Experimental study of 199Hg spin anti-relaxation coatings

We report on a comparison of spin relaxation rates in a $^{199}$Hg magnetometer using different wall coatings. A compact mercury magnetometer was built for this purpose. Glass cells coated with fluorinated materials show longer spin coherence times than if coated with their hydrogenated homologues. The longest spin relaxation time of the mercury vapor was measured with a fluorinated paraffin wall coating.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures, submitted to JINS

Oscillating ultra-cold neutron spectrometer

The energy spectrum of ultra-cold neutrons (UCN) is very often a key point to determine the systematic effects in precision measurements utilizing UCN. The proposed novel method allows the in-situ measurements of the UCN velocity distribution and its time evolution. In addition, the proposed UCN spectrometer can be a handy diagnostic tool for monitoring the UCN spectrum in critical places in the transport system connecting an UCN source with experiments. In this paper, we present the preliminary results from measurements and simulations using the oscillating UCN spectrometer at the PSI UCN source

Comparison of ultracold neutron sources for fundamental physics measurements

Ultracold neutrons (UCNs) are key for precision studies of fundamental parameters of the neutron and in searches for new CP violating processes or exotic interactions beyond the Standard Model of particle physics. The most prominent example is the search for a permanent electric dipole moment of the neutron (nEDM). We have performed an experimental comparison of the leading UCN sources currently operating. We have used a 'standard' UCN storage bottle with a volume of 32 liters, comparable in size to nEDM experiments, which allows us to compare the UCN density available at a given beam port.Comment: 20 pages, 30 Figure

Antagonistic interaction of HIV-1 Vpr with Hsf-mediated cellular heat shock response and Hsp16 in fission yeast (Schizosaccharomyces pombe)

BACKGROUND: Expression of the HIV-1 vpr gene in human and fission yeast cells displays multiple highly conserved activities, which include induction of cell cycle G2 arrest and cell death. We have previously characterized a yeast heat shock protein 16 (Hsp16) that suppresses the Vpr activities when it is overproduced in fission yeast. Similar suppressive effects were observed when the fission yeast hsp16 gene was overexpressed in human cells or in the context of viral infection. In this study, we further characterized molecular actions underlying the suppressive effect of Hsp16 on the Vpr activities. RESULTS: We show that the suppressive effect of Hsp16 on Vpr-dependent viral replication in proliferating T-lymphocytes is mediated through its C-terminal end. In addition, we show that Hsp16 inhibits viral infection in macrophages in a dose-dependent manner. Mechanistically, Hsp16 suppresses Vpr activities in a way that resembles the cellular heat shock response. In particular, Hsp16 activation is mediated by a heat shock factor (Hsf)-dependent mechanism. Interestingly, vpr gene expression elicits a moderate increase of endogenous Hsp16 but prevents its elevation when cells are grown under heat shock conditions that normally stimulate Hsp16 production. Similar responsive to Vpr elevation of Hsp and counteraction of this elevation by Vpr were also observed in our parallel mammalian studies. Since Hsf-mediated elevation of small Hsps occurs in all eukaryotes, this finding suggests that the anti-Vpr activity of Hsps is a conserved feature of these proteins. CONCLUSION: These data suggest that fission yeast could be used as a model to further delineate the potential dynamic and antagonistic interactions between HIV-1 Vpr and cellular heat shock responses involving Hsps