Performance of Ion-gel Actuator Containing Ionic Liquids

1 Results Electroactive polymers (EAPs) driven by transducing electric energy into mechanical energy have been the subjects of recent interest[1].“Ionic liquids“,consisting entirely of cation and anion,have characteristic features such as negligible volatility,non-flammability,thermal and chemical stability,and high ionic conductivity.We proposed an EAP actuator utilizing ion-gels[2-3],which consist of ionic liquids and polymers,sandwiching with two carbon material sheets as shown in Fig.1.This electrol...     

墨西哥湾北陆坡区冷泉碳酸盐岩脂肪酸及碳同位素特征

对墨西哥湾北部水深约540m的上陆坡GC185区(GC-F样品)和水深约2200m的下陆坡AC645区(AC-E样品)冷泉碳酸盐岩中的脂肪酸及其单体化合物的δ13C进行了分析.在AC-E和GC-F冷泉碳酸盐岩样品中检测到了30多种脂肪酸化合物,均以主峰碳为C16的低碳数(C20)脂肪酸为主,具偶碳优势,主要包括正构脂肪酸、异构(i-)/反异构(ai-)脂肪酸以及带支链的(iso/anteiso)奇碳数脂肪酸.其中n-C12:0,n-C13:0,i-C14:0和n-C14:0具有明显偏低的δ13C值(-39.99‰~-32.36‰),可能来源于冷泉生物.n-C18:2和C18:1△9具有相同的碳同位素值,可能来源于冷泉渗漏区贝氏硫细菌属/辫硫菌属.支链奇碳数脂肪酸(iso/anteiso-C13~C17)具有特别负的δ13C值(-63.95‰~-44.17‰),明显不同于其他类别脂肪酸的碳同位素值,推断这类化合物是海底渗漏区甲烷厌氧氧化过程中的硫酸盐还原细菌生命活动的产物.     

Respiration as the main determinant of carbon balance in European forests

Carbon exchange between the terrestrial biosphere and the atmosphere is one of the key processes that need to be assessed in the context of the Kyoto Protocol. Several studies suggest that the terrestrial biosphere is gaining carbon, but these estimates are obtained primarily by indirect methods, and the factors that control terrestrial carbon exchange, its magnitude and primary locations, are under debate. Here we present data of net ecosystem carbon exchange, collected between 1996 and 1998 from 15 European forests, which confirm that many European forest ecosystems act as carbon sinks. The annual carbon balances range from an uptake of 6.6 tonnes of carbon per hectare per year to a release of nearly 1 t C ha(-1) yr(-1), with a large variability between forests. The data show a significant increase of carbon uptake with decreasing latitude, whereas the gross primary production seems to be largely independent of latitude. Our observations indicate that, in general, ecosystem respiration determines net ecosystem carbon exchange. Also, for an accurate assessment of the carbon balance in a particular forest ecosystem, remote sensing of the normalized difference vegetation index or estimates based on forest inventories may not be sufficient.     

The DNA sequence and analysis of human chromosome 13

Chromosome 13 is the largest acrocentric human chromosome. It carries genes involved in cancer including the breast cancer type 2 (BRCA2) and retinoblastoma (RB1) genes, is frequently rearranged in B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukaemia, and contains the DAOA locus associated with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. We describe completion and analysis of 95.5 megabases (Mb) of sequence from chromosome 13, which contains 633 genes and 296 pseudogenes. We estimate that more than 95.4% of the protein-coding genes of this chromosome have been identified, on the basis of comparison with other vertebrate genome sequences. Additionally, 105 putative non-coding RNA genes were found. Chromosome 13 has one of the lowest gene densities (6.5 genes per Mb) among human chromosomes, and contains a central region of 38 Mb where the gene density drops to only 3.1 genes per Mb.     

Mediation of mouse natural cytotoxic activity by tumour necrosis factor

Natural cell-mediated cytotoxic activity in the mouse has been associated with two types of effector cells, the natural killer (NK) cell and the natural cytotoxic (NC) cell, which seem to differ with regard to their patterns of target selectivity, cell surface characteristics and susceptibility to regulatory factors. During studies on the mechanism of action of cytotoxic molecules, it became evident that WEHI-164, the prototype NC target cell, was highly susceptible to direct lysis by both human and mouse recombinant tumour necrosis factor (TNF). Here we show that NC, but not NK activity mediated by normal splenocytes, is abrogated by rabbit antibodies to recombinant and natural TNF, respectively. Thus, the cell-mediated activity defined as NC is due to release of TNF by normal spleen cells and does not represent a unique natural effector mechanism.     

Ca2+ channel modulation by 8-bromocyclic AMP in cultured heart cells

Modulation of ion channels is of increasing interest as it is an important step in the regulation of cellular functions. We have analysed the effect of 8-bromocyclic AMP on Ca2+ channels in cultured cardiac cells by the patch-clamp method and report here that there was a large increase in the probability of opening of the channels. On the basis of a recently proposed kinetic reaction scheme we suggest that cyclic AMP-dependent phosphorylation of Ca2+ channels primarily promotes the forward rate constants which lead to the open state of a Ca2+ channel during depolarization.     

机动车排放模型的应用及其适用性比较

运用模型估算城市机动车排放因子及排放总量,是机动车污染控制研究的一个重要方向。目前,在模型使用方面,国内主要借用MOBILE等国外较为成熟的模型,这在我国排放因子计算方面缺乏数据积累、基础研究薄弱情况下不失为一种选择。然而,这些模型一般根据不同的需要开发,在数据积累等方面具有较强的地域性,难免会与国内实际情况不符。国内现有研究更多集中于对利用模型得到的排放因子进行分析,对模型适用性的研究鲜有涉及。本文从MOBILE、IVE、EMFAC、CMEM、COPERT模型在国内应用的实际情况出发,从模型类型,地域性,数据库的完整性、模型的可移植性和参数可获性这几个方面,比较了这几个有代表性的机动车排放模型在国内的适用程度,指出了在不同地区情况和不同阶段,模型不同的适用范围。     

Fringe is a glycosyltransferase that modifies Notch

Notch receptors function in highly conserved intercellular signalling pathways that direct cell-fate decisions, proliferation and apoptosis in metazoans. Fringe proteins can positively and negatively modulate the ability of Notch ligands to activate the Notch receptor. Here we establish the biochemical mechanism of Fringe action. Drosophila and mammalian Fringe proteins possess a fucose-specific beta1,3 N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase activity that initiates elongation of O-linked fucose residues attached to epidermal growth factor-like sequence repeats of Notch. We obtained biological evidence that Fringe-dependent elongation of O-linked fucose on Notch modulates Notch signalling by using co-culture assays in mammalian cells and by expression of an enzymatically inactive Fringe mutant in Drosophila. The post-translational modification of Notch by Fringe represents a striking example of modulation of a signalling event by differential receptor glycosylation and identifies a mechanism that is likely to be relevant to other signalling pathways.     

Metagenomic and functional analysis of hindgut microbiota of a wood-feeding higher termite

From the standpoints of both basic research and biotechnology, there is considerable interest in reaching a clearer understanding of the diversity of biological mechanisms employed during lignocellulose degradation. Globally, termites are an extremely successful group of wood-degrading organisms and are therefore important both for their roles in carbon turnover in the environment and as potential sources of biochemical catalysts for efforts aimed at converting wood into biofuels. Only recently have data supported any direct role for the symbiotic bacteria in the gut of the termite in cellulose and xylan hydrolysis. Here we use a metagenomic analysis of the bacterial community resident in the hindgut paunch of a wood-feeding 'higher' Nasutitermes species (which do not contain cellulose-fermenting protozoa) to show the presence of a large, diverse set of bacterial genes for cellulose and xylan hydrolysis. Many of these genes were expressed in vivo or had cellulase activity in vitro, and further analyses implicate spirochete and fibrobacter species in gut lignocellulose degradation. New insights into other important symbiotic functions including H2 metabolism, CO2-reductive acetogenesis and N2 fixation are also provided by this first system-wide gene analysis of a microbial community specialized towards plant lignocellulose degradation. Our results underscore how complex even a 1-microl environment can be.