10,979 research outputs found
In the eye of the storm: T cell behavior in the inflammatory microenvironment.
Coordinated unfolding of innate and adaptive immunity is key to the development of protective immune responses. This functional integration occurs within the inflamed tissue, a microenvironment enriched with factors released by innate and subsequently adaptive immune cells and the injured tissue itself. T lymphocytes are key players in the ensuing adaptive immunity and their proper function is instrumental to a successful outcome of immune protection. The site of inflammation is a "harsh" environment in which T cells are exposed to numerous factors that might influence their behavior. Low pH and oxygen concentration, high lactate and organic acid content as well as free fatty acids and reactive oxygen species are found in the inflammatory microenvironment. All these components affect T cells as well as other immune cells during the immune response and impact on the development of chronic inflammation. We here overview the effects of a number of factors present in the inflammatory microenvironment on T cell function and migration and discuss the potential relevance of these components as targets for therapeutic intervention in autoimmune and chronic inflammatory diseases
Interpretation of AMS-02 electrons and positrons data
We perform a combined analysis of the recent AMS-02 data on electrons,
positrons, electrons plus positrons and positron fraction, in a self-consistent
framework where we realize a theoretical modeling of all the astrophysical
components that can contribute to the observed fluxes in the whole energy
range. The primary electron contribution is modeled through the sum of an
average flux from distant sources and the fluxes from the local supernova
remnants in the Green catalog. The secondary electron and positron fluxes
originate from interactions on the interstellar medium of primary cosmic rays,
for which we derive a novel determination by using AMS-02 proton and helium
data. Primary positrons and electrons from pulsar wind nebulae in the ATNF
catalog are included and studied in terms of their most significant (while
loosely known) properties and under different assumptions (average contribution
from the whole catalog, single dominant pulsar, a few dominant pulsars). We
obtain a remarkable agreement between our various modeling and the AMS-02 data
for all types of analysis, demonstrating that the whole AMS-02 leptonic data
admit a self-consistent interpretation in terms of astrophysical contributions.Comment: 33 pages, 26 figures and 4 tables, v2: accepted for publication in
JCAP, minor changes relative to v
The Geometry of classical change of signature
The proposal of the possibility of change of signature in quantum cosmology has led to the study of this phenomenon in classical general relativity theory, where there has been some controversy about what is and is not possible. Here we present a new analysis of such a change of signature, based on previous studies of the initial value problem in general relativity. We emphasize that there are various continuity suppositions one can make at a classical change of signature, and consider more general assumptions than have been made up to now. We confirm that in general such a change can take place even when the second fundamental form of the surface of change does not vanish
YF-12 cooperative airframe/propulsion control system program, volume 1
Several YF-12C airplane analog control systems were converted to a digital system. Included were the air data computer, autopilot, inlet control system, and autothrottle systems. This conversion was performed to allow assessment of digital technology applications to supersonic cruise aircraft. The digital system was composed of a digital computer and specialized interface unit. A large scale mathematical simulation of the airplane was used for integration testing and software checkout
Generating qudits with d=3,4 encoded on two-photon states
We present an experimental method to engineer arbitrary pure states of qudits
with d=3,4 using linear optics and a single nonlinear crystal.Comment: 4 pages, 1 eps figure. Minor changes. The title has been changed for
publication on Physical Review
The peculiar Na-O anticorrelation of the bulge globular cluster NGC 6440
Context. Galactic Globular Clusters (GCs) are essential tools to understand
the earliest epoch of the Milky Way, since they are among the oldest objects in
the Universe and can be used to trace its formation and evolution. Current
studies using high resolution spectroscopy for many stars in each of a large
sample of GCs allow us to develop a detailed observational picture about their
formation and their relation with the Galaxy. However, it is necessary to
complete this picture by including GCs that belong to all major Galactic
components, including the Bulge. Aims. Our aim is to perform a detailed
chemical analyses of the bulge GC NGC 6440 in order to determine if this object
has Multiple Populations (MPs) and investigate its relation with the Bulge of
the Milky Way and with the other Galactic GCs, especially those associated with
the Bulge, which are largely poorly studied. Methods. We determined the stellar
parameters and the chemical abundances of light elements (Na, Al), iron-peak
elements (Fe, Sc, Mn, Co, Ni), -elements (O, Mg, Si, Ca, Ti) and heavy
elements (Ba, Eu) in seven red giant members of NGC 6440 using high resolution
spectroscopy from FLAMES@UVES. Results. We found a mean iron content of
[Fe/H]=-0.500.03 dex in agreement with other studies. We found no internal
iron spread. On the other hand, Na and Al show a significant intrinsic spread,
but the cluster has no significant O-Na anticorrelation nor exhibits a Mg-Al
anticorrelation. The -elements show good agreement with the Bulge field
star trend, although they are at the high alpha end and are also higher than
those of other GCs of comparable metallicity. The heavy elements are dominated
by the r-process, indicating a strong contribution by SNeII. The chemical
analysis suggests an origin similar to that of the Bulge field stars.Comment: 12 pages, 13 figures, Accepted for publication in A&
Shear-thickening and entropy-driven reentrance
We discuss a generic mechanism for shear-thickening analogous to
entropy-driven phase reentrance. We implement it in the context of
non-relaxational mean-field glassy systems: although very simple, the
microscopic models we study present a dynamical phase diagram with second and
first order stirring-induced jamming transitions leading to intermittency,
metastability and phase coexistence as seen in some experiments. The jammed
state is fragile with respect to change in the stirring direction. Our approach
provides a direct derivation of a Mode-Coupling theory of shear-thickening.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, minor changes, references adde
Ultra-deep GEMINI near-infrared observations of the bulge globular cluster NGC 6624
We used ultra-deep and images secured with the near-infrared GSAOI
camera assisted by the multi-conjugate adaptive optics system GeMS at the
GEMINI South Telescope in Chile, to obtain a (, ) color-magnitude
diagram (CMD) for the bulge globular cluster NGC 6624. We obtained the deepest
and most accurate near-infrared CMD from the ground for this cluster, by
reaching 21.5, approximately 8 magnitudes below the horizontal
branch level. The entire extension of the Main Sequence (MS) is nicely sampled
and at 20 we detected the so-called MS "knee" in a purely
near-infrared CMD. By taking advantage of the exquisite quality of the data, we
estimated the absolute age of NGC 6624 ( = 12.0 0.5 Gyr), which
turns out to be in good agreement with previous studies in the literature. We
also analyzed the luminosity and mass functions of MS stars down to M
0.45 M finding evidence of a significant increase of low-mass stars
at increasing distances from the cluster center. This is a clear signature of
mass segregation, confirming that NGC 6624 is in an advanced stage of dynamical
evolution.Comment: Accepted for publication by ApJ. 39 pages, 19 figures, 1 tabl
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