Regulation of glutamatergic signalling by PACAP in the mammalian suprachiasmatic nucleus

Background  

Previous studies indicate that light information reaches the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) through a subpopulation of retinal ganglion cells that contain both glutamate and pituitary adenylyl cyclase activating peptide (PACAP). While the role of glutamate in this pathway has been well studied, the involvement of PACAP and its receptors are only beginning to be understood. Speculating that PACAP may function to modulate how neurons in the suprachiasmatic nucleus respond to glutamate, we used electrophysiological and calcium imaging tools to examine possible cellular interactions between these co-transmitters.     

Misalignment tolerance analysis and fabrication for highly efficient parallel optical-electrical convertor module

A compact, highly efficient, and passively assembled parallel optical-electrical convertor module (POECM) for active optical cable application is proposed. This paper presents our POECM structure, optical design simulation results, fabrication process, and data transmission test results, in sequence. The POECM has a compact size of \(18.5\hbox {mm} \times 10\hbox {mm} \times 2.8\hbox {mm}\) . We confirm a data rate of total throughput at 21.6 Gbps ( \(5.4\hbox {Gbps} \times 4\) channels) with a bit error rate of less than \(10^{-12}\) .     

New device architecture of a thermoelectric energy conversion for recovering low-quality heat

Low-quality heat is generally discarded for economic reasons; a low-cost energy conversion device considering price per watt, $/W, is required to recover this waste heat. Thin-film based thermoelectric devices could be a superior alternative for this purpose, based on their low material consumption; however, power generated in conventional thermoelectric device architecture is negligible due to the small temperature drop across the thin film. To overcome this challenge, we propose new device architecture, and demonstrate approximately 60 Kelvin temperature differences using a thick polymer nanocomposite. The temperature differences were achieved by separating the thermal path from the electrical path; whereas in conventional device architecture, both electrical charges and thermal energy share same path. We also applied this device to harvest body heat and confirmed its usability as an energy conversion device for recovering low-quality heat.     

Exchange coupled magnetic nanocomposites of Sm(Co1−xFex)5 / Fe3O4 with core/shell structure

Magnetic nanocomposites of Sm(Co_1−xFe_x)₅/Fe₃O₄ (x≈0.1) with the core/shell type structure were successfully fabricated using a two-step polyol process, where as-prepared SmCo_5(1−x) nanoparticles were used as seeds for the ferrite coating. The core/shell composites are quite stable in air and show a typical hysteric behavior of single component, yielding an enhanced coercivity of 2.2 kOe with a saturated magnetization of 130 emu/g at 5 T. The magnetization data clearly reveal the presence of effective exchange coupling between the hard-magnetic Sm(Co_1−xFe_x)₅ core and soft-magnetic Fe₃O₄ shell, suggestive of a single-phase structure rather than a distinctive two-phase one.