Emerging Techniques in Breast MRI

As indicated throughout this chapter, there is a constant effort to move to more sensitive, specific, and quantitative methods for characterizing breast tissue via magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). In the present chapter, we focus on six emerging techniques that seek to quantitatively interrogate the physiological and biochemical properties of the breast. At the physiological scale, we present an overview of ultrafast dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI and magnetic resonance elastography which provide remarkable insights into the vascular and mechanical properties of tissue, respectively. Moving to the biochemical scale, magnetization transfer, chemical exchange saturation transfer, and spectroscopy (both “conventional” and hyperpolarized) methods all provide unique, noninvasive, insights into tumor metabolism. Given the breadth and depth of information that can be obtained in a single MRI session, methods of data synthesis and interpretation must also be developed. Thus, we conclude the chapter with an introduction to two very different, though complementary, methods of data analysis: (1) radiomics and habitat imaging, and (2) mechanism-based mathematical modeling

Effect of a Very-Low-Calorie Ketogenic Diet on Circulating Myokine Levels Compared with the Effect of Bariatric Surgery or a Low-Calorie Diet in Patients with Obesity

: The preservation of muscle mass and muscle function after weight loss therapy is currently a considerable challenge in the fight against obesity. Muscle mass secretes proteins called myokines that have relevant functions in the regulation of metabolism and health. This study was aimed to evaluate whether a very low-calorie ketogenic (VLCK) diet may modulate myokine levels, in addition to changes in body composition, compared to a standard, balanced low-calorie (LC) diet or bariatric surgery in patients with obesity. Body composition, ketosis, insulin sensitivity and myokines were evaluated in 79 patients with overweight/obesity after a therapy to lose weight with a VLCK diet, a LC diet or bariatric surgery. The follow-up was 6 months. The weight loss therapies induced changes in myokine levels in association with changes in body composition and biochemical parameters. The effects on circulating myokine levels compared to those at baseline were stronger after the VLCK diet than LC diet or bariatric surgery. Differences reached statistical significance for IL-8, MMP2 and irisin. In conclusion, nutritional interventions or bariatric surgery to lose weight induces changes in circulating myokine levels, being this effect potentially most notable after following a VLCK diet

Anisotropy and chemical composition of ultra-high energy cosmic rays using arrival directions measured by the Pierre Auger Observatory

The Pierre Auger Collaboration has reported evidence for anisotropy in the distribution of arrival directions of the cosmic rays with energies $E>E_{th}=5.5\times 10^{19}$ eV. These show a correlation with the distribution of nearby extragalactic objects, including an apparent excess around the direction of Centaurus A. If the particles responsible for these excesses at $E>E_{th}$ are heavy nuclei with charge $Z$, the proton component of the sources should lead to excesses in the same regions at energies $E/Z$. We here report the lack of anisotropies in these directions at energies above $E_{th}/Z$ (for illustrative values of $Z=6,\ 13,\ 26$). If the anisotropies above $E_{th}$ are due to nuclei with charge $Z$, and under reasonable assumptions about the acceleration process, these observations imply stringent constraints on the allowed proton fraction at the lower energies

Evidence for t\bar{t}\gamma Production and Measurement of \sigma_t\bar{t}\gamma / \sigma_t\bar{t}

Using data corresponding to 6.0/fb of ppbar collisions at sqrt(s) = 1.96 TeV collected by the CDF II detector, we present a cross section measurement of top-quark pair production with an additional radiated photon. The events are selected by looking for a lepton, a photon, significant transverse momentum imbalance, large total transverse energy, and three or more jets, with at least one identified as containing a b quark. The ttbar+photon sample requires the photon to have 10 GeV or more of transverse energy, and to be in the central region. Using an event selection optimized for the ttbar+photon candidate sample we measure the production cross section of, and the ratio of cross sections of the two samples. Control samples in the dilepton+photon and lepton+photon+\met, channels are constructed to aid in decay product identification and background measurements. We observe 30 ttbar+photon candidate events compared to the standard model expectation of 26.9 +/- 3.4 events. We measure the ttbar+photon cross section to be 0.18+0.08 pb, and the ratio of the cross section of ttbar+photon to ttbar to be 0.024 +/- 0.009. Assuming no ttbar+photon production, we observe a probability of 0.0015 of the background events alone producing 30 events or more, corresponding to 3.0 standard deviations.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figure

Precision Top-Quark Mass Measurements at CDF

We present a precision measurement of the top-quark mass using the full sample of Tevatron $\sqrt{s}=1.96$ TeV proton-antiproton collisions collected by the CDF II detector, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 8.7 $fb^{-1}$. Using a sample of $t\bar{t}$ candidate events decaying into the lepton+jets channel, we obtain distributions of the top-quark masses and the invariant mass of two jets from the $W$ boson decays from data. We then compare these distributions to templates derived from signal and background samples to extract the top-quark mass and the energy scale of the calorimeter jets with {\it in situ} calibration. The likelihood fit of the templates from signal and background events to the data yields the single most-precise measurement of the top-quark mass, \mtop = 172.85 \pm$0.71 (stat)$\pm$0.85 (syst) GeV/c^{2}.$Comment: submitted to Phys. Rev. Let

Association between serum soluble CD40 ligand levels and mortality in patients with severe sepsis

INTRODUCTION: CD40 Ligand (CD40L) and its soluble counterpart (sCD40L) are proteins that exhibit prothrombotic and proinflammatory properties on binding to their cell surface receptor CD40. The results of small clinical studies suggest that sCD40L levels could play a role in sepsis; however, there are no data on the association between sCD40L levels and mortality of septic patients. Thus, the aim of this study was to determine whether circulating sCD40L levels could be a marker of adverse outcome in a large cohort of patients with severe sepsis. METHODS: This was a multicenter, observational and prospective study carried out in six Spanish intensive care units. Serum levels of sCD40L, tumour necrosis factor-alpha and interleukin-10, and plasma levels of tissue factor were measured in 186 patients with severe sepsis at the time of diagnosis. Serum sCD40L was also measured in 50 age- and sex-matched controls. Survival at 30 days was used as the endpoint. RESULTS: Circulating sCD40L levels were significantly higher in septic patients than in controls (P = 0.01), and in non-survivors (n = 62) compared to survivors (n = 124) (P = 0.04). However, the levels of CD40L were not different regarding sepsis severity. Logistic regression analysis showed that sCD40L levels >3.5 ng/mL were associated with higher mortality at 30 days (odds ratio = 2.89; 95% confidence interval = 1.37 to 6.07; P = 0.005). The area under the curve of sCD40L levels >3.5 ng/mL as predictor of mortality at 30 days was 0.58 (95% CI = 0.51 to 0.65; P = 0.03). CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, circulating sCD40L levels are increased in septic patients and are independently associated with mortality in these patients; thus, its modulation could represent an attractive therapeutic target

Measurement of branching ratio and Bs0 lifetime in the decay Bs0 -> J/psi f0(980) at CDF

We present a study of Bs0 decays to the CP-odd final state J/psi f0(980) with J/psi -> mu+ mu- and f0(980) -> pi+ pi-. Using ppbar collision data with an integrated luminosity of 3.8/fb collected by the CDF II detector at the Tevatron we measure a Bs0 lifetime of tau(Bs0 -> J/psi f0(980)) = 1.70 -0.11+0.12(stat) +-0.03(syst) ps. This is the first measurement of the Bs0 lifetime in a decay to a CP eigenstate and corresponds in the standard model to the lifetime of the heavy Bs0 eigenstate. We also measure the product of branching fractions of Bs0 -> J/psi f0(980) and f0(980) -> pi+ pi- relative to the product of branching fractions of Bs0 -> J/psi phi and phi -> K+ K- to be R_f0/phi = 0.257 +_0.020(stat) +-0.014(syst), which is the most precise determination of this quantity to date.Comment: accepted by Phys. Rev.

Search for the Higgs boson in events with missing transverse energy and b quark jets produced in proton-antiproton collisions at s**(1/2)=1.96 TeV

We search for the standard model Higgs boson produced in association with an electroweak vector boson in events with no identified charged leptons, large imbalance in transverse momentum, and two jets where at least one contains a secondary vertex consistent with the decay of b hadrons. We use ~1 fb-1 integrated luminosity of proton-antiproton collisions at s**(1/2)=1.96 TeV recorded by the CDF II experiment at the Tevatron. We find 268 (16) single (double) b-tagged candidate events, where 248 +/- 43 (14.4 +/- 2.7) are expected from standard model background processes. We place 95% confidence level upper limits on the Higgs boson production cross section for several Higgs boson masses ranging from 110 GeV/c2 to 140 GeV/c2. For a mass of 115 GeV/c2 the observed (expected) limit is 20.4 (14.2) times the standard model prediction.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. Let