10,666 research outputs found
Cycle symmetry, limit theorems, and fluctuation theorems for diffusion processes on the circle
Cyclic structure and dynamics are of great interest in both the fields of
stochastic processes and nonequilibrium statistical physics. In this paper, we
find a new symmetry of the Brownian motion named as the quasi-time-reversal
invariance. It turns out that such an invariance of the Brownian motion is the
key to prove the cycle symmetry for diffusion processes on the circle, which
says that the distributions of the forming times of the forward and backward
cycles, given that the corresponding cycle is formed earlier than the other,
are exactly the same. With the aid of the cycle symmetry, we prove the strong
law of large numbers, functional central limit theorem, and large deviation
principle for the sample circulations and net circulations of diffusion
processes on the circle. The cycle symmetry is further applied to obtain
various types of fluctuation theorems for the sample circulations, net
circulation, and entropy production rate.Comment: 28 page
A Light Higgs at the LHC and the B-Anomalies
After the Higgs discovery, the LHC has been looking for new resonances,
decaying into pairs of Standard Model (SM) particles. Recently, the CMS
experiment observed an excess in the di-photon channel, with a di-photon
invariant mass of about 96~GeV. This mass range is similar to the one of an
excess observed in the search for the associated production of Higgs bosons
with the neutral gauge boson at LEP, with the Higgs bosons decaying to
bottom quark pairs. On the other hand, the LHCb experiment observed a
discrepancy with respect to the SM expectations of the ratio of the decay of
-mesons to -mesons and a pair of leptons, . This observation provides a hint of the
violation of lepton-flavor universality in the charged lepton sector and may be
explained by the existence of a vector boson originating form a symmetry and heavy quarks that mix with the left-handed down quarks.
Since the coupling to heavy quarks could lead to sizable Higgs di-photon rates
in the gluon fusion channel, in this article we propose a common origin of
these anomalies identifying a Higgs associated with the breakdown of the
symmetry and at the same time responsible to the quark
mixing, with the one observed at the LHC. We also discuss the constraints on
the identification of the same Higgs with the one associated with the bottom
quark pair excess observed at LEP.Comment: 34 pages, 5 figures, 3 tables. v2: 1 figure added, motivation
clarified, version matched to JHE
Kinetic behavior of the general modifier mechanism of Botts and Morales with non-equilibrium binding
In this paper, we perform a complete analysis of the kinetic behavior of the
general modifier mechanism of Botts and Morales in both equilibrium steady
states and non-equilibrium steady states (NESS). Enlightened by the
non-equilibrium theory of Markov chains, we introduce the net flux into
discussion and acquire an expression of product rate in NESS, which has clear
biophysical significance. Up till now, it is a general belief that being an
activator or an inhibitor is an intrinsic property of the modifier. However, we
reveal that this traditional point of view is based on the equilibrium
assumption. A modifier may no longer be an overall activator or inhibitor when
the reaction system is not in equilibrium. Based on the regulation of enzyme
activity by the modifier concentration, we classify the kinetic behavior of the
modifier into three categories, which are named hyperbolic behavior,
bell-shaped behavior, and switching behavior, respectively. We show that the
switching phenomenon, in which a modifier may convert between an activator and
an inhibitor when the modifier concentration varies, occurs only in NESS.
Effects of drugs on the Pgp ATPase activity, where drugs may convert from
activators to inhibitors with the increase of the drug concentration, are taken
as a typical example to demonstrate the occurrence of the switching phenomenon.Comment: 19 pages, 10 figure
Postoperative steroids after Kasai portoenterostomy for biliary atresia: A meta-analysis
AbstractAim: The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to determine if adjunct steroids affect jaundice-free, cholangitis, and survival rates after Kasai portoenterostomy. Methods: The literature was searched using the following terms: biliary atresia, portoenterostomy, steroids, glucocorticoids, dexamethasone, prednisolone, and hydrocortisone. The primary outcome was the jaundice-free rate. Secondary outcomes were cholangitis and survival rates. Results: Ten studies were included in the systematic review and 8 in the meta-analyses. Steroid treatment regimens were inconsistent between studies. The pooled odds ratio (OR) for the jaundice-free rate did not significantly favor steroid over non-steroid treatment (1.95; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.91–4.11; P = 0.087), nor did the pooled OR for the cholangitis rate (0.75; 95% CI: 0.48–1.17; P = 0.202). Overall survival ranged from 58 to 95% in the steroid group and from 36 to 96% in the control group. Native liver survival ranged from 30 to 56% in the steroid group and from 31 to 48% in the control group. The survival data were not suitable for meta-analysis. Conclusions: Although these results imply that adjunct steroids after Kasai portoenterostomy for BA may not improve jaundice-free or cholangitis rates, the quality of available evidence is limited and therefore not definitive. Additional high quality studies are needed
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