A reversible wet/dry adhesive inspired by mussels and geckos

The adhesive strategy of the gecko relies on foot pads composed of specialized keratinous foot-hairs called setae, which are subdivided into terminal spatulae of approximately 200 nm (ref. 1). Contact between the gecko foot and an opposing surface generates adhesive forces that are sufficient to allow the gecko to cling onto vertical and even inverted surfaces. Although strong, the adhesion is temporary, permitting rapid detachment and reattachment of the gecko foot during locomotion. Researchers have attempted to capture these properties of gecko adhesive in synthetic mimics with nanoscale surface features reminiscent of setae; however, maintenance of adhesive performance over many cycles has been elusive, and gecko adhesion is greatly diminished upon full immersion in water. Here we report a hybrid biologically inspired adhesive consisting of an array of nanofabricated polymer pillars coated with a thin layer of a synthetic polymer that mimics the wet adhesive proteins found in mussel holdfasts. Wet adhesion of the nanostructured polymer pillar arrays increased nearly 15-fold when coated with mussel-mimetic polymer. The system maintains its adhesive performance for over a thousand contact cycles in both dry and wet environments. This hybrid adhesive, which combines the salient design elements of both gecko and mussel adhesives, should be useful for reversible attachment to a variety of surfaces in any environment.     

Spin-based logic in semiconductors for reconfigurable large-scale circuits

Research in semiconductor spintronics aims to extend the scope of conventional electronics by using the spin degree of freedom of an electron in addition to its charge. Significant scientific advances in this area have been reported, such as the development of diluted ferromagnetic semiconductors, spin injection into semiconductors from ferromagnetic metals and discoveries of new physical phenomena involving electron spin. Yet no viable means of developing spintronics in semiconductors has been presented. Here we report a theoretical design that is a conceptual step forward-spin accumulation is used as the basis of a semiconductor computer circuit. Although the giant magnetoresistance effect in metals has already been commercially exploited, it does not extend to semiconductor/ferromagnet systems, because the effect is too weak for logic operations. We overcome this obstacle by using spin accumulation rather than spin flow. The basic element in our design is a logic gate that consists of a semiconductor structure with multiple magnetic contacts; this serves to perform fast and reprogrammable logic operations in a noisy, room-temperature environment. We then introduce a method to interconnect a large number of these gates to form a 'spin computer'. As the shrinking of conventional complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) transistors reaches its intrinsic limit, greater computational capability will mean an increase in both circuit area and power dissipation. Our spin-based approach may provide wide margins for further scaling and also greater computational capability per gate.     

The development of a protoplanetary disk from its natal envelope

Class 0 protostars, the youngest type of young stellar objects, show many signs of rapid development from their initial, spheroidal configurations, and therefore are studied intensively for details of the formation of protoplanetary disks within protostellar envelopes. At millimetre wavelengths, kinematic signatures of collapse have been observed in several such protostars, through observations of molecular lines that probe their outer envelopes. It has been suggested that one or more components of the proto-multiple system NGC 1333-IRAS 4 (refs 1, 2) may display signs of an embedded region that is warmer and denser than the bulk of the envelope. Here we report observations that reveal details of the core on Solar System dimensions. We detect in NGC 1333-IRAS 4B a rich emission spectrum of H2O, at wavelengths 20-37 microm, which indicates an origin in extremely dense, warm gas. We can model the emission as infall from a protostellar envelope onto the surface of a deeply embedded, dense disk, and therefore see the development of a protoplanetary disk. This is the only example of mid-infrared water emission from a sample of 30 class 0 objects, perhaps arising from a favourable orientation; alternatively, this may be an early and short-lived stage in the evolution of a protoplanetary disk.     

Raptorial jaws in the throat help moray eels swallow large prey

Most bony fishes rely on suction mechanisms to capture and transport prey. Once captured, prey are carried by water movement inside the oral cavity to a second set of jaws in the throat, the pharyngeal jaws, which manipulate the prey and assist in swallowing. Moray eels display much less effective suction-feeding abilities. Given this reduction in a feeding mechanism that is widespread and highly conserved in aquatic vertebrates, it is not known how moray eels swallow large fish and cephalopods. Here we show that the moray eel (Muraena retifera) overcomes reduced suction capacity by launching raptorial pharyngeal jaws out of its throat and into its oral cavity, where the jaws grasp the struggling prey animal and transport it back to the throat and into the oesophagus. This is the first described case of a vertebrate using a second set of jaws to both restrain and transport prey, and is the only alternative to the hydraulic prey transport reported in teleost fishes. The extreme mobility of the moray pharyngeal jaws is made possible by elongation of the muscles that control the jaws, coupled with reduction of adjacent gill-arch structures. The discovery that pharyngeal jaws can reach up from behind the skull to grasp prey in the oral jaws reveals a major innovation that may have contributed to the success of moray eels as apex predators hunting within the complex matrix of coral reefs. This alternative prey transport mode is mechanically similar to the ratcheting mechanisms used in snakes--a group of terrestrial vertebrates that share striking morphological, behavioural and ecological convergence with moray eels.     

'Rejuvenation' protects neurons in mouse models of Parkinson's disease

Why dopamine-containing neurons of the brain's substantia nigra pars compacta die in Parkinson's disease has been an enduring mystery. Our studies suggest that the unusual reliance of these neurons on L-type Ca(v)1.3 Ca2+ channels to drive their maintained, rhythmic pacemaking renders them vulnerable to stressors thought to contribute to disease progression. The reliance on these channels increases with age, as juvenile dopamine-containing neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta use pacemaking mechanisms common to neurons not affected in Parkinson's disease. These mechanisms remain latent in adulthood, and blocking Ca(v)1.3 Ca2+ channels in adult neurons induces a reversion to the juvenile form of pacemaking. Such blocking ('rejuvenation') protects these neurons in both in vitro and in vivo models of Parkinson's disease, pointing to a new strategy that could slow or stop the progression of the disease.     

Epithelial-cell-intrinsic IKK-beta expression regulates intestinal immune homeostasis

Intestinal epithelial cells (IECs) provide a primary physical barrier against commensal and pathogenic microorganisms in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, but the influence of IECs on the development and regulation of immunity to infection is unknown. Here we show that IEC-intrinsic IkappaB kinase (IKK)-beta-dependent gene expression is a critical regulator of responses of dendritic cells and CD4+ T cells in the GI tract. Mice with an IEC-specific deletion of IKK-beta show a reduced expression of the epithelial-cell-restricted cytokine thymic stromal lymphopoietin in the intestine and, after infection with the gut-dwelling parasite Trichuris, fail to develop a pathogen-specific CD4+ T helper type 2 (T(H)2) response and are unable to eradicate infection. Further, these animals show exacerbated production of dendritic-cell-derived interleukin-12/23p40 and tumour necrosis factor-alpha, increased levels of CD4+ T-cell-derived interferon-gamma and interleukin-17, and develop severe intestinal inflammation. Blockade of proinflammatory cytokines during Trichuris infection ablates the requirement for IKK-beta in IECs to promote CD4+ T(H)2 cell-dependent immunity, identifying an essential function for IECs in tissue-specific conditioning of dendritic cells and limiting type 1 cytokine production in the GI tract. These results indicate that the balance of IKK-beta-dependent gene expression in the intestinal epithelium is crucial in intestinal immune homeostasis by promoting mucosal immunity and limiting chronic inflammation.     

Why endophenotype development requires families

Endophenotypes are heritable quantitative traits that are associated with disease liability, can be measured in both affected and unaffected individuals, and provide much greater power to localize and identify risk genes for mental illness than does affection status alone. Traditionally, endophenotypic markers for psychiatric illnesses include in vivo neuroanatomic and functional magnetic resonance imaging measurements and indices of neurocognitive abilities. However, neurocognitive and neuroimaging measures are by no means the only classes of endophenotypes that could be useful for identifying genes for mental illness. Given the advantages of endophenotype-based strategies for elucidating the genetic underpinnings of psychiatric disorders, it would seem prudent to develop a wide range of putative endophenotypes. In order for a measure to be considered a valid endophenotype, it must meet a number of criteria. Specifically, the trait must (1) have moderate to high heritability, (2) be associated with the illness, (3) be independent of clinical state, and (4) impairment must co-segregate with the illness within a family, with non-affected family members showing impairment relative to the general population. While each of these criteria is critical, the heritability and co-segregation requirements are really what differentiate an endophenotype from a simple biomarker. At this time, one requires an experimental design that includes families to demonstrate both heritability and co-segregation. The assertion that novel endophenotypes can not be fully established without family data does not preclude work in unrelated individuals, rather that unrelated samples will only be able to nominate potential candidate endophenotypes that subsequently need to be confirmed in family-based experiments.     

Potential release of hydrogen fluoride from domestic coal in endemic fluorosis area in Guizhou,China

Almost half of the total rural area of Guizhou Province and many regions within the 11 adjacent provinces in southwestern China have a long history(at least 70 years) of endemic fluorosis,including dental fluorosis and osteofluorosis along with its associated deformities and disabilities.Over decades of research,this specific type of endemic fluorosis has been defined as coal-burning fluorosis,which is distinct from drinking-water fluorosis.It is generally acknowledged that indoor burning and combustion of high-fluorine coal leads to food contamination,and fluorine then enters the human body.However,the exact chemical form of fluorine during its release and transfer to the body is still unknown.In the present study,21 domestic coal samples from outcrop and semi-outcrop coal collected in five villages with fluorosis were analyzed by time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry(TOF-SIMS).The total mass fraction of sulfur in the samples ranged from 0.24%-5.58% and total fluorine content ranged 90.2-149.2 mg/kg.H3O+,H2SO4+ and HSO4-were detected in the samples by TOF-SIMS,which indicated that sulfuric acid hydrate(H2SO4.H2O) was present in the samples.F-was detected in all of these,which suggested the samples contain ionic fluorine compounds.Under certain circumstances,such as heating or burning,the prevalence and coexistence of the acid(H2SO4.H2O) and base(F-) would lead to a neutralization reaction producing volatile hydrogen fluoride(HF,bp = 19.5℃).This would be the chemical form of fluorine released from the coal.Further studies using HF and SO2 test tubes on headspace gas over coal samples heated to 200℃ in the laboratory and on headspace gas over stoves or chimney tops at rural residences confirmed the release of HF.     

基于刚度及经济的CFRP与钢组合拉索设计理论

基于钢斜拉索、碳纤维增强塑料(CFRP)斜拉索适用跨径研究结果,针对1 400~2 800 m主跨斜拉桥整体刚度不足提出一种新型结构方案,即基于刚度及经济性能的CFRP与钢组合拉索方案.该方案将CFRP斜拉索与传统钢斜拉索同时应用于斜拉桥中,将２种材料高强轻质及弹性模量高的优点进行组合,以充分提高斜拉索的等效刚度,进而提高斜拉桥的整体刚度.详细介绍该组合方案设计思路与方法,通过比较等效刚度以及经济性能给出２种材料斜拉索推荐组合比例.最后,通过一座1 400 m主跨CFRP与钢组合拉索斜拉桥试设计说明该方案相对传统方案整体刚度上的优势,证明其工程应用的可行性,是主跨为1 400~2 800 m斜拉桥的优选方案之一.