Proton- and deuteron-induced cross sections on natural platinum.

Light-ion irradiations on natural platinum were performed to measure gold-radioisotope cross sections and isotope ratios, as well as to produce a carrier-free final product. Experimental cross sections are compared to TENDL-2023. There is good agreement with this work's results and other published literature values.

A generalizable nanopore sensor for highly specific protein detection at single-molecule precision.

Protein detection has wide-ranging implications in molecular diagnostics. Substantial progress has been made in protein analytics using nanopores and the resistive-pulse technique. Yet, a long-standing challenge is implementing specific interfaces for detecting proteins without the steric hindrance of the pore interior.

3D printed field-deployable microfluidic systems for the separation and assay of Pu in nuclear forensics.

A compact field-deployable microfluidic system has been developed to improve timelines for the rapid analysis of debris in post-detonation nuclear forensics. We used a high-resolution 3D printer to miniaturize typical laboratory-based procedures into a fieldable platform. Microfluidic half-modules were produced for the purification of Pu from excess U, along with a portable alpha chamber for the following isotopic analysis of the Pu stream.

On the adsorption and reactivity of element 114, flerovium.

Flerovium (Fl, element 114) is the heaviest element chemically studied so far. To date, its interaction with gold was investigated in two gas-solid chromatography experiments, which reported two different types of interaction, however, each based on the level of a few registered atoms only. Whereas noble-gas-like properties were suggested from the first experiment, the second one pointed at a volatile-metal-like character.

Convergent Alterations of a Protein Hub Produce Divergent Effects within a Binding Site.

Progress in tumor sequencing and cancer databases has created an enormous amount of information that scientists struggle to sift through. While several research groups have created computational methods to analyze these databases, much work still remains in distinguishing key implications of pathogenic mutations. Here, we describe an approach to identify and evaluate somatic cancer mutations of WD40 repeat protein 5 (WDR5), a chromatin-associated protein hub.

Fluorescence-Based Detection of Ferrous Iron in Senescent Cells.

A major limitation in aging research is the lack of reliable biomarkers to assess phenotypic changes with age or monitor response to antiaging interventions. This study investigates the role of intracellular ferrous iron (Fe) as a potential biomarker of senescence. Iron is known to accumulate in various tissues with age and recent studies have demonstrated that its level increases dramatically in senescent cells.

Kinetics of the multitasking high-affinity Win binding site of WDR5 in restricted and unrestricted conditions.

Recent advances in quantitative proteomics show that WD40 proteins play a pivotal role in numerous cellular networks. Yet, they have been fairly unexplored and their physical associations with other proteins are ambiguous. A quantitative understanding of these interactions has wide-ranging significance.

C in olive oil causes light-dependent toxicity and does not extend lifespan in mice.

C is a potent antioxidant that has been reported to substantially extend the lifespan of rodents when formulated in olive oil (C-OO) or extra virgin olive oil (C60-EVOO). Despite there being no regulated form of C-OO, people have begun obtaining it from online sources and dosing it to themselves or their pets, presumably with the assumption of safety and efficacy. In this study, we obtain C-OO from a sample of online vendors, and find marked discrepancies in appearance, impurity profile, concentration, and activity relative to pristine C-OO formulated in-house.

Recombinant Manganese Peroxidase Reduces A2E Burden in Age-Related and Stargardt's Macular Degeneration Models.

Macular degeneration is hallmarked by retinal accumulation of toxic retinoid species (e.g., A2E) for which there is no endogenous mechanism to eliminate it.

Fractionation of copper activation products in debris samples from the National Ignition Facility.

Nuclear fusion experiments performed at the National Ignition Facility produce radioactive debris, arising in reactions of fast neutrons with the target assembly. We have found that postshot debris collections are fractionated, such that isotope ratios in an individual debris sample may not be representative of the radionuclide inventory produced by the experiment. We discuss the potential sources of this fractionation and apply isotope-correlation techniques to calculate unfractionated isotope ratios that are used in measurements of nuclear reaction cross sections.

Distribution of collected target debris using the large area solid debris radiochemistry collector.

A large area solid radiochemistry collector was deployed at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) with a collection efficiency for post-shot, solid target debris of approximately 1% of the total 4π solid angle. The collector consisted of a 20-cm diameter vanadium foil surrounded by an aluminum side-enclosure and was fielded 50 cm from the NIF target. The collector was used on two NIF neutron yield shots, both of which had a monolayer of U embedded in the capsule ablator 10 m from the inner surface.

RPtag as an Orally Bioavailable, Hyperstable Epitope Tag and Generalizable Protein Binding Scaffold.

Antibodies are the most prolific biologics in research and clinical environments because of their ability to bind targets with high affinity and specificity. However, antibodies also carry liabilities. A significant portion of the life-science reproducibility crisis is driven by inconsistent performance of research-grade antibodies, and clinical antibodies are often unstable and require costly cold-chain management to reach their destinations in active form.

Recent advances and results from the solid radiochemistry nuclear diagnostic at the National Ignition Facility.

The solid debris collection capability at the National Ignition Facility has been expanded to include a third line-of-sight assembly. The solid radiochemistry nuclear diagnostic measurement of the ratio of gold isotopes is dependent on the efficient collection of neutron-activated hohlraum debris by passive metal disks. The collection of target debris at this new location is more reliable in comparison to the historic locations, and it appears to be independent of collector surface ablation.

Production and separation of carrier-free ⁷Be.

A high-purity carrier-free (7)Be was efficiently isolated following proton bombardment of a lithium hydroxide-aluminum target. The separation of beryllium from lithium and aluminum was achieved through a hydrochloric acid elution system utilizing cation exchange chromatography. The beryllium recovery, +99%, was assessed through gamma spectroscopy while the chemical purity was established by mass spectrometry.

Note: Radiochemical measurement of fuel and ablator areal densities in cryogenic implosions at the National Ignition Facility.

A new radiochemical method for determining deuterium-tritium (DT) fuel and plastic ablator (CH) areal densities (ρR) in high-convergence, cryogenic inertial confinement fusion implosions at the National Ignition Facility is described. It is based on measuring the (198)Au/(196)Au activation ratio using the collected post-shot debris of the Au hohlraum. The Au ratio combined with the independently measured neutron down scatter ratio uniquely determines the areal densities ρR(DT) and ρR(CH) during burn in the context of a simple 1-dimensional capsule model.

Are species differences in maternal effects arising from maternal care adaptive?

Parental care benefits offspring through maternal effects influencing their development, growth and survival. However, although parental care in general is likely the result of adaptive evolution, it does not follow that specific differences in the maternal effects that arise from care are also adaptive. Here, we used an interspecific cross-fostering design in the burying beetle species Nicrophorus orbicollis and N.

Radiochemical determination of Inertial Confinement Fusion capsule compression at the National Ignition Facility.

We describe a radiochemical measurement of the ratio of isotope concentrations produced in a gold hohlraum surrounding an Inertial Confinement Fusion capsule at the National Ignition Facility (NIF). We relate the ratio of the concentrations of (n,γ) and (n,2n) products in the gold hohlraum matrix to the down-scatter of neutrons in the compressed fuel and, consequently, to the fuel's areal density. The observed ratio of the concentrations of (198m+g)Au and (196g)Au is a performance signature of ablator areal density and the fuel assembly confinement time.

Production and decay of the heaviest nuclei (293,294)117 and (294)118.

Two years after the discovery of element 117, we undertook a second campaign using the (249)Bk+(48)Ca reaction for further investigations of the production and decay properties of the isotopes of element 117 on a larger number of events. The experiments were started in the end of April 2012 and are still under way. This Letter presents the results obtained in 1200 hours of an experimental run with the beam dose of (48)Ca of about 1.

The Radiochemical Analysis of Gaseous Samples (RAGS) apparatus for nuclear diagnostics at the National Ignition Facility (invited).

The Radiochemical Analysis of Gaseous Samples (RAGS) diagnostic apparatus was recently installed at the National Ignition Facility (NIF). Following a NIF shot, RAGS is used to pump the gas load from the NIF chamber for purification and isolation of the noble gases. After collection, the activated gaseous species are counted via gamma spectroscopy for measurement of the capsule areal density and fuel-ablator mix.

Solid debris collection for radiochemical diagnostics at the National Ignition Facility.

Radiochemical analysis of post-ignition debris inside the National Ignition Facility (NIF) target chamber can help determine various diagnostic parameters associated with the implosion efficiency of the fusion capsule. This technique is limited by the ability to distinguish ablator material from other debris and by the collection efficiency of the capsule debris after implosion. Prior to designing an on-line collection system, the chemical nature and distribution of the debris inside the chamber must be determined.

New insights into the 243Am + 48Ca reaction products previously observed in the experiments on elements 113, 115, and 117.

Results of a new series of experiments on the study of production cross sections and decay properties of the isotopes of element 115 in the reaction (243)Am+(48)Ca are presented. Twenty-one new decay chains originating from (288)115 were established as the product of the 3n-evaporation channel by measuring the excitation function at three excitation energies of the compound nucleus (291)115. The decay properties of all newly observed nuclei are in full agreement with those we measured in 2003.

Fluctuation in visual acuity during soft toric contact lens wear.

Purpose: To quantify changes in visual acuity (VA) with soft toric contact lenses as a result of lens movement and/or rotational instability caused by versional eye movements.

Methods: A novel chart for vision assessment at near (40 cm) for soft toric contact lenses (VANT chart),consisting of a central, color-coded logMAR panel and eight peripheral letter targets set on a white background measuring 60 × 40 cm was constructed. In the developmental phase of the work, 10 subjects (20 eyes) wore 2 toric lenses in random order, and the impact of rapid and delayed eye versions in 8 directions of gaze on VANT acuity was investigated.

Synthesis of a new element with atomic number Z = 117.

The discovery of a new chemical element with atomic number Z=117 is reported. The isotopes (293)117 and (294)117 were produced in fusion reactions between (48)Ca and (249)Bk. Decay chains involving 11 new nuclei were identified by means of the Dubna gas-filled recoil separator.