Ag-MWCNT Composites for Improving the Electrical and Thermal Properties of Electronic Paste.

With the development of microelectronics products with high density and high power, it is urgent to improve the electrical and thermal conductivity of electronic paste to achieve the new requirements of packaging materials. In this work, a new synthesis method of Ag-MWCNTs was designed: Firstly, carboxylated MWCNTs and stannous chloride were used as raw materials to prepare high-loading-rate Sn-MWCNT composite material to ensure the high loading rate of metal on the MWCNT surface. Then, Ag-MWCNT composite material was prepared by the chemical displacement method to solve the problem of the low loading rate of silver nanoparticles on the MWCNT surface. On the basis of this innovation, we analyzed and compared the electrical, thermal, and mechanical properties of Ag-MWCNT composite electronic paste. Compared with the electronic paste without adding Ag-MWCNTs, the resistivity was reduced by 77%, the thermal conductivity was increased by 66%, and the shear strength was increased by 15%. Therefore, the addition of Ag-MWCNTs effectively improves the electrical, thermal, and mechanical properties of the paste, making it a promising and competitive choice for new packaging materials in the future.

Clonality analysis of multifocal papillary thyroid carcinoma by using genetic profiles.

Papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) is the most common adult thyroid malignancy and often presents with multiple anatomically distinct foci within the thyroid, known as multifocal papillary thyroid carcinoma (MPTC). The widespread application of the next-generation sequencing technologies in cancer genomics research provides novel insights into determining the clonal relationship between multiple tumours within the same thyroid gland. For eight MPTC patients, we performed whole-exome sequencing and targeted region sequencing to identify the non-synonymous point mutations and gene rearrangements of distinct and spatially separated tumour foci. Among these eight MPTCs, completely discordant mutational spectra were observed in the distinct cancerous nodules of patients MPTC1 and 5, suggesting that these nodules originated from independent precursors. In another three cases (MPTC2, 6, and 8), the distinct MPTC foci of these patients had no other shared mutations except BRAF V600E, also indicating likely independent origins. Two patients (MPTC3 and 4) shared almost identical mutational spectra amongst their separate tumour nodules, suggesting a common clonal origin. MPTC patient 7 had seven cancer foci, of which two foci shared 66.7% of mutations, while the remaining cancer foci displayed no common non-synonymous mutations, indicating that MPTC7 has multiple independent origins accompanied by intraglandular disease dissemination. In this study, we found that 75% of MPTC cases arose as independent tumours, which supports the field cancerization hypothesis describing multiple malignant lesions. MPTC may also arise from intrathyroidal metastases from a single malignant clone, as well as multiple independent origins accompanied by intrathyroidal metastasis.

Prevalence of deleterious ATM germline mutations in gastric cancer patients.

Besides CDH1, few hereditary gastric cancer predisposition genes have been previously reported. In this study, we discovered two germline ATM mutations (p.Y1203fs and p.N1223S) in a Chinese family with a history of gastric cancer by screening 83 cancer susceptibility genes. Using a published exome sequencing dataset, we found deleterious germline mutations of ATM in 2.7% of 335 gastric cancer patients of different ethnic origins. The frequency of deleterious ATM mutations in gastric cancer patients is significantly higher than that in general population (p=0.0000435), suggesting an association of ATM mutations with gastric cancer predisposition. We also observed biallelic inactivation of ATM in tumors of two gastric cancer patients. Further evaluation of ATM mutations in hereditary gastric cancer will facilitate genetic testing and risk assessment.

Genome sequence of Theileria parva, a bovine pathogen that transforms lymphocytes.

We report the genome sequence of Theileria parva, an apicomplexan pathogen causing economic losses to smallholder farmers in Africa. The parasite chromosomes exhibit limited conservation of gene synteny with Plasmodium falciparum, and its plastid-like genome represents the first example where all apicoplast genes are encoded on one DNA strand. We tentatively identify proteins that facilitate parasite segregation during host cell cytokinesis and contribute to persistent infection of transformed host cells. Several biosynthetic pathways are incomplete or absent, suggesting substantial metabolic dependence on the host cell. One protein family that may generate parasite antigenic diversity is not telomere-associated.

Suppression of SARS-CoV entry by peptides corresponding to heptad regions on spike glycoprotein.

Heptad repeat regions (HR1 and HR2) are highly conserved sequences located in the glycoproteins of enveloped viruses. They form a six-helix bundle structure and are important in the process of virus fusion. Peptides derived from the HR regions of some viruses have been shown to inhibit the entry of these viruses. SARS-CoV was also predicted to have HR1 and HR2 regions in the S2 protein. Based on this prediction, we designed 25 peptides and screened them using a HIV-luc/SARS pseudotyped virus assay. Two peptides, HR1-1 and HR2-18, were identified as potential inhibitors, with EC(50) values of 0.14 and 1.19microM, respectively. The inhibitory effects of these peptides were validated by the wild-type SARS-CoV assay. HR1-1 and HR2-18 can serve as functional probes for dissecting the fusion mechanism of SARS-CoV and also provide the potential of further identifying potent inhibitors for SARS-CoV entry.