Investigation of the influence of high-risk human papillomavirus on the biochemical composition of cervical cancer cells using vibrational spectroscopy

The main aetiology of cervical cancer is infection with high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV). Cervical cancer is almost 100% curable if detected in the early stages. Thus, information about the presence and levels of HPV in patient samples has high clinical value. As current screening methods, such as the Pap smear test, are highly subjective and in many cases show low sensitivity and specificity, new supportive techniques are desirable to improve the quality of cervical cancer screening. In this study, vibrational spectroscopic techniques (Raman and Fourier Transform Infra Red absorption) have been applied to the investigation of four cervical cancer cell lines: HPV negative C33A, HPV-18 positive HeLa with 20-50 integrated HPV copies per cell, HPV-16 positive SiHa with 1-2 integrated HPV strands per cell and HPV-16 positive CaSki containing 60-600 integrated HPV copies per cell. Results show that vibrational spectroscopic techniques can discriminate between the cell lines and elucidate cellular differences originating from proteins, nucleic acids and lipids. Similarities between C33A and SiHa cells were exhibited in the Raman and infrared spectra and were confirmed by Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Analysis of the biochemical composition of the investigated cells, with the aid of PCA, showed a clear discrimination between the C33A-SiHa group and HeLa and CaSki cell lines indicating the potential of vibrational spectroscopic techniques as a support to current methods for cervical cancer screening.     

On continuous relaxation spectrum. Method of calculation

A method of continuous relaxation spectrum calculations based on the Mellin integral transform has been proposed. It was demonstrated that the equivalent results were obtained regardless an experimental viscoelastic function used a base for calculations. It proves the correctness of the proposed method. The obtained relaxation spectrum provides right predictions in calculation of different viscoelastic functions for various polymeric materials regardless their relaxation state.     

The role of interdroplet interaction in the physics of highly concentrated emulsions

The osmotic pressure and shear modulus of highly concentrated emulsions were modelled by considering both interfacial energy and interdroplet interaction. This was performed for two- and three-dimensional cases and by optimization and approximation methods of predicting film thickness. The results show that even a small source of interaction can result in non-superimposition of scaled osmotic pressure and shear modulus by Laplace pressure for different droplet sizes, and also significant deviation from the models which consider interfacial interaction as the sole source of energy. The model was used to explain the reciprocal squared diameter dependency of elastic modulus: an interaction similar to the van der Waals type can be responsible for this observation. The model can also be used to analyze the interdroplet interactions in highly concentrated emulsions.     

Approximation of entropy on hyperbolic sets for one-dimensional maps and their multidimensional perturbations

We consider piecewise monotone (not necessarily, strictly) piecewise C ² maps on the interval with positive topological entropy. For such a map f we prove that its topological entropy h _top(f) can be approximated (with any required accuracy) by restriction on a compact strictly f-invariant hyperbolic set disjoint from some neighborhood of prescribed set consisting of periodic attractors, nonhyperbolic intervals and endpoints of monotonicity intervals. By using this result we are able to generalize main theorem from [1] on chaotic behavior of multidimensional perturbations of solutions for difference equations which depend on two variables at nonperturbed value of parameter.     

Improved,black-box,non-malleable encryption from semantic security

We give a new black-box transformation from any semantically secure encryption scheme into a non-malleable one which has a better rate than the best previous work of Coretti et al. (in: Kushilevitz and Malkin (eds) TCC 2016-A, Part I, Springer, Heidelberg, 2016). We achieve a better rate by departing from the “matrix encoding” methodology used by previous constructions, and working directly with a single codeword. We also use a Shamir secret-share packing technique to improve the rate of the underlying error-correcting code.     

On rheological properties of polydisperse polymers

An investigation has been carried out into the effect of the fractional composition on the rheological (flow and elastic) properties of a system, using mixtures of polybutadienes with narrow molecularweight distribution (MWD). For mixtures of high-molecular-weight components, the initial Newtonian viscosity is determined by the weight-average molecular weight: $\text{η}{}_0\text{～}\text{M}{}^{\mathrm{\alpha }}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>w</mtext>}}$; when low-molecular weight components are introduced, it is also determined by the MWD moment ratio. The characteristic relaxation time of a system is determined by the z-average molecular weight: , and in the general case α₁ ≠ α. A new model has been proposed to explain the non-Newtonian phenomenon as a consequence of the existence of a molecular-weight distribution. According to this model, as the shear rate increases the high-molecular-weight components gradually (at their critical rates) pass over to the high-elastic state. Therefore, at high shear rates, their contribution to viscous losses of a polydisperse polymer is associated with their behaviour as a viscoelastic filler in a viscous liquid.     

Relativistic two-component calculations of electronic g-tensors that include spin polarization

The first two-component relativistic density-functional approach for the calculation of electronic g-tensors is reported that includes spin polarization using noncollinear spin-density functionals. The method is based on the relativistic Douglas-Kroll-Hess Hamiltonian and has been implemented into the ReSpect program package. Using three self-consistent-field calculations with orthogonal orientations of total magnetization J, the full g-matrix may be obtained. In contrast to previous spin-restricted two-component treatments, results with the new approach agree excellently with spin-polarized one-component calculations for light-atom radicals. Additionally, unlike one-component approaches, the method also reproduces successfully the negative deltag(parallel)-values of heavy-atom 2sigma radicals and the negative deltag(perpendicular) components in cysteinyl. The new method removes effectively the dilemma existing up to now regarding the simultaneous inclusion of spin polarization and higher-order spin-orbit effects in g-tensor calculations. It is straightforwardly applicable to higher than doublet spin multiplicities and has been implemented with hybrid functionals.     

Chemical transformations and phase transitions in polymer rheology and technology

Fundamental rheokinetic effects observed in processes of linear polymerization and three-dimensional oligomer curing are discussed. It was shown that changes in rheological properties during linear polymerization can be described by relationships based on treating a reactive mass as a polymer solution, if a newly formed polymer is soluble in reactive medium. Phase separation limits this approach and leads to some new rheological consequences such as change in the rate of viscosity growth (in some cases viscosity can even decrease in the course of polymerization). Shearing influences temperature of a phase transition and kinetics of chemical reaction if it proceeds in heterogeneous conditions. The same phenomena were also observed for oligomer curing which can occur in heterogeneous manner with microgelation and formation of colloid particles of a new phase before the gelation of a system as a whole.