14 research outputs found
Direct observation of Oersted-field-induced magnetization dynamics in magnetic nanostripes
We have used time-resolved x-ray photoemission electron microscopy to
investigate the magnetization dynamics induced by nanosecond current pulses in
NiFe/Cu/Co nanostripes. A large tilt of the NiFe magnetization in the direction
transverse to the stripe is observed during the pulses. We show that this
effect cannot be quantitatively understood from the amplitude of the Oersted
field and the shape anisotropy. High frequency oscillations observed at the
onset of the pulses are attributed to precessional motion of the NiFe
magnetization about the effective field. We discuss the possible origins of the
large magnetization tilt and the potential implications of the static and
dynamic effects of the Oersted field on current-induced domain wall motion in
such stripes.Comment: Published in Phys. Rev. B 83, 020406 (2011) (Rapid Communications
Quantum state preparation and macroscopic entanglement in gravitational-wave detectors
Long-baseline laser-interferometer gravitational-wave detectors are operating
at a factor of 10 (in amplitude) above the standard quantum limit (SQL) within
a broad frequency band. Such a low classical noise budget has already allowed
the creation of a controlled 2.7 kg macroscopic oscillator with an effective
eigenfrequency of 150 Hz and an occupation number of 200. This result, along
with the prospect for further improvements, heralds the new possibility of
experimentally probing macroscopic quantum mechanics (MQM) - quantum mechanical
behavior of objects in the realm of everyday experience - using
gravitational-wave detectors. In this paper, we provide the mathematical
foundation for the first step of a MQM experiment: the preparation of a
macroscopic test mass into a nearly minimum-Heisenberg-limited Gaussian quantum
state, which is possible if the interferometer's classical noise beats the SQL
in a broad frequency band. Our formalism, based on Wiener filtering, allows a
straightforward conversion from the classical noise budget of a laser
interferometer, in terms of noise spectra, into the strategy for quantum state
preparation, and the quality of the prepared state. Using this formalism, we
consider how Gaussian entanglement can be built among two macroscopic test
masses, and the performance of the planned Advanced LIGO interferometers in
quantum-state preparation
Searching for a Stochastic Background of Gravitational Waves with LIGO
The Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) has performed
the fourth science run, S4, with significantly improved interferometer
sensitivities with respect to previous runs. Using data acquired during this
science run, we place a limit on the amplitude of a stochastic background of
gravitational waves. For a frequency independent spectrum, the new limit is
. This is currently the most sensitive
result in the frequency range 51-150 Hz, with a factor of 13 improvement over
the previous LIGO result. We discuss complementarity of the new result with
other constraints on a stochastic background of gravitational waves, and we
investigate implications of the new result for different models of this
background.Comment: 37 pages, 16 figure
QUETIAPINE AS COMBINATION TREATMENT WITH CITALOPRAM IN UNIPOLAR DEPRESSION WITH PROMINENT SOMATIC SYMPTOMS: A RANDOMISED, DOUBLE-BLIND, PLACEBO-CONTROLLED PILOT STUDY
Background: Patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) accompanied by physical symptoms may be less responsive to
antidepressant treatment. Quetiapine has been evaluated in the treatment of bipolar depression and has been recently approved as
an add-on therapy for unipolar depression. Less is known about the efficacy of combination therapies in patients suffering from
MDD with somatic symptoms. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy of quetiapine as adjunctive therapy to the
SSRI citalopram in patients with MDD and somatic complaints.
Subjects and methods: 41 inpatients with nonpsychotic DSM-IV MDD experiencing significant symptoms of somatic distress as
defined by a baseline score on the SCL-90-R somatization subscale greater one standard deviation above adult nonpatient norms
were randomly assigned to receive either citalopram 40 mg/day plus placebo (n=20) or citalopram 40 mg/day plus quetiapine, 300
to 600 mg/day (n=21) for 6 weeks. The primary outcome measure was the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS) score.
Results: Mean changes in HDRS scores from baseline to week 6 using last-observation-carried-forward methods were -12.3±6.2
and -10.7±5.1 in the citalopram-quetiapine and citalopram-placebo group, respectively. Remission rates were significant higher in
the citalopram-quetiapine-group (41.1%) than in the citalopram-placebo-group (26.3%), respectively.
Conclusions: Although quetiapine as add-on to citalopram did not separate statistically from placebo on the HDRS score in
improving depressive symptoms and somatic symptoms in patients with MDD and prominent somatic complaints, higher remission
rates and other second outcome parameters showed advantages for quetiapine. Larger, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials of
quetiapine as augmentation therapy in MDD with somatic symptoms are warranted
Impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic on stroke teleconsultations in Germany in the first half of 2020
Background and purpose
The effects of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on telemedical care have not been described on a national level. Thus, we investigated the medical stroke treatment situation before, during, and after the first lockdown in Germany.
Methods
In this nationwide, multicenter study, data from 14 telemedical networks including 31 network centers and 155 spoke hospitals covering large parts of Germany were analyzed regarding patients' characteristics, stroke type/severity, and acute stroke treatment. A survey focusing on potential shortcomings of in-hospital and (telemedical) stroke care during the pandemic was conducted.
Results
Between January 2018 and June 2020, 67,033 telemedical consultations and 38,895 telemedical stroke consultations were conducted. A significant decline of telemedical (p < 0.001) and telemedical stroke consultations (p < 0.001) during the lockdown in March/April 2020 and a reciprocal increase after relaxation of COVID-19 measures in May/June 2020 were observed. Compared to 2018–2019, neither stroke patients' age (p = 0.38), gender (p = 0.44), nor severity of ischemic stroke (p = 0.32) differed in March/April 2020. Whereas the proportion of ischemic stroke patients for whom endovascular treatment (14.3% vs. 14.6%; p = 0.85) was recommended remained stable, there was a nonsignificant trend toward a lower proportion of recommendation of intravenous thrombolysis during the lockdown (19.0% vs. 22.1%; p = 0.052). Despite the majority of participating network centers treating patients with COVID-19, there were no relevant shortcomings reported regarding in-hospital stroke treatment or telemedical stroke care.
Conclusions
Telemedical stroke care in Germany was able to provide full service despite the COVID-19 pandemic, but telemedical consultations declined abruptly during the lockdown period and normalized after relaxation of COVID-19 measures in Germany
Executive Attention in Schizophrenic Males and the Impact of COMT Val108/158Met Genotype on Performance on the Attention Network Test
Background: Executive control of attention in schizophrenia has recently been assessed by means of the Attention Network Test (ANT). In the past, for tasks assessing executive attention, findings in schizophrenia have been contradictory, among others suggesting a lack of increased stimulus interference effects. Attention and executive functioning are substantially influenced by candidate genes of schizophrenia, including the functional single-nucleotide polymorphism catechol-o-methyltransferase (COMT) Val108/158Met, with task-dependent, specific effects of Met allele load on cognitive function. Therefore, we aimed at investigating executive attention in schizophrenic patients (SZP) as compared with healthy controls (HC), and to assess the specific impact of COMT Val108/158Met on executive attention, using ANT. Methods: We applied ANT to 63 SZP and 40 HC. We calculated a general linear model to investigate the influence of affection status and the COMT Val108/158Met genotype on executive attention as assessed by the ANT. Results: Multivariate analysis of variance revealed a significant effect of group on executive attention. SZP exhibited smaller conflict effects in the ANT. Met allele load significantly modulated executive attention efficiency, with homozygous Met individuals showing low overall reaction time but increased effects conflicting stimulus information in executive attention. Conclusions: Our data suggest a disease-related dissociation of executive attention with reduced conflict effects in SZP. Furthermore, they support the hypothesis of differential tonic-phasic dopamine activation and specific dopamine level effects in different cognitive tasks, which helps interpreting contradictory findings of Met allele load on cognitive performance. Disease status seems to modulate the impact of COMT Val108/158Met on cognitive performance
Genome-wide Association Study Identifies 2 New Loci Associated With Anti-NMDAR Encephalitis
Background and Objectives To investigate the genetic determinants of the most common type of antibody-mediated autoimmune encephalitis, anti-NMDA receptor (anti-NMDAR) encephalitis. Methods We performed a genome-wide association study in 178 patients with anti-NMDAR encephalitis and 590 healthy controls, followed by a colocalization analysis to identify putatively causal genes. Results We identified 2 independent risk loci harboring genome-wide significant variants (p = 2.2), 1 on chromosome 15, harboring only the LRRK1 gene, and 1 on chromosome 11 centered on the ACP2 and NR1H3 genes in a larger region of high linkage disequilibrium. Colocalization signals with expression quantitative trait loci for different brain regions and immune cell types suggested ACP2, NR1H3, MADD, DDB2, and C11orf49 as putatively causal genes. The best candidate genes in each region are LRRK1, encoding leucine-rich repeat kinase 1, a protein involved in B-cell development, and NR1H3 liver X receptor alpha, a transcription factor whose activation inhibits inflammatory processes. Discussion This study provides evidence for relevant genetic determinants of antibody-mediated autoimmune encephalitides outside the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) region. The results suggest that future studies with larger sample sizes will successfully identify additional genetic determinants and contribute to the elucidation of the pathomechanism
Search of S3 LIGO data for gravitational wave signals from spinning black hole and neutron star binary inspirals
We report on the methods and results of the first dedicated search for
gravitational waves emitted during the inspiral of compact binaries with
spinning component bodies. We analyze 788 hours of data collected during the
third science run (S3) of the LIGO detectors. We searched for binary systems
using a detection template family designed specially to capture the effects of
the spin-induced precession of the orbital plane. We present details of the
techniques developed to enable this search for spin-modulated gravitational
waves, highlighting the differences between this and other recent searches for
binaries with non-spinning components. The template bank we employed was found
to yield high matches with our spin-modulated target waveform for binaries with
masses in the asymmetric range 1.0 Msol < m1 < 3.0 Msol and 12.0 Msol < m2 <
20.0 Msol which is where we would expect the spin of the binary's components to
have significant effect. We find that our search of S3 LIGO data had good
sensitivity to binaries in the Milky Way and to a small fraction of binaries in
M31 and M33 with masses in the range 1.0 Msol < m1, m2 < 20.0 Msol. No
gravitational wave signals were identified during this search. Assuming a
binary population with spinning components and Gaussian distribution of masses
representing a prototypical neutron star - black hole system with m1 ~ 1.35
Msol and m2 ~ 5 Msol, we calculate the 90%-confidence upper limit on the rate
of coalescence of these systems to be 15.9 yr^-1 L_10^-1, where L_10 is 10^10
times the blue light luminosity of the Sun.Comment: 18 pages, 8 figure
Upper limits on gravitational wave emission from 78 radio pulsars
We present upper limits on the gravitational wave emission from 78 radio pulsars based on data from the third and fourth science runs of the LIGO and GEO 600 gravitational wave detectors. The data from both runs have been combined coherently to maximize sensitivity. For the first time, pulsars within binary (or multiple) systems have been included in the search by taking into account the signal modulation due to their orbits. Our upper limits are therefore the first measured for 56 of these pulsars. For the remaining 22, our results improve on previous upper limits by up to a factor of 10. For example, our tightest upper limit on the gravitational strain is 2.6×10-25 for PSR J1603-7202, and the equatorial ellipticity of PSR J2124–3358 is less than 10-6. Furthermore, our strain upper limit for the Crab pulsar is only 2.2 times greater than the fiducial spin-down limit