Doubly Heavy Baryon Production at A High Luminosity e+e−e^+ e^- Collider

Within the framework of nonrelativistic QCD, we make a detailed discussion on the doubly heavy baryon production through the $e^+ e^-$ annihilation channel, $e^{+}e^{-}\rightarrow\gamma/Z^0 \rightarrow \Xi_{QQ^{\prime}} +\bar{Q} +\bar{Q^{\prime}}$, at a high luminosity $e^{+}e^{-}$ collider. Here $Q^{(\prime)}$ stands for the heavy $b$ or $c$ quark. In addition to the channel through the usually considered diquark state $(QQ^{\prime})[^3S_1]_{\bf\bar{3}}$, contributions from the channels through other same important diquark states such as $(QQ^{\prime})[^1S_0]_{\bf 6}$ have also been discussed. Uncertainties for the total cross sections are predicted by taking $m_c=1.80\pm0.30$ GeV and $m_b=5.10\pm0.40$ GeV. At a super $Z$-factory running around the $Z^0$ mass and with a high luminosity up to ${\cal L} \propto 10^{34}\sim 10^{36}{\rm cm}^{-2} {\rm s}^{-1}$, we estimate that about $1.1\times10^{5 \sim 7}$ $\Xi_{cc}$ events, $2.6\times10^{5 \sim 7}$ $\Xi_{bc}$ events and $1.2\times 10^{4 \sim 6}$ $\Xi_{bb}$ events can be generated in one operation year. Such a $Z$-factory, thus, will provide a good platform for studying the doubly heavy baryons in comparable to the CERN large hadronic collider.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures. To be published in Phys.Rev.

Multiple Events of Allopolyploidy in the Evolution of the Racemose Lineages in Prunus (Rosaceae) Based on Integrated Evidence from Nuclear and Plastid Data.

Prunus is an economically important genus well-known for cherries, plums, almonds, and peaches. The genus can be divided into three major groups based on inflorescence structure and ploidy levels: (1) the diploid solitary-flower group (subg. Prunus, Amygdalus and Emplectocladus); (2) the diploid corymbose group (subg. Cerasus); and (3) the polyploid racemose group (subg. Padus, subg. Laurocerasus, and the Maddenia group). The plastid phylogeny suggests three major clades within Prunus: Prunus-Amygdalus-Emplectocladus, Cerasus, and Laurocerasus-Padus-Maddenia, while nuclear ITS trees resolve Laurocerasus-Padus-Maddenia as a paraphyletic group. In this study, we employed sequences of the nuclear loci At103, ITS and s6pdh to explore the origins and evolution of the racemose group. Two copies of the At103 gene were identified in Prunus. One copy is found in Prunus species with solitary and corymbose inflorescences as well as those with racemose inflorescences, while the second copy (II) is present only in taxa with racemose inflorescences. The copy I sequences suggest that all racemose species form a paraphyletic group composed of four clades, each of which is definable by morphology and geography. The tree from the combined At103 and ITS sequences and the tree based on the single gene s6pdh had similar general topologies to the tree based on the copy I sequences of At103, with the combined At103-ITS tree showing stronger support in most clades. The nuclear At103, ITS and s6pdh data in conjunction with the plastid data are consistent with the hypothesis that multiple independent allopolyploidy events contributed to the origins of the racemose group. A widespread species or lineage may have served as the maternal parent for multiple hybridizations involving several paternal lineages. This hypothesis of the complex evolutionary history of the racemose group in Prunus reflects a major step forward in our understanding of diversification of the genus and has important implications for the interpretation of its phylogeny, evolution, and classification

Validity of the “Streitberger” Needle in a Chinese Population with Acupuncture: A Randomized, Single-Blinded, and Crossover Pilot Study

We studied the validity of a “Streitberger” needle as a valid approach in a Chinese population with experience of acupuncture. Volunteers were recruited from students of the School of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine. Sixty students receiving education in acupuncture theory and experience in practical acupuncture were tested in study determining whether needling with the placebo needle felt any different from conventional acupuncture. Outcomes included measures of penetration sensation, VAS ratings, and Deqi sensation questionnaire. As a result, needle penetration, VAS ratings for either needle and Deqi sensation were not significantly different between two kinds of needles. Our findings show that the use of “Streitberger” needle is credible in a Chinese population with acupuncture experience

Mechanical cooling at the bistable regime of a dissipative optomechanical cavity with a Kerr medium

In this paper, we study static bistability and mechanical cooling of a dissipative optomechanical cavity filled with a Kerr medium. The system exhibits optical bistability for a wide input-power range with the power threshold being greatly reduced, in contrast to the case of purely dissipative coupling. At the bistable regime, the membrane can be effectively cooled down to a few millikelvin from the room temperature under the unresolved sideband condition, where the effective mechanical temperature is a nonmonotonic function of intracavity intensity and reaches its minimum near the turning point of the upper stable branch. When the system is in the cryogenics environment, the effective mechanical temperature at the bistable regime shows a similar feature as in the room temperature case, but the optimal cooling appears at the monostable regime and approaches the mechanical ground state. Our results are of interest for further understanding bistable optomechanical systems, which have many applications in nonclassical state preparations and quantum information processing.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figure

Studies on the protective effect of total flavonoids from Cichorium glandulosum roots against carbon tetrachloride-induced liver fibrosis in rats

Purpose: To study the protective influence of total flavonoids from Cichorium glandulosum roots (TFCG) against carbon tetrachloride-mediated hepatic fibrosis in rats, and the probable mechanism of action involved.Methods: Rats with liver fibrosis were orally administered TFCG (50, 100 or 200 mg/kg) once a day for 13 weeks. Liver index and liver injury indices in serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (AKP), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), γ-glutamyl transpeptidase (γ-GT), hydroxyproline (HYP), albumin (ALB) and malondialdehyde (MDA) were determined using electronic balance or corresponding assay kits, as appropriate. Following staining with hematoxylin and eosin and Van Gieson, histopathological changes in liver tissues were examined by light microscopy. TGF-β/Smad pathway-related protein expressions in liver tissues, viz, transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1), mothers against decapentaplegic homolog 3 (Smad3), Smad7, toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) and α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) were determined using immunohistochemical techniques.Results: Exposure to TFCG significantly reversed abnormal serum levels of ALT, AST, AKP, LDH, γ- GT, HYP, ALB and MDA rats with liver fibrosis to normal levels, and also decreased their liver index values (p < 0.01). Moreover, TFCG improved histopathological changes in the liver tissues of fibrotic rats, and significantly reversed abnormal TGF-β1, Smad3, Smad7, TLR4 and α-SMA protein expressions in the liver tissues of fibrotic rats to normal levels (p < 0.05 or 0.01).Conclusion: These results indicate that TFCG exerts protective effect against liver fibrosis via a mechanism related to inactivation of TGF-β/Smad pathway. Thus, TFCG may find application in liver fibrosis therapy.Keywords: Cichorium glandulosum, Flavonoids, Liver, Fibrosis, TGF-β/Smad pathwa

Post-merger Signatures of Red-sequence Galaxies in Rich Abell Clusters at z≲0.1z\lesssim 0.1

We have investigated the post-merger signatures of red-sequence galaxies in rich Abell clusters at $z \lesssim$ 0.1: A119, A2670, A3330 and A389. Deep images in u', g', r' and medium-resolution galaxy spectra were taken using MOSAIC 2 CCD and Hydra MOS mounted on a Blanco 4-m telescope at CTIO. Post-merger features are identified by visual inspection based on asymmetric disturbed features, faint structures, discontinuous halo structures, rings and dust lanes. We found that ~ 25% of bright (M_r < -20) cluster red-sequence galaxies show post-merger signatures in four clusters consistently. Most (~ 71%) of the featured galaxies were found to be bulge-dominated, and for the subsample of bulge-dominated red-sequence galaxies, the post-merger fraction rises to ~ 38%. We also found that roughly 4% of bulge-dominated red-sequence galaxies interact (on-going merger). A total of 42% (38% post-merger, 4% on-going merger) of galaxies show merger-related features. Compared to a field galaxy study with a similar limiting magnitude (van Dokkum 2005), our cluster study presents a similar post-merger fraction but a markedly lower on-going merger fraction. The merger fraction derived is surprisingly high for the high density of our clusters, where the fast internal motions of galaxies are thought to play a negative role in galaxy mergers. The fraction of post-merger and on-going merger galaxies can be explained as follows. Most of the post-merger galaxies may have carried over their merger features from their previous halo environment, whereas interacting galaxies interact in the current cluster in situ. According to our semi-analytic calculation, massive cluster haloes may very well have experienced tens of halo mergers over the last 4-5 Gyr; post-merger features last that long, allowing these features to be detected in our clusters today. (Abridged)Comment: 16 pages, 15 figures, 7 tables, accepted for publication in ApJ

Effect of younger age on survival outcomes in T1N0M0 breast cancer: A propensity score matching analysis

Purpose We evaluated the effect of younger age on recurrence risk in Chinese women diagnosed with T1N0M0 breast cancer (BC), using propensity score matching (PSM) analysis. Methods We included 365 women who were diagnosed with T1N0M0 BC between 2003 and 2016, and who received surgery at our center. They were classified as younger (≤40 years) and older (>40 years). We used PSM to balance clinicopathologic characteristics between the two age groups. Survival was analyzed by the Kaplan–Meier method, before and after PSM. Results Over a median follow‐up period of 79 months, 54 patients developed recurrences. Before PSM, younger patients had worse recurrence‐free survival (RFS) than older patients. Significantly worse RFS was seen in younger patients with HER2+ BC compared with their older counterparts. Younger patients had higher rates of locoregional recurrence rather than metastasis, especially in the first 5 years after diagnosis. After PSM, the two age groups still significantly differed in 5‐year RFS. Conclusion Among PSM pairs with T1N0M0 BC, with equal baselines and treatment conditions, we found that patients who presented at younger ages had worse outcomes, independently of other pathological features. Younger patients with BC may require more individualized therapy to improve their prognosis

A highly selective charge transfer fluoroionophore for Cu2+

A dual fluorescent charge transfer fluoroionophore (1) with its ionophore incorporated in the electron acceptor was developed and was found to show a highly selective fluorescent response to Cu2+ with a dramatic enhancement in its CT emission