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Based on the effective-medium theory, the propagation of a shear horizontal (SH) wave in joined half-spaces composed of elastic metamaterials (EMMs) is investigated. From the dispersion relations, the effects of negative effective-medium parameters on the properties of a SH wave traveling near the interface are analyzed in detail. It is found that a SH wave can always appear and travel along the interface under specific effective-parameter combinations no matter whether the effective transverse wave velocity is imaginary or real. This is significantly different from the classical case (joined half-spaces composed of natural media), and the existence of these SH interfacial wave modes may have important impacts on EMM-based SH wave manipulation, especially wave isolation and object protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The excessive and uncontrolled use of anthelmintics, e.g. ivermectin (IVM) for the treatment of livestock parasites has led to widespread resistance in gastrointestinal nematodes, such as Haemonchus contortus. There is an urgent need for better management of drug-use in nematode control and development of novel anthelmintics. Discovery and identification of anthelmintic resistance-associate molecules/markers can provide a basis for rational anthelmintics-use and development of novel drugs. Recent studies have shown that ivermectin resistance in H. contortus is likely to be multi-genic in nature except for several genes coding for IVM target and efflux pump. However, no other IVM resistance-associated genes were characterized by conventional methods or strategies. In the present study we adopted a new strategy, i.e. using genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) analysis based on 2b-RAD sequencing, for discovering SNPs markers across the genomes in both IVM susceptible and resistant isolates of H. contortus and identifying potential IVM resistance-associated genes. Results: We discovered 2962 and 2667 SNPs within both susceptible and resistant strains of H. contortus, respectively. A relative lower and similar genetic variations were observed within both resistant and susceptible strains (average π values were equal to 0.1883 and 0.1953, respectively); whereas a high genetic variation was found across both strains (average π value was equal to 0.3899). A significant differentiation across 2b-RAD tags nucleotide sites was also observed between the two strains (average FST value was equal to 0.3076); the larger differences in average FST were observed at SNPs loci between coding and noncoding (including intronic) regions. Comparison between resistant and susceptible strains revealed that 208 SNPs loci exhibited significantly elevated FST values, 24 SNPs of those loci were located in the CDS regions of the nine genes and were likely to have signature of IVM directional selection. Seven of the nine candidate genes were predicted to code for some functional proteins such as potential IVM target and/or efflux pump proteins, component proteins of receptor complex in membrane on neuromuscular cells, and transcriptional regulation proteins. Those genesmight be involved in resistance to IVM. Conclusions: Our data suggest that candidate genes putatively associated with resistance to IVM in H. contortus may be identified by genome-wide SNP analysis using 2b-RAD sequencing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the end of the last century, ESI-MS has begun to be used to reveal the existence of non-covalent complexes, providing important stoichiometric information. Many researchers have reported the use of ESI-MS to determine dissociation constants of such complexes. Gas phase dissociation constants measured in this way have been found to correlate well with those measured by solution based techniques.1, 2 In this article, ESI results show that all the phosphorylated daidzein derivatives can form non-covalent complexes with the protein insulin, while non-covalent complexes were not detected in solutions of unphosphorylated daidzein and insulin. The relative affinity of each non-covalent complex was obtained according to its different decomposition orifice voltage. Compound e has the highest disappearing orifice voltage and therefore the strongest binding affinity. The relative stability of the non-covalent complexes was closely associated with the length of the hydrophobic chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The propagation of traveling Lamb wave in single layer of elastic metamaterial is investigated in this paper. We first categorized the traveling Lamb wave modes inside an elastic metamaterial layer according to different combinations (positive or negative) of effective medium parameters. Then the impacts of the frequency dependence of effective parameters on dispersion characteristics of traveling Lamb wave were studied. Distinct differences could be observed when comparing the traveling Lamb wave along an elastic metamaterial layer with one inside the traditional elastic layer. We further examined in detail the traveling Lamb wave mode supported in elastic metamaterial layer, when the effective P and S wave velocities were simultaneously imaginary. It was found that the effective modulus ratio is the key factor for the existence of special traveling wave mode, and the main results were verified by FEM simulations from two levels: the level of effective medium and the level of microstructure unit cell. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]