Stimulated Raman Adiabatic Passage (STIRAP) Among Degenerate-Level Manifolds

We examine the conditions needed to accomplish stimulated Raman adiabatic passage (STIRAP) when the three levels (g, e and f) are degenerate, with arbitrary couplings contributing to the pump-pulse interaction (g - e) and to the Stokes-pulse interaction (e-f). We show that in general a sufficient condition for complete population removal from the g set of degenerate states for arbitrary, pure or mixed, initial state is that the degeneracies should not decrease along the sequence g, e and f. We show that when this condition holds it is possible to achieve the degenerate counterpart of conventional STIRAP, whereby adiabatic passage produces complete population transfer. Indeed, the system is equivalent to a set of independent three-state systems, in each of which a STIRAP procedure can be implemented. We describe a scheme of unitary transformations that produces this result. We also examine the cases when this degeneracy constraint does not hold, and show what can be accomplished in those cases. For example, for angular momentum states when the degeneracy of the g and f levels is less than that of the e level we show how a special choice for the pulse polarizations and phases can produce complete removal of population from the g set. Our scheme can be a powerful tool for coherent control in degenerate systems, because of its robustness when selective addressing of the states is not required or impossible. We illustrate the analysis with several analytically solvable examples, in which the degeneracies originate from angular momentum orientation, as expressed by magnetic sublevels.Comment: 21 pages, 17 figure

Competitive stochastic noises in coherently driven two-level atoms and quantum interference

A system of coherently-driven two-level atoms is analyzed in presence of two independent stochastic perturbations: one due to collisions and a second one due to phase fluctuations of the driving field. The behaviour of the quantum interference induced by the collisional noise is considered in detail. The quantum-trajectory method is utilized to reveal the phase correlations between the dressed states involved in the interfering transition channels. It is shown that the quantum interference induced by the collisional noise is remarkably robust against phase noise. This effect is due to the fact that the phase noise, similarly to collisions, stabilizes the phase-difference between the dressed states.Comment: accepted for publication in J. Opt.

Adiabatic creation of coherent superposition states via multiple intermediate states

We consider an adiabatic population transfer process that resembles the well established stimulated Raman adiabatic passage (STIRAP). In our system, the states have nonzero angular momentums $J$, therefore, the coupling laser fields induce transitions among the magnetic sublevels of the states. In particular, we discuss the possibility of creating coherent superposition states in a system with coupling pattern $J=0\Leftrightarrow J=1$ and $J=1\Leftrightarrow J=2$. Initially, the system is in the J=0 state. We show that by two delayed, overlapping laser pulses it is possible to create any final superposition state of the magnetic sublevels $|2,-2>$, $|2,0>$, $|2,+2>$. Moreover, we find that the relative phases of the applied pulses influence not only the phases of the final superposition state but the probability amplitudes as well. We show that if we fix the shape and the time-delay between the pulses, the final state space can be entirely covered by varying the polarizations and relative phases of the two pulses. Performing numerical simulations we find that our transfer process is nearly adiabatic for the whole parameter set.Comment: 7 pages, 10 figure

Ultrasound increases plasmid-mediated gene transfer to dystrophic muscles without collateral damage

Studies have shown that ultrasound, used either alone or in combination with microbubble contrast agents, can increase cell membrane permeability to plasmid DNA. Because ultrasound is a non-painful and well-established tool in clinical medicine, its potential to enhance DNA uptake into the muscles of patients with muscular dystrophy is conceptually attractive. Therefore, we evaluated the ability of ultrasound pulses (1 MHz; 1.5 W/cm2) to increase exogenous (LacZ) gene expression in normal wild-type and dystrophic Dmd(mdx/mdx) mice after plasmid DNA injection into muscle. We also ascertained whether co-injection of lipid-encapsulated perfluoropropane microbubbles (Definity) or pretreatment with hyaluronidase could further increase the level of gene transfer to ultrasound-treated muscles. The use of ultrasound did not increase transfection efficiency in normal mice. In contrast, dystrophic mice demonstrated an increase in the number of transfected fibers (threefold) as well as the amount of LacZ protein (22-fold) after ultrasound exposure, provided that Definity was also co-injected with the DNA. Pretreatment of muscles with hyaluronidase before ultrasound exposure was not effective in augmenting the level of gene transfer. Under the optimal conditions for dystrophic muscle transfection (ultrasound + Definity), there was no associated increase in muscle damage. Hence ultrasound may provide a safe and effective method for enhancing gene transfer to dystrophic muscles, thereby increasing the prospects for therapeutic application of naked DNA in muscular dystrophy patients.Peer reviewed: YesNRC publication: N

The Infrared Array Camera (IRAC) for the Spitzer Space Telescope

The Infrared Array Camera (IRAC) is one of three focal plane instruments in the Spitzer Space Telescope. IRAC is a four-channel camera that obtains simultaneous broad-band images at 3.6, 4.5, 5.8, and 8.0 microns. Two nearly adjacent 5.2x5.2 arcmin fields of view in the focal plane are viewed by the four channels in pairs (3.6 and 5.8 microns; 4.5 and 8 microns). All four detector arrays in the camera are 256x256 pixels in size, with the two shorter wavelength channels using InSb and the two longer wavelength channels using Si:As IBC detectors. IRAC is a powerful survey instrument because of its high sensitivity, large field of view, and four-color imaging. This paper summarizes the in-flight scientific, technical, and operational performance of IRAC.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures. Accepted for publication in the ApJS. A higher resolution version is at http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/irac/publication

Age- and Gender-Related Changes in Contractile Properties of Non-Atrophied EDL Muscle

Background: In humans, ageing causes skeletal muscles to become atrophied, weak, and easily fatigued. In rodent studies, ageing has been associated with significant muscle atrophy and changes in the contractile properties of the muscles. However, it is not entirely clear whether these changes in contractile properties can occur before there is significant atrophy, and whether males and females are affected differently. Methods and Results: We investigated various contractile properties of whole isolated fast-twitch EDL muscles from adult (2–6 months-old) and aged (12–22 months-old) male and female mice. Atrophy was not present in the aged mice. Compared with adult mice, EDL muscles of aged mice had significantly lower specific force, longer tetanus relaxation times, and lower fatiguability. In the properties of absolute force and muscle relaxation times, females were affected by ageing to a greater extent than males. Additionally, EDL muscles from a separate group of male mice were subjected to eccentric contractions of 15 % strain, and larger force deficits were found in aged than in adult mice. Conclusion: Our findings provide further insight into the muscle atrophy, weakness and fatiguability experienced by the elderly. We have shown that even in the absence of muscle atrophy, there are definite alterations in the physiological properties of whole fast-twitch muscle from ageing mice, and for some of these properties the alterations are mor

AAV-mediated intramuscular delivery of myotubularin corrects the myotubular myopathy phenotype in targeted murine muscle and suggests a function in plasma membrane homeostasis

Myotubular myopathy (XLMTM, OMIM 310400) is a severe congenital muscular disease due to mutations in the myotubularin gene (MTM1) and characterized by the presence of small myofibers with frequent occurrence of central nuclei. Myotubularin is a ubiquitously expressed phosphoinositide phosphatase with a muscle-specific role in man and mouse that is poorly understood. No specific treatment exists to date for patients with myotubular myopathy. We have constructed an adeno-associated virus (AAV) vector expressing myotubularin in order to test its therapeutic potential in a XLMTM mouse model. We show that a single intramuscular injection of this vector in symptomatic Mtm1-deficient mice ameliorates the pathological phenotype in the targeted muscle. Myotubularin replacement in mice largely corrects nuclei and mitochondria positioning in myofibers and leads to a strong increase in muscle volume and recovery of the contractile force. In addition, we used this AAV vector to overexpress myotubularin in wild-type skeletal muscle and get insight into its localization and function. We show that a substantial proportion of myotubularin associates with the sarcolemma and I band, including triads. Myotubularin overexpression in muscle induces the accumulation of packed membrane saccules and presence of vacuoles that contain markers of sarcolemma and T-tubules, suggesting that myotubularin is involved in plasma membrane homeostasis of myofibers. This study provides a proof-of-principle that local delivery of an AAV vector expressing myotubularin can improve the motor capacities of XLMTM muscle and represents a novel approach to study myotubularin function in skeletal muscle

Science and society in education

This booklet is for teachers who want to expand their teaching approaches to include socio-scientific issues which enrich and give meaning to core scientific principles. It is meant to enhance young people’s curiosity about the social and scientific world and raise important questions about issues which affect their lives. We call this approach Socio-Scientific Inquiry-Based Learning, or ‘SSIBL’ for short. Chapters 1 and 2 present an introduction to the theoretical background of SSIBL. In chapter 3, SSIBL will be approached from a classroom perspective, providing a simplified version of the framework and showing teaching examples

Muscle Fiber Viability, a Novel Method for the Fast Detection of Ischemic Muscle Injury in Rats

Acute lower extremity ischemia is a limb- and life-threatening clinical problem. Rapid detection of the degree of injury is crucial, however at present there are no exact diagnostic tests available to achieve this purpose. Our goal was to examine a novel technique - which has the potential to accurately assess the degree of ischemic muscle injury within a short period of time - in a clinically relevant rodent model. Male Wistar rats were exposed to 4, 6, 8 and 9 hours of bilateral lower limb ischemia induced by the occlusion of the infrarenal aorta. Additional animals underwent 8 and 9 hours of ischemia followed by 2 hours of reperfusion to examine the effects of revascularization. Muscle samples were collected from the left anterior tibial muscle for viability assessment. The degree of muscle damage (muscle fiber viability) was assessed by morphometric evaluation of NADH-tetrazolium reductase reaction on frozen sections. Right hind limbs were perfusion-fixed with paraformaldehyde and glutaraldehyde for light and electron microscopic examinations. Muscle fiber viability decreased progressively over the time of ischemia, with significant differences found between the consecutive times. High correlation was detected between the length of ischemia and the values of muscle fiber viability. After reperfusion, viability showed significant reduction in the 8-hour-ischemia and 2-hour-reperfusion group compared to the 8-hour-ischemia-only group, and decreased further after 9 hours of ischemia and 2 hours of reperfusion. Light- and electron microscopic findings correlated strongly with the values of muscle fiber viability: lesser viability values represented higher degree of ultrastructural injury while similar viability results corresponded to similar morphological injury. Muscle fiber viability was capable of accurately determining the degree of muscle injury in our rat model. Our method might therefore be useful in clinical settings in the diagnostics of acute ischemic muscle injury