2,536 research outputs found
The Generation of Successive Unmarked Mutations and Chromosomal Insertion of Heterologous Genes in Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae Using Natural Transformation
We have developed a simple method of generating scarless, unmarked mutations in Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae by exploiting the ability of this bacterium to undergo natural transformation, and with no need to introduce plasmids encoding recombinases or resolvases. This method involves two successive rounds of natural transformation using linear DNA: the first introduces a cassette carrying cat (which allows selection by chloramphenicol) and sacB (which allows counter-selection using sucrose) flanked by sequences to either side of the target gene; the second transformation utilises the flanking sequences ligated directly to each other in order to remove the cat-sacB cassette. In order to ensure efficient uptake of the target DNA during transformation, A. pleuropneumoniae uptake sequences are added into the constructs used in both rounds of transformation. This method can be used to generate multiple successive deletions and can also be used to introduce targeted point mutations or insertions of heterologous genes into the A. pleuropneumoniae chromosome for development of live attenuated vaccine strains. So far, we have applied this method to highly transformable isolates of serovars 8 (MIDG2331), which is the most prevalent in the UK, and 15 (HS143). By screening clinical isolates of other serovars, it should be possible to identify other amenable strains
Using Combined Morphological, Allometric and Molecular Approaches to Identify Species of the Genus Raillietiella (Pentastomida)
Taxonomic studies of parasites can be severely compromised if the host species affects parasite morphology; an uncritical analysis might recognize multiple taxa simply because of phenotypically plastic responses of parasite morphology to host physiology. Pentastomids of the genus Raillietiella are endoparasitic crustaceans primarily infecting the respiratory system of carnivorous reptiles, but also recorded from bufonid anurans. The delineation of pentastomids at the generic level is clear, but the taxonomic status of many species is not. We collected raillietiellids from lungs of the invasive cane toad (Rhinella marina), the invasive Asian house gecko (Hemidactylus frenatus), and a native tree frog (Litoria caerulea) in tropical Australia, and employed a combination of genetic analyses, and traditional and novel morphological methods to clarify their identity. Conventional analyses of parasite morphology (which focus on raw values of morphological traits) revealed two discrete clusters in terms of pentastome hook size, implying two different species of pentastomes: one from toads and a tree frog (Raillietiella indica) and another from lizards (Raillietiella frenatus). However, these clusters disappeared in allometric analyses that took pentastome body size into account, suggesting that only a single pentastome taxon may be involved. Our molecular data revealed no genetic differences between parasites in toads versus lizards, confirming that there was only one species: R. frenatus. This pentastome (previously known only from lizards) clearly is also capable of maturing in anurans. Our analyses show that the morphological features used in pentastomid taxonomy change as the parasite transitions through developmental stages in the definitive host. To facilitate valid descriptions of new species of pentastomes, future taxonomic work should include both morphological measurements (incorporating quantitative measures of body size and hook bluntness) and molecular data
Forward-backward Asymmetry and Branching Ratio of B \rar K_1 \ell^+ \ell^- Transition in Supersymmetric Models
The mass eigen states and are mixture of the strange
members of two axial-vector SU(3) octet, and .
Taking into account this mixture, the forward-backward asymmetry and branching
ratio of B \rar K_1(1270,1400) \ell^+ \ell^- transitions are studied in the
framework of different supersymmetric models. It is found that the results have
considerable deviation from the standard model predictions. Any measurement of
these physical observables and their comparison with the results obtained in
this paper can give useful information about the nature of interactions beyond
the standard model.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figure
More Benefits of Semileptonic Rare B Decays at Low Recoil: CP Violation
We present a systematic analysis of the angular distribution of Bbar ->
Kbar^\ast (-> Kbar pi) l^+ l^- decays with l = e, mu in the low recoil region
(i.e. at high dilepton invariant masses of the order of the mass of the
b-quark) to account model-independently for CP violation beyond the Standard
Model, working to next-to-leading order QCD. From the employed heavy quark
effective theory framework we identify the key CP observables with reduced
hadronic uncertainties. Since some of the CP asymmetries are CP-odd they can be
measured without B-flavour tagging. This is particularly beneficial for
Bbar_s,B_s -> phi(-> K^+ K^-) l^+ l^- decays, which are not self-tagging, and
we work out the corresponding time-integrated CP asymmetries. Presently
available experimental constraints allow the proposed CP asymmetries to be
sizeable, up to values of the order ~ 0.2, while the corresponding Standard
Model values receive a strong parametric suppression at the level of O(10^-4).
Furthermore, we work out the allowed ranges of the short-distance (Wilson)
coefficients C_9,C_10 in the presence of CP violation beyond the Standard Model
but no further Dirac structures. We find the Bbar_s -> mu^+ mu^- branching
ratio to be below 9*10^-9 (at 95% CL). Possibilities to check the performance
of the theoretical low recoil framework are pointed out.Comment: 18 pages, 3 fig.; 1 reference and comment on higher order effects
added; EOS link fixed. Minor adjustments to Eqs 4.1-4.3 to match the (lower)
q^2-cut as given in paper. Main results and conclusions unchanged; v3+v4:
treatment of exp. uncert. in likelihood-function in EOS fixed and constraints
from scan on C9,C10 updated (Fig 2,3 and Eqs 3.2,3.3). Main results and
conclusions absolutely unchange
New-physics contributions to the forward-backward asymmetry in B -> K* mu+ mu-
We study the forward-backward asymmetry (AFB) and the differential branching
ratio (DBR) in B -> K* mu+ mu- in the presence of new physics (NP) with
different Lorentz structures. We consider NP contributions from vector-axial
vector (VA), scalar-pseudoscalar (SP), and tensor (T) operators, as well as
their combinations. We calculate the effects of these new Lorentz structures in
the low-q^2 and high-q^2 regions, and explain their features through analytic
approximations. We find two mechanisms that can give a significant deviation
from the standard-model predictions, in the direction indicated by the recent
measurement of AFB by the Belle experiment. They involve the addition of the
following NP operators: (i) VA, or (ii) a combination of SP and T (slightly
better than T alone). These two mechanisms can be distinguished through
measurements of DBR in B -> K* mu+ mu- and AFB in B -> K mu+ mu-.Comment: 33 pages, revtex, 9 figures. Paper originally submitted with the
wrong figures. This is corrected in the replacement. An incorrect factor of 2
found in a formula. This is corrected and figures modified. Conclusions
unchanged. Typos correcte
Spin relaxation through Kondo scattering in Cu/Py lateral spin valves
The temperature dependence of the spin diffusion length typically reflects the scattering mechanism responsible for spin relaxation. Within nonmagnetic metals it is reasonable to expect the Elliot-Yafet mechanism to play a role and thus the temperature dependence of the spin diffusion length might be inversely proportional to resistivity. In lateral spin valves, measurements have found that at low temperatures the spin diffusion length unexpectedly decreases. By measuring the transport properties of lateral Py/Cu/Py spin valves, fabricated from Cu with magnetic impurities of <1 ppm and ∼4 ppm, we extract a spin diffusion length which shows this suppression below 30 K only in the presence of the Kondo effect. We have calculated the spin-relaxation rate and isolated the contribution from magnetic impurities. We find the spin-flip probability of a magnetic impurity to be 34%. Our analysis demonstrates the dominant role of Kondo scattering in spin relaxation, even in low concentrations of order 1 ppm, and hence illustrates its importance to the reduction in spin diffusion length observed by ourselves and others
Beating the channel capacity limit for linear photonic superdense coding
Dense coding is arguably the protocol that launched the field of quantum
communication. Today, however, more than a decade after its initial
experimental realization, the channel capacity remains fundamentally limited as
conceived for photons using linear elements. Bob can only send to Alice three
of four potential messages owing to the impossibility of carrying out the
deterministic discrimination of all four Bell states with linear optics,
reducing the attainable channel capacity from 2 to log_2 3 \approx 1.585 bits.
However, entanglement in an extra degree of freedom enables the complete and
deterministic discrimination of all Bell states. Using pairs of photons
simultaneously entangled in spin and orbital angular momentum, we demonstrate
the quantum advantage of the ancillary entanglement. In particular, we describe
a dense-coding experiment with the largest reported channel capacity and, to
our knowledge, the first to break the conventional linear-optics threshold. Our
encoding is suited for quantum communication without alignment and satellite
communication.Comment: Letter: 6 pages, 4 figures. Supplementary Information: 4 pages, 1
figur
The Benefits of B ---> K* l+ l- Decays at Low Recoil
Using the heavy quark effective theory framework put forward by Grinstein and
Pirjol we work out predictions for B -> K* l+ l-, l = (e, mu), decays for a
softly recoiling K*, i.e., for large dilepton masses sqrt{q^2} of the order of
the b-quark mass m_b. We work to lowest order in Lambda/Q, where Q = (m_b,
sqrt{q^2}) and include the next-to-leading order corrections from the charm
quark mass m_c and the strong coupling at O(m_c^2/Q^2, alpha_s). The leading
Lambda/m_b corrections are parametrically suppressed. The improved Isgur-Wise
form factor relations correlate the B -> K* l+ l- transversity amplitudes,
which simplifies the description of the various decay observables and provides
opportunities for the extraction of the electroweak short distance couplings.
We propose new angular observables which have very small hadronic
uncertainties. We exploit existing data on B -> K* l+ l- distributions and show
that the low recoil region provides powerful additional information to the
large recoil one. We find disjoint best-fit solutions, which include the
Standard Model, but also beyond-the-Standard Model ones. This ambiguity can be
accessed with future precision measurements.Comment: 31 pages, 8 figures; Instability near minimal recoil from numerics
removed, Fig. 1 replaced and minor shifts in short distance uncertainties in
SM predictions; typos corrected and references added; main results and
conclusions unchange
Transparency in health economic modeling : options, issues and potential solutions
Economic models are increasingly being used by health economists to assess the value of health technologies and inform healthcare decision making. However, most published economic models represent a kind of black box, with known inputs and outputs but undisclosed internal calculations and assumptions. This lack of transparency makes the evaluation of the model results challenging, complicates comparisons between models, and limits the reproducibility of the models. Here, we aim to provide an overview of the possible steps that could be undertaken to make economic models more transparent and encourage model developers to share more detailed calculations and assumptions with their peers. Scenarios with different levels of transparency (i.e., how much information is disclosed) and reach of transparency (i.e., who has access to the disclosed information) are discussed, and five key concerns (copyrights, model misuse, confidential data, software, and time/resources) pertaining to model transparency are presented, along with possible solutions. While a shift toward open-source models is underway in health economics, as has happened before in other research fields, the challenges ahead should not be underestimated. Importantly, there is a pressing need to find an acceptable trade-off between the added value of model transparency and the time and resources needed to achieve such transparency. To this end, it will be crucial to set incentives at different stakeholder levels. Despite the many challenges, the many benefits of publicly sharing economic models make increased transparency a goal worth pursuing
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