Dense stellar matter with trapped neutrinos under strong magnetic fields

We investigate the effects of strong magnetic fields on the equation of state of dense stellar neutrino-free and neutrino-trapped matter. Relativistic nuclear models both with constant couplings (NLW) and with density dependent parameters (DDRH) and including hyperons are considered . It is shown that at low densities neutrinos are suppressed in the presence of the magnetic field. The magnetic field reduces the strangeness fraction of neutrino-free matter and increases the strangeness fraction of neutrino-trapped matter. The mass-radius relation of stars described by these equations of state are determined. The magnetic field makes the overall equation of state stiffer and the stronger the field the larger the mass of maximum mass star and the smaller the baryon density at the center of the star. As a consequence in the presence of strong magnetic fields the possibility that a protoneutron star evolves to a blackhole is smaller.Comment: 18 pages, 13 figures, 5 tables, submitted to J. Phys.

Quark-hadron phase transition in a neutron star under strong magnetic fields

We study the effect of a strong magnetic field on the properties of neutron stars with a quark-hadron phase transition. It is shown that the magnetic field prevents the appearance of a quark phase, enhances the leptonic fraction, decreases the baryonic density extension of the mixed phase and stiffens the total equation of state, including both the stellar matter and the magnetic field contributions. Two parametrisations of a density dependent static magnetic field, increasing, respectively, fast and slowly with the density and reaching $2-4\times 10^{18}$G in the center of the star, are considered. The compact stars with strong magnetic fields have maximum mass configurations with larger masses and radius and smaller quark fractions. The parametrisation of the magnetic field with density has a strong influence on the star properties.Comment: 15 pages, 6 figures, 8 tables, accepted for publication in J. Phys.

Isolated radial volar dislocation of the fifth carpometacarpal joint :A rare injury

Isolated palmar dislocation of the fifth carpometacarpal joint is an uncommon injury and classified as radio-palmar or ulno-palmar according to the direction of displacement of the fifth metacarpal base . This very rare injury is often  difficult to recognize. A careful neurologic assessment of the patient is a  necessity, as well as obtaining proper radiographs of the hand. The purpose of this report is to present a patient with a pure isolated volar dislocation of the fifth carpometacarpal joint that was satisfactorily treated with closed  reduction and casting. A review of the literature is presente

Differential performance of two forage species, Medicago truncatula and Sulla carnosa, under water-deficit stress and recovery

The response patterns during water deficit stress and subsequent recovery of two forage species, Medicago truncatula and Sulla carnosa, were studied. After germination and pre-treatment, seedlings were individually cultivated for two months under two irrigation modes: 100% and 33% of field capacity. Measured parameters were plant growth, water relations, leaf osmotic potential, lipid peroxidation, and leaf inorganic (Na+ and K+) and organic (proline and soluble sugars) solute contents, as well as delta-1-pyrroline-5-carboxylate synthase (P5CS) and proline dehydrogenase (PDH) activities. Our results showed that under control conditions, and in contrast to roots, no significant differences were observed in shoot biomass production between the two species. However, when subjected to water-deficit stress, M. truncatula appeared to be more tolerant than S. carnosa (reduction by 50 and 70%, respectively). In the two studied species, water-deficit stress led to an increase in root/shoot ratio and leaf proline and soluble sugar contents, and a decrease in leaf osmotic potential. Enzymatic assay revealed that in the two species, P5CS activity was stimulated whereas that of PDH was inhibited under stress conditions. Despite greater accumulation of proline, sugar, and potassium in leaves of S. carnosa, M. truncatula was more tolerant to water deficit. This was essentially due to its capacity to control tissue hydration and water-use efficiency, in addition to its greater ability to protect membrane integrity. Following stress relief, M. truncatula and S. carnosa showed partial re-establishment of growth capacity

Cdkn2a deficiency promotes adipose tissue browning.

Genome-wide association studies have reported that DNA polymorphisms at the CDKN2A locus modulate fasting glucose in human and contribute to type 2 diabetes (T2D) risk. Yet the causal relationship between this gene and defective energy homeostasis remains elusive. Here we sought to understand the contribution of Cdkn2a to metabolic homeostasis. We first analyzed glucose and energy homeostasis from Cdkn2a-deficient mice subjected to normal or high fat diets. Subsequently Cdkn2a-deficient primary adipose cells and human-induced pluripotent stem differentiated into adipocytes were further characterized for their capacity to promote browning of adipose tissue. Finally CDKN2A levels were studied in adipocytes from lean and obese patients. We report that Cdkn2a deficiency protects mice against high fat diet-induced obesity, increases energy expenditure and modulates adaptive thermogenesis, in addition to improving insulin sensitivity. Disruption of Cdkn2a associates with increased expression of brown-like/beige fat markers in inguinal adipose tissue and enhances respiration in primary adipose cells. Kinase activity profiling and RNA-sequencing analysis of primary adipose cells further demonstrate that Cdkn2a modulates gene networks involved in energy production and lipid metabolism, through the activation of the Protein Kinase A (PKA), PKG, PPARGC1A and PRDM16 signaling pathways, key regulators of adipocyte beiging. Importantly, CDKN2A expression is increased in adipocytes from obese compared to lean subjects. Moreover silencing CDKN2A expression during human-induced pluripotent stem cells adipogenic differentiation promoted UCP1 expression. Our results offer novel insight into brown/beige adipocyte functions, which has recently emerged as an attractive therapeutic strategy for obesity and T2D. Modulating Cdkn2a-regulated signaling cascades may be of interest for the treatment of metabolic disorders

Evaluating the Performance of Skeleton-Based High Level Parallel Programs

We show in this paper how to evaluate the performance of skeleton-based high level parallel programs. Since many applications follow some commonly used algorithmic skeletons, we identify such skeletons and model them with process algebra in order to get relevant information about the performance of the application, and be able to take some "good" scheduling decisions. This concept is illustrated through the case study of the Pipeline skeleton, and a tool which generates automatically a set of models and solves them is presented. Some numerical results are provided, proving the efficiency of this approach

Magnetism in Dense Quark Matter

We review the mechanisms via which an external magnetic field can affect the ground state of cold and dense quark matter. In the absence of a magnetic field, at asymptotically high densities, cold quark matter is in the Color-Flavor-Locked (CFL) phase of color superconductivity characterized by three scales: the superconducting gap, the gluon Meissner mass, and the baryonic chemical potential. When an applied magnetic field becomes comparable with each of these scales, new phases and/or condensates may emerge. They include the magnetic CFL (MCFL) phase that becomes relevant for fields of the order of the gap scale; the paramagnetic CFL, important when the field is of the order of the Meissner mass, and a spin-one condensate associated to the magnetic moment of the Cooper pairs, significant at fields of the order of the chemical potential. We discuss the equation of state (EoS) of MCFL matter for a large range of field values and consider possible applications of the magnetic effects on dense quark matter to the astrophysics of compact stars.Comment: To appear in Lect. Notes Phys. "Strongly interacting matter in magnetic fields" (Springer), edited by D. Kharzeev, K. Landsteiner, A. Schmitt, H.-U. Ye

Cross-tolerance to abiotic stresses in halophytes: Application for phytoremediation of organic pollutants

International audienceHalopytes are plants able to tolerate high salt concentrations but no clear definition was retained for them. In literature, there are more studies that showed salt-enhanced tolerance to other abiotic stresses compared to investigations that found enhanced salt tolerance by other abiotic stresses in halophytes. The phenomenon by which a plant resistance to a stress induces resistance to another is referred to as cross-tolerance. In this work, we reviewed cross-tolerance in halophytes at the physiological, biochemical, and molecular levels. A special attention was accorded to the cross-tolerance between salinity and organic pollutants that could allow halophytes a higher potential of xenobiotic phytoremediation in comparison with glycophytes

Hybrid Stars in a Strong Magnetic Field

We study the effects of high magnetic fields on the particle population and equation of state of hybrid stars using an extended hadronic and quark SU(3) non-linear realization of the sigma model. In this model the degrees of freedom change naturally from hadrons to quarks as the density and/or temperature increases. The effects of high magnetic fields and anomalous magnetic moment are visible in the macroscopic properties of the star, such as mass, adiabatic index, moment of inertia, and cooling curves. Moreover, at the same time that the magnetic fields become high enough to modify those properties, they make the star anisotropic.Comment: Revised version with updated reference

Lattice QCD Simulations in External Background Fields

We discuss recent results and future prospects regarding the investigation, by lattice simulations, of the non-perturbative properties of QCD and of its phase diagram in presence of magnetic or chromomagnetic background fields. After a brief introduction to the formulation of lattice QCD in presence of external fields, we focus on studies regarding the effects of external fields on chiral symmetry breaking, on its restoration at finite temperature and on deconfinement. We conclude with a few comments regarding the effects of electromagnetic background fields on gluodynamics.Comment: 31 pages, 10 figures, minor changes and references added. To appear in Lect. Notes Phys. "Strongly interacting matter in magnetic fields" (Springer), edited by D. Kharzeev, K. Landsteiner, A. Schmitt, H.-U. Ye