Determination of optimal experimental conditions for accurate 3D reconstruction of the magnetization vector via XMCD-PEEM.

This work presents a detailed analysis of the performance of X-ray magnetic circular dichroism photoemission electron microscopy (XMCD-PEEM) as a tool for vector reconstruction of magnetization. For this, 360° domain wall ring structures which form in a synthetic antiferromagnet are chosen as the model to conduct the quantitative analysis. An assessment is made of how the quality of the results is affected depending on the number of projections that are involved in the reconstruction process, as well as their angular distribution. For this a self-consistent error metric is developed which allows an estimation of the optimum azimuthal rotation angular range and number of projections. This work thus proposes XMCD-PEEM as a powerful tool for vector imaging of complex 3D magnetic structures.

Transmission XMCD-PEEM imaging of an engineered vertical FEBID cobalt nanowire with a domain wall.

Using focused electron-beam-induced deposition, we fabricate a vertical, platinum-coated cobalt nanowire with a controlled three-dimensional structure. The latter is engineered to feature bends along the height: these are used as pinning sites for domain walls, which are obtained at remanence after saturation of the nanostructure in a horizontally applied magnetic field. The presence of domain walls is investigated using x-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) coupled to photoemission electron microscopy (PEEM). The vertical geometry of our sample combined with the low incidence of the x-ray beam produce an extended wire shadow which we use to recover the wire's magnetic configuration. In this transmission configuration, the whole sample volume is probed, thus circumventing the limitation of PEEM to surfaces. This article reports on the first study of magnetic nanostructures standing perpendicular to the substrate with XMCD-PEEM. The use of this technique in shadow mode enabled us to confirm the presence of a domain wall without direct imaging of the nanowire.

Maltaricin CPN, a new class IIa bacteriocin produced by Carnobacterium maltaromaticum CPN isolated from mould-ripened cheese.

AIMS: The purpose of this study was to isolate, characterize and determine the structure and the antibacterial activities of a bacteriocin produced by Carnobacterium maltaromaticum CPN, a strain isolated from unpasteurized milk Camembert cheese. METHODS AND RESULTS: This bacteriocin, termed maltaricin CPN, was produced at higher amounts in MRS broth at temperatures between 15°C and 25°C. It was purified to homogeneity from culture supernatant by using a simple method consisting of cation-exchange and reversed-phase chromatographies. Mass spectrometry showed that maltaricin was a 4427·29 Da bacteriocin. Its amino acid sequence was determined by Edman degradation which showed that it had close similarity with bacteriocins of the class IIa. Maltaricin CPN consisted in fact of 44 unmodified amino acids including two cysteine residues at positions 9 and 14 linked by a disulphide bond. The antimicrobial activity of maltaricin CPN covered a range of bacteria, with strong activity against many species of Gram-positive bacteria, especially the food-borne pathogen Listeria monocytogenes, but no activity against Gram-negative ones. CONCLUSIONS: In the studied conditions, C. maltaromaticum CPN produced a new class IIa bacteriocin with strong anti-Listeria activity. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: The study covers the purification and the structural characterization of a new bacteriocin produced by strain C. maltaromaticum CPN isolated from Camembert cheese. Its activity against strains of L. monocytogenes and higher production rates at relatively low temperatures show potential technological applications to improve the safety of refrigerated food.

Indirect localization of a magnetic domain wall mediated by quasi walls.

The manipulation of magnetic domain walls in thin films and nanostructures opens new opportunities for fundamental and applied research. But controlling reliably the position of a moving domain wall still remains challenging. So far, most of the studies aimed at understanding the physics of pinning and depinning processes in the magnetic layer in which the wall moves (active layer). In these studies, the role of other magnetic layers in the stack has been often ignored. Here, we report an indirect localization process of 180° domain walls that occurs in magnetic tunnel junctions, commonly used in spintronics. Combining Scanning Transmission X-Ray Microscopy and micromagnetic simulations, magnetic configurations in both layers are resolved. When nucleating a 180° domain wall in the active layer, a quasi wall is created in the reference layer, atop the wall. The wall and its quasi wall must then be moved or positioned together, as a unique object. As a mutual effect, a localized change of the magnetic properties in the reference layer induces a localized quasi wall in the active layer. The two types of quasi walls are shown to be responsible for an indirect localization process of the 180° domain wall in the active layer.

Artificial kagome arrays of nanomagnets: a frozen dipolar spin ice.

Magnetic frustration effects in artificial kagome arrays of nanomagnets are investigated using x-ray photoemission electron microscopy and Monte Carlo simulations. Spin configurations of demagnetized networks reveal unambiguous signatures of long range, dipolar interaction between the nanomagnets. As soon as the system enters the spin ice manifold, the kagome dipolar spin ice model captures the observed physics, while the short range kagome spin ice model fails.

Beyond the magnetic domain matching in magnetic exchange coupling.

We report a new macroscopic first-field-induced magnetic anisotropy for Co/α-Fe2O3(0001) layers, a prototypical ferromagnetic-antiferromagnetic interface for which the antiferromagnetic film has small in-plane magnetic anisotropy as compared to the interface coupling. We demonstrate that the effect is due to a first-field-induced irreversible magnetic domain motion in the antiferromagnetic layer, dragged by the ferromagnetic Co one. Whereas the initial domain matching is lost, the macroscopic manifestations of the exchange coupling remain stable. Therefore, the initial domain matching probably has only a marginal role in the explanation of the magnetic exchange coupling.

Controlled switching of Néel caps in flux-closure magnetic dots.

While magnetic hysteresis usually considers magnetic domains, the switching of the core of magnetic vortices has recently become an active topic. We considered Bloch domain walls, which are known to display at the surface of thin films flux-closure features called Néel caps. We demonstrated the controlled switching of these caps under a magnetic field, occurring via the propagation of a surface vortex. For this we considered flux-closure states in elongated micron-sized dots, so that only the central domain wall can be addressed, while domains remain unaffected.

Uptake and metabolism of boronophenylalanine in human uveal melanoma cells in culture Relevance to boron neutron capture therapy of cancer cells.

The transport of boronophenylalanine (BPA) and its metabolic fate have been studied in a human uveal melanoma cell line isolated from a primary enucleated tumor. The boronated compound was rapidly incorporated into the cells reaching a peak of incorporation in two hours. This was followed by a trough between 10 and 24 hours and by an increase thereafter. The analogy with the amino acids phenylalanine (Phe) and tyrosine (Tyr) was studied in competition experiments incubating cultures of cell line MK-T, isolated in this laboratory, with [(3)H]-Phe and [(125)I]-Tyr, in the presence or absence of various concentrations of BPA, between 0 and 5 min. The presence of BPA severely reduced the uptake of both amino acids. The kinetics of the transport of [(3)H]-Phe and [(3)H]-Tyr in the presence of BPA, measured after 10 sec of incubation, showed that the boronated compound exerted a competitive inhibition on both transport systems. The intracellular metabolism of BPA was followed by measuring boron concentration (measured with Ionization Coupled Mass Spectrometry) in subcellular fractions and after membrane extraction by the detergent Triton X-100. The results showed that BPA remained in the supernatant and was not metabolized into macromolecules. These results and the relative absence of melanine in these cells, as observed by electron microscopy, suggest that BPA may be actively transported into melanoma cells but not metabolized. The results may have a relevance in studies on Boron Neutron Capture Therapy.

Effect of fasting and thyroidectomy on cysteine proteinase activities in liver and muscle.

Prolonged starvation mimics chronic negative nitrogen balance observed in many physiopathological situations. During starvation, an initial decrease in protein utilization (phase I) is followed by a long period of protein sparing (phase II) that ends with a marked rise in nitrogen excretion (phase III). Variations in protein metabolism during starvation are determined by changes in protein synthesis and degradation rates (Cherel, Y., Attaix, D. Rosolowska-Huszcz, D., Belkhou, R., Robin, J.P., Arnal, M. and Le Maho, Y. (1991) Clin. Sci. 81, 611-619), but little information is available on expression of proteolytic systems. In this study, cathepsin B, H and L activities were compared in hindlimb muscles and liver at various phases of starvation in thyroidectomized and sham-operated rats. In muscle, cathepsin activities fell from the fed state to phase II, which suggests that cathepsins may play a role in the curtailment of muscle proteolysis during protein sparing phase. This decrease of muscle cathepsin activities was reproduced by thyroidectomy alone. In contrast, liver cathepsin B and H activities fell during starvation, but were not affected by thyroidectomy alone. Liver cathepsin L decreased only during starvation in thyroidectomized animals. These observations emphasize that different mechanisms modulate cathepsin expression in skeletal muscle and liver.

[Morphological characterization of cell lines of human uveal melanoma]. / Caractérisation morphologique de lignées cellulaires de mélanome uvéal humain.

Several cell lines have been derived from an ocular melanoma obtained from an enucleated patient. Three cell types are observed during the time in culture of all the cell lines under study. Two of them have epithelial and spindle shape respectively. A third cell type, having a spheroidal shape, is formed from spindle cells and may be transformed into epithelial cells upon re-seeding. Further experiments showed that the same cell may change of shape following the cycle: spheroidal-->epithelial-->fusiform-->spheroidal. Scanning microscopy shows the coexistence of the three cell shapes in the same culture and the presence of several filaments and processes protruding at the surface of the cells. Transmission electron microscopy shows that the cell lines, in general, contain melanosomes empty or fairly pigmented and several filaments and microtubules. The presence of melanin may be stimulated by seeding of melanoma cells over a "feeder layer" of fibroblasts.

[Lethal effect of boron neutron capture reaction on human uveal melanoma cells in culture incubated with borophenylalanine]. / Effet létal de la réaction de capture neutronique du bore sur des cellules de mélanome uvéal humain en culture incubées avec la boro-phénylalanine.

Cell cultures obtained from human uveal tumours have been used as experimental model to study the lethal effect consecutive to the neutron capture reaction on boron incorporated into cells as borophenylalanine. An irradiation with a neutron fluence of 6 x 10(9) n cm-2 reduced the number of viable cells by about 30%.

Whole-body and tissue protein synthesis during brief and prolonged fasting in the rat.

1. Little information is currently available on protein turnover during chronic protein loss situations. We have thus measured the whole-body and tissue protein fractional synthesis rates (ks), the whole-body fractional protein degradation rate (kd), the capacity for protein synthesis (Cs) and the efficiency of protein synthesis (kRNA) in vivo in fed and fasted (1, 5 and about 9 days) 400 g rats. 2. One day of starvation resulted in a reduced ks and an increased kd in the whole body. ks was selectively depressed in skeletal muscles, mainly owing to a reduced kRNA, and was not modified in heart, liver and skin. The contribution of skin to whole-body protein synthesis increased by 39%. 3. During the phase of protein sparing (5 days of fasting), kd in the whole body decreased below the control fed level. ks in skeletal muscles was sustained because kRNA was restored to 82-98% of the control value. 4. Rats were in a protein-wasting phase after 9 days of starvation. kd in the whole body did not increase and was actually 78% of the value observed in fed animals. By contrast, ks in the whole body and tissues decreased to 14-34% of the control values, owing to reductions in both Cs and kRNA. Whatever the duration of the fast, the contribution of the skin to whole-body protein synthesis largely exceeded that of skeletal muscle. 5. The present findings suggest that the main goal in the treatment of chronic protein loss should be to sustain protein synthesis.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adaptation of intestinal hydrolases to starvation in rats: effect of thyroid function.

The effects of long-term starvation on the activities of sucrase, lactase, and aminopeptidase, and on their respective mRNA were determined in the small intestine of thyroidectomized and sham-operated adult rats. Thyroidectomy reduced the protein loss at the level of the intestinal brush border membranes during starvation. Prolonged fasting caused a significant decrease in sucrase activity, but thyroidectomy partly prevented this effect. However, the amount of the corresponding mRNA dropped during long term starvation without incidence of thyroidectomy. Lactase activity in the brush border membranes was increased by starvation, and thyroidectomy caused a further elevation of the enzyme activity. Simultaneously, lactase mRNA content rose only slightly compared to the enzyme activity. Aminopeptidase activity and mRNA content decreased during starvation and thyroidectomy did not prevent this process. These results indicate that intestinal hydrolases respond non-coordinately to long-term food deprivation. In addition, the thyroid status of the animals has a direct influence on the adaptation of several brush border hydrolases to starvation. This suggests that the drop in plasma thyroid hormones during fasting allows a better maintenance of protein content and of hydrolase activities in the brush border membranes of the small intestine. These adaptive processes seemed to be partly controlled at a post-transcriptional level.