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Supplementary Figure Legends 1-4 from Cathepsin D and Eukaryotic Translation Elongation Factor 1 as Promising Markers of Cellular Senescence

Supplementary Table 2 from Cathepsin D and Eukaryotic Translation Elongation Factor 1 as Promising Markers of Cellular Senescence

Supplementary Figure 2 from Cathepsin D and Eukaryotic Translation Elongation Factor 1 as Promising Markers of Cellular Senescence

Supplementary Figure 1 from Cathepsin D and Eukaryotic Translation Elongation Factor 1 as Promising Markers of Cellular Senescence

Supplementary Figure 3 from Cathepsin D and Eukaryotic Translation Elongation Factor 1 as Promising Markers of Cellular Senescence

Supplementary Figure 4 from Cathepsin D and Eukaryotic Translation Elongation Factor 1 as Promising Markers of Cellular Senescence

Supplementary Table 1 from Cathepsin D and Eukaryotic Translation Elongation Factor 1 as Promising Markers of Cellular Senescence

Bacterial riboswitch RNAs are attractive targets for novel antibiotics against antibiotic-resistant superbacteria. Their binding to cognate metabolites is essential for the regulation of bacterial gene expression. Despite the importance of RNAs as therapeutic targets, the development of RNA-targeted, small-molecule drugs is limited by current biophysical methods. Here, we monitored the specific interaction between the adenine-sensing riboswitch aptamer domain (ARS) and adenine at the single-molecule level using α-hemolysin (αHL) nanopores. During adenine-induced tertiary folding, adenine-bound ARS intermediates exhibited characteristic nanopore events, including a two-level ionic current blockade and a ∼ 5.6-fold longer dwell time than that of free RNA. In a proof-of-concept experiment, tertiary RNA folding-targeted drug screening was performed using a protein nanopore, which resulted in the discovery of three new ARS-targeting hit compounds from a natural compound library. Taken together, these results reveal that αHL nanopores are a valuable platform for ultrasensitive, label-free, and single-molecule-based drug screening against therapeutic RNA targets.

This study reports on the effect of a bilayer period on the growth behavior, microstructure evolution, and electrical properties of atomic layer deposition (ALD) deposited In-Zn-O (IZO) films, fixing the ALD cycle ratio of In-O/Zn-O as 9:1. Here, the bilayer period is defined as the total number of ALD cycles in one supercycle of In-O and Zn-O by alternately stacking Zn-O and In-O layers at a temperature of 220 °C. IZO films with a bilayer period from 10 to 40 cycles, namely, IZO[In-O/Zn-O = 9:1] to IZO[36:4], result to form an amorphous phase with a resistivity of 4.94 × 10

Background The purpose of this study was to evaluate clinical and radiological outcomes at skeletal maturity after a calcaneo-cuboid-cuneiform osteotomy (triple C osteotomy) for symptomatic flatfoot deformity compared with healthy young adult controls. Methods Nineteen patients (30 feet) who undergone a triple C osteotomy for idiopathic symptomatic flatfeet from July 2006 to April 2013 were compared with 19 controls (38 feet). Radiographic measurements at preoperative examination, 1-year postoperative follow-up, and follow-up at skeletal maturity were evaluated. Functional outcomes were assessed by using the validated visual analog scale foot and ankle (VAS-FA) and the modified American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Surgery (AOFAS) score. Results In the triple C osteotomy group, 11 of 12 radiographic measurements were significantly improved at 1 year postoperatively and the last follow-up (p < 0.001). There was no recurrence at skeletal maturity (p > 0.05). There were no significant differences in nine of 12 radiographic measurements between the triple C osteotomy group at maturity and the control group (p > 0.05). Average VAS-FA and AOFAS scores were significantly improved at the time of skeletal maturity (p < 0.001). Conclusions Surgical correction of symptomatic flatfoot deformity in childhood resulted in favorable outcomes after the triple C osteotomy. Deformity correction was also maintained during follow-up at skeletal maturity.

As the feature size of semiconductor devices decreases, the resist layer with high etch resistance is required to achieve fine pattern transfer during lithography. Conventional resists (e.g., amorp...

A reliable method for preparing a conformal amorphous carbon (a-C) layer with a thickness of 1-nm-level, is tested as a possible Cu diffusion barrier layer for next-generation ultrahigh-density semiconductor device miniaturization. A polystyrene brush of uniform thickness is grafted onto 4-inch SiO

High-resolution patterning of quantum dot (QD) films is one of the preconditions for the practical use of QD-based emissive display platforms. Recently, inkjet printing and transfer printing have been actively developed; however, high-resolution patterning is still limited owing to nozzle-clogging issues and coffee ring effects during the inkjet printing and kinetic parameters such as pickup and peeling speed during the transfer process. Consequently, employing direct optical lithography would be highly beneficial owing to its well-established process in the semiconductor industry; however, exposing the photoresist (PR) on top of the QD film deteriorates the QD film underneath. This is because a majority of the solvents for PR easily dissolve the pre-existing QD films. In this study, we present a conventional optical lithography process to obtain solvent resistance by reacting the QD film surface with diethylzinc (DEZ) precursors using atomic layer deposition. It was confirmed that, by reacting the QD surface with DEZ and coating PR directly on top of the QD film, a typical photolithography process can be performed to generate a red/green/blue pixel of 3000 ppi or more. QD electroluminescence devices were fabricated with all primary colors of QDs; moreover, compared to reference QD-LED devices, the patterned QD-LED devices exhibited enhanced brightness and efficiency.

Rapid and efficient nucleic acid (NA) extraction and concentration are required for point-of-care analysis in order to prevent an epidemic/pandemic disease outbreak. Typical silica-based NA extraction methods have limitations such as being time-consuming, requiring human intervention, and resulting in a low recovery yield. In this study, we have developed a pathogenic DNA extraction device based on electrokinetic separation incorporated with a silicon nitride (SiNx) nanofilter, which expedites the DNA extraction procedure with advantages of being convenient, efficient, and inexpensive. This DNA extraction device consists of a computer numerical control (CNC) milled-Teflon gadget with a cis-chamber as a cell lysate reservoir and a trans-chamber as a elution solution reservoir, with the SiNx nanofilter being inserted between the two chambers. The SiNx nanofilter was fabricated using a photolithographic method in conjunction with nanoimprinting. Approximately 7.2 million nanopores of 220 nm diameter were located at the center of the nanofilter. When a DC electric field is applied through the nanopores, DNA is transferred from the cis-chamber to the trans-chamber to isolate the DNA from the cell debris. To demonstrate the DNA extraction performance, we measured the absorbances at 260 and 280 nm and performed a real-time polymerase chain reaction (real-time PCR) using the recovered DNA to verify its feasibility for downstream genetic analysis. Moreover, the DNA extraction device was successfully operated using a 1.5 V alkaline battery, which verifies the portability of the device for point-of-care testing. Such an advanced DNA extraction system can be utilized in various fields including clinical analysis, pathogen detection, forensic analysis, and on-site detection.

We study the graphene growth behavior above and below the copper (Cu) melting point (1083 °C) by only changing the growth temperature from 1020 °C to 1100 °C at intervals of 40 °C, to investigate the effect of the Cu phase as a catalyst layer in graphene growth. We investigate the graphene growth behavior by observing the changes in nucleation density and grain size with growth time. As the phase of the Cu catalyst changes from solid to liquid, the grain size of graphene increases by 2 orders of magnitude from 0.4 to 40 μm, while the nuclei density decreases by 4 orders of magnitude from 3.02/μm₂ to 0.0004/μm₂. Additionally, as in previous studies, graphene growth shows a well-aligned hexagonal shape on liquid Cu although graphene on solid Cu shows an irregular shape under the same growth conditions. The effect of the smooth surface of the liquid metal catalyst on graphene growth is remarkable even after considering the temperature difference. The reduction of defect density arising from the increase of the graphene grain size is confirmed by Raman spectroscopy. Additionally, the improvement in electrical properties is also investigated by Hall measurements.

The aging of ZnO nanoparticles in quantum dot light-emitting diode (QD-LED) structures was studied. Coarsening of as-synthesized ZnO nanoparticles is observed in both solution and thin film structures, which potentially deteriorates the performance of QD-LED devices over time. First, the temperature effect on ZnO coarsening was investigated, and it was revealed that aging of ZnO nanoparticles is faster at higher temperature due to a diffusion-controlled mechanism of nanoparticle coarsening. To observe aggregation of ZnO in the film state, the electron transporting part (ZnO/Al) of the QD-LED structure was prepared. The current density of a ZnO film and an electron-only device (QD/ZnO between two electrodes) was also measured. Resistance of the film increased as a function of aging time, which corresponded with observations of the ZnO film by optical microscopy. Aggregation of ZnO nanoparticles was directly measured by the root-mean-square value using atomic force microscopy. Ethanolamine (EA) stabilizer was added to the ZnO solution to disperse the ZnO nanoparticles without aggregation. The effect of EA on the surface passivation of the ZnO found to suppress pinhole formation, as revealed by scanning electron microscopy observations. Finally, the device lifetime was measured for QD-LEDs with EA-stabilized ZnO to understand the effect of ZnO aging on long-term QD-LED device operation.

Porous, high-surface-area electrode architectures are described that allow structural characterization of interfacial ultra-thin catalyst films under device-relevant functional electrochemical conditions using high-energy X-ray (>50 keV) scattering and pair distribution function analysis., Porous, high-surface-area electrode architectures are described that allow structural characterization of interfacial amorphous thin films with high spatial resolution under device-relevant functional electrochemical conditions using high-energy X-ray (>50 keV) scattering and pair distribution function (PDF) analysis. Porous electrodes were fabricated from glass-capillary array membranes coated with conformal transparent conductive oxide layers, consisting of either a 40 nm–50 nm crystalline indium tin oxide or a 100 nm–150 nm-thick amorphous indium zinc oxide deposited by atomic layer deposition. These porous electrodes solve the problem of insufficient interaction volumes for catalyst thin films in two-dimensional working electrode designs and provide sufficiently low scattering backgrounds to enable high-resolution signal collection from interfacial thin-film catalysts. For example, PDF measurements were readily obtained with 0.2 Å spatial resolution for amorphous cobalt oxide films with thicknesses down to 60 nm when deposited on a porous electrode with 40 µm-diameter pores. This level of resolution resolves the cobaltate domain size and structure, the presence of defect sites assigned to the domain edges, and the changes in fine structure upon redox state change that are relevant to quantitative structure–function modeling. The results suggest the opportunity to leverage the porous, electrode architectures for PDF analysis of nanometre-scale surface-supported molecular catalysts. In addition, a compact 3D-printed electrochemical cell in a three-electrode configuration is described which is designed to allow for simultaneous X-ray transmission and electrolyte flow through the porous working electrode.

IMPORTANCE: In previous studies, this group has reported that cultured human fibroblasts suspended in hyaluronic acid (HA) filler might have potential use as a long-lasting injectable soft-tissue filler. However, the data were insufficient to determine the long-term outcomes. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the long-term outcomes of cultured human fibroblasts suspended in HA filler used for soft-tissue augmentation. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: A long-term case series study was performed. Between January 2010 and December 2013, a total of 38 patients were treated with fibroblast-HA filler mixture to augment nasal dorsa, nasolabial folds, and cheek depressions. Of these 38 patients, patients with follow-up period of greater than 3 years were included in this study. A total of 22 patients met the inclusion criteria. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Subjective assessment was performed to evaluate degree and time of resorption, improvement, satisfaction, softness of injection sites, and willingness to recommend this treatment to others. Objective assessment was carried out with patients' photographs. Safety and tolerability were also evaluated for this treatment. RESULTS: Of the 22 patients included in this study, 19 were women; mean (SD) patient age was 43 (15) years. All 22 patients experienced improvement following the treatment. Twenty (91%) patients were satisfied with the treatment. Nineteen patients (86%) considered that the injection site was as soft as it was before treatment. Patients’ mean (SD) grading of improvement, satisfaction, and softness were 4.50 (0.51) (95% CI, 4.27-4.73), 4.14 (0.71) (95% CI, 3.82-4.45), and 4.82 (0.50) (95% CI, 4.59-5.00) at the last visit, respectively. Objective assessment demonstrated postoperative improvement in all patients: a rating of “much improved” was given to 7 patients (32%) by investigator 1; 8 patients (36%) by investigator 2; and 12 patients (55%) the injecting physician. This treatment was well tolerated; no adverse event was recorded for any patient. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Injection of cultured human fibroblasts suspended in HA filler might be successful for long-term soft-tissue augmentation. To our knowledge, this study represents the longest follow-up study of soft-tissue augmentation with a fibroblast-HA filler mixture to date. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 4.

Atomic layer deposition (ALD) of Ni was demonstrated by introducing a novel oxygen-free heteroleptic Ni precursor, (η3-cyclohexenyl)(η5-cyclopentadienyl)nickel(II) [Ni(Chex)(Cp)]. For this process,...