1,081 research outputs found
Theory of magnetothermomechanics
Journal ArticleWe show that in both ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic systems with weak magnetostrictive coupling the coefficient of thermal expansion gives a useful measure of the magnetic specific heat. We also analyze the strong coupling situation by means of our simplified, but soluble model, and find it possible to introduce an effective temperature T* and an effective magnetic susceptibility. The exact pressure dependence of the thermodynamic functions can be found, and the pressure dependence of the Curie temperature is given explicitly. In strong coupling, a novel first-order thermodynamic phase transformation can occur which is manifested by a discontinuity in T* as a function of T
Dissociative electron attachment to the H2O molecule. II. Nuclear dynamics on coupled electronic surfaces within the local complex potential model
We report the results of a first-principles study of dissociative electron
attachment to H2O. The cross sections are obtained from nuclear dynamics
calculations carried out in full dimensionality within the local complex
potential model by using the multi-configuration time-dependent Hartree method.
The calculations employ our previously obtained global, complex-valued,
potential-energy surfaces for the three (doublet B1, doublet A1, and doublet
B2) electronic Feshbach resonances involved in this process. These three
metastable states of H2O- undergo several degeneracies, and we incorporate both
the Renner-Teller coupling between the B1 and A1 states as well as the conical
intersection between the A1 and B2 states into our treatment. The nuclear
dynamics are inherently multidimensional and involve branching between
different final product arrangements as well as extensive excitation of the
diatomic fragment. Our results successfully mirror the qualitative features of
the major fragment channels observed, but are less successful in reproducing
the available results for some of the minor channels. We comment on the
applicability of the local complex potential model to such a complicated
resonant system.Comment: Corrected version of Phys Rev A 75, 012711 (2007
Dissociative electron attachment to the H2O molecule. I. Complex-valued potential-energy surfaces for the 2B1, 2A1, and 2B2 metastable states of the water anion
We present the results of calculations defining global, three-dimensional
representations of the complex-valued potential-energy surfaces of the doublet
B1, doublet A1, and doublet B2 metastable states of the water anion that
underlie the physical process of dissociative electron attachment to water. The
real part of the resonance energies is obtained from configuration-interaction
calculations performed in a restricted Hilbert space, while the imaginary part
of the energies (the widths) is derived from complex Kohn scattering
calculations. A diabatization is performed on the 2A1 and 2B2 surfaces, due to
the presence of a conical intersection between them. We discuss the
implications that the shapes of the constructed potential-energy surfaces will
have upon the nuclear dynamics of dissociative electron attachment to H2O.
This work originally appeared as Phys Rev A 75, 012710 (2007). Typesetting
errors in the published version have been corrected here.Comment: Corrected version of PRA 75, 012710 (2007
Whole blood assessment of antigen specific cellular immune response by real time quantitative PCR: a versatile monitoring and discovery tool
BACKGROUND: Monitoring of cellular immune responses is indispensable in a number of clinical research areas, including microbiology, virology, oncology and autoimmunity. Purification and culture of peripheral blood mononuclear cells and rapid access to specialized equipment are usually required. We developed a whole blood (WB) technique monitoring antigen specific cellular immune response in vaccinated or naturally sensitized individuals. METHODS: WB (300 microl) was incubated at 37 degrees C with specific antigens, in the form of peptides or commercial vaccines for 5-16 hours. Following RNAlater addition to stabilize RNA, the mixture could be stored over one week at room temperature or at 4 degrees C. Total RNA was then extracted, reverse transcribed and amplified in quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) assays with primers and probes specific for cytokine and/or chemokine genes. RESULTS: Spiking experiments demonstrated that this technique could detect antigen specific cytokine gene expression from 50 cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) diluted in 300 microl WB. Furthermore, the high sensitivity of this method could be confirmed ex-vivo by the successful detection of CD8+ T cell responses against HCMV, EBV and influenza virus derived HLA-A0201 restricted epitopes, which was significantly correlated with specific multimer staining. Importantly, a highly significant (p = 0.000009) correlation between hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) stimulated IL-2 gene expression, as detectable in WB, and specific antibody titers was observed in donors vaccinated against hepatitis B virus (HBV) between six months and twenty years before the tests. To identify additional markers of potential clinical relevance, expression of chemokine genes was also evaluated. Indeed, HBsAg stimulated expression of MIP-1beta (CCL4) gene was highly significantly (p = 0.0006) correlated with specific antibody titers. Moreover, a longitudinal study on response to influenza vaccine demonstrated a significant increase of antigen specific IFN-gamma gene expression two weeks after immunization, declining thereafter, whereas increased IL-2 gene expression was still detectable four months after vaccination. CONCLUSION: This method, easily amenable to automation, might qualify as technology of choice for high throughput screening of immune responses to large panels of antigens from cohorts of donors. Although analysis of cytokine gene expression requires adequate laboratory infrastructure, initial antigen stimulation and storage of test probes can be performed with minimal equipment and time requirements. This might prove important in "field" studies with difficult access to laboratory facilities
Minimum Information about a Neuroscience Investigation (MINI) Electrophysiology
This module represents the formalized opinion of the authors and the CARMEN consortium, which identifies the minimum information required to report the use of electrophysiology in a neuroscience study, for submission to the CARMEN system (www.carmen.org.uk).

Application of Colorimetric Solid Phase Extraction (C-SPE) to Monitoring Nickel(II) and Lead(II) in Spacecraft Water Supplies
Archived water samples collected on the International Space Station (ISS) and returned to Earth for analysis have, in a few instances, contained trace levels of heavy metals. Building on our previous advances using Colorimetric Solid Phase Extraction (C-SPE) as a biocide monitoring technique, we are devising methods for the low level monitoring of nickel(II), lead(II) and other heavy metals. C-SPE is a sorption-spectrophotometric platform based on the extraction of analytes onto a membrane impregnated with a colorimetric reagent that are then quantified on the surface of the membrane using a diffuse reflectance spectrophotometer. Along these lines, we have determined nickel(II) via complexation with dimethylglyoxime (DMG) and begun to examine the analysis of lead(II) by its reaction with 2,5- dimercapto-1,3,4-thiadiazole (DMTD) and 4-(2- pyridylazo)-resorcinol (PAR). These developments are also extending a new variant of C-SPE in which immobilized reagents are being incorporated into this methodology in order to optimize sample reaction conditions and to introduce the colorimetric reagent. This paper describes the status of our development of these two new methods
Laboratory Astrophysics White Paper (based on the 2010 NASA Laboratory Astrophysics Workshop in Gatlinberg, Tennessee, 25-28 October 2010)
The purpose of the 2010 NASA Laboratory Astrophysics Workshop (LAW) was, as given in the Charter from NASA, "to provide a forum within which the scientific community can review the current state of knowledge in the field of Laboratory Astrophysics, assess the critical data needs of NASA's current and future Space Astrophysics missions, and identify the challenges and opportunities facing the field as we begin a new decade". LAW 2010 was the fourth in a roughly quadrennial series of such workshops sponsored by the Astrophysics Division of the NASA Science Mission Directorate. In this White Paper, we report the findings of the workshop
Two alkaline phosphatase genes are expressed during early development in the mouse embryo
Alkaline phosphatase (AP) activity is stage specific in mouse embryos and may be associated with compaction and separation of trophectoderm from inner cell mass in preimplantation development. We previously sequenced a cDNA and two mouse AP genes that could contribute to the AP activity in embryos. Oligonucleotide primers were constructed from the three sequences and used in the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction technique to establish that two of the three AP isozymes are transcribed during preimplantation development. The predominant transcript (E-AP) is from a gene highly homologous to the human tissue-specific APs, but different from the mouse intestinal AP. Tissue non- specific (TN) AP also is transcribed, but there is approximately 10 times less TN-AP than E-AP tran- script. The TN-AP isozyme is the predominant tran- script of 7 to 14 day embryos and primordial germ cells. A switch in predominance from E-AP to TN-AP must occur during early postimplantation development. This study establishes a framework for experiments to determine the functions of the two isozymes during preimplantation development
The Effect of Multiple Scattering on the Polarization from Binary Star Envelopes. I. Self- and Externally Illuminated Disks
We present the results of a Monte Carlo radiative transfer code that
calculates the polarization produced by multiple Thomson scattering and
variable absorptive opacity in a circumstellar disk around one component of a
close detached binary system. We consider in detail the polarization variations
over the binary cycle that result from the disk's illumination by the external
star and by its own volume emission. We identify key features of these
polarization phase curves and investigate their behavior as functions of
optical depth, albedo, and inclination for geometrically thin and thick disks.
The polarization due to disk self-illumination is sensitive to the internal
optical characteristics of the disk, while the polarization arising from
external illumination is mainly sensitive to the disk's geometrical thickness.
With appropriate flux weighting, these results, combined with those for an
internally illuminated disk, allow simulation of the polarization signature
from an arbitrary binary-disk system.Comment: 34 pages, 17 figures. Submitted to ApJ, revised in response to
referee comments. Color figures available from
http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~jhoffman/monte/colorfigs.htm
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