725 research outputs found
Neurotrophin and Trk expression by cells of the human lamina cribrosa following oxygen-glucose deprivation
BACKGROUND: Ischemia within the optic nerve head (ONH) may contribute to retinal ganglion cell (RGC) loss in primary open angle glaucoma (POAG). Ischemia has been reported to increase neurotrophin and high affinity Trk receptor expression by CNS neurons and glial cells. We have previously demonstrated neurotrophin and Trk expression within the lamina cribrosa (LC) region of the ONH. To determine if ischemia alters neurotrophin and Trk protein expression in cells from the human LC, cultured LC cells and ONH astrocytes were exposed to 48 hours of oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD). Also cells were exposed to 48 hours of OGD followed by 24 hours of recovery in normal growth conditions. Cell number, neurotrophin and Trk receptor protein expression, neurotrophin secretion, and Trk receptor activation were examined. RESULTS: Cell number was estimated using an assay for cell metabolism following 24, 48 and 72 hours of OGD. A statistically significant decrease in LC and ONH astrocyte cell number did not occur until 72 hours of OGD, therefore cellular protein and conditioned media were collected at 48 hours OGD. Protein expression of NGF, BDNF and NT-3 by LC cells and ONH astrocytes increased following OGD, as did NGF secretion. Recovery from OGD increased BDNF protein expression in LC cells. In ONH astrocytes, recovery from OGD increased NGF protein expression, and decreased BDNF secretion. Trk A expression and activation in LC cells was increased following OGD while expression and activation of all other Trk receptors was decreased. A similar increase in Trk A expression and activation was observed in ONH astrocytes following recovery from OGD. CONCLUSIONS: In vitro conditions that mimic ischemia increase the expression and secretion of neurotrophins by cells from the ONH. Increased Trk A expression and activation in LC cells following OGD and in ONH astrocytes following recovery from OGD suggest autocrine/paracrine neurotrophin signaling could be a response to ONH ischemia in POAG. Also, the increase in NGF, BDNF and NT-3 protein expression and NGF secretion following OGD also suggest LC cells and ONH astrocytes may be a paracrine source of neurotrophins for RGCs
Matrix models as solvable glass models
We present a family of solvable models of interacting particles in high
dimensionalities without quenched disorder. We show that the models have a
glassy regime with aging effects. The interaction is controlled by a parameter
. For we obtain matrix models and for `tensor' models. We
concentrate on the cases which we study analytically and numerically.Comment: 10 pages + 2 figures, Univ.Roma I, 1038/94, ROM2F/94/2
On the relation between effective supersymmetric actions in different dimensions
We make two remarks: (i) Renormalization of the effective charge in a
4--dimensional (supersymmetric) gauge theory is determined by the same graphs
and is rigidly connected to the renormalization of the metric on the moduli
space of the classical vacua of the corresponding reduced quantum mechanical
system. Supersymmetry provides constraints for possible modifications of the
metric, and this gives us a simple proof of nonrenormalization theorems for the
original 4-dimensional theory. (ii) We establish a nontrivial relationship
between the effective (0+1)-dimensional and (1+1)-dimensional Lagrangia (the
latter represent conventional
Kahlerian sigma models).Comment: 15 pages, 2 figure
Gravitational Violation of R Parity and its Cosmological Signatures
The discrete R-parity () usually imposed on the Supersymmetric (SUSY)
models is expected to be broken at least gravitationally. If the neutralino is
a dark matter particle its decay channels into positrons, antiprotons and
neutrinos are severely constrained from astrophysical observations. These
constraints are shown to be violated even for Planck-mass-suppressed
dimension-five interactions arising from gravitational effects. We perform a
general analysis of gravitationally induced violation and identify two
plausible and astrophysically consistent scenarios for achieving the required
suppression.Comment: 10 pages, no figure
Solutions to the cosmological constant problems
We critically review several recent approaches to solving the two
cosmological constant problems. The "old" problem is the discrepancy between
the observed value of and the large values suggested by particle
physics models. The second problem is the "time coincidence" between the epoch
of galaxy formation and the epoch of -domination t_\L. It is
conceivable that the "old" problem can be resolved by fundamental physics
alone, but we argue that in order to explain the "time coincidence" we must
account for anthropic selection effects. Our main focus here is on the
discrete- models in which can change through nucleation of
branes. We consider the cosmology of this type of models in the context of
inflation and discuss the observational constraints on the model parameters.
The issue of multiple brane nucleation raised by Feng {\it et. al.} is
discussed in some detail. We also review continuous-\L models in which the
role of the cosmological constant is played by a slowly varying potential of a
scalar field. We find that both continuous and discrete models can in principle
solve both cosmological constant problems, although the required values of the
parameters do not appear very natural. M-theory-motivated brane models, in
which the brane tension is determined by the brane coupling to the four-form
field, do not seem to be viable, except perhaps in a very tight corner of the
parameter space. Finally, we point out that the time coincidence can also be
explained in models where is fixed, but the primordial density
contrast is treated as a random variable.Comment: 30 pages, 3 figures, two notes adde
Bounds on charged higgs boson in the 2HDM type III from Tevatron
We consider the Two Higgs Doublet Model (2HDM) of type III which leads to
Flavour Changing Neutral Currents (FCNC) at tree level. In the framework of
this model we can use an appropriate form of the Yukawa Lagrangian that makes
the type II model limit of the general type III couplings apparent. This way is
useful in order to compare with the experimental data which is model dependent.
The analytical expressions of the partial width are
derived and we compare with the data available at this energy range. We examine
the limits on the new parameters from the validness of
perturbation theory.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figures, Universidad Nacional de Colombia. typos
correcte
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