Induced Parity Violation in Odd Dimensions

One of the interesting features about field theories in odd dimensions is the induction of parity violating terms and well-defined {\em finite} topological actions via quantum loops if a fermion mass term is originally present and conversely. Aspects of this issue are illustrated for electrodynamics in 2+1 and 4+1 dimensions. (3 uuencoded Postscript Files are appended at the end of the TexFile.)Comment: 10 pages, UTAS-PHYS-94-0

Giant Alcohol: A Worthy Opponent for the Children of the Band of Hope

From its foundation in 1847, the temperance organisation the Band of Hope addressed its young members as consumers, victims, and agents. In the first two roles they encountered the effects of drink of necessity, but in the third role they were encouraged to seek it out, attempting to influence individuals and wider society against 'Giant Alcohol'. With an estimated membership of half the school-age population by the early twentieth century, well over three million, the Band of Hope also acted more directly to influence policy, and encouraged young people to consider issues of policy and politics. With its wide range of activities and material to educate, entertain and empower millions of children, and its radical view of the place of the child, the Band of Hope not only mobilised its child members to lobby for legal change, including prohibition, but took an active part in pointing out the cost of alcohol to society, particularly during the 14-18 war. The organisation began to decline post 1918, and this paper focuses on the address made to children by the Band of Hope in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, at a time when its innovative view of children as able to understand and influence policy decisions reflected developments in the construction of childhood. This article draws on the archive of the British National Temperance League, over 50,000 items located in the Livesey Collection, University of Central Lancashire

Detection of Mycoplasma pneumoniae in Simulated and True Clinical Throat Swab Specimens by Nanorod Array-Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy

The prokaryote Mycoplasma pneumoniae is a major cause of respiratory disease in humans, accounting for 20% of all community-acquired pneumonia and the leading cause of pneumonia in older children and young adults. The limitations of existing options for mycoplasma diagnosis highlight a critical need for a new detection platform with high sensitivity, specificity, and expediency. Here we evaluated silver nanorod arrays (NA) as a biosensing platform for detection and differentiation of M. pneumoniae in culture and in spiked and true clinical throat swab samples by surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). Three M. pneumoniae strains were reproducibly differentiated by NA-SERS with 95%–100% specificity and 94–100% sensitivity, and with a lower detection limit exceeding standard PCR. Analysis of throat swab samples spiked with M. pneumoniae yielded detection in a complex, clinically relevant background with >90% accuracy and high sensitivity. In addition, NA-SERS correctly classified with >97% accuracy, ten true clinical throat swab samples previously established by real-time PCR and culture to be positive or negative for M. pneumoniae. Our findings suggest that the unique biochemical specificity of Raman spectroscopy, combined with reproducible spectral enhancement by silver NA, holds great promise as a superior platform for rapid and sensitive detection and identification of M. pneumoniae, with potential for point-of-care application

Macrolide‐resistant Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia in transplantation: Increasingly typical?

Mycoplasma pneumoniae is one of the most common bacterial causes of pneumonia. Macrolide‐resistant M pneumoniae (MRMP) was documented in 7.5% of isolates in the United States. Resistance portends poor outcomes to macrolide therapy, yet patients respond well to fluoroquinolones or tetracyclines such as minocycline. However, MRMP may be under‐appreciated because M pneumoniae generally causes relatively mild infections in non‐immunosuppressed adults that may resolve without effective therapy and because microbiological confirmation and susceptibility are not routinely performed. We report two cases of pneumonia due to MRMP in kidney transplant recipients. Both patients required hospital admission, worsened on macrolide therapy, and rapidly defervesced on doxycycline or levofloxacin. In one case, M pneumoniae was only identified by multiplex respiratory pathogen panel analysis of BAL fluid. Macrolide resistance was confirmed in both cases by real‐time PCR and point mutations associated with macrolide resistance were identified. M pneumoniae was isolated from both cases, and molecular genotyping revealed the same genotype. In conclusion, clinicians should be aware of the potential for macrolide resistance in M pneumoniae, and may consider non‐macrolide‐based therapy for confirmed or non‐responding infections in patients who are immunocompromised or hospitalized.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/163484/2/tid13318.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/163484/1/tid13318_am.pd

Gauge covariance and the fermion-photon vertex in three- and four- dimensional, massless quantum electrodynamics

In the quenched approximation, the gauge covariance properties of three vertex Ans\"{a}tze in the Schwinger-Dyson equation for the fermion self energy are analysed in three- and four- dimensional quantum electrodynamics. Based on the Cornwall-Jackiw-Tomboulis effective action, it is inferred that the spectral representation used for the vertex in the gauge technique cannot support dynamical chiral symmetry breaking. A criterion for establishing whether a given Ansatz can confer gauge covariance upon the Schwinger-Dyson equation is presented and the Curtis and Pennington Ansatz is shown to satisfy this constraint. We obtain an analytic solution of the Schwinger-Dyson equation for quenched, massless three-dimensional quantum electrodynamics for arbitrary values of the gauge parameter in the absence of dynamical chiral symmetry breaking.Comment: 17 pages, PHY-7143-TH-93, REVTE

Landau-Khalatnikov-Fradkin Transformations and the Fermion Propagator in Quantum Electrodynamics

We study the gauge covariance of the massive fermion propagator in three as well as four dimensional Quantum Electrodynamics (QED). Starting from its value at the lowest order in perturbation theory, we evaluate a non-perturbative expression for it by means of its Landau-Khalatnikov-Fradkin (LKF) transformation. We compare the perturbative expansion of our findings with the known one loop results and observe perfect agreement upto a gauge parameter independent term, a difference permitted by the structure of the LKF transformations.Comment: 9 pages, no figures, uses revte

Failure of erythromycin to eliminate airway colonization with ureaplasma urealyticum in very low birth weight infants

BACKGROUND: Airway colonization of mechanically ventilated very low birth weight infants (birth weight < 1500 grams) by Ureaplasma urealyticum (Uu) is associated with an increased risk of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD). While Uu is sensitive to erythromycin in vitro, the efficacy of intravenous (IV) erythromycin to eliminate Uu from the airways has not been studied. METHODS: 17 very low birth weight infants with Uu positive tracheal aspirate (TA) cultures were randomized to either 5 (8 infants) or 10 days (9 infants) of IV erythromycin lactobionate (40 mg/kg/day in 3 divided doses). Tracheal aspirate cultures for Uu were performed on days 0, 5, 10 and 15. RESULTS: Intravenous erythromycin failed to eliminate airway colonization in a large proportion of infants regardless of whether they received 5 or 10 days of treatment. Ureaplasma urealyticum was isolated from 4/15 (27%) of TAs obtained at 5 days, 5/12 TAs (42%) obtained at 10 days and 6/11(55%) TAs obtained at 15 days (combined group data). CONCLUSIONS: Erythromycin administered IV does not eliminate Uu from the airways in a large proportion of infants. Failure of erythromycin to eliminate Uu from the airways may contribute to the lack of efficacy of this drug in reducing the incidence of BPD in very low birth weight infants

Molecular evidence of Ureaplasma urealyticum and Ureaplasma parvum colonization in preterm infants during respiratory distress syndrome

BACKGROUND: Ureaplasma urealyticum and U. parvum have been associated with respiratory diseases in premature newborns, but their role in the pathogenesis of the respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) is unclear. The aim of this study was to detect, using molecular techniques, the role of Mycoplasma spp. and Ureaplasma spp. in respiratory secretion and blood specimens of preterm newborns with or without RDS and to evaluate the prevalence of perinatal U. urealyticum or U. parvum infection. The influence of chemotherapy on the clinical course was also evaluated. METHODS: Tracheal aspirate or nasopharingeal fluid samples from 50 preterm babies with (24) or without RDS (26) were analysed for detection of U. urealyticum and U. parvum by culture identification assay and PCR. Sequencing analysis of amplicons allowed us to verify the specificity of methods. Clarithromycin (10 mg kg(-1 )twice a day) was administered in ureaplasma-positive patients who presented clinical signs of RDS. RESULTS: 15/24 neonates with RDS (p < 0.001) and 4/26 without RDS were found PCR-positive for U. urealyticum or U. parvum. Culture identification assay was positive in 5/50 newborns, three of which with RDS. Sequencing analyses confirmed the specificity of these methods. Association of patent ductus arteriosus with ureaplasma colonization was more statistically significant (p = 0.0004) in patients with RDS than in those without RDS. CONCLUSION: Colonization of the lower respiratory tract by Ureaplasma spp. and particularly by U. parvum in preterm newborns was related to RDS. The routine use of molecular methods could be useful to screen candidate babies for etiologic therapy

Statistical and agent-based modelling of the transmissibility of different SARS-CoV-2 variants in England and impact of different interventions

The English SARS-CoV-2 epidemic has been affected by the emergence of new viral variants such as B.1.177, Alpha and Delta, and changing restrictions. We used statistical models and the agent-based model Covasim, in June 2021, to estimate B.1.177 to be 20% more transmissible than the wild type, Alpha to be 50-80% more transmissible than B.1.177 and Delta to be 65-90% more transmissible than Alpha. Using these estimates in Covasim (calibrated 1 September 2020 to 20 June 2021), in June 2021, we found that due to the high transmissibility of Delta, resurgence in infections driven by the Delta variant would not be prevented, but would be strongly reduced by delaying the relaxation of restrictions by one month and with continued vaccination. This article is part of the theme issue 'Technical challenges of modelling real-life epidemics and examples of overcoming these'