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(La0.5Sr0.5)CoO3 (LSCO) thin films have been fabricated on silicon substrate by the pulsed laser deposition method. The effects of substrate temperature and post-annealing condition on the structural and electrical properties are investigated. The samples grown above 650°C are fully crystalline with perovskite structure. The film deposited at 700°C has columnar growth with electrical resistivity of about 1.99×10−3 Ω cm. The amorphous films grown at 500°C were post-annealed at different conditions. The sample post-annealed at 700°C and 10−4 Pa has similar microstructure with the sample in situ grown at 700°C and 25 Pa. However, the electrical resistivity of the post-annealed sample is one magnitude higher than that of the in situ grown sample because of the effect of oxygen vacancy. The temperature dependence of resistivity exhibits semiconductor-like character. It was found that post-annealing by rapid thermal process will result in film cracks due to the thermal stress. The results are referential for the applications of LSCO in microelectronic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

DNA-based vaccine immunization effectively induces both humoral and cell-mediated immunity to antigens and can confer protection against numerous infectious diseases as well as some cancers. Human and mouse melanomas consistently express the tumor-associated antigen interacted with the melanogenesis pathway. Gp100 is immunogenic and has been shown to induce both antibody and cytotoxic T cell (CTL) responses in humans. To explore the potential use of DNA immunization to induce melanoma-specific immune responses, we assessed HVJ-AVE liposome incorporated with plasmid DNA encoding human gp100. The gp100 DNA vaccine was used in a mouse melanoma model to assess immunity against the B16 melanoma of C57BL/6 mice. Intramuscular injection of the DNA–HVJ-AVE liposomes induced both anti-gp100 antibody and CTL responses. Gp100 DNA–HVJ-AVE liposome immunization significantly delayed tumor development in mice challenged with B16 melanoma cells. Mice immunized with gp100 DNA–HVJ-AVE liposomes survived longer compared with control mice immunized with HVJ-AVE liposome alone. These results indicate that immunization with human gp100 DNA by HVJ-AVE liposomes can induce protective immunity against melanoma in this pre-clinical mouse model. This strategy may provide an effective approach for vaccine therapy with tumor-associated antigens against human melanoma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]