Isolation and identification of the cDNA encoding the pheromone biosynthesis activating neuropeptide and additional neuropeptides in the oriental tobacco budworm, Helicoverpa assulta (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

The present study is concerned with cloning and characterizing Has-PBAN cDNA which is 756 nucleotides long, isolated from the brain and suboesophageal ganglion complex (Br-Sg) of Helicoverpa assulta adults. The 194-amino acid sequence deduced from this cDNA possessed the proteolytic endocleavage sites to generate multiple peptides. From the processing of the prepro-hormone, it can be predicted that the cDNA has a PBAN domain with 33 amino acids and four additional peptide domains: 24 amino acid-, 7 amino acid-, 18 amino acid- and 8 amino acid-long sequences, with FXPR (or K) L (X = G, T or S) amidated at their C-termini. The amino acid sequence of all five predicted peptides, including the PBAN, are identical to that of Helicoverpa zea (Raina, A.K., Jaffe, H., Kempe, T.G., Keim, P., Blacher, R.W., Fales, H.M., Riley, C.T., Klun, J.A., Ridgway, R.L., Hayes, D.K., 1989. Identification of a neuropeptide hormone that regulates sex pheromone production in female moths. Science 244, 796-798 and Ma, P.W.K., Knipple, D.C., Roelofs, W.L., 1994. Structural organization of the Helicoverpa zea gene encoding the precursor protein for pheromone biosynthesis-activating neuropeptide and other neuropeptides. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., U.S.A. 91, 506-510). A single mRNA species corresponding to the size of Has-PBAN cDNA was detected from the Br-Sg of 1-3-day old female and male adults, and their expression was also at a similar level. Pheromone production was induced upon injection of female or male Br-Sg extracts or synthetic PBAN into the haemocoel of decapitated 1-3-day old female adults during the photophase when they are not supposed to produce pheromone. From these results, H. assulta adult females seem to use their own PBAN for regulating sex pheromone biosynthesis. Functions of the four other peptides ending with FXPR (or K) L in the Has-PBAN cDNA and of the male PBAN remain to be elucidated.     

An Architecture of Scalable ATM Switching System and Its Call Processing Capacity Estimation

In this paper, we define the general requirements of ATM switching systems such as scalability, distributed fashion, and modularity. Also we propose a practical implementation of a scalable ATM switching system whose capacity can be easily expanded. Firstly, the architecture of the system is discussed with an emphasis on system scalability, modularity of subsystems and the simple control network of the design requirements. Secondly, we suggest the three types of distributed call/connection control schemes that are suitable for our switching system. We also estimate their call processing capacity on the average and make a comparison of them under the various system architectures. Since our scalable switching system can be constructed to perform the call processing functions on the various levels of the system capacity, it has much adaptability at the various evolution phases or regions of the network environment.     

Formation of Au nanostructures through an alumina mask by laser-assisted deposition

We report a new method to produce ordered arrays of metal nanostructures on substrates. The method employs a through-hole nanoporous alumina membrane as a mask that is attached onto the substrate, silicon in this study. The material of deposition, Au in this study, was provided by pulsed laser ablation of a target gold. At an early stage of the deposition, a significant portion of Au penetrated the alumina through-holes and formed an ordered nanodot array on the silicon surface. At the later stage, the through-hole deposition was blocked by the growth of Au film on the top surface of the alumina, so that the heights of the Au nanodots were limited to about 10 nm under current experimental conditions. Subsequent attempts to clean up the top surface of the alumina with a lower power laser illumination resulted in the formation of new nanostructures around the alumina pores, nanospheres, or nanorings, depending on the fluence of the laser and the duration of the cleanup. We will discuss the underlying mechanism of the formation of these nanostructures.     

Adsorption of uranyl ions and microscale distribution on Fe-bearing mica

The interaction of uranyl ions (UO₂²⁺) with Fe-bearing mica is an important determinant of the mobility of U species in granitic rocks or their weathered terrains, especially with regard to radionuclide migration. To understand their interaction, U sorption experiments were conducted on both fresh and oxidized biotites, especially examining an effect of oxidized mineral surfaces which was treated by H₂O₂ for 3 weeks. The U sorption onto the biotite reached a maximum at around pH 7.0, and the amount adsorbed by the oxidized biotite was much larger than that by the fresh one. The difference of the adsorption capacity between the two biotites may be attributed to an increase in the specific surface area by oxidization, which accompanies some slightly peeled off and reactive surfaces with amorphous precipitates. During the U adsorption reaction, there was a continuous depletion of K⁺ ions from the interlayer space. At the same time structural Fe was released and oxidized near the edges, forming non-detectable very small goethite particles. Such an incipient feeble crystalline Fe (hydr)oxide phase was only detected by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), but its location interestingly corresponded to the U adsorbed position on the biotite surface, implying its strong adsorption of U. Besides, the crystallized Fe (hydr)oxide seems to be relatively more effective in the adsorption of U as compared with the amorphous one on the H₂O₂ treated biotite.     

Mobility Engineering in Vertical Field Effect Transistors Based on Van der Waals Heterostructures

Vertical integration of 2D layered materials to form van der Waals heterostructures (vdWHs) offers new functional electronic and optoelectronic devices. However, the mobility in vertical carrier transport in vdWHs of vertical field‐effect transistor (VFET) is not yet investigated in spite of the importance of mobility for the successful application of VFETs in integrated circuits. Here, the mobility in VFET of vdWHs under different drain biases, gate biases, and metal work functions is first investigated and engineered. The traps in WSe₂ are the main source of scattering, which influences the vertical mobility and three distinct transport mechanisms: Ohmic transport, trap‐limited transport, and space‐charge‐limited transport. The vertical mobility in VFET can be improved by suppressing the trap states by raising the Fermi level of WSe₂. This is achieved by increasing the injected carrier density by applying a high drain voltage, or decreasing the Schottky barrier at the graphene/WSe₂ and metal/WSe₂ junctions by applying a gate bias and reducing the metal work function, respectively. Consequently, the mobility in Mn vdWH at +50 V gate voltage is about 76 times higher than the initial mobility of Au vdWH. This work enables further improvements in the VFET for successful application in integrated circuits.     

Separation of endocrine disruptors from aqueous solutions by pervaporation: Dioctylphthalate and butylated hydroxytoluene in mineral water

We examined the existence of endocrine disruptors in mineral water, ultrapure water, and tap water. GC/MS analysis revealed that dioctylphthalate (di‐n‐octylphthalate and di(2‐ethylhexyl)phthalate) in the water was found to be on the order of parts per billion. The dioctylphthalate concentration remained consistent for mineral water of the same brand, regardless of whether it was bottled in a PET bottle or a glass bottle. Therefore, the dioctylphthalate contamination in mineral water originated from the manufacturing line of the mineral water and not as a result of leaching from PET bottles. Butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT), an oxidization prevention agent in plastics, was detected at 2.05 ± 0.1 ppb in the mineral water bottled in glass bottles, but was not detected in the mineral water bottled in PET bottles. BHT contamination in the mineral water in the glass bottles is likely to have originated from the cap of the glass bottles, as the caps were sealed with polyethylene. We further investigated the feasibility of separating dioctylphthalate and BHT from the mineral water by pervaporation using hydrophobic polydimethylsiloxane membranes. We found that trace amounts (on the order of parts per billion) of organic chemicals such as dioctylphthalate and BHT in aqueous solutions can be removed and concentrated by the pervaporation using polydimethylsiloxane membranes. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 94: 1737–1742, 2004     

Rheological and mechanical properties of thermotropic polyesters with long flexible spacers in the main chain

Linear thermotropic liquid crystalline polymers based on two bisphenol monomers and terephthaloyldichloride were prepared via melt polymerization. Fibers from liquid crystalline polymers were spun above the mesophase transition temperature. In this work, the mechanical and morphological properties of fibers based on such polymers were studied. High values of tensile strength and tensile modulus were obtained, and we tried to prove these high mechanical properties quantitavely by using rheological properties of these polymers and morphology of their fibers. These values were varied by the take-up speed.     

Response of The Lacewing Chrysopa cognata to Pheromones of its Aphid Prey

The lacewing Chrysopa cognata, one of the principal predators of aphids in Korea, was tested for responses to the aphid sex pheromone components (4aS,7S,7aR)-nepetalactone and (1R,4aS,7S,7aR)-nepetalactol and the aphid alarm pheromone (E)--farnesene. Electroantennogram responses were obtained to the sex pheromone components but not to (E)--farnesene. The sex pheromone components were attractive in a Y-tube olfactometer assay and in field trials with water traps, but no attraction was observed to (E)--farnesene.     

Characterization of (1'R,4S,4aR,7S,7aR)-dihydronepetalactol as a semiochemical for lacewings,including Chrysopa spp. and Peyerimhoffina gracilis

The enantiomerically pure diastereoisomers (1R,4S,4aR,7S,7aR)- (1) and (1R,4R,4aR,7S,7aR)-dihydronepetalactol (2) were synthesized diastereoselectively from a renewable resource, (4aS,7S,7aR)-nepetalactone (3), isolated as the main constituent of the essential oil of the catmint plant Nepeta cataria. The stereochemistry of the compounds was determined by NMR spectroscopy and X-ray crystallography, and the compounds were identified, respectively, as neomatatabiol and isoneomatatabiol, natural products from Actinidia polygama, for which the lactol stereochemistry was previously incompletely defined. Compound 1 was found to catch significant numbers of three species of lacewing in the field: in Korea, Chrysopa cognata, and in the United Kingdom, Nineta vittata and most notably Peyerimhoffina gracilis. All species caught in significant numbers were found more frequently in traps releasing 1 than 2, while more C. cognata, C. formosa, and C. phyllochroma were found in traps releasing (1R,4aS,7S,7aR)-nepetalactol (4). The catch of P. gracilis with 1 is of particular interest as this lacewing has only recently been recorded in the United Kingdom. Where sexed, the lacewings of all species trapped were found to be male, implying a possible pheromonal role for these or structurally related compounds.     

新电动力转向系统的模型开发和控制方法

本文研究了一个新柱型电动力转向(EPS-TT)系统.这种EPS-TT系统的显著特点是采用光隔离转矩传感器测量转向器转矩,它的辅助转矩控制方法是采用一个单向马达和两个离合器.因而它不需要一个复杂的马达驱动系统,该系统在作反向转动时要耗费大量的电能.为估算EPS-TT开发了一个完整的转向系统模型和一个简化了的模型.一个完整的车辆模型用来研究车辆的响应.为控制EPS-TT系统设计了线圈载体控制法和比例积分微分控制算法.分析了加于系列不同正弦输入和结果性能.结果表明用ESP-TT系统所达到的性能和常规的ESP系统通过的频率范围相似.整个转向系统模型结果和简化了的模型结果相似但车辆的响应稍稍不同.该线圈载体控制提供了好的性能不影响车辆的稳定性和可控性.