Structural Dynamics of Short Ligands on the Surface of ZnSe Semiconductor Nanocrystals.

ZnSe semiconductor nanocrystals (NCs) with a size comparable to their Bohr radius are synthesized, and the native capping agents with long hydrocarbon tails are replaced with short thiocyanate (SCN) ligands through a ligand exchange method. The structural dynamics of SCN ligands on the surface of ZnSe NCs in solution is investigated by ultrafast infrared spectroscopy. Vibrational population relaxation of SCN ligands is accelerated due to the specific interaction with the positively charged sites on the surface of NCs. The orientational anisotropy of the bound SCN ligands decayed at a rate much faster than that in the control solution containing Zn2+ cations. From the wobbling-in-the-cone model analysis, we found that the SCN ligand undergoes wobbling orientational diffusion with a relatively large cone semiangle on the surface of ZnSe NCs, and the overall orientational diffusion of bound SCN is found to be strongly dependent on the size of ZnSe NCs.

Performance of Portfolios Based on the Expected Utility-Entropy Fund Rating Approach.

Yang and Qiu proposed and reframed an expected utility-entropy (EU-E) based decision model. Later on, a similar numerical representation for a risky choice was axiomatically developed by Luce et al. under the condition of segregation. Recently, we established a fund rating approach based on the EU-E decision model and Morningstar ratings. In this paper, we apply the approach to US mutual funds and construct portfolios using the best rating funds. Furthermore, we evaluate the performance of the fund ratings based on the EU-E decision model against Morningstar ratings by examining the performance of the three models in portfolio selection. The conclusions show that portfolios constructed using the ratings based on the EU-E models with moderate tradeoff coefficients perform better than those constructed using Morningstar. The conclusion is robust to different rebalancing intervals.

Evaluation of antiviral effect and toxicity of total flavonoids extracted from Robinia pseudoacacia cv. idaho.

In this study, we aimed to evaluate the antiviral effect of total flavonoids extracted from Robinia pseudoacacia cv. idaho (RPTF) in vivo and its toxicity on rats with oral gavage. RPTF was prepared by percolation with 70% ethanol for 24 h and its antiviral effect on different kinds of viruses was evaluated in vitro by MTT staining. The long-term toxicity of RPTF on rats was evaluated through the detection of general behavior, body weight, food intake and related organ tissue sections of experimental animals. We found that RPTF produced significantly inhibitory effects on HSV-1 and EV-71 viruses with the therapeutic index TI values 113.8 and 46.2, respectively. Moreover, toxicity evaluation in vivo showed no significantly adverse effects in rats, indicating that RPTF was safe in use. In conclusion, we demonstrated that RPTF, natural compounds in the Chinese traditional medicine, could act as promising and effective antiviral therapeutics with relative safety in use.

Development and characterization of octreotide-modified curcumin plus docetaxel micelles for potential treatment of non-small-cell lung cancer.

We prepared octreotide (OCT)-modified curcumin plus docetaxel micelles to enhance active targeting and inhibit tumor metastasis by destroying vasculogenic mimicry (VM) channels. Soluplus was applied as an amphiphilic material to form micelles via film dispersion. The cytotoxic effects, active cellular targeting, and inhibitory effects on metastasis were systematically evaluated in vitro using A549 cells, and in vivo antitumor effects were evaluated using xenograft tumor-bearing mice. In vitro assays indicated that the OCT-modified curcumin plus docetaxel micelles showed robust cytotoxicity on A549 cells and effectively inhibited VM channels and tumor metastasis. Studying the mechanism of action indicated that OCT-modified curcumin plus docetaxel micelles downregulated MMP-2 and HIF-1α. In vivo assays indicated that OCT-modified curcumin plus docetaxel micelles increased drug accumulation at tumor sites and showed obvious antitumor efficacy. The developed OCT-modified curcumin plus docetaxel micelles may offer a promising treatment strategy for non-small-cell lung cancer.

The predictive ability of the expected utility-entropy based fund rating approach: A comparison investigation with Morningstar ratings in US.

In this paper, we propose an alternative fund rating approach based on the Expected Utility-Entropy (EU-E) decision model, in which the measure of risk for a risky action was axiomatically developed by Luce et al. We examine the ability of this approach as an alternative fund rating approach for its ability to potentially mitigate the drawbacks of the risk measure used in Morningstar ratings, and investigate the ability of the EU-E model based and Morningstar ratings to predict mutual fund performance. Overall, we find that the risk measure used in both models plays a defining role in their ability to predict future fund performance, and that the EU-E model can effectively consider the behavioral decisions of an investor.

Multiple-3D-object secure information system based on phase shifting method and single interference.

We propose a multiple-3D-object secure information system for encrypting multiple three-dimensional (3D) objects based on the three-step phase shifting method. During the decryption procedure, five phase functions (PFs) are decreased to three PFs, in comparison with our previous method, which implies that one cross beam splitter is utilized to implement the single decryption interference. Moreover, the advantages of the proposed scheme also include: each 3D object can be decrypted discretionarily without decrypting a series of other objects earlier; the quality of the decrypted slice image of each object is high according to the correlation coefficient values, none of which is lower than 0.95; no iterative algorithm is involved. The feasibility of the proposed scheme is demonstrated by computer simulation results.