Dark Matter in the Singlet Extension of MSSM: Explanation of Pamela and Implication on Higgs Phenomenology

As discussed recently by Hooper and Tait, the singlino-like dark matter in the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM) extended by a singlet Higgs superfield can give a perfect explanation for both the relic density and the Pamela result through the Sommerfeld-enhanced annihilation into singlet Higgs bosons ($a$ or $h$ followed by $h->a a$) with $a$ being light enough to decay dominantly to muons or electrons. In this work we analyze the parameter space required by such a dark matter explanation and also consider the constraints from the LEP experiments. We find that although the light singlet Higgs bosons have small mixings with the Higgs doublets in the allowed parameter space, their couplings with the SM-like Higgs boson $h_{SM}$ (the lightest doublet-dominant Higgs boson) can be enhanced by the soft parameter $A_\kappa$ and, in order to meet the stringent LEP constraints, the $h_{SM}$ tends to decay into the singlet Higgs pairs $aa$ or $hh$ instead of $b\bar b$. So the $h_{SM}$ produced at the LHC will give a multi-muon signal, h_{SM} -> aa -> 4 muons or h_{SM} -> hh -> 4 a -> 8 muons.Comment: Version in JHE

Loop effects and non-decoupling property of SUSY QCD in gb→tH−g b\to tH^{-}

One-loop SUSY QCD radiative correction to $gb \to tH^{-}$ cross section is calculated in the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model. We found that SUSY QCD is non-decoupling if the gluino mass and the parameter $\mu$, $A_t$ or $A_b$ are at the same order and get large. The non-decoupling contribution can be enhanced by large $\tan\beta$ and therefore large corrections to the hadronic production rates at the Tevatron and LHC are expected in the large $\tan\beta$ limit. The fundamental reason for such non-decoupling behavior is found to be some couplings in the loops being proportional to SUSY mass parameters.Comment: 15 pages, 5 PS figures. A proof of non-decouplings of SUSY-QCD, Comments on corresponding QCD correction and references adde

Can MSSM with light sbottom and light gluino survive Z-peak constraints ?

In the framework of minimal supersymmetric model we examine the Z-peak constraints on the scenario of one light sbottom (2--5.5 GeV) and light gluino (12--16 GeV), which has been successfully used to explain the excess of bottom quark production in hadron collision. Such a scenario is found to be severely constrained by LEP Z-peak observables, especially by R_b, due to the large effect of gluino-sbottom loops. To account for the R_b data in this scenario, the other mass eigenstate of sbottom, i.e., the heavier one, must be lighter than 125 (195) GeV at 2-sigma (3-sigma) level, which should have been produced in association with the lighter one at LEP II and will probobaly be within the reach of Tevatron Run 2.Comment: discussion on SUSY-EW effects added, to appear in PR

Probing Topcolor-Assisted Technicolor from Top-Charm Associated Production at LHC

We propose to probe the topcolor-assisted technicolor (TC2) model from the top-charm associated productions at the LHC, which are highly suppressed in the Standard Model. Due to the flavor-changing couplings of the top quark with the scalars (top-pions and top-Higgs) in TC2 model, the top-charm associated productions can occur via both the s-channel and t-channel parton processes by exchanging a scalar field at the LHC. We examined these processes through Monte Carlo simulation and found that they can reach the observable level at the LHC in quite a large part of the parameter space of the TC2 model.Comment: Version to appear in PRD (Rapid Communication

Early Adverse Events, HPA Activity and Rostral Anterior Cingulate Volume in MDD

Prior studies have independently reported associations between major depressive disorder (MDD), elevated cortisol concentrations, early adverse events and region-specific decreases in grey matter volume, but the relationships among these variables are unclear. In the present study, we sought to evaluate the relationships between grey matter volume, early adverse events and cortisol levels in MDD.Grey matter volume was compared between 19 controls and 19 individuals with MDD using voxel-based morphometry. A history of early adverse events was assessed using the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. Subjects also provided salivary cortisol samples. Depressed patients showed decreased grey matter volume in the rostral ACC as compared to controls. Rostral ACC volume was inversely correlated with both cortisol and early adverse events.These findings suggest a key relationship between ACC morphology, a history of early adverse events and circulating cortisol in the pathophysiology of MDD

Distributionally robust L1-estimation in multiple linear regression

Linear regression is one of the most important and widely used techniques in data analysis, for which a key step is the estimation of the unknown parameters. However, it is often carried out under the assumption that the full information of the error distribution is available. This is clearly unrealistic in practice. In this paper, we propose a distributionally robust formulation of L1-estimation (or the least absolute value estimation) problem, where the only knowledge on the error distribution is that it belongs to a well-defined ambiguity set. We then reformulate the estimation problem as a computationally tractable conic optimization problem by using duality theory. Finally, a numerical example is solved as a conic optimization problem to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach

Proteo-genomics of soluble TREM2 in cerebrospinal fluid provides novel insights and identifies novel modulators for Alzheimer's disease

Triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells 2 (TREM2) plays a critical role in microglial activation, survival, and apoptosis, as well as in Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathogenesis. We previously reported the MS4A locus as a key modulator for soluble TREM2 (sTREM2) in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). To identify additional novel genetic modifiers of sTREM2, we performed the largest genome-wide association study (GWAS) and identified four loci for CSF sTREM2 in 3,350 individuals of European ancestry. Through multi-ethnic fine mapping, we identified two independent missense variants (p.M178V in MS4A4A and p.A112T in MS4A6A) that drive the association in MS4A locus and showed an epistatic effect for sTREM2 levels and AD risk. The novel TREM2 locus on chr 6 contains two rare missense variants (rs75932628 p.R47H, P=7.16×10; rs142232675 p.D87N, P=2.71×10) associated with sTREM2 and AD risk. The third novel locus in the TGFBR2 and RBMS3 gene region (rs73823326, P=3.86×10) included a regulatory variant with a microglia-specific chromatin loop for the promoter of TGFBR2. Using cell-based assays we demonstrate that overexpression and knock-down of TGFBR2, but not RBMS3, leads to significant changes of sTREM2. The last novel locus is located on the APOE region (rs11666329, P=2.52×10), but we demonstrated that this signal was independent of APOE genotype. This signal colocalized with cis-eQTL of NECTIN2 in the brain cortex and cis-pQTL of NECTIN2 in CSF. Overexpression of NECTIN2 led to an increase of sTREM2 supporting the genetic findings. To our knowledge, this is the largest study to date aimed at identifying genetic modifiers of CSF sTREM2. This study provided novel insights into the MS4A and TREM2 loci, two well-known AD risk genes, and identified TGFBR2 and NECTIN2 as additional modulators involved in TREM2 biology

Integrating Functional and Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging for Analysis of Structure-Function Relationship in the Human Language Network

The capabilities of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to measure structural and functional connectivity in the human brain have motivated growing interest in characterizing the relationship between these measures in the distributed neural networks of the brain. In this study, we attempted an integration of structural and functional analyses of the human language circuits, including Wernicke's (WA), Broca's (BA) and supplementary motor area (SMA), using a combination of blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) and diffusion tensor MRI.Functional connectivity was measured by low frequency inter-regional correlations of BOLD MRI signals acquired in a resting steady-state, and structural connectivity was measured by using adaptive fiber tracking with diffusion tensor MRI data. The results showed that different language pathways exhibited different structural and functional connectivity, indicating varying levels of inter-dependence in processing across regions. Along the path between BA and SMA, the fibers tracked generally formed a single bundle and the mean radius of the bundle was positively correlated with functional connectivity. However, fractional anisotropy was found not to be correlated with functional connectivity along paths connecting either BA and SMA or BA and WA. for use in diagnosing and determining disease progression and recovery

Study on the rare radiative decay Bc→Ds∗γB_c \to D_s^*\gamma in the standard model and multiscale walking technicolor model

Applying the perturbative QCD ( PQCD ) method, we study the decay $B_c\rightarrow D_s^*\gamma$ in the standard model and multiscale walking technicolor model. In the SM, we find that the contribution of weak annihilation is more important than that of the electromagnetic penguin. The presence of Pseudo-Goldstone-Bosons in the MWTCM leads to a large enhancement in the rate of $B_c\rightarrow D_s^*\gamma$, but this model is in conflict with the branching ratio of $Z\rightarrow b\overline b$ ( $R_b$ ) and the CLEO data on the branching ratio BR ( $b\rightarrow s\gamma$ ). If topcolor is further introduced, the calculated results in the topcolor assisted MWTCM can be suppressed and be in agreement with the CLEO data for a certain range of the parameters.Comment: 16 pages, Latex, no macros, 1 figure(in Latex), hard copy is available upon request. to appear in Phys. Rev.