twist, respectively. In summary, it is possible to affect the number of polymerization by adjusting the precise shape and movability of a molecular structure.     

Repeated temperature modulation epitaxy for p-type doping and light-emitting diode based on ZnO.

Since the successful demonstration of a blue light-emitting diode (LED), potential materials for making short-wavelength LEDs and diode lasers have been attracting increasing interest as the demands for display, illumination and information storage grow. Zinc oxide has substantial advantages including large exciton binding energy, as demonstrated by efficient excitonic lasing on optical excitation. Several groups have postulated the use of p-type ZnO doped with nitrogen, arsenic or phosphorus, and even p-n junctions. However, the choice of dopant and growth technique remains controversial and the reliability of p-type ZnO is still under debate. If ZnO is ever to produce long-lasting and robust devices, the quality of epitaxial layers has to be improved as has been the protocol in other compound semiconductors. Here we report high-quality undoped films with electron mobility exceeding that in the bulk. We have used a new technique to fabricate p-type ZnO reproducibly. Violet electroluminescence from homostructural p-i-n junctions is demonstrated at room-temperature.     

Strongyloidiasis associated with nephrotic syndrome

We report a nephrotic syndrome patient with eosinophilia who developed ileus, epigastralgia and malabsorption due to strongyloidiasis which became symptomatic by steroid therapy. The patient was then treated with thiabendazole and recovered. A percutaneous renal biopsy revealed minimal change nephrotic syndrome. This renal injury may be brought on by severe infection of Strongyloides stercoralis. It is important to rule out strongyloidiasis prior to corticosteroid therapy to patients from eosinophilia endemic areas.     

NiCoFe/C cathode electrocatalysts for direct ethanol fuel cells

A direct ethanol fuel cell (DEFC), which is less prone to ethanol crossover, is reported. The cell consists of PtRu/C catalyst as the anode, Nafion^® 117 membrane, and Ni–Co–Fe (NCF) composite catalyst as the cathode. The NCF catalyst was synthesized by mixing Ni, Co, and Fe complexes into a polymer matrix (melamine-formaldehyde resins), followed by heating the mixture at 800 °C under inert atmosphere. TEM and EDX experiments suggest that the NCF catalyst has alloy structures of Ni, Co and Fe. The catalytic activity of the NCF catalyst for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) was compared with that of commercially available Pt/C (CAP) catalyst at different ethanol concentrations. The decrease in open circuit voltage (V_oc) of the DEFC equipped with the NCF catalysts was less than that of CAP catalyst at higher ethanol concentrations. The NCF catalyst was less prone to ethanol oxidation at cathode even when ethanol crossover occurred through the Nafion^®117 film, which prevents voltage drop at the cathode. However, the CAP catalyst did oxidize ethanol at the cathode and caused a decrease in voltage at higher ethanol concentrations.     

Photocatalytic Property and Electronic Structure of Lanthanide-based Oxysulfides

Lanthanide-based oxysulfides and sulfide, LnTaO_3.5S_0.5, Ln₁₀OS₁₄ (Ln = La, Pr, Nd, Sm) and La₄In₅S₁₃, were successively synthesized by sulfurization in a flowing H₂S. The sulfurization decreased the band-gap energies from >4 eV to <3eV, because of the formation of occupied S3p orbitals on the top of valence band. In accordance with the small band gap, the H₂ evolution from a 0.01 M Na₂S and 0.01 M Na₂SO₃ solution system was observed under irradiation of light up to >500 nm. The rate of H₂ evolution under light irradiation of >500 nm increased in the order of Ni/LaTaO_3.5S_0.5 < Ru/La₁₀OS₁₄ < Pt/La₄In₅S₁₃.     

Cooking up an interactive olfactory game display.

It's long been possible to give users outside an actual environment that environment's visual and auditory information and thus contribute to establishing presence. However, we've yet to establish much presence when users require olfactory information - such as in environments focused on foods, flowers, perfumes, or, in some cases, more offensive smells. Recently, several VR researchers have become interested in olfaction and olfactory displays that present smells in virtual environments (VEs). In this article, we describe our interactive olfactory display. One of our development goals is to confirm the assumption that users' interactions with the system increases presence. Thus, we used our interactive olfactory display to develop a cooking game in collaboration with electronic engineers and artists.     

Characterization of a 34-kDa soybean binding protein for the syringolide elicitors

Syringolides are water-soluble, low-molecular-weight elicitors that trigger defense responses in soybean cultivars carrying the Rpg4 disease-resistance gene but not in rpg4 cultivars. 125I-syringolide 1 previously was shown to bind to a soluble protein(s) in extracts from soybean leaves. A 34-kDa protein that accounted for 125I-syringolide 1 binding activity was isolated with a syringolide affinity-gel column. Partial sequences of internal peptides of the 34-kDa protein were identical to P34, a previously described soybean seed allergen. In soybean seeds, P34 is processed from a 46-kDa precursor protein and was shown to have homology with thiol proteases. P34 is a moderately abundant protein in soybean seeds and cotyledons but its level in leaves is low. cDNAs encoding 46-, 34-, and 32-kDa forms of the soybean protein were cloned into the baculovirus vector, pVL1392, and expressed in insect cells. The resulting 32- and 34-kDa proteins, but not the 46-kDa protein, exhibited ligand-specific 125I-syringolide binding activity. These results suggest that P34 may be the receptor that mediates syringolide signaling.     

Fontanel ultrasonography of purulent meningitis in children in Abidjan (Ivory Coast)

Reactive arthritis (ReA) is one of the most common arthritides affecting young adults. In most cases it follows urogenital or enteric bacterial infection, but its pathogenesis is not fully understood. It is generally considered a sterile arthritis which appears to involve immune response to bacterial organisms and genetic host susceptibility associated with the presence of HLA-B27 antigen. New findings suggest that in some ReA cases, viable bacteria are present inside the joints, and these organisms may cause the disease and trigger the inflammatory response. ReA manifests clinically as a rheumatoid factor negative oligoarthritis associated with enthesopathy and certain mucosal and skin lesions. Laboratory findings in ReA are non-specific. Although concepts of its pathogenesis are still evolving, so-called ReA remains an important condition to be distinguished from rheumatoid arthritis. Prognosis is generally better. Treatments with known effects in some cases include non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, intra-articular corticosteroids, oral tetracyclines and sulphasalazine. The occasional chronic and severe ReA may be very difficult to treat.     

Polymer blends with spatially graded structures prepared by phase separation under a temperature gradient

Phase separation of poly(2-chlorostyrene)/poly(vinyl methyl ether) (P2CS/PVME) blends driven by a temperature gradient was investigated by phase-contrast optical microscopy combined with digital image analysis. The samples were set in a temperature gradient in such a way that the two ends of the gradient cover both sides of the critical point. When the high-temperature side of the gradient is increased with a constant rate, the interface that divides the miscible and the phase separated regions of the blend moves toward the low temperature side, leaving the phase separating region behind. It was found that in the vicinity of this interface, the phase separation takes place slowly via the spinodal decomposition process, giving interconnecting structures. In the region far from the newly growing interface, the droplet morphology appears as a result of the late stage of the spinodal decomposition. These droplets grow with time according to the power law ξ ∝ tβ, with β increasing from 0.30 to 0.44 along the temperature gradient. The phase separated blends with these graded morphologies show the broadened mechanical tanδ due to the graded structures distributed along the temperature gradient.