6,366 research outputs found
Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide Receptor Antagonists: Beyond Migraine Pain—A Possible Analgesic Strategy for Osteoarthritis?
Osteoarthritis (OA) pain is poorly understood and managed, as current analgesics have only limited efficacy and unwanted side effect profiles. A broader understanding of the pathological mechanisms driving OA joint pain is vital for the development of improved analgesics. Both clinical and preclinical data suggest an association between joint levels of the sensory neuropeptide calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) and pain during OA. Whether a direct causative link exists remains an important unanswered question. Given the recent development of small molecule CGRP receptor antagonists with clinical efficacy against migraine pain, the interrogation of the role of CGRP in OA pain mechanisms is extremely timely. In this article, we provide the background to the importance of CGRP in pain mechanisms and review the emerging clinical and preclinical evidence implicating a role for CGRP in OA pain. We suggest that the CGRP receptor antagonists developed for migraine pain warrant further investigation in OA
A trait-based approach for predicting species responses to environmental change from sparse data : how well might terrestrial mammals track climate change?
Acknowledgements LS was supported by two STSMs by the COST Action ES1101 ”Harmonising Global Biodiversity Modelling“ (Harmbio), supported by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology). JMB and SMW were funded by CEH projects NEC05264 and NEC05100. JMJT and SCFP are grateful for the support of the Natural Environment Research Council UK (NE/J008001/1). LS, JAH and JMJT conceived the original idea. LS, JAH, JMB, TC & JMJT designed the study; LS collected the data; LS and TC performed the statistical analyses; LS conducted the integrodifference modelling assisted by JMB and SMW. LS conducted the individual-based modelling assisted by SCFP. LS led the writing supported by JMJT, JMB, SCFP, SMW, TC, JAH and GB.Peer reviewedPublisher PD
Carbon pools recover more quickly than plant biodiversity in tropical secondary forests.
Although increasing efforts are being made to restore tropical forests, little information is available regarding the time scales required for carbon and plant biodiversity to recover to the values associated with undisturbed forests. To address this knowledge gap, we carried out a meta-analysis comparing data from more than 600 secondary tropical forest sites with nearby undisturbed reference forests. Above-ground biomass approached equivalence to reference values within 80 years since last disturbance, whereas below-ground biomass took longer to recover. Soil carbon content showed little relationship with time since disturbance. Tree species richness recovered after about 50 years. By contrast, epiphyte richness did not reach equivalence to undisturbed forests. The proportion of undisturbed forest trees and epiphyte species found in secondary forests was low and changed little over time. Our results indicate that carbon pools and biodiversity show different recovery rates under passive, secondary succession and that colonization by undisturbed forest plant species is slow. Initiatives such as the Convention on Biological Diversity and REDD+ should therefore encourage active management to help to achieve their aims of restoring both carbon and biodiversity in tropical forests
Hierarchical galaxy formation and substructure in the Galaxy's stellar halo
We develop an explicit model for the formation of the stellar halo from
tidally disrupted, accreted dwarf satellites in the cold dark matter (CDM)
framework, focusing on predictions testable with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey
(SDSS) and other wide-field surveys. Subhalo accretion and orbital evolution
are calculated using a semi-analytic approach within the Press-Schechter
formalism. Motivated by our previous work, we assume that low-mass subhalos (v
< 30 km/s) can form significant populations of stars only if they accreted a
substantial fraction of their mass before the epoch of reionization. With this
assumption, the model reproduces the observed velocity function of galactic
satellites in the Local Group, solving the ``dwarf satellite problem'' without
modifying the popular LCDM cosmology. The disrupted satellites yield a stellar
distribution with a total mass and radial density profile consistent with those
observed for the Milky Way stellar halo. Most significantly, the model predicts
the presence of many large-scale, coherent substructures in the outer halo.
These substructures are remnants of individual, tidally disrupted dwarf
satellite galaxies. Substructure is more pronounced at large galactocentric
radii because of the smaller number density of tidal streams and the longer
orbital times. This model provides a natural explanation for the coherent
structures in the outer stellar halo found in the SDSS commissioning data, and
it predicts that many more such structures should be found as the survey covers
more of the sky. The detection (or non-detection) and characterization of such
structures could eventually test variants of the CDM scenario, especially those
that aim to solve the dwarf satellite problem by enhancing satellite
disruption.Comment: 12 pages, 8 figures, Submitted to Ap
Looking for the Charged Higgs Boson
This review article starts with a brief introduction to the charged Higgs
boson (H^\pm) in the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM). It then
discusses the prospects of a relatively light H^\pm boson search via top quark
decay at Tevatron/LHC, and finally a heavy H^\pm boson search at LHC. The
viable channels for H^\pm search are identified in both the cases, with
particular emphasis on the H^\pm --> tau + nu decay channel. The effects of NLO
QCD correction in the SM as well as the MSSM are discussed briefly.Comment: 17 pages with 8 eps figures, Invited review, Reference adde
Speed Enforcement in Work Zones and Synthesis on Cost-Benefit Assessment of Installing Speed Enforcement Cameras on INDOT Road Network
Work zone safety is a high priority for transportation agencies across the United States. High speeds in construction zones are a well-documented risk factor that increases the frequency and severity of crashes. It is therefore important to understand the extent and severity of high-speed vehicles in and around construction work zones. This study uses CV trajectory data to evaluate the impact of several work zone speed compliance measures, such as posted speed limit signs, radar-based speed feedback displays, and automated speed enforcement on controlling speeds inside the work zone. This study also presents several methodologies to characterize both the spatial and temporal effects of these control measures on driver behavior and vehicle speeds across the work zones
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Mineral Surface and Fluid Chemistry in Nakhlite Analog Water-Rock Reactions
We report on experiments with Mars analog materials under diagenetic conditions and find characteristic chemical surface changes in correspondence with the fluid conditions
Using Tau Polarization for Charged Higgs Boson and SUSY Searches at LHC
The polarization can be easily measured at LHC in the 1-prong hadronic
decay channel by measuring what fraction of the -jet momentum is
carried by the charged track. A simple cut requiring this fraction to be >0.8
retains most of the polarization of +1 -jet signal while
suppressing the polarization of -1 -jet background and practically
eliminating the fake background. This can be utilized to extract the
charged Higgs signal. It can be also utilized to extract the SUSY signal in the
stau NLSP region, and in particular the stau co-annihilaton region.Comment: 8 pages, 9 figures; Fig.8 and Fig.9 are replaced, published in
"Physics at the Large Hadron Collider", A Platinum Jubilee Special Issue of
the Indian National Science Academy, Springer (2009) p 20
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