[en] Many petroleum-bearing reservoirs are known as complex-lithology, complex-mineralogy earth formations where the existing nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) analysis models require modification and extension to work properly. This paper discusses the effects of mineralogy variation in complex-lithology formation rocks that will cause NMR response variations. In particular, the existence of iron-rich authigenic clays and the nonquartz grains in siliciclastics affect the surface relaxivity and the internal field inhomogeneity. Using a simplified pore-lining clay model, we estimated that the magnitude of the internal gradient in siliciclastics is comparable with or greater than that of the instrument-generated field gradient common to the currently used NMR logging tools. To account for these effects for reservoir fluid identification and quantification from NMR data, an inversion model is created, which includes the mean susceptibility of the grain minerals, the correlation between pore size and the relaxation time of the wetting-phase fluid in the pores and the geometric restriction to the fluid molecular diffusion.

[en] HPV type 58 (HPV-58) is the third most common HPV type in cervical cancer from Eastern Asia, yet little is known about how it promotes carcinogenesis. In this study, we demonstrate that HPV-58 E7 significantly promoted the proliferation and extended the lifespan of primary human keratinocytes (PHKs). HPV-58 E7 abrogated the G1 and the postmitotic checkpoints, although less efficiently than HPV-16 E7. Consistent with these observations, HPV-58 E7 down-regulated the cellular tumor suppressor pRb to a lesser extent than HPV-16 E7. Similar to HPV-16 E7 expressing PHKs, Cdk2 remained active in HPV-58 E7 expressing PHKs despite the presence of elevated levels of p53 and p21. Interestingly, HPV-58 E7 down-regulated p130 more efficiently than HPV-16 E7. Our study demonstrates a correlation between the ability of down-regulating pRb/p130 and abrogating cell cycle checkpoints by HPV-58 E7, which also correlates with the biological risks of cervical cancer progression associated with HPV-58 infection.

[en] This study focuses on the influence of a hydrogen plasma treatment on electrical properties of tungsten nanocrystal nonvolatile memory. The X-ray photon emission spectra show that, after the hydrogen plasma treatment, a change in binding energy occurs such that Si^x+ and Si^y+ peaks appear at a position that is shifted about 2.3 and 3.3 eV from Si⁰⁺ in Si 2p spectra. This indicates that Si dangling bonds are passivated to form a Si-H bond structure in the SiO₂. Furthermore, the transmission electron microscopy shows cross-sectional and plane-view for the nanocrystal microstructure after the hydrogen plasma treatment. Electrical measurement analyses show improved data retention because the hydrogen plasma treatment enhances the quality of the oxide surrounding the nanocrystals. The endurance and retention properties of the memory device are improved by about 36% and 30%, respectively.

[en] In this work, an oxygen plasma treatment was used to improve the memory effect of nonvolatile W nanocrystal memory, including memory window, retention and endurance. To investigate the role of the oxygen plasma treatment in charge storage characteristics, the X-ray photon-emission spectra (XPS) were performed to analyze the variation of chemical composition for W nanocrystal embedded oxide both with and without the oxygen plasma treatment. In addition, the transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analyses were also used to identify the microstructure in the thin film and the size and density of W nanocrystals. The device with the oxygen plasma treatment shows a significant improvement of charge storage effect, because the oxygen plasma treatment enhanced the quality of silicon oxide surrounding the W nanocrystals. Therefore, the data retention and endurance characteristics were also improved by the passivation.

[en] Asymmetrical electrical boundary conditions in (001)-oriented Pb(Zr_0.2TiO_0.8)O₃ (PZT) epitaxial ultrathin ferroelectric films are exploited to control surface photochemical reactivity determined by the sign of the surface polarization charge. It is shown that the preferential orientation of polarization in the as-grown PZT layer can be manipulated by choosing an appropriate type of bottom electrode material. PZT films deposited on the SrRuO₃ electrodes exhibit preferential upward polarization (C⁺) whilst the same films grown on the (La,Sr)CoO₃-electrodes are polarized downward (C⁻). Photochemical activity of the PZT surfaces with different surface polarization charges has been tested by studying deposition of silver nanoparticles from AgNO₃ solution under UV irradiation. PZT surfaces with preferential C⁺ orientation possess a more active surface for metal reduction than their C⁻ counterparts, evidenced by large differences in the concentration of deposited silver nanoparticles. This effect is attributed to band bending at the bottom interface which varies depending on the difference in work functions of PZT and electrode materials.

[en] [¹¹C]P943 is a novel, highly selective 5-HT_1B PET radioligand. The aim of this study was to determine the test-retest reliability of [¹¹C]P943 using two different modeling methods and to perform a power analysis with each quantification technique. Seven healthy volunteers underwent two PET scans on the same day. Regions of interest (ROIs) were the amygdala, hippocampus, pallidum, putamen, insula, frontal, anterior cingulate, parietal, temporal and occipital cortices, and cerebellum. Two multilinear radioligand quantification techniques were used to estimate binding potential: MA1, using arterial input function data, and the second version of the multilinear reference tissue model analysis (MRTM2), using the cerebellum as the reference region. Between-scan percent variability and intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) were used to assess test-retest reliability. We also performed power analyses to determine the method that would allow the least number of subjects using within-subject or between-subject study designs. A voxel-wise ICC analysis for MRTM2 BP_ND was performed for the whole brain and all the ROIs studied. Mean percent variability between two scans across regions ranged between 0.4 % and 12.4 % for MA1 BP_ND, 0.5 % and 11.5 % for MA1 BP_P, 16.7 % and 28.3 % for MA1 BP_F, and between 0.2 % and 5.4 % for MRTM2 BP_ND. The power analyses showed a greater number of subjects were required using MA1 BP_F compared with other outcome measures for both within-subject and between-subject study designs. ICC values were the highest using MRTM2 BP_ND and the lowest with MA1 BP_F in ten ROIs. Small regions and regions with low binding had lower ICC values than large regions and regions with high binding. Reliable measures of 5-HT_1B receptor binding can be obtained using the novel PET radioligand [¹¹C]P943. Quantification of 5-HT_1B receptor binding with MRTM2 BP_ND and with MA1 BP_P provided the least variability and optimal power for within-subject and between-subject designs. (orig.)