Abstract: An anti-rotation device is provided for stringing a cable or wire while reducing a twisting moment of the cable or wire as it is strung. The device includes a tow component, having multiple tow sections pivotally connectable end-to-end. A plurality of insulated weighted tail components are suspended so as to hang from the tow component. Each of the insulated tail components include weighted tail sections releasably connectable end-to-end to one another. At least one electrically insulated tail section is provided in each insulated tail component between the tow component and the weighted tail sections. The tail components are constrained to only articulate relative to the tow component in the single plane of bending of the tow component.

Abstract: A transistor is disclosed, comprising: a layer of semiconductor material comprising a first portion, a second portion, and a third portion connecting the first portion to the second portion and providing a semiconductive channel between the first portion and the second portion; a conductive first terminal covering and in electrical contact with said first portion of the layer of semiconductor material; a conductive second terminal covering and in electrical contact with said second portion of the layer of semiconductor material; a conductive gate terminal comprising a first overlapping portion covering at least part of the first terminal, and a channel portion covering the third portion of the layer of semiconductor material; and a layer of a first dielectric material, having a first dielectric constant, arranged between the first overlapping portion and the first terminal, and between the channel portion of the gate terminal and the third portion of the layer of semiconductor material.

Abstract: The present invention provides assays for the identification of inhibitors of endopeptidase toxins. The assays utilize genetically engineered yeast cells that contain a conditionally expressed endopeptidase toxin. When conditions for expression of the toxin are met, the toxin cleaves a yeast (natural or engineered) peptide product that is required for yeast survival. If the yeast is grown in the presence of an candidate substance that is an inhibitor of the toxin, the yeast survives, thereby providing a rapid and sensitive identification of the inhibitor.

Abstract: The present invention provides a yeast cell comprising a nucleic acid functionally encoding a eukaryotic (e.g., mammalian) protein homologue of a subunit (Sec11p, Spc1p, Spc2p and/or Spc3p) of the yeast signal peptidase complex. The yeast cell of this invention can be, for example, of the genus Saccharomyces, Schizosaccharomyces, Pichia, Hansenula, Kluyveromyces and/or Yarrowia. Furthermore, the yeast cell can lack one or more functional subunits (Sec11p, Spc1p, Spc2p and/or Spc3p) of the yeast signal peptidase complex. The present invention further provides a method for producing a protein heterologous to a yeast cell comprising expressing, in the yeast cell of this invention, a nucleic acid functionally encoding the heterologous protein under conditions which permit the expression of the nucleic acid as a precursor protein having a signal peptide and processing of the precursor protein to a signal peptide-cleaved form of the protein.