Equivariant Euler characteristics of unitary buildings

Journal of Algebraic Combinatorics - The (p-primary) equivariant Euler characteristics of the buildings for the general unitary groups over finite fields are determined.     

Transition from the Compact to the Dense Phase of Two-Dimensional Polymers

We present a unifying picture of the compact, dense, and dilute phases of two-dimensional polymers. The lattice dependence of the scaling exponents for compact polymers is reconciled with their universality in the dense and dilute cases. In particular, we show that violations of the fully packing constraint in the compact phase can be interpreted as magnetic screening in the associated Coulomb gas, which induces a flow to either the dense or the dilute phase. When more than one flavor of polymers is present the flow away from the compact phase leads to a decoupling of the flavors, and the central charge decreases by an integer. If charge asymmetry develops, the polymer flavors may independently flow to either of the two noncompact phases.     

Bioorthogonal Click of Colloidal Gold Nanoparticles to Antibodies In vivo

Combining nanotechnology and bioorthogonal chemistry for theranostic strategies offers the possibility to develop next generation nanomedicines. These materials are thought to increase therapeutic outcome and improve current cancer management. Due to their size, nanomedicines target tumors passively. Thus, they can be used for drug delivery purposes. Bioorthogonal chemistry allows for a pretargeting approach. Higher target-to-background drug accumulation ratios can be achieved. Pretargeting can also be used to induce internalization processes or trigger controlled drug release. Colloidal gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) have attracted widespread interest as drug delivery vectors within the last decades. Here, we demonstrate for the first time the possibility to successfully ligate AuNPs in vivo to pretargeted monoclonal antibodies. We believe that this possibility will facilitate the development of AuNPs for clinical use and ultimately, improve state-of-the-art patient care.     

Quantum holonomy theory and hilbert space representations

We present a new formulation of quantum holonomy theory, which is a candidate for a non‐perturbative and background independent theory of quantum gravity coupled to matter and gauge degrees of freedom. The new formulation is based on a Hilbert space representation of the algebra, which is generated by holonomy‐diffeomorphisms on a 3‐dimensional manifold and by canonical translation operators on the underlying configuration space over which the holonomy‐diffeomorphisms form a non‐commutative ‐algebra. A proof that the state that generates the representation exist is left for later publications.     

Review of secondary metabolites and mycotoxins from the <Emphasis Type="Italic">Aspergillus niger</Emphasis> group

Filamentous fungi in the Aspergillus section Nigri (the black aspergilli) represent some of the most widespread food and feed contaminants known but they are also some of the most important workhorses used by the biotechnological industry. The Nigri section consists of six commonly found species (excluding A. aculeatus and its close relatives) from which currently 145 different secondary metabolites have been isolated and/or detected. From a human and animal safety point of view, the mycotoxins ochratoxin A (from A. carbonarius and less frequently A. niger) and fumonisin B₂ (from A. niger) are currently the most problematic compounds. Especially in foods and feeds such as coffee, nuts, dried fruits, and grape-based products where fumonisin-producing fusaria are not a problem, fumonisins pose a risk. Moreover, compounds such as malformins, naptho-γ-pyrones, and bicoumarins (kotanins) call for monitoring in food, feed, and biotechnology products as well as for a better toxicological evaluation, since they are often produced in large amounts by the black aspergilli. For chemical differentiation/identification of the less toxic species the diketopiperazine asperazine can be used as a positive marker since it is consistently produced by A. tubingensis (177 of 177 strains tested) and A. acidus (47 of 47 strains tested) but never by A. niger (140 strains tested). Naptho-γ-pyrones are the compounds produced in the highest quantities and are produced by all six common species in the group (A. niger 134 of 140; A. tubingensis 169 of 177; A. acidus 44 of 47; A. carbonarius 40 of 40, A. brasiliensis 18 of 18; and A. ibericus three of three).      

Reliabilist Justification: Basic,Easy, and Brute

Process reliabilists hold that in order for a belief to be justified, it must result from a reliable cognitive process. They also hold that a belief can be basically justified: justified in this manner without having any justification to believe that belief is reliably produced. Fumerton (1995), Vogel (2000), and Cohen (2002) have objected that such basic justification leads to implausible easy justification by means of either epistemic closure principles or so-called track record arguments. I argue that once we carefully distinguish closure principles from transmission principles, and epistemic consequences from epistemic preconditions, neither version of this objection succeeds.

Why was Wantzel overlooked for a century? The changing importance of an impossibility result

The duplication of a cube and the trisection of an angle are two of the most famous geometric construction problems formulated in ancient Greece. In 1837 Pierre Wantzel (1814–1848) proved that the problems cannot be constructed by ruler and compass. Today he is credited for this contribution in all general treatises of the history of mathematics. However, his proof was hardly noticed by his contemporaries and during the following century his name was almost completely forgotten. In this paper I shall analyze the reasons for this neglect and argue that it was primarily due to the lack of importance attributed to such impossibility results at the time.     

Bioanalytical interaction studies executed by preincubation affinity capillary electrophoresis

The versatility of CE is beneficial for the study of many types of molecular interactions, because different experimental designs can be made to suit the characteristics of a particular interaction. A very versatile starting point is the preequilibration type of affinity CE that has been used extensively for characterizing biomolecular interactions in the last 15 years. We review this field here and include a comprehensive overview of the existing preincubation ACE modes including their advantages and limitations as well as the methodological developments and applications within the bioanalytical field.     

Towards biochips using microstructured optical fiber sensors

In this paper we present the first incorporation of a microstructured optical fiber (MOF) into biochip applications. A 16-mm-long piece of MOF is incorporated into an optic-fluidic coupler chip, which is fabricated in PMMA polymer using a CO₂ laser. The developed chip configuration allows the continuous control of liquid flow through the MOF and simultaneous optical characterization. While integrated in the chip, the MOF is functionalized towards the capture of a specific single-stranded DNA string by immobilizing a sensing layer on the microstructured internal surfaces of the fiber. The sensing layer contains the DNA string complementary to the target DNA sequence and thus operates through the highly selective DNA hybridization process. Optical detection of the captured DNA was carried out using the evanescent-wave-sensing principle. Owing to the small size of the chip, the presented technique allows for analysis of sample volumes down to 300 nL and the fabrication of miniaturized portable devices.