455 research outputs found
Regulation, sensory domains and roles of two Desulfovibrio desulfuricans ATCC27774 Crp family transcription factors, HcpR1 and HcpR2, in response to nitrosative stress
In silico analyses identified a Crp/Fnr family transcription factor (HcpR) in sulfate-reducing bacteria that controls expression of the hcp gene, which encodes the hybrid cluster protein and contributes to nitrosative stress responses. There is only one hcpR gene in the model sulfate-reducing bacterium Desulfovibrio vulgaris Hildenborough, but two copies in D. desulfuricans 27774, which can use nitrate as an alternative electron acceptor to sulfate. Structures of the D. desulfuricans hcpR1, hcpR2 and hcp operons are reported. We present evidence that hcp expression is regulated by HcpR2, not by HcpR1, and that these two regulators differ in both their DNA-binding site specificity and their sensory domains. HcpR1 is predicted to be a b-type cytochrome. HcpR1 binds upstream of the hcpR1 operon and its synthesis is regulated coordinately with hcp in response to NO. In contrast, hcpR2 expression was not induced by nitrate, nitrite or NO. HcpR2 is an iron-sulfur protein that reacts with NO and O2 . We propose that HcpR1 and HcpR2 use different sensory mechanisms to regulate subsets of genes required for defense against NO-induced nitrosative stress, and that diversification of signal perception and DNA recognition by these two proteins is a product of D. desulfuricans adaptation to its particular environmental niche. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved
Genetic modification of the manganese superoxide dismutase/glutathione peroxidase 1 pathway influences intracellular ROS generation in quiescent, but not contracting, skeletal muscle cells
[EN] Increased amounts of reactive oxygen species (ROS) are generated by skeletal muscle during contractile activity, but their intracellular source
is unclear. The oxidation of 2′,7′-dichlorodihydrofluorescein (DCFH) was examined as an intracellular probe for reactive oxygen species in
skeletal muscle myotubes derived from muscles of wild-type mice and mice that were heterozygous knockout for manganese superoxide
dismutase (Sod2+/−
), homozygous knockout for glutathione peroxidase 1 (GPx1−/−
), or MnSOD transgenic overexpressors (Sod2-Tg). Myoblasts
were stimulated to fuse and loaded with DCFH 5–7 days later. Intracellular DCF epifluorescence was measured and myotubes were electrically
stimulated to contract for 15 min. Quiescent myotubes with decreased MnSOD or GPx1 showed a significant increase in the rate of DCFH
oxidation whereas those with increased MnSOD did not differ from wild type. Following contractions, myotubes from all groups showed an
equivalent increase in DCF fluorescence. Thus the oxidation of DCFH in quiescent skeletal muscle myotubes is influenced by the content of
enzymes that regulate mitochondrial superoxide and hydrogen peroxide content. In contrast, the increase in DCFH oxidation following
contractions was unaffected by reduced or enhanced MnSOD or absent GPx1, indicating that reactive oxygen species produced by contractions
were predominantly generated by nonmitochondrial sources
Quantum Criticality via Magnetic Branes
Holographic methods are used to investigate the low temperature limit,
including quantum critical behavior, of strongly coupled 4-dimensional gauge
theories in the presence of an external magnetic field, and finite charge
density. In addition to the metric, the dual gravity theory contains a Maxwell
field with Chern-Simons coupling. In the absence of charge, the magnetic field
induces an RG flow to an infrared AdS geometry, which is
dual to a 2-dimensional CFT representing strongly interacting fermions in the
lowest Landau level. Two asymptotic Virasoro algebras and one chiral Kac-Moody
algebra arise as {\sl emergent symmetries} in the IR. Including a nonzero
charge density reveals a quantum critical point when the magnetic field reaches
a critical value whose scale is set by the charge density. The critical theory
is probed by the study of long-distance correlation functions of the boundary
stress tensor and current. All quantities of major physical interest in this
system, such as critical exponents and scaling functions, can be computed
analytically. We also study an asymptotically AdS system whose magnetic
field induced quantum critical point is governed by a IR Lifshitz geometry,
holographically dual to a D=2+1 field theory. The behavior of these holographic
theories shares important similarities with that of real world quantum critical
systems obtained by tuning a magnetic field, and may be relevant to materials
such as Strontium Ruthenates.Comment: To appear in Lect. Notes Phys. "Strongly interacting matter in
magnetic fields" (Springer), edited by D. Kharzeev, K. Landsteiner, A.
Schmitt, H.-U. Ye
Donor states in modulation-doped Si/SiGe heterostructures
We present a unified approach for calculating the properties of shallow
donors inside or outside heterostructure quantum wells. The method allows us to
obtain not only the binding energies of all localized states of any symmetry,
but also the energy width of the resonant states which may appear when a
localized state becomes degenerate with the continuous quantum well subbands.
The approach is non-variational, and we are therefore also able to evaluate the
wave functions. This is used to calculate the optical absorption spectrum,
which is strongly non-isotropic due to the selection rules. The results
obtained from calculations for Si/SiGe quantum wells allow us to
present the general behavior of the impurity states, as the donor position is
varied from the center of the well to deep inside the barrier. The influence on
the donor ground state from both the central-cell effect and the strain arising
from the lattice mismatch is carefully considered.Comment: 17 pages, 10 figure
Akhet Khufu: Archaeo-astronomical Hints at a Common Project of the Two Main Pyramids of Giza, Egypt
Abstract. The architectural complexes composed by the two main pyramids of Giza together with their temples are investigated from an interdisciplinary point of view, taking into account their astronomical alignments as well as their relationships with the visible landscape. Combining already known facts together with new clues, the work strongly supports the idea that the two complexes were conceived as parts of a common project
Spin fluctuations in nearly magnetic metals from ab-initio dynamical spin susceptibility calculations:application to Pd and Cr95V5
We describe our theoretical formalism and computational scheme for making
ab-initio calculations of the dynamic paramagnetic spin susceptibilities of
metals and alloys at finite temperatures. Its basis is Time-Dependent Density
Functional Theory within an electronic multiple scattering, imaginary time
Green function formalism. Results receive a natural interpretation in terms of
overdamped oscillator systems making them suitable for incorporation into spin
fluctuation theories. For illustration we apply our method to the nearly
ferromagnetic metal Pd and the nearly antiferromagnetic chromium alloy Cr95V5.
We compare and contrast the spin dynamics of these two metals and in each case
identify those fluctuations with relaxation times much longer than typical
electronic `hopping times'Comment: 21 pages, 9 figures. To appear in Physical Review B (July 2000
Magnetic Field Generation in Stars
Enormous progress has been made on observing stellar magnetism in stars from
the main sequence through to compact objects. Recent data have thrown into
sharper relief the vexed question of the origin of stellar magnetic fields,
which remains one of the main unanswered questions in astrophysics. In this
chapter we review recent work in this area of research. In particular, we look
at the fossil field hypothesis which links magnetism in compact stars to
magnetism in main sequence and pre-main sequence stars and we consider why its
feasibility has now been questioned particularly in the context of highly
magnetic white dwarfs. We also review the fossil versus dynamo debate in the
context of neutron stars and the roles played by key physical processes such as
buoyancy, helicity, and superfluid turbulence,in the generation and stability
of neutron star fields.
Independent information on the internal magnetic field of neutron stars will
come from future gravitational wave detections. Thus we maybe at the dawn of a
new era of exciting discoveries in compact star magnetism driven by the opening
of a new, non-electromagnetic observational window.
We also review recent advances in the theory and computation of
magnetohydrodynamic turbulence as it applies to stellar magnetism and dynamo
theory. These advances offer insight into the action of stellar dynamos as well
as processes whichcontrol the diffusive magnetic flux transport in stars.Comment: 41 pages, 7 figures. Invited review chapter on on magnetic field
generation in stars to appear in Space Science Reviews, Springe
Horizontal Branch Stars: The Interplay between Observations and Theory, and Insights into the Formation of the Galaxy
We review HB stars in a broad astrophysical context, including both variable
and non-variable stars. A reassessment of the Oosterhoff dichotomy is
presented, which provides unprecedented detail regarding its origin and
systematics. We show that the Oosterhoff dichotomy and the distribution of
globular clusters (GCs) in the HB morphology-metallicity plane both exclude,
with high statistical significance, the possibility that the Galactic halo may
have formed from the accretion of dwarf galaxies resembling present-day Milky
Way satellites such as Fornax, Sagittarius, and the LMC. A rediscussion of the
second-parameter problem is presented. A technique is proposed to estimate the
HB types of extragalactic GCs on the basis of integrated far-UV photometry. The
relationship between the absolute V magnitude of the HB at the RR Lyrae level
and metallicity, as obtained on the basis of trigonometric parallax
measurements for the star RR Lyrae, is also revisited, giving a distance
modulus to the LMC of (m-M)_0 = 18.44+/-0.11. RR Lyrae period change rates are
studied. Finally, the conductive opacities used in evolutionary calculations of
low-mass stars are investigated. [ABRIDGED]Comment: 56 pages, 22 figures. Invited review, to appear in Astrophysics and
Space Scienc
Forward pi^0 Production and Associated Transverse Energy Flow in Deep-Inelastic Scattering at HERA
Deep-inelastic positron-proton interactions at low values of Bjorken-x down
to x \approx 4.10^-5 which give rise to high transverse momentum pi^0 mesons
are studied with the H1 experiment at HERA. The inclusive cross section for
pi^0 mesons produced at small angles with respect to the proton remnant (the
forward region) is presented as a function of the transverse momentum and
energy of the pi^0 and of the four-momentum transfer Q^2 and Bjorken-x.
Measurements are also presented of the transverse energy flow in events
containing a forward pi^0 meson. Hadronic final state calculations based on QCD
models implementing different parton evolution schemes are confronted with the
data.Comment: 27 pages, 8 figures and 3 table
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