8,186 research outputs found
A simple functional form for proton-Pb total reaction cross sections
A simple functional form has been found that gives a good representation of
the total reaction cross sections for the scattering from Pb of
protons with energies in the range 30 to 300 MeV.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figure
Is friction responsible for the reduction of fusion rates far below the Coulomb barrier?
The fusion of two interacting heavy ions traditionally has been interpreted
in terms of the penetration of the projectile into the target. Observed rates
well below the Coulomb barrier are considerably lower than estimates obtained
from penetration factors. One approach in the analysis of the data invokes
coupling to non-elastic channels in the scattering as the source of the
depletion. Another is to analyze those data in terms of tunneling in
semi-classical models, with the observed depletion being taken as evidence of a
``friction'' under the barrier. A complementary approach is to consider such
tunneling in terms of a fully quantal model. We investigate tunneling with both
one-dimensional and three-dimensional models in a fully quantal approach to
investigate possible sources for such a friction. We find that the observed
phenomenon may not be explained by friction. However, we find that under
certain conditions tunneling may be enhanced or diminished by up to 50%, which
finds analogy with observation, without the invocation of a friction under the
barrier.Comment: 18 pages, 15 figures embedde
Contraceptive confidence and timing of first birth in Moldova: an event history analysis of retrospective data
Objectives: To test the contraceptive confidence hypothesis in a modern context. The hypothesis is that women using effective or modern contraceptive methods have increased contraceptive confidence and hence a shorter interval between marriage and first birth than users of ineffective or traditional methods. We extend the hypothesis to incorporate the role of abortion, arguing that it acts as a substitute for contraception in the study context.Setting: Moldova, a country in South-East Europe. Moldova exhibits high use of traditional contraceptive methods and abortion compared with other European countries.Participants: Data are from a secondary analysis of the 2005 Moldovan Demographic and Health Survey, a nationally representative sample survey. 5377 unmarried women were selected.Primary and secondary outcome measures: The outcome measure was the interval between marriage and first birth. This was modelled using a piecewise-constant hazard regression, with abortion and contraceptive method types as primary variables along with relevant sociodemographic controls.Results: Women with high contraceptive confidence (modern method users) have a higher cumulative hazard of first birth 36?months following marriage (0.88 (0.87 to 0.89)) compared with women with low contraceptive confidence (traditional method users, cumulative hazard: 0.85 (0.84 to 0.85)). This is consistent with the contraceptive confidence hypothesis. There is a higher cumulative hazard of first birth among women with low (0.80 (0.79 to 0.80)) and moderate abortion propensities (0.76 (0.75 to 0.77)) than women with no abortion propensity (0.73 (0.72 to 0.74)) 24?months after marriage.Conclusions: Effective contraceptive use tends to increase contraceptive confidence and is associated with a shorter interval between marriage and first birth. Increased use of abortion also tends to increase contraceptive confidence and shorten birth duration, although this effect is non-linear—women with a very high use of abortion tend to have lengthy intervals between marriage and first birth
Electron microscopic measurement of the size of the optical focus in laser scanning microscopy
We describe a method for measuring the lateral focal spot size of a multiphoton laser scanning microscope (LSM) with unprecedented accuracy. A specimen consisting of an aluminum film deposited on a glass coverslip was brought into focus in a LSM and the laser intensity was then increased enough to perform nanoablation of the metal film. This process leaves a permanent trace of the raster path usually taken by the beam during the acquisition of an optical image. A scanning electron microscope (SEM) was then used to determine the nanoablated line width to high accuracy, from which the lateral spot size and hence resolution of the LSM can be determined. To demonstrate our method, we performed analysis of a multiphoton LSM at various infrared wavelengths, and we report measurements of optical lateral spot size with an accuracy of 20 nm, limited only by the resolution of the SEM
The Link between Malaria and Ferroptosis - A Review
Ferroptosis is an iron-dependent cell death characterized by extensive lipids peroxidation, dysfunctional glutathione-dependent antioxidant enzyme system, and alterations in the morphology of the mitochondrial membrane. This cell death plays a role in the pathogenesis of diabetes, neurological disorders, cardiovascular diseases, arthritis, and cancer. Accumulating evidence suggests that ferroptosis is involved in the pathogenesis of malaria. This evidence includes plasmodium-induced biochemical changes that could affect the susceptibility of host red blood cells and the parasite to ferroptosis and the role of ferroptosis in reducing parasite survival at the liver stage. Ferroptosis is induced by iron-dependent oxidative stress. Given that oxidative stress is involved in the pathogenesis of malaria, ferroptosis could also be involved. Furthermore, the frontline anti-malarial compound dihydroartemisinin exerts an anti-cancer effect through a ferroptosis-mediated mechanism. This suggests that ferroptosis induction could be one of its mechanisms of action against Plasmodium. In this review, we discussed the link between malaria and ferroptosis. Studying ferroptosis could reveal novel biochemical mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis of malaria. It may also unravel new modes of action of anti-malarial drugs, the biochemical basis for low drug efficacy, and promising molecular targets for the development of new anti-plasmodial compounds
Up Regulation of Heat Shock Protein 70B (HSP70B) and \u3cem\u3eSSA1\u3c/em\u3e in \u3cem\u3eChlamydomonas Reinhardtii\u3c/em\u3e via HSP70A-RBCS2 and PSAD Promoter
Fabrication of effective algae cultivation systems adjacent to coal-fired power plants to fixate waste CO2 would represent a sizable step towards achieving a carbon neutral energy cycle. However, emission gas would elevate the algal cultivation system temperature and decreases its pH without expensive preprocessing. Increased temperature and acidity constitutes a profound stress on the algae. Although stressed algae produce heat shock proteins (HSPs) that promote protein folding and protect against stress, the ordinary biological response is insufficient to protect against coal flue gas. Experimental upregulation of HSPs could make algae respond to the stress caused by high temperatures and low pH at an elevated level. However, no work has been done to determine whether HSPs can be experimentally upregulated in algae. Here, the Chlamydomonas reinhardtii algal strain was selected because it has a sequenced genome and singular cell structure ideal for genetic modifications. Two genetic modification methods: transformation with plasmids pCB720/pCB740, and cloned pchlamiRNA3/pchlamiRNA3int with yeast HSP gene SSA1 were evaluated. pCB720/pCB740 up regulate algae production of native HSP, HSP70B. pCB720 transformation success was observed but statistically, data varied. pchlamiRNA3/pchlamiRNA3int were cloned with SSA1. Chlorophyll content measured growth indirectly. Quantitative HSP detection could be done using RT-PCR
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