Quantum private queries

We propose a cheat sensitive quantum protocol to perform a private search on a classical database which is efficient in terms of communication complexity. It allows a user to retrieve an item from the database provider without revealing which item he or she retrieved: if the provider tries to obtain information on the query, the person querying the database can find it out. The protocol ensures also perfect data privacy of the database: the information that the user can retrieve in a single query is bounded and does not depend on the size of the database. With respect to the known (quantum and classical) strategies for private information retrieval, our protocol displays an exponential reduction in communication complexity and in running-time computational complexity.     

High-Q factor single mode circular photonic crystal nano-resonator

In this work, the analysis, fabrication and optical characterization of a two-dimensional circular photonic crystal (2D-CPC) nano-resonator based on an air/GaAs/air slab waveguide are presented. Four InAs/InGaAs quantum dots (QDs) stacked layers emitting around 1300 nm at room temperature were embedded in a GaAs waveguide layer grown on an Al_0.7Ga_0.3As layer and GaAs substrate. The patterning of the structure and the membrane release were achieved by using electron beam lithography, ICP plasma etching and selective wet etching of the AlGaAs sacrificial layer. The micro-luminescence spectrum recorded from the fabricated nano-cavity shows a narrow optical transition at the resonance wavelength of about 1282 nm with a FWHM and Q-factor of 6.2 Å and more than 2000, respectively.     

Homology computation for a class of contact structures on T^3

We consider a family of tight contact forms on the three-dimensional torus and we compute the relative Contact Homology by using the variational theory of critical points at infinity. We will also show local stability.     

Merging lithium carbenoid homologation and enzymatic reduction: A combinative approach to the HIV-protease inhibitor Nelfinavir

An effective stereocontrolled synthesis of the HIV protease inhibitor Nelfinavir is reported. Two transformations were identified crucial for achieving success: the formation of a densely functionalized α-chloroketone via the homologation of a Weinreb amide with chloromethyllithium (LiCH₂Cl), followed by its erythro selective reduction into the corresponding chiral chlorohydrin. A commercially available enzyme P2-C02 was particularly well suited for this purpose, affording the key alcohol (in an excellent 99% de), which was then smoothly converted into the active biologically active agent.     

Clifford Fields and the Relativistic Equation of the Nucleon

A relativistic equation for free fields whichtake their values in the Clifford algebra associatedwith the Minkowski metric is shown to be interpretableas the equation of the nucleon. The internal symmetry group SU(2) arises naturally from theassociative algebra structure of the representationspace. The latter structure can be used to constructcoupling terms consistent with the transformationproperties of the interacting fields; in particular, itallows the familiar couplings of the nucleon field withthe electromagnetic field and with the -mesonfield.     

Anionic N-Fries rearrangement of N-alkyl-2-iodo anilides induced by iodine-magnesium exchange: application for synthesis of strained 1,2,3-trisubstituted indoles

A superior, mild, high-yielding one-pot process for rapid access to oxo anilides has been developed that involves three cascade reactions: iodine-magnesium exchange, regiospecific ortho N-Fries rearrangement, and in situ trapping of the formed aniline anion. Coupled with McMurry cyclization, the two-step process allows ready synthesis of strained 1,2,3-trisubstituted indoles regioselectively.     

Fatty acid composition and volatile compounds of caviar from farmed white sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus)

The present study was conducted to characterize caviar obtained from farmed white sturgeons (Acipenser transmontanus) subjected to different dietary treatments. Twenty caviar samples from fish fed two experimental diets containing different dietary lipid sources have been analysed for chemical composition, fatty acids and flavour volatile compounds. Fatty acid make up of caviar was only minimally influenced by dietary fatty acid composition. Irrespective of dietary treatments, palmitic acid (16:0) and oleic acid (OA, 18:1 n-9) were the most abundant fatty acid followed by docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6 n-3) and eicopentaenoic (EPA, 20:5 n-3). Thirty-three volatile compounds were isolated using simultaneous distillation-extraction (SDE) and identified by GC-MS. The largest group of volatiles were represented by aldehydes with 20 compounds, representing the 60% of the total volatiles. n-Alkanals, 2-alkenals and 2,4-alkadienals are largely the main responsible for a wide range of flavours in caviar from farmed white surgeon.     

Poly‐l‐Lactic Acid Nanofiber–Polyamidoamine Hydrogel Composites: Preparation,Properties, and Preliminary Evaluation as Scaffolds for Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Culturing

Electrospun poly‐l ‐lactic acid (PLLA) nanofiber mats carrying surface amine groups, previously introduced by nitrogen atmospheric pressure nonequilibrium plasma, are embedded into aqueous solutions of oligomeric acrylamide‐end capped AGMA1, a biocompatible polyamidoamine with arg‐gly‐asp (RGD)‐reminiscent repeating units. The resultant mixture is finally cured giving PLLA‐AGMA1 hydrogel composites that absorb large amounts of water and, in the swollen state, are translucent, soft, and pliable, yet as strong as the parent PLLA mat. They do not split apart from each other when swollen in water and remain highly flexible and resistant, since the hydrogel portion is covalently grafted onto the PLLA nanofibers via the addition reaction of the surface amine groups to a part of the terminal acrylic double bonds of AGMA1 oligomers. Preliminary tested as scaffolds, the composites prove capable of maintaining short‐term undifferentiated cultures of human pluripotent stem cells in feeder‐free conditions.

     

Caprine herpesvirus 1 (CpHV-1) vaginal infection of goats: clinical efficacy of fig latex

Clinical score (A) and viral shedding (B) in goats vaginally infected with CpHV-1 and treated with fig latex (goats A, B, C). Goat D was left untreated.     

On the Approximation of Zeros of Non-Self Monotone Operators

In this article, we study the approximation of common zeros of non-self inverse strongly monotone operators defined on a closed convex subset C of a Hilbert space H. For a non-self family of operators, we introduce an iterative algorithm without relying on projections. Approximation of common fixed points for finite families of non-self strict pseudo-contractions in the sense of Browder-Petryshyn is also obtained. The novelty of our algorithm is that the coefficients are not given a priori and no assumptions are made on them, but they are constructed step by step in a natural way.