alpha-nucleus potentials for the neutron-deficient p nuclei

alpha-nucleus potentials are one important ingredient for the understanding of the nucleosynthesis of heavy neutron-deficient p nuclei in the astrophysical gamma-process where these p nuclei are produced by a series of (gamma,n), (gamma,p), and (gamma,alpha) reactions. I present an improved alpha-nucleus potential at the astrophysically relevant sub-Coulomb energies which is derived from the analysis of alpha decay data and from a previously established systematic behavior of double-folding potentials.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.

Aprotinin reduces cardiac troponin I release and inhibits apoptosis of polymorphonuclear cells during off-pump coronary artery bypass surgery

Objectives: In addition to blood-sparing effects, aprotinin may have cardioprotective and anti-inflammatory effects during cardiopulmonary bypass-assisted cardiac surgery. In this study, the authors examined whether aprotinin had cardioprotective and/or anti-inflammatory effects in patients undergoing off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting. Design: A prospective randomized clinical trial. Setting: University hospital. Participants: Fifty patients were randomized to control (n = 25) or aprotinin treatment (n = 25) groups. Interventions: Aprotinin was given as a loading dose (2 x 10(6) KIU) followed by a continuous infusion at 5 x 10(5) KIU/h until skin closure. Measurements and Main Results: Blood samples for cardiac troponin I; interleukin-6, interleukin-8, and interleukin-10; tumor necrosis factor a; and elastase were taken after anesthesia induction, completion of revascularization, and 6 hours, 12 hours, and 24 hours after revascularization. Blood samples were taken to assess for apoptosis in polymorphonuclear cells. Baseline plasma levels for cardiac troponin I did not differ between groups but were significantly lower in aprotinin-treated patients at the time of revascularization (P = 0.03) and 6 hours (p = 0.004) and 24 hours (p = 0.03) later. Aprotinin significantly reduced apoptosis in polymorphonuclear cells compared with control-treated patients (p = 0.04). There were no differences in plasma cytokine or elastase levels between groups. Conclusions: The authors conclude that aprotinin reduces perioperative cardiac troponin I release and attenuates apoptosis in polymorphonuclear cells but has no significant effects on plasma cytokine levels in patients undergoing off-pump coronary artery bypass graft surgery

Quantifying transmission of Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis among group-housed dairy calves

International audienceAbstractJohne’s disease (JD) is a chronic enteritis caused by Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP), with control primarily aimed at preventing new infections among calves. The aim of the current study was to quantify calf-to-calf transmission of MAP among penmates in an experimental trial. Newborn Holstein bull calves (n = 32) were allocated into pens of 4, with 2 inoculated (IN) calves and 2 calves that were contact exposed (CE). Calves were group-housed for 3 months, with frequent collection of fecal and blood samples and tissue collection after euthanasia. The basic reproduction ratio (R0) was estimated using a final size (FS) model with a susceptible-infected model, based on INF-γ ELISA and tissue culture followed by qPCR. In addition, the transmission rate parameter (β) for new shedding events was estimated using a general linearized method (GLM) model with a susceptible-infected-susceptible model based on culture, followed by qPCR, of fecal samples collected during group housing. The R0 was derived for IN and CE calves separately, due to a difference in susceptibility, as well as differences in duration of shedding events. Based on the FS model, interferon-γ results from blood samples resulted in a R0IG of 0.90 (0.24, 2.59) and tissue culture resulted in a R0T of 1.36 (0.45, 3.94). Based on the GLM model, the R0 for CE calves to begin shedding (R0CE) was 3.24 (1.14, 7.41). We concluded that transmission of MAP infection between penmates occurred and that transmission among calves may be an important cause of persistent MAP infection on dairy farms that is currently uncontrolled for in current JD control programs

Optical Scattering Lengths in Large Liquid-Scintillator Neutrino Detectors

For liquid-scintillator neutrino detectors of kiloton scale, the transparency of the organic solvent is of central importance. The present paper reports on laboratory measurements of the optical scattering lengths of the organic solvents PXE, LAB, and Dodecane which are under discussion for next-generation experiments like SNO+, Hanohano, or LENA. Results comprise the wavelength range from 415 to 440nm. The contributions from Rayleigh and Mie scattering as well as from absorption/re-emission processes are discussed. Based on the present results, LAB seems to be the preferred solvent for a large-volume detector.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication by Rev. Scient. Instr

Angle resolved photoelectron spectroscopy of two-color XUV-NIR ionization with polarization control

Electron emission caused by extreme ultraviolet (XUV) radiation in the presence of a strong near infrared (NIR) field leads to multiphoton interactions that depend on several parameters. Here, a comprehensive study of the influence of the angle between the polarization directions of the NIR and XUV fields on the two-color angle-resolved photoelectron spectra of He and Ne is presented. The resulting photoelectron angular distribution strongly depends on the orientation of the NIR polarization plane with respect to that of the XUV field. The prevailing influence of the intense NIR field over the angular emission characteristics for He(1s) and Ne(2p) ionization lines is shown. The underlying processes are modeled in the frame of the strong field approximation (SFA) which shows very consistent agreement with the experiment reaffirming the power of the SFA for multicolor-multiphoton ionization in this regime

Direct Infection and Replication of Naturally Occurring Hepatitis C Virus Genotypes 1, 2, 3 and 4 in Normal Human Hepatocyte Cultures

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection afflicts about 170 million individuals worldwide. However, the HCV life cycle is only partially understood because it has not been possible to infect normal human hepatocytes in culture. The current Huh-7 systems use cloned, synthetic HCV RNA expressed in hepatocellular carcinoma cells to produce virions, but these cells cannot be infected with naturally occurring HCV obtained from infected patients.Here, we describe a human hepatocyte culture permissible to the direct infection with naturally occurring HCV genotypes 1, 2, 3 and 4 in the blood of HCV-infected patients. The culture system mimics the biology and kinetics of HCV infection in humans, and produces infectious virions that can infect naïve human hepatocytes.This culture system should complement the existing systems, and may facilitate the understanding of the HCV life cycle, its effects in the natural host cell, the hepatocyte, as well as the development of novel therapeutics and vaccines

The Ellipticity and Orientation of Clusters of Galaxies from N-Body Experiments

In this study we use simulations of 128$^3$ particles to study the ellipticity and orientation of clusters of galaxies in N-body simulations of differing power-law initial spectra (P(k) \propto k^n ,n = +1, 0, -1, -2$), and density parameters ($\Omega_0 = 0.2$to 1.0). Furthermore, unlike most theoretical studies we mimic most observers by removing all particles which lie at distances greater than 2 1/h Mpc from the cluster center of mass. We computed the axial ratio and the principal axes using the inertia tensor of each cluster. The mean ellipticity of clusters increases strongly with increasing$n$. We also find that clusters tend to become more spherical at smaller radii. We compared the orientation of a cluster to the orientation of neighboring clusters as a function of distance (correlation). In addition, we considered whether a cluster's major axis tends to lie along the line connecting it to a neighboring cluster, as a function of distance (alignment). Both alignments and correlations were computed in three dimensions and in projection to mimic observational surveys. Our results show that significant alignments exist for all spectra at small separations ($D < 15 h^{-1}$Mpc) but drops off at larger distance in a strongly$n-$dependent way.Comment: 22 pages, requires aaspp4.sty, flushrt.sty, and epsf.sty Revised manuscript, accepted for publication in Ap

MinION Analysis and Reference Consortium: Phase 1 data release and analysis

The advent of a miniaturized DNA sequencing device with a high-throughput contextual sequencing capability embodies the next generation of large scale sequencing tools. The MinION™ Access Programme (MAP) was initiated by Oxford Nanopore Technologies™ in April 2014, giving public access to their USB-attached miniature sequencing device. The MinION Analysis and Reference Consortium (MARC) was formed by a subset of MAP participants, with the aim of evaluating and providing standard protocols and reference data to the community. Envisaged as a multi-phased project, this study provides the global community with the Phase 1 data from MARC, where the reproducibility of the performance of the MinION was evaluated at multiple sites. Five laboratories on two continents generated data using a control strain of Escherichia coli K-12, preparing and sequencing samples according to a revised ONT protocol. Here, we provide the details of the protocol used, along with a preliminary analysis of the characteristics of typical runs including the consistency, rate, volume and quality of data produced. Further analysis of the Phase 1 data presented here, and additional experiments in Phase 2 of E. coli from MARC are already underway to identify ways to improve and enhance MinION performance

External validation of a referral rule for axial spondyloarthritis in primary care patients with chronic low back pain

Objectives To validate and optimize a referral rule to identify primary care patients with chronic low back pain (CLBP) suspected for axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA). Design Cross-sectional study with data from 19 Dutch primary care practices for development and 38 for validation. Participants Primary care patients aged 18-45 years with CLBP existing more than three months and onset of back pain started before the age of 45 years. Main Outcome The number of axSpA patients according to the ASAS criteria. Methods The referral rule (CaFaSpA referral rule) was developed using 364 CL