80 research outputs found
Characterization of the Benchmark Binary NLTT 33370
We report the confirmation of the binary nature of the nearby, very low-mass
system NLTT 33370 with adaptive optics imaging and present resolved
near-infrared photometry and integrated light optical and near-infrared
spectroscopy to characterize the system. VLT-NaCo and LBTI-LMIRCam images show
significant orbital motion between 2013 February and 2013 April. Optical
spectra reveal weak, gravity sensitive alkali lines and strong lithium 6708
Angstrom absorption that indicate the system is younger than field age.
VLT-SINFONI near-IR spectra also show weak, gravity sensitive features and
spectral morphology that is consistent with other young, very low-mass dwarfs.
We combine the constraints from all age diagnostics to estimate a system age of
~30-200 Myr. The 1.2-4.7 micron spectral energy distribution of the components
point toward T_eff=3200 +/- 500 K and T_eff=3100 +/- 500 K for NLTT 33370 A and
B, respectively. The observed spectra, derived temperatures, and estimated age
combine to constrain the component spectral types to the range M6-M8.
Evolutionary models predict masses of 113 +/- 8 M_Jup and 106 +/- 7 M_Jup from
the estimated luminosities of the components. KPNO-Phoenix spectra allow us to
estimate the systemic radial velocity of the binary. The Galactic kinematics of
NLTT 33370AB are broadly consistent with other young stars in the Solar
neighborhood. However, definitive membership in a young, kinematic group cannot
be assigned at this time and further follow-up observations are necessary to
fully constrain the system's kinematics. The proximity, age, and late-spectral
type of this binary make it very novel and an ideal target for rapid, complete
orbit determination. The system is one of only a few model calibration
benchmarks at young ages and very low-masses.Comment: 25 pages, 3 tables, 13 figures, accepted for publication in The
Astrophysical Journa
Inhibition of protein crystallization by evolutionary negative design
In this perspective we address the question: why are proteins seemingly so
hard to crystallize? We suggest that this is because of evolutionary negative
design, i.e. proteins have evolved not to crystallize, because crystallization,
as with any type of protein aggregation, compromises the viability of the cell.
There is much evidence in the literature that supports this hypothesis,
including the effect of mutations on the crystallizability of a protein, the
correlations found in the properties of crystal contacts in bioinformatics
databases, and the positive use of protein crystallization by bacteria and
viruses.Comment: 5 page
Orbital and physical parameters of eclipsing binaries from the ASAS catalogue - IV. A 0.61 + 0.45 M_sun binary in a multiple system
We present the orbital and physical parameters of a newly discovered low-mass
detached eclipsing binary from the All-Sky Automated Survey (ASAS) database:
ASAS J011328-3821.1 A - a member of a visual binary system with the secondary
component separated by about 1.4 seconds of arc. The radial velocities were
calculated from the high-resolution spectra obtained with the 1.9-m
Radcliffe/GIRAFFE, 3.9-m AAT/UCLES and 3.0-m Shane/HamSpec
telescopes/spectrographs on the basis of the TODCOR technique and positions of
H_alpha emission lines. For the analysis we used V and I band photometry
obtained with the 1.0-m Elizabeth and robotic 0.41-m PROMPT telescopes,
supplemented with the publicly available ASAS light curve of the system.
We found that ASAS J011328-3821.1 A is composed of two late-type dwarfs
having masses of M_1 = 0.612 +/- 0.030 M_sun, M_2 = 0.445 +/- 0.019 M_sun and
radii of R_1 = 0.596 +/- 0.020 R_sun, R_2 = 0.445 +/- 0.024 R_sun, both show a
substantial level of activity, which manifests in strong H_alpha and H_beta
emission and the presence of cool spots. The influence of the third light on
the eclipsing pair properties was also evaluated and the photometric properties
of the component B were derived. Comparison with several popular stellar
evolution models shows that the system is on its main sequence evolution stage
and probably is more metal rich than the Sun. We also found several clues which
suggest that the component B itself is a binary composed of two nearly
identical ~0.5 M_sun stars.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figures, 7 tables, to appear in MNRA
Search for Outer Massive Bodies around Transiting Planetary Systems: Candidates of Faint Stellar Companions around HAT-P-7
We present results of direct imaging observations for HAT-P-7 taken with the
Subaru HiCIAO and the Calar Alto AstraLux. Since the close-in transiting planet
HAT-P-7b was reported to have a highly tilted orbit, massive bodies such as
giant planets, brown dwarfs, or a binary star are expected to exist in the
outer region of this system. We show that there are indeed two candidates for
distant faint stellar companions around HAT-P-7. We discuss possible roles
played by such companions on the orbital evolution of HAT-P-7b. We conclude
that as there is a third body in the system as reported by Winn et al. (2009,
ApJL, 763, L99), the Kozai migration is less likely while planet-planet
scattering is possible.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures, 2 tables, PASJ in pres
LBT observations of the HR 8799 planetary system: First detection of HR8799e in H band
We have performed H and Ks band observations of the planetary system around
HR 8799 using the new AO system at the Large Binocular Telescope and the PISCES
Camera. The excellent instrument performance (Strehl ratios up to 80% in H
band) enabled detection the inner planet HR8799e in the H band for the first
time. The H and Ks magnitudes of HR8799e are similar to those of planets c and
d, with planet e slightly brighter. Therefore, HR8799e is likely slightly more
massive than c and d. We also explored possible orbital configurations and
their orbital stability. We confirm that the orbits of planets b, c and e are
consistent with being circular and coplanar; planet d should have either an
orbital eccentricity of about 0.1 or be non-coplanar with respect to b and c.
Planet e can not be in circular and coplanar orbit in a 4:2:1 mean motion
resonances with c and d, while coplanar and circular orbits are allowed for a
5:2 resonance. The analysis of dynamical stability shows that the system is
highly unstable or chaotic when planetary masses of about 5 MJup for b and 7
MJup for the other planets are adopted. Significant regions of dynamical
stability for timescales of tens of Myr are found when adopting planetary
masses of about 3.5, 5, 5, and 5 Mjup for HR 8799 b, c, d, and e respectively.
These masses are below the current estimates based on the stellar age (30 Myr)
and theoretical models of substellar objects.Comment: 13 pages, 10 figures, A&A, accepte
Improved Success of Sparse Matrix Protein Crystallization Screening with Heterogeneous Nucleating Agents
Crystallization is a major bottleneck in the process of macromolecular structure determination by X-ray crystallography. Successful crystallization requires the formation of nuclei and their subsequent growth to crystals of suitable size. Crystal growth generally occurs spontaneously in a supersaturated solution as a result of homogenous nucleation. However, in a typical sparse matrix screening experiment, precipitant and protein concentration are not sampled extensively, and supersaturation conditions suitable for nucleation are often missed
Enhancement of crystallization with nucleotide ligands identified by dye-ligand affinity chromatography
Ligands interacting with Mycobacterium tuberculosis recombinant proteins were identified through use of the ability of Cibacron Blue F3GA dye to interact with nucleoside/nucleotide binding proteins, and the effects of these ligands on crystallization were examined. Co-crystallization with ligands enhanced crystallization and enabled X-ray diffraction data to be collected to a resolution of at least 2.7 Å for 5 of 10 proteins tested. Additionally, clues about individual proteins’ functions were obtained from their interactions with each of a panel of ligands
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Characterization of the Benchmark Binary Nltt 33370
We report the confirmation of the binary nature of the nearby, very low-mass system NLTT 33370 with adaptive optics imaging and present resolved near-infrared photometry and integrated light optical and near-infrared spectroscopy to characterize the system. VLT-NaCo and LBTI-LMIRCam images show significant orbital motion between 2013 February and 2013 April. Optical spectra reveal weak, gravity sensitive alkali lines and strong lithium 6708 ˚A absorption that indicate the system is younger than field age. VLT-SINFONI near-IR spectra also show weak, gravity sensitive features and spectral morphology that is consistent with other young, very low-mass dwarfs. We combine the constraints from all age diagnostics to estimate a system age of ∼30-200 Myr. The 1.2-4.7 µm spectral energy distribution of the components point toward Teff = 3200 ± 500 K and Teff = 3100 ± 500 K for NLTT 33370 A and B, respectively. The observed spectra, derived temperatures, and estimated age combine to constrain the component spectral types to the range M6-M8. Evolutionary models predict masses of 113 ±8 MJup and 106±7 MJup from the estimated luminosities of the components. KPNO-Phoenix spectra allow us to estimate the systemic radial velocity of the binary. The Galactic kinematics of NLTT 33370AB are broadly consistent with other young stars in the Solar neighborhood. However, definitive membership in a young, kinematic group cannot be assigned at this time and further follow-up observations are necessary to fully constrain the system’s kinematics. The proximity,
age, and late-spectral type of this binary make it very novel and an ideal target for rapid, complete orbit determination. The system is one of only a few model calibration benchmarks at young ages and very low-masses.Astronom
Differential Expression of Alpha 4 Integrins on Effector Memory T Helper Cells during Bordetella Infections. Delayed Responses in Bordetella pertussis
Bordetella pertussis (B. pertussis) is the causative agent of whooping cough, a respiratory disease that is reemerging worldwide. Mechanisms of selective lymphocyte trafficking to the airways are likely to be critical in the immune response to this pathogen. We compared murine infection by B. pertussis, B. parapertussis, and a pertussis toxin-deleted B. pertussis mutant (BpΔPTX) to test the hypothesis that effector memory T-helper cells (emTh) display an altered pattern of trafficking receptor expression in B. pertussis infection due to a defect in imprinting. Increased cell recruitment to the lungs at 5 days post infection (p.i.) with B. parapertussis, and to a lesser extent with BpΔPTX, coincided with an increased frequency of circulating emTh cells expressing the mucosal-associated trafficking receptors α4β7 and α4β1 while a reduced population of these cells was observed in B. pertussis infection. These cells were highly evident in the blood and lungs in B. pertussis infection only at 25 days p.i. when B. parapertussis and BpΔPTX infections were resolved. Although at 5 days p.i., an equally high percentage of lung dendritic cells (DCs) from all infections expressed maturation markers, this expression persisted only in B. pertussis infection at 25 days p.i. Furthermore, at 5 days p.i with B. pertussis, lung DCs migration to draining lymph nodes may be compromised as evidenced by decreased frequency of CCR7+ DCs, inhibited CCR7-mediated in vitro migration, and fewer DCs in lung draining lymph nodes. Lastly, a reduced frequency of allogeneic CD4+ cells expressing α4β1 was detected following co-culture with lung DCs from B. pertussis-infected mice, suggesting a defect in DC imprinting in comparison to the other infection groups. The findings in this study suggest that B. pertussis may interfere with imprinting of lung-associated trafficking receptors on T lymphocytes leading to extended survival in the host and a prolonged course of disease
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