Perspective on Quark Mass and Mixing Relations

Recent data indicate that $V_{ub}\cong \lambda^4 \cong (0.22)^4$, while $m_t$ seems to be $174$ GeV. The relations $m_d/m_s\sim m_s/m_b \sim \delta \sim \lambda^2 \simeq \vert V_{cb}\vert$ and $m_u/m_c\sim m_c/m_t \sim \delta^2 \sim \lambda^4 \sim \vert V_{ub}\vert$ suggest that %a plausible clean separation of the %origin of the quark mixing matrix: the down type sector is responsible for $\vert V_{us}\vert$ and $\vert V_{cb}\vert$, while $V_{ub}$ comes from the up type sector. Five to six parameters might suffice to account for the ten quark mass and mixing parameters, resulting in specific power series representations for the mass matrices. In this picture, $\delta$ seems to be the more sensible expansion parameter, while $\lambda \cong \sqrt{m_d/m_s} \sim \sqrt{\delta}$ is tied empirically to $(M_d)_{11} = 0$.Comment: 10 pages, ReVtex, no figure

Accounting for Slow J/psi from B Decay

A slow J/psi excess exists in the inclusive B -> J/psi+X spectrum, and is indicative of some hadronic effect. From color octet nature of c cbar pair in b-> c cbar s decay, one such possibility would be B -> J/psi+ K_g decay, where K_g is a hybrid resonance with sbar g q constituents. We show that a K_g resonance of ~ 2 GeV mass and suitably broad width could be behind the excess.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures. To appear in Phys. Rev.

The Glueball Spectrum from a Potential Model

The spectrum of two-gluon glueballs below 3 GeV is investigated in a potential model with dynamical gluon mass using variational method. The short distance potential is approximated by one-gluon exchange, while the long distance part is taken as a breakable string. The mass and size of the radial as well as orbital excitations up to principle quantum number n=3 are evaluated. The predicted mass ratios are compared with experimental and lattice results.Comment: Revtex, 6 pages with 1 eps figur

μ+e−<−−−>μ−e+\mu^+e^- <---> \mu^- e^+ Transitions via Neutral Scalar Bosons

With $\mu\to e\gamma$ decay forbidden by multiplicative lepton number conservation, we study muonium--antimuonium transitions induced by neutral scalar bosons. Pseudoscalars do not induce conversion for triplet muonium, while for singlet muonium, pseudoscalar and scalar contributions add constructively. This is in contrast to the usual case of doubly charged scalar exchange, where the conversion rate is the same for both singlet and triplet muonium. Complementary to muonium conversion studies, high energy $\mu^+e^- \to \mu^- e^+$ and $e^-e^- \to \mu^- \mu^-$ collisions could reveal spectacular resonance peaks for the cases of neutral and doubly charged scalars, respectively.Comment: 12 pages, ReVtex, 3 figures available upon reques

Whole exome sequencing of circulating tumor cells provides a window into metastatic prostate cancer

Comprehensive analyses of cancer genomes promise to inform prognoses and precise cancer treatments. A major barrier, however, is inaccessibility of metastatic tissue. A potential solution is to characterize circulating tumor cells (CTCs), but this requires overcoming the challenges of isolating rare cells and sequencing low-input material. Here we report an integrated process to isolate, qualify and sequence whole exomes of CTCs with high fidelity, using a census-based sequencing strategy. Power calculations suggest that mapping of >99.995% of the standard exome is possible in CTCs. We validated our process in two prostate cancer patients including one for whom we sequenced CTCs, a lymph node metastasis and nine cores of the primary tumor. Fifty-one of 73 CTC mutations (70%) were observed in matched tissue. Moreover, we identified 10 early-trunk and 56 metastatic-trunk mutations in the non-CTC tumor samples and found 90% and 73% of these, respectively, in CTC exomes. This study establishes a foundation for CTC genomics in the clinic

Fosmid library end sequencing reveals a rarely known genome structure of marine shrimp Penaeus monodon

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The black tiger shrimp (<it>Penaeus monodon</it>) is one of the most important aquaculture species in the world, representing the crustacean lineage which possesses the greatest species diversity among marine invertebrates. Yet, we barely know anything about their genomic structure. To understand the organization and evolution of the <it>P. monodon </it>genome, a fosmid library consisting of 288,000 colonies and was constructed, equivalent to 5.3-fold coverage of the 2.17 Gb genome. Approximately 11.1 Mb of fosmid end sequences (FESs) from 20,926 non-redundant reads representing 0.45% of the <it>P. monodon </it>genome were obtained for repetitive and protein-coding sequence analyses.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We found that microsatellite sequences were highly abundant in the <it>P. monodon </it>genome, comprising 8.3% of the total length. The density and the average length of microsatellites were evidently higher in comparison to those of other taxa. AT-rich microsatellite motifs, especially poly (AT) and poly (AAT), were the most abundant. High abundance of microsatellite sequences were also found in the transcribed regions. Furthermore, <it>via </it>self-BlastN analysis we identified 103 novel repetitive element families which were categorized into four groups, <it>i.e</it>., 33 WSSV-like repeats, 14 retrotransposons, 5 gene-like repeats, and 51 unannotated repeats. Overall, various types of repeats comprise 51.18% of the <it>P. monodon </it>genome in length. Approximately 7.4% of the FESs contained protein-coding sequences, and the Inhibitor of Apoptosis Protein (IAP) gene and the Innexin 3 gene homologues appear to be present in high abundance in the <it>P. monodon </it>genome.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The redundancy of various repeat types in the <it>P. monodon </it>genome illustrates its highly repetitive nature. In particular, long and dense microsatellite sequences as well as abundant WSSV-like sequences highlight the uniqueness of genome organization of penaeid shrimp from those of other taxa. These results provide substantial improvement to our current knowledge not only for shrimp but also for marine crustaceans of large genome size.</p

Associations of prostate cancer risk variants with disease aggressiveness: results of the NCI-SPORE Genetics Working Group analysis of 18,343 cases

Genetic studies have identified single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with the risk of prostate cancer (PC). It remains unclear whether such genetic variants are associated with disease aggressiveness. The NCI-SPORE Genetics Working Group retrospectively collected clinicopathologic information and genotype data for 36 SNPs which at the time had been validated to be associated with PC risk from 25,674 cases with PC. Cases were grouped according to race, Gleason score (Gleason ≤ 6, 7, ≥ 8) and aggressiveness (non-aggressive, intermediate, and aggressive disease). Statistical analyses were used to compare the frequency of the SNPs between different disease cohorts. After adjusting for multiple testing, only PC-risk SNP rs2735839 (G) was significantly and inversely associated with aggressive (OR = 0.77; 95 % CI 0.69-0.87) and high-grade disease (OR = 0.77; 95 % CI 0.68-0.86) in European men. Similar associations with aggressive (OR = 0.72; 95 % CI 0.58-0.89) and high-grade disease (OR = 0.69; 95 % CI 0.54-0.87) were documented in African-American subjects. The G allele of rs2735839 was associated with disease aggressiveness even at low PSA levels (<4.0 ng/mL) in both European and African-American men. Our results provide further support that a PC-risk SNP rs2735839 near the KLK3 gene on chromosome 19q13 may be associated with aggressive and high-grade PC. Future prospectively designed, case-case GWAS are needed to identify additional SNPs associated with PC aggressiveness

GermLine Variation in Superoxide Dismutase-2 (SOD2) and Survival Outcomes After Radiation Therapy for Prostate Cancer: Results of a Test and Validation Set Analysis

© 2015 Elsevier Inc. Background: Genetic variants in antioxidant pathways might decrease the efficacy of radiation therapy (RT) by suppressing the generation of reactive oxygen species. We studied the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms (S

Selenium- or Vitamin E–Related Gene Variants, Interaction with Supplementation, and Risk of High-Grade Prostate Cancer in SELECT

BackgroundEpidemiologic studies and secondary analyses of randomized trials supported the hypothesis that selenium and vitamin E lower prostate cancer risk. However, the Selenium and Vitamin E Cancer Prevention Trial (SELECT) showed no benefit of either supplement. Genetic variants involved in selenium or vitamin E metabolism or transport may underlie the complex associations of selenium and vitamin E.MethodsWe undertook a case-cohort study of SELECT participants randomized to placebo, selenium, or vitamin E. The subcohort included 1,434 men; our primary outcome was high-grade prostate cancer (N = 278 cases, Gleason 7 or higher cancer). We used weighted Cox regression to examine the association between SNPs and high-grade prostate cancer risk. To assess effect modification, we created interaction terms between randomization arm and genotype and calculated log likelihood statistics.ResultsWe noted statistically significant (P &lt; 0.05) interactions between selenium assignment, SNPs in CAT, SOD2, PRDX6, SOD3, and TXNRD2, and high-grade prostate cancer risk. Statistically significant SNPs that modified the association of vitamin E assignment and high-grade prostate cancer included SEC14L2, SOD1, and TTPA In the placebo arm, several SNPs, hypothesized to interact with supplement assignment and risk of high-grade prostate cancer, were also directly associated with outcome.ConclusionVariants in selenium and vitamin E metabolism/transport genes may influence risk of overall and high-grade prostate cancer, and may modify an individual man's response to vitamin E or selenium supplementation with regards to these risks.ImpactThe effect of selenium or vitamin E supplementation on high-grade prostate cancer risk may vary by genotype. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 25(7); 1050-8. ©2016 AACR