A novel method to create a vortex in a Bose-Einstein condensate

It has been shown that a vortex in a BEC with spin degrees of freedom can be created by manipulating with external magnetic fields. In the previous work, an optical plug along the vortex axis has been introduced to avoid Majorana flips, which take place when the external magnetic field vanishes along the vortex axis while it is created. In the present work, in contrast, we study the same scenario without introducing the optical plug. The magnetic field vanishes only in the center of the vortex at a certain moment of the evolution and hence we expect that the system will lose only a fraction of the atoms by Majorana flips even in the absence of an optical plug. Our conjecture is justified by numerically solving the Gross-Pitaevskii equation, where the full spinor degrees of freedom of the order parameter are properly taken into account. A significant simplification of the experimental realization of the scenario is attained by the omission of the optical plug.Comment: 8 pages, 11 figure

W-derived BAC probes as a new tool for identification of the W chromosome and its aberrations in Bombyx mori

We isolated four W chromosome-derived bacterial artificial chromosome (W-BAC) clones from Bombyx mori BAC libraries by the polymerase chain reaction and used them as probes for fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) on chromosome preparations from B. mori females. All four W-BAC probes surprisingly highlighted the whole wild-type W sex chromosome and also identified the entire original W-chromosomal region in W chromosome-autosome translocation mutants. This is the first successful identification of a single chromosome by means of BAC-FISH in species with holokinetic chromosomes. Genomic in situ hybridization (GISH) by using female-derived genomic probes highlighted the W chromosome in a similar chromosome-painting manner. Besides the W, hybridization signals of W-BAC probes also occurred in telomeric and/or subtelomeric regions of the autosomes. These signals coincided well with those of female genomic probes except one additional GISH signal that was observed in a large heterochromatin block of one autosome pair. Our results support the opinion that the B. mori W chromosome accumulated transposable elements and other repetitive sequences that also occur, but scattered, elsewhere in the respective genome. Edited by: E.R. Schmid

Association of Human Leukocyte Antigen with Interstitial Lung Disease in Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Protective Role for Shared Epitope

INTRODUCTION: Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD) is frequently associated with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) as one of extra-articular manifestations. Many studies for Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) allelic association with RA have been reported, but few have been validated in an RA subpopulation with ILD. In this study, we investigated the association of HLA class II alleles with ILD in RA. METHODS: An association study was conducted on HLA-DRB1, DQB1, and DPB1 in 450 Japanese RA patients that were or were not diagnosed with ILD, based on the findings of computed tomography images of the chest. RESULTS: Unexpectedly, HLA-DRB1*04 (corrected P [Pc] = 0.0054, odds ratio [OR] 0.57), shared epitope (SE) (P = 0.0055, OR 0.66) and DQB1*04 (Pc = 0.0036, OR 0.57) were associated with significantly decreased risk of ILD. In contrast, DRB1*16 (Pc = 0.0372, OR 15.21), DR2 serological group (DRB1*15 and *16 alleles) (P = 0.0020, OR 1.75) and DQB1*06 (Pc = 0.0333, OR 1.57, respectively) were significantly associated with risk of ILD. CONCLUSION: HLA-DRB1 SE was associated with reduced, while DR2 serological group (DRB1*15 and *16) with increased, risk for ILD in Japanese patients with RA

Screening of cultivated and wild adzuki bean for resistance to race 3 of Cadophora gregata f. sp. adzukicola, cause of brown stem rot

Two diseases of adzuki bean, brown stem rot (BSR, caused by Cadophora gregata f. sp. adzukicola) and adzuki bean Fusarium wilt (AFW, caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. adzukicola), are serious problems in Hokkaido and have been controlled using cultivars with multiple resistance. However, because a new race of BSR, designated race 3, was identified, sources of parental adzuki bean for resistance to race 3 were needed. Therefore, we examined 67 cultivars and lines of cultivated and wild adzuki bean maintained at the Tokachi Agricultural Experiment Station using a root-dip inoculation method. Consequently, nine adzuki bean cultivars, one wild adzuki bean accession and 30 lines (including two lines resistant to all the three races of BSR and AFW) were confirmed to be resistant or tolerant to race 3 of BSR, and we found a cultivar Akamame as well as a wild adzuki bean Acc2515 to be a new source for a resistance gene to the race 3. This cultivar also holds promise as a source of resistance against other races of BSR and AFW

Asymmetric approach to the pentacyclic skeleton of Aspidosperma alkaloids via enantioselective intramolecular 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of carbonyl ylides catalyzed by chiral dirhodium(II) carboxylates

This paper describes asymmetric tandem carbonyl ylide formation-intramolecular 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reaction of diazo imides containing a tethered indole catalyzed by chiral dirhodium(II) carboxylates as an approach to the pentacyclic skeleton of Aspidosperma alkaloids. The cycloaddition of carbonyl ylides derived from indolyl-substituted 2-diazo-5-imido-3-ketoesters under the influence of dirhodium(II) tetrakis[N-tetrachlorophthaloyl-(S)-tert-leucinate], Rh2(S-TCPTTL)4, provides cycloadducts in moderate yields and enantioselectivities of up to 66% ee as well as with perfect endo diastereoselectivity. This is the first example of asymmetric induction in an intramolecular cycloaddition of a carbonyl ylide across an indolyl π-bond

Catalytic asymmetric synthesis of descurainin via 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of a carbonyl ylide using Rh2(R-TCPTTL)4

A catalytic asymmetric synthesis of descurainin has been achieved by incorporating an enantioselective 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition, a stereoselective alkene hydrogenation, an oxidation with Fremy's salt and a regioselective demethylation with NbCl5 as the key steps. The 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of a carbonyl ylide derived from tert-butyl 2-diazo-5-formyl-3-oxopetanoate with 4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenylacetylene in the presence of dirhodium(II) tetrakis[N-tetrachlorophthaloyl-(R)-tert-leucinate], Rh2(R-TCPTTL)4, provided an 8-oxabicyclo[3.2.1]octane skeleton in 95% ee

DNA markers linked to Pga1, an adzuki bean gene that confers resistance to Cadophora gregata race 1

Brown stem rot (BSR) caused by Cadophora gregata f. sp. adzukicola (syn. Phialophora gregata) is a serious soilborne disease of adzuki bean (Vigna angularis) in Japan. Cultivation of resistant cultivars is the most effective disease control method, therefore the selection of resistant lines is a priority for breeders. BSR-resistant adzuki bean lines have been screened in pathogen-infected fields. However, field selection using the pathogen and artificial inoculation methods is time-consuming and labor-intensive. In the present study, we used 105 F-3 lines derived from a cross between a BSR-resistant cultivar 'Syumari' and a susceptible cultivar 'Buchishoryukei-1' for BSR inoculation tests. Amplified fragment-length polymorphism (AFLP) analyses with 1024 primer sets revealed that six fragments were polymorphic between resistance and susceptible bulked groups. Five DNA markers (Pg77, Pg118, Pg138, Pg139 and Pg126) were developed from the nucleotide sequences of polymorphic AFLP markers and their flanking regions. Pg118, which was derived from E-ACT/M-ACT-118, was tightly linked to the resistance gene Pga1 and was converted into a codominant marker for its easier use in marker-assisted selection for adzuki bean BSR resistance. Finally, the applicability of the developed markers for BSR resistance was tested on 32 adzuki bean accessions or cultivars

Pregnancy-induced antithrombin deficiency

OBJECTIVE: Some women exhibit a gradual decline in antithrombin activity during the late stage of pregnancy. This retrospective study was performed to better characterize the laboratory features and water metabolism of such women with pregnancy-induced antithrombin deficiency (PIATD). METHODS: Among 1493 women who gave birth to a singleton infant at our institution, 114 women who developed PIATD and/or pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH) were reviewed with respect to perinatal changes in laboratory variables (hematocrit value, fibrinogen, fibrinogen degradation product, D-dimer, uric acid, aspartate aminotransferase, lactate dehydrogenase) and body weight. PIATD was defined as a gradual decline in antithrombin activity to ≤ 65% of normal activity levels. One hundred and fourteen women with neither PIATD nor pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH) and matched for the cesarean delivery rate were selected as a control group. RESULTS: Of the 81 women who developed PIH, 19 (23.4%) also developed PIATD. Thirty-three women developed PIATD in the absence of PIH. Coagulation-fibrinolysis was significantly more enhanced and the postpartum reduction in the hematocrit value was significantly larger in women with PIATD, irrespective of the presence or absence of hypertension, than in women without PIATD. The postpartum decrease in body weight was significantly smaller in women with PIATD, irrespective of the presence or absence of hypertension, than in women without PIATD. CONCLUSIONS: A decrease in antithrombin activity can occur in the absence of hypertension. Even in the absence of hypertension, a decreased plasma volume and enhanced coagulation-fibrinolysis seem to be notable characteristics in women with PIATD. The monitoring of antithrombin activity may be helpful for distinguishing pregnant women with these insidious risks