3,299 research outputs found
Photonic crystal resonator integrated in a microfluidic system
We report on a novel optofluidic system consisting of a silica-based 1D
photonic crystal, integrated planar waveguides and electrically insulated
fluidic channels. An array of pillars in a microfluidic channel designed for
electrochromatography is used as a resonator for on-column label-free
refractive index detection. The resonator was fabricated in a silicon
oxynitride platform, to support electroosmotic flow, and operated at 1.55
microns. Different aqueous solutions of ethanol with refractive indices ranging
from n = 1.3330 to 1.3616 were pumped into the column/resonator and the
transmission spectra were recorded. Linear shifts of the resonant wavelengths
yielded a maximum sensitivity of 480 nm/RIU and a minimum difference of 0.007
RIU was measured
Comparative distribution of human and avian type sialic acid influenza receptors in the pig
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>A major determinant of influenza infection is the presence of virus receptors on susceptible host cells to which the viral haemagglutinin is able to bind. Avian viruses preferentially bind to sialic acid α2,3-galactose (SAα2,3-Gal) linked receptors, whereas human strains bind to sialic acid α2,6-galactose (SAα2,6-Gal) linked receptors. To date, there has been no detailed account published on the distribution of SA receptors in the pig, a model host that is susceptible to avian and human influenza subtypes, thus with potential for virus reassortment. We examined the relative expression and spatial distribution of SAα2,3-GalG(1-3)GalNAc and SAα2,6-Gal receptors in the major organs from normal post-weaned pigs by binding with lectins <it>Maackia amurensis agglutinins </it>(MAA II) and <it>Sambucus nigra agglutinin </it>(SNA) respectively.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Both SAα2,3-Gal and SAα2,6-Gal receptors were extensively detected in the major porcine organs examined (trachea, lung, liver, kidney, spleen, heart, skeletal muscle, cerebrum, small intestine and colon). Furthermore, distribution of both SA receptors in the pig respiratory tract closely resembled the published data of the human tract. Similar expression patterns of SA receptors between pig and human in other major organs were found, with exception of the intestinal tract. Unlike the limited reports on the scarcity of influenza receptors in human intestines, we found increasing presence of SAα2,3-Gal and SAα2,6-Gal receptors from duodenum to colon in the pig.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The extensive presence of SAα2,3-Gal and SAα2,6-Gal receptors in the major organs examined suggests that each major organ may be permissive to influenza virus entry or infection. The high similarity of SA expression patterns between pig and human, in particular in the respiratory tract, suggests that pigs are not more likely to be potential hosts for virus reassortment than humans. Our finding of relative abundance of SA receptors in the pig intestines highlights a need for clarification on the presence of SA receptors in the human intestinal tract.</p
Rapid death of duck cells infected with influenza: a potential mechanism for host resistance to H5N1
Aquatic birds are the natural reservoir for most subtypes of influenza A, and a source of novel viruses with the potential to cause human pandemics, fatal zoonotic disease or devastating epizootics in poultry. It is well recognised that waterfowl typically show few clinical signs following influenza A infection, in contrast, terrestrial poultry such as chickens may develop severe disease with rapid death following infection with highly pathogenic avian influenza. This study examined the cellular response to influenza infection in primary cells derived from resistant (duck) and susceptible (chicken) avian hosts. Paradoxically, we observed that duck cells underwent rapid cell death following infection with low pathogenic avian H2N3, classical swine H1N1 and ‘classical' highly pathogenic H5N1 viruses. Dying cells showed morphological features of apoptosis, increased DNA fragmentation and activation of caspase 3/7. Following infection of chicken cells, cell death occurred less rapidly, accompanied by reduced DNA fragmentation and caspase activation. Duck cells produced similar levels of viral RNA but less infectious virus, in comparison with chicken cells. Such rapid cell death was not observed in duck cells infected with a contemporary Eurasian lineage H5N1 fatal to ducks. The induction of rapid death in duck cells may be part of a mechanism of host resistance to influenza A, with the loss of this response leading to increased susceptibility to emergent strains of H5N1. These studies provide novel insights that should help resolve the long-standing enigma of host–pathogen relationships for highly pathogenic and zoonotic avian influenza
The one-dimensional Bose-Hubbard Model with nearest-neighbor interaction
We study the one-dimensional Bose-Hubbard model using the Density-Matrix
Renormalization Group (DMRG).For the cases of on-site interactions and
additional nearest-neighbor interactions the phase boundaries of the
Mott-insulators and charge density wave phases are determined. We find a direct
phase transition between the charge density wave phase and the superfluid
phase, and no supersolid or normal phases. In the presence of nearest-neighbor
interaction the charge density wave phase is completely surrounded by a region
in which the effective interactions in the superfluid phase are repulsive. It
is known from Luttinger liquid theory that a single impurity causes the system
to be insulating if the effective interactions are repulsive, and that an even
bigger region of the superfluid phase is driven into a Bose-glass phase by any
finite quenched disorder. We determine the boundaries of both regions in the
phase diagram. The ac-conductivity in the superfluid phase in the attractive
and the repulsive region is calculated, and a big superfluid stiffness is found
in the attractive as well as the repulsive region.Comment: 19 pages, 30 figure
Effect of nearest neighbor repulsion on the low frequency phase diagram of a quarter-filled Hubbard-Holstein chain
We have studied the influence of nearest-neighbor (NN) repulsion on the low
frequency phase diagram of a quarter-filled Hubbard-Holstein chain. The NN
repulsion term induces the apparition of two new long range ordered phases (one
CDW for positive and one CDW for
negative ) that did not exist in the V=0 phase diagram. These results
are put into perspective with the newly observed charge ordered phases in
organic conductors and an interpretation of their origin in terms of
electron-molecular vibration coupling is suggested.Comment: 10 pages, 10 figure
Nonlinear Fault Detection for Hydraulic Systems
One of the most important areas in the robotics industry is the development
of robots capable of working in hazardous environments. As humans cannot
safely or cheaply work in these environments, providing a high level of robotic functionality is important. Our work in this area focuses on a fault detection method known as analytical redundancy, or AR. In this paper we discuss the application to a hydraulic servovalve system of our novel rigorous nonlinear AR technique. AR is a model-based state-space technique that is theoretically guaranteed to derive the maximum number of independent tests of the consistency of sensor data with the system model and past control inputs. Conventional linear AR is only valid for linear sampled data systems. However, our new nonlinear AR (NLAR) technique maintains traditional linear AR’s mathematical guarantee to generate the maximum possible number of independent tests in the nonlinear domain. Thus NLAR allows us to gain the benefits of AR testing for nonlinear systems with both continuous and sampled data
Shaping bursting by electrical coupling and noise
Gap-junctional coupling is an important way of communication between neurons
and other excitable cells. Strong electrical coupling synchronizes activity
across cell ensembles. Surprisingly, in the presence of noise synchronous
oscillations generated by an electrically coupled network may differ
qualitatively from the oscillations produced by uncoupled individual cells
forming the network. A prominent example of such behavior is the synchronized
bursting in islets of Langerhans formed by pancreatic \beta-cells, which in
isolation are known to exhibit irregular spiking. At the heart of this
intriguing phenomenon lies denoising, a remarkable ability of electrical
coupling to diminish the effects of noise acting on individual cells.
In this paper, we derive quantitative estimates characterizing denoising in
electrically coupled networks of conductance-based models of square wave
bursting cells. Our analysis reveals the interplay of the intrinsic properties
of the individual cells and network topology and their respective contributions
to this important effect. In particular, we show that networks on graphs with
large algebraic connectivity or small total effective resistance are better
equipped for implementing denoising. As a by-product of the analysis of
denoising, we analytically estimate the rate with which trajectories converge
to the synchronization subspace and the stability of the latter to random
perturbations. These estimates reveal the role of the network topology in
synchronization. The analysis is complemented by numerical simulations of
electrically coupled conductance-based networks. Taken together, these results
explain the mechanisms underlying synchronization and denoising in an important
class of biological models
18S rRNA is a reliable normalisation gene for real time PCR based on influenza virus infected cells
Background: One requisite of quantitative reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR) is to normalise the data with an
internal reference gene that is invariant regardless of treatment, such as virus infection. Several studies have found
variability in the expression of commonly used housekeeping genes, such as beta-actin (ACTB) and
glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), under different experimental settings. However, ACTB and
GAPDH remain widely used in the studies of host gene response to virus infections, including influenza viruses. To
date no detailed study has been described that compares the suitability of commonly used housekeeping genes in
influenza virus infections. The present study evaluated several commonly used housekeeping genes [ACTB, GAPDH,
18S ribosomal RNA (18S rRNA), ATP synthase, H+ transporting, mitochondrial F1 complex, beta polypeptide (ATP5B)
and ATP synthase, H+ transporting, mitochondrial Fo complex, subunit C1 (subunit 9) (ATP5G1)] to identify the most
stably expressed gene in human, pig, chicken and duck cells infected with a range of influenza A virus subtypes.
Results: The relative expression stability of commonly used housekeeping genes were determined in primary
human bronchial epithelial cells (HBECs), pig tracheal epithelial cells (PTECs), and chicken and duck primary
lung-derived cells infected with five influenza A virus subtypes. Analysis of qRT-PCR data from virus and mock
infected cells using NormFinder and BestKeeper software programmes found that 18S rRNA was the most stable
gene in HBECs, PTECs and avian lung cells.
Conclusions: Based on the presented data from cell culture models (HBECs, PTECs, chicken and duck lung cells)
infected with a range of influenza viruses, we found that 18S rRNA is the most stable reference gene for normalising
qRT-PCR data. Expression levels of the other housekeeping genes evaluated in this study (including ACTB and
GPADH) were highly affected by influenza virus infection and hence are not reliable as reference genes for RNA
normalisation
Multiwavelength Observations of 1ES 1959+650, One Year After the Strong Outburst of 2002
In April-May 2003, the blazar 1ES 1959+650 showed an increased level of X-ray
activity. This prompted a multiwavelength observation campaign with the Whipple
10 m gamma-ray telescope, the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer, the Bordeaux Optical
Observatory, and the University of Michigan Radio Astrophysical Observatory. We
present the multiwavelength data taken from May 2, 2003 to June 7, 2003 and
compare the source characteristics with those measured during observations
taken during the years 2000 and 2002. The X-ray observations gave a data set
with high signal-to-noise light curves and energy spectra; however, the
gamma-ray observations did not reveal a major TeV gamma-ray flare. Furthermore,
we find that the radio and optical fluxes do not show statistically significant
deviations from those measured during the 2002 flaring periods. While the X-ray
flux and X-ray photon index appear correlated during subsequent observations,
the apparent correlation evolved significantly between the years 2000, 2002,
and 2003. We discuss the implications of this finding for the mechanism that
causes the flaring activity.Comment: 17 pages, 6 figures, 2 table
VERITAS Observations of the BL Lac Object 1ES 1218+304
The VERITAS collaboration reports the detection of very-high-energy (VHE)
gamma-ray emission from the high-frequency-peaked BL Lac object 1ES 1218+304
located at a redshift of z=0.182. A gamma-ray signal was detected with high
statistical significance for the observations taken during several months in
the 2006-2007 observing season. The photon spectrum between ~160 GeV and ~1.8
TeV is well described by a power law with an index of Gamma = 3.08 +/-
0.34(stat) +/- 0.2(sys). The integral flux above 200 GeV corresponds to ~6% of
that of the Crab Nebula. The light curve does not show any evidence for VHE
flux variability. Using lower limits on the density of the extragalactic
background light (EBL) in the near-IR to mid-IR we are able to limit the range
of intrinsic energy spectra for 1ES 1218+304. We show that the intrinsic photon
spectrum is harder than a power law with an index of Gamma = 2.32 +/- 0.37.
When including constraints from the spectra of 1ES 1101-232 and 1ES 0229+200,
the spectrum of 1ES 1218+304 is likely to be harder than Gamma = 1.86 +/- 0.37.Comment: Submitted to Proceedings of "4th Heidelberg International Symposium
on High Energy Gamma-Ray Astronomy 2008
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