The discovery and characterization of the soil actinomycete, Saccharopolyspora spinosa, and the insecticidal metabolite spinosad is presented as a case history of a successful project emerging from a natural products crop protection discovery programme. A who, what and how approach is utilized to communicate the events around the discovery and development of the project. The companies and departments involved are listed with insight into their structure and philosophy. A detailed description of spinosad and its properties is also provided. Finally an overview is given of the various tasks required and hurdles that were overcome to bring the project to a commercial success.

We describe the implementation of a Monte Carlo model for electron transport in silicon. The model uses analytic, nonparabolic electron energy bands, which are computationally efficient and sufficiently accurate for future low-voltage (<1V) nanoscale device applications. The electron-lattice scattering is incorporated using an isotropic, analytic phonon-dispersion model, which distinguishes between the optical/acoustic and the longitudinal/transverse phonon branches. We show that this approach avoids introducing unphysical thresholds in the electron distribution function, and that it has further applications in computing detailed phonon generation spectra from Joule heating. A set of deformation potentials for electron-phonon scattering is introduced and shown to yield accurate transport simulations in bulk silicon across a wide range of electric fields and temperatures. The shear deformation potential is empirically determined at Ξu=6.8eV, and consequently, the isotropically averaged scattering potentials with longitudinal and transverse acoustic phonons are DLA=6.39eV and DTA=3.01eV, respectively, in reasonable agreement with previous studies. The room-temperature electron mobility in strained silicon is also computed and shown to be in better agreement with the most recent phonon-limited data available. As a result, we find that electron coupling with g-type phonons is about 40% lower, and the coupling with f-type phonons is almost twice as strong as previously reported.

A general circuit model is derived for the electrical noise of electrode-electrolyte systems, with emphasis on its implications for electrochemical sensors. The noise power spectral densities associated with all noise sources introduced in the model are also analytically calculated. Current and voltage fluctuations in typical electrode-electrolyte systems are demonstrated to originate from either thermal equilibrium noise created by conductors, or nonequilibrium excess noise caused by charge transfer processes produced by electrochemical interactions. The power spectral density of the thermal equilibrium noise is predicted using the fluctuation-dissipation theorem of thermodynamics, while the excess noise is assessed in view of charge transfer kinetics, along with mass transfer processes in the electrode proximity. The presented noise model not only explains previously reported noise spectral densities such as thermal noise in sensing electrodes, shot noise in electrochemical batteries, and 1/f noise in corrosive interfaces, it also provides design-oriented insight into the fabrication of low-noise micro-and nanoelectrochemical sensors.

Smith-Magenis syndrome (SMS) is a multiple congenital anomaly, mental retardation (MCA/MR) syndrome associated with deletion of chromosome 17 band p11.2. As part of a multi-disciplinary clinical, cytogenetic, and molecular approach to SMS, detailed clinical studies including radiographic, neurologic, developmental, ophthalmologic, otolaryngologic, and audiologic evaluations were performed on 27 SMS patients. Significant findings include otolaryngologic abnormalities in 94%, eye abnormalities in 85%, sleep abnormalities (especially reduced REM sleep) in 75%, hearing impairment in 68% (approximately 65% conductive and 35% sensorineural), scoliosis in 65%, brain abnormalities (predominantly ventriculomegaly) in 52%, cardiac abnormalities in at least 37%, renal anomalies (especially duplication of the collecting system) in 35%, low thyroxine levels in 29%, low immunoglobulin levels in 23%, and forearm abnormalities in 16%. The measured IQ ranged between 20-78, most patients falling in the moderate range of mental retardation at 40-54, although several patients scored in the mild or borderline range. The frequency of these many abnormalities in SMS suggests that patients should be evaluated thoroughly for associated complications both at the time of diagnosis and at least annually thereafter.

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We report the use of an array of electrically gated ~200 nm solid-state pores as nanofluidic transistors to manipulate the capture and passage of DNA. The devices are capable of reversibly altering the rate of DNA capture by over three orders of magnitude using sub-1V biasing of a gate electrode. This efficient gating originates from the counter-balance of electrophoresis and electroosmosis, as revealed by quantitative numerical simulations. Such a reversible electronically-tuneable biomolecular switch may be used to manipulate nucleic acid delivery in a fluidic circuit, and its development is an important first step towards active control of DNA motion through solid-state nanopores for sensing applications.