673 research outputs found
The Stacking Faulted Nature of the Narrow Gap Semiconductor ScSiTe
Crystals of ScSiTe have been grown and its crystal, micro- and electronic structures were investigated. The layered character of the title compound exhibits stacking faults that impede a full structural characterization by single crystal X-ray diffraction due to diffuse scattering. Based on high resolution transmission electron micrographs and diffraction patterns, the stacking faulted nature of the real structure of ScSiTe has been revealed. Different stacking models were derived from the idealized, faultless structure and the stacking disorder was quantitatively analyzed by Rietveld refinement of powder X-ray diffraction patterns. An energetic comparison of the stacking models by density functional theory is in line with the experimental observations. Further, the bonding situation was investigated by electronic structure calculations. ScSiTe is a narrow gap semiconductor with an indirect band gap of 0.65 eV
Ipsographing the Dubject; or, The Contradictions of Twitter
Precise control of self-renewal and differentiation of progenitor cells into the cranial neural crest (CNC) pool ensures proper head development, guided by signaling pathways such as BMPs, FGFs, Shh and Notch. Here, we show that murine Sox2 plays an essential role in controlling progenitor cell behavior during craniofacial development. A "Conditional by Inversion" Sox2 allele (Sox2(COIN) ) has been employed to generate an epiblast ablation of Sox2 function (Sox2(EpINV) ). Sox2 (EpINV/+(H)) haploinsufficient and conditional (Sox2(EpINV/mosaic) ) mutant embryos proceed beyond gastrulation and die around E11. These mutant embryos exhibit severe anterior malformations, with hydrocephaly and frontonasal truncations, which could be attributed to the deregulation of CNC progenitor cells during their epithelial to mesenchymal transition. This irregularity results in an exacerbated and aberrant migration of Sox10(+) NCC in the branchial arches and frontonasal process of the Sox2 mutant embryos. These results suggest a novel role for Sox2 as a regulator of the epithelial to mesenchymal transitions (EMT) that are important for the cell flow in the developing head
Risk Factors for Triple-Negative Breast Cancer in Women Under Age 45
Little is known about the etiologic profile of triple-negative breast cancer (negative for estrogen receptor/progesterone receptor/human epidermal growth factor), a breast cancer subtype associated with high mortality and inadequate therapeutic options. We undertook this study to assess the risk for triple-negative breast cancer among women 45 years of age and younger in relation to demographic/lifestyle factors, reproductive history, and oral contraceptive use. Study participants were ascertained in two previous population-based, case-control studies. Eligible cases included all primary invasive breast cancers among women ages 20 to 45 years in the Seattle-Puget Sound area, diagnosed between January 1983 and December 1992, for whom complete data was obtained for estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and human epidermal growth factor status (n = 897; including n = 187 triple-negative breast cancer cases). Controls were age matched and ascertained via random digit dialing. Oral contraceptive use >/=1 year was associated with a 2.5-fold increased risk for triple-negative breast cancer (95% confidence interval, 1.4-4.3) and no significantly increased risk for non-triple-negative breast cancer (Pheterogeneity = 0.008). Furthermore, the risk among oral contraceptive users conferred by longer oral contraceptive duration and by more recent use was significantly greater for triple-negative breast cancer than non-triple-negative breast cancer (Pheterogeneity = 0.02 and 0.01, respectively). Among women /=1 year was 4.2 (95% confidence interval, 1.9-9.3), whereas there was no significantly increased risk with oral contraceptive use for non-triple-negative breast cancer among women </=40 years, nor for triple-negative breast cancer or non-triple-negative breast cancer among women 41 to 45 years of age. In conclusion, significant heterogeneity exists for the association of oral contraceptive use and breast cancer risk between triple-negative breast cancer and non-triple-negative breast cancer among young women, lending support to a distinct etiology
UV friendly T-parity in the SU(6)/Sp(6) little Higgs model
Electroweak precision tests put stringent constraints on the parameter space
of little Higgs models. Tree-level exchange of TeV scale particles in a generic
little Higgs model produce higher dimensional operators that make contributions
to electroweak observables that are typically too large. To avoid this problem
a discrete symmetry dubbed T-parity can be introduced to forbid the dangerous
couplings. However, it was realized that in simple group models such as the
littlest Higgs model, the implementation of T-parity in a UV completion could
present some challenges. The situation is analogous to the one in QCD where the
pion can easily be defined as being odd under a new symmetry in the
chiral Lagrangian, but this is not a symmetry of the quark Lagrangian. In
this paper we examine the possibility of implementing a T-parity in the low
energy model that might be easier to realize in the UV. In our
model, the T-parity acts on the low energy non-linear sigma model field in way
which is different to what was originally proposed for the Littlest Higgs, and
lead to a different low energy theory. In particular, the Higgs sector of this
model is a inert two Higgs doublets model with an approximate custodial
symmetry. We examine the contributions of the various sectors of the model to
electroweak precision data, and to the dark matter abundance.Comment: 21 pages,4 figures. Clarifications added, typos corrected and
references added. Published in JHE
Long-lived charged Higgs at LHC as a probe of scalar Dark Matter
We study inert charged Higgs boson production and decays at LHC
experiments in the context of constrained scalar dark matter model (CSDMM). In
the CSDMM the inert doublet and singlet scalar's mass spectrum is predicted
from the GUT scale initial conditions via RGE evolution. We compute the cross
sections of processes at the LHC and show that
for light the first one is dominated by top quark mediated 1-loop
diagram with Higgs boson in s-channel. In a significant fraction of the
parameter space are long-lived because their decays to predominantly
singlet scalar dark matter (DM) and next-to-lightest (NL) scalar, are suppressed by the small singlet-doublet mixing
angle and by the moderate mass difference
The experimentally measurable displaced vertex in decays to leptons
and/or jets and missing energy allows one to discover the signal over
the huge background. We propose benchmark points for studies of this
scenario at the LHC. If, however, are short-lived, the subsequent
decays necessarily produce additional
displaced vertices that allow to reconstruct the full decay chain.Comment: 15 pages, 5 figure
Dark Matter and Higgs Sector
The inert doublet model is an extension of the Standard Model of Elementary
Particles that is defined by the only addition of a second Higgs doublet
without couplings to quarks or leptons. This minimal framework has been studied
for many reasons. In particular, it has been suggested that the new degrees of
freedom contained in this doublet can account for the Dark Matter of the
Universe.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures,To appear in the Proceedings of the sixth
International Workshop on the Dark Side of the Universe (DSU2010) Leon,
Guanajuato, Mexico 1-6 June 201
Association between fat-soluble vitamins and self-reported health status: A cross-sectional analysis of the MARK-AGE cohort
Self-rated health (SRH) is associated with higher risk of death. Since low plasma levels of fat-soluble vitamins are related to mortality, we aimed to assess whether plasma concentrations of vitamins A, D and E were associated with SRH in the MARK-AGE study. We included 3158 participants (52% female) aged between 35-75 years. Cross-sectional data were collected via questionnaires. An enzyme immunoassay quantified 25-hydroxyvitamin D and HPLC determined α-tocopherol and retinol plasma concentrations. The median 25-hydroxyvitamin D and retinol concentrations differed significantly (P<0.001) between SRH categories, and were lower in the combined fair/poor category versus the excellent, very good, good categories (25-hydroxvitamin D: 40.8 vs. 51.9, 49.3, 46.7 nmol/l, respectively; retinol: 1.67 vs. 1.75, 1.74, 1.70 μmol/l, respectively). Both vitamin D and retinol status were independently associated with fair/poor SRH in multiple regression analyses: adjusted ORs (95% CI) for the vitamin D insufficiency, deficiency, severe deficiency categories were 1.33 (1.06-1.68), 1.50 (1.17-1.93), and 1.83 (1.34-2.50) respectively; P=0.015, P=0.001, P<0.001, and for the second/third/fourth retinol quartiles: 1.44 (1.18-1.75), 1.57 (1.28-1.93), 1.49 (1.20-1.84); all P<0.001. No significant associations were reported for α-tocopherol quartiles. Lower vitamin A and D status emerged as independent markers for fair/poor SRH. Further insights into the long-term implications of these modifiable nutrients on health status are warranted
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