Abstract:
The present invention discloses a novel magnetic sensor device performing direct magnetic field imaging, comprising a probe having a conical tip portion which is configured as a sensor having two superconductors separated by a thin non-superconducting layer (such as a Josephson junction based sensor), where the non-superconducting layer is located at the apex portion of said conical tip, thereby defining electron tunneling region(s) at said apex portion. The technique of the present invention enables the sensor device to be very small and to be brought very close to the sample surface.
Abstract:
An apparatus for measuring an optical property of a sample, such as a directional emissivity or a directional hemispherical reflectivity, comprises a reference unit (15) having a reference surface of a predetermined directional emissivity, and a main chamber (4) and an auxiliary chamber (2), each said chamber defining an optical window (14, 12) providing an optical passage (13) between the chambers, wherein the main chamber (4) is configured to provide a region (15) for accomodating the reference unit (5) and the sample (S) and to screen said region from external radiation. The apparatus may further comprise a radiation source (3) provided in the auxiliary chamber (2) and an imager (16), e.g., an IR camera, focused on said region.
Abstract:
A method of determining an amount of total PON1 in a sample of a subject is disclosed. The method comprises: (a) contacting the sample with a compound being capable of generating at least one spectrophotometrically detectable moiety upon contact with PON1, under conditions wherein the generating is not dependent on a PON1 status; and (b) spectrophotometrically measuring a level of the moiety, thereby determining an amount of total PON1 in the sample. Kits for measuring total PON1 levels comprising the compounds are also disclosed.
Abstract:
A redirected Treg cell is endowed with specificity toward a selected target antigen or ligand. The cell contains a chimeric receptor polypeptide that is expressed in a single, continuous chain, with an extracellular recognition region displayed on the surface of the cell, a transmembrane region and an intracellular signaling region. The extracellular recognition region is specific for the selected target antigen or ligand. The intracellular signaling region includes a combination of T-cell signaling polypeptide moieties, which combination, upon binding of the extracellular recognition region to the selected target antigen or ligand, triggers activation of the redirected Treg cells to cause suppression of T-cell mediated immunity. Such redirected Treg cells may be used to suppress undesired activity of T effector cells thereby mediating an immune or inflammatory response. They are particularly useful in treating T effector cell-mediated diseases, such as inflammatory bowel disease, transplant rejection and GVH disease.
Abstract:
A method for recording a set of MRI images of a tissue pixel by pixel that evolve with time in a specific manner described by a function; processing the recorded MRI images by aggregating the pixels thereof according to a preselected aspect of time behavior; best fitting the aggregated pixels to a predetermined pixel function to obtain the parameters of the function; and presenting the parameters visually. A computer readable medium containing executable program instructions for carrying out the method.
Abstract:
An isolated polynucleotide comprising a first nucleic acid sequence which comprises two functionally compatible recognition sites for a site-specific recombination enzyme and a second nucleic acid sequence encoding a protein binding-RNA sequence is provided. Also provided are nucleic acid constructs, methods and kits for localization of an mRNA and/or a polypeptide encoded by a given gene-of-interest within living cells.