215 research outputs found
Morphogen Transport in Epithelia
We present a general theoretical framework to discuss mechanisms of morphogen
transport and gradient formation in a cell layer. Trafficking events on the
cellular scale lead to transport on larger scales. We discuss in particular the
case of transcytosis where morphogens undergo repeated rounds of
internalization into cells and recycling. Based on a description on the
cellular scale, we derive effective nonlinear transport equations in one and
two dimensions which are valid on larger scales. We derive analytic expressions
for the concentration dependence of the effective diffusion coefficient and the
effective degradation rate. We discuss the effects of a directional bias on
morphogen transport and those of the coupling of the morphogen and receptor
kinetics. Furthermore, we discuss general properties of cellular transport
processes such as the robustness of gradients and relate our results to recent
experiments on the morphogen Decapentaplegic (Dpp) that acts in the fruit fly
Drosophila
Robust formation of morphogen gradients
We discuss the formation of graded morphogen profiles in a cell layer by
nonlinear transport phenomena, important for patterning developing organisms.
We focus on a process termed transcytosis, where morphogen transport results
from binding of ligands to receptors on the cell surface, incorporation into
the cell and subsequent externalization. Starting from a microscopic model, we
derive effective transport equations. We show that, in contrast to morphogen
transport by extracellular diffusion, transcytosis leads to robust ligand
profiles which are insensitive to the rate of ligand production
Molecular gas at supernova local environments unveiled by EDGE
CO observations allow estimations of the gas content of molecular clouds,
which trace the reservoir of cold gas fuelling star formation, as well as to
determine extinction via H column density, N(H). Here, we studied
millimetric and optical properties at 26 supernovae (SNe) locations of
different types in a sample of 23 nearby galaxies by combining molecular
CO (J = 1 0) resolved maps from the EDGE survey and
optical Integral Field Spectroscopy from the CALIFA survey. We found an even
clearer separation between type II and type Ibc SNe in terms of molecular gas
than what we found in the optical using H emission as a proxy for
current SF rate, which reinforces the fact that SNe Ibc are more associated
with SF-environments. While A at SN locations is similar for SNe II and SNe
Ibc, and higher compared to SNe Ia, N(H) is significantly higher for SNe
Ibc than for SNe II and SNe Ia. When compared to alternative extinction
estimations directly from SN photometry and spectroscopy, we find that our SNe
Ibc have also redder color excess but showed standard Na I D absorption
pseudo-equivalent widths (1 \AA). In some cases we find no extinction
when estimated from the environment, but high amounts of extinction when
measured from SN observations, which suggests that circumstellar material or
dust sublimation may be playing a role. This work serves as a benchmark for
future studies combining last generation millimeter and optical IFS instruments
to reveal the local environmental properties of extragalactic SNe.Comment: MNRAS accepted, 17 pages, 8 Figures, 4 Table
Continuum Foreground Polarization and Na i Absorption in Type Ia SNe
We present a study of the continuum polarization over the 400-600 nm range of 19 SNe Ia obtained with FORS at the VLT. We separate them into those that show Na i D lines at the velocity of their hosts and those that do not. Continuum polarization of the sodium sample near maximum light displays a broad range of values, from extremely polarized cases like SN 2006X to almost unpolarized ones like SN 2011ae. The non-sodium sample shows, typically, smaller polarization values. The continuum polarization of the sodium sample in the 400-600 nm range is linear with wavelength and can be characterized by the mean polarization (Pmean). Its values span a wide range and show a linear correlation with color, color excess, and extinction in the visual band. Larger dispersion correlations were found with the equivalent width of the Na i D and Ca ii H and K lines, and also a noisy relation between Pmean and RV, the ratio of total to selective extinction. Redder SNe show stronger continuum polarization, with larger color excesses and extinctions. We also confirm that high continuum polarization is associated with small values of RV. The correlation between extinction and polarization - and polarization angles - suggest that the dominant fraction of dust polarization is imprinted in interstellar regions of the host galaxies. We show that Na i D lines from foreground matter in the SN host are usually associated with non-galactic ISM, challenging the typical assumptions in foreground interstellar polarization models
Constraining Type Ia Supernovae progenitors from three years of SNLS data
While it is generally accepted that Type Ia supernovae are the result of the
explosion of a carbon-oxygen White Dwarf accreting mass in a binary system, the
details of their genesis still elude us, and the nature of the binary companion
is uncertain. Kasen (2010) points out that the presence of a non-degenerate
companion in the progenitor system could leave an observable trace: a flux
excess in the early rise portion of the lightcurve caused by the ejecta impact
with the companion itself. This excess would be observable only under favorable
viewing angles, and its intensity depends on the nature of the companion. We
searched for the signature of a non-degenerate companion in three years of
Supernova Legacy Survey data by generating synthetic lightcurves accounting for
the effects of shocking and comparing true and synthetic time series with
Kolmogorov-Smirnov tests. Our most constraining result comes from noting that
the shocking effect is more prominent in rest-frame B than V band: we rule out
a contribution from white dwarf-red giant binary systems to Type Ia supernova
explosions greater than 10% at 2 sigma, and than 20% at 3 sigma level.Comment: 14 pages, 15 figures, resubmitted to ApJ, figure 15 modifie
New Higgs signals induced by mirror fermion mixing effects
We study the conditions under which flavor violation arises in scalar-fermion
interactions, as a result of the mixing phenomena between the standard model
and exotic fermions. Phenomenological consequences are discussed within the
specific context of a left-right model where these additional fermions have
mirror properties under the new SU(2)_R gauge group.
Bounds on the parameters of the model are obtained from LFV processes; these
results are then used to study the LFV Higgs decays (H --> tau l_j, l_j = e,
mu), which reach branching ratios that could be detected at future colliders.Comment: 12 pages, 2 figures, ReVTex4, graphicx, to be published in Phys. Rev.
Carnegie Supernova Project-II: The Near-infrared Spectroscopy Program
Shifting the focus of Type Ia supernova (SN Ia) cosmology to the
near-infrared (NIR) is a promising way to significantly reduce the systematic
errors, as the strategy minimizes our reliance on the empirical
width-luminosity relation and uncertain dust laws. Observations in the NIR are
also crucial for our understanding of the origins and evolution of these
events, further improving their cosmological utility. Any future experiments in
the rest-frame NIR will require knowledge of the SN Ia NIR spectroscopic
diversity, which is currently based on a small sample of observed spectra.
Along with the accompanying paper, Phillips et al. (2018), we introduce the
Carnegie Supernova Project-II (CSP-II), to follow up nearby SNe Ia in both the
optical and the NIR. In particular, this paper focuses on the CSP-II NIR
spectroscopy program, describing the survey strategy, instrumental setups, data
reduction, sample characteristics, and future analyses on the data set. In
collaboration with the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA)
Supernova Group, we obtained 661 NIR spectra of 157 SNe Ia. Within this sample,
451 NIR spectra of 90 SNe Ia have corresponding CSP-II follow-up light curves.
Such a sample will allow detailed studies of the NIR spectroscopic properties
of SNe Ia, providing a different perspective on the properties of the unburned
material, radioactive and stable nickel produced, progenitor magnetic fields,
and searches for possible signatures of companion stars.Comment: 20 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in PAS
Alginate inhibits iron absorption from ferrous gluconate in a randomized controlled trial and reduces iron uptake into Caco-2 cells
Previous in vitro results indicated that alginate beads might be a useful vehicle for food iron fortification. A human study was undertaken to test the hypothesis that alginate enhances iron absorption. A randomised, single blinded, cross-over trial was carried out in which iron absorption was measured from serum iron appearance after a test meal. Overnight-fasted volunteers (n=15) were given a test meal of 200g cola-flavoured jelly plus 21 mg iron as ferrous gluconate, either in alginate beads mixed into the jelly or in a capsule. Iron absorption was lower from the alginate beads than from ferrous gluconate (8.5% and 12.6% respectively, p=0.003). Sub-group B (n=9) consumed the test meals together with 600 mg calcium to determine whether alginate modified the inhibitory effect of calcium. Calcium reduced iron absorption from ferrous gluconate by 51%, from 11.5% to 5.6% (p=0.014), and from alginate beads by 37%, from 8.3% to 5.2% (p=0.009). In vitro studies using Caco-2 cells were designed to explore the reasons for the difference between the previous in vitro findings and the human study; confirmed the inhibitory effect of alginate. Beads similar to those used in the human study were subjected to simulated gastrointestinal digestion, with and without cola jelly, and the digestate applied to Caco-2 cells. Both alginate and cola jelly significantly reduced iron uptake into the cells, by 34% (p=0.009) and 35% (p=0.003) respectively. The combination of cola jelly and calcium produced a very low ferritin response, 16.5% (p<0.001) of that observed with ferrous gluconate alone. The results of these studies demonstrate that alginate beads are not a useful delivery system for soluble salts of iron for the purpose of food fortification
The rise-time of type II supernovae
We investigate the early-time light-curves of a large sample of 223 type II supernovae (SNe) from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and the Supernova Legacy Survey. Having a cadence of a few days and sufficient non-detections prior to explosion, we constrain rise-times, i.e. the durations from estimated first to maximum light, as a function of effective wavelength. At restframe g-band (4722A), we find a distribution of fast rise-times with median of (7.5+/-0.3) days. Comparing these durations with analytical shock models of Rabinak and Waxman (2013); Nakar and Sari (2010) and hydrodynamical models of Tominaga et al. (2009), which are mostly sensitive to progenitor radius at these epochs, we find a median characteristic radius of less than 400 solar radii. The inferred radii are on average much smaller than the radii obtained for observed red supergiants (RSG). Investigating the post-maximum slopes as a function of effective wavelength in the light of theoretical models, we find that massive hydrogen envelopes are still needed to explain the plateaus of SNe II. We therefore argue that the SN II rise-times we observe are either a) the shock cooling resulting from the core collapse of RSG with small and dense envelopes, or b) the delayed and prolonged shock breakout of the collapse of a RSG with an extended atmosphere or embedded within pre-SN circumstellar material.Fil: González Gaitán, S.. Universidad de Chile; Chile. Millennium Institute of Astrophysics; ChileFil: Tominaga, N.. Konan University; JapónFil: Molina, J.. Universidad de Chile; ChileFil: Galbany, L.. Universidad de Chile; Chile. Millennium Institute of Astrophysics; ChileFil: Bufano, F.. Universidad Andres Bello; Chile. Millennium Institute of Astrophysics; ChileFil: Anderson, J. P. . European Southern Observatory; ChileFil: Gutierrez, C.. Universidad de Chile; Chile. Millennium Institute of Astrophysics; ChileFil: Förster, F.. Millennium Institute of Astrophysics; Chile. Universidad de Chile; ChileFil: Pignata, G.. Universidad Andres Bello; Chile. Millennium Institute of Astrophysics; ChileFil: Bersten, Melina Cecilia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico La Plata. Instituto de Astrofísica de La Plata; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de la Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas; Argentina. University of Tokyo; JapónFil: Howell, D. A. . Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope Network; Estados Unidos. University of California; Estados UnidosFil: Sullivan, M.. University of Southampton; Reino UnidoFil: Carlberg, R.. University Of Toronto; CanadáFil: De Jaeger, T. . Universidad de Chile; Chile. Millennium Institute of Astrophysics; ChileFil: Hamuy, M.. Universidad de Chile; Chile. Millennium Institute of Astrophysics; ChileFil: Baklanov, P. V. . Novosibirsk State University; RusiaFil: Blinnikov, S. I. . University of Tokyo; Japó
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