2,222 research outputs found
Spin-Orbit and Tensor Forces in Heavy-quark Light-quark Mesons: Implications of the New Ds state at 2.32 GeV
We consider the spectroscopy of heavy-quark light-quark mesons with a simple
model based on the non-relativistic reduction of vector and scalar exchange
between fermions. Four forces are induced: the spin-orbit forces on the light
and heavy quark spins, the tensor force, and a spin-spin force. If the vector
force is Coulombic, the spin-spin force is a contact interaction, and the
tensor force and spin-orbit force on the heavy quark to order are
directly proportional. As a result, just two independent parameters
characterize these perturbations. The measurement of the masses of three p-wave
states suffices to predict the mass of the fourth. This technique is applied to
the system, where the newly discovered state at 2.32 GeV provides the
third measured level, and to the system. The mixing of the two
p-wave states is reflected in their widths and provides additional constraints.
The resulting picture is at odds with previous expectations and raises new
puzzles.Comment: 6 pages, 1 figur
The DESI Experiment, a whitepaper for Snowmass 2013
The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) is a massively multiplexed
fiber-fed spectrograph that will make the next major advance in dark energy in
the timeframe 2018-2022. On the Mayall telescope, DESI will obtain spectra and
redshifts for at least 18 million emission-line galaxies, 4 million luminous
red galaxies and 3 million quasi-stellar objects, in order to: probe the
effects of dark energy on the expansion history using baryon acoustic
oscillations (BAO), measure the gravitational growth history through
redshift-space distortions, measure the sum of neutrino masses, and investigate
the signatures of primordial inflation. The resulting 3-D galaxy maps at z<2
and Lyman-alpha forest at z>2 will make 1%-level measurements of the distance
scale in 35 redshift bins, thus providing unprecedented constraints on
cosmological models.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figures, a White Paper for Snowmass 201
Predicting Acute Urinary Retention in Patients with Elevated Post Void Residuals
Objectives: To perform a retrospective analysis in order to evaluate factors that may help predict which men with elevated PVRs that were at increased risk to develop AUR
4S-Hydroxylation of insulin at ProB28 accelerates hexamer dissociation and delays fibrillation
Daily injections of insulin provide lifesaving benefits to millions of diabetics. But currently available prandial insulins are suboptimal: The onset of action is delayed by slow dissociation of the insulin hexamer in the subcutaneous space, and insulin forms amyloid fibrils upon storage in solution. Here we show, through the use of non-canonical amino acid mutagenesis, that replacement of the proline residue at position 28 of the insulin B-chain (ProB28) by (4S)-hydroxyproline (Hzp) yields an active form of insulin that dissociates more rapidly, and fibrillates more slowly, than the wild-type protein. Crystal structures of dimeric and hexameric insulin preparations suggest that a hydrogen bond between the hydroxyl group of Hzp and a backbone amide carbonyl positioned across the dimer interface may be responsible for the altered behavior. The effects of hydroxylation are stereospecific; replacement of ProB28 by (4R)-hydroxyproline (Hyp) causes little change in the rates of fibrillation and hexamer disassociation. These results demonstrate a new approach that fuses the concepts of medicinal chemistry and protein design, and paves the way to further engineering of insulin and other therapeutic proteins
Detection of Bacterial Antigens and Alzheimer\u27s Disease-like Pathology in the Central Nervous System of BALB/c Mice Following Intranasal Infection with a Laboratory Isolate of Chlamydia pneumoniae
Pathology consistent with that observed in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) has previously been documented following intranasal infection of normal wild-type mice with Chlamydia pneumoniae (Cpn) isolated from an AD brain (96-41). In the current study, BALB/c mice were intranasally infected with a laboratory strain of Cpn, AR-39, and brain and olfactory bulbs were obtained at 1-4 months post-infection (pi). Immunohistochemistry for amyloid beta or Cpn antigens was performed on sections from brains of infected or mock-infected mice. Chlamydia-specific immunolabeling was identified in olfactory bulb tissues and in cerebrum of AR-39 infected mice. The Cpn specific labeling was most prominent at 1 month pi and the greatest burden of amyloid deposition was noted at 2 months pi, whereas both decreased at 3 and 4 months. Viable Cpn was recovered from olfactory bulbs of 3 of 3 experimentally infected mice at 1 and 3 months pi, and in 2 of 3 mice at 4 months pi. In contrast, in cortical tissues of infected mice at 1 and 4 months pi no viable organism was obtained. At 3 months pi, only 1 of 3 mice had a measurable burden of viable Cpn from the cortical tissues. Mock-infected mice (0 of 3) had no detectable Cpn in either olfactory bulbs or cortical tissues. These data indicate that the AR-39 isolate of Cpn establishes a limited infection predominantly in the olfactory bulbs of BALB/c mice. Although infection with the laboratory strain of Cpn promotes deposition of amyloid beta, this appears to resolve following reduction of the Cpn antigen burden over time. Our data suggest that infection with the AR-39 laboratory isolate of Cpn results in a different course of amyloid beta deposition and ultimate resolution than that observed following infection with the human AD-brain Cpn isolate, 96-41. These data further support that there may be differences, possibly in virulence factors, between Cpn isolates in the generation of sustainable AD pathology
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