Gross, organoleptic and histologic assessment of cadaveric equine heads preserved using chemical methods for veterinary surgical teaching.

BACKGROUND: Preservation of biological tissues has been used since ancient times. Regardless of the method employed, tissue preservation is thought to be a vital step in veterinary surgery teaching and learning. OBJECTIVES: This study was designed to determine the usability of chemically preserved cadaveric equine heads for surgical teaching in veterinary medicine. METHODS: Six cadaveric equine heads were collected immediately after death or euthanasia and frozen until fixation. Fixation was achieved by using a hypertonic solution consisting of sodium chloride, sodium nitrite and sodium nitrate, and an alcoholic solution containing ethanol and glycerin. Chemically preserved specimens were stored at low temperatures (2°C to 6°C) in a conventional refrigerator. The specimens were submitted to gross and organoleptic assessment right after fixative solution injection (D0) and within 10, 20, and 30 days of fixation (D10, D20, and D30, respectively). Samples of tissue from skin, tongue, oral vestibule, and masseter muscle were collected for histological evaluation at the same time points. RESULTS: Physical and organoleptic assessments revealed excellent specimen quality (mean scores higher than 4 on a 5-point scale) in most cases. In some specimens, lower scores (3) were assigned to the range of mouth opening, particularly on D0 and D10. A reduced the range of mouth opening may be a limiting factor in teaching activities involving structures located in the oral cavity. CONCLUSIONS: The excellent physical, histologic, and organoleptic characteristics of the specimens in this sample support their usability in teaching within the time frame considered. Appropriate physical and organoleptic characteristics (color, texture, odor, and flexibility) of the specimens in this study support the use of the method described for preparation of reusable anatomical specimens.

Wavelength conversion through stimulated Raman scattering in an oxygen-filled fiber for multi-band LiDAR.

Wavelength conversion afforded by stimulated Raman scattering within a hollow core fiber is potentially useful for multispectral light detection and ranging (LiDAR). Herein, we make use of the ideal 1550 cm-1 vibrational Raman shift of an antiresonant fiber filled with gaseous oxygen so that the first and second Raman orders as well as the transmitted pump are all located in separate atmospheric transmission windows. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of stimulated Raman scattering in an oxygen-filled fiber. The host of closely spaced rotational stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) lines (12 cm-1) accompanying the transmitted pump and vibrational Raman orders form continuum bands allowing for much greater spectral coverage of the atmospheric transmission windows. The temporal profiles of the Raman orders can be separated without the use of a grating to potentially achieve a multi-band LiDAR.

Single-shot ptychographic imaging of non-repetitive ultrafast events.

We demonstrate experimentally high-speed ptychographic imaging of non-repetitive complex-valued events. Three time-resolved complex-valued frames are reconstructed from data recorded in a single camera snapshot. The temporal resolution of the microscope is determined by delays between illuminating pulses. The ability to image amplitude and phase of nonrepetitive events with ultrafast temporal resolution will open new opportunities in science and technology.

A novel ruthenium complex with 5-fluorouracil suppresses colorectal cancer stem cells by inhibiting Akt/mTOR signaling.

[Ru(5-FU)(PPh3)2(bipy)]PF6 (Ru/5-FU) is a novel ruthenium complex with 5-fluorouracil with promising potential against colorectal cancer (CRC). In the present study, we investigated the molecular mechanism of Ru/5-FU action in HCT116 CRC cells. Ru/5-FU exhibited potent cytotoxicity on a panel of cancer cell lines and on primary cancer cells and induced apoptosis in HCT116 CRC cells. Ru/5-FU reduced AKT1 gene transcripts, as well as the expression of Akt1 and Akt (pS473) and downstream Akt proteins mTOR (pS2448), S6 (pS235/pS236), 4EBP1 (pT36/pT45), GSK-3ß (pS9) and NF-κB p65 (pS529), but not Akt upstream proteins Hsp90 and PI3K p85/p55 (pT458/pT199), indicating an inhibitory action of Akt/mTOR signaling. Ru/5-FU increased LC3B expression and reduced p62/SQSTM1 levels, indicating autophagy induction. Curiously, the autophagy inhibitors 3-methyladenine and chloroquine increased Ru/5-FU-induced cell death, indicating an induction of cytoprotective autophagy by this compound. Ru/5-FU also reduced clonogenic survival, as well as the percentage of CD133+ cells and colonosphere formation, indicating that Ru/5-FU can suppress stem cells in HCT116 cells. Ru/5-FU inhibited cell migration and invasion in wound healing assays and Transwell cell invasion assays, along with a reduction in vimentin expression and an increase in E-cadherin levels, indicating that Ru/5-FU can interfere with epithelial-mesenchymal transition. Ru/5-FU also inhibited in vivo HCT116 cell development and experimental lung metastases in mouse xenograft models. Altogether, these results indicate that Ru/5-FU is an anti-CRC chemotherapy drug candidate with the ability to suppress stemness in CRC cells by inhibiting Akt/mTOR signaling.

Laser2: A two-domain photon-phonon laser.

The laser is one of the greatest inventions in history. Because of its ubiquitous applications and profound societal impact, the concept of the laser has been extended to other physical domains including phonon lasers and atom lasers. Quite often, a laser in one physical domain is pumped by energy in another. However, all lasers demonstrated so far have only lased in one physical domain. We have experimentally demonstrated simultaneous photon and phonon lasing in a two-mode silica fiber ring cavity via forward intermodal stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) mediated by long-lived flexural acoustic waves. This two-domain laser may find potential applications in optical/acoustic tweezers, optomechanical sensing, microwave generation, and quantum information processing. Furthermore, we believe that this demonstration will usher in other multidomain lasers and related applications.

Adaptive inverse mapping: a model-free semi-supervised learning approach towards robust imaging through dynamic scattering media.

Imaging through scattering media is a useful and yet demanding task since it involves solving for an inverse mapping from speckle images to object images. It becomes even more challenging when the scattering medium undergoes dynamic changes. Various approaches have been proposed in recent years. However, none of them are able to preserve high image quality without either assuming a finite number of sources for dynamic changes, assuming a thin scattering medium, or requiring access to both ends of the medium. In this paper, we propose an adaptive inverse mapping (AIP) method, which requires no prior knowledge of the dynamic change and only needs output speckle images after initialization. We show that the inverse mapping can be corrected through unsupervised learning if the output speckle images are followed closely. We test the AIP method on two numerical simulations: a dynamic scattering system formulated as an evolving transmission matrix and a telescope with a changing random phase mask at a defocused plane. Then we experimentally apply the AIP method to a multimode-fiber-based imaging system with a changing fiber configuration. Increased robustness in imaging is observed in all three cases. AIP method's high imaging performance demonstrates great potential in imaging through dynamic scattering media.

Unsupervised full-color cellular image reconstruction through disordered optical fiber.

Recent years have witnessed the tremendous development of fusing fiber-optic imaging with supervised deep learning to enable high-quality imaging of hard-to-reach areas. Nevertheless, the supervised deep learning method imposes strict constraints on fiber-optic imaging systems, where the input objects and the fiber outputs have to be collected in pairs. To unleash the full potential of fiber-optic imaging, unsupervised image reconstruction is in demand. Unfortunately, neither optical fiber bundles nor multimode fibers can achieve a point-to-point transmission of the object with a high sampling density, as is a prerequisite for unsupervised image reconstruction. The recently proposed disordered fibers offer a new solution based on the transverse Anderson localization. Here, we demonstrate unsupervised full-color imaging with a cellular resolution through a meter-long disordered fiber in both transmission and reflection modes. The unsupervised image reconstruction consists of two stages. In the first stage, we perform a pixel-wise standardization on the fiber outputs using the statistics of the objects. In the second stage, we recover the fine details of the reconstructions through a generative adversarial network. Unsupervised image reconstruction does not need paired images, enabling a much more flexible calibration under various conditions. Our new solution achieves full-color high-fidelity cell imaging within a working distance of at least 4 mm by only collecting the fiber outputs after an initial calibration. High imaging robustness is also demonstrated when the disordered fiber is bent with a central angle of 60°. Moreover, the cross-domain generality on unseen objects is shown to be enhanced with a diversified object set.

Cytotoxic activity of Ru(II)/DPEPhos/N,S-mercapto complexes (DPEPhos = bis-[(2-diphenylphosphino)phenyl]ether).

We report here on three new ruthenium(II) complexes, [Ru(DPEPhos)(mtz)(bipy)]PF6 (Ru1), [Ru(DPEPhos)(mmi)(bipy)]PF6 (Ru2) and [Ru(DPEPhos)(dmp)(bipy)]PF6 (Ru3). DPEPhos = bis-[(2-diphenylphosphino)phenyl]ether, mtz = 2-mercapto-2-thiazoline, mmi = 2-mercapto-1-methylimidazole, dmp = 4,6-diamino-2-mercaptopyrimidine and bipy = 2,2'-bipyridine. The compounds were characterized by several spectroscopic techniques, and the molecular structure of Ru1 complex was determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The cytotoxicity of Ru1 - Ru3 complexes were tested against the A549 (human lung) and the MDA-MB-231 (human breast) cancer cell lines and against MRC-5 (non-tumor lung) and MCF-10A (non-tumor breast) cell lines through the MTT assay. All three complexes are cytotoxic against the cell lines studied, with IC50 values lower than those found for the cisplatin. Among them, the Ru2 complex has shown the best selectivity against MDA-MB-231 cancer cell lines, with an IC50 value 12 times lower than that on MCF-10A. The complex Ru2 was capable to induce changes in MDA-MB-231 cells morphology, with loss of cellular adhesion, inhibited colony formation and induce an accumulation of cells at the sub-G1 phase, with an increase in S-phase and decrease of cells at G2 phase. Viscosity, electrochemical and Hoechst 33258 displacement experiments for Ru1 - Ru3 complexes with calf thymus DNA (CT-DNA) showed an electrostatic and groove binding mode of interaction. Additionally, the complexes interact with the protein Human Serum Albumin (HSA) by static mechanism. The negative values for ΔH and ΔS indicate that van der Waals forces and hydrogen bonding may occurs between the complexes and HSA. Therefore, this class of complexes are promising anticancer candidates and may be selected to further detailed studies.

Treatment of a Mandibular Diastemal Fracture Using Locking Compression Plate and Cerclage Wire in a Mare.

This report describes the combination of two surgical fracture repair techniques and the postoperative management of a mandibular diastemal fracture in a two-year-old mare. The mare was referred to a veterinary hospital with a laceration over the body of the right mandible. Radiographic assessment revealed two mesial fracture lines involving the second premolar tooth and a ventrally displaced bone fragment. The mare was treated under general anesthesia and the fracture was corrected using open reduction and plate fixation. A 3.5 mm narrow 15-hole locking compression plate with seven locking screws were used in a bridge form. Cerclage wire was also used to anchor the incisor teeth to the second and third premolar teeth. The cerclage wire and incisor teeth were covered with polymethylmethacrylate to prevent implant failure and avoid injury to the oral mucosa. Implants were removed 55 days after surgery and the mare was discharged from hospital five days later. The mare returned for cerclage wire removal after 90 days and was allowed to resume exercise thereafter. The combination of two surgical techniques, proper implant choice and appropriate postoperative management, including use of pelleted feed, contributed to successful bone healing and return to function.

Fluorescence spectroscopy for clinical transplantation liver grafts monitoring: possibilities offered by 408 nm excitation.

PURPOSE: Fluorescence spectroscopy techniques have been investigated aiming to reduce the invasiveness of methods for investigation of tissue. In transplantation procedures, it may offer the possibility of a complementary technique for the monitoring of liver grafts' conditions prior to and during the transplantation procedure stages involving cold perfusion. The objective of this study was to evaluate fluorescence spectroscopy under violet light excitation (408 nm) for the monitoring of clinical hypothermic liver transplantation procedures. METHODS: Organ grafts were monitored from before the removal of the donor's body to 1 h after the implant into the receptor's body. Fluorescence spectroscopy was assessed over five stages within these transplant stages. RESULTS: The study provided evidence of a correlation between fluorescence information collected during liver grafts transplantation and the survival of patients. CONCLUSIONS: Fluorescence spectroscopy can become a tool to monitor transplantation grafts, providing objective information for the final decision of surgeons to use organs.

New ruthenium complexes containing salicylic acid and derivatives induce triple-negative tumor cell death via the intrinsic apoptotic pathway.

In this work we present the synthesis and characterization of six new ruthenium compounds with general formulae [Ru(L)(dppb)(bipy)]PF6 and [Ru(L)(dppe)2]PF6 where L = salicylic acid (Sal), 4-aminosalicylic acid (AmSal) or 2,4-dihydroxybenzoic acid (DiSal), dppb = 1,4-bis(diphenylphosphino)butane, dppe = 1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino)ethane and bipy = 2,2'-bipyridine. The complexes were characterized by elemental analysis, molar conductivity, cyclic voltammetry, NMR, UV-vis and IR spectroscopies, and two by X-ray crystallography. The 31P{1H} NMR spectra of the complexes with the general formula [Ru(L)(dppe)2]PF6 showed that the phosphorus signals are solvent-dependent. Aprotic solvents, which form strong hydrogen bonds with the complexes, inhibit the free rotation of the salicylic acid-based, modifying the diphosphine cone angles, leading to distortion of the phosphorus signals in the NMR spectra. The cytotoxicity of the complexes was evaluated in MCF-7, MDA-MB-231, SKBR3 human breast tumor cells, and MCF-10 non-tumor cell lines. The complexes with the structural formula [Ru(L)(dppe)2]PF6 were the most cytotoxic, and the complex [Ru(AmSal)(dppe)2]PF6 with L = 4-aminosalicylic acid ligand was the most selective for the MDA-MB-231 cell line. This complex interacts with the transferrin and induces apoptosis through the intrinsic pathway, as demonstrated by increased levels of proteins involved in apoptotic cell death.

Random misalignment and anisotropic deformation of the nested cladding elements in hollow-core anti-resonant fibers.

Hollow-core anti-resonant fibers (HC-ARFs) are en route to compete with and surpass the transmission performance of standard single-mode fibers (SSMFs). Recently, nested cladding elements emerged as a key enabler in reaching ultra-low transmission losses over a wide bandwidth. However, implementing nested geometry features poses a great challenge even in the current state-of-the-art fiber fabrication technology, often leading to structural imperfections, which ultimately worsen overall fiber performance. This article provides insights into the impact of fabrication-based perturbations of the cladding elements on the transmission performance and identifies areas of highest susceptibility. The impact of random outer and nested cladding tube misalignments as well as their anisotropic deformation on the propagation loss is analyzed based on observations of experimentally fabricated fibers. A dominance of the deformation effect over the misalignment effect is observed, with higher-order modes (HOMs) being affected one order of magnitude stronger than the fundamental mode (FM). The impact on propagation loss by structural perturbations is highly wavelength dependent, ranging from negligibly small values up to loss increases of 65% and 850% for FM and HOM propagation, respectively. The investigations are directly linked to fabrication metrics and therefore pave the way for assessing, predicting, and improving the transmission quality of fabricated hollow-core fibers.

Optimal broadband starlight injection into a single-mode fibre with integrated photonic wavefront sensing.

In astronomy and related fields there is a pressing need to efficiently inject light, transmitted through the atmosphere, into a single-mode fibre. However this is extremely difficult due to the large, rapidly changing aberrations imprinted on the light by the turbulent atmosphere. An adaptive optics system must be used, but its effectiveness is limited by non-common-path aberrations and insensitivity to certain crucial modes. Here we introduce a new concept device - the hybrid mode-selective photonic lantern - which incorporates both focal plane wavefront sensing and broadband single-mode fibre injection into a single photonic package. The fundamental mode of an input multimode fibre is directly mapped over a broad (1.5 to 1.8µm) bandwidth to a single-mode output fibre with minimal (<0.1%) crosstalk, while all higher order modes are sent to a fast detector or spectrograph for wavefront sensing. This will enable an AO system optimised for maximum single-mode injection, sensitive to otherwise 'blind' modes and avoiding non-common-path wavefront-sensor aberrations.

Low-crosstalk mode-group demultiplexers based on Fabry-Perot thin-film filters.

Mode-group multiplexing (MGM) can increase the capacity of short-reach few-mode optical fiber communication links while avoiding complex digital signal processing. In this paper, we present the design and experimental demonstration of a novel mode-group demultiplexer (MG DeMux) using Fabry-Perot (FP) thin-film filters (TFFs). The MG DeMux supports low-crosstalk mode-group demultiplexing, with degeneracies commensurate with those of graded-index (GRIN) multimode fibers. We experimentally demonstrate this functionality by using a commercial six-cavity TFF that was intended for 100 GHz channel spaced wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM) system.

Combinación de antidepresivos vs. aumentación con antipsicóticos atípicos tras no lograr la remisión en la depresión unipolar / Combination of antidepressants vs. augmentation with atypical antipsychotics upon failure to achieve remission in unipolar depression

RESUMEN: Introducción: Lograr la recuperación funcional lo más rápido posible en el tratamiento de la depresión unipolar es un reto que la práctica clínica debe tratar de afrontar en la actualidad, ya que cualquier retraso en lograr la remisión de los síntomas es predictivo de un mayor número de recurrencias y mayores tasas de morbimortalidad. En esta revisión comprensiva, nuestro objetivo es guiar a los clínicos en su elección de aumentar con antipsicóticos atípicos o combinar el fármaco de referencia con un segundo antidepresivo, después de que se haya optimizado la dosis del antidepresivo seleccionado inicialmente y/o se haya cambiado el antidepresivo, sin lograr remisión, o bien cuando solo han obtenido una respuesta parcial después de un tiempo suficiente a una dosis apropiada. Estas decisiones surgen con frecuencia en la práctica clínica diaria. Metodología: Se realizó una búsqueda sistemática en PubMed bajo varias combinaciones clave de palabras, resultando en 230 informes. Después de aplicar los criterios de inclusión y según el título y el resumen, el número final de informes seleccionados para la revisión completa fue de 113. Se respondieron dos preguntas principales con base en estos estudios: 1) ¿Existe evidencia para recomendar claramente la combinación de antidepresivos versus potenciación con antipsicóticos (y el momento correcto para hacerlo) en la depresión unipolar no respondedora, una vez que las estrategias de optimización o de cambio han fallado en obtener la remisión? y 2) ¿Es posible identificar algunas características clínicas para guiar la decisión de combinación de antidepresivos versus potenciación con agentes antipsicóticos? Resultados: Según nuestro análisis, no hay datos disponibles para seleccionar una estrategia de otra de manera clara. Sin embargo, sugerimos favorecer una combinación o estrategia de aumento, basada en un enfoque de "tratamiento contra objetivos dianas" para perfilar al paciente, considerando una o dos características clínicas predominantes que permanecen activas como parte de una depresión mayor con respuesta parcial. Un adecuado análisis de los dominios sintomáticos presentes, una visión crítica de las guías clínicas actuales y de las opciones preferidas, considerar la bipolaridad oculta como uno de los principales diagnósticos diferenciales y adoptar una actitud enérgica pero lúcida en esta etapa del tratamiento son, a nuestro juicio, fundamentales para lograr recuperación ad integrum del paciente.

ABSTRACT Introduction: achieving functional recovery as quickly as possible in the treatment of unipolar depression is a challenge that clinical practice must try to meet nowadays, since any delay in accomplishing remission of the symptoms is predictive of a larger number of recurrences and higher morbidity and mortality rates. In this topical review we aim to guide clinicians in their choice to augment with atypical antipsychotics or to combine the baseline drug with a second antidepressant, after the dose of the antidepressant initially selected has been optimized and/or the antidepressant has been changed, not achieving remission, or resulting only in a partial response after sufficient time at an appropriate dose. These decisions arise frequently in everyday clinical practice. Methodology: a systematic search in PubMed was performed under several key combinations of words, resulting in 230 reports. After applying inclusion criteria and based in title and abstract, the final number of reports selected for full revision were 113. Two main questions were answered based on these studies: 1) Is there evidence to clearly recommend combination of antidepressants vs. augmentation with antipsychotics (and the correct moment to do it) in non-responsive unipolar depression, once optimization or switching strategies have failed to obtain remission? and 2) Is it possible to identify some clinical features to guide the decision of combination of antidepressants vs. augmentation with antipsychotic agents? Results: According to our analysis, there is no data available to select one strategy from another in a clear-cut manner. Nevertheless, we suggest favoring a combination or augmentation strategy, based in a "treating to target" approach to profile the patient, considering one or two predominant clinical features that remain active as part of a major depression with partial response. Proper analysis of the symptomatic domains present, a critical view of current clinical guidelines and preferred options, considering hidden bipolarity as one of the main differential diagnoses and adopting an energetic but lucid attitude at this stage of treatment are, in our view, fundamental for achieving ad integrum patient recovery.

Diastereomeric Separation of Chiral fac-Tricarbonyl(iminopyridine) Rhenium(I) Complexes and Their Cytotoxicity Studies: Approach toward an Action Mechanism against Glioblastoma.

A series of new (tricarbonyl)rhenium(I) complexes were synthesized using chiral bidentate ligands (+)/(-)-iminopyridines (LR/LS). The reaction yielded a mixture of mononuclear Re(I) diastereoisomers, formulated as fac-[Br(CO)3Re(S/R)L(S/R)]. Each single diastereoisomer was isolated and fully characterized. X-ray crystallography and circular dichroism spectra verified their enantiomeric nature. The cytotoxicity of each complex was evaluated against six cancer cell lines. The effect of the two complexes on viability, proliferation, and migration was analyzed on glioblastoma cell lines (U251 and LN229). Changes in the expression of histones, apoptotic, and key signaling proteins, as well as alterations in DNA structure, were also observed. These experiments showed that the chirality associated with both metal and ligand has a strong influence on cytotoxicity.

Prediction ability for growth and maternal traits using SNP arrays based on different marker densities in Nellore cattle using the ssGBLUP.

This study aimed to investigate the prediction ability for growth and maternal traits using different low-density customized SNP arrays selected by informativeness and distribution of markers across the genome employing single-step genomic BLUP (ssGBLUP). Phenotypic records for adjusted weight at 210 and 450 days of age were utilized. A total of 945 animals were genotyped with high-density chip, and 267 individuals born after 2008 were selected as validation population. We evaluated 11 scenarios using five customized density arrays (40 k, 20 k, 10 k, 5 k and 2 k) and the HD array was used as desirable scenario. The GEBV predictions and BIF (Beef Improvement Federation) accuracy were obtained with BLUPF90 family programs. Linear regression was used to evaluate the prediction ability, inflation, and bias of GEBV of each customized array. An overestimation of partial GEBVs in contrast with complete GEBVs and increase of BIF accuracy with the density arrays diminished were observed. For all traits, the prediction ability was higher as the array density increased and it was similar with customized arrays higher than 10 k SNPs. Level of inflation was lower as the density array increased of and was higher for MW210 effect. The bias was susceptible to overestimation of GEBVs when the density customized arrays decreased. These results revealed that the BIF accuracy is sensible to overestimation using low-density customized arrays while the prediction ability with least 10,000 informative SNPs obtained from the Illumina BovineHD BeadChip shows accurate and less biased predictions. Low-density customized arrays under ssGBLUP method could be feasible and cost-effective in genomic selection.

Ruthenium(II)-diphosphine complexes containing acylthiourea ligands are effective against lung and breast cancers.

We have synthesized and characterized three new ruthenium(II) diphosphine complexes containing an acylthiourea ligand, with the general formula [Ru(DPEPhos)(O,S)(bipy)]PF6, where DPEPhos = bis(2-(diphenylphosphino)phenyl)ether, bipy = 2,2'-bipyridine, and O,S = N,N-dimethyl-N'-(benzoyl)thiourea (1), N,N-dimethyl-N'-(furoyl)thiourea (2), and N,N-dimethyl-N'-(thiophenyl)thiourea (3), by several physicochemical techniques. We evaluated the ruthenium complexes for their cytotoxicity against two human cancer cell lines, A549 (lung) and MDA-MB-231 (breast), and two corresponding lines of non-cancer cells, MRC-5 (lung) and MCF-10A (breast). All the complexes are cytotoxic against the cancer cell lines; the IC50 values lie in the micromolar range (0.07-0.70 µM). Ruthenium complex 1 is more selective (7 times more active) toward lung cancer cells (A549) than toward non-cancer cells (MRC-5) and is 160 times more cytotoxic than cisplatin against A549 cells. Investigations of the mechanism of action of complex 1 in A549 cells demonstrated that it inhibits colony formation and promotes cell cycle arrest in the G1 phase and apoptotic cell death. DNA binding studies revealed that complexes 1-3 interact with the biomolecule via minor grooves. These complexes also interact with human serum albumin (HSA) and have affinity for site I by hydrophobic forces. Therefore, this new class of ruthenium complexes can act as cytotoxic agents, mainly for lung cancer treatment.

Efficient soliton self-frequency shift in hydrogen-filled hollow-core fiber.

We report a study of soliton self-frequency shifting in a hydrogen-filled hollow-core fiber. The combination of hydrogen and short 40-fs input pulses underlies clean and efficient generation of Raman solitons between 1080 and 1600 nm. With 240-nJ input pulses, the Raman soliton energy ranges from 110 to 20 nJ over that wavelength range, and the pulse duration is approximately 45 fs. In particular, 70-nJ and 42-fs pulses are generated at 1300 nm. Numerical simulations agree reasonably well with experiments and predict that microjoule-energy tunable pulses should be possible with higher-energy input pulses.