Central pseudoscalar production in pp scattering and the gluon contribution to the proton spin

Central pseudoscalar production in $pp$ scattering is suppressed at small values of $Q_\perp$, where $Q$ is defined as the difference between the momenta transferred from the two protons. Such a behaviour is expected if the production occurs through the fusion of two vectors. Photon exchange could provide the dominant contribution at low transferred momenta, but we argue that an extension of the experiment could probe the gluon contribution to the proton spin.Comment: 12 pages, 2 figures and 3 tables, uses epsf.sty. Added references and tables. Minor changes include

Giovanni Pascoli: Un focolare per l’èra nuova

A booklet, published in 1899 but symbolically dated 1900, clarifies the extent to which Pascoli believed himself to be Leopardi’s poetic successor. For Pascoli, the main responsibility of poets of the “new era” was to imbue mankind with a sentiment of fraternity, being the only possible reaction to the scientific recognition of life’s emptiness. The new poetry would enable man to evolve from the incomplete status of homo sapiens to that of homo humanus. This is the value of the poem Il focolare, in which the illusory comfort of an empty hearth represents the only possible consolation for all men

Mart and the lab of investigation : artistic research and the hidden social life of art residencies

The current internship report refers to an internship experience at the MArt, a space for learning and artistic experimentation, in Lisbon, between September 2020 and February 2021. During this six-month period, the Laboratory of Investigation, a program developed for the MArt residency program in Lisbon, was developed. The Laboratory of Investigation (LoI) is a place to share, problematize and implement artistic investigation within the context of an art residency. The program will be presented and analyzed in this report in its projecting, unfolding and implementation firstly from a more practical level, namely by exploring the institutional conditions that favored its creation and its implementation; secondly, at a conceptual level, drawing from the material collected from the LoI’s two main activities, such as the research meeting and a collective installation which are presented and grouped by macro themes to show the general trends of interest. Thirdly, the results are analyzed through the lens of four main concepts, which are both the pillars of the laboratory as well as the conceptual tools that serve the analysis: affectivity, conviviality, materiality, and reflectivity. The LoI advocates for the importance of building a convivial environment in an art residency and it shows that one way to successfully do so is to reflect, share and document one’s research practice. By doing so, the LoI attempts to tackle two different yet complementary dimensions of an art residency that artist can experience namely its hidden social life and its more artistic and research-oriented aspects. Ultimately, the LoI shows that research can be a useful tool to move beyond disciplinary boundaries and it can be a vehicle for building more convivial environments

Pseudobacterial nanocarriers for intracellular delivery of anti-infectives

Difficulties in the access and effective treatment of sheltered intracellular bacterial infections may potentially be overcome by encapsulating drugs into delivery systems functionalised with bacteria-derived invasive proteins. Although the potential of these proteins is clear, the promising application and indeed characteristics of invasive particles remains to be fully explored. The objectives of this study were therefore to determine the influence of shape on bacteriomimetic system characteristics, using invasive spherical and aspherical polymeric nanocarriers. Aspherical nanoparticles were prepared by an optimised combination of chemical functionalisation and thermomechanical stretching. InvA497, a C-terminal fragment of the Yersinia-derived protein invasin, was covalently coupled onto the surface of both spherical and aspherical nanoparticles. In vitro studies using drug-free nanoparticles indicated shape-dependent differences on receptor-mediated uptake by epithelial cells, being slightly faster for spherical nanoparticles. Both types of nanoparticles were then loaded with a preparation of antibiotic gentamicin, and tested for their ability to kill intracellular Shigella flexneri in human epithelial cells. Aspherical systems led to a higher killing of intracellular bacteria, potentially due to a more favorable drug release profile. This study provides a proof of concept that InvA497-functionalised aspherical bacteriomimetic nanocarriers may efficiently deliver otherwise non-permeable antibiotics across host cell membranes, enabling effective treatment of intracellular infections.Eine wirksame Behandlung von intrazellulärer lokalisierten und auf diese Weise geschützten bakteriellen Infektionen kann mit Hilfe von spezieller nanopartikulären Systemen, die mit invasiven, von Bakterien abgeleiteten Proteinen funktionalisiert sind, erreicht werden. Obwohl das Potenzial dieser Proteinen bereits bekannt ist, sind vielversprechende Anwendungen und Eigenschaften dieser bakteriomimetischen Transportsysteme noch gründlich zu erforschen. Ziel dieser Arbeit war es, den Einfluss von zwei unterschiedlichen Partikelformen (sphärisch und asphärisch) auf die Wirksamkeit dieser bakteriomimetischen Systeme zu untersuchen. Asphärische Nanopartikel wurden durch eine optimale Kombination von chemischer Funktionalisierung und thermomechanischer Dehnung vorbereitet. InvA497, ein C-Endfragment des invasiven, von Yersinia abgeleiteten Proteins «Invasin», wurde kovalent an die Nanopartikeloberfläche gekoppelt. In vitro Untersuchungen mit wirkstofffreien Nanopartikeln zeigten formabhängige Unterschiede in der Rezeptor-vermittelten Aufnahme bei Epithelzellen Hep-2. Bei sphärischen Nanopartikeln war die Aufnahme etwas schneller. Beide Nanopartikelsysteme wurden daraufhin mit dem Antibiotikum Gentamicin geladen und auf deren Fähigkeit geprüft, intrazelluläre Shigella flexneri Erreger in menschlichen Epithelzellen zu töten. Asphärische Systeme zeigten eine höhere Fähigkeit zur Abtötung der intrazellulären Bakterien, möglicherweise bedingt durch ein vorteilhaftes Wirkstofffreisetzungsprofil. Mit dieser Untersuchung konnte nachgewiesen werden, dass InvA497-funktionalisierte, asphärische, bakteriomimetische Nanoträger nicht permeable Antibiotika durch die Wirtszellmembran effizient transportieren können, um intrazelluläre Infektionen behandeln zu können

Trust or Debt? A Review of Montana Decisions

Trust or Debt? A Review of Montana Decision

Evidence that the Pomeron transforms as a non-conserved vector current

The detailed dependences of central meson production on the azimuthal angle phi, t and the meson J^P are shown to be consistent with the hypothesis that the soft Pomeron transforms as a non-conserved vector current. Further tests are proposed. This opens the way for a quantitative description of q-qbar and glueball production in p p -> p M p.Comment: 12 pages, latex, 4 figure

Development Of A Computer Program To Improve Sixth Graders Use Of A Local Area Network

This practicum was developed in response to a concern that a week-long Orientation Program did not eliminate the difficulties experienced by sixth graders signing- on the school’s Local Area Network. Class printouts demonstrated a noticeable discrepancy between the number of skills students were programmed to complete and the actual number completed. To remedy this situation, a computer program was developed to introduce practicum participants to networking; to explain the signing-on process in a clear, concise way; and to demonstrate the proper use of the computer control keys needed to successfully use the networking software. Results showed marked improvement in the use of the LAN by those students who viewed the program complement. This tutorial is now recognized as an integral part in the implementation of the school\u27s networking program. Appendices include a Pre/Post Test, charts to demonstrate progress made, glossary, and computer printout of the program complement

New effects observed in central production by experiment WA102 at the CERN Omega Spectrometer

A partial wave analysis of the centrally produced KK and pipi systems shows that the fJ(1710) has J = 0. In addition, a study of central meson production as a function of the difference in transverse momentum (dPT) of the exchanged particles shows that undisputed qqbar mesons are suppressed at small dPT whereas the glueball candidates are enhanced and that the production cross section for different resonances depends strongly on the azimuthal angle between the two outgoing protons.Comment: 5 pages, Latex, 3 Figures to appear in the proceeding of PANIC 99, Uppsala, Sweden, June 199

Angiotensin type-2 (AT-2)-receptor activation reduces renal fibrosis in cyclosporine nephropathy: evidence for blood-pressure independent effect

Compound 21 (C21), selective agonist of AT2 receptors, shows antinflammatory effects in hypertension and nephroprotection in diabetes. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of C21 in cyclosporine nephropathy, which is characterized mainly by tubulo-interstitial fibrosis. Ten days before and during the experimental periods, low-salt diet was administered to Sprague Dawley rats. Cyclosporine-A (15mg/kg/day, i.p.) and cyclosporine-A plus C21 (0.3 mg/kg /day, i.p) were administered for 1 and 4 weeks. Control groups was left without any treatment. Blood pressure (plethysmographic method) and 24 hour albuminuria were measured once a week. At the end of the experiments, the kidneys were excised for histomorphometric analysis of renal fibrosis and for immunohistochemical evaluation of inflammatory infiltrates and type I and IV collagen expression.After 1 and 4 weeks, the rats treated with cyclosporine showed a significant increase (p <0.01) in blood pressure, no significant changes in albuminuria, a significant increase (p <0.01) in glomerular and tubulo-interstitial fibrosis and inflammatory infiltrates as compared to the control rats. Treatment with C21 did not modify the cyclosporine dependent increase of blood pressure, which was higher than in control rats, but after 4 weeks of treatment significantly reduced (p <0.01) glomerular and tubulo-interstitial fibrosis, type 1 collagen expression and macrophage infiltration, as compared to rats treated with cyclosporine.The administration of C21 showed a protective effect on cyclosporine nephropathy, decreasing renal fibrosis and macrophage infiltration. These data suggest that C21 may counteract tubulo-interstitial fibrosis, the most potent predictor of the progression of renal diseases