ABSTRACT
We are investigating plant species from the Canadian prairie ecological zone by phenotypic cell assays to discover toxins of biological interest. We provide the first report of the effects of extracts prepared from the shrub Symphoricarpos occidentalis in several human cell lines. S. occidentalis (Caprifoliaceae) extracts are cytotoxic, and, strikingly, treated cells undergo light-dependent vacuolation near the nucleus. The range of irradiation is present in standard ambient light and lies in the visible range (400-700 nm). Vacuolization in treated cells can be induced with specific wavelengths of 408 or 660 nm at 1 J/cm2 energies. Vacuolated cells show a striking phenotype of a large perinuclear vacuole (nuclear associated vacuole, NAV) that is distinct from vesicles observed by treatment with an autophagy-inducing agent. Treatment with S. occidentalis extracts and light induces an intense lamin A/C signal at the junction of a nuclear vacuole and the nucleus. Further study of S. occidentalis extracts and vacuolation provide chemical tools that may contribute to the understanding of nuclear envelope organization and human cell biology.
Subject(s)
Cell Nucleus/drug effects , Plant Extracts/toxicity , Plants, Toxic/toxicity , Symphoricarpos/toxicity , Toxins, Biological/toxicity , Vacuoles/drug effects , A549 Cells , Cell Nucleus/metabolism , Cell Nucleus/pathology , Cell Nucleus/radiation effects , HT29 Cells , Humans , Lamin Type A/metabolism , Light , Plant Extracts/isolation & purification , Toxins, Biological/isolation & purification , Vacuoles/metabolism , Vacuoles/pathology , Vacuoles/radiation effectsABSTRACT
This feature issue highlights contributions from authors who presented their research at the OSA Light, Energy and the Environment Congress, held in Leipzig, Germany from November 14 to 17, 2016.
ABSTRACT
We have developed a passive 350 GHz (850 µm) video-camera to demonstrate lumped element kinetic inductance detectors (LEKIDs)--designed originally for far-infrared astronomy--as an option for general purpose terrestrial terahertz imaging applications. The camera currently operates at a quasi-video frame rate of 2 Hz with a noise equivalent temperature difference per frame of â¼0.1 K, which is close to the background limit. The 152 element superconducting LEKID array is fabricated from a simple 40 nm aluminum film on a silicon dielectric substrate and is read out through a single microwave feedline with a cryogenic low noise amplifier and room temperature frequency domain multiplexing electronics.
ABSTRACT
A method is presented for using a Fourier transform spectrometer (FTS) to calibrate the metrology of a second FTS. This technique is particularly useful when the second FTS is inside a cryostat or otherwise inaccessible.
