397 research outputs found
A high performance transparent resistive switching memory made from ZrO2/AlON bilayer structure
No full textIn this study, the switching properties of an indium tin oxide (ITO)/zirconium oxide (ZrO2)/ITO single layer device and those of a device with an aluminum oxynitride (AlON) layer were investigated. The devices with highly transparent characteristics were fabricated. Compared with the ITO/ZrO2/ITO single layer device, the ITO/ZrO2/AlON/ITO bilayer device exhibited a larger ON/OFF ratio, higher endurance performance, and superior retention properties by using a simple two-step forming process. These substantial improvements in the resistive switching properties were attributed to the minimized influence of oxygen migration through the ITO top electrode (TE), which can be realized by forming an asymmetrical conductive filament with the weakest part at the ZrO2/AlON interface. Therefore, in the ITO/ZrO2/AlON/ITO bilayer device, the regions where conductive filament formation and rupture occur can be effectively moved from the TE interface to the interior of the device. Published by AIP Publishing.Ministry of Science and Technology, Taiwan [NSC 102-2221-E009-134-MY3]SCI(E)[email protected]
The SIL Gene Is Essential for Mitotic Entry and Survival of Cancer Cells
No full textAlthough mitosis is a general physiologic process, cancer cells are unusually sensitive to mitotic inhibitors. Therefore, there is an interest in the identification of novel mitotic inhibitors. Here, we report the novel discovery of the SIL gene as a regulator of mitotic entry and cell survival. The SIL gene was cloned from leukemia-associated chromosomal translocation. It encodes a cytosolic protein with an unknown function and no homology to known proteins. Previously, we observed an increased expression of SIL in multiple cancers that correlated with the expression of mitotic spindle checkpoint genes and with increased metastatic potential. Here, we show that SIL is important for the transition from the G2 to the M phases of the cell cycle. Inducible knockdown of SIL in cancer cells in vitro delayed entrance into mitosis, decreased activation of the CDK1 (CDC2)-cyclin B complex, and induced apoptosis in a p53-independent manner. SIL is also essential for the growth of tumor explants in mice. Thus, SIL is required for mitotic entry and cancer cell survival. Because increased expression of SIL has been noted in multiple types of cancers and correlates with metastatic spread, it may be a suitable target for novel anticancer therapy. ©2007 American Association for Cancer Research
Product structure extension of the Alon--Seymour--Thomas theorem
No full textAlon, Seymour and Thomas [1990] proved that every -vertex graph excluding as a minor has treewidth less than . Illingworth, Scott and Wood [2022] recently refined this result by showing that every such graph is a subgraph of some graph with treewidth , where each vertex is blown up by a complete graph of order . Solving an open problem of Illingworth, Scott and Wood [2022], we prove that the treewidth bound can be reduced to while keeping blowups of order . As an extension of the Lipton--Tarjan theorem, in the case of planar graphs, we show that the treewidth can be further reduced to , which is best possible. We generalise this result for -minor-free graphs, with blowups of order . This setting includes graphs embeddable on any fixed surface.Title changed, author added, and results for -minor-free graphs added in v2. Referee comments incorporated into v
UCC Actors Hit the Beach in "Never Swim Alone"
No full textPress ReleaseDaniel MacIvorNever Swim Alon
BNT162b2 Vaccine Effectiveness against Omicron in Children 5 to 11 Years of Age
No full textBACKGROUND: Limited evidence is available on the real-world effectiveness of the BNT162b2 vaccine against coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) and specifically against infection with the omicron variant among children 5 to 11 years of age. METHODS: Using data from the largest health care organization in Israel, we identified a cohort of children 5 to 11 years of age who were vaccinated on or after November 23, 2021, and matched them with unvaccinated controls to estimate the vaccine effectiveness of BNT162b2 among newly vaccinated children during the omicron wave. Vaccine effectiveness against documented severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection and symptomatic Covid-19 was estimated after the first and second vaccine doses. The cumulative incidence of each outcome in the two study groups through January 7, 2022, was estimated with the use of the Kaplan–Meier estimator, and vaccine effectiveness was calculated as 1 minus the risk ratio. Vaccine effectiveness was also estimated in age subgroups. RESULTS: Among 136,127 eligible children who had been vaccinated during the study period, 94,728 were matched with unvaccinated controls. The estimated vaccine effectiveness against documented infection was 17% (95% confidence interval [CI], 7 to 25) at 14 to 27 days after the first dose and 51% (95% CI, 39 to 61) at 7 to 21 days after the second dose. The absolute risk difference between the study groups at days 7 to 21 after the second dose was 1905 events per 100,000 persons (95% CI, 1294 to 2440) for documented infection and 599 events per 100,000 persons (95% CI, 296 to 897) for symptomatic Covid-19. The estimated vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic Covid-19 was 18% (95% CI, −2 to 34) at 14 to 27 days after the first dose and 48% (95% CI, 29 to 63) at 7 to 21 days after the second dose. We observed a trend toward higher vaccine effectiveness in the youngest age group (5 or 6 years of age) than in the oldest age group (10 or 11 years of age). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that as omicron was becoming the dominant variant, two doses of the BNT162b2 messenger RNA vaccine provided moderate protection against documented SARS-CoV-2 infection and symptomatic Covid-19 in children 5 to 11 years of age. (Funded by the European Union through the VERDI project and others.
Essays on Corruption
No full textCorruption is blamed for reductions in operational efficiency, information asymmetry, limited income distribution, policy failure, and weak economic growth and development. Corruption can originate from either the “demand-side” (the recipients of the bribe) or the “supply-side” (the givers of the bribe). This double edge effect of corruption on the economy and society makes it a multidisciplinary subject and phenomenon. Thus, scholars from different fields and disciplines, such as finance, banking, economics, accounting, law, foreign aid, and international business, examined and analyzed corruption as a multidisciplinary subject. In this dissertation, I investigate and explore the characteristics and association of corruption with firms, international business, banking, foreign direct investment (FDI), foreign aid, and international trade flows
Induction of Nitric-Oxide Metabolism in Enterocytes Alleviates Colitis and Inflammation-Associated Colon Cancer
No full textNitric oxide (NO) plays an established role in numerous physiological and pathological processes, but the specific cellular sources of NO in disease pathogenesis remain unclear, preventing the implementation of NO-related therapy. Argininosuccinate lyase (ASL) is the only enzyme able to produce arginine, the substrate for NO generation by nitric oxide synthase (NOS) isoforms. Here, we generated cell-specific conditional ASL knockout mice in combination with genetic and chemical colitis models. We demonstrate that NO derived from enterocytes alleviates colitis by decreasing macrophage infiltration and tissue damage, whereas immune cell-derived NO is associated with macrophage activation, resulting in increased severity of inflammation. We find that induction of endogenous NO production by enterocytes with supplements that upregulate ASL expression and complement its substrates results in improved epithelial integrity and alleviation of colitis and of inflammation-associated colon cance
Testable and untestable classes of first-order formulae
No full textIn property testing, the goal is to distinguish structures that have some desired property from those that are far from having the property, based on only a small, random sample of the structure. We focus on the classification of first-order sentences according to their testability. This classification was initiated by Alon et al. [2], who showed that graph properties expressible with prefix there exists*for all* are testable but that there is an untestable graph property expressible with quantifier prefix for all*there exists*. The main results of the present paper are as follows. We prove that all (relational) properties expressible with quantifier prefix there exists*for all there exists* (Ackermann's class with equality) are testable and also extend the positive result of Alon et al. [2] to relational structures using a recent result by Austin and Tao [8]. Finally, we simplify the untestable property of Alon et al. [2] and show that prefixes for all(3)there exists, for all(2)there exists for all, for all there exists for all(2) and for all there exists V there exists can express untestable graph properties when equality is allowed
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