371 research outputs found
CO line emission from galaxies in the Epoch of Reionization
We study the CO line luminosity (), the shape of the CO Spectral
Line Energy Distribution (SLED), and the value of the CO-to-
conversion factor in galaxies in the Epoch of Reionization (EoR). To this aim,
we construct a model that simultaneously takes into account the radiative
transfer and the clumpy structure of giant molecular clouds (GMCs) where the CO
lines are excited. We then use it to post-process state-of-the-art zoomed, high
resolution (), cosmological simulation of a main-sequence
(, ) galaxy, "Alth{\ae}a", at . We find that the CO emission
traces the inner molecular disk () of Alth{\ae}a with
the peak of the CO surface brightness co-located with that of the [CII] 158 emission. Its is comparable
to that observed in local galaxies with similar stellar mass. The high
() gas surface density in
Alth{\ae}a, its large Mach number (\mach), and the warm kinetic
temperature () of GMCs yield a CO SLED peaked at the
CO(7-6) transition, i.e. at relatively high-, and a CO-to-
conversion factor lower than that of the Milky Way. The ALMA observing time
required to detect (resolve) at 5 the CO(7-6) line from galaxies
similar to Alth{\ae}a is h ( h).Comment: 16 pages, 14 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
Very extended cold gas, star formation and outflows in the halo of a bright QSO at z>6
Past observations of QSO host galaxies at z >6 have found cold gas and star
formation on compact scales of a few kiloparsecs. We present new high
sensitivity IRAM PdBI follow-up observations of the [CII] 158micron emission
line and FIR continuum in the host galaxy of SDSS J1148+5152, a luminous QSO at
redshift 6.4189. We find that a large fraction of the gas traced by [CII] is at
high velocities, up to ~1400 km/s relative to the systemic velocity, confirming
the presence of a major quasar-driven outflow indicated by previous
observations. The outflow has a complex morphology and reaches a maximum
projected radius of ~30 kpc. The extreme spatial extent of the outflow allows
us, for the first time in an external galaxy, to estimate mass-loss rate,
kinetic power and momentum rate of the outflow as a function of the projected
distance from the nucleus and the dynamical time-scale. These trends reveal
multiple outflow events during the past 100 Myr, although the bulk of the mass,
energy and momentum appear to have been released more recently, within the past
~20 Myr. Surprisingly, we discover that also the quiescent gas at systemic
velocity is extremely extended. More specifically, we find that, while 30% of
the [CII] within v\in(-200, 200) km/s traces a compact component that is not
resolved by our observations, 70% of the [CII] emission in this velocity range
is extended, with a projected FWHM size of 17.4+-1.4 kpc. We detect FIR
continuum emission associated with both the compact and the extended [CII]
components, although the extended FIR emission has a FWHM of 11+-3 kpc, thus
smaller than the extended [CII] source. Overall, our results indicate that the
cold gas traced by [CII] is distributed up to r~30 kpc. A large fraction of
extended [CII] is likely associated with star formation on large scales, but
the [CII] source extends well beyond the FIR continuum.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&A, 21 pages, 18 figures, 3 tables (v2:
accepted version, discussion expanded in Sect. 3, 4 and in the Appendices,
minor changes elsewhere
Adipocytes and micrornas crosstalk: A key tile in the mosaic of breast cancer microenvironment
Breast cancer (BC) is a disease characterized by a high grade of heterogeneity. Consequently, despite the great achievements obtained in the last decades, most of the current therapeutic regimens still fail. The identification of new molecular mechanisms that will increase the knowledge of all steps of tumor initiation and growth is mandatory in finding new clinical strategies. The BC microenvironment, consisting of endothelial cells, fibroblasts, immune cells and adipocytes, plays an essential role in regulating BC development, and recently it has gained great attention in the scientific community. In particular, adipose tissue is emerging as an important target to investigate among mammary gland components. The mechanisms underlying BC progression driven by adipocytes are predominantly unexplored, especially that involving the switch from normal adipocytes to the so-called cancer-associated adipocytes (CAAs). MicroRNAs (miRNAs), a class of gene expression modulators, have emerged as the regulators of key oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes that affect multiple pathways of the tumor microenvironment and adipose tissue. This review concerns a presentation of the role of adipocytes in breast tissue, and describes the most recent discoveries about the interplay between adipocytes and miRNAs, which collaborate in the arrangement of a pro-inflammatory and cancerous microenvironment, laying the foundations for new concepts in the prevention and treatment of BC
The rest-frame UV-to-optical spectroscopy of APM 08279+5255 - BAL classification and black hole mass estimates
We present the analysis of the rest-frame optical-to-UV spectrum of APM
08279+5255, a well-known lensed broad absorption line (BAL) quasar at . The spectroscopic data are taken with the optical DOLoRes and near-IR
NICS instruments at TNG, and include the previously unexplored range between C
III] 1910 and [O III] 4959,5007. We investigate the
possible presence of multiple BALs by computing "balnicity" and absorption
indexes (i.e. BI, BI and AI) for the transitions Si IV 1400, C IV
1549, Al III 1860 and Mg II 2800. No clear evidence
for the presence of absorption features is found in addition to the already
known, prominent BAL associated to C IV, which supports a high-ionization BAL
classification for APM 08279+5255. We also study the properties of the [O III],
H and Mg II emission lines. We find that [O III] is intrinsically weak
(), as it is typically found in
luminous quasars with a strongly blueshifted C IV emission line (2500 km
s for APM 08279+5255). We compute the single-epoch black hole mass based
on Mg II and H broad emission lines, finding M, with the magnification factor that can
vary between 4 and 100 according to CO and rest-frame UV-to-mid-IR imaging
respectively. Using a Mg II equivalent width (EW)-to-Eddington ratio relation,
the EW \AA\ measured for APM 08279+5255 translates into an
Eddington ratio of 0.4, which is more consistent with . This
magnification factor also provides a value of that is consistent
with recent reverberation-mapping measurements derived from C IV and Si IV.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figures, 4 tables, accepted for publication in A&
The assembly of "normal" galaxies at z=7 probed by ALMA
We report new deep ALMA observations aimed at investigating the [CII]158um
line and continuum emission in three spectroscopically confirmed Lyman Break
Galaxies at 6.8<z<7.1, i.e. well within the re-ionization epoch. With Star
Formation Rates of SFR ~ 5-15 Msun/yr these systems are much more
representative of the high-z galaxy population than other systems targeted in
the past by millimeter observations. For the galaxy with the deepest
observation we detect [CII] emission at redshift z=7.107, fully consistent with
the Lyalpha redshift, but spatially offset by 0.7" (4 kpc) from the optical
emission. At the location of the optical emission, tracing both the Lyalpha
line and the far-UV continuum, no [CII] emission is detected in any of the
three galaxies, with 3sigma upper limits significantly lower than the [CII]
emission observed in lower reshift galaxies. These results suggest that
molecular clouds in the central parts of primordial galaxies are rapidly
disrupted by stellar feedback. As a result, [CII] emission mostly arises from
more external accreting/satellite clumps of neutral gas. These findings are in
agreement with recent models of galaxy formation. Thermal far-infrared
continuum is not detected in any of the three galaxies. However, the upper
limits on the infrared-to-UV emission ratio do not exceed those derived in
metal- and dust-poor galaxies.Comment: 15 pages, 9 figures, MNRAS in press, replaced with accepted versio
The dense molecular gas in the QSO SDSS J231038.88+185519.7 resolved by ALMA
We present ALMA observations of the CO(6-5) and [CII] emission lines and the
sub-millimeter continuum of the quasi-stellar object (QSO) SDSS
J231038.88+185519.7. Compared to previous studies, we have analyzed a synthetic
beam that is ten times smaller in angular size, we have achieved ten times
better sensitivity in the CO(6-5) line, and two and half times better
sensitivity in the [CII] line, enabling us to resolve the molecular gas
emission. We obtain a size of the dense molecular gas of kpc, and
of kpc for the 91.5 GHz dust continuum. By assuming that CO(6-5) is
thermalized, and by adopting a CO--to-- conversion factor , we infer a molecular gas mass of
. Assuming that the
observed CO velocity gradient is due to an inclined rotating disk, we derive a
dynamical mass of , which is a factor of approximately two smaller than the previously
reported estimate based on [CII]. Regarding the central black hole, we provide
a new estimate of the black hole mass based on the C~IV emission line detected
in the X-SHOOTER/VLT spectrum: . We find a molecular gas fraction of ,
where . We derive a ratio
suggesting high gas turbulence, outflows/inflows
and/or complex kinematics due to a merger event. We estimate a global Toomre
parameter , indicating likely cloud fragmentation. We compare,
at the same angular resolution, the CO(6-5) and [CII] distributions, finding
that dense molecular gas is more centrally concentrated with respect to [CII].
We find that the current BH growth rate is similar to that of its host galaxy.Comment: A&A in pres
Impressive long-term response with chemo-endocrine therapy in a premenopausal patient with metastatic breast cancer: A case report
RATIONALE: Patients with, or who develop, metastatic breast cancer have a 5-year relative survival of about 25%. Endocrine therapy clearly improves outcomes in patients with estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer. In the metastatic setting, the primary goal of treatment is to maintain long-term disease control with good quality of life. Rarely, exceptional responders achieve durable disease control, and potential cures cannot be ruled out. PATIENT CONCERNS: We report the case of a 39-year-old woman with primary breast cancer and associated synchronous bone metastases, who experienced a disease response of 12 years with hormonal therapy as maintenance after first line chemotherapy, with a good toxicity profile. DIAGNOSIS: The patient was diagnosed with estrogen receptor + human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)- metastatic breast cancer with synchronous bone metastases. INTERVENTIONS: This patient was treated with chemotherapy for 6 cycles as a first-line therapy following by endocrine treatment given as a maintenance therapy. OUTCOMES: Our patient experienced a progression-free survival >12 years with an exceptionally good quality of life. LESSONS: Our anecdotal experience highlights the existence of exceptional responders among patients with hormone receptor-positive metastatic breast cancer, who achieve clinical remission and durable disease control with endocrine therapy. Being able to identify these patients could help in the selection of the best treatment option among the many available
Dust attenuation law in JWST galaxies at z = 7-8
Attenuation curves in galaxies depend on dust chemical composition, content,
and grain size distribution. Such parameters are related to intrinsic galaxy
properties such as metallicity, star formation rate, and stellar age. Due to
the lack of observational constraints at high redshift, dust empirical curves
measured in the local Universe (e.g. Calzetti and SMC curves) have been
employed to describe the dust attenuation at early epochs. We exploit the high
sensitivity and spectral resolution of the JWST to constrain the dust
attenuation curves in high-z galaxies. Our goals are to check whether dust
attenuation curves evolve with redshift and quantify the dependence of the
inferred galaxy properties on the assumed dust attenuation law. We develop a
modified version of the SED fitting code BAGPIPES by including a detailed dust
attenuation curve parametrization. Dust parameters are derived, along with
galaxy properties, from the fit to the data from FUV to mm bands. Once applied
to three star-forming galaxies at z = 7-8, we find that their attenuation
curves differ from local templates. One out of three galaxies shows a
characteristic MW bump, typically associated to the presence of small
carbonaceous dust grains such as PAHs. This is one of the first evidences
suggesting the presence of PAHs in early galaxies. Galaxy properties such as
stellar mass and SFR inferred from SED fitting are strongly affected by the
assumed attenuation curve, though the adopted star formation history also plays
a major role. Our results highlight the importance of accounting for the
potential diversity of dust attenuation laws when analyzing the properties of
galaxies at the EoR, whose dust properties are still poorly understood. The
application of our method to a larger sample of galaxies observed with JWST can
provide us important insights into the properties of dust and galaxies in the
early universe.Comment: 19 pages, 10 figure
Witnessing Galaxy Assembly at the Edge of the Reionization Epoch
We report the discovery of Serenity-18, a galaxy at z=5.939 for which we
could measure the content of molecular gas, M(H_2)~ 5 x10^9 M_sun, traced by
the CO(6-5) emission, together with the metal-poor ([Fe/H]=-3.08 +- 0.12,
[Si/H]=-2.86 +- 0.14) gas clump/filament which is possibly feeding its growth.
The galaxy has an estimated star formation rate of ~100 M_sun yr^{-1}, implying
that it is a typical main sequence galaxy at these redshifts. The metal-poor
gas is detected through a damped Lyman-alpha absorber (DLA) observed at a
spatial separation of 40 kpc and at the same redshift of Serenity-18, along the
line of sight to the quasar SDSS J2310+1855 (z_em = 6.0025). The chemical
abundances measured for the damped Lyman-alpha system are in very good
agreement with those measured for other DLAs discovered at similar redshifts,
indicating an enrichment due to massive PopII stars. The galaxy/Damped system
we discovered is a direct observational evidence of the assembly of a galaxy at
the edge of the reionization epoch.STFC
ER
Single-cell NGS-based analysis of copy number alterations reveals new insights in circulating tumor cells persistence in early-stage breast cancer
Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are a rare population of cells representing a key player in the metastatic cascade. They are recognized as a validated tool for the identification of patients with a higher risk of relapse, including those diagnosed with breast cancer (BC). However, CTCs are characterized by high levels of heterogeneity that also involve copy number alterations (CNAs), structural variations associated with gene dosage changes. In this study, single CTCs were isolated from the peripheral blood of 11 early-stage BC patients at different time points. A label-free enrichment of CTCs was performed using OncoQuick, and single CTCs were isolated using DEPArray. Libraries were prepared from single CTCs and DNA extracted from matched tumor tissues for a whole-genome low-coverage next-generation sequencing (NGS) analysis using the Ion Torrent S5 System. The analysis of the CNA burden highlighted that CTCs had different degrees of aberration based on the time point and subtype. CTCs were found even six months after surgery and shared CNAs with matched tumor tissue. Tumor-associated CNAs that were recurrent in CTCs were patient-specific, and some alterations involved regions associated with BC and survival (i.e., gains at 1q21-23 and 5p15.33). The enrichment analysis emphasized the involvement of aberrations of terms, associated in particular with interferon (IFN) signaling. Collectively, our findings reveal that these aberrations may contribute to understanding the molecular mechanisms involving CTC-related processes and their survival ability in occult niches, supporting the goal of exploiting their application in patients’ surveillance and follow-up
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