22 research outputs found
Topological mass generation and forms
In this work we revisit the topological mass generation of 2-forms and
establish a connection to the unique derivative coupling arising in the quartic
Lagrangian of the systematic construction of massive form interactions,
relating in this way BF theories to Galileon-like theories of 2-forms. In terms
of a massless form and a massless form , the topological term
manifests itself as the interaction , where is the
field strength of the form. Such an interaction leads to a mechanism of
generation of mass, usually referred to as "topological generation of mass" in
which the single degree of freedom propagated by the form is absorbed by
the form, generating a massive mode for the form. Using the
systematical construction in terms of the Levi-Civita tensor, it was shown
that, apart from the quadratic and quartic Lagrangians, Galileon-like
derivative self-interactions for the massive 2-form do not exist. A unique
quartic Lagrangian
arises in this construction in a way that it corresponds to a total derivative
on its own but ceases to be so once an overall general function is introduced.
We show that it exactly corresponds to the same interaction of topological mass
generation. Based on the decoupling limit analysis of the interactions, we
bring out supporting arguments for the uniqueness of such a topological mass
term and absence of the Galileon-like interactions. Finally, we discuss some
preliminary applications in cosmology.Comment: 14 pages, 3 figures, journal versio
Signatures of Primordial non-Gaussianities in the Matter Power-Spectrum and Bispectrum: the Time-RG Approach
We apply the time-renormalization group approach to study the effect of
primordial non-Gaussianities in the non-linear evolution of cosmological dark
matter density perturbations. This method improves the standard perturbation
approach by solving renormalization group-like equations governing the dynamics
of gravitational instability. The primordial bispectra constructed from the
dark matter density contrast and the velocity fields represent initial
conditions for the renormalization group flow. We consider local, equilateral
and folded shapes for the initial non-Gaussianity and analyze as well the case
in which the non-linear parameter f_{NL} parametrizing the strength of the
non-Gaussianity depends on the momenta in Fourier space through a power-law
relation, the so-called running non-Gaussianity. For the local model of
non-Gaussianity we compare our findings for the power-spectrum with those of
recent N-body simulations and find that they accurately fit the N-body data up
to wave-numbers k \sim 0.25 h/Mpc at z=0. We also present predictions for the
(reduced) matter bispectra for the various shapes of non-Gaussianity.Comment: 27 pages, 12 figures. Results and discussion for a particular case
added. One figure and one reference added. Matches with the version accepted
for publication in the JCAP
Complement component C4 structural variation and quantitative traits contribute to sex-biased vulnerability in systemic sclerosis
Altres ajuts: Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER), "A way of making Europe".Copy number (CN) polymorphisms of complement C4 play distinct roles in many conditions, including immune-mediated diseases. We investigated the association of C4 CN with systemic sclerosis (SSc) risk. Imputed total C4, C4A, C4B, and HERV-K CN were analyzed in 26,633 individuals and validated in an independent cohort. Our results showed that higher C4 CN confers protection to SSc, and deviations from CN parity of C4A and C4B augmented risk. The protection contributed per copy of C4A and C4B differed by sex. Stronger protection was afforded by C4A in men and by C4B in women. C4 CN correlated well with its gene expression and serum protein levels, and less C4 was detected for both in SSc patients. Conditioned analysis suggests that C4 genetics strongly contributes to the SSc association within the major histocompatibility complex locus and highlights classical alleles and amino acid variants of HLA-DRB1 and HLA-DPB1 as C4-independent signals
Mortality from gastrointestinal congenital anomalies at 264 hospitals in 74 low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries: a multicentre, international, prospective cohort study
Summary
Background Congenital anomalies are the fifth leading cause of mortality in children younger than 5 years globally.
Many gastrointestinal congenital anomalies are fatal without timely access to neonatal surgical care, but few studies
have been done on these conditions in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). We compared outcomes of
the seven most common gastrointestinal congenital anomalies in low-income, middle-income, and high-income
countries globally, and identified factors associated with mortality.
Methods We did a multicentre, international prospective cohort study of patients younger than 16 years, presenting to
hospital for the first time with oesophageal atresia, congenital diaphragmatic hernia, intestinal atresia, gastroschisis,
exomphalos, anorectal malformation, and Hirschsprung’s disease. Recruitment was of consecutive patients for a
minimum of 1 month between October, 2018, and April, 2019. We collected data on patient demographics, clinical
status, interventions, and outcomes using the REDCap platform. Patients were followed up for 30 days after primary
intervention, or 30 days after admission if they did not receive an intervention. The primary outcome was all-cause,
in-hospital mortality for all conditions combined and each condition individually, stratified by country income status.
We did a complete case analysis.
Findings We included 3849 patients with 3975 study conditions (560 with oesophageal atresia, 448 with congenital
diaphragmatic hernia, 681 with intestinal atresia, 453 with gastroschisis, 325 with exomphalos, 991 with anorectal
malformation, and 517 with Hirschsprung’s disease) from 264 hospitals (89 in high-income countries, 166 in middleincome
countries, and nine in low-income countries) in 74 countries. Of the 3849 patients, 2231 (58·0%) were male.
Median gestational age at birth was 38 weeks (IQR 36–39) and median bodyweight at presentation was 2·8 kg (2·3–3·3).
Mortality among all patients was 37 (39·8%) of 93 in low-income countries, 583 (20·4%) of 2860 in middle-income
countries, and 50 (5·6%) of 896 in high-income countries (p<0·0001 between all country income groups).
Gastroschisis had the greatest difference in mortality between country income strata (nine [90·0%] of ten in lowincome
countries, 97 [31·9%] of 304 in middle-income countries, and two [1·4%] of 139 in high-income countries;
p≤0·0001 between all country income groups). Factors significantly associated with higher mortality for all patients
combined included country income status (low-income vs high-income countries, risk ratio 2·78 [95% CI 1·88–4·11],
p<0·0001; middle-income vs high-income countries, 2·11 [1·59–2·79], p<0·0001), sepsis at presentation (1·20
[1·04–1·40], p=0·016), higher American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score at primary intervention
(ASA 4–5 vs ASA 1–2, 1·82 [1·40–2·35], p<0·0001; ASA 3 vs ASA 1–2, 1·58, [1·30–1·92], p<0·0001]), surgical safety
checklist not used (1·39 [1·02–1·90], p=0·035), and ventilation or parenteral nutrition unavailable when needed
(ventilation 1·96, [1·41–2·71], p=0·0001; parenteral nutrition 1·35, [1·05–1·74], p=0·018). Administration of
parenteral nutrition (0·61, [0·47–0·79], p=0·0002) and use of a peripherally inserted central catheter (0·65
[0·50–0·86], p=0·0024) or percutaneous central line (0·69 [0·48–1·00], p=0·049) were associated with lower mortality.
Interpretation Unacceptable differences in mortality exist for gastrointestinal congenital anomalies between lowincome,
middle-income, and high-income countries. Improving access to quality neonatal surgical care in LMICs will
be vital to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3.2 of ending preventable deaths in neonates and children younger
than 5 years by 2030