480 research outputs found
The inner kiloparsec of the jet in 3C264
We present new multi-frequency EVN, MERLIN and VLA observations of the radio
source 3C264, sensitive to linear scales ranging from the parsec to several
kiloparsecs. The observations confirm the existence of regions with different
properties in the first kiloparsec of the jet. The most remarkable feature is
the transition between a well collimated narrow jet at distances from the core
below 80 pc, to a conical-shaped wide jet, with an opening angle of 20 degrees.
Another change of properties, consisting of an apparent deflection of the jet
ridge line and a diminution of the surface brightness, occurs at a distance of
300 pc from the core, coincident with the radius of a ring observed at optical
wavelengths. Our observations add new pieces of information on the spectrum of
the radio-optical jet of 3C264, with results consistent with a synchrotron
emission mechanism and a spectrum break frequency in the infrared. Brightness
profiles taken perpendicularly to the jet of 3C264 are consistent with a spine
brightened jet at distances below 100 pc from the core, and an edge-brightened
jet beyond, which can be interpreted as evidence of a transverse jet velocity
structure. Our observations do not allow us to distinguish between the presence
of a face--on dust and gas disk at the center of the host galaxy of 3C264, or
rather an evacuated bubble. However, the properties of the jet structure, the
changes in the polarization angle, and the plausible jet orientation can be
naturally brought into agreement in the bubble scenario.Comment: 10 pages, 9 figures, accepted in A&
Design of Cationic Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes as Efficient siRNA Vectors for Lung Cancer Xenograft Eradication
Polo-Like Kinase (PLK1) has been identified as a potential target in cancer gene therapy via chemical or genetic inhibitory approaches. The biomedical applications of chemically functionalized carbon nanotubes (f-CNTs) in cancer therapy have been studied due to their ability to efficiently deliver siRNA intracellularly. In this study, we established the capacity of cationic MWNT-NH3+ to deliver the apoptotic siRNA against PLK1 (siPLK1) in Calu6 tumor xenografts by direct intratumoural injections. A direct comparison with cationic liposomes was made. This study validates the PLK1 gene as a potential target in cancer gene therapy including lung cancer, as demonstrated by the therapeutic efficacy of siPLK1:MWNT-NH3+ complexes and their ability to significantly improve animal survival. Biological analysis of the siPLK1:MWNT-NH3+ treated tumors by RT-PCR and Western blot, in addition to TUNEL staining confirmed the biological functionality of the siRNA intratumourally, suggesting that tumor eradication was due to PLK1 knockdown. Furthermore, by using a fluorescently labelled, non-coding siRNA sequence complexed with MWNT-NH3+, we established for the first time that the improved therapeutic efficacy observed in f-CNT-based siRNA delivery is directly proportional to the enhanced siRNA retention in the solid tumor and subsequent uptake by tumor cells after local administration in vivo
Supernovae 2016bdu and 2005gl, and their link with SN 2009ip-like transients: another piece of the puzzle
Supernova (SN) 2016bdu is an unusual transient resembling SN 2009ip. SN
2009ip-like events are characterized by a long-lasting phase of erratic
variability which ends with two luminous outbursts a few weeks apart. The
second outburst is significantly more luminous (about 3 mag) than the first. In
the case of SN 2016bdu, the first outburst (Event A) reached an absolute
magnitude M(r) ~ -15.3 mag, while the second one (Event B) occurred over one
month later and reached M(r) ~ -18 mag. By inspecting archival data, a faint
source at the position of SN 2016bdu is detectable several times in the past
few years. We interpret these detections as signatures of a phase of erratic
variability, similar to that experienced by SN 2009ip between 2008 and
mid-2012, and resembling the currently observed variability of the luminous
blue variable SN 2000ch in NGC 3432. Spectroscopic monitoring of SN 2016bdu
during the second peak initially shows features typical of a SN IIn. One month
after the Event B maximum, the spectra develop broad Balmer lines with P Cygni
profiles and broad metal features. At these late phases, the spectra resemble
those of a typical Type II SN. All members of this SN 2009ip-like group are
remarkably similar to the Type IIn SN 2005gl. For this object, the claim of a
terminal SN explosion is supported by the disappearance of the progenitor star.
The similarity with SN 2005gl suggests that all members of this family may
finally explode as genuine SNe, although the unequivocal detection of
nucleosynthesised elements in their nebular spectra is still missing.Comment: Submitted to MNRAS on April 10, 2017; re-submitted on June 23
including suggestions from the referee. 24 pages, 12 figures, 5 table
Asteroids' physical models from combined dense and sparse photometry and scaling of the YORP effect by the observed obliquity distribution
The larger number of models of asteroid shapes and their rotational states
derived by the lightcurve inversion give us better insight into both the nature
of individual objects and the whole asteroid population. With a larger
statistical sample we can study the physical properties of asteroid
populations, such as main-belt asteroids or individual asteroid families, in
more detail. Shape models can also be used in combination with other types of
observational data (IR, adaptive optics images, stellar occultations), e.g., to
determine sizes and thermal properties. We use all available photometric data
of asteroids to derive their physical models by the lightcurve inversion method
and compare the observed pole latitude distributions of all asteroids with
known convex shape models with the simulated pole latitude distributions. We
used classical dense photometric lightcurves from several sources and
sparse-in-time photometry from the U.S. Naval Observatory in Flagstaff,
Catalina Sky Survey, and La Palma surveys (IAU codes 689, 703, 950) in the
lightcurve inversion method to determine asteroid convex models and their
rotational states. We also extended a simple dynamical model for the spin
evolution of asteroids used in our previous paper. We present 119 new asteroid
models derived from combined dense and sparse-in-time photometry. We discuss
the reliability of asteroid shape models derived only from Catalina Sky Survey
data (IAU code 703) and present 20 such models. By using different values for a
scaling parameter cYORP (corresponds to the magnitude of the YORP momentum) in
the dynamical model for the spin evolution and by comparing synthetics and
observed pole-latitude distributions, we were able to constrain the typical
values of the cYORP parameter as between 0.05 and 0.6.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&A, January 15, 201
Core components for effective infection prevention and control programmes: new WHO evidence-based recommendations
Abstract
Health care-associated infections (HAI) are a major public health problem with a significant impact on morbidity, mortality and quality of life. They represent also an important economic burden to health systems worldwide. However, a large proportion of HAI are preventable through effective infection prevention and control (IPC) measures. Improvements in IPC at the national and facility level are critical for the successful containment of antimicrobial resistance and the prevention of HAI, including outbreaks of highly transmissible diseases through high quality care within the context of universal health coverage. Given the limited availability of IPC evidence-based guidance and standards, the World Health Organization (WHO) decided to prioritize the development of global recommendations on the core components of effective IPC programmes both at the national and acute health care facility level, based on systematic literature reviews and expert consensus. The aim of the guideline development process was to identify the evidence and evaluate its quality, consider patient values and preferences, resource implications, and the feasibility and acceptability of the recommendations. As a result, 11 recommendations and three good practice statements are presented here, including a summary of the supporting evidence, and form the substance of a new WHO IPC guideline
A comparative HST imaging study of the host galaxies of radio-quiet quasars, radio-loud quasars and radio galaxies: Paper I
We present the first results from a major HST WFPC2 imaging study aimed at
providing the first statistically meaningful comparison of the morphologies,
luminosities, scalelengths and colours of the host galaxies of radio-quiet
quasars, radio-loud quasars, and radio galaxies. We describe the design of this
study and present the images which have been obtained for the first half of our
33-source sample. We find that the hosts of all three classes of luminous AGN
are massive elliptical galaxies, with scalelengths ~=10 kpc, and R-K colours
consistent with mature stellar populations. Most importantly this is the the
first unambiguous evidence that, just like radio-loud quasars, essentially all
radio-quiet quasars brighter than M_R = -24 reside in massive ellipticals. This
result removes the possibility that radio `loudness' is directly linked to host
galaxy morphology, but is however in excellent accord with the
black-hole/spheroid mass correlation recently highlighted by Magorrian et al.
(1998). We apply the relations given by Magorrian et al. to infer the expected
Eddington luminosity of the putative black hole at the centre of each of the
spheroidal host galaxies we have uncovered. Comparison with the actual nuclear
R-band luminosities suggests that the black holes in most of these galaxies are
radiating at a few percent of the Eddington luminosity; the brightest host
galaxies in our low-z sample are capable of hosting quasars with M_R = -28,
comparable to the most luminous quasars at z = 3. Finally we discuss our
host-derived black-hole masses in the context of the
radio-luminosity:black-hole mass correlation recently uncovered for nearby
galaxies by Franceschini et al. (1998), and the resulting implications for the
physical origin of radio loudness.Comment: Submitted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal, 55 pages of
latex, plus 12 postscript figures (Figures 1a-1s (greyscales of images and
model fits, and Figures 2a-2g (luminosity profiles and model fits) can be
downloaded from http://www.roe.ac.uk/astronomy/html/rjm1.shtml
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