877 research outputs found
Extrasolar planets and brown dwarfs around A-F type stars - VII. Theta Cygni radial velocity variations: planets or stellar phenomenon?
(abridged) In the frame of the search for extrasolar planets and brown dwarfs
around early-type main-sequence stars, we present the results obtained on the
early F-type star Theta Cygni. Elodie and Sophie at OHP were used to obtain the
spectra. Our dedicated radial-velocity measurement method was used to monitor
the star's radial velocities over five years. We also use complementary, high
angular resolution and high-contrast images taken with PUEO at CFHT. We show
that Theta Cygni radial velocities are quasi-periodically variable, with a
~150-day period. These variations are not due to the ~0.35-Msun stellar
companion that we detected in imaging at more than 46 AU from the star. The
absence of correlation between the bisector velocity span variations and the
radial velocity variations for this 7 km/s vsini star, as well as other
criteria indicate that the observed radial velocity variations are not due to
stellar spots. The observed amplitude of the bisector velocity span variations
also seems to rule out stellar pulsations. However, we observe a peak in the
bisector velocity span periodogram at the same period as the one found in the
radial velocity periodogram, which indicates a probable link between these
radial velocity variations and the low amplitude lineshape variations which are
of stellar origin. Long-period variations are not expected from this type of
star to our knowledge. If a stellar origin (hence of new type) was to be
confirmed for these long-period radial velocity variations, this would have
several consequences on the search for planets around main-sequence stars, both
in terms of observational strategy and data analysis. An alternative
explanation for these variable radial velocities is the presence of at least
one planet of a few Jupiter masses orbiting at less than 1 AU. (abridged)Comment: 9 pages, accepted in A
Natural variation in wild tomato trichomes; selecting metabolites that contribute to insect resistance using a random forest approach
Elodie metallicity-biased search for transiting Hot Jupiters IV. Intermediate period planets orbiting the stars HD43691 and HD132406
We report here the discovery of two planet candidates as a result of our
planet-search programme biased in favour of high-metallicity stars, using the
ELODIE spectrograph at the Observatoire de Haute Provence. One of them has a
minimum mass m_2\sin{i} = 2.5 M_Jup and is orbiting the metal-rich star HD43691
with period P = 40 days and eccentricity e = 0.14. The other planet has a
minimum mass m_2\sin{i} = 5.6 M_Jup and orbits the slightly metal-rich star
HD132406 with period P = 974 days and eccentricity e = 0.34. Both stars were
followed up with additional observations using the new SOPHIE spectrograph that
replaces the ELODIE instrument, allowing an improved orbital solution for the
systems.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures, to be published in A&
Synchrony Matters More than Species Richness in Plant Community Stability at a Global Scale
The stability of ecological communities is critical for the stable provisioning of ecosystem services, such as food and forage production, carbon sequestration, and soil fertility. Greater biodiversity is expected to enhance stability across years by decreasing synchrony among species, but the drivers of stability in nature remain poorly resolved. Our analysis of time series from 79 datasets across the world showed that stability was associated more strongly with the degree of synchrony among dominant species than with species richness. The relatively weak influence of species richness is consistent with theory predicting that the effect of richness on stability weakens when synchrony is higher than expected under random fluctuations, which was the case in most communities. Land management, nutrient addition, and climate change treatments had relatively weak and varying effects on stability, modifying how species richness, synchrony, and stability interact. Our results demonstrate the prevalence of biotic drivers on ecosystem stability, with the potential for environmental drivers to alter the intricate relationship among richness, synchrony, and stability.National Science Foundation DEB-8114302, DEB8811884, DEB-9411972, DEB-0080382, DEB-0620652, DEB-1234162, DEB0618210National Science Foundation Research Coordination Network DEB-1042132Institute on the Environment DG-0001-13Agency of the Czech Republic GACR16-15012SCzech Academy of Sciences RVO 67985939Comunidad AutĂłnoma de Madrid 2017-T2/AMB-5406Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council BBS/E/C/000J030
Refined parameters and spectroscopic transit of the super-massive planet HD147506b
In this paper, we report a refined determination of the orbital parameters
and the detection of the Rossiter-McLaughlin effect of the recently discovered
transiting exoplanet HD147506b (HAT-P-2b). The large orbital eccentricity at
the short orbital period of this exoplanet is unexpected and is distinguishing
from other known transiting exoplanets. We performed high-precision radial
velocity spectroscopic observations of HD147506 (HAT-P-2) with the new
spectrograph SOPHIE, mounted on the 1.93 m telescope at the Haute-Provence
observatory (OHP). We obtained 63 new measurements, including 35 on May 14 and
20 on June 11, when the planet was transiting its parent star. The radial
velocity (RV) anomaly observed illustrates that HAT-P-2b orbital motion is set
in the same direction as its parent star spin. The sky-projected angle between
the normal of the orbital plane and the stellar spin axis, \lambda = 0.2 +12.2
-12.5 deg, is consistent with zero. The planetary and stellar radii were
re-determined, yielding R_p = 0.951 +0.039 -0.053 R_Jup, R_s = 1.416 +0.040
-0.062 R_Sun. The mass M_p = 8.62 +0.39 -0.55 M_Jup and radius of HAT-P-2b
indicate a density of 12.5 +2.6 -3.6 g cm^{-3}, suggesting an object in between
the known close-in planets with typical density of the order of 1 g cm^{-3},
and the very low-mass stars, with density greater than 50 g cm^{-3}.Comment: Submitted to A&A; V2: Replaced by accepted versio
Comparison of survival between malignant neuroendocrine tumours of midgut and pancreatic origin
Impact of perioperative chemotherapy on survival in patients with advanced primary urethral cancer: results of the international collaboration on primary urethral carcinoma
This is the first series that suggests a prognostic benefit of neoadjuvant treatment in a consecutive series of patients who underwent perioperative chemotherapy plus surgery for advanced primary urethral carcinoma. Further studies should yield a better understanding of how perioperative chemotherapy exerts a positive effect on survival in order to selectively advocate its use in advanced primary urethral carcinom
BMC Nephrol
Background Early kidney transplantation (KT) is the best option for patients with end-stage kidney disease, but little is known about dialysis access strategy in this context. We studied practice patterns of dialysis access and how they relate with outcomes in adults wait-listed early for KT according to the intended donor source. Methods This study from the REIN registry (2002–2014) included 9331 incident dialysis patients (age 18–69) wait-listed for KT before or by 6 months after starting dialysis: 8342 candidates for deceased-donor KT and 989 for living-donor KT. Subdistribution hazard ratios (SHR) of KT and death associated with hemodialysis by catheter or peritoneal dialysis compared with arteriovenous (AV) access were estimated with Fine and Gray models. Results Living-donor candidates used pretransplant peritoneal dialysis at rates similar to deceased-donor KT candidates, but had significantly more frequent catheter than AV access for hemodialysis (adjusted OR 1.25; 95%CI 1.09–1.43). Over a median follow-up of 43 (IQR: 23–67) months, 6063 patients received transplants and 305 died before KT. Median duration of pretransplant dialysis was 15 (7–27) months for deceased-donor recipients and 9 (5–15) for living-donor recipients. Catheter use in deceased-donor candidates was associated with a lower SHR for KT (0.88, 95%CI 0.82–0.94) and a higher SHR for death (1.53, 95%CI 1.14–2.04). Only five deaths occurred in living-donor candidates, three of them with catheter use. Conclusions Pretransplant dialysis duration may be quite long even when planned with a living donor. Advantages from protecting these patients from AV fistula creation must be carefully evaluated against catheter-related risks
- …