Background: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small RNA molecules that regulate gene expression by targeting messenger RNAs (mRNAs) and causing mRNA cleavage or translation blockage. Of the 355 Arthropod miRNAs that have been identified, only 21 are B. mori miRNAs that were predicted computationally; of these, only let-7 has been confirmed by Northern blotting.

Chaundy and Jolliffe [4] proved that if {a n } is a non-increasing (monotonic) real sequence with lim n→∞ a n = 0, then a necessary and sufficient condition for the uniform convergence of the series ∞ n=1 a n sin nx is lim n→∞ na n = 0. We generalize (or weaken) the monotonic condition on the coefficient sequence {a n } in this classical result to the so-called mean value bounded variation condition and prove that the generalized condition cannot be weakened further. We also establish an analogue to the generalized Chaundy and Jolliffe theorem in the complex space.2000 Mathematics Subject Classification. 42A20 42A32.

Photoresponsive nanochannel systems whose ionic transportation properties can be controlled by the photoelectric effect, such as for green chlorophyll pigments in plants, are attracting widespread attention. Herein, we prepared photoresponsive heterogeneous nanochannels by decorating self-assembled tetra­(4-sulfonatophenyl)­porphyrin (TPPS) nanofiber membranes on a membrane of hourglass-shaped alumina (Al2O3) nanochannels using the diffusion-limited patterning (DLP) method. The close arrangement of large-area nanofibers promoted the photoresponse sensitivity of the heterogeneous nanochannels, which showed the highest ionic transportation current. With illumination comparable to sunlight in intensity, the photoresponsive ionic current was approximately 9.7 μA, demonstrating photoswitching, which could be used to regulate the reversible transformation of ionic currents. Meanwhile, the cooperative effect of the TPPS nanofibers assembled at the entrance to the nanochannels and the TPPS molecules inside the nanochannels allowed the heterogeneous nanochannels to exhibit a good rectifying performance.

ABSTRACT. The present paper proposes a new condition to replace both the (O-regularly varying) quasimonotone condition and a certain type of bounded variation condition, and shows the same conclusion for the uniform convergence of certain trigonometric series still holds. Theorem CJ. Suppose that {b n } is a non-increasing real sequence with lim n→∞ b n = 0. Then a necessary and sufficient condition for the uniform convergence of the seriesis lim n→∞ nb n = 0. Recently, Leindler [2] considered to generalize the monotonicity condition to a certain type of bounded variation condition and proved the following Theorem L. Let b= {b n } ∞ n=1 be a nonnegative sequence satisfying lim n→∞ b n = 0 andfor some constant M(b) depending only upon b and m = 1, 2, · · ·. Then a necessary and sufficient condition either for the uniform convergence of series (1), or for the continuity of its sum function f (x), is that lim n→∞ nb n = 0.

Purpose: Dry eye disease (DED) is a common disorder that negatively impacts quality of life and vision. Prior studies have shown some benefit of acupuncture for dry eye, but very few have included control group to mitigate placebo effect. This study was designed with a sham acupuncture control group to evaluate true acupuncture treatment effect. Methods: This is a prospective, randomized, double-blinded, sham-acupuncture-controlled trial. Acupuncture treatment for dry eye was performed as per the Niemtzow Protocol. Twenty-four patients received true acupuncture and twenty-five received sham acupuncture. Treatment efficacy was assessed by the Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI) Questionnaire, ocular surface staining, tear flow, tear film break-up time (TBUT), and a general questionnaire. Atmospheric data were collected to control for the effect of atmospheric conditions on symptoms of dry eye. Results: OSDI scores in the treatment group improved compared to baseline (1 week, p <0.01, 1 month p <0.05, 3 months p <0.05, and 6 months p <0.01). OSDI scores in the control group improved, but did not reach significance ( p =0.09). Secondary outcome measures showed no significant improvement in TBUT, Schiermer’s Test, ocular surface grading, or artificial tear application. However, at 3 months, a significant reduction in the frequency of eye closing was observed among participants receiving true acupuncture treatment when compared to baseline ( p =0.002). Furthermore, intragroup analysis showed significant reduction in symptoms of discomfort ( p =0.01), dryness ( p =0.001), scratchiness ( p =0.001), and redness ( p =0.01) in the true acupuncture group at 3 months. Conclusion: Both true and sham acupuncture improved OSDI at 1 week after treatment, however, the improvement in OSDI was significantly greater in the true treatment groups than the sham group at 6 months after acupuncture. True acupuncture treatment improved many subjective assessments of dry eye symptoms, however, other common indicators used to objectively assess dry eye (tear flow, corneal staining, TBUT) remained unchanged. While there were trends towards improvement in the sham acupuncture group, this did not reach statistical significant during the study period. This suggests a true treatment effect of acupuncture rather than a placebo effect. Acupuncture can, therefore, be an effective adjunct to routine clinical treatment of dry eye.

We introduce a new class of sequences called NBVS to generalize GBVS, essentially extending monotonicity from one sided to two sided, while some important classical results keep true.

An adjustable inductor which is digitally controlled by microrelays has been made using combined surface and bulk micromaching technology. The microrelays were fabricated using a TaSi 2 /SiO 2 bimorph cantilever beam, a gold-to-gold electrical contact, aluminum as sacrificial layer and a combined thermal and electrostatic actuation mechanism. The silicon substrate under the inductor region was etched out to reduce the parasitic oxide capacitors and the eddy current power loss in the substrate semiconductor bulk. Sixteen different inductance values ranging from 2.5 nH to 324.8 nH were obtained using a planar rectangular spiral coil and four microrelays. The minimum self-resonant frequency is 1.9 GHz. The lowest measured combined thermal power and electrostatic voltage for the actuation of microrelays are 8.0 mW and 20 V, respectively. The highest operation frequency of microrelays is 10 kHz limited by the mechanical self-resonance. The measured contact resistance typically ranges from 0.6 ohms to 0.8 ohms. The dimensions of the chip measure 3150 × 930 µm 2 .

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