Flow goes forward and cells step backward: endothelial migration

Systemic and pulmonary circulations constitute a complex organ that serves multiple important biological functions. Consequently, any pathological processing affecting the vasculature can have profound systemic ramifications. Endothelial and smooth muscle are the two principal cell types composing blood vessels. Critically, endothelial proliferation and migration are central to the formation and expansion of the vasculature both during embryonic development and in adult tissues. Endothelial populations are quite heterogeneous and are both vasculature type- and organ-specific. There are profound molecular, functional, and phenotypic differences between arterial, venular and capillary endothelial cells and endothelial cells in different organs. Given this endothelial cell population diversity, it has been challenging to determine the origin of endothelial cells responsible for the angiogenic expansion of the vasculature. Recent technical advances, such as precise cell fate mapping, time-lapse imaging, genome editing, and single-cell RNA sequencing, have shed new light on the role of venous endothelial cells in angiogenesis under both normal and pathological conditions. Emerging data indicate that venous endothelial cells are unique in their ability to serve as the primary source of endothelial cellular mass during both developmental and pathological angiogenesis. Here, we review recent studies that have improved our understanding of angiogenesis and suggest an updated model of this process.Subject terms: Cell lineage, Chemotaxis     

The pentacene films on the glass/ITO surface: structure and optical properties

Abstract

The structure, morphology and optical transmittance spectra of pentacene films on the (glass/ITO) surface were studied. The films were grown by two methods - the thermal vacuum deposition (TVD) and pulsed laser deposition (PLD). The electron diffraction pattern from thermally deposited pentacene films confirms their polycrystalline structure while the diffraction pattern of PLD-coated layers has a diffusion character. The results obtained showed that layers deposited by the TVD method has an optical spectrum that is characteristic for the pentacene film in contrary to the layers deposited by the PLD method. It is found a sensitivity of the optical transmittance of pentacene films to the ammonia action, which may be used for development the optical gas sensor.     

A dissipative transformation with a trivial tail-algebra

Summary In [1], an example was given of a measure-preserving dissipative transformation T in a -finite measure space (X, , ), such that T is conservative in the measure space (X, , ) where . Here we shall show that for this transformation we actually have R ={ØX}[].     

Measuring the Michel parameter ξ'

Unlike the majority of Michel parameters which are consistent with the Standard Model V-A interaction, the experimental value of ξ″(=0.65±0.36) [1] is poorly known. Our experiment will measure the longitudinal polarization, P _L , of positrons emitted from the decay of polarized muons. The value of P _L , equal to unity in the Standard Model, will decrease for high energy positrons emitted antiparallel to the muon spin if the combination of Michel parameters ξ″/ξξ′ − 1 deviates from the Standard Model value of zero. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

The least slope of a convex function and the maximal monotonicity of its subdifferential

In this paper, we give a direct proof of Rockafellar's result that the subdifferential of a proper convex lower-semicontinuous function on a Banach space is maximal monotone. Our proof is simpler than those that have appeared to date. In fact, we show that Rockafellar's result can be embedded in a more general situation in which we can quantify the degree of failure of monotonicity in terms of a quotient like the one that appears in the definition of Fréchet differentiability. Our analysis depends on the concepts of the least slope of a convex function, which is related to the steepest descent of optimization theory.The author would like to express his thanks to R. R. Phelps for reading a preliminary version of this paper and making some very valuable suggestions.     

On timing Jitter in wavelength-division multiplexed soliton systems

Collision-induced timing shifts in a wavelength-division multiplexed soliton system are computed when damping, amplification, filtering and positive dispersion management following the loss profile are included. A statistical analysis is presented which takes into account the resulting effect of the large number of collisions occurring in the fiber. Analytic expressions are derived for the root mean square timing jitter and the maximum length of error-free transmission with an arbitrary number of channels. An extensive analysis of system performance corresponding to situations with and without filters and/or dispersion management is carried out.     

Energy partitioning in photodissociation and photosensitization

The molecular dynamics of photodissociation and of electronic vibrational/translational energy transfer have been investigated in terms of an impulsive ‘half-collision’ model, modified to accommodate the possibility of changes in the potential energy functions (force constants) of the separating fragments. The model, which is suitable for any system which is suddenly prepared on a repulsive potential energy surface (e.g. following electronic excitation or radiationless transition), has been applied to the quenching of Hg(6³P₁) by CO and NO and to the photodissociation of ICN. Experimental data and alternative theoretical treatments are available for each of these systems. The new model is able to achieve a remarkable agreement with observation in the Hg/CO and NO systems by assuming the intermediate formation of a Hg(6³P₀) - CO or NO complex in which the C-O or N-O bond order increases by ～ 0·6. Model calculations for the quenching of Cd and Zn(³P₀) suggest that the distributions over final states would be very similar to that for Hg(³P₀).

A re-appraisal of the near U.V. photo-dissociation of ICN indicates that CN radicals should be formed preferentially in the òπ electronic state; those observed in the ground state should be vibrationally excited whether they appear as primary photo-products or not.

In general, changes in the equilibrium bond length of the molecular fragment as the system transfers onto the repulsive potential surface, are crucial in determining both the level of vibrational excitation and the detailed distribution over final states. When the molecular fragment has a large force constant the ‘steepness’ of the potential surface is relatively unimportant.