494 research outputs found
Effect of the Gribov horizon on the Polyakov loop and vice versa
We consider finite temperature SU(2) gauge theory in the continuum
formulation, which necessitates the choice of a gauge fixing. Choosing the
Landau gauge, the existing gauge copies are taken into account by means of the
Gribov-Zwanziger (GZ) quantization scheme, which entails the introduction of a
dynamical mass scale (Gribov mass) directly influencing the Green functions of
the theory. Here, we determine simultaneously the Polyakov loop (vacuum
expectation value) and Gribov mass in terms of temperature, by minimizing the
vacuum energy w.r.t. the Polyakov loop parameter and solving the Gribov gap
equation. Inspired by the Casimir energy-style of computation, we illustrate
the usage of Zeta function regularization in finite temperature calculations.
Our main result is that the Gribov mass directly feels the deconfinement
transition, visible from a cusp occurring at the same temperature where the
Polyakov loop becomes nonzero. In this exploratory work we mainly restrict
ourselves to the original Gribov-Zwanziger quantization procedure in order to
illustrate the approach and the potential direct link between the vacuum
structure of the theory (dynamical mass scales) and (de)confinement. We also
present a first look at the critical temperature obtained from the Refined
Gribov-Zwanziger approach. Finally, a particular problem for the pressure at
low temperatures is reported.Comment: 19 pages, 8 .pdf figures. v2: extended section 3 + extra references;
version accepted for publication in EPJ
Double non-perturbative gluon exchange: an update on the soft Pomeron contribution to pp scattering
We employ a set of recent, theoretically motivated, fits to non-perturbative
unquenched gluon propagators to check in how far double gluon exchange can be
used to describe the soft sector of pp scattering data (total and differential
cross section). In particular, we use the refined Gribov--Zwanziger gluon
propagator (as arising from dealing with the Gribov gauge fixing ambiguity) and
the massive Cornwall-type gluon propagator (as motivated from Dyson-Schwinger
equations) in conjunction with a perturbative quark-gluon vertex, next to a
model based on the non-perturbative quark-gluon Maris-Tandy vertex, popular
from Bethe-Salpeter descriptions of hadronic bound states. We compare the cross
sections arising from these models with "older" ISR and more recent TOTEM and
ATLAS data. The lower the value of total energy \sqrt{s}, the better the
results appear to be.Comment: 14 pages, 8 .pdf figures. To appear in Phys.Rev.
Autoimmune mucocutaneous blistering diseases after SARS-Cov-2 vaccination: A Case report of Pemphigus Vulgaris and a literature review
Background: Cases of severe autoimmune blistering diseases (AIBDs) have recently been reported in association with the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccination. Aims: To describe a report of oropharyngeal Pemphigus Vulgaris (OPV) triggered by the mRNABNT162b2 vaccine (Comirnaty®/ Pfizer/ BioNTech) and to analyze the clinical and immunological characteristics of the AIBDs cases reported following the SARS-CoV-2 vaccination. Methods: The clinical and immunological features of our case of OPV were documented. A review of the literature was conducted and only cases of AIBDs arising after the SARS-CoV-2 vaccination were included. Case report: A 60-year old female patients developed oropharyngeal and nasal bullous lesions seven days after the administration of a second dose of the mRNABNT162b2 vaccine (Comirnaty®/ Pfizer/BioNtech). According to the histology and direct immunofluorescence findings showing the presence of supra-basal blister and intercellular staining of IgG antibodies and the presence of a high level of anti-Dsg-3 antibodies (80 U/ml; normal < 7 U/ml) in the serum of the patients, a diagnosis of oropharyngeal Pemphigus Vulgaris was made. Review: A total of 35 AIBDs cases triggered by the SARS-CoV-2 vaccination were found (including our report). 26 (74.3%) were diagnosed as Bullous Pemphigoid, 2 (5.7%) as Linear IgA Bullous Dermatosis, 6 (17.1%) as Pemphigus Vulgaris and 1 (2.9%) as Pemphigus Foliaceus. The mean age of the sample was 72.8 years and there was a predominance of males over females (F:M=1:1.7). In 22 (62.9%) cases, the disease developed after Pfizer vaccine administration, 6 (17.1%) after Moderna, 3 (8.6%) after AstraZeneca, 3 (8.6%) after CoronaVac (one was not specified). All patients were treated with topical and/or systemic corticosteroids, with or without the addition of immunosuppressive drugs, with a good clinical response in every case. Conclusion: Clinicians should be aware of the potential, though rare, occurrence of AIBDs as a possible adverse event after the SARS-CoV-2 vaccination. However, notwithstanding, they should encourage their patients to obtain the vaccination in order to assist the public health systems to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic
A natural saline soil as a model for understanding to what extent the concentration of salt affects the distribution of microorganisms
Soils preserve and sustain life. Their health and functioning are crucial for crop production and for the maintenance
of major ecosystem services. Human induced salinity is one of the main soil threats that reduces soil fertility
and affect crop yields. In recent times, great attention has been paid to the general shortage of arable land and to
the increasing demand for ecological restoration of areas affected by salinization processes. Despite the diffuse
interest on the effects of salinization on plants\u2019 growth, and all the derived socioeconomic issues, very few
studies analyzed the ecology of the microbial species in naturally saline soils and the resilience of biological
fertility in these extreme habitats. Microorganisms inhabiting such environments may share a strategy, may have
developed multiple adaptations for maintaining their populations, and cope eventually to extreme conditions by
altruistic or cooperative behaviors for maintaining their metabolism active. The understanding and the knowledge
of the composition and distribution of microbial communities in natural hypersaline soils can be interesting for
ecological reasons but also to develop new restoration strategy where soil fertility was compromised by natural
accidents or human mismanagement.
The aim of this research was to provide specific information on saline soils in Italy, stressing mainly their
distribution, the socioeconomic issues and the understanding of the characterizing ecological processes. Moreover,
natural saline soils were used as a model for understanding to what extent the concentration of salt can affect some
basic microbial processes.
In the present study, physical, chemical and microbiological soil properties were investigated in the shallower
horizons of natural salt affected soils in Sicily (Italy), where some ecological contrasting variables acted as strong
drivers in fungal and bacterial spatial distribution. Furthermore, the interface between biological and geochemical
components in the surface of that peculiar habitat was investigated to evaluate the organization and diversity of the
phototrophic and heterotrophic microorganisms. Sixteen soil samples from A horizons were collected according
to a random sampling scheme. Bacterial and archaeal communities were characterized by their 16S rDNA genes
with T-RFLP method. A total of 92 genera were identified from the 16S pyrosequencing analysis suggesting that
cyanobacteria and communities of sulfur bacteria might directly or indirectly promote the formation of protective
envelope. Some bacterial phyla appeared spread in the whole area, whatever the salinity gradient, while other
groups showed a distribution linked to very compartmentalised soil properties, such as the presence of saline
crusts in the soil surface. Results show that saline soils couldn\u2019t contain just one single microbial community
selected to withstand extreme osmotic phenomena, but many communities that can be variously correlated to one
or more environmental parameters having great importance for the maintenance of the overall homeostasis
Torsion and the Gravity Dual of Parity Symmetry Breaking in AdS4/CFT3 Holography
We study four dimensional gravity with a negative cosmological constant
deformed by the Nieh-Yan torsional topological invariant with a
spacetime-dependent coefficient. We find an exact solution of the Euclidean
system, which we call the torsion vortex, having two asymptotic AdS4 regimes
supported by a pseudoscalar with a kink profile. We propose that the torsion
vortex is the holographic dual of a three dimensional system that exhibits
distinct parity breaking vacua. The torsion vortex represents a (holographic)
transition between these distinct vacua. We expect that from the boundary point
of view, the torsion vortex represents a `domain wall' between the two distinct
vacua.
From a bulk point of view, we point out an intriguing identification of the
parameters of the torsion vortex with those of an Abrikosov vortex in a Type I
superconductor. Following the analogy, we find that external Kalb-Ramond flux
then appears to support bubbles of flat spacetime within an asymptotically AdS
geometry.Comment: 26 pages, 4 figures; v2: minor improvements, references adde
Asymptotically Lifshitz wormholes and black holes for Lovelock gravity in vacuum
Static asymptotically Lifshitz wormholes and black holes in vacuum are shown
to exist for a class of Lovelock theories in d=2n+1>7 dimensions, selected by
requiring that all but one of their n maximally symmetric vacua are AdS of
radius l and degenerate. The wormhole geometry is regular everywhere and
connects two Lifshitz spacetimes with a nontrivial geometry at the boundary.
The dynamical exponent z is determined by the quotient of the curvature radii
of the maximally symmetric vacua according to n(z^2-1)+1=(l/L)^2, where L
corresponds to the curvature radius of the nondegenerate vacuum. Light signals
are able to connect both asymptotic regions in finite time, and the
gravitational field pulls towards a fixed surface located at some arbitrary
proper distance to the neck. The asymptotically Lifshitz black hole possesses
the same dynamical exponent and a fixed Hawking temperature given by T=z/(2^z
pi l). Further analytic solutions, including pure Lifshitz spacetimes with a
nontrivial geometry at the spacelike boundary, and wormholes that interpolate
between asymptotically Lifshitz spacetimes with different dynamical exponents
are also found.Comment: 19 pages, 1 figur
Flux vacua in DBI type Einstein-Maxwell theory
We study compactification of extra dimensions in a theory of
Dirac-Born-Infeld (DBI) type gravity. We investigate the solution for Minkowski
spacetime with an extra space as well as that for de Sitter spacetime
() with an extra space. They are derived by the effective potential
method in the presence of the magnetic flux on the extra sphere. We also
consider the higher dimensional generalization of the solutions. We find that,
in a certain model, the radius of the extra space has a minimum value
independent of the higher-dimensional Newton constant in weak-field limit.Comment: 13 pages, no figure. A reference added, typos fixe
- …