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Current–voltage (I–V) nonlinearity is essential for information processing in molecular electronics. We used a nanoparticle bridge junction to investigate the effect of electronic coupling between ...

Liquid metals have attracted attention as functional components for moldable electronics, such as soft flexible connectors, wires or conductive ink. The relatively high surface tension (> 400 mN m−1) and the fact that liquid metals do not readily wet ceramic or oxide surfaces have led to devising unique techniques to spread the liquid and mold its shape. These techniques include surface modification, electrowetting and vacuum filling of channels. This work presents an injection technique based on pressurized fountain pen lithography with glass nanopipettes developed to directly pattern liquid metal on flat hard substrates. The liquid metals were eutectic alloys of Gallium, including Gallium-Indium (EGaIn), Gallium-Indium-Zinc and Gallium-Indium-Tin. The nanopipettes were coated internally with gold, acting as a sacrificial layer and facilitating the wetting of the pipette down to its pore, with an inner diameter of ~ 100–300 nm. By applying hydrodynamic pressure to the connected end of the pipette, the metal was extruded through the pore, forming long continuous (> 3 mm) and narrow (~ 1–15 µm) metal lines on silicon oxide and gold surfaces at room temperature and ambient conditions. With this robust platform, it is possible to pattern liquid metals on a variety of substrates and geometries down to the micron range.

Rickettsia japonica pathogenesis and reservoir potential in dogs were evaluated by both experimental inoculation and epidemiologic survey. In the experimental inoculation study, dogs 1 and 2 were pretreated with an immunosuppressive dose of cyclosporine 14 days before inoculation and became ill after exposure to R. japonica. Dogs exhibited clinical signs, including fever, anorexia, depression, and decreased water consumption, between 36 and 96 h after inoculation, but these signs disappeared spontaneously by 5 days after inoculation. Dogs 3 and 4 were not pretreated with cyclosporine, and no clinical signs were detected in them throughout the 14-day observation period. The control dog was clinically normal and had a normal rectal temperature throughout the study period. We attempted to detect rickettsial DNA from peripheral blood and aspiration samples from kidney and spleen by nested PCR, but all samples examined were negative. The control dog lacked detectable titers to R. japonica antigen on day 14, while positive antibodies to R. japonica were detected in all four experimentally infected dogs, with titers of 1:160 to 1:80. In the epidemiologic survey, 24 (1.8%) of the 1,363 dogs examined throughout Japan had antibodies against R. japonica , with titers of 1:40 or more. However, we observed neither clinical signs at the time of sample collection nor nested PCR results indicative of rickettsial infection in these dogs. In conclusion, dogs in Japan can be exposed to R. japonica , and infected dogs with immunosuppressive conditions can temporarily develop clinical symptoms, including fever, anorexia, depression, and decreased water consumption.

Serum thymidine kinase (TK) activity has recently been evaluated as a serum marker for human and canine hematopoietic neoplasms. The purpose of the current study was to establish the significance of serum TK activity in the diagnosis of bovine leukosis. The discrimination value for TK activity was set at 5.4 U/l based on the receiver operating characteristic curve. In the group of clinically healthy cows, only 2 out of 83 cows (2.4%) had serum TK activity above the discrimination value. In contrast, 19 out of 20 cows (95.0%) with bovine leukosis showed serum TK activity above the discrimination value, although only 7 of 79 (8.9%) cows diagnosed with diseases other than bovine leukosis showed elevated serum TK activity. Thymidine kinase activities of all Bovine leukemia virus-positive cows with or without lymphocytosis were below the discrimination value. Sensitivity and specificity of measuring serum TK activity as a diagnostic tool for bovine leukosis was 95.0% and 95.9%, respectively. Results indicate that serum TK activity may be a marker for bovine leukosis.

DNA from 101 ticks, including Haemaphysalis megaspinosa, Haemaphysalis douglasi, Haemaphysalis flava, Ixodes ovatus and Ixodes persulcatus, collected by flagging in a pasture in Hidaka district (Hokkaido, Japan) was examined for infection with Anaplasma bovis and A. phagocytophilum by species-specific nested PCR. Of the 48 H. megaspinosa nymphs, examined, 1 (2.1%) and 6 (12.5%) were positive for A. bovis and A. phagocytophilum, respectively. One of the 6 positive nymphs was dual positive for both pathogens. Of the 4 larval pools of H. megaspinosa examined, 1 pool was positive for both A. bovis and A. phagocytophilum. None of the samples of the other tick species and adults of H. megaspinosa showed any positive results. These results suggest that H. megaspinosa is a dominant vector tick species of both A. bovis and A. phagocytophilum for cattle in the pasture of Hidaka district, Japan.