1T-TiSe, a promising candidate of the sought-after excitonic insulator, possesses an enigmatic charge density wave (CDW) order of which the microscopic origin is formidable to settle owing to the chicken-and-egg entanglement between the electron and lattice degrees of freedom. Its CDW experiences an intriguing but elusive quantum melting and eventually enters the superconducting phase under metal intercalation, suggesting the possible role of melted-order fluctuation in gluing the electron paring. Employing the spectroscopic imaging scanning tunneling microscope (STM), we access the pure electronic behavior by visualizing the CDW melting process of monolayer 1T-TiSe in both the space and energy-band dimensions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe studies have shown that a healthy lifestyle has a significant impact on the academic achievement of adolescents. Behavior of breakfast eating is considered a hallmark of dietary patterns and an important component of a healthy lifestyle. The prior study explained that students had a lower level of achievement motivation at school because they were exposed to some militating factors in their families such as absenteeism, ill health, malnutrition, and hunger.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFZnTPP (Zinc-Tetraphenylporphyrin) is one of the most common nanostructured materials, having high stability and excellent optoelectronic properties. In this paper, the fluorescence features of self-assembled ZnTPP monomers and aggregates on Au(111) surface are investigated in detail on the nanometer scale with scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). The formation of ZnTPP dimers is found in thick layers of a layer-by-layer molecular assembly on Au substrate with its specific molecular arrangement well characterized.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFollowing the first experimental realization of graphene, other ultrathin materials with unprecedented electronic properties have been explored, with particular attention given to the heavy group-IV elements Si, Ge and Sn. Two-dimensional buckled Si-based silicene has been recently realized by molecular beam epitaxy growth, whereas Ge-based germanene was obtained by molecular beam epitaxy and mechanical exfoliation. However, the synthesis of Sn-based stanene has proved challenging so far.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMajorana fermions have been intensively studied in recent years for their importance to both fundamental science and potential applications in topological quantum computing. They are predicted to exist in a vortex core of superconducting topological insulators. However, it is extremely difficult to distinguish them experimentally from other quasiparticle states for the tiny energy difference between Majorana fermions and these states, which is beyond the energy resolution of most available techniques.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRecent experiments on FeSe films grown on SrTiO3 (STO) suggest that interface effects can be used as a means to reach superconducting critical temperatures (Tc) of up to 80 K (ref. ). This is nearly ten times the Tc of bulk FeSe and higher than the record value of 56 K for known bulk Fe-based superconductors.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFYessotoxin (YTX) and its analogs are a type of marine toxins found in marine environments in numerous coastal countries. These toxins tend to accumulate in filter-feeding molluscs and may threaten the shellfish industry and public health. Several previous studies indicated that YTX may induce apoptosis in different types of cell lines, although the exact underlying mechanisms have not yet been elucidated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe marine toxin yessotoxin (YTX) is found in numerous aquatic environments and poses a potential threat to the shellfish industry and to public health. We analyzed the toxicity of YTX on HL7702 human liver cells using optical microscopy, Hoechst 33342 chromatin staining, DNA gel electrophoresis, rhodamine 123 staining and calcium-sensitive laser scanning confocal microscopy. The results demonstrated that YTX induced the usual hallmarks of apoptosis, including chromatin condensation, DNA laddering, activity of caspase-3 deregulation and loss of mitochondrial membrane potential.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTo investigate the apoptotic effects of an extract of red-tide algae, Protoceratium reticulatum, on HeLa cells, we used liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry, optical microscopy, Hoechst 33342/propidine iodide staining, and DNA gel electrophoresis to analyze its constituents and toxicity, as well as rhodamine 123 staining to investigate changes in mitochondrial membrane potential. Analysis showed that the P. reticulatum extract contained the yessotoxins (YTXs) homo-YTX, 45-OH-YTX and 45-OH-homo-YTX.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe apoptotic effects of yessotoxin (YTX) on Bel7402 human hepatoma cells have been evaluated by the combination of several methods, including optical microscopy, Hoechst 33342 staining and DNA gel electrophoresis. Rhodamine 123 staining has also been used to investigate changes in mitochondrial transmembrane potential. The results indicated that YTX has negative effects on human liver cells and induces apoptosis.
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