TY - JOUR AB - In the present work, we detail a fast and simple solution-based method to synthesize hexagonal SnSe2 nanoplates (NPLs) and their use to produce crystallographically textured SnSe2 nanomaterials. We also demonstrate that the same strategy can be used to produce orthorhombic SnSe nanostructures and nanomaterials. NPLs are grown through a screw dislocation-driven mechanism. This mechanism typically results in pyramidal structures, but we demonstrate here that the growth from multiple dislocations results in flower-like structures. Crystallographically textured SnSe2 bulk nanomaterials obtained from the hot pressing of these SnSe2 structures display highly anisotropic charge and heat transport properties and thermoelectric (TE) figures of merit limited by relatively low electrical conductivities. To improve this parameter, SnSe2 NPLs are blended here with metal nanoparticles. The electrical conductivities of the blends are significantly improved with respect to bare SnSe2 NPLs, what translates into a three-fold increase of the TE Figure of merit, reaching unprecedented ZT values up to 0.65. AU - Zhang, Yu AU - Liu, Yu AU - Lim, Khak Ho AU - Xing, Congcong AU - Li, Mengyao AU - Zhang, Ting AU - Tang, Pengyi AU - Arbiol, Jordi AU - Llorca, Jordi AU - Ng, Ka Ming AU - Ibáñez, Maria AU - Guardia, Pablo AU - Prato, Mirko AU - Cadavid, Doris AU - Cabot, Andreu ID - 5982 IS - 52 JF - Angewandte Chemie International Edition SN - 1433-7851 TI - Tin diselenide molecular precursor for solution-processable thermoelectric materials VL - 57 ER - TY - CONF AB - We consider the MAP-inference problem for graphical models,which is a valued constraint satisfaction problem defined onreal numbers with a natural summation operation. We proposea family of relaxations (different from the famous Sherali-Adams hierarchy), which naturally define lower bounds for itsoptimum. This family always contains a tight relaxation andwe give an algorithm able to find it and therefore, solve theinitial non-relaxed NP-hard problem.The relaxations we consider decompose the original probleminto two non-overlapping parts: an easy LP-tight part and adifficult one. For the latter part a combinatorial solver must beused. As we show in our experiments, in a number of applica-tions the second, difficult part constitutes only a small fractionof the whole problem. This property allows to significantlyreduce the computational time of the combinatorial solver andtherefore solve problems which were out of reach before. AU - Haller, Stefan AU - Swoboda, Paul AU - Savchynskyy, Bogdan ID - 5978 T2 - Proceedings of the 32st AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence TI - Exact MAP-inference by confining combinatorial search with LP relaxation ER - TY - JOUR AB - A Ge–Si core–shell nanowire is used to realize a Josephson field‐effect transistor with highly transparent contacts to superconducting leads. By changing the electric field, access to two distinct regimes, not combined before in a single device, is gained: in the accumulation mode the device is highly transparent and the supercurrent is carried by multiple subbands, while near depletion, the supercurrent is carried by single‐particle levels of a strongly coupled quantum dot operating in the few‐hole regime. These results establish Ge–Si nanowires as an important platform for hybrid superconductor–semiconductor physics and Majorana fermions. AU - Ridderbos, Joost AU - Brauns, Matthias AU - Shen, Jie AU - de Vries, Folkert K. AU - Li, Ang AU - Bakkers, Erik P. A. M. AU - Brinkman, Alexander AU - Zwanenburg, Floris A. ID - 5990 IS - 44 JF - Advanced Materials SN - 0935-9648 TI - Josephson effect in a few-hole quantum dot VL - 30 ER - TY - JOUR AB - The problem of private set-intersection (PSI) has been traditionally treated as an instance of the more general problem of multi-party computation (MPC). Consequently, in order to argue security, or compose these protocols one has to rely on the general theory that was developed for the purpose of MPC. The pursuit of efficient protocols, however, has resulted in designs that exploit properties pertaining to PSI. In almost all practical applications where a PSI protocol is deployed, it is expected to be executed multiple times, possibly on related inputs. In this work we initiate a dedicated study of PSI in the multi-interaction (MI) setting. In this model a server sets up the common system parameters and executes set-intersection multiple times with potentially different clients. We discuss a few attacks that arise when protocols are naïvely composed in this manner and, accordingly, craft security definitions for the MI setting and study their inter-relation. Finally, we suggest a set of protocols that are MI-secure, at the same time almost as efficient as their parent, stand-alone, protocols. AU - Chatterjee, Sanjit AU - Kamath Hosdurg, Chethan AU - Kumar, Vikas ID - 5980 IS - 1 JF - American Institute of Mathematical Sciences TI - Private set-intersection with common set-up VL - 12 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Genome amplification and cellular senescence are commonly associated with pathological processes. While physiological roles for polyploidization and senescence have been described in mouse development, controversy exists over their significance in humans. Here, we describe tetraploidization and senescence as phenomena of normal human placenta development. During pregnancy, placental extravillous trophoblasts (EVTs) invade the pregnant endometrium, termed decidua, to establish an adapted microenvironment required for the developing embryo. This process is critically dependent on continuous cell proliferation and differentiation, which is thought to follow the classical model of cell cycle arrest prior to terminal differentiation. Strikingly, flow cytometry and DNAseq revealed that EVT formation is accompanied with a genome-wide polyploidization, independent of mitotic cycles. DNA replication in these cells was analysed by a fluorescent cell-cycle indicator reporter system, cell cycle marker expression and EdU incorporation. Upon invasion into the decidua, EVTs widely lose their replicative potential and enter a senescent state characterized by high senescence-associated (SA) β-galactosidase activity, induction of a SA secretory phenotype as well as typical metabolic alterations. Furthermore, we show that the shift from endocycle-dependent genome amplification to growth arrest is disturbed in androgenic complete hydatidiform moles (CHM), a hyperplastic pregnancy disorder associated with increased risk of developing choriocarinoma. Senescence is decreased in CHM-EVTs, accompanied by exacerbated endoreduplication and hyperploidy. We propose induction of cellular senescence as a ploidy-limiting mechanism during normal human placentation and unravel a link between excessive polyploidization and reduced senescence in CHM. AU - Velicky, Philipp AU - Meinhardt, Gudrun AU - Plessl, Kerstin AU - Vondra, Sigrid AU - Weiss, Tamara AU - Haslinger, Peter AU - Lendl, Thomas AU - Aumayr, Karin AU - Mairhofer, Mario AU - Zhu, Xiaowei AU - Schütz, Birgit AU - Hannibal, Roberta L. AU - Lindau, Robert AU - Weil, Beatrix AU - Ernerudh, Jan AU - Neesen, Jürgen AU - Egger, Gerda AU - Mikula, Mario AU - Röhrl, Clemens AU - Urban, Alexander E. AU - Baker, Julie AU - Knöfler, Martin AU - Pollheimer, Jürgen ID - 5998 IS - 10 JF - PLOS Genetics SN - 1553-7404 TI - Genome amplification and cellular senescence are hallmarks of human placenta development VL - 14 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Motivation Computational prediction of the effect of mutations on protein stability is used by researchers in many fields. The utility of the prediction methods is affected by their accuracy and bias. Bias, a systematic shift of the predicted change of stability, has been noted as an issue for several methods, but has not been investigated systematically. Presence of the bias may lead to misleading results especially when exploring the effects of combination of different mutations. Results Here we use a protocol to measure the bias as a function of the number of introduced mutations. It is based on a self-consistency test of the reciprocity the effect of a mutation. An advantage of the used approach is that it relies solely on crystal structures without experimentally measured stability values. We applied the protocol to four popular algorithms predicting change of protein stability upon mutation, FoldX, Eris, Rosetta and I-Mutant, and found an inherent bias. For one program, FoldX, we manage to substantially reduce the bias using additional relaxation by Modeller. Authors using algorithms for predicting effects of mutations should be aware of the bias described here. AU - Usmanova, Dinara R AU - Bogatyreva, Natalya S AU - Ariño Bernad, Joan AU - Eremina, Aleksandra A AU - Gorshkova, Anastasiya A AU - Kanevskiy, German M AU - Lonishin, Lyubov R AU - Meister, Alexander V AU - Yakupova, Alisa G AU - Kondrashov, Fyodor AU - Ivankov, Dmitry ID - 5995 IS - 21 JF - Bioinformatics SN - 1367-4803 TI - Self-consistency test reveals systematic bias in programs for prediction change of stability upon mutation VL - 34 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Lamellipodia are flat membrane protrusions formed during mesenchymal motion. Polymerization at the leading edge assembles the actin filament network and generates protrusion force. How this force is supported by the network and how the assembly rate is shared between protrusion and network retrograde flow determines the protrusion rate. We use mathematical modeling to understand experiments changing the F-actin density in lamellipodia of B16-F1 melanoma cells by modulation of Arp2/3 complex activity or knockout of the formins FMNL2 and FMNL3. Cells respond to a reduction of density with a decrease of protrusion velocity, an increase in the ratio of force to filament number, but constant network assembly rate. The relation between protrusion force and tension gradient in the F-actin network and the density dependency of friction, elasticity, and viscosity of the network explain the experimental observations. The formins act as filament nucleators and elongators with differential rates. Modulation of their activity suggests an effect on network assembly rate. Contrary to these expectations, the effect of changes in elongator composition is much weaker than the consequences of the density change. We conclude that the force acting on the leading edge membrane is the force required to drive F-actin network retrograde flow. AU - Dolati, Setareh AU - Kage, Frieda AU - Mueller, Jan AU - Müsken, Mathias AU - Kirchner, Marieluise AU - Dittmar, Gunnar AU - Sixt, Michael K AU - Rottner, Klemens AU - Falcke, Martin ID - 5992 IS - 22 JF - Molecular Biology of the Cell TI - On the relation between filament density, force generation, and protrusion rate in mesenchymal cell motility VL - 29 ER - TY - JOUR AB - The optic tectum (TeO), or superior colliculus, is a multisensory midbrain center that organizes spatially orienting responses to relevant stimuli. To define the stimulus with the highest priority at each moment, a network of reciprocal connections between the TeO and the isthmi promotes competition between concurrent tectal inputs. In the avian midbrain, the neurons mediating enhancement and suppression of tectal inputs are located in separate isthmic nuclei, facilitating the analysis of the neural processes that mediate competition. A specific subset of radial neurons in the intermediate tectal layers relay retinal inputs to the isthmi, but at present it is unclear whether separate neurons innervate individual nuclei or a single neural type sends a common input to several of them. In this study, we used in vitro neural tracing and cell-filling experiments in chickens to show that single neurons innervate, via axon collaterals, the three nuclei that comprise the isthmotectal network. This demonstrates that the input signals representing the strength of the incoming stimuli are simultaneously relayed to the mechanisms promoting both enhancement and suppression of the input signals. By performing in vivo recordings in anesthetized chicks, we also show that this common input generates synchrony between both antagonistic mechanisms, demonstrating that activity enhancement and suppression are closely coordinated. From a computational point of view, these results suggest that these tectal neurons constitute integrative nodes that combine inputs from different sources to drive in parallel several concurrent neural processes, each performing complementary functions within the network through different firing patterns and connectivity. AU - Garrido-Charad, Florencia AU - Vega Zuniga, Tomas A AU - Gutiérrez-Ibáñez, Cristián AU - Fernandez, Pedro AU - López-Jury, Luciana AU - González-Cabrera, Cristian AU - Karten, Harvey J. AU - Luksch, Harald AU - Marín, Gonzalo J. ID - 6010 IS - 32 JF - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences SN - 0027-8424 TI - “Shepherd’s crook” neurons drive and synchronize the enhancing and suppressive mechanisms of the midbrain stimulus selection network VL - 115 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Digital fabrication devices are powerful tools for creating tangible reproductions of 3D digital models. Most available printing technologies aim at producing an accurate copy of a tridimensional shape. However, fabrication technologies can also be used to create a stylistic representation of a digital shape. We refer to this class of methods as ‘stylized fabrication methods’. These methods abstract geometric and physical features of a given shape to create an unconventional representation, to produce an optical illusion or to devise a particular interaction with the fabricated model. In this state‐of‐the‐art report, we classify and overview this broad and emerging class of approaches and also propose possible directions for future research. AU - Bickel, Bernd AU - Cignoni, Paolo AU - Malomo, Luigi AU - Pietroni, Nico ID - 6003 IS - 6 JF - Computer Graphics Forum SN - 0167-7055 TI - State of the art on stylized fabrication VL - 37 ER - TY - JOUR AB - The Bogoliubov free energy functional is analysed. The functional serves as a model of a translation-invariant Bose gas at positive temperature. We prove the existence of minimizers in the case of repulsive interactions given by a sufficiently regular two-body potential. Furthermore, we prove the existence of a phase transition in this model and provide its phase diagram. AU - Napiórkowski, Marcin M AU - Reuvers, Robin AU - Solovej, Jan Philip ID - 6002 IS - 3 JF - Archive for Rational Mechanics and Analysis SN - 0003-9527 TI - The Bogoliubov free energy functional I: Existence of minimizers and phase diagram VL - 229 ER -