580 research outputs found
Spin-to-Orbital Angular Momentum Conversion in Semiconductor Microcavities
We experimentally demonstrate a technique for the generation of optical beams
carrying orbital angular momentum using a planar semiconductor microcavity.
Despite being isotropic systems, the transverse electric - transverse magnetic
(TE-TM) polarization splitting featured by semiconductor microcavities allows
for the conversion of the circular polarization of an incoming laser beam into
the orbital angular momentum of the transmitted light field. The process
implies the formation of topological entities, a pair of optical half-vortices,
in the intracavity field
Impact of the Implementation of Sustainable Development Goals on Neglected Tropical Diseases
Vector-borne diseases and infectious diseases in, general, affect the health of human and animal populations. By implementing the sustainable development goals (SDGs) in neglected populations, the level of living conditions is improved thus providing better housing, improving environments in cities and other populated sites, and developing better sanitary infrastructures altogether leading to higher-quality health conditions for the said populations. Transdisciplinary approaches can make successful implementation of the SDGs to tackle simultaneously the preservation and improvement of the environment, monitoring the health of human and animal populations, and studying in-depth those interactions in nature; those components are included in the One Health approach. Non-medicalized approaches can impact the roots of health problems, reducing the vulnerability of populations to disease, poverty, and malnutrition. Different initiatives of the SDGs can be effective in educating neglected populations to prevent exposure to vector arthropods, infectious agents, and undesired encounters with snakes and their disabling and life-threatening toxins. It will be important to actualize the implementation of the SDGs as a global strategy while also prioritizing each component
Single Multiplex Polymerase Chain Reaction To Detect Diverse Loci Associated with Diarrheagenic Escherichia coli
We developed and tested a single multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) that detects enterotoxigenic, enteropathogenic, enteroinvasive, and Shiga-toxin–producing Escherichia coli. This PCR is specific, sensitive, and rapid in detecting target isolates in stool and food. Because of its simplicity, economy, and efficiency, this protocol warrants further evaluation in large, prospective studies of polymicrobial substances
Sub MeV Particles Detection and Identification in the MUNU detector ((1)ISN, IN2P3/CNRS-UJF, Grenoble, France, (2)Institut de Physique, Neuch\^atel, Switzerland, (3) INFN, Padova Italy, (4) Physik-Institut, Z\"{u}rich, Switzerland)
We report on the performance of a 1 m TPC filled with CF at 3
bar, immersed in liquid scintillator and viewed by photomultipliers. Particle
detection, event identification and localization achieved by measuring both the
current signal and the scintillation light are presented. Particular features
of particle detection are also discussed. Finally, the Mn
photopeak, reconstructed from the Compton scattering and recoil angle is shown.Comment: Latex, 19 pages, 20 figure
Limits on the neutrino magnetic moment from the MUNU experiment
The MUNU experiment was carried out at the Bugey nuclear power reactor. The
aim was the study of electron antineutrino-electron elastic scattering at low
energy. The recoil electrons were recorded in a gas time projection chamber,
immersed in a tank filled with liquid scintillator serving as veto detector,
suppressing in particular Compton electrons. The measured electron recoil
spectrum is presented. Upper limits on the neutrino magnetic moment were
derived and are discussed.Comment: 9 pages, 7 figures Added reference: p.3, 1st col., TEXONO Added
sentence: p.4, 1st col., electron attachement Modified sentence: p.5, 1st
col., readout sequence Added sentence: p.5, 1st col., fast rise time cu
Differential expression of dnaA and dosR genes among members of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex under oxic and hypoxic conditions
Major differences regarding the pathology and host immune response of the Beijing and Canettii genotypes of Mycobacterium tuberculosis have been reported; however, studies on the genetic expression of these genotypes during in vitro dormancy are scarce. This study examined the expression of five cell-cycle-related genes and two dormancy-related genes in M. canettii, M. tuberculosis H37Rv, and M. tuberculosis Beijing during the Wayne model of dormancy. The results showed that under hypoxic conditions the three tuberculosis genotypes were able to transcribe genes involved in DNA replication and cellular division. In addition, dosR was found to be up-regulated in M. tuberculosis Beijing during the exponential growth phase but down-regulated under hypoxic conditions. In this genotype, the replication-related gene dnaA was also strongly down-regulated. These latter two findings suggest that, compared to M. tuberculosis H37Rv and M. canettii, the Beijing genotype has a lower capacity to synthesize dosR, hspX, and dnaA mRNAs during in vitro dormancy. [Int Microbiol 2010;13(1):9-13
R2D2 TPC: first Xenon results
Radial time projection chambers (TPC), already employed in the search for
rare phenomena such as light Dark Matter candidate, could provide a new
detection approach for the search of neutrinoless double beta decay
(). The assessment of the performances of such a detector for
search is indeed the goal of the Rare Decays with Radial
Detector (R2D2) R\&D. Promising results operating a spherical TPC with argon up
to 1~bar have been published in 2021. Supplementary measurements were recently
taken extending the gas pressure range up to 3~bar. In addition, a comparison
between two detector geometries, namely spherical (SPC for spherical
proportional counter) and cylindrical (CPC for cylindrical proportional
counter), was performed. Using a relatively simple gas purification system the
CPC detector was also operated with xenon at 1~bar: an energy resolution of
1.4\% full-width at half-maximum was achieved for drift distances up to 17~cm.
Much lower resolution was observed with the SPC. These results are presented in
this article.Comment: 16 pages 14 figure
Do Clinicians Tell Patients They Have Prehypertension?
BACKGROUND: the clinical utility of the prehypertension label is questionable. We sought to estimate how often patients with prehypertension are being told about it by their primary care clinicians.
METHODS: we conducted a cross-sectional study of adult patients visiting practices within the North Carolina Family Medicine Research Network in summer 2008. Non-hypertensive patients were asked whether a doctor or other health care provider had ever told them they had "prehypertension"; a subsample of patients with measured blood pressure (BP) in the prehypertension range was asked the same question.
RESULTS: of 1008 non-hypertensive patients, 1.9% indicated being told they had prehypertension. Among a subsample of 102 patients with measured BP in the prehypertension range, 2.0% indicated being told they had prehypertension.
CONCLUSION: few patients who probably have prehypertension are being told about it by clinicians
Deformed Sine-Gordon Models, Solitons and Anomalous Charges
We study certain deformations of the integrable sine-Gordon model (DSG). It is found analytically and numerically several towers of infinite number of anomalous charges for soliton solutions possessing a special space–time symmetry. Moreover, it is uncovered exact conserved charges associated to two-solitons with a definite parity under space-reflection symmetry, i.e. kink-kink (odd parity) and kink-antikink (even parity) scatterings with equal and opposite velocities. Moreover, we provide a linear formulation of the modified SG model and a related tower of infinite number of exact non-local conservation laws. We back up our results with extensive numerical simulations for kink-kink, kink-antikink and breather configurations of the Bazeia et al. potential Vqw=64q2tan2w21−sinw2q2,q∈R, which contains the usual SG potential V2w=21−cos2w
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