A facile method to tune zeolite L crystals with low aspect ratio

We demonstrate an alternative route to tune the morphology of zeolite L crystals using C(2)H(5)OH as the co-solvent in the synthesis gel. A low aspect ratio (0.2 to 0.4) of zeolite L crystals was obtained at lower synthesis temperature (150 °C) and shorter synthesis duration (3 days).     

A stochastic model of the influence of buffer gas collisions on Mollow spectra

In this paper, using the idea introduced in (K. Wódkiewicz, Noise in strong laser-atom interaction, Proceedings of the VI International School of Coherent Optics, Ustron, Poland, September (1985) 19–26) and developed in (Cao Long Van, Stochastic Models of Isolated Collisions: Applications to Optical Phenomena, paper presented in LAMP Conference’89, Trieste, Italy (1989) II) we consider the influence of collisional fluctuations on the Mollow spectra of resonance fluorescence (RF). The fluctuations are taken into account by a simple shift of the constant detuning, involved in a set of optical Bloch equations by collision frequency noise which is modelled by a two-step random telegraph signal (RTS). We consider in detail the Mollow spectra for RF in the case of an arbitrary detuning of the laser frequency, where the emitter is a member of a statistical ensemble in thermodynamic equilibrium with the buffer gas at temperature T which is treated as a colored environment, and velocity v is distributed with the Maxwell-Boltzmann density.     

Pulse propagation in an autoionization medium with double Fano profile

We discuss the propagation of a short laser pulse in an auto- ionizing (AI) medium with degenerate double Fano model. By solving numerically the coupled equations for atoms and fields we show that by the proper choice of Fano parameters involved in the problem (contrary to the case considered in (E. Paspalakis, N. J. Kylstra, and P. L. Knight, Phys. Rev. A60 (1999)) we have now two Fano asymmetry parameters) one can eliminate almost completely the absorption in the pulse propagation. It means that we have the transparency in the medium. From the connection between population trapping in short pulsed laser field and transparency in the propagation of the laser pulse which has been fixed by Paspalakis et al., Phys. Rev. A60 (1999) we conclude that this proper choice leads to the presence of the population trapping (or the existence of the “dark” states) in the atomic system. Moreover, instead of one value of the laser detuning for which the dark states exist in the case of one AI level, we find numerically two such values in the case of two AI levels.     

Fission-fragment energy correlation measurements for 252Cf(sf) and structures in far-out asymmetric fission

Fragment-mass and kinetic-energy distribution measurements for ²⁵²Cf(sf) have been extended to the far-out asymmetric low-yield fission region of M_H = 190 compared with the existing data that go up to M_H ≈ 168. The mass yield Y(m) shows a shoulder for M_H ≈ 163 and an important enhancement for M_H ? 176. The 〈E_K〉(m), σ_EK(m) and, to a lesser extent, Y(m) distributions show strong and correlated amplitude fluctuations for M_H ? 170. These data indicate strong and rapid changes in deformation of the nascent fragments and the coexistence of more than one deformed-shell stabilized scission configuration for the same mass splits. These structures and those present in the relatively high-yield regions are discussed in terms of the static macro-microscopic potential-energy calculations.     

Robust and data-driven approaches to call centers

We propose both robust and data-driven approaches to a fluid model of call centers that incorporates random arrival rates with abandonment to determine staff levels and dynamic routing policies. We test the resulting models with real data obtained from the call center of a US bank. Computational results show that the robust fluid model is significantly more tractable as compared to the data-driven one and produces overall better solutions to call centers in most experiments.     

New indications of potential rat intestinal α-glucosidase inhibition by Syzygium zeylanicum (L.) and its hypoglycemic effect in mice

Research on Chemical Intermediates - Natural α-glucosidase inhibitors (aGIs) have been considered effective agents for type 2 diabetes management. In this study, Syzygium zeylanicum (L.)...     

MRI methodological development of intervertebral disc degeneration: a rabbit in vivo study at 9.4 T

Intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration is a complex process characterized by biochemical and structural changes in both the nucleus pulposus and the anulus fibrosus. In this study, we were able to obtain in vivo magnetic resonance (MR) images of the rabbit spine, with several MR imaging (MRI) contrasts (ρ, T₁ and T₂). We quantified several parameters (T₂, apparent diffusion coefficient, disc height and area) to differentiate between healthy and degenerative IVDs and to characterize the degeneration process. To our knowledge, there has not been any previous in vivo study of rabbit IVDs at high-field MRI (9.4 T).A custom radio frequency (RF) coil for 9.4 T was designed to match rabbit IVD morphology, to study the degeneration in vivo on a model of human lumbar disease. Our new probe, a custom half-birdcage-type coil, obtains the necessary exploration depth while meeting the requirements for signal homogeneity and sensitivity of the study. This design addresses some of the difficulties with constructing RF coils at high field strengths.     

Synthesis,Characterization and Evaluation of Peptide Nanostructures for Biomedical Applications

There is a challenging need for the development of new alternative nanostructures that can allow the coupling and/or encapsulation of therapeutic/diagnostic molecules while reducing their toxicity and improving their circulation and in-vivo targeting. Among the new materials using natural building blocks, peptides have attracted significant interest because of their simple structure, relative chemical and physical stability, diversity of sequences and forms, their easy functionalization with (bio)molecules and the possibility of synthesizing them in large quantities. A number of them have the ability to self-assemble into nanotubes, -spheres, -vesicles or -rods under mild conditions, which opens up new applications in biology and nanomedicine due to their intrinsic biocompatibility and biodegradability as well as their surface chemical reactivity via amino- and carboxyl groups. In order to obtain nanostructures suitable for biomedical applications, the structure, size, shape and surface chemistry of these nanoplatforms must be optimized. These properties depend directly on the nature and sequence of the amino acids that constitute them. It is therefore essential to control the order in which the amino acids are introduced during the synthesis of short peptide chains and to evaluate their in-vitro and in-vivo physico-chemical properties before testing them for biomedical applications. This review therefore focuses on the synthesis, functionalization and characterization of peptide sequences that can self-assemble to form nanostructures. The synthesis in batch or with new continuous flow and microflow techniques will be described and compared in terms of amino acids sequence, purification processes, functionalization or encapsulation of targeting ligands, imaging probes as well as therapeutic molecules. Their chemical and biological characterization will be presented to evaluate their purity, toxicity, biocompatibility and biodistribution, and some therapeutic properties in vitro and in vivo. Finally, their main applications in the biomedical field will be presented so as to highlight their importance and advantages over classical nanostructures.     

Retraction Note to: Secondary treated wastewater of latex processing: reusing for irrigation or treatment by membrane filtration

Research on Chemical Intermediates -