Protein aggregation and amyloid fibril deposits are characteristic features of more than twenty pathologic conditions characterized by plaque deposition in the central nervous system. Recent studies point out relationships between protein misfolding and numerous serious diseases. Despite different origins (sporadic, familial or transmissible), they are sometimes called conformational diseases to emphasize aberrant conformations as the putative cause of deposits that precede or accompany the clinical manifestation of the disease. Neurological disorders such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), Prion disorders (PrD), Parkinson's disease (PD), and Huntington's disease (HD) are the most typical examples of protein-based dementias, characterized by protein conformational transitions (alpha-helix/random coil to beta-sheet) that cause aggregation followed by fibrillization. Although it is very tempting to postulate a common mechanism of toxicity based on conformational and structural analogies, it should be noted that the factors responsible for conformational transition, oligomerization, aggregation, and plaque formation, are still subject of speculation and additional data is required to test the amyloid fibril hypothesis.
Photoluminescence and thermoluminescence of the oxygen-deficient Y₃Al₅O₁₂ (YAG), YAlO₃ (YAP) and Y₄Al₂O₉ (YAM) ceramics has been studied. Corresponding ceramic samples prepared by the same way however in oxidizing conditions (in air) were studied for comparison. The observed luminescent properties of the materials are related to the F-type centers created on the basis of oxygen vacancies, antisite (Y_{Al}) defects and uncontrolled Tb³⁺ impurity ions.
In this paper the physical properties of two types of Co-doped ZnO nanostructures: tetrapods and nanofibers grown by a rapid thermal evaporation process and prepared by the electrospinning technique, respectively, were investigated and analyzed. Surface morphology of the samples was examined using scanning electron microscopy. X-ray diffraction measurements showed hexagonal wurtzite crystal structure of both types of investigated nanostructures. Both X-ray diffraction and Raman scattering data confirmed high phase purity of the samples. The magnetic properties studied with the use of the SQUID magnetometer confirmed a presence of ferromagnetic order in analyzed nanostructures. The observed photoluminescence spectra exhibited two groups of lines. The first one, in the ultraviolet spectral range, is due to the optical transitions close to ZnO band gap, the second one in the red region is most probably related to the Co^{2+} d-d internal transitions. The influence of native defects on the optical properties is also shown and discussed. All results reported here lead us to the conclusion that in the mixed crystal nanostructures obtained, a fraction of the Zn^{2+} ions is substituted by Co^{2+} ions.
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