UBVRI photopolarimetry of the long period eclipsing AM Herculis binary V1309

We report simultaneous UBVRI photo-polarimetric observations of the long period (7.98 h) AM Her binary V1309 Ori. The length and shape of the eclipse ingress and egress varies from night to night. We suggest this is due to the variation in the brightness of the accretion stream. By comparing the phases of circular polarization zero-crossovers with previous observations, we confirm that V1309 Ori is well synchronized, and find an upper limit of 0.002 percent for the difference between the spin and orbital periods. We model the polarimetry data using a model consisting of two cyclotron emission regions at almost diametrically opposite locations, and centered at colatitude 35 (deg) and 145 (deg) on the surface of the white dwarf. We also present archive X-ray observations which show that the negatively polarised accretion region is X-ray bright.Comment: 11 pages, 12 figures (2 colour), Fig1 and Fig 4 are in lower resolution than in original paper, accepted for publication in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Societ

Presentation and Outcomes After Medical and Surgical Treatment Versus Medical Treatment Alone of Spontaneous Infectious Spondylodiscitis: A Systematic Literature Review and Meta-Analysis.

Study Design: Systematic literature review. Objectives: The aims of this study were to (1) describe the clinical features, disabilities, and incidence of neurologic deficits of pyogenic spondylodiscitis prior to treatment and (2) compare the functional outcomes between patients who underwent medical treatment alone or in combination with surgery for pyogenic spondylodiscitis. Methods: A systematic literature review was performed using PubMed according to PRISMA guidelines. No year restriction was put in place. Statistical analysis of pooled data, when documented in the original report (ie, number of patients with desired variable and number of patients evaluated), was conducted to determine the most common presenting symptoms, incidence of pre- and postoperative neurologic deficits, associated comorbidities, infectious pathogens, approach for surgery when performed, and duration of hospitalization. Outcomes data, including return to work status, resolution of back pain, and functional recovery were also pooled among all studies and surgery-specific studies alone. Meta-analysis of studies with subgroup analysis of pain-free outcome in surgical and medical patients was performed. Results: Fifty of 1286 studies were included, comprising 4173 patients undergoing either medical treatment alone or in combination with surgery. Back pain was the most common presenting symptom, reported in 91% of patients. Neurologic deficit was noted in 31% of patients. Conclusion: Medical management remains first-line treatment of infectious pyogenic spondylodiscitis. Surgery may be indicated for progressive pain, persistent infection on imaging, deformity or neurologic deficits. If surgery is required, reported literature shows potential for significant pain reduction, improved neurologic function and a high number of patients returning to a normal functional/work status

Integron Gene Cassettes: A Repository of Novel Protein Folds with Distinct Interaction Sites

Mobile gene cassettes captured within integron arrays encompass a vast and diverse pool of genetic novelty. In most cases, functional annotation of gene cassettes directly recovered by cassette-PCR is obscured by their characteristically high sequence novelty. This inhibits identification of those specific functions or biological features that might constitute preferential factors for lateral gene transfer via the integron system. A structural genomics approach incorporating x-ray crystallography has been utilised on a selection of cassettes to investigate evolutionary relationships hidden at the sequence level. Gene cassettes were accessed from marine sediments (pristine and contaminated sites), as well as a range of Vibrio spp. We present six crystal structures, a remarkably high proportion of our survey of soluble proteins, which were found to possess novel folds. These entirely new structures are diverse, encompassing all-α, α+β and α/β fold classes, and many contain clear binding pocket features for small molecule substrates. The new structures emphasise the large repertoire of protein families encoded within the integron cassette metagenome and which remain to be characterised. Oligomeric association is a notable recurring property common to these new integron-derived proteins. In some cases, the protein-protein contact sites utilised in homomeric assembly could instead form suitable contact points for heterogeneous regulator/activator proteins or domains. Such functional features are ideal for a flexible molecular componentry needed to ensure responsive and adaptive bacterial functions.13 page(s

Democratic cultural policy : democratic forms and policy consequences

The forms that are adopted to give practical meaning to democracy are assessed to identify what their implications are for the production of public policies in general and cultural policies in particular. A comparison of direct, representative, democratic elitist and deliberative versions of democracy identifies clear differences between them in terms of policy form and democratic practice. Further elaboration of these differences and their consequences are identified as areas for further research

Lead-Free Perovskite-Inspired Absorbers for Indoor Photovoltaics

With the exponential rise in the market value and number of devices part of the Internet of Things (IoT), the demand for indoor photovoltaics (IPV) to power autonomous devices is predicted to rapidly increase. Lead-free perov skite-inspired materials (PIMs) have recently attracted significant attention in photovoltaics research, due to the similarity of their electronic structure to high-performance lead-halide perovskites, but without the same toxicity limitations. However, the capability of PIMs for indoor light harvesting has not yet been considered. Herein, two exemplar PIMs, BiOI and CsSbClxI-x are examined. It is shown that while their bandgaps are too wide for single-junction solar cells, they are close to the optimum for indoor light harvesting. As a result, while BiOI and CsSbClxI-x devices are only circa %-ecient under -sun illumination, their eciencies increase to –% under indoor illumination. These eciencies are within the range of reported values for hydrogenated amorphous silicon, i.e., the industry standard for IPV. It is demonstrated that such performance levels are already sucient for millimeter-scale PIM devices to power thin-film-transistor circuits. Intensity-dependent and optical loss analyses show that future improvements in eciency are possible. Furthermore, calculations of the optically limited eciency of these and other low-toxicity PIMs reveal their considerable potential for IPV, thus encouraging future eorts for their exploration for powering IoT devic

Phase II trial of Modified Vaccinia Ankara (MVA) virus expressing 5T4 and high dose Interleukin-2 (IL-2) in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Interleukin-2 (IL-2) induces durable objective responses in a small cohort of patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) but the antigen(s) responsible for tumor rejection are not known. 5T4 is a non-secreted membrane glycoprotein expressed on clear cell and papillary RCCs. A modified vaccinia virus Ankara (MVA) encoding 5T4 was tested in combination with high-dose IL-2 to determine the safety, objective response rate and effect on humoral and cell-mediated immunity.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>25 patients with metastatic RCC who qualified for IL-2 were eligible and received three immunizations every three weeks followed by IL-2 (600,000 IU/kg) after the second and third vaccinations. Blood was collected for analysis of humoral, effector and regulatory T cell responses.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>There were no serious vaccine-related adverse events. While no objective responses were observed, three patients (12%) were rendered disease-free after nephrectomy or resection of residual metastatic disease. Twelve patients (48%) had stable disease which was associated with improved median overall survival compared to patients with progressive disease (not reached vs. 28 months, p = 0.0261). All patients developed 5T4-specific antibody responses and 13 patients had an increase in 5T4-specific T cell responses. Although the baseline frequency of Tregs was elevated in all patients, those with stable disease showed a trend toward increased effector CD8+ T cells and a decrease in Tregs.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p><b>V</b>accination with MVA-5T4 did not improve objective response rates of IL-2 therapy but did result in stable disease associated with an increase in the ratio of 5T4-specific effector to regulatory T cells in selected patients.</p> <p>Trial registration number</p> <p>ISRCTN83977250</p

Conversion of descriptor representations to state-space form: an extension of the shuffle algorithm

This paper proposes a systematic procedure for the determination of state-space models from an available descriptor representation of a linear dynamic system. The goal is to determine a state equation, a set of algebraic equations and an output equation in terms of the state and input variables. It is shown that standard methods may fail to convert the descriptor representation to state-space form, even for simple electrical circuit models obtained from Kirchoff’s laws and constitutive element equations. A novel procedure to address this problem is then proposed as an extension of the classic shuffle algorithm combined with a singular value decomposition approach. In addition to an illustrative example involving a simple electrical circuit, the proposed method is employed in a case study involving the modeling of three-dimensional RLC networks with a large number of components