A neurite-receptor complex in the avian lung: Electron microscopical observations

Résumé L'examen au microscope électronique du bronchus primaire intrapulmonaire deGallus domesticus a révelé la présence d'un complexe neurite-récepteur très semblable aux cellules du glomus carotidien des mammifères, et aux cellules de Merkel qui se trouvent dans les structures épidermiques des vertébrés. La fonction possible chémorécepteur ou méchanorécepteur de ces cellules est discutée.     

Effect of vasectomy on hepatic drug metabolism

Summary 2 months after bilateral vasectomy the metabolism of aniline but not aminopyrine was increased in rat liver homogenates, whereas vasectomy did not affect the metabolism of either compound in guinea-pig liver homogenates.Supported by a grant from the University of Nebraska Medical Center.     

Optical coherent state discrimination using a closed-loop quantum measurement

Quantum mechanics hinders our ability to determine the state of a physical system in two ways: individual measurements provide only partial information about the observed system (because of Heisenberg uncertainty), and measurements are themselves invasive-meaning that little or no refinement is achieved by further observation of an already measured system. Theoretical methods have been developed to maximize the information gained from a quantum measurement while also minimizing disturbance, but laboratory implementation of optimal measurement procedures is often difficult. The standard class of operations considered in quantum information theory tends to rely on superposition-basis and entangled measurements, which require high-fidelity implementation to be effective in the laboratory. Here we demonstrate that real-time quantum feedback can be used in place of a delicate quantum superposition, often called a 'Schr?dinger cat state', to implement an optimal quantum measurement for discriminating between optical coherent states. Our procedure actively manipulates the target system during the measurement process, and uses quantum feedback to modify the statistics of an otherwise sub-optimal operator to emulate the optimal cat-state measurement. We verify a long-standing theoretical prediction and demonstrate feedback-mediated quantum measurement at its fundamental quantum limit over a non-trivial region of parameter space.     

Capacitance, charge dynamics, and electrolyte-surface interactions in functionalized carbide-derived carbon electrodes

This study analyzed the dynamics of ionic liquid electrolyte inside of defunctionalized, hydrogenated, and aminated pores of carbide-derived carbon supercapacitor electrodes. The approach tailors surface functionalities and tunes nanoporous structures to decouple the influence of pore wall composition on capacitance, ionic resistance, and long-term cyclability. Quasi-elastic neutron scattering probes the self-diffusion properties and electrode-ion interactions of electrolyte molecules confined in functionalized pores. Room-temperature ionic liquid interactions in confined pores are strongest when the hydrogen-containing groups are present on the surface. This property translates into higher capacitance and greater ion transport through pores during electrochemical cycling. Unlike hydrogenated pores, aminated pores do not favorably interact with ionic liquid ions and, subsequently, are outperformed by defunctionalized surfaces.     

Distribution and functional impact of DNA copy number variation in the rat

The abundance and dynamics of copy number variants (CNVs) in mammalian genomes poses new challenges in the identification of their impact on natural and disease phenotypes. We used computational and experimental methods to catalog CNVs in rat and found that they share important functional characteristics with those in human. In addition, 113 one-to-one orthologous genes overlap CNVs in both human and rat, 80 of which are implicated in human disease. CNVs are nonrandomly distributed throughout the genome. Chromosome 18 is a cold spot for CNVs as well as evolutionary rearrangements and segmental duplications, suggesting stringent selective mechanisms underlying CNV genesis or maintenance. By exploiting gene expression data available for rat recombinant inbred lines, we established the functional relationship of CNVs underlying 22 expression quantitative trait loci. These characteristics make the rat an excellent model for studying phenotypic effects of structural variation in relation to human complex traits and disease.