The presence of approximately 200-bp cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in the urine has attracted attention as a biomarker for liquid biopsy. However, it is currently useful only for diagnoses of cancers in ...which a large amount of cfDNA is excreted in the urine. Therefore, the development of an efficient method for extracting cfDNA existing in small amounts in the urine is essential for diagnosing many other diseases. We examined the effect of particle size, small pore size (surface area), and surface modification of porous silica particles on the efficiency of DNA extraction. Our observations suggested that cfDNA could be captured by tertiary amine–modified particles and then removed from the particles by repeatedly washing with sodium bicarbonate (pH 11). Using this method with 30 mg of triamine-modified particles, we succeeded in extracting a few hundred nanograms of cfDNA from 15 mL urine. Furthermore, we could detect ~ 67 fg/mL caries DNA (211 bp) in 15 mL urine sample, suggesting that this method may be suitable for the extraction of genetic biomarkers for cfDNA-based liquid biopsy.
Broadband tunability is a central theme in contemporary nanophotonics and metamaterials research. Combining metamaterials with phase change media offers a promising approach to achieve such ...tunability, which requires a comprehensive investigation of the electromagnetic responses of novel materials at subwavelength scales. In this work, we demonstrate an innovative way to tailor band-selective electromagnetic responses at the surface of a heavy fermion compound, samarium sulfide (SmS). By utilizing the intrinsic, pressure sensitive, and multi-band electron responses of SmS, we create a proof-of-principle heavy fermion metamaterial, which is fabricated and characterized using scanning near-field microscopes with <50 nm spatial resolution. The optical responses at the infrared and visible frequency ranges can be selectively and separately tuned via modifying the occupation of the 4f and 5d band electrons. The unique pressure, doping, and temperature tunability demonstrated represents a paradigm shift for nanoscale metamaterial and metasurface design.
We have measured the reflectivity spectra of the LiFeAs (Tc = 17.6 K) single crystal in the temperature range from 4 to 300 K. In the superconducting (SC) state (T < Tc), the clean opening of the ...optical absorption gap was observed below 25 cm−1, indicating an isotropic full gap formation. In the normal state (T > Tc), the optical conductivity spectra display typical metallic behavior with the Drude-type spectra at low frequencies, but we found that the introduction of the two Drude components best fits the data, indicating the multiband nature of this compound. A theoretical analysis of the low-temperature data (T = 4 K < Tc) also suggests that two SC gaps best fit the data and their values were estimated as Δ1 = 3.3 meV and Δ2 = 1.59 meV, respectively. Using the Ferrell-Glover-Tinkham sum rule and dielectric function 1(ω), the plasma frequency of the SC condensate (ωps) is consistently estimated to be 6665 cm−1, implying that about 65% of the free carriers of the normal state condense into the SC condensate. To investigate the various interband transition processes (for ω > 200 cm−1), we have also performed the local-density approximation band calculation and calculated the optical spectra of the interband transitions. This theoretical result provided qualitative agreement with the experimental data below 4000 cm−1 .
Anisotropic gap formation in CeM2Al10 (M Ru, Os) Kimura, Shin-ichi; Iizuka, Takuya; Muro, Yuji ...
Journal of physics. Conference series,
12/2012, Volume:
391, Issue:
1
Journal Article, Conference Proceeding
Peer reviewed
Open access
We report an anomalous energy gap formation in CeM2Al10 (M Ru, Os) by using a polarized optical conductivity σ(ω) measurement. Near 28 K (= T0), both compounds undergo an antiferromagnetic transition ...order, the origin of which is not yet clear. We found that the σ(ω) spectra along the orthorhombic b-axis have characteristic peak structure at the energy gap edge, which implies the existence of the band nesting due to a charge instability. The peak structure does not originate from the conventional Kondo semiconducting property but can be explained by the charge-density wave (CDW) fluctuation based on the mean-field theory. This suggests that the opening of energy gap along the b-axis originates from the CDW or spin-density wave formation.
We report the anisotropic changes in the electronic structure of a Kondo semiconductor CeOs(2)Al(10) across an anomalous antiferromagnetic ordering temperature (T(0)) of 29 K, using optical ...conductivity spectra. The spectra along the a and c axes indicate that an energy gap due to the hybridization between conduction bands and nearly local 4f states, namely the c-f hybridization gap, emerges from a higher temperature continuously across T(0). Along the b axis, on the other hand, another energy gap with a peak at 20 meV becomes visible at 39 K (>T(0)) and fully opens at T(0) because of a charge instability. This result implies that the appearance of the energy gap, as well as the change in the electronic structure along the b axis, induces the antiferromagnetic ordering below T(0).
It is well known that the heavy soil dust has been transported from the China continent to Japan on westerly winds, especially in spring. The satellite observation is an effective tool for global ...monitoring of the Asian dust. A new algorithm for detection of Asian dust from space is proposed based on the multispectral satellite data. The derived space-based results are validated with the ground-based measurements and/or model simulations. The sun/sky photometry has been undertaken at NASA/AERONET stations at Osaka. The suspended particulate matter (SPM) sampling and NIES/LIDAR network equipment have been simultaneously working there. However, it is difficult to relate these ground-based measurements directly to the column space data. Therefore, in order to validate the satellite results with the surface-level data, an aerosol transportation model should be simulated. The measurements are examined with the model simulations. As a result, the distribution of Asian dust aerosols is retrieved in a comprehensive way in this study.
In the (2+1)-dimensional QED with and without the Chern-Simons term, we find the non-local gauge in which there is no wavefunction renormalization for the fermion in the framework of the ...Schwinger-Dyson equation. By solving the Schwinger-Dyson equation in the non-local gauge, we find a finite critical value
N
f
c for the number of flavors
N
f of four-component Dirac fermions, above which the chiral symmetry restores irrespective of presence or absence of the Chern-Simons term. In the same framework, we study the possibility of dynamical breakdown of the parity. It is shown that the parity is not dynamically broken. We discuss this reason from the viewpoint of the Schwinger-Dyson equation.
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