The evolution of public health genomics: Exploring its past, present, and future

Public health genomics has evolved to responsibly integrate advancements in genomics into the fields of personalized medicine and public health. Appropriate, effective and sustainable integration of genomics into healthcare requires an organized approach. This paper outlines the history that led to the emergence of public health genomics as a distinguishable field. In addition, a range of activities are described that illustrate how genomics can be incorporated into public health practice. Finally, it presents the evolution of public health genomics into the new era of “precision public health.

The complete chloroplast genome of pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.) and comparative analysis within the family poaceae

The complete chloroplast (cp) genome sequence of Pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum [L.] R. Br.), an important grain and forage crop in the family Poaceae, is reported in this study. The complete cp genome sequence of P. glaucum is 138,172 bp in length with 38.6% overall GC content and exhibits a typical quadripartite structure comprising one pair of inverted repeat (IR) regions (22,275 bp) separated by a small single-copy (SSC) region (12,409 bp) and a large single-copy (LSC) region (81,213). The P. glaucum cp genome encodes 110 unique genes, 76 of which are protein-coding genes, 4 ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes, 30 transfer RNA (tRNA) genes and 18 duplicated genes in the IR region. Nine genes contain one or two introns. Whole genome alignments of cp genome were performed for genome-wide comparison. Locally collinear blocks (LCBs) identified among the cp genomes showed that they were well conserved with respect to gene organization and order. This newly determined cp genome sequence of P. glaucum will provide valuable information for the future breeding programs of valuable cereal crops in the family Poaceae

TeV scale partial mirage unification and neutralino dark matter

We study the TeV scale partial mirage unification scenario, where the gluino and wino masses are degenerate around a TeV scale, but the bino mass is not degenerate. This scenario has phenomenologically interesting aspects. First, because of the degeneracy between the gluino and wino masses, this scenario does not have the little hierarchy problem, that is, the higgisino mass is around 150 GeV. The lightest superparticle is a mixture of the bino and higgsino, and can lead to a right amount of thermal relic density as a dark matter candidate

An Exact Diagonalization Demonstration of Incommensurability and Rigid Band Filling for N Holes in the t-J Model

We have calculated S(q) and the single particle distribution function for N holes in the t - J model on a non--square sqrt{8} X sqrt{32} 16--site lattice with periodic boundary conditions; we justify the use of this lattice in compariosn to those of having the full square symmetry of the bulk. This new cluster has a high density of vec k points along the diagonal of reciprocal space, viz. along k = (k,k). The results clearly demonstrate that when the single hole problem has a ground state with a system momentum of vec k = (pi/2,pi/2), the resulting ground state for N holes involves a shift of the peak of the system's structure factor away from the antiferromagnetic state. This shift effectively increases continuously with N. When the single hole problem has a ground state with a momentum that is not equal to k = (pi/2,pi/2), then the above--mentioned incommensurability for N holes is not found. The results for the incommensurate ground states can be understood in terms of rigid--band filling: the effective occupation of the single hole k = (pi/2,pi/2) states is demonstrated by the evaluation of the single particle momentum distribution function . Unlike many previous studies, we show that for the many hole ground state the occupied momentum states are indeed k = (+/- pi/2,+/- pi/2) states.Comment: Revtex 3.0; 23 pages, 1 table, and 13 figures, all include

Supersymmetric effects in top quark decay into polarized W-boson

We investigate the one-loop supersymmetric QCD (SUSY-QCD) and electroweak (SUSY-EW) corrections to the top quark decay into a b-quark and a longitudinal or transverse W-boson. The corrections are presented in terms of the longitudinal ratio \Gamma(t-->W_L b)/\Gamma(t--> W b) and the transverse ratio \Gamma(t-->W_- b)/\Gamma(t--> W b). In most of the parameter space, both SUSY-QCD and SUSY-EW corrections to these ratios are found to be less than 1% in magnitude and they tend to have opposite signs. The corrections to the total width \Gamma(t-->W b) are also presented for comparison with the existing results in the literature. We find that our SUSY-EW corrections to the total width differ significantly from previous studies: the previous studies give a large correction of more than 10% in magnitude for a large part of the parameter space while our results reach only few percent at most.Comment: Version in PRD (explanation and refs added

Centrality, rapidity, and transverse-momentum dependence of gluon shadowing and antishadowing on J/ψJ/\psi production in ddAu collisions at s\sqrt{s}=200 GeV

We have carried out a wide study of shadowing and antishadowing effects on \jpsi\ production in \dAu\ collisions at $\sqrt{s_{NN}}=200$ GeV. We have studied the effects of three different gluon nPDF sets, using the exact kinematics for a $2\to 2$ process, namely $g+g\to J/\psi+g$ as expected from LO pQCD. We have computed the rapidity dependence of \RCP\ and $R_{d\rm Au}$ for the different centrality classes of the PHENIX data. For mid rapidities, we have also computed the transverse-momentum dependence of the nuclear modification factor, which cannot be predicted with the usual $2\to 1$ simplified kinematics. All these observables have been compared to the PHENIX data in \dAu\ collisions.Comment: 10 pages, 11 figures, talk given by N. Matagne at the conference "thirty years of hadronic physics", Spa, Belgium, April 6-8, 2011, to appear in Few Body System

A white dwarf with transiting circumstellar material far outside the Roche limit

We report the discovery of a white dwarf exhibiting deep, irregularly shaped transits, indicative of circumstellar planetary debris. Using Zwicky Transient Facility DR2 photometry of ZTF J013906.17+524536.89 and follow-up observations from the Las Cumbres Observatory, we identify multiple transit events that recur every ≈107.2 days, much longer than the 4.5–4.9 hr orbital periods observed in WD 1145+017, the only other white dwarf known with transiting planetary debris. The transits vary in both depth and duration, lasting 15–25 days and reaching 20%–45% dips in flux. Optical spectra reveal strong Balmer lines, identifying the white dwarf as a DA with T_eff=10,530 ± 140K and log(g) =7.86 ± 0.06. A Ca ii K absorption feature is present in all spectra both in and out of transit. Spectra obtained during one night at roughly 15% transit depth show increased Ca ii K absorption with a model atmospheric fit suggesting [Ca/H] = −4.6 ± 0.3, whereas spectra taken on three nights out of transit have [Ca/H] of −5.5, −5.3, and −4.9 with similar uncertainties. While the Ca ii K line strength varies by only 2σ, we consider a predominantly interstellar origin for Ca absorption unlikely. We suggest a larger column density of circumstellar metallic gas along the line of site or increased accretion of material onto the white dwarf's surface are responsible for the Ca absorption, but further spectroscopic studies are required. In addition, high-speed time series photometry out of transit reveals variability with periods of 900 and 1030 s, consistent with ZZ Ceti pulsations.Published versio

Structure and mechanism of activity-based inhibition of the EGF-Receptor by Mig6

Mig6 is a feedback inhibitor that directly binds, inhibits and drives internalization of ErbB-family receptors. Mig6 selectivity targets activated receptors. Here we find that the EGF receptor phosphorylates Mig6 on Tyr394, and that this phosphorylation is primed by prior phosphorylation of an adjacent residue, Tyr395, by Src. Crystal structures of human EGFR–Mig6 complexes reveal the structural basis for enhanced phosphorylation of primed Mig6 and show how Mig6 rearranges after phosphorylation by EGFR to effectively irreversibly inhibit the same receptor that catalyzed its phosphorylation. This dual phosphorylation site allows Mig6 to inactivate EGFR in a manner that requires activation of the target receptor and can be modulated by Src. Loss of Mig6 is a driving event in human cancer; analysis of 1057 gliomas reveals frequent focal deletions of ERRFI, the gene that encodes Mig6, in EGFR-amplified glioblastomas

Effects of solute Nb atoms and Nb precipitates on isothermal transformation kinetics from austenite to ferrite

Nb is a very important micro-alloying element in low-carbon steels, for grain size refinement and precipitation strengthening, and even a low content of Nb can result in a significant effect on phase transformation kinetics from austenite to ferrite. Solute Nb atoms and Nb precipitates may have different effects on transformation behaviors, and these effects have not yet been fully characterized. This paper examines in detail the effects of solute Nb atoms and Nb precipitates on isothermal transformation kinetics from austenite to ferrite. The mechanisms of the effects have been analyzed using various microscopy techniques. Many solute Nb atoms were found to be segregated at the austenite/ferrite interface and apply a solute drag effect. It has been found that solute Nb atoms have a retardation effect on ferrite nucleation rate and ferrite grain growth rate. The particle pinning effect caused by Nb precipitates is much weaker than the solute drag effect

Heavy quarkonium: progress, puzzles, and opportunities

A golden age for heavy quarkonium physics dawned a decade ago, initiated by the confluence of exciting advances in quantum chromodynamics (QCD) and an explosion of related experimental activity. The early years of this period were chronicled in the Quarkonium Working Group (QWG) CERN Yellow Report (YR) in 2004, which presented a comprehensive review of the status of the field at that time and provided specific recommendations for further progress. However, the broad spectrum of subsequent breakthroughs, surprises, and continuing puzzles could only be partially anticipated. Since the release of the YR, the BESII program concluded only to give birth to BESIII; the $B$-factories and CLEO-c flourished; quarkonium production and polarization measurements at HERA and the Tevatron matured; and heavy-ion collisions at RHIC have opened a window on the deconfinement regime. All these experiments leave legacies of quality, precision, and unsolved mysteries for quarkonium physics, and therefore beg for continuing investigations. The plethora of newly-found quarkonium-like states unleashed a flood of theoretical investigations into new forms of matter such as quark-gluon hybrids, mesonic molecules, and tetraquarks. Measurements of the spectroscopy, decays, production, and in-medium behavior of c\bar{c}, b\bar{b}, and b\bar{c} bound states have been shown to validate some theoretical approaches to QCD and highlight lack of quantitative success for others. The intriguing details of quarkonium suppression in heavy-ion collisions that have emerged from RHIC have elevated the importance of separating hot- and cold-nuclear-matter effects in quark-gluon plasma studies. This review systematically addresses all these matters and concludes by prioritizing directions for ongoing and future efforts.Comment: 182 pages, 112 figures. Editors: N. Brambilla, S. Eidelman, B. K. Heltsley, R. Vogt. Section Coordinators: G. T. Bodwin, E. Eichten, A. D. Frawley, A. B. Meyer, R. E. Mitchell, V. Papadimitriou, P. Petreczky, A. A. Petrov, P. Robbe, A. Vair