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The role of palladium (Pd) in the reduction of graphene oxide (GO) thin films was investigated using a Pd assisted grafting technique. The structural and optical characteristics of these thin films were obtained from various spectroscopic analyses, which confirmed increased C[double bond, length as m-dash]C-C aromatic ring vibration and oxidation of Pd with Ar annealing. In Pd free GO, annealing of films resulted in restoration of sp(2) clusters; however, Pd grafting with non-annealed film enhanced the possibility of restoration and further annealing dramatically increased the restoration rate with enhanced blue photoluminescence (PL) emission. The blue PL emission originates from sp(2) cluster sites and the yellow-green PL from defect trapped states. As reduction of GO increased, yellow-green emission decreased and blue PL became the prominent emission. These experimental findings open up a new feasible pathway for controlling the luminescence emission from graphene oxide that furthers the technological advancement of graphene based optoelectronic devices.

Drastic developments are being achieved in the field of science and technology. Every innovation has got its merits and demerits. Compatibility is an important factor along with performance when it comes to technology. Compatibility can be achieved by using compression techniques. These techniques play a vital role in reducing the size of the device or chip, along with increasing the power efficiency and clock rate. There are various compression algorithms present which are very much helpful in achieving Compatibility along with achieving higher efficiency. Some of the compression algorithms that are available are Huffman coding algorithm, SAMC algorithm, LZW algorithm and so on. Based on the application and requirements the required algorithms can be chosen. In this paper we are about to use these algorithms to compare these algorithms with each other's and evaluate its performance.

Epileptic seizure can be detected by many ways but EEG signal prove to be the most important marker. Since EEG signal requires a strenuous effort to go through pages of recorded signal. Automatic seizure detection can be done by extracting features from the EEG signals and then feeding them to the supervised learning algorithms for classification and prediction. In this paper the features that are chosen are mean, standard deviation, skewness, kurtosis, interquartile range and mean absolute deviation. A comparative study of SVM and GRNN are done in this work and GRNN proves to be accurate for seizure detection applications.

HLA-DPB1 alleles were studied in 51 normal individuals and 93 leprosy patients from North India using a PCR-oligotyping technique. Hybridization patterns could identify 47 alleles of which 20 were found in the population studied. DPB1*0401 was found to be the most frequent allele with a frequency of 66.7% followed by DPB1*0402 (21.6%), DPB1*0201 (21.6%), DPB1*1301 (15.7%) and DPB1*0301 (13.7%). Besides the common alleles, DPB1*0101, *1701, *2601, *1001, *1601, *0901, *2901, *1501, *0501, *1401, and *3301 were observed at low frequencies. DPB1*2101, DPB1*2801, DPB1*3201 and DPB1*3501 were not found in the normal individuals studied but were observed in the group of leprosy patients. DPB1*0202, *0601, *0801 and *1101 were not found in this population. Two alleles with apparent new hybridization patterns were isolated and sequenced. The nucleotide sequences obtained have confirmed the hybridization patterns. One of them (DPB1*4601) confirms a sequence recently reported. The other has been given the official designation of DPB1*5601.

Vitiligo is an acquired pigmentary disorder resulting from loss of melanocytes. Interleukin (IL)-4 has been shown to stimulate B-cell proliferation, to regulate immunoglobulin class switching (IgG1 and IgE) and to promote T-cell development. Polymorphisms in the IL4 gene are known to increase its expression, thereby implicating its role in vitiligo susceptibility.To explore intron 3 VNTR (IVS3) and -590 C/T (rs2243250) promoter polymorphisms in the IL4 gene and to correlate them with the IL4 transcript, serum IL-4 and IgE levels to achieve genotype-phenotype correlation in patients with vitiligo from Gujarat. A replication study was done in a North Indian population.The case-control study was performed to investigate these polymorphisms in 505 patients and 744 controls in Gujarat, and 596 patients and 397 controls in North India by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis. IL4 transcript levels were monitored by real-time PCR. Serum IL-4 and IgE levels were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and electrochemiluminescence immunoassay, respectively.The genotype frequencies differed significantly between patients with generalized vitiligo and controls for both the polymorphisms in both populations. Allele frequencies significantly differed between patients with generalized vitiligo and controls for both the polymorphisms in the population from Gujarat. Interestingly, genotype and allele frequencies for -590 C/T single nucleotide polymorphism were significantly different between patients with localized vitiligo and controls in both the populations. The study revealed significantly increased IL4 mRNA, serum IL-4 and IgE levels in patients from Gujarat. Age of onset analysis of disease in patients suggested that the TTR2R2, TTR1R2 and CTR2R2 haplotypes had a profound effect in the early onset of the disease.Our results suggest that these polymorphisms of the IL4 gene may be genetic risk factors for susceptibility towards vitiligo and the upregulation of the IL4 transcript, protein and IgE levels in individuals with susceptible haplotypes reveal the crucial role of IL-4 in the pathogenesis of vitiligo.

During the seizure activity the heart rate variability of the patient differs from that of a normal person. In this paper statistical approach is used to calculate the HRV. The R peak is detected using discrete wavelet transform. Daubechies 6 (db6) is used as the mother wavelet. The statistical parameters of the R-R interval of a normal ECG and the ECG of a seizure patient are compared. The standard deviation, mean and variance of ECG of seizure patient are higher when compared to normal ECG. Hence variation in HRV can be used as one of the markers for seizure detection.

In this paper, a new efficient method for individual identification, using palm print features based on Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) is proposed. Biometric system is designed to identify the people accurately, based on human physiological features. Palm print serves as reliable human identifier because the palm print patterns are not duplicated by others, even in monozygotic twins. Wavelet coefficients are used as features for identifying the individual and using Support Vector Machine (SVM) classifier for the classification purpose. Use reduced wavelet coefficients by specified window size placed at center of the image for palm print identification. Experiments are conducted for various window sizes and chose the best window size which gives good recognition rate and better result in substantial savings in storage and computation time. Experimental results show promising performance with the proposed methods from Hong Kong PolyU Multispectral Palm print database.

A 23-year-old primigravida presented, at 30 weeks of pregnancy, to our antenatal clinic with a mass in the floor of her mouth, associated with bleeding from the gums following tooth brushing. A den...

Design of a controller for a chemical process is a challenging problem due to the strong on-line non-linearity and extreme sensitivity to disturbances of the process. Hence, a nonlinear control strategy based on sliding mode, which is a standard approach to tackle the parametric and modeling uncertainties of a nonlinear system, is chosen for tuning the controller a chemical process. But the fuzzy sliding mode controller suffers by it?s own draw backs of chattering and lack of robustness. Fuzzy Gain schedule Control (FGSC) as a robust and intelligent nonlinear control technique is proposed here to control processes with severe nonlinearity and unknown models.

This paper presents a Geographic Information System (GIS) based Short-term Transportation System Management (TSM) measures for reducing traffic congestion. Short-term TSM measures such as (i) One-way Street System, (ii) Intersection Improvement (iii) Parking Management System and (iv) Restriction of Truck Movement in CBD Area are considered in this study. Many applications of GIS in Transportation Planning/Engineering are being carried out recently in India.

The study addressed to resolve the mechanism involved in cholesterol‐dependent regulation of giardia encystation process, revealed that (a) the trophozoites have the ability to express genes coding for receptor‐Ck and sterol element binding protein (SREBP); (b) inhibition of cholesterol dependent activation of receptor‐Ck results in the upregulation of CWP‐1 gene expression leading to encystation process. Based upon these findings, we propose that receptor‐Ck dependent signalling is responsible for the regulation of giardia encystation process by cholesterol.

SiC thin films (undoped and doped with SnO 2 at 1 at.%, 5 at.% and 10 at.% concentrations) are prepared using pulsed laser deposition on quartz substrates kept at room temperature. The XRD patterns show a crystalline cubic phase for the undoped and 10 at.% SnO 2 doped SiC thin films while 1 at.% and 5 at.% SnO 2 doped SiC thin films exhibit an amorphous nature. The formation of nanorods with a non-uniform distribution of nanoparticles are studied using various microscopic techniques such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Non-uniform distribution of particles with an average diameter 50 nm is seen in SEM micrographs of undoped SiC. On doping with 10 at.% SnO 2 , nanorods of average length of 1 micron are formed which is evidenced from the SEM image. TEM images also supports the formation of nanorods of average diameter of 20 nm in the 10 at.% SnO 2 doped SiC thin films. TEM images also suggest the formation of nano particles of size ∼ 5 nm in 10 at.% SnO 2 doped SiC thin films. A low surface roughness of 3.6 and 1.69 nm is obtained for the undoped SiC and 10 at.% SnO 2 doped SiC thin films from the AFM analysis. The presence of Raman bands in the region 500– 600 cm−1 for all the samples indicates the disorder prevailing in the films. It is seen that with higher dopant concentrations, this band becomes more well-defined and appear with more intensities at higher wave numbers which suggests that SnO 2 doping increases disorder in the crystallites in the films. Optical band gaps of the films are estimated from the UV-Vis absorption spectra. Variation in band gap observed with doping concentration may be due to broadening of the absorption edge occurred by the impurity levels. A near interface trap induced blue photoluminescence is observed in the undoped, 5 at.% and 10 at.% SnO 2 doped SiC thin films. The open aperture Z-scan measurements revealed strong absorptive nonlinearities. The Z scan curves suggest that the films are good saturable absorbers with saturation intensity I s being 6 × 1012 and 5.9 × 1012 W/m2, respectively for the 1 at.% and 10 at.% SnO 2 doped SiC films.

The reliability of power distribution system to a great extent depends upon the reliability of distribution transformers, which in turn is determined by materials and methods used in their construction apart from the service conditions. This paper presents the tensile and creep characteristics of aluminum wire (electric conductor grade aluminum alloy 1350) used in the windings of the 25 kVA distribution transformers. The effect of the temperature along with the stress on the engineering creep curve has been presented. The dependence of the tensile strength on the temperature (room temperature to 140 °C) has been presented. And, a typical stress-strain curve at 140 °C has also been presented. The SEM fractographs of the creep and tensile fractured surfaces have been presented to show the mode of the fracture. The image analysis results of SEM micrographs have also been presented. The inclusions present in the aluminum matrix of the winding conductors can influence the creep and tensile properties which in turn affect the life and reliability of the distribution transformers.

This case report describes a rare instance of a misplaced intrauterine contraceptive device (IUCD) partly penetrating the sigmoid colon in a 22-year-old woman complaining of intermittent mild dull aching pain.

Siddha is a natural treatment and the oldest medical system of healing in the world. Nadi which is a pulse-based diagnosis method which is the skill of feeling the pulse, and is known to dictate all the salient features of a human body. In this paper, we provide a complete spectrum of details of our procedure for obtaining three different pulses based on time series. This system contains contains a strain gauge equipped with a diaphragm element , a transmitter and also an amplifier, a digitizer which quantifies the analog signals. The system is designed with 16-bit accuracy in such a way that it provides no interference noise and no external electronics. Compared with the prior systems like ECG, the system provides a detailed classification of the nadi pulses which produces the waveforms with respect to abnormalities. The varying pressure given to the pulse analyzer classifies vadha, pitha, and kapha based on the abnormalities captured from a single artery . The obtained output from this module is been fed to the knowledge management system that identifies the diseases based on body type. The designed system is being evaluated by siddha practitioners as a computer-aided diagnostic tool

A case of penile Mondor's disease associated with syphilitic chancre is reported. The aetiology and management of Mondor's disease is also discussed.

SmCo based films, ≈1–3 μm thick, have been directly crystallized onto moderately heated polycrystalline susbstrates, 375 °C, by high pulse energy pulsed laser deposition. Films have been deposited to compare shadow and direct deposition. Only for shadow deposition conditions has it been possible to deposit CaCu5-type structure films that exhibit hysteresis loops characteristic of single phase materials with high coercivities. The shadow deposited films are mirror-like, very fined grained (less that 0.2 μm), and with the crystallite c axes completely aligned onto the substrate plane. For optimally deposited films, room temperature hysteresis loops measured perpendicular to the film plane were closed with approximately zero coercivity. For such films, hysteresis loops measured in plane with fields to ±90 kOe at room temperature exhibited intrinsic coercivities of at least 22.5 kOe. Measurement fields of ±19 kOe yielded only minor loops that did not enclose the origin in some cases. The fully textured SmCo b...

Accident costs are an important component of external costs of traffic, a substantial part is related to fatal accidents. The evaluation of fatal accident costs crucially depends on the availability of an estimate for the economic value of a statistical life. This paper aims to develop a model for road accident through systems dynamics approach. To build an accident model, various factors causing the road accident and cost were identified. This model is capable of calculating the accident rate and its costs for the future. In this study the accident caused by bus alone is considered. The cost model is dealt more in this study as it requires more complex assessment. The accident model is built on the year 2000 data and predicted the accidents up to 2020 for every 5‐year interval. The accident model is valuated by comparing the predicted and actual accident data for the year 2005. Three scenarios were studied by changing the income growth rate and discount rate. Finally, best scenario is suggested for implementation. The outcome of the study is highly useful for the planners, administrators and police to make their decisions effectively for road safety investment projects. First published online:27 Oct 2010

A novel image fusion framework using PCNN has been proposed in this paper and image fusion has been performed by the firing frequency of neurons for PET and CT images. In general, the result of image fusion is affected by neuron parameters, while the proposed algorithm is independent of neuron parameters and dependent on the image gradient parameter. PCNN is built in high frequency sub bands in order to replicate the biological activity of human inspired systems. In traditional algorithms the linking strength of each neuron is set constant or frequently changed based on the features of each pixel. Hence in the proposed algorithm, the linking strength as well as the linking range is determined by the prominence of corresponding low frequency coefficients. The low frequency coefficients not only reduces the calculation of parameters but also the global features of images have also been flexibly made good. The sequences of multi-scale fusion images were obtained by the parallel PCNN and the fused image can be obtained by inverse DMWT at each process of iteration. Experimental analysis illustrates that PCNN outperforms than DWT and SWT from both visual and quantitative prespective.

Four hundred and fifty four blood samples of clinically diagnosed septicemic neonates were collected over a period of six months from the neonatal ICU of Kalawati Saran Children Hospital, New Delhi. 144 samples were culture positive; out of which 50 (34.7%) were Candida isolates. 92% isolates were Candida tropicalis, 4% were C. albicans and C. kefyr each. The study emphasises the changing pattern of Candida species and their importance in blood stream infections in neonates.

We have used molecular methods to determine the frequencies of human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-A, -B and -C alleles in normal, healthy, unrelated individuals from North India using polymerase chain reaction and hybridization with sequence-specific oligonucleotide probes as there is no comprehensive report showing molecular diversity of all the class-I alleles present in North Indians. A*0101, A*0206, A*0301, A*1101, A*6801, A*2401 and A*3101 were the most prevalent alleles of the A locus with 91.11% of the samples showing heterozygosity. At the HLA-B locus a total of 47 B locus alleles were observed and the only allele found with an allele frequency of 15% was B*5801. Other frequent B-locus alleles observed were B*5101, B*3503 and B*4006 with relatively less frequent alleles like B*5201, B*3501, B*0702, B*4403, B*5701, B*1801 and B*5501. Of the samples studied 92.31% were heterozygous for B-locus alleles. Cw*0602 and Cw*0401 were the most frequent C-locus alleles. Other frequent C-locus alleles were Cw*0102, Cw*0302, Cw*0701, Cw*0702, Cw*1202, Cw*1203, Cw*1502 and Cw*1503. HLA alleles common in Africans like B*5801, A*68012, B*5301, B*44032, B*4006 and Cw*1701 were observed in the North Indians besides oriental alleles like B*1301, B*1502 and B*4001 confirming that the genetic make-up of North Indians is Caucasoid with elements of Mongoloid and Negrito races. Some new/rare alleles like B*1802, described as a new allele from Thailand and B*8101, described earlier in a Bubi population were also observed although with low frequencies, showing the diversity of HLA class-I alleles present in the North Indians.

Highly smooth and particulate free relatively thick polycrystalline La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 films out to 6 μm thick have been grown by shadowed pulse laser deposition at 30 Hz (248 nm, 500 mJ). Such films exhibited a low field and high field magnetoresistance as previously reported by a number of groups. Multilayer films made with alternating 8-nm-thick barium ferrite and 16-nm-thick La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 laminations exhibited the same high field response, but did not exhibit the low field magnetoresistance component. This is consistent with the low field component arising from intergrain scattering. Patterned films have been simultaneously deposited onto R-plane, C-plane, and polycrystalline alumina substrates. The films were postannealed at 750 K in 200 Torr O2 for 45 min. The low field magnetoresistance was most pronounced for the single layer films made onto C-plane sapphire and then polycrystalline alumina substrates. The films exhibited a broad maximum in resistivity versus temperature at 162, 210, and 218 K for fi...

Films of SmCo based materials exhibiting high intrinsic coercivities and smooth hysteresis loops have been prepared by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) onto moderately heated substrates. Films directly crystallized from SmCo5 targets onto 375 °C substrates exhibited a maximum iHc=11.3 kOe at a pulse repetition rate of 10 Hz with lower coercivities for both lower and higher pulse repetition rates. In the present case the films were deposited onto polycrystalline substrates. The films exhibited a very small grain size of less than 1 μm diameter, were mirrorlike, and shadow deposited films were relatively particulate free under scanning electron microscope examination. Shadowed PLD deposition was used for the best films. Laser wavelengths of 193 and 248 nm were used with pulse repetition rates from 5 to 50 Hz. Films grown without shadowing exhibited a great deal of particulate contamination. The hysteresis loops of such nonshadowed films were constricted and exhibited drops in the 4πM values upon demagnetizatio...

SmCo based films containing 20 at. % Fe and with Sm varying from 15.5 to 17 at. % have been synthesized to show the transition from ordered CaCu5 to disordered TbCu7 phase. For either phase, the demagnetization energy present during deposition can result in films with the crystallite c axes randomly splayed onto the film plane. It has been possible to synthesize the high anisotropy CaCu5 phase with either a (200) or (110) texture by adjusting the sputtering parameters to correspond to either a relatively high or relatively low surface mobility during the film deposition. It has been possible to synthesize ordered CaCu5 type films with very low values of BR(⊥)/BR(∥)=0.042. Previously, SmCo based single phase TbCu7 structure films have been synthesized with close to the usual high energy product 2–17 compositions of nominally 7 at. % Cu and 2 at. % Zr. The films have been characterized by vibrating-sample magnetometer and superconducting quantum interference device magnetometry, x-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscope measurements for composition and film morphology. The films have been directly crystallized onto heated substrates so that the crystallite c axes are predominantly randomly aligned in the film plane. The crystal structures observed could be switched from the ordered CaCu5 to the disordered TbCu7 phase for small variations in the Sm concentrations.

Highly textured Li-ferrite films have been synthesized by pulsed laser deposition from bulk targets onto c-plane sapphire substrates. For substrate temperatures approaching 1000 °C the growth mode was predominantly (333). A similar growth mode was recently reported for Ni-ferrite films grown onto c-plane sapphire substrates. The films were 4–8 μm thick and were grown at deposition rates of 3–5 A/s at oxygen partial pressures of 200–400 mTorr. Magnetic measurements were made by SQUID and 9.5 GHz ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) on the as deposited films. Textured Li-ferrite films with x-ray diffractometer intensity ratios of I(333)/I(311)=10.3 for films made in 200 mTorr oxygen and 14.5 for films made in 400 mTorr oxygen exhibited room temperature in-plane intrinsic coercivities of

Extracellular β-amylase from Bacillus megaterium converted indigenous starches from low-grade, raw materials to maltose. The extent of saccharification was higher with gelatinized starches than the raw material. For the gelatinized starches the optima for saccharification were pH 6.9 and 60°C.

Highly aligned sputtered film samples of ThMn12‐type NdFe12−y−z CoyMozN, y+z≊1, have been synthesized. For low Co concentrations it has been possible to enhance the saturation flux densities, the coercivity, and the anisotropy field of the nitrided samples. Films which have a gradient along the substrate length in the Fe to Co ratio have been synthesized to determine the maximum coercivity and anisotropy values that can be obtained for the Nd(Fe,Co,Mo)12N nitrides. Maximum room temperature coercivities and anisotropies of 11.3 and 145 kOe were obtained for a ThMn12‐type Nd8.9Fe80.3Co6.0Mo4.8N (002) textured film sample. At lower temperatures the coercivity and anistropy rose smoothly to 29.5 and ≊200 kOe, respectively by 10 K. Based on nitriding studies on similar films, all nitride sites should be occupied at ≊1 N per ThMn12 formula unit for the high coercivity films reported.

Highly aligned (002) textured sputtered films of Pr(Fe12−y−zCoyMoz)Nx, where y=0–2.5, and z=0.4–1.0 compounds have been successfully synthesized. Before nitriding, the films exhibited nonuniaxial soft magnetic properties with room temperature coercivities of 0.70 kOe. A profound change of magnetocrystalline anisotropy occurred on nitriding. X‐ray diffraction traces showed that the ThMn12‐type tetragonal structure was retained with a saturating increase in cell volume over the first 15 min of nitriding time at 750 K. The coercivity, however, reached a maximum for a nitriding time of 25 min at 750 K. Samples nitrided for times greater than ≊25 min were taken as fully nitrided with ≊1 N per ThMn12 formula unit. The samples slightly richer in Pr showed somewhat higher coercivity perpendicular to the film plane as compared to stochiometric Pr(Fe,Co,Mo)12N films. From high field measurements to 80 kOe, the maximum room temperature coercivity perpendicular to the film plane was 9.4 kOe, which rose to 22.0 kOe at...

The magnetic properties of a series of highly aligned Nd(Fe,Mo)/sub 12/ and Nd(Fe,Co,Mo)/sub 12/ samples are measured before and after nitriding. The samples are synthesized as approximately 2- mu m thick sputtered film samples with the crystalline c-axis aligned perpendicular to that film surface. Part of the Mo in the NdFe/sub 11/Mo based ThMn/sub 12/ phase is replaced with Co to enhance the available flux density. The saturation flux density for H perpendicular to the film surface is 12.9 kG without Co replacement, and is 15.5 kG with 50% of the Mo replaced with Co. The films are uniaxial before and after nitriding. Upon nitriding, the anisotropy field at room temperature increases from 5 to 130 kOe. For a NdFe/sub 11/MoN/sub x/ sample with some excess Nd, the static energy product for measurements perpendicular to the film surface is 30.2 MGOe at 293 K, and 43.5 MGOe at 10 K. For NdFe/sub 11/Co/sub 0.05/Mo/sub 0.5/N/sub x/ the energy product at 293 K is 46.3 MGOe. >

High coercivity film samples of the ordered Sm2Fe17Nx phase with intrinsic coercivities, iHc, up to 23 kOe at 293 K, and 35 kOe at 10 K, were synthesized by rf sputtering. Random orientation Sm2Fe17 films were formed by the subsequent crystallization of originally amorphous deposits. The iHc of the original Sm2Fe17 films was 0.75 kOe at 293 K. X‐ray diffractometer traces from 2Θ=28° to 73°, CuKα, exhibited 14 lines. Before nitriding all 14 lines were fit to the 2–17 rhombohedral structure with a=8.555 A, c=12.445 A, with a weighted root‐mean‐square deviation in 2Θ of 0.01°. After nitriding the cell volume increase was ≊7%. Nitriding of the ordered 2–17 films had to be performed in a very narrow temperature range to optimize the magnetic properties. The best magnetic properties were obtained by crystallizing the amorphous deposits in situ at a temperature of ≊900 K for 1 h and then subsequently nitriding in N2 gas at 0.75 atm., at 675–725 K, for 2 h. The room temperature coercivity as a function of the Sm ...

Measurements of the polar Kerr rotation and optical coercivity as a function of photon energy have been made on ≊2 μm thick ThMn12‐type crystalline sputtered films of Sm(Fe,Ti)12. The optical coercivity for a Ti containing (222) textured film was 3.10 kOe at a photon energy of 1.25 eV, 2.96 kOe at 1.84 eV, and 2.92 kOe at 2.45 eV. The optical coercivity for a similar composition (002) textured Sm(Fe,Ti)12 film was relatively constant at 1.24 kOe. These samples were measured in air at 300 K without any protective overcoating. The polar Kerr rotation observed for these crystalline films versus the photon energy paralleled that observed for pure Fe. The magnetometer and optical coercivities for the (222) textured Sm(Fe,Ti)12 films were 1.5 and 2.5 times as large, respectively, as for similar composition (002) textured films. Differences in grain sizes incorporated during the direct synthesis of the films onto heated substrates are needed to account for the large differences observed in the coercivities for the (222) versus (002) textured films.

Highly textured thin films, of ordered Nd(Fe,T)12, T=Ti, Mo, and disordered Nd(Fe,Ti)7 phases, were synthesized by rf sputter deposition. The 1–12 films were highly (002) textured with the c axes oriented perpendicular to the film plane. The disordered Nd‐Fe‐Ti films were fitted to the disordered TbCu7 phase and could be made highly (110) textured with the c axes randomly distributed in the film plane. Nitriding was carried out in N2 at P=400 Torr at ≊450 °C for 2 h. The room‐temperature magnetocrystalline anisotropy fields of the NdFe11Ti and NdFe11Mo films, which were uniaxial, were 10 and 5 kOe, respectively. After nitriding the NdFe11TNx films remained uniaxial, but the anistropy fields increased to 108 and 130 kOe for Ti and Mo, respectively. The iHc perpendicular to the film plane of NdFe11T increased to 5.3 kOe, T=Ti, and to 7.2 kOe, T=Mo, after nitriding. At 293 K, the highest‐energy product of 30.2 MGOe was obtained for a T=Mo nitrided sample. The hysteresis loops of disordered Nd(Fe,Ti)7 and Nd(...

Here, we report the synthesis of high quality monolayer graphene on the pre-treated copper (Cu) foil by chemical vapor deposition method. The pre-treatment process, which consists of pre-annealing in a hydrogen ambient, followed by diluted nitric acid etching of Cu foil, helps in removing impurities. These impurities include native copper oxide and rolling lines that act as a nucleation center for multilayer graphene. Raman mapping of our graphene grown on pre-treated Cu foil primarily consisted of similar to 98% a monolayer graphene with as compared to 75 % for the graphene grown on untreated Cu foil. A high hydrogen flow rate during the pre-annealing process resulted in an increased I-2D/IG ratio of graphene up to 3.55. Uniform monolayer graphene was obtained with a I2D/IG ratio and sheet resistance varying from 1.84-3.39 and 1110-1290 Omega/square, respectively. (C) 2014 Author(s).

The study addressed to resolve the mechanism involved in cholesterol-dependent regulation of giardia encystation process, revealed that (a) the trophozoites have the ability to express genes coding for receptor-Ck and sterol element binding protein (SREBP); (b) inhibition of cholesterol dependent activation of receptor-Ck results in the upregulation of CWP-1 gene expression leading to encystation process. Based upon these findings, we propose that receptor-Ck dependent signalling is responsible for the regulation of giardia encystation process by cholesterol.

Previous experiments have suggested that induction of the beta-R1 gene by interferon (IFN)-beta required transcription factor ISGF-3 (IFN-stimulated gene factor-3) and an additional component. We now provide evidence that nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB) can serve as this component. Site-directed mutagenesis of an NF-kappaB binding site in the beta-R1 promoter or over-expression of an IkappaBalpha super-repressor abrogated IFN-beta-mediated induction of a beta-R1 promoter-reporter. IFN-beta treatment did not augment abundance of NF-kappaB but did lead to phosphorylation of the p65 NF-kappaB subunit. It is proposed that IFN-beta-mediated enhancement of the transactivation competence of NF-kappaB components is required for inducible transcription of the beta-R1 promoter. These results provide a novel insight into the role of NF-kappaB in the transcriptional response to IFN-beta.

This article focuses on the production of chemokines by resident glial cells of the nervous system. We describe studies in two distinct categories of inflammation within the nervous system: immune-mediated inflammation as seen in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) or multiple sclerosis (MS) and post-traumatic inflammation. We provide evidence that chemokines play a role in amplifying the inflammatory reaction in EAE (and, probably, MS). In the context of neural trauma, chemokines appear to be primary stimuli for leukocyte recruitment. Strikingly, expression of monocyte chemoattractant protein (MCP)-1 and interferon-gamma-inducible protein-10 (IP-10) are largely restricted to astrocytes or other glial cells in these diverse pathological states. The remainder of the review focuses on studies that address the molecular mechanisms which underlie transcriptional regulation of three astrocyte-derived chemokines: MCP-1, IP-10 and beta-R1/interferon-gamma-inducible T-cell chemoattractant (I-TAC). Based on these studies, we propose that the complex promoters of these genes are marvelously organized for flexible and efficient response to challenge. In the case of MCP-1, several different stimuli can elicit gene transcription, acting through a conserved mechanism that includes binding of inducible transcription factors and recruitment of the constitutive factor Sp1. For IP-10 and beta-R1/I-TAC, it appears that efficient gene transcription occurs only in highly inflammatory circumstances that produce aggregates of simultaneous stimuli. These characteristics, in turn, mirror the expression patterns of the endogenous genes: MCP-1 is expressed under a variety of circumstances, while IP-10 appears primarily during immune-mediated processes that feature exposure of resident neuroglia to high levels of inflammatory cytokines.