Initial corrosion observed on the atomic scale

Corrosion destroys more than three per cent of the world's GDP. Recently, the electrochemical decomposition of metal alloys has been more productively harnessed to produce porous materials with diverse technological potential. High-resolution insight into structure formation during electrocorrosion is a prerequisite for an atomistic understanding and control of such electrochemical surface processes. Here we report atomic-scale observations of the initial stages of corrosion of a Cu3Au111 single crystal alloy within a sulphuric acid solution. We monitor, by in situ X-ray diffraction with picometre-scale resolution, the structure and chemical composition of the electrolyte/alloy interface as the material decomposes. We reveal the microscopic structural changes associated with a general passivation phenomenon of which the origin has been hitherto unclear. We observe the formation of a gold-enriched single-crystal layer that is two to three monolayers thick, and has an unexpected inverted (CBA-) stacking sequence. At higher potentials, we find that this protective passivation layer dewets and pure gold islands are formed; such structures form the templates for the growth of nanoporous metals. Our experiments are carried out on a model single-crystal system. However, the insights should equally apply within a crystalline grain of an associated polycrystalline electrode fabricated from many other alloys exhibiting a large difference in the standard potential of their constituents, such as stainless steel (see ref. 5 for example) or alloys used for marine applications, such as CuZn or CuAl.     

CAP defines a second signalling pathway required for insulin-stimulated glucose transport

Insulin stimulates the transport of glucose into fat and muscle cells. Although the precise molecular mechanisms involved in this process remain uncertain, insulin initiates its actions by binding to its tyrosine kinase receptor, leading to the phosphorylation of intracellular substrates. One such substrate is the Cbl proto-oncogene product. Cbl is recruited to the insulin receptor by interaction with the adapter protein CAP, through one of three adjacent SH3 domains in the carboxy terminus of CAP. Upon phosphorylation of Cbl, the CAP-Cbl complex dissociates from the insulin receptor and moves to a caveolin-enriched, triton-insoluble membrane fraction. Here, to identify a molecular mechanism underlying this subcellular redistribution, we screened a yeast two-hybrid library using the amino-terminal region of CAP and identified the caveolar protein flotillin. Flotillin forms a ternary complex with CAP and Cbl, directing the localization of the CAP-Cbl complex to a lipid raft subdomain of the plasma membrane. Expression of the N-terminal domain of CAP in 3T3-L1 adipocytes blocks the stimulation of glucose transport by insulin, without affecting signalling events that depend on phosphatidylinositol-3-OH kinase. Thus, localization of the Cbl-CAP complex to lipid rafts generates a pathway that is crucial in the regulation of glucose uptake.     

红霉素发酵过程前期参数相关分析及调控

对红霉素发酵过程前期调控策略进行了研究,从宏观代谢流的变化着手,对表征细胞代谢特征的参数进行了相关分析,对发酵前期的摄氧率(OUR)、二氧化碳释放率(CER)及呼吸商(RQ)相关变化及红霉素发酵前期CER与pH的变化进行了分析,确定了合适的调控方式,在工业规模发酵罐上通过控制发酵过程前期补糖速率等措施,使发酵平均水平从原来的4500u／mL提高到了6000u／mL。     

Tension between two kinetochores suffices for their bi-orientation on the mitotic spindle

The movement of sister chromatids to opposite spindle poles during anaphase depends on the prior capture of sister kinetochores by microtubules with opposing orientations (amphitelic attachment or bi-orientation). In addition to proteins necessary for the kinetochore-microtubule attachment, bi-orientation requires the Ipl1 (Aurora B in animal cells) protein kinase and tethering of sister chromatids by cohesin. Syntelic attachments, in which sister kinetochores attach to microtubules with the same orientation, must be either 'avoided' or 'corrected'. Avoidance might be facilitated by the juxtaposition of sister kinetochores such that they face in opposite directions; kinetochore geometry is therefore deemed important. Error correction, by contrast, is thought to stem from the stabilization of kinetochore-spindle pole connections by tension in microtubules, kinetochores, or the surrounding chromatin arising from amphitelic but not syntelic attachment. The tension model predicts that any type of connection between two kinetochores suffices for efficient bi-orientation. Here we show that the two kinetochores of engineered, unreplicated dicentric chromosomes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae bi-orient efficiently, implying that sister kinetochore geometry is dispensable for bi-orientation. We also show that Ipl1 facilitates bi-orientation by promoting the turnover of kinetochore-spindle pole connections in a tension-dependent manner.     

水平排列硅光二极管色传感器及其特性

简要介绍水平排列硅光二极管色传感器的制作工艺，该器件波长在５００ｎｍ到６５０ｎｍ范围内有一个单调的近于线性的光谱响应。入射光波长为６００ｎｍ时，入射光强度化五个数量级，测出的波长基本不变，器件波长分辨率、最低入射光强、长时间测量的波长漂移以及波长温漂系数等特性的测量结果表明：该类色传感器已达高性能实用要求。     

Little or no solar wind enters Venus' atmosphere at solar minimum

Venus has no significant internal magnetic field, which allows the solar wind to interact directly with its atmosphere. A field is induced in this interaction, which partially shields the atmosphere, but we have no knowledge of how effective that shield is at solar minimum. (Our current knowledge of the solar wind interaction with Venus is derived from measurements at solar maximum.) The bow shock is close to the planet, meaning that it is possible that some solar wind could be absorbed by the atmosphere and contribute to the evolution of the atmosphere. Here we report magnetic field measurements from the Venus Express spacecraft in the plasma environment surrounding Venus. The bow shock under low solar activity conditions seems to be in the position that would be expected from a complete deflection by a magnetized ionosphere. Therefore little solar wind enters the Venus ionosphere even at solar minimum.     

Cloning defined regions of the human genome by microdissection of banded chromosomes and enzymatic amplification

The molecular analysis of many genetic diseases requires the isolation of probes for defined human chromosome regions. Existing techniques such as the screening of chromosome-specific libraries, subtractive DNA cloning and chromosome jumping are either tedious or not generally applicable. Microdissection and microcloning has successfully been applied to various chromosome regions in Drosophila and mouse, but conventional microtechniques are too coarse and inefficient for analysis of the human genome. Because microdissection has previously been used on unbanded chromosomes only, cell lines in which the chromosome of interest could be identified without banding had to be used. At least one hundred chromosomes were needed for dissection and lambda vectors used to achieve maximum cloning efficiency. Recombinant phage clones are, however, more difficult to characterize than plasmid clones. Here we describe the dissection of the Langer-Giedion syndrome region on chromosome 8 from GTG-banded metaphase chromosomes (G-banding with trypsin-Giemsa) and the universal enzymatic amplification of the dissected DNA. Eighty per cent of clones from this library (total yield 20,000) identify single-copy DNA sequences. Fifty per cent of clones detect deletions in two patients with Langer-Giedion syndrome. Although the other clones have not yet been mapped, this result demonstrates that thousands of region-specific probes can be isolated within ten days.     

Inhibition of exocytosis by intracellularly applied antibodies against a chromaffin granule-binding protein

Exocytotic secretion requires the interaction and fusion of secretory vesicles with the plasma membrane. This process could be mediated by specific recognition molecules acting as intracellular, membrane-bound receptors and ligands. One possible component of such a recognition site on the plasma membrane is a protein of relative molecular mass (Mr) 51,000 (51K) that has been isolated from bovine adrenal chromaffin cells. This protein binds strongly to chromaffin granules, the secretory vesicles of these cells. To determine the function of this membrane-anchored chromaffin granule-binding protein in exocytosis, we tested the effect of intracellularly injected antibodies on secretion. Here we show, by two independent techniques in two different cell types, that antibodies against this protein inhibit exocytosis. In rat pheochromocytoma cell cultures, monospecific antibodies, applied by erythrocyte ghost fusion, impair the release of 3H-noradrenaline. The same antibodies, introduced into individual chromaffin cells through a patch pipette, block exocytosis, as revealed by the measurement of membrane capacitance. These results demonstrate the functional involvement in exocytosis of a plasma membrane protein with high affinity for secretory vesicles.     

加热U型管内压力降型脉动发生界限研究

从压力降型脉动发生的机理方面作了分析，用小扰动法计算了压力降型脉动发生的界限，同时用试验数据加以验证，还比较了３种不同布置的Ｕ型管的脉动界限。     

An intense stratospheric jet on Jupiter

The Earth's equatorial stratosphere shows oscillations in which the east-west winds reverse direction and the temperatures change cyclically with a period of about two years. This phenomenon, called the quasi-biennial oscillation, also affects the dynamics of the mid- and high-latitude stratosphere and weather in the lower atmosphere. Ground-based observations have suggested that similar temperature oscillations (with a 4-5-yr cycle) occur on Jupiter, but these data suffer from poor vertical resolution and Jupiter's stratospheric wind velocities have not yet been determined. Here we report maps of temperatures and winds with high spatial resolution, obtained from spacecraft measurements of infrared spectra of Jupiter's stratosphere. We find an intense, high-altitude equatorial jet with a speed of approximately 140 m s(-1), whose spatial structure resembles that of a quasi-quadrennial oscillation. Wave activity in the stratosphere also appears analogous to that occurring on Earth. A strong interaction between Jupiter and its plasma environment produces hot spots in its upper atmosphere and stratosphere near its poles, and the temperature maps define the penetration of the hot spots into the stratosphere.