Defined factors to reactivate cell cycle activity in adult mouse cardiomyocytes.

Adult mammalian cardiomyocytes exit the cell cycle during the neonatal period, commensurate with the loss of regenerative capacity in adult mammalian hearts. We established conditions for long-term culture of adult mouse cardiomyocytes that are genetically labeled with fluorescence. This technique permits reliable analyses of proliferation of pre-existing cardiomyocytes without complications from cardiomyocyte marker expression loss due to dedifferentiation or significant contribution from cardiac progenitor cell expansion and differentiation in culture. Using this system, we took a candidate gene approach to screen for fetal-specific proliferative gene programs that can induce proliferation of adult mouse cardiomyocytes. Using pooled gene delivery and subtractive gene elimination, we identified a novel functional interaction between E2f Transcription Factor 2 (E2f2) and Brain Expressed X-Linked (Bex)/Transcription elongation factor A-like (Tceal) superfamily members Bex1 and Tceal8. Specifically, Bex1 and Tceal8 both preserved cell viability during E2f2-induced cell cycle re-entry. Although Tceal8 inhibited E2f2-induced S-phase re-entry, Bex1 facilitated DNA synthesis while inhibiting cell death. In sum, our study provides a valuable method for adult cardiomyocyte proliferation research and suggests that Bex family proteins may function in modulating cell proliferation and death decisions during cardiomyocyte development and maturation

Research on the drag reduction performance induced by the counterflowing jet for waverider with variable blunt radii

Waverider will endure the huge aero-heating in the hypersonic flow, thus, it need be blunt for the leading edge. However, the aerodynamic performance will decrease for the blunt waverider because of the drag hoik. How to improve the aerodynamic performance and reduce the drag and aero-heating is very important. The variable blunt radii method will improve the aerodynamic performance, however, the huge aero-heating and bow shock wave at the head is still serious. In the current study, opposing jet is used in the waverider with variable blunt radii to improve its performance. The three-dimensional coupled implicit Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes(RANS) equation and the two equation SST k–ω turbulence model have been utilized to obtain the flow field properties. The numerical method has been validated against the available experimental data in the open literature. The obtained results show that the L/D will drop 7–8% when R changes from 2 to 8. The lift coefficient will increase, and the drag coefficient almost keeps the same when the variable blunt radii method is adopted, and the L/D will increase. The variable blunt radii method is very useful to improve the whole characteristics of blunt waverider and the L/D can improve 3%. The combination of the variable blunt radii method and opposing jet is a novel way to improve the whole performance of blunt waverider, and L/D can improve 4–5%. The aperture as a novel way of opposing jet is suitable for blunt waverider and also useful to improve the aerodynamic and aerothermodynamic characteristics of waverider in the hypersonic flow. There is the optimal P0in/P0 that can make the detached shock wave reattach the lower surface again so that the blunt waverider can get the better aerodynamic performance

Geometries for Possible Kinematics

The algebras for all possible Lorentzian and Euclidean kinematics with $\frak{so}(3)$ isotropy except static ones are re-classified. The geometries for algebras are presented by contraction approach. The relations among the geometries are revealed. Almost all geometries fall into pairs. There exists $t \leftrightarrow 1/(\nu^2t)$ correspondence in each pair. In the viewpoint of differential geometry, there are only 9 geometries, which have right signature and geometrical spatial isotropy. They are 3 relativistic geometries, 3 absolute-time geometries, and 3 absolute-space geometries.Comment: 40 pages, 7 figure

Limits from Weak Gravity Conjecture on Dark Energy Models

The weak gravity conjecture has been proposed as a criterion to distinguish the landscape from the swampland in string theory. As an application in cosmology of this conjecture, we use it to impose theoretical constraint on parameters of two types of dark energy models. Our analysis indicates that the Chaplygin-gas-type models realized in quintessence field are in the swampland, whereas the $a$ power-low decay model of the variable cosmological constant can be viable but the parameters are tightly constrained by the conjecture.Comment: Revtex4, 8 pages, 5 figures; References, minor corrections in content, and acknowledgement adde

Consistency relation for the Lorentz invariant single-field inflation

In this paper we compute the sizes of equilateral and orthogonal shape bispectrum for the general Lorentz invariant single-field inflation. The stability of field theory implies a non-negative square of sound speed which leads to a consistency relation between the sizes of orthogonal and equilateral shape bispectrum, namely $f_{NL}^{orth.}\lesssim -0.054 f_{NL}^{equil.}$. In particular, for the single-field Dirac-Born-Infeld (DBI) inflation, the consistency relation becomes $f_{NL}^{orth.}\simeq 0.070 f_{NL}^{equil.}\lesssim 0$. These consistency relations are also valid in the mixed scenario where the quantum fluctuations of some other light scalar fields contribute to a part of total curvature perturbation on the super-horizon scale and may generate a local form bispectrum. A distinguishing prediction of the mixed scenario is $\tau_{NL}^{loc.}>({6\over 5}f_{NL}^{loc.})^2$. Comparing these consistency relations to WMAP 7yr data, there is still a big room for the Lorentz invariant inflation, but DBI inflation has been disfavored at more than 68% CL.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures; v2: title changed, some mistakes corrected; v3: refs added, version accepted for publication in JCA

Weak gravity conjecture constraints on inflation

We consider the gravitational correction to the coupling of the scalar fields. Weak gravity conjecture says that the gravitational correction to the running of scalar coupling should be less than the contribution from scalar fields. For instance, a new scale $\Lambda=\lambda_4^{1/2}M_p$ sets a UV cutoff on the validity of the effective $\lambda_4 \phi^4$ theory. Furthermore, this conjecture implies a possible constraint on the inflation model, e.g. the chaotic inflation model might be in the swampland.Comment: 11 pages, 3 figs; monor corrections; some clarifying remarks added and the final version for publication in JHE

A Tracker Solution for a Holographic Dark Energy Model

We investigate a kind of holographic dark energy model with the future event horizon the IR cutoff and the equation of state -1. In this model, the constraint on the equation of state automatically specifies an interaction between matter and dark energy. With this interaction included, an accelerating expansion is obtained as well as the transition from deceleration to acceleration. It is found that there exists a stable tracker solution for the numerical parameter $d>1$, and $d$ smaller than one will not lead to a physical solution. This model provides another possible phenomenological framework to alleviate the cosmological coincidence problem in the context of holographic dark energy. Some properties of the evolution which are relevant to cosmological parameters are also discussed.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures; accepted for publication in Int.J.Mod.Phys.

Weak gravity conjecture in the asymptotical dS and AdS background

The cosmological observations provide a strong evidence that there is a positive cosmological constant in our universe and thus the spacetime is asymptotical de Sitter space. The conjecture of gravity as the weakest force in the asymptotical dS space leads to a lower bound on the U(1) gauge coupling $g$, or equivalently, the positive cosmological constant gets an upper bound $\rho_V \leq g^2 M_p^4$ in order that the U(1) gauge theory can survive in four dimensions. This result has a simple explanation in string theory, i.e. the string scale $\sqrt{\alpha '}$ should not be greater than the size of the cosmic horizon. Our proposal in string theory can be generalized to U(N) gauge theory and gives a guideline to the microscopic explanation of the de Sitter entropy. The similar results are also obtained in the asymptotical anti-de Sitter space.Comment: 4 pages; version for publication in JHEP (title changed

Gravitational Correction and Weak Gravity Conjecture

We consider the gravitational correction to the running of gauge coupling. Weak gravity conjecture implies that the gauge theories break down when the gravitational correction becomes greater than the contribution from gauge theories. This observation can be generalized to non-Abelian gauge theories in diverse dimensions and the cases with large extra dimensions.Comment: 8 pages; minor correction and refs adde

Weak Gravity Conjecture for Noncommutative Field Theory

We investigate the weak gravity bounds on the U(1) gauge theory and scalar field theories in various dimensional noncommutative space. Many results are obtained, such as the upper bound on the noncommutative scale $g_{YM}M_p$ for four dimensional noncommutative U(1) gauge theory. We also discuss the weak gravity bounds on their commutative counterparts. For example, our result on 4 dimensional noncommutative U(1) gauge theory reduces in certain limit to its commutative counterpart suggested by Arkani-Hamed et.al at least at tree-level.Comment: 9 page