31 research outputs found
Non-perturbative dynamics of hot non-Abelian gauge fields: beyond leading log approximation
Many aspects of high-temperature gauge theories, such as the electroweak
baryon number violation rate, color conductivity, and the hard gluon damping
rate, have previously been understood only at leading logarithmic order (that
is, neglecting effects suppressed only by an inverse logarithm of the gauge
coupling). We discuss how to systematically go beyond leading logarithmic order
in the analysis of physical quantities. Specifically, we extend to
next-to-leading-log order (NLLO) the simple leading-log effective theory due to
Bodeker that describes non-perturbative color physics in hot non-Abelian
plasmas. A suitable scaling analysis is used to show that no new operators
enter the effective theory at next-to-leading-log order. However, a NLLO
calculation of the color conductivity is required, and we report the resulting
value. Our NLLO result for the color conductivity can be trivially combined
with previous numerical work by G. Moore to yield a NLLO result for the hot
electroweak baryon number violation rate.Comment: 20 pages, 1 figur
The Genome Sequence of Caenorhabditis briggsae: A Platform for Comparative Genomics
The soil nematodes Caenorhabditis briggsae and Caenorhabditis elegans diverged from a common ancestor roughly 100 million years ago and yet are almost indistinguishable by eye. They have the same chromosome number and genome sizes, and they occupy the same ecological niche. To explore the basis for this striking conservation of structure and function, we have sequenced the C. briggsae genome to a high-quality draft stage and compared it to the finished C. elegans sequence. We predict approximately 19,500 protein-coding genes in the C. briggsae genome, roughly the same as in C. elegans. Of these, 12,200 have clear C. elegans orthologs, a further 6,500 have one or more clearly detectable C. elegans homologs, and approximately 800 C. briggsae genes have no detectable matches in C. elegans. Almost all of the noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs) known are shared between the two species. The two genomes exhibit extensive colinearity, and the rate of divergence appears to be higher in the chromosomal arms than in the centers. Operons, a distinctive feature of C. elegans, are highly conserved in C. briggsae, with the arrangement of genes being preserved in 96% of cases. The difference in size between the C. briggsae (estimated at approximately 104 Mbp) and C. elegans (100.3 Mbp) genomes is almost entirely due to repetitive sequence, which accounts for 22.4% of the C. briggsae genome in contrast to 16.5% of the C. elegans genome. Few, if any, repeat families are shared, suggesting that most were acquired after the two species diverged or are undergoing rapid evolution. Coclustering the C. elegans and C. briggsae proteins reveals 2,169 protein families of two or more members. Most of these are shared between the two species, but some appear to be expanding or contracting, and there seem to be as many as several hundred novel C. briggsae gene families. The C. briggsae draft sequence will greatly improve the annotation of the C. elegans genome. Based on similarity to C. briggsae, we found strong evidence for 1,300 new C. elegans genes. In addition, comparisons of the two genomes will help to understand the evolutionary forces that mold nematode genomes
Analysis and Purification of Bioactive Natural Products: The AnaPurNa Study
Based on a meta-analysis of data mined from almost
2000 publications on bioactive natural products (NPs) from >80 000
pages of 13 different journals published in 1998−1999, 2004−2005,
and 2009−2010, the aim of this systematic review is to provide both a
survey of the status quo and a perspective for analytical methodology
used for isolation and purity assessment of bioactive NPs. The study provides numerical measures of the common means of
sourcing NPs, the chromatographic methodology employed for NP purification, and the role of spectroscopy and purity
assessment in NP characterization. A link is proposed between the observed use of various analytical methodologies, the
challenges posed by the complexity of metabolomes, and the inescapable residual complexity of purified NPs and their biological
assessment. The data provide inspiration for the development of innovative methods for NP analysis as a means of advancing the
role of naturally occurring compounds as a viable source of biologically active agents with relevance for human health and global
benefit
Vocal Learning and Auditory-Vocal Feedback
Vocal learning is usually studied in songbirds and humans, species that can form auditory templates by listening to acoustic models and then learn to vocalize to match the template. Most other species are thought to develop vocalizations without auditory feedback. However, auditory input influences the acoustic structure of vocalizations in a broad distribution of birds and mammals. Vocalizations are dened here as sounds generated by forcing air past vibrating membranes. A vocal motor program may generate vocalizations such as crying or laughter, but auditory feedback may be required for matching precise acoustic features of vocalizations. This chapter discriminates limited vocal learning, which uses auditory input to fine-tune acoustic features of an inherited auditory template, from complex vocal learning, in which novel sounds are learned by matching a learned auditory template. Two or three songbird taxa and four or ve mammalian taxa are known for complex vocal learning. A broader range of mammals converge in the acoustic structure of vocalizations when in socially interacting groups, which qualifies as limited vocal learning. All birds and mammals tested use auditory-vocal feedback to adjust their vocalizations to compensate for the effects of noise, and many species modulate their signals as the costs and benefits of communicating vary. This chapter asks whether some auditory-vocal feedback may have provided neural substrates for the evolution of vocal learning. Progress will require more precise definitions of different forms of vocal learning, broad comparative review of their presence and absence, and behavioral and neurobiological investigations into the mechanisms underlying the skills.PostprintPeer reviewe
Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome
The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead
Douglas Shire Water Quality Monitoring Strategy: Final Report: a Report to Douglas Shire Council and the Department of the Environment and Heritage
This report describes results and conclusions from the monitoring component of the Douglas\ud
Shire Council (DSC) water quality project. The components of this project that this report\ud
addresses are:\ud
\ud
• Site selection and installation of in-stream and off-paddock automatic water quality\ud
monitoring equipment in the Douglas Shire.\ud
\ud
• Design of appropriate sampling strategies for automatic stations.\ud
\ud
• Estimation of loads of suspended sediment, total nitrogen and total phosphorus in rivers\ud
and also estimation of the changes in nutrient loads from sugar cane under different\ud
fertilizer application rates.\ud
\ud
• Development of a community-based water quality sampling program to complement the\ud
automatic sampling efforts.\ud
\ud
• Design of an optimised, long-term water quality monitoring strategy
Douglas Shire Water Quality Monitoring Strategy - Final Report: a Report to Douglas Shire Council and the Department of the Environment and Heritage
This report describes results and conclusions from the monitoring component of the Douglas Shire Council (DSC) water quality project. The components of this project that this report addresses are: • Site selection and installation of in-stream and off-paddock automatic water quality monitoring equipment in the Douglas Shire. • Design of appropriate sampling strategies for automatic stations. • Estimation of loads of suspended sediment, total nitrogen and total phosphorus in rivers and also estimation of the changes in nutrient loads from sugar cane under different fertilizer application rates. • Development of a community-based water quality sampling program to complement the automatic sampling efforts. • Design of an optimised, long-term water quality monitoring strategy
Suicide ideators and attempters with schizophrenia--the role of 5-HTTLPR, rs25531, and 5-HTT VNTR Intron 2 variants
AIM:
To examine the role of 5-HTTLPR, rs25531 and 5-HTT VNTR Intron 2 variants in subjects with psychotic disorders manifesting suicide ideation and behaviour. ----- METHODS:
The study included 519 subsequently hospitalized subjects who were genotyped for 5-HTTLPR, rs25531 and 5-HTT VNTR In2 variants. Clinical assessments included structured psychiatric interview, sociodemographic characteristics, suicide ideation and behaviour (SIBQ), severity of psychopathology (PANSS) and depression (CDSS). ----- RESULTS:
Three subgroups were identified: suicide attempters (N = 161), suicide ideators (N = 174) and subjects who never reported suicide ideation or behaviour (comparative group, N = 184). Major findings: 1) Suicide attempters scored highest on the CDSS, while no differences between the three clinical subgroups were detected in the PANSS scores; 2) Suicide attempters were more frequently the carriers of L(A) allele, while subjects in the comparative group were more frequently the carriers of low expression 5-HTTLPR/5-HTT rs25531 haplotype SL(G); 3) No difference was found between the three clinical groups in the 5-HTT VNTR In2 variants; 4) Subjects with 5-HTTLPR/5-HTT rs25531 intermediate expression haplotype (L(A)L(G,)SL(A)) scored higher on the PANSS general psychopathology subscale; 5) There was no association between suicide attempt or ideation and 5-HTTLPR/In2 or 5-HTTLPR/rs25531/In2 haplotype distribution. ----- CONCLUSION:
The suicide ideators, attempters and controls did not differ significantly in 5-HTTLPR or 5-HTT VNTR In 2 variants, but 5-HTTLPR/5-HTT rs25531 haplotype might be a useful genetic marker in distinguishing these three clinical groups