Could there be light at the end of the tunnel? Mesocaval shunting for refractory esophageal varices in patients with contraindications to transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt.

Cirrhotic patients with recurrent variceal bleeds who have failed prior medical and endoscopic therapies and are not transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt candidates face a grim prognosis with limited options. We propose that mesocaval shunting be offered to this group of patients as it has the potential to decrease portal pressures and thus decrease the risk of recurrent variceal bleeding. Mesocaval shunts are stent grafts placed by interventional radiologists between the mesenteric system, most often the superior mesenteric vein, and the inferior vena cava. This allows flow to bypass the congested hepatic system, reducing portal pressures. This technique avoids the general anesthesia and morbidity associated with surgical shunt placement and has been successful in several case reports. In this paper we review the technique, candidate selection, potential pitfalls and benefits of mesocaval shunt placement

Effects of danicamtiv, a novel cardiac myosin activator, in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction: experimental data and clinical results from a phase 2a trial

Aims: Both left ventricular (LV) and left atrial (LA) dysfunction and remodelling contribute to adverse outcomes in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF). Danicamtiv is a novel, cardiac myosin activator that enhances cardiomyocyte contraction. Methods and results: We studied the effects of danicamtiv on LV and LA function in non‐clinical studies (ex vivo : skinned muscle fibres and myofibrils; in vivo : dogs with heart failure) and in a randomized, double‐blind, single‐ and multiple‐dose phase 2a trial in patients with stable HFrEF (placebo, n = 10; danicamtiv, n = 30; 50–100 mg twice daily for 7 days). Danicamtiv increased ATPase activity and calcium sensitivity in LV and LA myofibrils/muscle fibres. In dogs with heart failure, danicamtiv improved LV stroke volume (+10.6 mL, P < 0.05) and LA emptying fraction (+10.7%, P < 0.05). In patients with HFrEF (mean age 60 years, 25% women, ischaemic heart disease 48%, mean LV ejection fraction 32%), treatment‐emergent adverse events, mostly mild, were reported in 17 patients (57%) receiving danicamtiv and 4 patients (40%) receiving placebo. Danicamtiv (at plasma concentrations ≥2000 ng/mL) increased stroke volume (up to +7.8 mL, P < 0.01), improved global longitudinal (up to −1.0%, P < 0.05) and circumferential strain (up to −3.3%, P < 0.01), decreased LA minimal volume index (up to −2.4 mL/m2, P < 0.01) and increased LA function index (up to 6.1, P < 0.01), when compared with placebo. Conclusions: Danicamtiv was well tolerated and improved LV systolic function in patients with HFrEF. A marked improvement in LA volume and function was also observed in patients with HFrEF, consistent with pre‐clinical findings of direct activation of LA contractility

Medieval menarche: changes in pubertal timing in the aftermath of the Black Death

OBJECTIVES: Bioarchaeological evidence suggests stature increased in males but decreased in females after the Black Death (1348-1350 CE). Because tradeoffs between growth and reproduction can result in earlier ages at menarche and lower limb length, we assess menarcheal age between 1120 and 1540 CE to better understand the health of medieval adolescent females before and after the plague. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Our sample comprises 74 adolescent females from St Mary Spital, London (1120-1540 CE) within the age range during which menarche occurs (10-25 years). They were assessed as being pre- or post-menarcheal and divided into three groups: Early Pre-Black Death (n=13), Late Pre-Black Death (n=38), and Post-Black Death (n=23). Changes in the ages of pre- and post-menarcheal females were assessed using Mann-Whitney tests. RESULTS: The average age of post-menarcheal females increased from the Early- to Late Pre-Black Death periods and declined after the Black Death. CONCLUSIONS: Short stature can reflect unfavorable growth environments, while younger menarcheal age indicates improved living conditions. The paradoxical pattern of female, but not male, stature reduction after the Black Death might reflect the association of early menarche with lower limb length and signal that adolescent females experienced improved health conditions after the epidemic. Our focus on pre- and post-menarche within a limited age span provides a novel approach for inferring average ages of menarche over time. Pathways to skeletal development and reproductive investment are part of an integrated system, providing a bridge between life history research in bioarchaeology and human biology

A Study of Time-Dependent CP-Violating Asymmetries and Flavor Oscillations in Neutral B Decays at the Upsilon(4S)

We present a measurement of time-dependent CP-violating asymmetries in neutral B meson decays collected with the BABAR detector at the PEP-II asymmetric-energy B Factory at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center. The data sample consists of 29.7 ${\rm fb}^{-1}$ recorded at the $\Upsilon(4S)$ resonance and 3.9 ${\rm fb}^{-1}$ off-resonance. One of the neutral B mesons, which are produced in pairs at the $\Upsilon(4S)$, is fully reconstructed in the CP decay modes $J/\psi K^0_S$, $\psi(2S) K^0_S$, $\chi_{c1} K^0_S$, $J/\psi K^{*0}$ ($K^{*0}\to K^0_S\pi^0$) and $J/\psi K^0_L$, or in flavor-eigenstate modes involving $D^{(*)}\pi/\rho/a_1$ and $J/\psi K^{*0}$ ($K^{*0}\to K^+\pi^-$). The flavor of the other neutral B meson is tagged at the time of its decay, mainly with the charge of identified leptons and kaons. The proper time elapsed between the decays is determined by measuring the distance between the decay vertices. A maximum-likelihood fit to this flavor eigenstate sample finds $\Delta m_d = 0.516\pm 0.016 {\rm (stat)} \pm 0.010 {\rm (syst)} {\rm ps}^{-1}$. The value of the asymmetry amplitude $\sin2\beta$ is determined from a simultaneous maximum-likelihood fit to the time-difference distribution of the flavor-eigenstate sample and about 642 tagged $B^0$ decays in the CP-eigenstate modes. We find $\sin2\beta=0.59\pm 0.14 {\rm (stat)} \pm 0.05 {\rm (syst)}$, demonstrating that CP violation exists in the neutral B meson system. (abridged)Comment: 58 pages, 35 figures, submitted to Physical Review

Measurement of the branching fraction and CP content for the decay B(0) -> D(*+)D(*-)

This is the pre-print version of the Article. The official published version can be accessed from the links below. Copyright @ 2002 APS.We report a measurement of the branching fraction of the decay B0→D*+D*- and of the CP-odd component of its final state using the BABAR detector. With data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 20.4  fb-1 collected at the Υ(4S) resonance during 1999–2000, we have reconstructed 38 candidate signal events in the mode B0→D*+D*- with an estimated background of 6.2±0.5 events. From these events, we determine the branching fraction to be B(B0→D*+D*-)=[8.3±1.6(stat)±1.2(syst)]×10-4. The measured CP-odd fraction of the final state is 0.22±0.18(stat)±0.03(syst).This work is supported by DOE and NSF (USA), NSERC (Canada), IHEP (China), CEA and CNRS-IN2P3 (France), BMBF (Germany), INFN (Italy), NFR (Norway), MIST (Russia), and PPARC (United Kingdom). Individuals have received support from the A.P. Sloan Foundation, Research Corporation, and Alexander von Humboldt Foundation

Measurement of the B0-anti-B0-Oscillation Frequency with Inclusive Dilepton Events

The $B^0$-$\bar B^0$ oscillation frequency has been measured with a sample of 23 million \B\bar B pairs collected with the BABAR detector at the PEP-II asymmetric B Factory at SLAC. In this sample, we select events in which both B mesons decay semileptonically and use the charge of the leptons to identify the flavor of each B meson. A simultaneous fit to the decay time difference distributions for opposite- and same-sign dilepton events gives $\Delta m_d = 0.493 \pm 0.012{(stat)}\pm 0.009{(syst)}$ ps$^{-1}$.Comment: 7 pages, 1 figure, submitted to Physical Review Letter

Spintronics: Fundamentals and applications

Spintronics, or spin electronics, involves the study of active control and manipulation of spin degrees of freedom in solid-state systems. This article reviews the current status of this subject, including both recent advances and well-established results. The primary focus is on the basic physical principles underlying the generation of carrier spin polarization, spin dynamics, and spin-polarized transport in semiconductors and metals. Spin transport differs from charge transport in that spin is a nonconserved quantity in solids due to spin-orbit and hyperfine coupling. The authors discuss in detail spin decoherence mechanisms in metals and semiconductors. Various theories of spin injection and spin-polarized transport are applied to hybrid structures relevant to spin-based devices and fundamental studies of materials properties. Experimental work is reviewed with the emphasis on projected applications, in which external electric and magnetic fields and illumination by light will be used to control spin and charge dynamics to create new functionalities not feasible or ineffective with conventional electronics.Comment: invited review, 36 figures, 900+ references; minor stylistic changes from the published versio

Measurement of D-s(+) and D-s(*+) production in B meson decays and from continuum e(+)e(-) annihilation at √s=10.6 GeV

This is the pre-print version of the Article. The official published version can be accessed from the links below. Copyright @ 2002 APSNew measurements of Ds+ and Ds*+ meson production rates from B decays and from qq̅ continuum events near the Υ(4S) resonance are presented. Using 20.8 fb-1 of data on the Υ(4S) resonance and 2.6 fb-1 off-resonance, we find the inclusive branching fractions B(B⃗Ds+X)=(10.93±0.19±0.58±2.73)% and B(B⃗Ds*+X)=(7.9±0.8±0.7±2.0)%, where the first error is statistical, the second is systematic, and the third is due to the Ds+→φπ+ branching fraction uncertainty. The production cross sections σ(e+e-→Ds+X)×B(Ds+→φπ+)=7.55±0.20±0.34pb and σ(e+e-→Ds*±X)×B(Ds+→φπ+)=5.8±0.7±0.5pb are measured at center-of-mass energies about 40 MeV below the Υ(4S) mass. The branching fractions ΣB(B⃗Ds(*)+D(*))=(5.07±0.14±0.30±1.27)% and ΣB(B⃗Ds*+D(*))=(4.1±0.2±0.4±1.0)% are determined from the Ds(*)+ momentum spectra. The mass difference m(Ds+)-m(D+)=98.4±0.1±0.3MeV/c2 is also measured.This work was supported by DOE and NSF (USA), NSERC (Canada), IHEP (China), CEA and CNRS-IN2P3 (France), BMBF (Germany), INFN (Italy), NFR (Norway), MIST (Russia), and PPARC (United Kingdom). Individuals have received support from the Swiss NSF, A. P. Sloan Foundation, Research Corporation, and Alexander von Humboldt Foundation

Toward community standards in the quest for orthologs

The identification of orthologs—genes pairs descended from a common ancestor through speciation, rather than duplication—has emerged as an essential component of many bioinformatics applications, ranging from the annotation of new genomes to experimental target prioritization. Yet, the development and application of orthology inference methods is hampered by the lack of consensus on source proteomes, file formats and benchmarks. The second ‘Quest for Orthologs' meeting brought together stakeholders from various communities to address these challenges. We report on achievements and outcomes of this meeting, focusing on topics of particular relevance to the research community at large. The Quest for Orthologs consortium is an open community that welcomes contributions from all researchers interested in orthology research and applications. Contact: [email protected]