2,637 research outputs found
M13 bacteriophage-activated superparamagnetic beads for affinity separation
The growth of the biopharmaceutical industry has created a demand for new technologies for
the purification of genetically engineered proteins. The efficiency of large-scale, highgradient
magnetic fishing could be improved if magnetic particles offering higher binding
capacity and magnetization were available. This article describes several strategies for
synthesizing SPMs that are composed of a M13 bacteriophage layer assembled on a
superparamagnetic core. Chemically cross-linking the pVIII proteins to a carboxyl
functionalized SPM produced highly responsive superparamagnetic particles with a side-on
oriented, adherent virus monolayer. Also, the genetic manipulation of the pIII proteins with a
His6 peptide sequence allowed reversible assembly of the bacteriophage on a nitrilotriacetic
acid functionalized core in an end-on configuration. These phage-magnetic particles were
successfully used to separate antibodies from high-protein concentration solutions in a single
step with a > 90 % purity. The dense magnetic core of these particles makes them five times
more responsive to magnetic fields than commercial materials composed of polymer-iron
oxide composites and a monolayer of phage could produced a 1000 fold higher antibody
binding capacity. These new bionanomaterials appear to be well-suited to large-scale highgradient
magnetic fishing separation and promise to be cost effective as a result of the selfassembling
and self-replicating properties of genetically engineered M13 bacteriophage
Multiple shifts and fractional integration in the us and uk unemployment rates
This paper analyses the long-run behaviour of the US and UK unemployment rates by testing for possibly fractional orders of integration and multiple shifts using a sample of over 100 annual observations. The results show that the orders of integration are higher than 0 in both series, which implies long memory. If we assume that the underlying disturbances are white noise, the values are higher than 0.5, i.e., nonstationary. However, if the disturbances are autocorrelated, the orders of integration are in the interval (0, 0.5), implying stationarity and mean-reverting behaviour. Moreover, when multiple shifts are taken into account, unemployment is more persistent in the US than in the UK, implying the need for stronger policy action in the former to bring unemployment back to its original level
Magnetic Tweezers-Based Force Clamp Reveals Mechanically Distinct apCAM Domain Interactions
ABSTRACT Cell adhesion molecules of the immunoglobulin superfamily (IgCAMs) play a crucial role in cell-cell interactions during nervous system development and function. The Aplysia CAM (apCAM), an invertebrate IgCAM, shares structural and functional similarities with vertebrate NCAM and therefore has been considered as the Aplysia homolog of NCAM. Despite these similarities, the binding properties of apCAM have not been investigated thus far. Using magnetic tweezers, we applied physiologically relevant, constant forces to apCAM-coated magnetic particles interacting with apCAM-coated model surfaces and characterized the kinetics of bond rupture. The average bond lifetime decreased with increasing external force, as predicted by theoretical considerations. Mathematical simulations suggest that the apCAM homophilic interaction is mediated by two distinct bonds, one involving all five immunoglobulin (Ig)-like domains in an antiparallel alignment and the other involving only two Ig domains. In summary, this study provides biophysical evidence that apCAM undergoes homophilic interactions, and that magnetic tweezers-based, force-clamp measurements provide a rapid and reliable method for characterizing relatively weak CAM interactions
Universal Conductance Distributions in the Crossover between Diffusive and Localization Regimes
The full distribution of the conductance in quasi-one-dimensional
wires with rough surfaces is analyzed from the diffusive to the localization
regime. In the crossover region, where the statistics is dominated by only one
or two eigenchannels, the numerically obtained P(G) is found to be independent
of the details of the system with the average conductance as the only
scaling parameter. For < e^2/h, P(G) is given by an essentially
``one-sided'' log-normal distribution. In contrast, for e^2/h <= 2e^2/h,
the shape of P(G) remarkable agrees with those predicted by random matrix
theory for two fluctuating transmission eigenchannels.Comment: Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. Let
Dust properties in M31.I.Basic properties and a discussion on age-dependent dust heating
Context. Spitzer Space Telescope observations and dust emission models are
used to discuss the distribution of dust and its characteristics in M31.
Together with GALEX FUV, NUV, and SDSS images we studied the age dependence of
the dust heating process. Methods.Spitzer IRAC/MIPS maps of M31 were matched
together and compared to dust emission models allowing to constrain the dust
mass, the intensity of the mean radiation field, the abundance of Polycyclic
Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) particles. The total infrared emission (TIR) was
analyzed in function of UV and Optical colors and compared to predictions of
models which consider the age-dependent dust heating. Results. We demonstrate
that cold-dust component emission dominates the infrared spectral energy
distribution of M31. The mean intensity of the radiation field heating the dust
is low (typically U<2, where U=1 is the value in the solar surrounding). Due to
the lack of submillimetric measurements the dust mass (M_{dust}) is only weakly
constrained by the infrared spectrum. We show that across the spiral-ring
structure of M31 a fraction >3% of the total dust mass is in PAHs. UV and
optical colors are correlated to (TIR/FUV) ratios in \sim 670 pc-sized regions
overall the disk of M31, although deviating from the IRX-beta relationship for
starburst galaxies. We derived that in 83% of the regions analyzed across the
10kpc ring more than 50% of the energy absorbed by the dust is rediated at
\lambda > 4000 \AA and that dust in M31 appears mainly heated by populations a
few Gyr old even across the star-forming ring. The attenuation is varying
radially peaking near 10kpc and decreasing faster in the inner regions of M31
than in the outer regions. We finally derived the attenuation map of M31 at
6"/px resolution (\sim 100 pc/px along the plane of M31).[abridged]Comment: 21 pages, 18 figures, accepted for publication in A&A. Only low
resolution images included, full resolution images will be avaiable in the
journal electronic version. Fig.14 and Fig.17 will be avaiable via CD
The generalised NMSSM at one loop: fine tuning and phenomenology
We determine the degree of fine tuning needed in a generalised version of the
NMSSM that follows from an underlying Z4 or Z8 R symmetry. We find that it is
significantly less than is found in the MSSM or NMSSM and extends the range of
Higgs mass that have acceptable fine tuning up to Higgs masses of mh ~ 130 GeV.
For universal boundary conditions analogous to the CMSSM the phenomenology is
rather MSSM like with the singlet states typically rather heavy. For more
general boundary conditions the singlet states can be light, leading to
interesting signatures at the LHC and direct detection experiments.Comment: 20 pages, 9 figures, matches published versio
A precision study of the fine tuning in the DiracNMSSM
Recently the DiracNMSSM has been proposed as a possible solution to reduce
the fine tuning in supersymmetry. We determine the degree of fine tuning needed
in the DiracNMSSM with and without non-universal gaugino masses and compare it
with the fine tuning in the GNMSSM. To apply reasonable cuts on the allowed
parameter regions we perform a precise calculation of the Higgs mass. In
addition, we include the limits from direct SUSY searches and dark matter
abundance. We find that both models are comparable in terms of fine tuning,
with the minimal fine tuning in the GNMSSM slightly smaller.Comment: 20 pages + appendices, 10 figure
Chiral three-nucleon forces and bound excited states in neutron-rich oxygen isotopes
We study the spectra of neutron-rich oxygen isotopes based on chiral two- and
three-nucleon interactions. First, we benchmark our many-body approach by
comparing ground-state energies to coupled-cluster results for the same
two-nucleon interaction, with overall good agreement. We then calculate bound
excited states in 21,22,23O, focusing on the role of three-nucleon forces, in
the standard sd shell and an extended sdf7/2p3/2 valence space. Chiral
three-nucleon forces provide important one- and two-body contributions between
valence neutrons. We find that both these contributions and an extended valence
space are necessary to reproduce key signatures of novel shell evolution, such
as the N = 14 magic number and the low-lying states in 21O and 23O, which are
too compressed with two-nucleon interactions only. For the extended space
calculations, this presents first work based on nuclear forces without
adjustments. Future work is needed and open questions are discussed.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures, published versio
Solving the mu problem with a heavy Higgs boson
We discuss the generation of the mu-term in a class of supersymmetric models
characterized by a low energy effective superpotential containing a term lambda
S H_1 H_2 with a large coupling lambda~2. These models generically predict a
lightest Higgs boson well above the LEP limit of 114 GeV and have been shown to
be compatible with the unification of gauge couplings. Here we discuss a
specific example where the superpotential has no dimensionful parameters and we
point out the relation between the generated mu-term and the mass of the
lightest Higgs boson. We discuss the fine-tuning of the model and we find that
the generation of a phenomenologically viable mu-term fits very well with a
heavy lightest Higgs boson and a low degree of fine-tuning. We discuss
experimental constraints from collider direct searches, precision data, thermal
relic dark matter abundance, and WIMP searches finding that the most natural
region of the parameter space is still allowed by current experiments. We
analyse bounds on the masses of the superpartners coming from Naturalness
arguments and discuss the main signatures of the model for the LHC and future
WIMP searches.Comment: Extended discussion of the LHC phenomenology, as published on JHEP
plus an addendum on the existence of further extremal points of the
potential. 47 pages, 16 figure
Does final energy demand in Portugal exhibit long memory? A fractional integration analysis
In this paper, we measure the degree of fractional integration in final energy demand in Portugal using an ARFIMA model with and without adjustments for seasonality. We consider aggregate energy demand as well as final demand for petroleum, electricity, coal, and natural gas. Our findings suggest the presence of long memory in all of the components of energy demand. All fractional-difference param- eters are positive and lower than 0.5 indicating that the series are stationary, although with mean reversion patterns slower than in the typical short-run processes. These results have important implications for the design of energy policies. As a result of the long-memory in final energy demand, the effects of temporary policy shocks will tend to disappear slowly. This means that even transitory shocks have long lasting effects. Given the temporary nature of these effects, however, permanent effects on final energy demand require permanent policies. This is unlike what would be suggested by the more standard, but much more limited, unit root approach, which would incorrectly indicate that even transitory policies would have permanent effects.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
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