ToF atom-probe fim study of LaB6 single crystals

The field evaporation mass spectra of LaB₆ are obtained with time-of-flight atom-probe field ion microscope in vacuum and in the presence of hydrogen, nitrogen and oxygen. The spectra are consistent with a preferential chemisorption of these gases on boron sites.     

A new direction in carbon-rich organometallic wires: diruthenium compounds bridged by E-hex-3-ene-1,5-diyn-diyl

New organometallic wires were obtained from two diruthenium units bridged by E-hex-3-ene-1,5-diyn-dyl.     

Loss-coupled distributed-feedback lasers with amplified optical feedback for optical microwave generation

Multisection semiconductor lasers for optical microwave generation have been fabricated that consist of a loss-coupled distributed feedback (LC-DFB), a phase control, and an amplifier section. High-frequency self-pulsations are generated according to the concept of a single-mode laser with short optical feedback. The effect of the optical feedback via the phase control and the amplifier section on the self-pulsation is apparently shown as a result of the superior single-mode characteristic of the LC-DFB section. Continuous frequency tuning is achieved in the range of 17-35 GHz.     

On the Combinatorics of Lecture Hall Partitions

A lecture hall partition of length n is an integer sequence satisfying Bousquet-Mélou and Eriksson showed that the number of lecture hall partitions of length n of a positive integer N whose alternating sum is k equals the number of partitions of N into k odd parts less than 2n. We prove the fact by a natural combinatorial bijection. This bijection, though defined differently, is essentially the same as one of the bijections found by Bousquet-Mélou and Eriksson.     

Balance of mass, momentum, and energy in splintering central collisions for 40Ar up to 115 MeV /Nucleon

For central collisions of (17-115)A MeV 40Ar+Cu, Ag, Au, an overall balance is determined for the average mass, energy, and longitudinal momentum. Light charged particles and fragments are separated into forward-focused and isotropic components in the frame of the heaviest fragment. Energy removal by the isotropic component reaches 1-2 GeV. For such high deposition energies, statistical multifragmentation models predict much more extensive nuclear disassembly than is observed.     

Determination of Albuterol Enantiomers in Animal Tissue Matrices by LC–MS/MS: Application in Therapeutic Myoanabolic Studies

Albuterol (salbutamol) is a widely used medication in respiratory disease including asthma and chronic obstructive airways disease; however, like other beta2-agonists, it also exerts some extrapulmonary effects on muscle and fat. Surprisingly, there have been relatively few reports of albuterol tissue distribution, and the distribution of individual albuterol enantiomers into tissue has not been reported. The method presented here explores the use of an HPLC tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) system (LTQ Orbitrap hybrid mass spectrometer) with deuterated standard and solid-phase extraction to determine low levels of albuterol enantiomers in tissue. The lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) was 0.156 ng g⁻¹, with a precision RSD <15% for both enantiomers. The assay was linear over the calibration range of LLOQ-10.0 ng g⁻¹ in muscle tissue (r ² > 0.98). The assay was successfully applied to pharmacokinetic studies in rats and mice. By utilizing a deuterated internal standard and LC–MS/MS detection, this assay can be used to measure albuterol enantiomers in muscle tissue. This assay has also identified that albuterol uptake appears to be stereoselective, and enantioselective assays are clearly warranted for myoanabolic studies involving administration of racemic-albuterol.

     

Cell-Penetrating Mitochondrion-Targeting Ligands for the Universal Delivery of Small Molecules,Proteins and Nanomaterials

Mitochondria are key organelles that perform vital cellular functions such as those related to cell survival and death. The targeted delivery of different types of cargos to mitochondria is a well-established strategy to study mitochondrial biology and diseases. Of the various existing mitochondrion-transporting vehicles, most suffer from poor cytosolic entry, low delivery efficiency, limited cargo types, and cumbersome preparation protocols, and none was known to be universally applicable for mitochondrial delivery of different types of cargos (small molecules, proteins, and nanomaterials). Herein, two new cell-penetrating, mitochondrion-targeting ligands (named Mito^Ligand) that are capable of effectively “tagging” small-molecule drugs, native proteins and nanomaterials are disclosed, as well as their corresponding chemoselective conjugation chemistry. Upon successful cellular delivery and rapid endosome escape, the released native cargos were found to be predominantly localized inside mitochondria. Finally, by successfully delivering doxorubicin, a well-known anticancer drug, to the mitochondria of HeLa cells, we showed that the released drug possessed potent cell cytotoxicity, disrupted the mitochondrial membrane potential and finally led to apoptosis. Our strategy thus paves the way for future mitochondrion-targeted therapy with a variety of biologically active agents.     

Euler's partition theorem and the combinatorics of ℓ-sequences

Euler's partition theorem states that the number of partitions of an integer N into odd parts is equal to the number of partitions of N in which the ratio of successive parts is greater than 1. It was shown by Bousquet-Mélou and Eriksson in [M. Bousquet-Mélou, K. Eriksson, Lecture hall partitions II, Ramanujan J. 1 (2) (1997) 165–185] that a similar result holds when “odd parts” is replaced by “parts that are sums of successive terms of an ℓ-sequence” and the ratio “1” is replaced by a root of the characteristic polynomial of the ℓ-sequence. This generalization of Euler's theorem is intrinsically different from the many others that have appeared, as it involves a family of partitions constrained by the ratio of successive parts.In this paper, we provide a surprisingly simple bijection for this result, a question suggested by Richard Stanley. In fact, we give a parametrized family of bijections, that include, as special cases, Sylvester's bijection and a bijection for the lecture hall theorem. We introduce Sylvester diagrams as a way to visualize these bijections and deduce their properties.In proving the bijections, we uncover the intrinsic role played by the combinatorics of ℓ-sequences and use this structure to give a combinatorial characterization of the partitions defined by the ratio constraint. Several open questions suggested by this work are described.