The level of FcγR on peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) was determined by ABC-ELIsA in 43 patients with primary hepatocellular carcinoma (PHC) and in 8 patients with space-occupying benign lesion (BL) in liver...The level of FcγR on peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) was determined by ABC-ELIsA in 43 patients with primary hepatocellular carcinoma (PHC) and in 8 patients with space-occupying benign lesion (BL) in liver, twelve patients who received carcinomaectomy were followed up to detect their FcγR.Nine PBMC samples from PHC were treated with rIFNγ-The results showed that: 1. the level of FcγR in PHC patients was significantly lower than that in BL and In normal control; 2. the expression of FcγR was enhanced in postoperated PHC patients; and 3. the production of IFNγ in PHC patients was defective. The level of FcγR on PBMC was increased obviously in PHC after PBMC being treated with rIFNγ but was still lower than that in control. These results suggested; (1) FcyR detection is helpful tor distinguishing malignant liver lesion from benign; (2) the inhibited expression of FcγR in PHC could be related to some factors secreted by cancer tissues and also to low level of IFNγ; and (3) IFNγstimulates the expression of FcyR in vitro as one of the anti-tumor mechanism forIFNγ.展开更多
Monocytes (MC), lymphocytes (LC) and Kupffer cells (KC) were isolated respectively from blood and surgical liver samples of patients suffering from he-patocellular carcinoma (HCC). 13 patients were given BCG, mixed ba...Monocytes (MC), lymphocytes (LC) and Kupffer cells (KC) were isolated respectively from blood and surgical liver samples of patients suffering from he-patocellular carcinoma (HCC). 13 patients were given BCG, mixed bacterium vaccine (MBV) and human white blood cell interferon (IFN), the other 3 patients were not treated with any biological immune stimulants (BIS) and served as controls. The cytosta-tic and cytotoxic effects of MC and KC on human hepatoma SMMC-7721 (TC) were assayed in vitro and the numbers of T total (Tt), T helper (Th) and T suppressor (Ts) cells were counted using CD monoclonal antibody immunofluorescence. The results were as follows: (1) On the 7th day after the first administration of BIS, the cytostatic and cytotoxic effects of MC on TC showed obvious increase over pre-administration. The activity of BIS was 1 ?5 times as high as that in the controls. (2) After 3 administrations, the cytostatic effect of MC on TC increased to the normal level (84%), while the controls remained as before (45%). (3) On the 7th day after first administration, cytostatic and cytotoxic effects of KC on TC were 0.5 and 1 times higher respectively than those of the controls. (4) The numbers of Tt and Th of patients given BIS increased continuously; on the contrary Ts decreased in number. These results indicate that combined use of BCG, MBV and IFN can actively enhance the immune anti-hepatoma function of patients suffering from HCC.展开更多
This contribution reports on application of low-wavenumber Raman scattering on acoustical vibrational modes of nanoparticles.Theoretical background as well as the experimental results in determination of oxide and sem...This contribution reports on application of low-wavenumber Raman scattering on acoustical vibrational modes of nanoparticles.Theoretical background as well as the experimental results in determination of oxide and semiconductor particle size distribution will be presented.展开更多
We introduce a family of membrane-targeted azobenzenes(MTs)with a push-pull character as a new tool for cell stimulation.These molecules are water soluble and spontaneously partition in the cell membrane.Upon light ir...We introduce a family of membrane-targeted azobenzenes(MTs)with a push-pull character as a new tool for cell stimulation.These molecules are water soluble and spontaneously partition in the cell membrane.Upon light irradiation,they isomerize from trans to cis,changing the local charge distribution and thus stimulating the cell response.Specifically,MTs photoisomerization induces clear and reproducible depolarization.The most promising species,MTP2,was extensively studied.Time-resolved spectroscopy techniques provide insights into the excited state evolution and a complete understanding of its isomerization reaction.Molecular Dynamics simulations reveal the spontaneous and stable partitioning of the compound into the cellular membrane,without significant alterations to the bilayer thickness.MTP2 was tested in different cell types,including HEK293T cells,primary neurons,and cardiomyocytes,and a steady depolarization is always recorded.The observed membrane potential modulation in in-vitro models is attributed to the variation in membrane surface charge,resulting from the light-driven modulation of the MT dipole moment within the cell membrane.Additionally,a developed mathematical model successfully captures the temporal evolution of the membrane potential upon photostimulation.Despite being insufficient for triggering action potentials,the rapid light-induced depolarization holds potential applications,particularly in cardiac electrophysiology.Low-intensity optical stimulation with these modulators could influence cardiac electrical activity,demonstrating potential efficacy in destabilizing and terminating cardiac arrhythmias.We anticipate the MTs approach to find applications in neuroscience,biomedicine,and biophotonics,providing a tool for modulating cell physiology without genetic interventions.展开更多
Effective prophylactic and therapeutic interventions are urgentlyneeded to address the coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)pandemic.Various antiviral drugs have recently been tested.Type I interferon(IFN)is a regulatory...Effective prophylactic and therapeutic interventions are urgentlyneeded to address the coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)pandemic.Various antiviral drugs have recently been tested.Type I interferon(IFN)is a regulatory protein involved in the innate immune response,with broad-spectrum antiviral activities and the ability to directly block viral replication and support the immune response to eliminate virus infection.Insufficient virus-induced type I IFN production is characteristic of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2(SARS-CoV-2)infection,because SARS-CoV-2 suppresses the IFN response by interacting with essential IFN signaling pathways.Exogenous type I IFN is recommended for treating COVID-19.Unexpectedly however,angiotensin converting enzyme-2(ACE2)receptor,which acts as a SARS-CoV-2 receptor,was shown to be stimulated by IFN,raising doubts about the suitability of IFN use.However,further studies have excluded concerns regarding IFN administration.Type I IFNs,including IFN-α1b,have been used clinically as antiviral drugs for many years and have shown strong antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2in vitro.Preliminary clinical studies of type I IFNs,especially when delivered via aerosol inhalation,have demonstrated efficacy for the treatment and prevention of COVID-19.Randomized controlled trials of IFN for COVID-19 treatment are ongoing.展开更多
Three-dimensional(3D)particle focusing in microfluidics is a fundamental capability with a wide range of applications,such as on-chip flow cytometry,where high-throughput analysis at the single-cell level is performed...Three-dimensional(3D)particle focusing in microfluidics is a fundamental capability with a wide range of applications,such as on-chip flow cytometry,where high-throughput analysis at the single-cell level is performed.Currently,3D focusing is achieved mainly in devices with complex layouts,additional sheath fluids,and complex pumping systems.In this work,we present a compact microfluidic device capable of 3D particle focusing at high flow rates and with a small footprint,without the requirement of external fields or lateral sheath flows,but using only a single-inlet,single-outlet microfluidic sequence of straight channels and tightly curving vertical loops.This device exploits inertial fluidic effects that occur in a laminar regime at sufficiently high flow rates,manipulating the particle positions by the combination of inertial lift forces and Dean drag forces.The device is fabricated by femtosecond laser irradiation followed by chemical etching,which is a simple two-step process enabling the creation of 3D microfluidic networks in fused silica glass substrates.The use of tightly curving three-dimensional microfluidic loops produces strong Dean drag forces along the whole loop but also induces an asymmetric Dean flow decay in the subsequent straight channel,thus producing rapid cross-sectional mixing flows that assist with 3D particle focusing.The use of out-of-plane loops favors a compact parallelization of multiple focusing channels,allowing one to process large amounts of samples.In addition,the low fluidic resistance of the channel network is compatible with vacuum driven flows.The resulting device is quite interesting for high-throughput on-chip flow cytometry.展开更多
Further advancement of high-energy pulsed lasers requires a parallel development of appropriate optical components.Several different optical components, such as mirrors and antireflection-coated windows, which are ess...Further advancement of high-energy pulsed lasers requires a parallel development of appropriate optical components.Several different optical components, such as mirrors and antireflection-coated windows, which are essential for the design of Hi LASE high average power lasers were tested. The following paper summarizes results on the measurements of laser-induced damage threshold of such components, and clearly shows their capabilities and limitations for such a demanding application.展开更多
Remarkably, recent research on the Chinese labor market has suggested that the situation in China is inconsistent with the stylized fact that large firms pay higher wages and offer more generous benefits. Expanding th...Remarkably, recent research on the Chinese labor market has suggested that the situation in China is inconsistent with the stylized fact that large firms pay higher wages and offer more generous benefits. Expanding the empirical basis from 78 to 300 000 industrial firms, I overturn theprevious result andshow that wage determination in the averagefirmfits the international norm. Exploring subsamples of firms I also point to a likely source for the conflictingfindings： firm size is positively correlatedwith the average wage in private firms, but negatively correlated with the average wage in the state-owned sector. These novel results couM guide future studies aiming to understand the sources of the firm size wage premium, and, in particular, studies that target the largest industrial labor market in the world展开更多
Reducing power dissipation in electro-optic modulators is a key step for widespread application of silicon photonics to optical communication.In this work,we design Mach–Zehnder modulators in the silicon-on-insulator...Reducing power dissipation in electro-optic modulators is a key step for widespread application of silicon photonics to optical communication.In this work,we design Mach–Zehnder modulators in the silicon-on-insulator platform,which make use of slow light in a waveguide grating and of a reverse-biased p-n junction with interleaved contacts along the waveguide axis.After optimizing the junction parameters,we discuss the full simulation of the modulator in order to find a proper trade-off among various figures of merit,such as modulation efficiency,insertion loss,cutoff frequency,optical modulation amplitude,and dissipated energy per bit.Comparison with conventional structures(with lateral p-n junction and/or in rib waveguides without slow light)highlights the importance of combining slow light with the interleaved p-n junction,thanks to the increased overlap between the travelling optical wave and the depletion regions.As a surprising result,the modulator performance is improved over an optical bandwidth that is much wider than the slow-light bandwidth.展开更多
Formation of densely packed thin films of semiconductor nanocrystals is advantageous for the exploitation of their unique optoelectronic properties for real-world applications. Here we investigate the fundamental role...Formation of densely packed thin films of semiconductor nanocrystals is advantageous for the exploitation of their unique optoelectronic properties for real-world applications. Here we investigate the fundamental role of the structure of the bridging ligand on the optoelectronic properties of the resulting hybrid film. In particular, we considered hybrid films formed using the same CdSe nanocrystals and two organic ligands that have the same bidentate dithiocarbamate bInding moiety, but differ in their bridging structures, one bridged by ethylene, the other by phenylene that exhibits conjugation. Based on the results of photo- excited carrier dynamics experiments combined with theoretical calculations on the electronic states of bridged CdSe layers, we show that only the phenylene- based ligand presents a strong hybridization of the molecular HOMO state with CdSe layers, that is a marker of formation of an effective bridge. We argue that this hybridization spread favors the hopping of photo-excited carriers between nanocrystals, which may explain the reported larger photo-currents in phenylene-based hybrid films than those observed in ethylene-based ones.展开更多
Switching of light polarization on the sub-picosecond timescale is a crucial functionality for applications in a variety of contexts,including telecommunications,biology and chemistry.The ability to control polarizati...Switching of light polarization on the sub-picosecond timescale is a crucial functionality for applications in a variety of contexts,including telecommunications,biology and chemistry.The ability to control polarization at ultrafast speed would pave the way for the development of unprecedented free-space optical links and of novel techniques for probing dynamical processes in complex systems,as chiral molecules.Such high switching speeds can only be reached with an all-optical paradigm,i.e.,engineering active platforms capable of controlling light polarization via ultrashort laser pulses.Here we demonstrate giant modulation of dichroism and birefringence in an all-dielectric metasurface,achieved at low fluences of the optical control beam.This performance,which leverages the many degrees of freedom offered by all-dielectric active metasurfaces,is obtained by combining a high-quality factor nonlocal resonance with the giant third-order optical nonlinearity dictated by photogenerated hot carriers at the semiconductor band edge.展开更多
文摘The level of FcγR on peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) was determined by ABC-ELIsA in 43 patients with primary hepatocellular carcinoma (PHC) and in 8 patients with space-occupying benign lesion (BL) in liver, twelve patients who received carcinomaectomy were followed up to detect their FcγR.Nine PBMC samples from PHC were treated with rIFNγ-The results showed that: 1. the level of FcγR in PHC patients was significantly lower than that in BL and In normal control; 2. the expression of FcγR was enhanced in postoperated PHC patients; and 3. the production of IFNγ in PHC patients was defective. The level of FcγR on PBMC was increased obviously in PHC after PBMC being treated with rIFNγ but was still lower than that in control. These results suggested; (1) FcyR detection is helpful tor distinguishing malignant liver lesion from benign; (2) the inhibited expression of FcγR in PHC could be related to some factors secreted by cancer tissues and also to low level of IFNγ; and (3) IFNγstimulates the expression of FcyR in vitro as one of the anti-tumor mechanism forIFNγ.
文摘Monocytes (MC), lymphocytes (LC) and Kupffer cells (KC) were isolated respectively from blood and surgical liver samples of patients suffering from he-patocellular carcinoma (HCC). 13 patients were given BCG, mixed bacterium vaccine (MBV) and human white blood cell interferon (IFN), the other 3 patients were not treated with any biological immune stimulants (BIS) and served as controls. The cytosta-tic and cytotoxic effects of MC and KC on human hepatoma SMMC-7721 (TC) were assayed in vitro and the numbers of T total (Tt), T helper (Th) and T suppressor (Ts) cells were counted using CD monoclonal antibody immunofluorescence. The results were as follows: (1) On the 7th day after the first administration of BIS, the cytostatic and cytotoxic effects of MC on TC showed obvious increase over pre-administration. The activity of BIS was 1 ?5 times as high as that in the controls. (2) After 3 administrations, the cytostatic effect of MC on TC increased to the normal level (84%), while the controls remained as before (45%). (3) On the 7th day after first administration, cytostatic and cytotoxic effects of KC on TC were 0.5 and 1 times higher respectively than those of the controls. (4) The numbers of Tt and Th of patients given BIS increased continuously; on the contrary Ts decreased in number. These results indicate that combined use of BCG, MBV and IFN can actively enhance the immune anti-hepatoma function of patients suffering from HCC.
文摘This contribution reports on application of low-wavenumber Raman scattering on acoustical vibrational modes of nanoparticles.Theoretical background as well as the experimental results in determination of oxide and semiconductor particle size distribution will be presented.
基金supported by Telethon-Italy(project#GMR22T2013)The Italian Ministry of Health(project Ricerca Finalizzata#GR-2021-12374630)+4 种基金H2020-MSCA-ITN 2019“Entrain Vision”(project 861423)The Italian Ministry of University and Research(PRIN2020 project#2020XBFEMS)IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino(Ricerca Corrente and 5×1000 grants)G.M.P.thanks the European Union(ERC,EOS,101115925)for financial supportG.F.acknowledges support by the ERC project SOPHY under grant agreement no.771528。
文摘We introduce a family of membrane-targeted azobenzenes(MTs)with a push-pull character as a new tool for cell stimulation.These molecules are water soluble and spontaneously partition in the cell membrane.Upon light irradiation,they isomerize from trans to cis,changing the local charge distribution and thus stimulating the cell response.Specifically,MTs photoisomerization induces clear and reproducible depolarization.The most promising species,MTP2,was extensively studied.Time-resolved spectroscopy techniques provide insights into the excited state evolution and a complete understanding of its isomerization reaction.Molecular Dynamics simulations reveal the spontaneous and stable partitioning of the compound into the cellular membrane,without significant alterations to the bilayer thickness.MTP2 was tested in different cell types,including HEK293T cells,primary neurons,and cardiomyocytes,and a steady depolarization is always recorded.The observed membrane potential modulation in in-vitro models is attributed to the variation in membrane surface charge,resulting from the light-driven modulation of the MT dipole moment within the cell membrane.Additionally,a developed mathematical model successfully captures the temporal evolution of the membrane potential upon photostimulation.Despite being insufficient for triggering action potentials,the rapid light-induced depolarization holds potential applications,particularly in cardiac electrophysiology.Low-intensity optical stimulation with these modulators could influence cardiac electrical activity,demonstrating potential efficacy in destabilizing and terminating cardiac arrhythmias.We anticipate the MTs approach to find applications in neuroscience,biomedicine,and biophotonics,providing a tool for modulating cell physiology without genetic interventions.
文摘Effective prophylactic and therapeutic interventions are urgentlyneeded to address the coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)pandemic.Various antiviral drugs have recently been tested.Type I interferon(IFN)is a regulatory protein involved in the innate immune response,with broad-spectrum antiviral activities and the ability to directly block viral replication and support the immune response to eliminate virus infection.Insufficient virus-induced type I IFN production is characteristic of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2(SARS-CoV-2)infection,because SARS-CoV-2 suppresses the IFN response by interacting with essential IFN signaling pathways.Exogenous type I IFN is recommended for treating COVID-19.Unexpectedly however,angiotensin converting enzyme-2(ACE2)receptor,which acts as a SARS-CoV-2 receptor,was shown to be stimulated by IFN,raising doubts about the suitability of IFN use.However,further studies have excluded concerns regarding IFN administration.Type I IFNs,including IFN-α1b,have been used clinically as antiviral drugs for many years and have shown strong antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2in vitro.Preliminary clinical studies of type I IFNs,especially when delivered via aerosol inhalation,have demonstrated efficacy for the treatment and prevention of COVID-19.Randomized controlled trials of IFN for COVID-19 treatment are ongoing.
文摘Three-dimensional(3D)particle focusing in microfluidics is a fundamental capability with a wide range of applications,such as on-chip flow cytometry,where high-throughput analysis at the single-cell level is performed.Currently,3D focusing is achieved mainly in devices with complex layouts,additional sheath fluids,and complex pumping systems.In this work,we present a compact microfluidic device capable of 3D particle focusing at high flow rates and with a small footprint,without the requirement of external fields or lateral sheath flows,but using only a single-inlet,single-outlet microfluidic sequence of straight channels and tightly curving vertical loops.This device exploits inertial fluidic effects that occur in a laminar regime at sufficiently high flow rates,manipulating the particle positions by the combination of inertial lift forces and Dean drag forces.The device is fabricated by femtosecond laser irradiation followed by chemical etching,which is a simple two-step process enabling the creation of 3D microfluidic networks in fused silica glass substrates.The use of tightly curving three-dimensional microfluidic loops produces strong Dean drag forces along the whole loop but also induces an asymmetric Dean flow decay in the subsequent straight channel,thus producing rapid cross-sectional mixing flows that assist with 3D particle focusing.The use of out-of-plane loops favors a compact parallelization of multiple focusing channels,allowing one to process large amounts of samples.In addition,the low fluidic resistance of the channel network is compatible with vacuum driven flows.The resulting device is quite interesting for high-throughput on-chip flow cytometry.
基金funding from LASERLAB-EUROPE (grant agreement no.284464,EC’s Seventh Framework Programme)co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund+2 种基金the European Social Fundthe state budget of the Czech Republic (project HiLASE:CZ.1.05/ 2.1.00/01.0027,project DPSSLasers:CZ.1.07/2.3.00/20.0143,project Postdok:CZ.1.07/2.3.00/30.0057)partially supported by the grant RVO 68407700
文摘Further advancement of high-energy pulsed lasers requires a parallel development of appropriate optical components.Several different optical components, such as mirrors and antireflection-coated windows, which are essential for the design of Hi LASE high average power lasers were tested. The following paper summarizes results on the measurements of laser-induced damage threshold of such components, and clearly shows their capabilities and limitations for such a demanding application.
基金Financial support from the Marianne and Marcus Wallenberg Foundationthe Ragnar Sderberg Foundation is gratefully acknowledged
文摘Remarkably, recent research on the Chinese labor market has suggested that the situation in China is inconsistent with the stylized fact that large firms pay higher wages and offer more generous benefits. Expanding the empirical basis from 78 to 300 000 industrial firms, I overturn theprevious result andshow that wage determination in the averagefirmfits the international norm. Exploring subsamples of firms I also point to a likely source for the conflictingfindings： firm size is positively correlatedwith the average wage in private firms, but negatively correlated with the average wage in the state-owned sector. These novel results couM guide future studies aiming to understand the sources of the firm size wage premium, and, in particular, studies that target the largest industrial labor market in the world
基金European Commission(H2020 Quant ERA ERA-NET Cofund QT project CUSPIDOR,H2020-ICT27-2015 project 688516 COSMICC)Ministero dell’Istruzione,dell’Universitàe della Ricerca+1 种基金Science Foundation Ireland(17/QERA/3472,12/RC/2276_P2)CINECA-ISCRA(Project Slow Mod-HP10C0BQ66)。
文摘Reducing power dissipation in electro-optic modulators is a key step for widespread application of silicon photonics to optical communication.In this work,we design Mach–Zehnder modulators in the silicon-on-insulator platform,which make use of slow light in a waveguide grating and of a reverse-biased p-n junction with interleaved contacts along the waveguide axis.After optimizing the junction parameters,we discuss the full simulation of the modulator in order to find a proper trade-off among various figures of merit,such as modulation efficiency,insertion loss,cutoff frequency,optical modulation amplitude,and dissipated energy per bit.Comparison with conventional structures(with lateral p-n junction and/or in rib waveguides without slow light)highlights the importance of combining slow light with the interleaved p-n junction,thanks to the increased overlap between the travelling optical wave and the depletion regions.As a surprising result,the modulator performance is improved over an optical bandwidth that is much wider than the slow-light bandwidth.
文摘Formation of densely packed thin films of semiconductor nanocrystals is advantageous for the exploitation of their unique optoelectronic properties for real-world applications. Here we investigate the fundamental role of the structure of the bridging ligand on the optoelectronic properties of the resulting hybrid film. In particular, we considered hybrid films formed using the same CdSe nanocrystals and two organic ligands that have the same bidentate dithiocarbamate bInding moiety, but differ in their bridging structures, one bridged by ethylene, the other by phenylene that exhibits conjugation. Based on the results of photo- excited carrier dynamics experiments combined with theoretical calculations on the electronic states of bridged CdSe layers, we show that only the phenylene- based ligand presents a strong hybridization of the molecular HOMO state with CdSe layers, that is a marker of formation of an effective bridge. We argue that this hybridization spread favors the hopping of photo-excited carriers between nanocrystals, which may explain the reported larger photo-currents in phenylene-based hybrid films than those observed in ethylene-based ones.
基金funding from the European Union Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation program under grant agreement no.899673This work reflects only authors’view and the European Commission is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains.G.D.V.acknowledges the support from the HOTMETA project under the PRIN 2022 MUR program funded by the European Union—Next Generation EU—“PNRR-M4C2,investimento 1.1—“Fondo PRIN 2022”—HOT-carrier METasurfaces for Advanced photonics(HOTMETA)+1 种基金contract no.2022LENW33—CUP:D53D23002290006”.A.S.,G.C.,M.M.and G.D.V.acknowledge financial support by the European Union’s NextGenerationEU Programme with the I-PHOQS Infrastructure[IR0000016,ID D2B8D520,CUP B53C22001750006]“Integrated infrastructure initiative in Photonic and Quantum Sciences”.The work is partly supported by the French RENATECH networksupport by the European Union-NextGenerationEU,through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan of the Republic of Bulgaria,SUMMIT BG-RRP-2.004-0008-C0.DN acknowledges the support of the Australian Research Council(CE200100010).
文摘Switching of light polarization on the sub-picosecond timescale is a crucial functionality for applications in a variety of contexts,including telecommunications,biology and chemistry.The ability to control polarization at ultrafast speed would pave the way for the development of unprecedented free-space optical links and of novel techniques for probing dynamical processes in complex systems,as chiral molecules.Such high switching speeds can only be reached with an all-optical paradigm,i.e.,engineering active platforms capable of controlling light polarization via ultrashort laser pulses.Here we demonstrate giant modulation of dichroism and birefringence in an all-dielectric metasurface,achieved at low fluences of the optical control beam.This performance,which leverages the many degrees of freedom offered by all-dielectric active metasurfaces,is obtained by combining a high-quality factor nonlocal resonance with the giant third-order optical nonlinearity dictated by photogenerated hot carriers at the semiconductor band edge.
