Hasil untuk "physics.app-ph"

Y. Surendranath, M. Kanan, D. Nocera

S. Bian, Imali A. Mudunkotuwa, T. Rupasinghe et al.

A. Pezzulo, X. Tang, M. J. Hoegger et al.

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a life-shortening disease caused by mutations in the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene. Although bacterial lung infection and the resulting inflammation cause most of the morbidity and mortality, how the loss of CFTR function first disrupts airway host defence has remained uncertain. To investigate the abnormalities that impair elimination when a bacterium lands on the pristine surface of a newborn CF airway, we interrogated the viability of individual bacteria immobilized on solid grids and placed onto the airway surface. As a model, we studied CF pigs, which spontaneously develop hallmark features of CF lung disease. At birth, their lungs lack infection and inflammation, but have a reduced ability to eradicate bacteria. Here we show that in newborn wild-type pigs, the thin layer of airway surface liquid (ASL) rapidly kills bacteria in vivo, when removed from the lung and in primary epithelial cultures. Lack of CFTR reduces bacterial killing. We found that the ASL pH was more acidic in CF pigs, and reducing pH inhibited the antimicrobial activity of ASL. Reducing ASL pH diminished bacterial killing in wild-type pigs, and, conversely, increasing ASL pH rescued killing in CF pigs. These results directly link the initial host defence defect to the loss of CFTR, an anion channel that facilitates HCO3− transport. Without CFTR, airway epithelial HCO3− secretion is defective, the ASL pH falls and inhibits antimicrobial function, and thereby impairs the killing of bacteria that enter the newborn lung. These findings suggest that increasing ASL pH might prevent the initial infection in patients with CF, and that assaying bacterial killing could report on the benefit of therapeutic interventions.

J. Koufman

I. Tannock, D. Rotin

P. Bullough, F. Hughson, J. Skehel et al.

C. Duarte, I. Hendriks, T. S. Moore et al.

D. Houben, Laurent Evrard, P. Sonnet

R. V. Benjaminsen, Maria A Mattebjerg, J. Henriksen et al.

Polycations such as polyethylenimine (PEI) are used in many novel nonviral vector designs and there are continuous efforts to increase our mechanistic understanding of their interactions with cells. Even so, the mechanism of polyplex escape from the endosomal/lysosomal pathway after internalization is still elusive. The "proton sponge " hypothesis remains the most generally accepted mechanism, although it is heavily debated. This hypothesis is associated with the large buffering capacity of PEI and other polycations, which has been interpreted to cause an increase in lysosomal pH even though no conclusive proof has been provided. In the present study, we have used a nanoparticle pH sensor that was developed for pH measurements in the endosomal/lysosomal pathway. We have carried out quantitative measurements of lysosomal pH as a function of PEI content and correlate the results to the "proton sponge " hypothesis. Our measurements show that PEI does not induce change in lysosomal pH as previously suggested and quantification of PEI concentrations in lysosomes makes it uncertain that the "proton sponge " effect is the dominant mechanism of polyplex escape.

Saba M. Ali, G. Yosipovitch

The "acid mantle" is a topic not only of historical interest, but also of clinical significance and has recently been linked to vital stratum corneum function. Despite compelling basic science evidence placing skin pH as a key factor in barrier homeostasis, stratum corneum integrity, and antimicrobial defense, application of the acid mantle concept in clinical care is lacking. We review recent basic science investigations into skin pH, discuss skin disorders characterized by aberrant pH, and finally discuss practical application for preservation of the acid mantle. Recognizing factors that alter skin pH and selecting products that preserve the acid mantle is of prime importance in treating dermatologic patients.

Kun Wang, Jun Yin, D. Shen et al.

J. Jiang, Yujing Zhang, Kaimin Li et al.

P. Swietach, R. Vaughan-Jones, A. Harris et al.

Katherine M. Strickler, A. Fremier, C. Goldberg

P. Lund, A. Tramonti, D. De Biase

S. Percival, Sara M. McCarty, J. Hunt et al.

Yerzhan Mustafa, Selçuk Köse

Interface circuits are the key components that enable the hybrid integration of superconductor and semiconductor digital electronics. The design requirements of superconductor-semiconductor interface circuits vary depending on the application, such as high-performance classical computing, superconducting quantum computing, and digital signal processing. In this survey, various interface circuits are categorized based on the working principle and structure. The superconducting output drivers are explored, which are capable of converting and amplifying, e.g., single flux quantum (SFQ) voltage pulses, to voltage levels that semiconductor circuits can process. Several trade-offs between circuit- and system-level design parameters are examined. Accordingly, parameters such as the data rate, output voltage, power dissipation, layout area, thermal/heat load of cryogenic cables, and bit-error rate are considered.

Natanael Bort-Soldevila, Jaume Cunill-Subiranas, Nuria Del-Valle et al.

We theoretically investigate the properties of magnetically-levitated superconducting rotors confined in anti-Helmholtz traps, for application in magnetomechanical experiments. We study both the translational modes and a librational mode. The librational mode gives an additional degree of freedom that levitated spheres do not have access to. We compare rotors of different shapes: ellipsoids, cylinders and cuboids. We find that the stable orientations of the rotors depend on the rotors' aspect ratios.

Chi Zhang, Zhenhui Hao, Yongzhang Shi et al.

We demonstrate the simultaneous realization of nonreciprocal coupling and ultra-strong coupling in cavity magnonics. By replacing a copper cylinder with a yttrium iron garnet cylinder within the photonic crystal, we achieve an ultra-strong coupling strength of 1.18 GHz and a coupling efficiency of 10.9%. Nonreciprocal microwave transmission emerges within the photonic bandgap, due to the breaking of time-reversal symmetry through the gyromagnetic and Faraday effects. This work establishes a foundation for advanced nonreciprocal devices in hybrid cavity magnonic systems, with promising applications in quantum information processing and microwave isolation.

Ahmed F. Abdelshafy, Filippo Capolino, Alexander Figotin

Abstract -- We construct an analytical model for the dispersion of the hot modes in a traveling wave tube (TWT) based on the Lagrangian field theory, upgrading its constants to be frequency-dependent. The frequency dependence of the parameters of the TWT slow wave structure (SWS) is recovered from full-wave simulations by standard software (e.g., CST). We applied the model to study the hot modes of a helical-based TWT and found an excellent agreement between the results from our model and those from particle in cell (PIC) simulations. Our additional studies show that the proposed approach can be applied to various SWS geometries.