Measurement of the Bottom-Strange Meson Mixing Phase in the Full CDF Data Set

We report a measurement of the bottom-strange meson mixing phase \beta_s using the time evolution of B0_s -> J/\psi (->\mu+\mu-) \phi (-> K+ K-) decays in which the quark-flavor content of the bottom-strange meson is identified at production. This measurement uses the full data set of proton-antiproton collisions at sqrt(s)= 1.96 TeV collected by the Collider Detector experiment at the Fermilab Tevatron, corresponding to 9.6 fb-1 of integrated luminosity. We report confidence regions in the two-dimensional space of \beta_s and the B0_s decay-width difference \Delta\Gamma_s, and measure \beta_s in [-\pi/2, -1.51] U [-0.06, 0.30] U [1.26, \pi/2] at the 68% confidence level, in agreement with the standard model expectation. Assuming the standard model value of \beta_s, we also determine \Delta\Gamma_s = 0.068 +- 0.026 (stat) +- 0.009 (syst) ps-1 and the mean B0_s lifetime, \tau_s = 1.528 +- 0.019 (stat) +- 0.009 (syst) ps, which are consistent and competitive with determinations by other experiments.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figures, Phys. Rev. Lett 109, 171802 (2012

Development of male and female flower in Asparagus officinalis : Search for point of transition from hermaphroditic to unisexual developmental pathway

Asparagus officinalis is a dioecious plant. The flowers start to develop as hermaphrodites and later become unisexual. In female flowers the stamens degenerate, while in male flowers the ovary stops growing without degenerating. We have examined young asparagus flowers using SEM and optical microscopy in order to determine the exact moment of transition from hermaphroditic to unisexual development. We defined 13 stages of development, starting from flower primordia up to completely mature flowers and labelled them with numbers from -6 to 7. The first five stages are fully hermaphroditic: a difference between sexes becomes visible at stage - 1 when the style begins to develop in female flowers. Degeneration of stamens in female flowers starts somewhat later. At the stage of transition, some differences between sexes also appear in the bidimensional polypeptide pattern of flowers. RNase activity shows a distinct peak at this stage (in female flowers only), probably related to stamen degeneration

SPECIFIC BEHAVIOUR OF GUANOSINE IN LIPONUCLEOSIDE THIN FILMS

The development of methodology for the chemical synthesis of oligonucleotides is the first step for producing not only the natural G-quadruplex sequences but also a large number of modified G-quadruplexes and other G-based supramolecular motifs; these methodologies will be summarized in this chapter. Natural or chemically modified G-motifs can be characterized by a variety of techniques. This chapter will not give an exhaustive list of methodologies, but simply shows how it is possible to gain structural information on G-quadruplexes by means relatively uncommon techniques such as: (i) differential pulse voltammetry; (ii) atomic force microscopy; (iii) dynamic light scattering; (iv) solution X-ray scattering; (v) temperature gradient gel-electrophoresis; (vi) Langmuir-Blodgett technique. Many other techniques are more usually adopted in G4 characterization (NMR, Scanning Tunnel Microscopy, Circular Dichroism, X-ray diffraction \u2026) and examples of such applications can be found in the contributions to the other chapters of this book

Towards radiation-sensitive quasi-biological display

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Construction of a linkage map in asparagus officinalis through rflp and rapd analysis

This work is a part of a larger project aimed at detecting molecular markers associated with sex determining genes of the dioecious species Asparagus officinalis. We have analyzed the segregation of RFLP and RAPD polymorphisms in the BC progeny of six families derived from doubled haploid parents. We have so far constructed nine linkage groups integrating 23 RFLP (out of 51 analyzed) and two RAPD markers with some isoenzyme markers previously detected

Adiponectin expression in human fetal tissues during mid- and late gestation

Adiponectin (ApN), an adipocytokine expressed in adipocytes with antidiabetic and antiatherogenic actions, has been detected in cord blood, suggesting a putative role in intrauterine fetal development. The aim of this study was to confirm the presence of ApN in the fetal circulation and directly investigate ApN expression in fetal tissues. The study showed high ApN levels in umbilical venous blood from fetuses [n = 44; 31.2 +/- 14.1 (sd) mg/liter in umbilical vs. 8.4 +/- 4.0 in maternal circulation (P < 0.0001)] that positively correlated with gestational age. By using RT-PCR, Western blotting, and immunohistochemistry, ApN was detected in several fetal tissues at mid- and late gestation (from 14 to 36 wk) but not in the placenta. ApN was expressed in tissues of mesodermic origin, i.e. brown and white adipocytes, skeletal muscle fibers of diaphragm and iliopsoas, smooth muscle cells of small intestine and arterial walls, perineurium and renal capsule, and tissues of ectodermal origin, i.e. epidermis and ocular lens. The distribution of ApN expression in nonadipose tissues showed a general decline during the progression of gestation. The unexpected pattern of ApN expression in the human fetus may account for the high ApN levels in cord blood and predicts novel roles for ApN during fetal development

Mechanism Of The Transformation Of A Stiff Polymer Lyotropic Nematic Liquid Crystal To The Cholesteric State By Dopant-mediated Chiral Information Transfer

In this work the lyotropic liquid crystal nematic state of poly(n-hexyl isocyanate) (PHIC) was converted to the cholesteric state by doping with a variety of chiral small molecules and with optically active polyisocyanates. Circular dichroism experiments in dilute isotropic PHIC solutions show that several of the small molecules used as dopants in the liquid crystal work cause an excess of one helical sense in the otherwise helically dynamically racemic PHIC. Both the helical sense and excess of this sense in dilute solution correlate to the cholesteric sense and twisting power of the same dopants in the concentrated PHIC liquid crystal solutions. The experimental results are consistent with a mechanism of cholesteric formation in which the chiral dopants displace slightly the otherwise equal population of the dynamically interconvertable mirror helical senses of the PHIC, which is then further amplified by the liquid crystal matrix. Direct evidence for the amplification of the intrinsic helical sense excess of the polyisocyanate by the liquid crystal state could be demonstrated by comparing the cholesteric properties of systems doped with polyisocyanates in which the ratio of the mirror helical senses of the dopants in two compared experiments are identical but in one experiment the helical senses could interconvert and in a separate experiment could not interconvert. The amplification mechanism is driven by the reduction in population of the mobile kinked helical reversals which likely act as “bad neighbors” to the local liquid crystal organization.