244 research outputs found
Phase-fluctuation induced reduction of the kinetic energy at the superconducting transition
Recent reflectivity measurements provide evidence for a "violation" of the
in-plane optical integral in the underdoped high-T_c compound
Bi_2Sr_2CaCu_2O_{8+\delta} up to frequencies much higher than expected by
standard BCS theory. The sum rule violation may be related to a loss of
in-plane kinetic energy at the superconducting transition. Here, we show that a
model based on phase fluctuations of the superconducting order parameter can
account for this change of in-plane kinetic energy at T_c. The change is due to
a transition from a phase-incoherent Cooper-pair motion in the pseudogap regime
above T_c to a phase-coherent motion at T_c.Comment: 5 pages, 3 eps-figure
Characterization and evolution of cell division and cell wall synthesis genes in the bacterial phyla Verrucomicrobia, Lentisphaerae, Chlamydiae and Planctomycetes and phylogenetic comparison with rRNA genes
In the past, studies on the relationships of the bacterial phyla Planctomycetes, Chlamydiae, Lentisphaerae, and
Verrucomicrobia using different phylogenetic markers have been controversial. Investigations based on 16S
rRNA sequence analyses suggested a relationship of the four phyla, showing the branching order Planctomycetes,
Chlamydiae, Verrucomicrobia/Lentisphaerae. Phylogenetic analyses of 23S rRNA genes in this study also
support a monophyletic grouping and their branching order—this grouping is significant for understanding
cell division, since the major bacterial cell division protein FtsZ is absent from members of two of the phyla
Chlamydiae and Planctomycetes. In Verrucomicrobia, knowledge about cell division is mainly restricted to the
recent report of ftsZ in the closely related genera Prosthecobacter and Verrucomicrobium. In this study, genes of
the conserved division and cell wall (dcw) cluster (ddl, ftsQ, ftsA, and ftsZ) were characterized in all verrucomicrobial
subdivisions (1 to 4) with cultivable representatives (1 to 4). Sequence analyses and transcriptional
analyses in Verrucomicrobia and genome data analyses in Lentisphaerae suggested that cell division is based on
FtsZ in all verrucomicrobial subdivisions and possibly also in the sister phylum Lentisphaerae. Comprehensive
sequence analyses of available genome data for representatives of Verrucomicrobia, Lentisphaerae, Chlamydiae,
and Planctomycetes strongly indicate that their last common ancestor possessed a conserved, ancestral type of
dcw gene cluster and an FtsZ-based cell division mechanism. This implies that Planctomycetes and Chlamydiae
may have shifted independently to a non-FtsZ-based cell division mechanism after their separate branchings
from their last common ancestor with Verrucomicrobia
In Vitro Aging of Human Skin Fibroblasts: Age-Dependent Changes in 4-Hydroxynonenal Metabolism
Evidence suggests that the increased production of free radicals and reactive oxygen species lead to cellular aging. One of the consequences is lipid peroxidation generating reactive aldehydic products, such as 4-hydroxynonenal (HNE) that modify proteins and form adducts with DNA bases. To prevent damage by HNE, it is metabolized. The primary metabolic products are the glutathione conjugate (GSH-HNE), the corresponding 4-hydroxynonenoic acid (HNA), and the alcohol 1,4-dihydroxynonene (DHN). Since HNE metabolism can potentially change during in vitro aging, cell cultures of primary human dermal fibroblasts from several donors were cultured until senescence. After different time points up to 30 min of incubation with 5 \ub5M HNE, the extracellular medium was analyzed for metabolites via liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (LC/ESI-MS). The metabolites appeared in the extracellular medium 5 min after incubation followed by a time-dependent increase. But, the formation of GSH-HNL and GSH-DHN decreased with increasing in vitro age. As a consequence, the HNE levels in the cells increase and there is more protein modification observed. Furthermore, after 3 h of incubation with 5 \ub5M HNE, younger cells showed less proliferative capacity, while in older cells slight increase in the mitotic index was noticed
The correlations of glycated hemoglobin and carbohydrate metabolism parameters with heart rate variability in apparently healthy sedentary young male subjects
Introduction Sedentary lifestyle is a major risk factor for diabetes, cardiovascular and many other age-related diseases. Heart rate variability (HRV) reflects the function of regulatory systems of internal organs and may sensitively indicate early metabolic disturbances. We hypothesize that quantitative and qualitative changes of HRV in young subjects may reflect early metabolic derangements responsible for further development of clinically significant disease. Aim The aim of our study was to determine whether the parameters of carbohydrate metabolism (fasting blood glucose, HBA1c and surrogate insulin sensitivity/resistance indices) correlate with anthropometric data and HRV. Methods The study group consisted of 30 healthy sedentary male subjects aged 20–40, nonsmokers, mainly office and research employees, medical staff and students. Athletes, actively training more than one hour per week, severely obese and men of physical work were excluded from the study. HRV parameters were derived from short term ECG records (five minutes intervals) in supine position and during orthostatic test. Anthropometric data included height, weight, body mass index (BMI), age and body composition (estimation by bioelectric impedance method). The fasting blood glucose, insulin and C-peptide, homeostatic model assessment (HOMA-IR) index and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) were evaluated. Linear correlation coefficient (r) was calculated using Statistica 10.0 software. Results and discussion HOMA-IR index correlated positively with body weight, visceral fat and BMI (p=0.047, 0.027 and 0.017 respectively). In supine position pNN50 positively correlated with glucose/insulin ratio (p=0.011) and heart rate with HOMA-IR (p=0.006). In orthostatic test negative correlations of HBA1c with standard deviation, total and low frequency power were determined (p=0.034, 0.400 and 0.403 respectively), which indicates a gradual worsening of functional capacity of cardiovascular system with low-grade increase (under the conventional threshold) of HBA1c. Conclusions In apparently healthy sedentary subjects HRV reduction correlates with the age advancement, subclinical deteriorations of carbohydrate metabolism and excessive fat accumulation
Pair Phase Fluctuations and the Pseudogap
The single-particle density of states and the tunneling conductance are
studied for a two-dimensional BCS-like Hamiltonian with a d_{x^2-y^2}-gap and
phase fluctuations. The latter are treated by a classical Monte Carlo
simulation of an XY model. Comparison of our results with recent scanning
tunneling spectra of Bi-based high-T_c cuprates supports the idea that the
pseudogap behavior observed in these experiments can be understood as arising
from phase fluctuations of a d_{x^2-y^2} pairing gap whose amplitude forms on
an energy scale set by T_c^{MF} well above the actual superconducting
transition.Comment: 5 pages, 6 eps-figure
Electromotive forces and the Meissner effect puzzle
In a voltaic cell, positive (negative) ions flow from the low (high)
potential electrode to the high (low) potential electrode, driven by an
`electromotive force' which points in opposite direction and overcomes the
electric force. Similarly in a superconductor charge flows in direction
opposite to that dictated by the Faraday electric field as the magnetic field
is expelled in the Meissner effect. The puzzle is the same in both cases: what
drives electric charges against electromagnetic forces? I propose that the
answer is also the same in both cases: kinetic energy lowering, or `quantum
pressure'
Ab initio screening methodology applied to the search for new permanent magnetic materials
In this paper a computational high-throughput screening (HTS) approach to the search for alternative permanent magnetic materials is presented. Systems considered for a start are binary intermetallic compounds composed of rare-earth (RE) and transition metal (TM) elements. With the tight-binding-linear muffin-tin-orbital-atomic-sphere-approximation (TBLMTO-ASA) method of density functional theory (DFT) a variety of RE–TM intermetallic phases is investigated and their magnetic properties are obtained at rather low computational costs. Next, interstitial elements such as boron, carbon and nitrogen in these phases are considered. For promising candidate phases with high and stable spontaneous ferromagnetic polarization, the calculated local magnetic moments and exchange coupling parameters, as obtained from TB-LMTO-ASA calculations, are then used for Monte Carlo simulations to identify candidates with sufficiently high Curie temperatures (Tc). Finally, magnetocrystalline anisotropy constants (K1) of the most promising candidate phases are calculated with accurate, potential-shape-unrestricted DFT calculations using the Vienna ab initio simulation package. The computational HTS procedure is illustrated by results for a selection of hard-magnetic RE–TM phases like RETM5, RE2TM17 and RE2TM14B
Kinetic Energy, Condensation Energy, Optical Sum Rule and Pairing Mechanism in High-Tc Cuprates
The mechanism of high-Tc superconductivity is investigated with interests on
the microscopic aspects of the condensation energy. The theoretical analysis is
performed on the basis of the FLEX approximation which is a microscopic
description of the spin-fluctuation-induced-superconductivity. Most of phase
transitions in strongly correlated electron system arise from the correlation
energy which is copmetitive to the kinetic energy. However, we show that the
kinetic energy cooperatively induces the superconductivity in the underdoped
region. This unusual decrease of kinetic energy below T_c is induced by the
feedback effect. The feedback effect induces the magnetic resonance mode as
well as the kink in the electronic dispersion, and alters the properties of
quasi-particles, such as mass renormalization and lifetime. The crossover from
BCS behavior to this unusual behavior occurs for hole dopings. On the other
hand, the decrease of kinetic energy below T_c does not occur in the
electron-doped region. We discuss the relation to the recent obserbation of the
violation of optical sum rule
Pseudogap and Superconducting Fluctuation in High-Tc Cuprates: Theory beyond 1-loop Approximation
The pseudogap phenomena induced by the SC fluctuation are investigated in
details. We perform a calculation beyond the 1-loop approximation. The SC
fluctuation is microscopically derived on the basis of the repulsive Hubbard
model. The vertex corrections are collected in the infinite order with use of
the quasi-static approximation. The single-particle excitations, NMR 1/T_{1}T,
spin susceptibility and superconducting transition temperature are discussed.
The important role of the vertex correction is pointed out for the single
particle spectral function. On the other hand, the validity of the 1-loop order
theory is confirmed for other quantities. We shed light on the essential nature
of SC fluctuation leading to the pseudogap from the comparison with spin and
charge fluctuations
Superconducting Fluctuation and Pseudogap in Disordered Short Coherence Length Superconductor
We investigate the role of disorder on the superconducting (SC) fluctuation
in short coherence length d-wave superconductors. The particular intetest is
focused on the disorder-induced microscopic inhomogeneity of SC fluctuation and
its effect on the pseudogap phenomena. We formulate the self-consistent 1-loop
order theory for the SC fluctuation in inhomogeneous systems and analyze the
disordered -- model. The SC correlation function, electronic DOS and
the critical temperature are estimated. The SC fluctuation is localized like a
nanoscale granular structure when the coherence length is short, namely the
transition temperature is high. This is contrasted to the long coherence length
superconductors where the order parameter is almost uniform in the microscopic
scale. In the former case, the SC fluctuation is enhanced by the disorder in
contrast to the Abrikosov-Gorkov theory. These results are consistent with the
STM, NMR and transport measurements in high- cuprates and illuminate
the essential role of the microscopic inhomogeneity. We calculate the spacial
dependence of DOS around the single impurity and discuss the consistency with
the NMR measurements
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