Analysis of small nucleolar RNAs reveals unique genetic features in malaria parasites

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Ribosome biogenesis is an energy consuming and stringently controlled process that involves hundreds of trans-acting factors. Small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs), important components of ribosome biogenesis are non-coding guide RNAs involved in rRNA processing, nucleotide modifications like 2'-O-ribose methylation, pseudouridylation and possibly gene regulation. snoRNAs are ubiquitous and are diverse in their genomic organization, mechanism of transcription and process of maturation. In vertebrates, most snoRNAs are present in introns of protein coding genes and are processed by exonucleolytic cleavage, while in plants they are transcribed as polycistronic transcripts.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>This is a comprehensive analysis of malaria parasite snoRNA genes and proteins that have a role in ribosomal biogenesis. Computational and experimental approaches have been used to identify several box C/D snoRNAs from different species of <it>Plasmodium </it>and confirm their expression. Our analyses reveal that the gene for endoribonuclease Rnt1 is absent from <it>Plasmodium falciparum </it>genome, which indicates the existence of alternative pre-rRNA processing pathways. The structural features of box C/D snoRNAs are highly conserved in <it>Plasmodium </it>genus; however, unlike other organisms most parasite snoRNAs are present in single copy. The genomic localization of parasite snoRNAs shows mixed patterns of those observed in plants, yeast and vertebrates. We have localized parasite snoRNAs in untranslated regions (UTR) of mRNAs, and this is an unprecedented and novel genetic feature. Akin to mammalian snoRNAs, those in <it>Plasmodium </it>may also behave as mobile genetic elements.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This study provides a comprehensive overview on trans-acting genes involved in ribosome biogenesis and also a genetic insight into malaria parasite snoRNA genes.</p

INBAND MULTICAST FAULT DETECTION TO REDUCE SERVICE COST

Techniques herein define a simple, but very useful, extension to hop-by-hop signaling that can be utilized to determine a failed node in a network, which may help to reduce fault detection time. In one instance, techniques described herein may involve multicast Label Distribution Protocol (mLDP)-based signaling, however, other replication technologies that involve underlay signaling may be utilized in accordance with techniques described herein

Kaons and antikaons in strong magnetic fields

The in-medium masses of the kaons and antikaons in strongly magnetized asymmetric nuclear matter are studied using a chiral SU(3) model. The medium modifications of the masses of these open strange pseudoscalar mesons arise due to their interactions with the nucleons and scalar mesons within the model. The proton, the charged nucleon, has effects from the Landau energy levels in the presence of the magnetic field. The anomalous magnetic moments (AMM) of the nucleons are taken into consideration in the present study and these are seen to be large at high magnetic fields and high densities. The isospin effects are appreciable at high densities. The density effects are observed to be the dominant medium effects, as compared to the effects from magnetic field and isospin asymmetry. ~Comment: 22 pages, 4 figures, version to be published in Eur. Phys. Jour. A. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1712.0799

Gravitational Lensing of Gravitational Waves: Probability of Microlensing in Galaxy-Scale Lens Population

With the increase in the number of observed gravitational wave (GW) signals, detecting strongly lensed GWs by galaxies has become a real possibility. Lens galaxies also contain microlenses (e.g., stars and black holes), introducing further frequency-dependent modulations in the strongly lensed GW signal within the LIGO frequency range. The multiple lensed signals in a given lens system have different underlying macro-magnifications ($|\mu|$) and are located in varied microlens densities ($\Sigma_\bullet$), leading to different levels of microlensing distortions. This work quantifies the fraction of strong lens systems affected by microlensing using realistic mock observations. We study 50 quadruply imaged systems (quads) by generating 50 realizations for each lensed signal. However, our conclusions are equally valid for lensed signals in doubly imaged systems (doubles). The lensed signals studied here have $|\mu|\sim[0.5, 10]$ and $\Sigma_\bullet\sim[10, 10^3]~{\rm M}_\odot/{\rm pc^2}$. We find that the microlensing effects are more sensitive to the macro-magnification than the underlying microlens density, even if the latter exceeds $10^3~{\rm M}_\odot/{\rm pc^2}$. The mismatch between lensed and unlensed GW signals rarely exceeds $1\%$ for nearly all binary black hole sources in the total mass range [10 M$_\odot$, 200 M$_\odot$]. This implies that microlensing is not expected to affect the detection or the parameter estimation of such signals and does not pose any further challenges in identifying the different lensed counterparts when macro-magnification is ${\leq}10$. Such a magnification cut is expected to be satisfied by ${\sim}50\%$ of the detectable pairs in quads and ${\sim}90\%$ of the doubles in the fourth observing run of the LIGO-Virgo detector network.Comment: 12 pages, 9 figures; Comments welcom

Neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio as a predictor of outcome following traumatic brain injury: Systematic review and meta-analysis

Objetivos: El cociente neutrófilo-linfocito (NLR) es un parámetro hematológico sencillo y de realización rutinaria; sin embargo, los estudios sobre el NLR como herramienta pronóstica en el traumatismo craneoencefálico (TCE) han arrojado resultados contradictorios. Materiales y métodos: Esta revisión sistemática y meta-análisis se llevó a cabo de acuerdo con las Preferred Reporting Items in the Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis guidelines 2020. Se realizaron búsquedas en las bases de datos electrónicas de PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science y Scopus. La población consistió en pacientes con TCE en ausencia de lesión extracraneal moderada y grave. Para el análisis se tomó el RNL del día 1. Los resultados evaluados fueron la mortalidad y la escala de resultados de Glasgow (GOS). No se impusieron restricciones en cuanto al idioma, el año y el país de publicación, y la duración del seguimiento. Se excluyeron del estudio los estudios con animales. Los estudios en los que se comunicaron datos inadecuados para los resultados se incluyeron en la síntesis cualitativa, pero se excluyeron de la síntesis cuantitativa. La calidad de los estudios se evaluó mediante la escala Newcastle-Ottawa (NOS). El riesgo de sesgo se estimó mediante la herramienta de riesgo de sesgo Cochrane RoBANS. Resultados: Se recuperaron 7213 citas mediante la estrategia de búsqueda y se excluyeron 2097 citas en función del cribado del título y el resumen. Se recuperó el texto completo de 40 artículos y se sometió a los criterios de elegibilidad, de los cuales 28 fueron excluidos del estudio. Doce estudios fueron elegibles para la síntesis de la revisión sistemática, mientras que siete estudios cumplieron los requisitos para el metanálisis. La puntuación media de los artículos fue de 8/9 según NOS. El riesgo de sesgo de selección fue bajo en todos los estudios, mientras que el riesgo de sesgo de detección fue alto en todos excepto en un estudio. Diez estudios se realizaron en pacientes adultos, mientras que dos estudios informaron sobre LCT pediátrica. Un metanálisis para GOS mostró que un NLR alto predijo resultados desfavorables en ≥6 meses con una diferencia media de -5,18 (intervalo de confianza del 95%: -10,04, -0,32); P = 0,04; heterogeneidad (I2), siendo del 98%. Las estimaciones del efecto para NLR y mortalidad fueron una diferencia media de -3,22 (intervalo de confianza del 95%: -7,12, 0,68), P = 0,11, y una I2 del 85%. El metanálisis de las características operativas del receptor del área bajo la curva (AUC) de los estudios incluidos mostró un buen poder predictivo del NLR para predecir los resultados tras una LCT, con un AUC de 0,706 (IC del 95%: 0,582-0,829). Conclusiones: Un NLR al ingreso más alto predice un mayor riesgo de mortalidad y resultados desfavorables después de una LCT. Sin embargo, es probable que futuras investigaciones aborden las lagunas existentes. 2022, Scientific Scholar LLC. Todos los derechos reservados.Objectives: The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is a simple and routinely performed hematological parameter; however, studies on NLR as a prognostic tool in traumatic brain injury (TBI) have yielded contradictory results. Materials and Methods: This systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items in the Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis guidelines 2020. Electronic databases of PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and Scopus were searched. The population consisted of TBI patients in the absence of moderate and severe extracranial injury. Day 1 NLR was taken for the analysis. The outcomes evaluated were mortality and the Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS). No restrictions were placed on the language, year and country of publication, and duration of follow-up. Animal studies were excluded from the study. Studies, where inadequate data were reported for the outcomes, were included in the qualitative synthesis but excluded from the quantitative synthesis. Study quality was evaluated using the Newcastle-Ottawa scale (NOS). The risk of bias was estimated using the Cochrane RoBANS risk of bias tool. Results: We retrieved 7213 citations using the search strategy and 2097 citations were excluded based on the screening of the title and abstract. Full text was retrieved for 40 articles and subjected to the eligibility criteria, of which 28 were excluded from the study. Twelve studies were eligible for the synthesis of the systematic review while seven studies qualified for the meta-analysis. The median score of the articles was 8/9 as per NOS. The risk of selection bias was low in all the studies while the risk of detection bias was high in all except one study. Ten studies were conducted on adult patients, while two studies reported pediatric TBI. A meta-analysis for GOS showed that high NLR predicted unfavorable outcomes at ≥6 months with a mean difference of −5.18 (95% confidence interval: −10.04, −0.32); P = 0.04; heterogeneity (I2), being 98%. The effect estimates for NLR and mortality were a mean difference of −3.22 (95% confidence interval: −7.12, 0.68), P = 0.11, and an I2 of 85%. Meta-analysis for Area under the curve (AUC) receiver operating characteristic of the included studies showed good predictive power of NLR in predicting outcomes following TBI with AUC 0.706 (95% CI: 0.582–0.829). Conclusion: A higher admission NLR predicts an increased mortality risk and unfavorable outcomes following TBI. However, future research will likely address the existing gaps. © 2022, Scientific Scholar LLC. All rights reserved

f0(980) production in inelastic pp collisions at s = 5.02 TeV

The measurement of the production of f0(980) in inelastic pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 5.02 TeV is presented. This is the first reported measurement of inclusive f0(980) yield at LHC energies. The production is measured at midrapidity, |y| pi+pi- hadronic decay channel using the ALICE detector. The pT-differential yields are compared to those of pions, protons and ϕ mesons as well as to predictions from the HERWIG 7.2 QCD-inspired Monte Carlo event generator and calculations from a coalescence model that uses the AMPT model as an input. The ratio of the pT-integrated yield of f0(980) relative to pions is compared to measurements in e+e- and pp collisions at lower energies and predictions from statistical hadronisation models and HERWIG 7.2. A mild collision energy dependence of the f0(980) to pion production is observed in pp collisions from SPS to LHC energies. All considered models underpredict the pT-integrated 2f0(980)/(pi+ + pi-) ratio. The prediction from the canonical statistical hadronisation model assuming a zero total strangeness content of f0(980) is consistent with the data within 1.9σ and is the closest to the data. The results provide an essential reference for future measurements of the particle yield and nuclear modification in p–Pb and Pb–Pb collisions, which have been proposed to be instrumental to probe the elusive nature and quark composition of the f0(980) scalar meson

Observation of flow angle and flow magnitude fluctuations in Pb-Pb collisions at sNN=5.02TeV at the CERN Large Hadron Collider

This Letter reports on the first measurements of transverse momentum dependent flow angle n and flow magnitude vn fluctuations determined using new four-particle correlators. The measurements are performed for various centralities in Pb–Pb collisions at a center-of-mass energy per nucleon pair of √s NN = 5.02 TeV with ALICE at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. Both flow angle and flow magnitude fluctuations are observed in the presented centrality ranges and are strongest in the most central collisions and for a transverse momentum pT > 2 GeV/c. Comparison with theoretical models, including iEBE-VISHNU, MUSIC, and AMPT, show that the measurements exhibit unique sensitivities to the initial state of heavy-ion collisions

Measurement of the Lifetime and Λ Separation Energy of _{Λ}^{3}H

The most precise measurements to date of the _{Λ}^{3}H lifetime τ and Λ separation energy B_{Λ} are obtained using the data sample of Pb-Pb collisions at sqrt[s_{NN}]=5.02  TeV collected by ALICE at the LHC. The _{Λ}^{3}H is reconstructed via its charged two-body mesonic decay channel (_{Λ}^{3}H→^{3}He+π^{-} and the charge-conjugate process). The measured values τ=[253±11(stat)±6(syst)]  ps and B_{Λ}=[102±63(stat)±67(syst)]  keV are compatible with predictions from effective field theories and confirm that the _{Λ}^{3}H structure is consistent with a weakly bound system

Towards the understanding of the genuine three-body interaction for p–p–p and p–p–Λ\Lambda

Three-body nuclear forces play an important role in the structure of nuclei and hypernuclei and are also incor- porated in models to describe the dynamics of dense baryonic matter, such as in neutron stars. So far, only indirect mea- surements anchored to the binding energies of nuclei can be used to constrain the three-nucleon force, and if hyperons are considered, the scarce data on hypernuclei impose only weak constraints on the three-body forces. In this work, we present the first direct measurement of the p–p–p and p–p–Lambda systems in terms of three-particle correlation functions car- ried out for pp collisions at √s = 13 TeV. Three-particle cumulants are extracted from the correlation functions by applying the Kubo formalism, where the three-particle inter- action contribution to these correlations can be isolated after subtracting the known two-body interaction terms. A nega- tive cumulant is found for the p–p–p system, hinting to the presence of a residual three-body effect while for p–p–Lambda the cumulant is consistent with zero. This measurement demon- strates the accessibility of three-baryon correlations at the LHC