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Bonewald LF, Moravits DE, Lankford J (2005) Measurement of microstructural strain in cortical bone. Eur J Morphol 42:23–29PubMedCrossRef 37. Nicolella DP, Moravits DE, Gale AM, Bonewald LF, Lankford J (2006) Osteocyte lacunae tissue strain in cortical bone. J Biomech 39:1735–1743PubMedCrossRef 38. Silvestrini G, Ballanti P, Sebastiani M, Leopizzi M, Di Vito M, Bonucci E (2008) OPG and RANKL mRNA and protein expressions in the primary and secondary metaphyseal trabecular bone of PTH-treated rats are independent of that of SOST. J Mol Histol 39:237–242PubMedCrossRef 39. Yamane H, Sakai A, Mori T, Tanaka S, Moridera K, Nakamura T (2009) The anabolic action of intermittent PTH in combination with cathepsin K inhibitor or alendronate differs

depending on the remodeling status in bone in ovariectomized mice. Bone 44:1055–1062PubMedCrossRef 40. Gross TS, Rubin CT (1995) Uniformity Apoptosis inhibitor of resorptive bone loss induced by PCI-32765 solubility dmso disuse. J Orthop Res 13:708–714PubMedCrossRef 41. Gaudio A, Pennisi P, Bratengeier C, Torrisi V, Lindner B, Mangiafico RA, Pulvirenti I, Hawa G, Tringali G, Fiore CE (2010) Increased sclerostin serum levels associated with bone formation and resorption markers in patients with immobilization-induced bone loss. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 95:2248–2253PubMedCrossRef 42. Mirza AMP deaminase FS, Padhi ID, Raisz LG, Lorenzo JA (2010) Serum sclerostin levels negatively correlate with parathyroid hormone levels and free estrogen index in postmenopausal

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Acknowledgements MG-132 The authors gratefully acknowledge the technical assistance of YuanTai biology company of Changsha China and thank Dr Deng Xiao-Hua thoughtful insights and discussions, and for critical reading of the manuscript. This work was supported by Natural Science Foundation of Hunan Province of China (07JJ5094), Technology Plan Project from Science and Technology

Committee of Human Province (2007FJ4158, 2007SK3028). References 1. Parkin D Maxwell, Bray Lorlatinib manufacturer Freddie, Ferlay Jacques, Pisani Paola: Estimating the world burden: Globocan 2000[J]. Int J cancer 2001,94(2):153–156.PubMedCrossRef 2. Ding MA, Ling XI: Epidemiology and etiology research progress of Cervical Cancer. Journal of Practical Obstetrics and Gynecology 2001,17(02):61–62. 3. Russell JM, Blair V, Hunter RD: Cervical carcinoma: Prognosis in younger patients[J]. Br Med J 1987, 295:300.CrossRef 4. Wenhua

Zhang, Ping Bai, Shaokang Ma: Carcinoma of the cervix in younger women (≤ 35 year). Chinese Journal of Clinical Oncology and Rehabilitation 1999,6(6):39–41. 5. Elliott PM, Tattersall MH, Coppleson M, Russell P, Wong F, Coates AS, Solomon HJ, Bannatyne PM, Atkinson KH, Murray JC: Changing character of cervical cancer in young women[J]. Br this website Med J 1989,298(2):288–290.CrossRef 6. Thomas DB, Ray RM, Qin Q: Risk factors for progression of squamous cell cervical carcinoma in-situ to invasive cervical cancer:results of a multinational study[J]. Cancer Causes Control 2002,13(7):683–690.PubMedCrossRef 7. Ursin G, Pike MC, Preston-Martin S, d’Ablaing G, Peters TCL RK: Sexual, reproductive and other risk factors for adenocarcinoma of the cervix, results from a population based control study(California, united states) [J]. Cancer Causes Control 1996,7(3):391–401.PubMedCrossRef 8. CAO Ze-yi: The First Cervical Diseases Academic Conference of Chinese Medical Association. 2002, 36–39. 9. Reddy VG, Khanna N, Jain SK, Das

BC, Singh N: Telomerase-A molecular marker for cervical cancer screening. Int J Gynecol Cancer 2001,11(2):100–106.PubMedCrossRef 10. Riethdorf S, Riethdorf L, Schulz G, Ikenberg H, Janicke F, Loning T, Park TW: Relationship between telomerase activation and HPV16/18 oncogene expression in squamous intraepithelial lesions and squamous cell carcinomas of the uterine cervix. Int J Gynecol Pathol 2001,20(2):177–185.PubMedCrossRef 11. Klaes R, Benner A, Friedrich T, Ridder R, Herrington S, Jenkins D, Kurman RJ, Schmidt D, Stoler M, Doeberitz MV: p16(1NK4a) immunohistochemistry improves interobserver agreement in the diagnosis of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia. Am J Surg Patho 2002,26(11):1389–1399.CrossRef 12. Murphy N, Ring M, Heffron CCBB, King B, Killalea AG, Hughes C, Martin CM, McGuinness E, Sheils O, O’Leary JJ: p161NK4a, CDC6, and MCM5:predictive biomarkers in cervical preinvasive neoplasia and cervical cancer.

The mine now contains approximately 300,000 tonnes of arsenic trioxide, stored in underground chambers [11]. Temperatures in the underground stopes range from 4°C to 10°C [11]. Here we report the detection, isolation and characterisation of an aerobic psychrotolerant arsenite-oxidising bacterium from a subterranean biofilm in the Giant Mine. Unlike other characterised arsenite oxidisers, this organism is capable of growing below 10°C and is the first

heterotrophic organism to oxidise arsenite in the early exponential phase of growth. We also compare the diversity of arsenite oxidisers in two subsamples of the biofilm that vary in arsenite concentrations. Results and Discussion The Giant Mine has a long history of arsenic contamination find more and dissolution of stored arsenic trioxide by infiltrating groundwaters has increased arsenic concentrations PRT062607 solubility dmso at this site from a few to 50 mM. Biofilms have formed at many places where water

seeps into the underground excavations [11]. One such biofilm (Figure 1a) was located growing in an abandoned stope below seepage from a diamond drill hole approximately 152 m below the arsenic trioxide chambers (230 m below land surface) (temperature at each time of sampling was ca. 4°C). Water taken from the top of the biofilm in 2006 contained 14.01 mM total soluble arsenic and 2.56 mM arsenite. Samples taken in 2007 from the top and bottom of the biofilm contained 9.57 mM total Vitamin B12 soluble arsenic and 9.22 mM arsenite (top) and 9.16 mM total soluble arsenic and 6.01 mM arsenite (bottom). The concentration of arsenite in the 2006 sample was substantially lower than that of the equivalent top sample from 2007. The reason for this was probably microbial arsenite oxidation during storage as the this website liquid was not extracted from the 2006 sample until 18 days after collection whereas the liquid was extracted immediately from the 2007 samples. SEM examination of the biofilm

revealed the presence of threadlike extracellular polymeric substances and distinct microorganisms (Figure 1b). Figure 1 Microbial biofilm sampled from Giant Mine, Yellowknife, NWT, Canada. (A) Microbial biofilm. The mineral yukonite, a Ca-Fe arsenate is shown by the reddish-brown colouration. (B) Scanning electron micrograph of biofilm showing extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) which appear as threads and microbes (m). The arsenite-oxidising bacterium, designated GM1 was isolated and found to be a Gram-negative, rod-shaped, motile, heterotroph. Phylogenetic analysis of its full 16S rRNA gene sequence (Figure 2) showed it to be a member of the Betaproteobacteria related to Polaromonas species. GM1 is closely related (98% sequence identity) to Polaromonas sp. JS666, a cis-dichloroethene-degrading bacterium isolated from granular activated carbon from Dortmund, Germany [12], and Polaromonas napthalenivorans CJ2 a naphthalene-degrading bacterium isolated from a coal-tar contaminated aquifer in New York state, USA [13].

It reveals that the ZnO has a diameter of 5 to 10 μm and possesses a flower-like rough surface with petals emitted from the center. A typical ZnO flower image is shown in Figure 3b. Obviously, it buy GSK1838705A is about 1 μm at the widest point of the flower petals which are ended with a tip. CCI-779 ic50 Moreover, there are a large amount of holes on the petals, which can greatly enlarge the contact area between the organic dyes and ZnO. The ending part of saw-like petals is shown as inserted in Figure 3b. It can be seen that holes on the petals present an irregular shape with an average diameter below 100 nm. Considering the annealing process, it can be deduced that the holes are coming from amounts of gases evaporating with the decomposition

of the precursor at the relatively high temperature. The rough surfaces of ZnO provide a very good platform to locate Ag2O nanoparticles in high density during the co-precipitation process. Figure 3c GNS-1480 supplier shows

the morphology of the Ag2O nanoparticles obtained by the precipitation method. Obviously, the diameter of Ag2O particles is in the range of 100 to 500 nm. The enlarged view as inserted in Figure 3c shows that the Ag2O presents a rough surface with small spherical particles. For the composited sample, the morphology maintained the flower of ZnO, while Ag2O clusters were observed on the petals. From the insert in Figure 3d, it shows that the Ag2O cluster was composed of dozens of Ag2O nanoparticles. Figure 3 SEM images of pure ZnO, pure Ag 2 O, and ZnO-Ag 2 O composite. (a) Low-magnification SEM image of pure Farnesyltransferase ZnO, (b) high-magnification SEM image of pure ZnO, and (c, d) typical images of pure Ag2O and ZnO-Ag2O composite. It is known that MO dyes are usually chosen as model pollutants to simulate the actual photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants. The degradation efficiency was calculated using Equation 1: (1) where C 0 represents the initial concentration, ΔC represents the changed concentration, C represents the reaction concentration, A 0 represents the initial absorbance, ΔA represents the changed

absorbance, and A represents the reaction absorbance of the MO at the characteristic absorption wavelength of 464 nm. In the experiments, the photocatalytic activities of the as-prepared samples with different ZnO-Ag2O composites, pure ZnO flowers, and Ag2O particles are shown in Figure 4a. Surprisingly, the ZnO-Ag2O (1:1) composite exhibits superior photocatalytic activity, which is higher than that of pure ZnO flowers and Ag2O nanoparticles; for example, the required time for an entire decolorization of MO over ZnO-Ag2O catalysts is less than or equal to 90 min, much shorter than the corresponding value over pure ZnO flower and Ag2O particles. Moreover, the correlation between the photocatalytic activity and the component mole ratios is shown in Figure 4b. Obviously, the photocatalytic activity increases gradually with an increase of the Ag2O mole ratios (1:1 > 6:1 > 28:1 > 0.5:1) except ZnO-Ag2O (0.5:1).

Grain boundaries can probably offer location for most of the oxygen impurities out of post-oxidization, where the oxygen atoms can incorporate the dangling bonds along the grain boundaries. On the other hand, the incorporation of oxygen impurities in the films is effectively

influenced by H radicals. The mechanism is that H radicals generated in the plasma during the growth process of the films are accelerated by the RF power and impinge onto the growing surface of the films with a certain kinetic energy. Those H radicals with enough kinetic energy can passivate the dangling bonds along the grain boundaries and effectively prevent the oxygen impurities from post-oxidization. The bonded H located at grain boundaries can form hydrides with a certain type of learn more RO4929097 concentration bonding configuration, which can be identified from the deconvoluted peaks of the Si-H stretching mode of the peak at 2,090 cm-1 as mentioned in Figure  2a. These hydrides with different types of bonding configurations were then investigated in this part to help us accurately understand the spatial correlation between the hydrogen-related microstructures and oxygen impurities. The spectrum of a representative sample with R H = 98.2% was chosen to be deconvoluted into eight Gaussian absorption peaks as presented in Figure  5a, standing for several types of different bonding configurations. The frequency position of the deconvoluted

peaks depends on the unscreened eigen-frequency of the hydride, bulk screening, local hydride density, and possible mutual dipole interactions of the hydrogen incorporation configuration [31]. The low stretching mode (LSM; 1,980 to 2,010 cm-1) originating from the a-Si:H tissue is often in an isolated Si-H form in the bulk. The middle stretching mode (MSM; 2,024 to 2,041 cm-1) due to the Si-H stretching vibrations is located at the platelet-like configuration of the amorphous-crystalline

interface with massive defect states. The high stretching Niclosamide mode (HSM; 2,086 to 2,094 cm-1) responsible for Si-H2 at the internal surface of microvoids [32] is also related to a number of unsaturated dangling bonds. The extreme HSM (EHSM; 2,140 to 2,150 cm-1) arises from the trihydrides in the film prepared under high hydrogen dilution conditions. Three narrow HSMs (NHSMs; at 2,097, 2,109, and 2,137 cm-1) GSK2126458 represent mono-, di-, and trihydrides, respectively, on the crystalline surface. Lastly, the stretching mode at approximately 2,250 cm-1 corresponds to the hydride O x Si-H y vibration with oxygen atoms back-bonded to the silicon atoms [33]. Figure 5 Deconvoluted Si-H stretching mode and correlation between the integrated intensity of MSM and oxygen content. (a) Typical deconvoluted Si-H stretching mode of the nc-Si:H thin film under R H = 98.2%. The solid curves are the overall fitting results using eight Gaussian peaks.

The ON/OFF ratio at the negative bias was very small since the device was almost kept at HRS regardless of swept direction. It was quite intriguing that a typical TRS was reproducible from the third cycle as shown in Figure 4c. The device switched from HRS to LRS with abrupt increase of current which occurred at −5.0 V and returned back to HRS at −3.0 V. The same behaviors were LY2835219 mw observed at positive

threshold voltages of 4.9 and 2.3 V. Figure 4 Resistive switching evolution with the same CC (3 mA) of forming and switching. (a) The first I-V cycle. (b) The second I-V cycle. (c) The third I-V cycle. From the viewpoint of driving force, URS is dominated by Joule heating with a high CC and BRS by electrical Evofosfamide field with a low CC [15, 16, 19, 20, 22]. A higher CC means a higher current that generated more Joule heating, which could be responsible for the mechanism of rupturing

the conductive path in the URS. In general, BRS in oxide memory devices was attributed to the drift of oxygen ions. The abnormal results in this work might be ascribed to the device structure of NiO sandwiched between dual-oxygen layers, as shown in Figure 5. Chiang et al. have identified Al2O3 oxide layer at the interface between an Al electrode and NiO by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) [4]. It is easily understood in terms of standard enthalpy change of formation of oxides (NiO:ΔHf 298 ~ −244.3, Al2O3:ΔHf 298 ~ −1,669.8) [3, 23, 24]. Here, we need Fenbendazole to point out that the resistive switching behavior was not found in the Au/NiO/ITO structure (not shown here), suggesting that the Al/NiO interface should play a decisive

role in resistive switching. The formation of interfacial oxide layer can act as an oxygen reservoir, in which oxygen ions will migrate under applied electric field. In this case, the switching was decided by the exchange of oxygen ions at the interface between the interfacial layer and NiO [4, 25]. The exchange leads to the construction/rupture of the conducting paths composed of oxygen vacancies. Similarly, it was found by time-of-light secondary ion mass spectroscopy that ITO can also be considered as another oxygen reservoir [10]. Therefore, a dual-oxygen reservoir structure model should be proposed since any of the Al/NiO interfacial oxide and ITO can provide a chance to exchange oxygen ions to construct a conduction channel. For the set process of BRS, the conductive filaments were formed, owing to the migration of the oxygen ions from the ITO bottom electrode to the Al/NiO JNK-IN-8 concentration region as shown in Figure 5a. At opposite bias, the possibility of reset process would be small due to the migration of oxygen ions from the Al/NiO interface to ITO to form the conductive filament as shown in process 1 (0 to −4 V) in Figure 3b. However, the occurrence of the reset process of BRS at −4 to 0 V is different from that of the typical BRS behavior in single oxide layer.

” What follows is an overview of the current research on the topic. Only those studies that specifically evaluated immediate (≤ 1 hour) post-workout nutrient provision are discussed (see Table 1 for a summary of data). Table 1 Post-exercise nutrition and muscle hypertrophy Study

Subjects Supplementation Protein matched with Control? Measurement instrument Training protocol Results Esmarck et al. [69] 13 untrained elderly males 10 g milk/soy protein combo consumed either immediately SCH727965 order or 2 hours after exercise Yes MRI and muscle biopsy Progressive resistance training consisting of multiple sets of lat pulldown, leg press and knee extension performed 3 days/wk for 12 wk Significant increase in muscle CSA with immediate vs. delayed supplementation Cribb and Hayes [70] 23 young recreational male bodybuilders 1 g/kg of a supplement containing 40 g whey isolate, 43 g glucose, and 7 g creatine monohydrate consumed either immediately before and after exercise or in the early morning and late evening Yes DXA and muscle biopsy Progressive resistance training consisting of exercises for the major muscle

groups performed P505-15 order 3 days/wk for 10 wks Significant increases in lean body mass and muscle CSA of type II fibers in immediate vs. delayed supplementation Willoughby et al. [71] 19 untrained young males 20 g protein or 20 g dextrose consumed 1 hour before and after exercise No Hydrostatic weighing, muscle biopsy, surface measurements Progressive resistance training consisting of 3 sets of 6–8 repetitions for all the major muscles performed 4 days/wk

for 10 wks Significant increase in total body mass, fat-free mass, and thigh mass with protein vs. carb supplementation Hulmi et al. [72] 31 untrained young males 15 g whey isolate or placebo consumed immediately before and after exercise No MRI, muscle biopsy Progressive, periodized total body resistance training consisting of 2–5 sets of 5–20 repetitions performed 2 days/wk for 21 wks. Significant increase in CSA Sorafenib price of the vastus lateralis but not of the other quadriceps muscles in supplemented group versus placebo. Verdijk et al. [73] 28 untrained elderly males 10 g casein hydrolysate or placebo consumed immediately before and after exercise No DXA, CT, and muscle biopsy Progressive resistance training consisting of multiple sets of leg press and knee extension performed 3 days/wk for 12 wks No significant differences in muscle CSA between groups selleck products Hoffman et al. [74] 33 well-trained young males Supplement containing 42 g protein (milk/collagen blend) and 2 g carbohydrate consumed either immediately before and after exercise or in the early morning and late evening Yes DXA Progressive resistance training consisting of 3–4 sets of 6–10 repetitions of multiple exercises for the entire body peformed 4 days/wk for 10 weeks. No significant differences in total body mass or lean body mass between groups.

1% survival for those shifted directly from 37°C to 50°C (Figure 2C). RB50ΔsigE pre-adapted at 40°C also survived better at 50°C than when directly shifted from 37°C to 50°C. However, only 38% of the RB50ΔsigE cells survived after one hour (compared to 76% of the wild-type RB50), and 5% survived after two hours at 50°C (Figure 2C). These results demonstrate that B.

selleck bronchiseptica exhibits a classical thermotolerance response and that SigE contributes to this response. Both ethanol and heat shock lead to protein unfolding and membrane perturbation and often elicit similar stress responses [43]. To test the role of sigE in response to ethanol stress, RB50 and RB50ΔsigE www.selleckchem.com/products/gsk2126458.html were subcultured from mid-exponential-phase cultures into fresh Stainer-Scholte Vistusertib research buy broth with or without 3% ethanol. Both strains grew similarly in medium without ethanol, as noted above. RB50 grew significantly slower in medium containing 3% ethanol than in medium without ethanol (compare the growth curve for RB50 in Figure 2D with that in Figure 2A), but eventually reached a cell density only slightly below that of cultures grown without ethanol. In contrast, the cell density of RB50ΔsigE grown in the presence of 3% ethanol never surpassed an OD600 of around 0.1, even after 24 hours. Expression of plasmid-encoded sigE in RB50ΔsigE complemented this phenotype, restoring growth in medium with 3%

ethanol to nearly that of RB50 (Figure 2D), indicating that sigE is required for survival during ethanol stress. Figure 3 Colonization of the respiratory tract of C57BL/6

mice by RB50 and RB50Δ sigE. Groups of three 4–6 week-old C57BL/6 mice were inoculated with 5 × 105 CFU of RB50 (filled squares) and RB50ΔsigE (open triangles). Groups of three mice were sacrificed at each time point. The bacterial load in the indicated organ is expressed as log10 CFU ± SE. The dashed line indicates the limit of detection. The experiment was performed twice with similar results and a representative dataset is shown. σE homologues Leukocyte receptor tyrosine kinase have also been found to play a role during oxidative stress in S. Typhimurium and Burkholderia pseudomallei[29, 41]. However, in disk diffusion assays, SigE was not required for survival in the presence of hydrogen peroxide or paraquat, two inducers of oxidative stress (data not shown). Either SigE is not involved in combating oxidative stress in B. bronchiseptica, or other oxidative-stress responsive pathways compensate for SigE when it is absent. Growth in the murine respiratory tract is not affected by the lack of sigE B. bronchiseptica RB50 colonizes the respiratory tract of immunocompetent mice, causing an asymptomatic infection that is eventually cleared by the immune system. To determine whether B. bronchiseptica SigE contributes to colonization and persistence in the respiratory tract, groups of C57BL/6 mice were inoculated with RB50 or RB50ΔsigE.

Two selleck compound mechanisms are proposed for the morbidity caused by OSA: the activation of inflammatory factors and oxidative stress [42, 43], which also can be modulated by genetic, lifestyle and environmental LY2606368 factors [43, 44]. Oxidative stress plays an important role in various diseases as well as in OSA, which causes an effect similar to ischemia-reperfusion [18] in which there is activation of xanthine oxidase, leading to the formation free radicals and further imbalance between oxidants and antioxidants [4–6]. The analysis of liver integrity showed that the liver tissue of mice subjected to intermittent hypoxia was damaged, but only after 35 days, as demonstrated by the significant increase in circulating

AST, ALT and alkaline phosphatase. The present results demonstrate damage both at cytoplasmic and mitochondrial level, confirmed by the presence in the histological examination of ballooning, steatosis, necrosis and the presence of neutrophils in the liver, similar to what is observed in NASH [45]. In the evaluation

of hepatic lipid peroxidation, Niraparib clinical trial we observed a significant increase in lipid oxidative damage in animals that were subjected to hypoxia for 35 days, as indicated by the TBARS test, but not in group IH-21. This damage can be caused by the increase of free radicals in the liver tissue. Similar data have been reported in other studies of intermittent hypoxia [46–48] and by our laboratory in other experimental models of hepatic oxidative damage [49–54]. As we did not observe liver damage in animals exposed to IH for 21 days, by the liver enzyme, histological, or lipid peroxidation assays, we concluded that this duration of IH causes

no damage to the organ. Therefore, dosages of antioxidant enzymes, comet assay and Low-density-lipoprotein receptor kinase nitrites metabolites were not conducted in the IH 21 group. Comet assay in liver tissue revealed a significant increase in DNA damage in the IH-35 group in comparison to the SIH group. No evidence of damage was observed in blood tissue. The rate of DNA damage detected by the comet assay depends on the tissue or organ analyzed [55]. Here, the DNA damage was observed only in the tissue most susceptible to lesions produced by IH. In the alkaline version used, the comet assay detects a broad spectrum of DNA lesions, including single strand breaks [56, 57]. Previous comet assay and TBARS data have demonstrated increased formation of free radicals in sleep apnoea patients [11]. Possibly, the formation of superoxide radical (O2 -•) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), which appear to be increased in individuals with OSA, is due to the conversion of xanthine dehydrogenase (type D) into its oxidase (type O) form in hypoxia, followed by the activation of the oxidase form during reoxygenation (normoxia) by the hypoxanthine formed during hypoxia. This xanthine oxidase activity generates O2 -•, H2O2, and uric acid [4, 11].

The exciting beam has a power of 20 μW to prevent heating effects and it was focused on the sample with about 1 μm2 spot area through a fluorinated × 60 (NA = 0.9) Olympus microscope objective (Tokyo, Japan). Photoluminescence (PL) measurements were performed by pumping with the 488-nm line of an Ar+ laser.

Pump power was varied from Bortezomib nmr 1 to 200 mW, corresponding to a photon flux φ ranging from 3.1 × 1019 to 6.2 × 1021 cm−2 · s−1, and the laser beam was chopped through an acousto-optic modulator at a frequency of 55 Hz. The PL signal was analyzed by a single-grating monochromator and detected by a photomultiplier tube in the visible and by a liquid-nitrogen-cooled Ge detector or an IR-extended photomultiplier tube in the IR. Spectra were recorded with a lock-in amplifier using the acousto-optic modulator frequency as a reference. Time-resolved measurements were made by pumping the system

at a steady state, then switching off the laser beam, and detecting how the PL signal at a fixed wavelength decreases as a function of time. The overall time resolution of the system is 200 ns. Low-temperature measurements were performed by using a closed cycle He cryostat with the samples kept in vacuum at a pressure of 10−5 Torr. Results and discussion Figure 3a,b,c,d reports cross-sectional SEM images of Si/Ge NWs with different lengths obtained by the above-described metal-assisted wet etching approach by using increasing etching times. The images display dense (about 1011 NWs · cm−2 can be counted CA-4948 molecular weight in plain view; SEM images here not shown) and uniform arrays of NWs;

the length ranges from 1.0 (Figure 3a) to 2.7 μm (Figure 3d) and linearly depends on the etching time. Figure 3 Cross-sectional SEM analysis of MQW Si/Ge NWs. The images show NWs having lengths (a) 1.0, (b) 1.7, (c) 2.0, and (d) 2.7 μm. Raman measurements were used to estimate the NW mean size. Figure 4 shows the typical asymmetrically broadened Raman peak (solid line), due to the Si-Si stretching mode in optically confined crystalline Si nanostructures, detected on the Si/Ge NWs. The peak appears red shifted with respect to the Carnitine palmitoyltransferase II symmetric and sharper peak typical of bulk crystalline Si at 520 cm−1 (dashed line), reported in the same figure for comparison. The peak was fitted using a phenomenological model developed by Richter [16] and Campbell and Fauchet [17] for strongly confined phonons in nanocrystals and more recently adapted to Si NWs [2, 18]. The fit procedure gives a NW OSI-027 in vivo diameter of 8.2 ± 1.0 nm. Figure 4 Raman analysis of Si/Ge NWs. Comparison between the Raman spectra of Si/Ge NWs (blue continuous line) and bulk crystalline Si (red dashed line). A fit to the spectrum of Si/Ge NWs gives a diameter mean value of 8.2 ± 1.0 nm.