444 research outputs found
Mobility of the SecA 2-helix-finger is not essential for polypeptide translocation via the SecYEG complex
The bacterial ATPase SecA and protein channel complex SecYEG form the core of an essential protein translocation machinery. The nature of the conformational changes induced by each stage of the hydrolytic cycle of ATP and how they are coupled to protein translocation are not well understood. The structure of the SecA–SecYEG complex revealed a 2-helix-finger (2HF) of SecA in an ideal position to contact the substrate protein and push it through the membrane. Surprisingly, immobilization of this finger at the edge of the protein channel had no effect on translocation, whereas its imposition inside the channel blocked transport. This analysis resolves the stoichiometry of the active complex, demonstrating that after the initiation process translocation requires only one copy each of SecA and SecYEG. The results also have important implications on the mechanism of energy transduction and the power stroke driving transport. Evidently, the 2HF is not a highly mobile transducing element of polypeptide translocation
Carbenicillin-induced coagulopathy
In high dosage, carbenicillin may interfere with the conversion of fibrinogen to fibrin and result in a haemorrhagic diathesis. The effect is dose-dependent and requires a high concentration of carbenicillin in plasma. Such a level may be attained in renal failure unless the dose of the drug is appropriately reduced. In such situations the screening coagulation tests may be prolonged and this should alert one to the development of a haemorrhagic diathesis due to the drug.S. Afr. Med. J., 48, 457 (1974)
Multidimensional relativistic MHD simulations of Pulsar Wind Nebulae: dynamics and emission
Pulsar Wind Nebulae, and the Crab nebula in particular, are the best cosmic
laboratories to investigate the dynamics of magnetized relativistic outflows
and particle acceleration up to PeV energies. Multidimensional MHD modeling by
means of numerical simulations has been very successful at reproducing, to the
very finest details, the innermost structure of these synchrotron emitting
nebulae, as observed in the X-rays. Therefore, the comparison between the
simulated source and observations can be used as a powerful diagnostic tool to
probe the physical conditions in pulsar winds, like their composition,
magnetization, and degree of anisotropy. However, in spite of the wealth of
observations and of the accuracy of current MHD models, the precise mechanisms
for magnetic field dissipation and for the acceleration of the non-thermal
emitting particles are mysteries still puzzling theorists to date. Here we
review the methodologies of the computational approach to the modeling of
Pulsar Wind Nebulae, discussing the most relevant results and the recent
progresses achieved in this fascinating field of high-energy astrophysics.Comment: 29 pages review, preliminary version. To appear in the book
"Modelling Nebulae" edited by D. Torres for Springer, based on the invited
contributions to the workshop held in Sant Cugat (Barcelona), June 14-17,
201
Sharp increase of the effective mass near the critical density in a metallic 2D electron system
We find that at intermediate temperatures, the metallic temperature
dependence of the conductivity \sigma(T) of 2D electrons in silicon is
described well by a recent interaction-based theory of Zala et al. (Phys. Rev.
B 64, 214204 (2001)). The tendency of the slope d\sigma/dT to diverge near the
critical electron density is in agreement with the previously suggested
ferromagnetic instability in this electron system. Unexpectedly, it is found to
originate from the sharp enhancement of the effective mass, while the effective
Lande g factor remains nearly constant and close to its value in bulk silicon
Emergence of quasi-metallic state in disordered 2D electron gas due to strong interactions
The interrelation between disorder and interactions in two dimensional
electron liquid is studied beyond weak coupling perturbation theory. Strong
repulsion significantly reduces the electronic density of states on the Fermi
level. This makes the electron liquid more rigid and strongly suppresses
elastic scattering off impurities. As a result the weak localization, although
ultimately present at zero temperature and infinite sample size, is
unobservable at experimentally accessible temperature at high enough densities.
Therefore practically there exists a well defined metallic state. We study
diffusion of electrons in this state and find that the diffusion pole is
significantly modified due to "mixture" with static photons similar to the
Anderson - Higgs mechanism in superconductivity. As a result several effects
stemming from the long range nature of diffusion like the Aronov - Altshuler
logarithmic corrections to conductivity are less pronounced.Comment: to appear in Phys. Rev.
Interaction Corrections to Two-Dimensional Hole Transport in Large Limit
The metallic conductivity of dilute two-dimensional holes in a GaAs HIGFET
(Heterojunction Insulated-Gate Field-Effect Transistor) with extremely high
mobility and large is found to have a linear dependence on temperature,
consistent with the theory of interaction corrections in the ballistic regime.
Phonon scattering contributions are negligible in the temperature range of our
interest, allowing comparison between our measured data and theory without any
phonon subtraction. The magnitude of the Fermi liquid interaction parameter
determined from the experiment, however, decreases with
increasing for r_{s}\agt22, a behavior unexpected from existing
theoretical calculations valid for small .Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure
The Distributional Impact of Statewide Property Tax Relief: the Michigan Case
This study uses data from a random survey of 2001 Michigan households to analyze the extent to which the Michigan ctreuit-breaker has been successful in reducing the income regressivity of the property tax and in changing relative property tax burdens. Because of its relatively extensive coverage, including renters as well as homeowners and the nonaged as well as the aged, the circuit-breaker has yielded a more equal distribution of income within Michigan. Its potential to change the distribution of income depends on the particular formula utilized, but redistributional effects have thus far been lamited because program participation has been positively correlated with income. To the extent that reductions in the price ofpublic services created by the circuit-breaker are perceived by households, the biggest stimulus appears to be in high property tax/high-income countiesPeer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/68848/2/10.1177_109114218301100201.pd
The large longitudinal spread of solar energetic particles during the January 17, 2010 solar event
We investigate multi-spacecraft observations of the January 17, 2010 solar
energetic particle event. Energetic electrons and protons have been observed
over a remarkable large longitudinal range at the two STEREO spacecraft and
SOHO suggesting a longitudinal spread of nearly 360 degrees at 1AU. The flaring
active region, which was on the backside of the Sun as seen from Earth, was
separated by more than 100 degrees in longitude from the magnetic footpoints of
each of the three spacecraft. The event is characterized by strongly delayed
energetic particle onsets with respect to the flare and only small or no
anisotropies in the intensity measurements at all three locations. The presence
of a coronal shock is evidenced by the observation of a type II radio burst
from the Earth and STEREO B. In order to describe the observations in terms of
particle transport in the interplanetary medium, including perpendicular
diffusion, a 1D model describing the propagation along a magnetic field line
(model 1) (Dr\"oge, 2003) and the 3D propagation model (model 2) by (Dr\"oge et
al., 2010) including perpendicular diffusion in the interplanetary medium have
been applied, respectively. While both models are capable of reproducing the
observations, model 1 requires injection functions at the Sun of several hours.
Model 2, which includes lateral transport in the solar wind, reveals high
values for the ratio of perpendicular to parallel diffusion. Because we do not
find evidence for unusual long injection functions at the Sun we favor a
scenario with strong perpendicular transport in the interplanetary medium as
explanation for the observations.Comment: The final publication is available at http://www.springerlink.co
Spatial representation of temporal information through spike timing dependent plasticity
We suggest a mechanism based on spike time dependent plasticity (STDP) of
synapses to store, retrieve and predict temporal sequences. The mechanism is
demonstrated in a model system of simplified integrate-and-fire type neurons
densely connected by STDP synapses. All synapses are modified according to the
so-called normal STDP rule observed in various real biological synapses. After
conditioning through repeated input of a limited number of of temporal
sequences the system is able to complete the temporal sequence upon receiving
the input of a fraction of them. This is an example of effective unsupervised
learning in an biologically realistic system. We investigate the dependence of
learning success on entrainment time, system size and presence of noise.
Possible applications include learning of motor sequences, recognition and
prediction of temporal sensory information in the visual as well as the
auditory system and late processing in the olfactory system of insects.Comment: 13 pages, 14 figures, completely revised and augmented versio
Anisotropy studies around the galactic centre at EeV energies with the Auger Observatory
Data from the Pierre Auger Observatory are analyzed to search for
anisotropies near the direction of the Galactic Centre at EeV energies. The
exposure of the surface array in this part of the sky is already significantly
larger than that of the fore-runner experiments. Our results do not support
previous findings of localized excesses in the AGASA and SUGAR data. We set an
upper bound on a point-like flux of cosmic rays arriving from the Galactic
Centre which excludes several scenarios predicting sources of EeV neutrons from
Sagittarius . Also the events detected simultaneously by the surface and
fluorescence detectors (the `hybrid' data set), which have better pointing
accuracy but are less numerous than those of the surface array alone, do not
show any significant localized excess from this direction.Comment: Matches published versio
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