Stem cell factor (SCF) exerts its biological effects by binding to a specific receptor, the tyrosine kinase c-Kit, which is expressed on the cell surface. Although normal cellular trafficking of growth factor receptors may play a critical role in the modulation of receptor function, the mechanisms that regulate the distribution of c-Kit on the cell surface and the internalization of c-Kit have ...

(Bi0.5Na0.5)0.94Ba0.06TiO3 dense ceramics were obtained from autocombustion sol-gel synthesized nanopowders and sintered at 1050 ◦C for 1–2 h for the study of the electromechanical anisotropy. Measurement of the complex impedance spectrum was carried out on thin ceramic disks, thickness-poled, as a function of the temperature from 16 ◦C up to the vanishing of the electromechanical resonances at...

We report the piezoelectric properties of ZnO nanowires (NWs) obtained by using a nanoindenter with a conductive boron-doped diamond tip. The direct piezoelectric effect was measured by performing nanoindentations under load control, and the generated piezoelectric voltage was characterized as a function of the applied loads in the range 0.2-6 mN. The converse piezoelectric effect was measured ...

To uncover the structural and dynamical determinants involved in the highly specific binding of Ras GTPase to its effectors, the conformational states of Ras in uncomplexed form and complexed to the downstream effectors Byr2, PI3Kγ, PLCε, and RalGDS were investigated using molecular dynamics and cross-comparison of the trajectories. The subtle changes in the dynamics and conformations of Ras up...

Power consumption is a critical concern of many sensors used in diversified applications, especially where the replacement of batteries is impossible or inconvenient. Strain energy harvesting technique is an attractive approach to solve this problem using piezoelectric materials. The feasibility of a self-powered piezoelectric microaccelerometer system using lead zirconate titanate (PZT) thin f...

This paper examines the mechanism through which pro-growth policies such as government spending on infrastructure might a¤ect the dynamics of inequality. We develop a model in which government-provided infrastructure is not only the engine of growth, but also a critical determinant of the distributions of wealth, income, and welfare. Government spending on infrastructure by itself is shown to b...

In this Deliverable we describe the nomadic application support implementation, which is an agent-based middleware providing means for building adaptive applications for nomadic users in CRUMPET. The overall architecture of the nomadic application support in CRUMPET consists of two main entities: the mobile device, which in CRUMPET is Compaq iPAQ running Linux operating system, and the CRUMPET ...

Electromechanical properties such as d33 and strain are significantly enhanced at morphotropic phase boundaries (MPBs) between two or more different crystal structures. Many actuators, sensors and MEMS devices are therefore systems with MPBs, usually between polar phases in lead (Pb)-based ferroelectric ceramics. In the search for Pb-free alternatives, systems with MPBs between polar and non-po...