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Spire stimulates nucleation by Cappuccino and binds both ends of actin filaments.
The actin nucleators Spire and Cappuccino synergize to promote actin assembly, but the mechanism of their synergy is controversial. Together these proteins promote the formation of actin meshes, which are conserved structures that regulate the establishment of oocyte polarity. Direct interaction between Spire and Cappuccino is required for oogenesis and for in vitro synergistic actin assembly. This synergy is proposed to be driven by elongation and the formation of a ternary complex at filament barbed ends, or by nucleation and interaction at filament pointed ends. To mimic the geometry of Spire and Cappuccino in vivo, we immobilized Spire on beads and added Cappuccino and actin. Barbed ends, protected by Cappuccino, grow away from the beads while pointed ends are retained, as expected for nucleation-driven synergy. We found that Spire is sufficient to bind barbed ends and retain pointed ends of actin filaments near beads and we identified Spire's barbed-end binding domain. Loss of barbed-end binding increases nucleation by Spire and synergy with Cappuccino in bulk pyrene assays and on beads. Importantly, genetic rescue by the loss-of-function mutant indicates that barbed-end binding is not necessary for oogenesis. Thus, increased nucleation is a critical element of synergy both in vitro and in vivo
Evolution of a 3 \msun star from the main sequence to the ZZ Ceti stage: the role played by element diffusion
The purpose of this paper is to present new full evolutionary calculations
for DA white dwarf stars with the major aim of providing a physically sound
reference frame for exploring the pulsation properties of the resulting models
in future communications. Here, white dwarf evolution is followed in a
self-consistent way with the predictions of time dependent element diffusion
and nuclear burning. In addition, full account is taken of the evolutionary
stages prior to the white dwarf formation. In particular, we follow the
evolution of a 3 \msun model from the zero-age main sequence (the adopted
metallicity is Z=0.02) all the way from the stages of hydrogen and helium
burning in the core up to the thermally pulsing phase. After experiencing 11
thermal pulses, the model is forced to evolve towards its white dwarf
configuration by invoking strong mass loss episodes. Further evolution is
followed down to the domain of the ZZ Ceti stars on the white dwarf cooling
branch. Emphasis is placed on the evolution of the chemical abundance
distribution due to diffusion processes and the role played by hydrogen burning
during the white dwarf evolution. Furthermore, the implications of our
evolutionary models for the main quantities relevant for adiabatic pulsation
analysis are discussed. Interestingly, the shape of the Ledoux term is markedly
smoother as compared with previous detailed studies of white dwarfs. This is
translated into a different behaviour of the Brunt-Vaisala frequency.Comment: 11 pages, 11 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
The Effects of Element Diffusion on the Pulsational Properties of Variable DA White Dwarf Stars
We explore the effects of element diffusion due to gravitational settling and
thermal and chemical diffusion on the pulsational properties of DA white
dwarfs. To this end, we employ an updated evolutionary code coupled with a
pulsational, finite difference code for computing the linear, non-radial
g-modes in the adiabatic approximation. We follow the evolution of a 0.55 \msun
white dwarf model in a self-consistent way with the evolution of chemical
abundance distribution as given by time dependent diffusion processes. Results
are compared with the standard treatment of diffusive equilibrium in the trace
element approximation. Appreciable differences are found between the two
employed treatments. We conclude that time dependent element diffusion plays an
important role in determining the whole oscillation pattern and the temporal
derivative of the periods in DAV white dwarfs. In addition, we discuss the
plausibility of the standard description employed in accounting for diffusion
in most of white dwarf asteroseismological studies.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
Early Radio and X-Ray Observations of the Youngest Nearby Type Ia Supernova PTF 11kly (SN 2011fe)
On 2011 August 24 (UT) the Palomar Transient Factory (PTF) discovered PTF11kly (SN 2011fe), the youngest
and most nearby Type Ia supernova (SN Ia) in decades. We followed this event up in the radio (centimeter and
millimeter bands) and X-ray bands, starting about a day after the estimated explosion time.We present our analysis
of the radio and X-ray observations, yielding the tightest constraints yet placed on the pre-explosion mass-loss rate
from the progenitor system of this supernova. We find a robust limit of Ṁ ≾ 10^(−8)(w/100 km s^(−1))M_☉ yr^(−1) from
sensitive X-ray non-detections, as well as a similar limit from radio data, which depends, however, on assumptions
about microphysical parameters. We discuss our results in the context of single-degenerate models for SNe Ia and
find that our observations modestly disfavor symbiotic progenitor models involving a red giant donor, but cannot
constrain systems accreting from main-sequence or sub-giant stars, including the popular supersoft channel. In
view of the proximity of PTF11kly and the sensitivity of our prompt observations, we would have to wait for a long
time (a decade or longer) in order to more meaningfully probe the circumstellar matter of SNe Ia
Excited states of a dilute Bose-Einstein condensate in a harmonic trap
The low-lying hydrodynamic normal modes of a dilute Bose-Einstein gas in an
isotropic harmonic trap determine the corresponding Bogoliubov amplitudes. In
the Thomas-Fermi limit, these modes have large low-temperature occupation
numbers, and they permit an explicit construction of the dynamic structure
function . The total noncondensate number at zero
temperature increases like , where is the condensate radius measured
in units of the oscillator length. The lowest dipole modes are constructed
explicitly in the Bogoliubov approximation.Comment: 15 pages, REVTE
Beyond the Thomas-Fermi approximation for a trapped condensed Bose-Einstein gas
Corrections to the zero-temperature Thomas-Fermi description of a dilute
interacting condensed Bose-Einstein gas confined in an isotropic harmonic trap
arise due to the presence of a boundary layer near the condensate surface.
Within the Bogoliubov approximation, the various contributions to the
ground-state condensate energy all have terms of order R^{-4}ln R and R^{-4},
where R is the number-dependent dimensionless condensate radius in units of the
oscillator length. The zero-order hydrodynamic density-fluctuation amplitudes
are extended beyond the Thomas-Fermi radius through the boundary layer to
provide a uniform description throughout all space. The first-order correction
to the excitation frequencies is shown to be of order R^{-4}.Comment: 12 pages, 2 figures, revtex. Completely revised discussion of the
boundary-layer corrections to collective excitations, and two new figures
added. To appear in Phys. Rev. A (October, 1998
Fish introductions and light modulate food web fluxes in tropical streams: a whole-ecosystem experimental approach
Decades of ecological study have demonstrated the importance of top-down and bottom-up controls on food webs, yet few studies within this context have quantified the magnitude of energy and material fluxes at the whole-ecosystem scale. We examined top-down and bottom-up effects on food web fluxes using a field experiment that manipulated the presence of a consumer, the Trinidadian guppy Poecilia reticulata, and the production of basal resources by thinning the riparian forest canopy to increase incident light. To gauge the effects of these reach-scale manipulations on food web fluxes, we used a nitrogen (N-15) stable isotope tracer to compare basal resource treatments (thinned canopy vs. control) and consumer treatments (guppy introduction vs. control). The thinned canopy stream had higher primary production than the natural canopy control, leading to increased N fluxes to invertebrates that feed on benthic biofilms (grazers), fine benthic organic matter (collector-gatherers), and organic particles suspended in the water column (filter feeders). Stream reaches with guppies also had higher primary productivity and higher N fluxes to grazers and filter feeders. In contrast, N fluxes to collector-gatherers were reduced in guppy introduction reaches relative to upstream controls. N fluxes to leaf-shredding invertebrates, predatory invertebrates, and the other fish species present (Hart\u27s killifish, Anablepsoides hartii) did not differ across light or guppy treatments, suggesting that effects on detritus-based linkages and upper trophic levels were not as strong. Effect sizes of guppy and canopy treatments on N flux rates were similar for most taxa, though guppy effects were the strongest for filter feeding invertebrates while canopy effects were the strongest for collector-gatherer invertebrates. Combined, these results extend previous knowledge about top-down and bottom-up controls on ecosystems by providing experimental, reach-scale evidence that both pathways can act simultaneously and have equally strong influence on nutrient fluxes from inorganic pools through primary consumers
Normal Modes of a Vortex in a Trapped Bose-Einstein Condensate
A hydrodynamic description is used to study the normal modes of a vortex in a
zero-temperature Bose-Einstein condensate. In the Thomas-Fermi (TF) limit, the
circulating superfluid velocity far from the vortex core provides a small
perturbation that splits the originally degenerate normal modes of a
vortex-free condensate. The relative frequency shifts are small in all cases
considered (they vanish for the lowest dipole mode with |m|=1), suggesting that
the vortex is stable. The Bogoliubov equations serve to verify the existence of
helical waves, similar to those of a vortex line in an unbounded weakly
interacting Bose gas. In the large-condensate (small-core) limit, the
condensate wave function reduces to that of a straight vortex in an unbounded
condensate; the corresponding Bogoliubov equations have no bound-state
solutions that are uniform along the symmetry axis and decay exponentially far
from the vortex core.Comment: 15 pages, REVTEX, 2 Postscript figures, to appear in Phys. Rev. A. We
have altered the material in Secs. 3B and 4 in connection with the normal
modes that have |m|=1. Our present treatment satisfies the condition that the
fundamental dipole mode of a condensate with (or without) a vortex should
have the bare frequency $\omega_\perp
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