SrAl 2 O 4 : Eu, Dy, B particles were added in a phosphate glass (90NaPO 3-10NaF (in mol%)) using the direct doping method. For the first time, the composition of the particles prior to and after embedding them in the glass was analysed using EPMA analysis. Boron was found to be incorporated in already distorted surroundings creating new trapping centers in the particles which are thought to be favourable for the tunnelling process and so for the afterglow at 10K. Despite the partial decomposition of the particles, the glass exhibit afterglow at low temperature confirming to be promising materials for low temperature applications.
BackgroundPreviously, we investigated skin microbiota and blood cell gene expression in Finnish and Russian teenagers with contrasting incidence of allergic conditions. The microbiota and transcriptomic signatures were distinctly different, with high Acinetobacter abundance and suppression of genes regulating innate immune response in healthy subjects.ObjectiveHere, we investigated long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) expression profiles of blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from healthy and allergic subjects, to identify lncRNAs that act at the interphase of microbiome-mediated immune homeostasis in allergy/asthma.MethodsGenome-wide co-expression network analyses of blood cell lncRNA/mRNA expression was integrated with skin microbiota profiles of Finnish (69) and Russian (75) subjects. Selected lncRNAs were validated by stimulation of cohort-derived PBMCs and a macrophage cell model with birch pollen allergen (Betv1) or lipopolysaccharide, respectively.ResultsFinnish and Russian PBMCs were differentiated by 3,818 lncRNA transcripts. In the Finnish subjects with high prevalence of allergy and asthma, a subset of 37 downregulated lncRNAs (including, FAM155A-IT1 and LOC400958) were identified. They were part of a co-expression network with 20 genes known to be related to asthma and allergic rhinitis (R > 0.95). Incidentally, all these 20 genes were also components of pathways corresponding to cellular response to bacterium. The Finnish and Russian samples were also differentiated by the abundance of 176 bacterial OTU (operational taxonomic units). The subset of 37 lncRNAs, associated with allergy, was most correlated with the abundance of Acinetobacter (R > +0.5), Jeotgalicoccus (R > +0.5), Corynebacterium (R < −0.5) and Micrococcus (R < −0.5).ConclusionIn Finnish and Russian teenagers with contrasting allergy and asthma prevalence, epigenetic differences in lncRNA expression appear to be important components of the underlying microbiota-immune interactions. Unraveling the functions of the 37 differing lncRNAs may be the key to understanding microbiome-immune crosstalk, and to develop clinically relevant biomarkers.
Using three-dimensional (3D) second-harmonic generation (SHG) scanning microscopy, we unravel the formation and distribution of distinct and highly localized persistent luminescent (PeL) microparticles of varied hierarchical levels in glasses prepared using the direct doping method. The PeL microparticles were added in the glasses at different doping temperatures and the glasses were quenched after different dwell time. The SHG maps of the PeL microparticles in the glass, prepared with a doping temperature of 975°C and a dwell time of 3 min, reveal grating-like microscopic domains. This suggests that a large arrangement of PeL crystals spanning several micrometers in three dimensions is manifested by the imbued PeL microparticle. In contrast, the SHG maps of the PeL microparticles inside the glass prepared at doping temperature of 1025°C and dwell time of 10 min, show the existence of single, highly localized and most importantly, submicrometer-sized PeL crystals. These findings substantiate well with the expected behavior of the PeL microparticles in glasses and their physical disintegration in the form of nanoparticles at high doping temperatures and dwell times. The SHG microscopy technique is shown to circumvent the fundamental challenges of traditional and usually destructive imaging methods to detect and visualize PeL nanoparticles in a glass matrix and expected to open a new avenue to evidence the presence of crystals in glasses.
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