Association between the microbiomes of tonsil and saliva samples isolated from pediatric patients subjected to tonsillectomy for the treatment of tonsillar hyperplasia

Oral microbes have the capacity to spread throughout the gastrointestinal system and are strongly associated with multiple diseases. Given that tonsils are located between the oral cavity and the laryngopharynx at the gateway of the alimentary and respiratory tracts, tonsillar tissue may also be affected by microbiota from both the oral cavity (saliva) and the alimentary tract. Here, we analyzed the distribution and association of the microbial communities in the saliva and tonsils of Korean children subjected to tonsillectomy because of tonsil hyperplasia (n = 29). The microbiome profiles of saliva and tonsils were established via 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Based on the alpha diversity indices, the microbial communities of the two groups showed high similarities. According to Spearman’s ranking correlation analysis, the distribution of Treponema, the causative bacterium of periodontitis, in saliva and tonsils was found to have a significant positive correlation. Two representative microbes, Prevotella in saliva and Alloprevotella in tonsils, were negatively correlated, while Treponema 2 showed a strong positive correlation between saliva and tonsils. Taken together, strong similarities in the microbial communities of the tonsils and saliva are evident in terms of diversity and composition. The saliva microbiome is expected to significantly affect the tonsil microbiome. Furthermore, we suggest that our study creates an opportunity for tonsillar microbiome research to facilitate the development of novel microbiome-based therapeutic strategies.Subject terms: Comparative genomics, Metagenomics     

Cobalt Based Nanoparticles Embedded Reduced Graphene Oxide Aerogel for Hydrogen Evolution Electrocatalyst

Efficient water electrolysis catalyst is highly demanded for the production of hydrogen as a sustainable energy fuel. It is reported that cobalt derived nanoparticle (CoS₂, CoP, CoS|P) decorated reduced graphene oxide (rGO) composite aerogel catalysts for highly active and reliable hydrogen evolution reaction electrocatalysts. 7 nm level cobalt derived nanoparticles are synthesized over graphene aerogel surfaces with excellent surface coverage and maximal expose of active sites. CoS|P/rGO hybrid aerogel composites show an excellent catalytic activity with overpotential of ≈169 mV at a current density of ≈10 mA cm^?2. Accordingly, efficient charge transfer is attained with Tafel slope of ≈52 mV dec^?1 and a charge transfer resistance (R_ct) of ≈12 Ω. This work suggests a viable route toward ultrasmall, uniform nanoparticles decorated graphene surfaces with well‐controlled chemical compositions, which can be generally useful for various applications commonly requiring large exposure of active surface area as well as robust interparticle charger transfer.     

C2(×)Cn量子系统的最大纠缠混合态

讨论了C2(×)Cn量子系统的最大纠缠混合态,得到了Negativity纠缠度下的最大纠缠混合态的解析结果,并计算了该态在非满秩情形下的量子相对熵纠缠度.     

Composite Silica Particles Using a Mixture of Organosilane Monomers

Composite silica particles were synthesized by a two-step (acid-base) process in an aqueous solution with a mixture of organoalkoxysilane monomers. The two-step process separates the hydrolysis and condensation procedures to easily control condensation rate. In this study, the silane monomers used were phenyltrimethoxysilane (PTMS), vinyltrimethoxysilane (VTMS), methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS), and tetraethyl-orthosilicate (TEOS). The physical properties of the resultant composite particles were investigated with the change in the molar ratio of monomers. The size of the particles increased with increasing the molar ratio of R_aSi(OR)₃/R_bSi(OR)₃ or R_aSi(OR)₃/TEOS (R_a: phenyl; R_b: vinyl, methyl).     

Effects of hysteretic and aerodynamic damping on supersonic panel flutter of composite plates

The governing equation for the finite element analysis of the panel flutter of composite plates including structural damping is derived from Hamilton's principle. The first order shear deformable plate theory has been applied to structural modelling so as to obtain the finite element eigenvalue equation. The unsteady aerodynamic load in a supersonic flow is computed by using the linear piston theory. The critical dynamic pressures for composite plates have been calculated to investigate the effects of structural damping on flutter boundaries. The effects are dependent on fiber orientation because flutter mode can be weak or strong in the fiber orientation of composite plates. Structural damping plays an important role in flutter stability with low aerodynamic damping but would not affect the flutter boundary with high aerodynamic damping.     

Positive Schatten(-Herz) Class Toeplitz Operators on the Half-space

On the harmonic Bergman space of the half-space, we give characterizations for an arbitrary positive Toeplitz operator to be a Schatten (or Schatten-Herz) class operator in terms of averaging functions and Berezin transforms. Examples are provided to show that various results are sharp. This research was supported by KOSEF(R01-2003-000-10243-0).     

一种基于灰度变换的红外图像增强算法

针对红外图像，采用双门限分割法进行图像分割，然后采用分段灰度变换法进行图像增强。根据具体图像，通过人机交互的方式确定2个阈值，将图像分割为目标区、过渡区和背景区3部分；按照每一部分的特点，设计不同的灰度变换，对图像进行分段线性增强，得到感兴趣目标区的最佳视觉效果。通过对16位红外图像进行实验，得到了满意的结果。实验表明,该算法灵活便捷，在增加对比度和去除噪声的同时，还抑制了背景，达到了预期的效果。     

配合物Zn(Phe)(NO3)2·H2O(s)的低温热容和标准摩尔生成焓

利用精密自动绝热热量计直接测定了配合物Zn(Phe)(NO3)2·H2O(s) (Phe:苯丙氨酸)在78-370 K温区的摩尔热容. 通过热容曲线的解析得到该配合物的起始脱水温度为, T0=(324.27±0.37) K. 将该温区的摩尔热容实验值用最小二乘法拟合得到摩尔热容(Cp, m)对温度(T)的多项式方程, 并且在此基础上计算出了它的舒平热容值和各种热力学函数值. 依据Hess定律, 通过设计热化学循环, 选择体积为100 mL浓度为2 mol·L-1 的盐酸作为量热溶剂, 利用等温环境溶解-反应热量计分别测定混合物{ZnSO4·7H2O(s)+2NaNO3(s)+L-Phe(s)}和{Zn(Phe)(NO3)2·H2O(s)+Na2SO4(s)}的溶解焓为, ⊿dH0m,1 =(69.42±0.05) kJ·mol-1, ⊿dH0 m,2 =(48.14±0.04) kJ·mol-1, 进而计算出该配合物的标准摩尔生成焓为, ⊿fH0m =-(1363.10±3.52) kJ·mol-1. 另外, 利用紫外-可见(UV-Vis)光谱和折光指数(refractiveindex)的测量结果检验了所设计的热化学循环的可靠性.     

Hydrogen analysis in solid samples by utilizing He metastable atoms induced by TEA CO2 laser plasma in He gas at 1 atm

A TEA CO₂ laser (350 mJ–1.5 J, 10.6 μm, 200 ns, 10 Hz) was focused onto a metal sub-target under He as host gas at 1 atmospheric pressure with a small amount of impurity gas, such as water and ethanol vapors. It was found that the TEA CO₂ laser with the help of the metal sub-target is favorable for generating a strong, large volume helium gas breakdown plasma at 1 atmospheric pressure, in which the helium metastable-excited state was then produced overwhelmingly. While the metal sub-target itself was never ablated. The helium metastable-excited state produced after the strong helium gas breakdown plasma was considered to play an important role in exciting the atoms. This was confirmed by the specific characteristics of the detected H emission, namely the strong intensity with low background, narrow spectral width, and the long lifetime. This technique can be used for gas and solid samples analysis. For nonmetal solid analysis, a metal mesh was introduced in front of the nonmetal sample surface to help initiation of the helium gas breakdown plasma. For metal sample, analysis can be carried out by combining the TEA CO₂ laser and an Nd–YAG laser where the Nd–YAG laser is used to ablate the metal sample. The ablated atoms from the metal sample are then sent into the region of helium gas breakdown plasma induced by the TEA CO₂ laser to be excited through the helium metastable-excited state. This technique can be extended to the analysis of other elements, not limited only to hydrogen, such as halogens.