Energy dependence of the inelasticity in pp/ppˉpp/p\bar{p} collisions from experimental information on charged particle multiplicity distributions

The dependence of the inelasticity in terms of the center of mass energy is studied in the eikonal formalism, which provides connection between elastic and inelastic channels. Due to the absence of inelasticity experimental datasets, the present analysis is based on experimental information available on the full phase space multiplicity distribution covering a large range of energy, namely 30 $<$ $\sqrt{s}$ $\leq$ 1800 GeV. Our results indicate that the decrease of inelasticity is consequence of minijets production from semihard interactions arising from the scattering of gluons carrying only a very small fractions of the momenta from their parent protons. Alternative methods of estimating the inelasticity are discussed and predictions to the LHC energies are presented

SERPINB3 delays glomerulonephritis and attenuates the lupus-like disease in lupus murine models by inducing a more tolerogenic immune phenotype

Objective: To explore the effects of SERPINB3 administration in murine lupus models with a focus on lupus-like nephritis. Methods: 40 NZB/W F1 mice were subdivided into 4 groups and intraperitoneally injected with recombinant SERPINB3 (7.5 \u3bcg/0.1 mL or 15 \u3bcg/0.1 mL) or PBS (0.1 mL) before (group 1 and 2) or after (group 3 and 4) the development of proteinuria ( 65100 mg/dl). Two additional mice groups were provided by including 20 MRL/lpr mice which were prophylactically injected with SERPINB3 (10 mice, group 5) or PBS (10 mice, group 6). Time of occurrence and levels of anti-dsDNA and anti-C1q antibodies, proteinuria and serum creatinine, overall- and proteinuria-free survival were assessed in mice followed up to natural death. Histological analysis was performed in kidneys of both lupus models. The Th17:Treg cell ratio was assessed by flow-cytometry in splenocytes of treated and untreated MRL/lpr mice. Statistical analysis was performed using non parametric tests and Kaplan-Meier curves, when indicated. Results: Autoantibody levels and proteinuria were significantly decreased and time of occurrence significantly delayed in SERPINB3-treated mice vs. controls. In agreement with these findings, proteinuria-free and overall survival were significantly improved in SERPINB3-treated groups vs. controls. Histological analysis demonstrated a lower prevalence of severe tubular lesions in kidneys of group 5 vs. group 6. SERPINB3-treated mice showed an overall trend toward a reduced prevalence of severe lesions in both strains. Th17:Treg ratio was significantly decreased in splenocytes of MRL/lpr mice treated with SERPINB3, compared to untreated control mice. Conclusions: SERPINB3 significantly improves disease course and delays the onset of severe glomerulonephritis in lupus-prone mice, possibly inducing a more tolerogenic immune phenotype

Multiparticle production in the model with antishadowing

We discuss the role of absorbtion and antishadowing in particle production. We reproduce power-like energy behavior of the mean multiplicity in the model with antishadowing and discuss physical implications of such behavior for the hadron structure.Comment: 11 pages, 3 figures, extended version of the talk at the XXXII International Symposium on Multiparticle Dynamics September 7-13, 2002 Alushta, Crimea, Ukrain

Scaling violations: Connections between elastic and inelastic hadron scattering in a geometrical approach

Starting from a short range expansion of the inelastic overlap function, capable of describing quite well the elastic pp and $\bar{p}p$ scattering data, we obtain extensions to the inelastic channel, through unitarity and an impact parameter approach. Based on geometrical arguments we infer some characteristics of the elementary hadronic process and this allows an excellent description of the inclusive multiplicity distributions in $pp$ and $\bar{p}p$ collisions. With this approach we quantitatively correlate the violations of both geometrical and KNO scaling in an analytical way. The physical picture from both channels is that the geometrical evolution of the hadronic constituents is principally reponsible for the energy dependence of the physical quantities rather than the dynamical (elementary) interaction itself.Comment: 16 pages, aps-revtex, 11 figure

S7A:7 Administration of serpinb3 delays glomerulonephritis and attenuates the lupus-like disease in lupus murine models by an immunomodulatory effect

Background Abnormal apoptosis and clearance of cellular debris concur to development of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). SERPINS (serin-protease inhibitors) are ancient molecules regulating immune homeostasis. SERPINB3 modulates apoptosis and is hypoexpressed on SLE B cells. Aim To explore the effects of SERPINB3 administration in murine lupus models, focusing on glomerulonephritis. Methods NZB/W F1 and MRL/lpr mice were used. 40 NZB/W F1 mice were divided into 4 groups of 10 mice each and intraperitoneally injected twice a week starting before occurrence of proteinuria traces (group 1 and 2, prophylactic approach) or after development of proteinuria 30 mg/dl (group 3 and 4, therapeutic approach) with hrSERPINB3 (7.5 µg/0.1 mL prophylactic approach, or 15 µg/0.1 mL therapeutic approach) or PBS (0.1 mL). 20 MRL/lpr mice were injected with hrSERPINB3 (group 5, n=10) or PBS (group 6, n=10) with a prophylactic approach. We assessed time of occurrence and titers of anti-dsDNA and anti-C1q antibodies by ELISA; proteinuria and serum creatinine; overall- and proteinuria-free survival. Six NZB/W F1 mice were sacrificed at week 27, while 10 MRL/lpr mice at week 13 and another 10 at 16/18 weeks for histological kidneys comparison. Flow-cytometry was performed on MRL/lpr splenocytes. Non parametric tests were performed for statistics; proteinuria-free ( Results Levels of autoantibodies were significantly decreased and delayed in group 1 vs group 2, group 3 vs group 4, and group 5 vs group 6 (p Conclusions Administration of SERPINB3 significantly improves disease and delays the onset of severe glomerulonephritis in lupus-prone mice. SERPINB3 may influence immune-cell function through immunoregulatory effects involving promotion of Treg

Maize plant (Zea mays) uptake of organophosphorus and novel brominated flame retardants from hydroponic cultures

The root uptake and root-shoot translocation of seven organophosphorus flame retardants (OPFRs) and four novel brominated flame retardants (NBFRs) were assessed in this investigation using hydroponic grown maize plants (Zea mays). Three initial liquid concentrations for each considered compound were examined (i.e., 0.3 μg L−1, 3 μg L−1, 30 μg L−1). The results indicated that the 30 μg L−1 treatments were phytotoxic, as they resulted in a significant decrease in shoot dry weight. Plant-driven removal of the tested FRs decreased with the increasing initial spiking level and were reportedly higher for the NBFRs (range 42%–10%) than OPFRs (range 19%–7%). All the considered FRs were measured in the roots (range 0.020–6.123 μg g−1 dry weight -DW-) and shoots (range 0.012–1.364 μg g−1 DW) of the tested plants, confirming that there was uptake. Linear relationships were identified between the chemical concentrations in the plant parts and the tested hydroponic concentrations. Root concentration factors were positively correlated with the specific lipophilicity (i.e., logKow) of the tested FRs and were determined to be higher for the NBFRs than the OPFRs. The NBFRs had a higher root uptake rate than the OPFRs, and this trend was more significant with the increasing treatment concentrations. Shoot/root concentration factors were found to be lower than the unity value for 10 of the 11 tested compounds. These results can be related to the specific molecular configurations and the occurrence of different functional groups in the tested compounds. The results will help to improve risk assessment procedures and fine tune our understanding of human receptor responses to the ingestion of maize crops grown on agricultural sites irrigated with water contaminated by FRs

Forensic assessment of HP14 classification of waste: evaluation of two standards for preparing water extracts from solid waste to be tested in aquatic bioassays

Misclassification of waste hazardousness could lead waste operators to be charged of illegal trafficking. Among different aspects characterizing waste hazardousness, Ecotoxicity is acknowledged as the most frequent Hazard Property classifying wastes as hazardous. In this context, a conventional, scientifically based and agreed-upon procedure for ecotoxicity assessment can help forensic activities to verify the conditions of possibly occurred illegal trafficking of waste. Currently, European Regulation declares a waste ecotoxic according to a calculation method based on its chemical composition. Whether outcomes from calculation method would result in an unrealistic assessment, results from ecotoxicity testing can be used for waste hazardousness classification. However, each Member State is allowed to establish a specific experimental procedure, thus resulting in a fragmented legal framework regulating ecotoxicological testing. This study gives a description of the two main approaches followed by European Member States in regulating ecotoxicity assessment of wastes. This work reports how both investigated approaches address three main methodological issues: which sample preparation standard must be carried out, which test battery should be performed and which concentration limits will trigger hazard classification. Further, a comparison is presented between two different standardized protocols (GHS Annex X and EN 14735) for leaching tests of solid wastes, performed on Automotive Shredder Residues (ASR) samples to obtain water extracts to be further tested in aquatic bioassays. EN 14735 resulted more conventional for routine waste classification efforts, both in terms of achieved sample representativeness and time needed to derive test portions. Then, results from chemical physical analyses on derived water extracts suggested that the lower Liquid-to-Solid ratio required by EN 14735 could have played a key role in determining the resulting higher contaminant concentrations. For this reason, it could also be considered as the most conservative approach for further testing on aquatic organisms. However, this assumption must be further validated by further research on different waste streams, speciation mechanisms of dissolved contaminants, the role of pH adjustment of the test portion and the influence of specific dilution media

Hadron Rich And Centauro Events

An exploratory statistical analysis of the event C16S086I037 was possible to do using two simulations. A γ and hadron induced showers recognition done on this event through a best fitting procedure shows identification of 25 and 37 for γ and hadron induced showers, respectively. Assuming that the most energetic shower is the surviving particle of an interaction and the tertiary produced particles are from normal multiple pion production, the characteristics of the interaction are: Energy of primary particle E0 = 1, 061  TeV, Inelasticity of collision K = 0.81, Mean inelasticity of γ-ray &lt; kγ &gt; = 0.27, Hadron induced showers energy/Total energy Qh ′ = 0.90 ≈ Qh, Rapidity density Nh / Δ Y = (8.56 - 9.89), Mean energy of secondary hadrons &lt; Eh &gt; = (21.5 ± 4)  TeV, Mean transverse momentum &lt; PTh &gt; = (1.2 ± 0.2)  GeV/c, Upper bound of partial cross section σ ≤ (15 - 39) μ barn and life time τ ≤ 10-16  s. Without the surviving particle assumption, the values are: E0 = 873  TeV, K = 1.0, &lt; kγ &gt; = 1 / 3, Qh ′ = 0.90, Nh / Δ Y = (8.32 - 9.34), &lt; Eh &gt; = (21 ± 3.5)  TeV, &lt; PTh &gt; = (1.0 ± 0.16)  GeV/c. Using another simulation for energy determination with χ2 &gt; 3.16 for best fitting results 22 and 40 for γ and hadron induced showers, respectively. Under the surviving particle assumption, the figures are: Energy of primary particle E0 = 1, 047  TeV, Inelasticity of collision K = 0.80, Mean inelasticity of γ-ray &lt; kγ &gt; = 0.27, Hadronic induced showers energy/Total energy Qh ′ = 0.89 ≈ Qh, Rapidity density Nh / Δ Y = (10.25 - 13.19), Mean energy of secondary hadrons &lt; Eh &gt; = (19 ± 3)  TeV, Mean transverse momentum &lt; PTh &gt; = (1.0 ± 0.2)  GeV/c. That is, we get almost similar figures independently of simulation and a mean transverse momentum for this hadron-rich event similar to the Centauro events. © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.175-176SUPPL.: COMPLETE131136Luksys, M., Ohsawa, A., Shibuya, E.H., (1983) Nucl. Inst. & Meth. B, 82, pp. 549-556Okamoto, M., Shibata, T., (1987) Nucl. Inst. & Meth. A, 257, pp. 155-176Fujinaga, T., Ichimura, M., Niihori, Y., Shibata, T., (1989) Nucl. Inst. & Meth. A, 276, pp. 317-339Tamada, M., Ohsawa, A., (2000) Nucl. Phys. B, 581, pp. 73-90Garvey, J., (1987) Rep. Prog. Phys., 50, pp. 1311-138

Acoustic sensing of renal stone fragmentation in extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy

This thesis describes the research carried out by the author on the exploitation of acoustic emissions detected during extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy (a non-invasive procedure for the treatment of urinary stones) to develop a new diagnostic system. The work formed part of a research project on lithotripsy undertaken by the University of Southampton in collaboration with Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust (London) and a UK based company, Precision Acoustics Ltd (Dorchester). It takes to a clinical conclusion the proposition made by Leighton and Coleman in 1992 that it might be possible to build a sensor which would automatically exploit these passive acoustic emissions to monitor the efficacy of a lithotripsy treatment. The work, predominantly experimental, involved both in vitro and in vivo investigations. In particular, a first prototype diagnostic system (i.e. sensor plus analysis software) was developed and tested in vitro during trials which included the use of a novel cavitation sensor (on loan from the National Physical Laboratory, Teddington) and stone phantoms designed by the author. This initial system was, then, refined and tested during clinical trials that involved 130 patients. A preliminary trial on 51 patients aimed at refining the system and gathering knowledge on the features of emissions recorded in vivo to produce an on-line monitoring system. This trial was followed by other two trials that compared the output of the on-line acoustic system against the ‘gold standard’ X-Ray assessment of treatments outcomes. The former of these two trials involved 30 patients, and empirically defined the values of the key parameters (identified during the in vitro tests) that would be used as the basis of the diagnosis. In particular, a classification rule of treatments as being successful or unsuccessful was identified, and shown to agree significantly (kappa=0.95) with the ‘gold standard’ follow-up assessment. The latter trial tested the final system on 49 patients and confirmed an accurate treatment classification (kappa=0.94) in terms of the successful/unsuccessful criterion.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

An Eas Event Observed In The Early Stage Of Development

Since 1969 the experiments of Brazil-Japan Collaboration showed the occurrence of a series of events, showing a region with a high concentration of electromagnetic particles, surrounded by isolated and/or groups of showers. These events were named "halo events" or "super-families". Currently, we have more than a dozen of such events. The first of them, due to its aspect, was named "Andromeda". We present here the main characteristics of a similar halo event, named C21S087I075. It has a halo region with many high energy showers in its border. Other small energy showers spread over the central and surrounding blocks (S088, S100, S101, I074). These isolated showers, classified as of hadronic or electromagnetic origin, present a fractional energy distribution compatible with that of a Centauro candidate event (C16S087I037), reported at this symposium [S.L.C. Barroso, P.C. Beggio, J.A. Chinellato, A.O. Carvalho, A. Mariano, R. Oliveira, E.H. Shibuya, in this issue of XIV ISVHECRI]. Moreover, the lateral distribution in the halo region is similar to that observed in other 3 halo events. © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.175-176SUPPL.: COMPLETE182185Chacaltaya Emulsion Chamber Experiment (1971) Prog. Theor. Phys. Suppl., 47, pp. 1-125Okamoto, M., Shibata, T., (1987) Nucl. Inst. & Meth. A, 257, pp. 155-176Fujinaga, T., Ichimura, M., Niihori, Y., Shibata, T., (1989) Nucl. Inst. & Meth. A, 276, pp. 317-339Yamashita, S., (1985) J. Phys. Soc. of Japan, 54 (2), pp. 529-543Ohta, I., Mizutani, K., Kasahara, K., Kobayashi, T., Mikumo, E., Mito, I., Ohsawa, A., Takahashi, Y., (1979) Nucl. Inst. & Meth., 161, pp. 35-5