Force spectroscopy and Empress Masako: Difference between pages

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[[Image:Masako4.jpg|thumb|250px|Crown Princess Masako with her husband, Crown Prince Naruhito]]

Force spectroscopy is a dynamic analytical technique that allows the study of mechanical properties of [[polymer]] molecules and / or [[chemical bond]]. It is exceptional in being a single molecule technique , i.e. gains structural informations manipulating molecules one by one. It is a direct and recent application of [[atomic force microscopy]].

'''Masako''' ([[jp]]: 雅子皇太子妃殿下 ''masako kōtaishihi denka'') (born [[December 9]] [[1963]], [[Tokyo]], [[Japan]]) is '''Her Imperial Highness The [[Crown Princess]] of Japan'''.

The name “force spectroscopy”, although widely used in the scientific community, is in fact misleading, because there’s no true matter-radiation interaction. Force spectroscopy measures the behaviour of a molecule under stretching mechanical [[force]].

Born '''Masako Owada''' (小和田 雅子 ''owada masako''), the eldest daughter of [[Hisashi Owada]], a senior [[diplomat]], she traveled the world with her parents from childhood. She went to kindergarten in [[Moscow]], attended Belmont High School in [[Belmont, Massachusetts]], near [[Boston]], and graduated from [[Harvard University]] magna cum laude in [[1985]] with a degree in economics. Afterwards she went to study at [[Oxford University]] for 2 years from [[1988]] to [[1990]], to work on a postgraduate degree in International Relations. Masako became fluent in 4 languages - Russian, English, French and German - and joined the [[Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Japan)|Japanese foreign ministry]], where she met many world leaders such as [[United States|U.S.]] [[President of the United States|president]] [[Bill Clinton]] and [[Russia|Russian]] [[President of Russia|president]] [[Boris Yeltsin]]. Masako was noted to have taken part in trade negotiations with the United States over [[superconductors]], as a translator.

A common experimental set-up is as following. Molecules adsorbed on a [[surface]] are picked up by a microscopic tip (few microns wide) that is located on the end of an elastic cantilever. A piezoelectric controller then pulls up the cantilever. If some force is acting on the elastic cantilever (for example because some molecule is being stretched between the surface and the tip) , this will deflect upward (repulsive force) or downward (attractive force) ; according to [[Hooke’s law]], this deflection will be proportional to the force acting on the cantilever. Deflection is measured by the position of a [[laser]] beam reflected by the cantilever. This kind of set-up can measure forces as low as 10 pN (10^-11 N) , and cannot achieve much better resolution only because of thermal [[noise]]. The so-called force spectrum is the graph of force (precisely, of cantilever deflection) versus the piezoelectric position on the Z axis. An ideal Hookian [[spring]] , for example , would display a straight diagonal line spectrum.

By all accounts, the Crown Princess is very intelligent and talented, and she might have gone far in a diplomatic career.

Common applications of force spectroscopy are measurements of [[polymer]] [[elasticity]]. Polymer chains tend to be randomly coiled at rest. They resist to stretching forces because the more the stretching , the less the configurations accessible to the chain. This corresponds to a loss of [[entropy]], and therefore generates a restoring force. Polymers generally don’t behave like Hookian springs, but are well described by more sophisticated models like the [[worm-like chain model]] of entropic elasticity. If during stretching a conformational change occurs, the elasticity will also gain an enthalpic component (i.e. a component due to the breaking / forming / reshaping of chemical bonds). This is readily seen in the force spectra as deviations from the expected entropic elasticity curve. For example, [[DNA]] double helices show a marked conformational change when stretched at forces around 60 pN.

Though she initially refused the marriage proposal of His Imperial Highness Crown Prince [[Naruhito]], the Heir Apparent to the throne of Japan, Masako was eventually convinced into marriage. She married Naruhito on [[June 9]] [[1993]], much to the public's delight and became Her Imperial Highness The Crown Princess fo Japan. However, many younger Japanese women felt conflict when Masako gave up her career in order to marry the Crown Prince, thereby accepting the many restrictions imposed by life in the Imperial Court, thanks to the powerful and highly conservative [[Imperial Household Agency]]. Elder Japanese, however, saw it as the highest diplomatic post available in Japan, and the best possible lifelong promotion for Crown Princess Masako.

An exciting biophysical application of polymer force spectroscopy is on [[protein]] unfolding. Modular proteins can be adsorbed to a gold or (more rarely) [[mica]] [[surface]] and then stretched. The sequential [[unfolding]] of modules is observed as a very characteristic sawtooth pattern of the force vs elongation graph ; every tooth corresponds to the unfolding of a single protein module (apart from the last that is generally the detachment of the protein molecule from the tip) A lot of information about protein elasticity and protein unfolding can be obtained by this technique. This is even more interesting if we consider the fact that a lot of proteins in the living [[cell]] must face mechanical stress.

After a highly publicized [[miscarriage]] (which was blamed by many on media pressure), she gave birth to a girl, [[Princess Aiko|Aiko]], on [[December 1]] [[2001]]. Princess Aiko's birth stimulated public debate on changing Japan's [[Imperial Household Law]] to add royal daughters, a commentary that has not ceased. The lack of a male heir has created a great deal of anxiety and uncertainty in Japan.

The other main application of force spectroscopy is the study of mechanical resistance of chemical bonds. In this case generally the tip is functionalized with a ligand that binds to another molecule bound to the surface. The tip is pushed on the surface, allowing for contact between the two molecules, and then retracted until the newly formed bond breaks up. The force at which the bond breaks up is measured. Since mechanical breaking is a kinetic , [[stochastic]] process, the breaking force is not an absolute parameter, but it is a function of both temperature and pulling speed. Low temperatures and high pulling speeds correspond to higher breaking forces. By careful analysis of the breaking force at various pulling speeds , it is possible to map the [[energy]] landscape of the chemical bond under mechanical force. This is leading to interesting results in the study of [[antibody]]-[[antigen]] , protein-protein and even protein-living cell interaction.

On [[December 9]], [[2004]], the Princess announced that she hoped to return to her official duties soon, but this has not yet occurred. She has been absent from many of these duties for more than 13 months, due to what the family has called "stress-induced illness." Her husband has made pointed and controversial comments about incourtesies addressed to and other pressures placed on his wife since their marriage by the Imperial Household Agency; observers have indicated that Masako, like her mother-in-law in the 1960s, may have suffered a [[nervous breakdown]]. It was announced that the Princess suffered from a herpes varicella zoster virus or [[chicken pox]].

It has been widely speculated that the insistent pressure to produce a male heir has put heavy stress on the Crown Princess. In [[January]], [[2005]], the [[Japanese government]] announced that they would consider allowing the Crown Prince and Princess to adopt a male child, in order to avoid the possible heir crisis. The child would be adopted from former royal members who lost their imperial titles after [[World War II]]. A government-appointed panel of experts is expected to submit a report later in 2005 regarding the feasibility of this plan. Many members of the Japanese public, however, have indicated that they would happily accept the possibility of Princess Aiko ascending the throne as Empress and view allowing the continuance of male primogeniture as a retrograde step.

==External links==

*[http://www.kunaicho.go.jp/e03/ed03-01.html Kunaicho | Their Imperial Highnesses Crown Prince Naruhito and Crown Princess Masako]

* [http://www.who2.com/princessmasako.html http://www.who2.com/princessmasako.html Who2 profile]

* [http://ikjeld.com/files/biographies/princess_masako.html http://ikjeld.com/files/biographies/princess_masako.html profile at kjeld.com]

* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3939179.stm Princess trapped by palace guard]

* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/low/world/asia-pacific/584125.stm News archive]

[[Category:Japanese monarchy|Masako, Princess]]

[[Category:Yamato line|Masako, Princess]]

[[Category:1963 births|Masako, Princess]]

[[ko:마사코 황태자비]]

[[ja:雅子 (皇室)]]

[[nb:Masako av Japan]]

[[zh:皇太子妃雅子]]