The structure of the title complex, (C(10)H(10)N(4))(C(10)H(9)N(4))[Mo(CN)(8)]·4H(2)O, consists of 4,4'-diazenediyldipyridinium and (4-pyridyldiazen-yl)pyridinium cations disordered over the same site, an [Mo(CN)(8)](3-) anion and four uncoordinated water mol-ecules. The cations (crystallographic symmetry, 2) and the [Mo(CN)(8)](3-) anion (crystallographic symmetry, 222) are arranged in an alte...

We show that minuscule entropic forces, on the order of 100 fN, can prevent the formation of DNA loops–a ubiquitous means of regulating the expression of genes. We observe a tenfold decrease in the rate of LacI-mediated DNA loop formation when a tension of 200 fN is applied to the substrate DNA, biasing the thermal fluctuations that drive loop formation and breakdown events. Conversely, once lo...

We investigate the low loss acoustic motion of superfluid He parametrically coupled to a very low loss, superconducting Nb TE011 microwave resonator, forming a gram-scale, sideband resolved, optomechanical system. We demonstrate the detection of a series of acoustic modes with quality factors as high as × 1.4 107. At higher temperatures, the lowest dissipation modes are limited by an intrinsic ...

We investigate, by means of numerical simulations, the possibility of forming counter-rotating old stellar components by major mergers between an elliptical and a spiral galaxy. We show that counter-rotation can appear both in dissipative and dissipationless retrograde mergers, and it is mostly associated to the presence of a disk component, which preserves part of its initial spin. In turn, th...

Spectrin is generally believed to play an important role in the erythrocyte membrane's ability to deform elastically. We have studied the structure of negatively stained spectrin in partially expanded membrane skeletons to determine how its molecular structure confers elastic properties on the cell membrane. Fourier analysis of electron micrographs of spectrin reveals that the alpha and beta su...

Holographic optical tweezers use computer-generated holograms to create arbitrary three-dimensional configurations of single-beam optical traps that are useful for capturing, moving, and transforming mesoscopic objects. Through a combination of beam-splitting, mode-forming, and adaptive wavefront correction, holographic traps can exert precisely specified and characterized forces and torques on...

• Muscle fibers do not attach directly to bone, but apply forces to the skeleton via aponeurosis and tendon, which arise from a specialized region called the myotendinous junction. Here myofibrils and collagen fibers overlap, forming longitudinal infoldings. Overlapping contact increases the strength of the junction compared to end-to-end contact since cell membranes support shear loads better ...

Small π-conjugated molecules can be designed and synthesized to undergo controlled self-assembly forming low-dimensional architectures, with programmed order at the supramolecular level. Such order is of paramount importance because it defines the property of the obtained material. Here, we have focused our attention to four pyromellitic diimide derivatives exposing different types of side chai...

The structure of the title compound, (C16H17N2)3[Co(CN)6]·5H2O, consists of three 3,4,7,8-tetra-methyl-1,10-phenanthrolin-1-ium cations, a [Co(CN)6](3-) anion and five water mol-ecules of crystallization, one of which is disordered over two sets of sites in a 0.587 (15):0.413 (15) ratio. The [Co(CN)6](3-) anion exhibits an octa-hedral geometry. In the structure, cations and anions are linked al...

We use high resolution N-Body/SPH simulations to study the hydrodynamical and gravitational interaction between the Large Magellanic Cloud and the Milky Way. We model the dark and hot extended halo components as well as the stellar/gaseous disks of the two galaxies. Tidal forces distort the LMC’s disk, forcing a bar and creating a diffuse stellar halo and a strong warp, although very few stars ...