Coherent matter wave inertial sensors for precision measurements in space

We analyze the advantages of using ultra-cold coherent sources of atoms for matter-wave interferometry in space. We present a proof-of-principle experiment that is based on an analysis of the results previously published in [Richard et al., Phys. Rev. Lett., 91, 010405 (2003)] from which we extract the ratio h/m for 87Rb. This measurement shows that a limitation in accuracy arises due to atomic interactions within the Bose-Einstein condensate

Role of the hyporheic heterotrophic biofilm on transformation and toxicity of pesticides

The role of heterotrophic biofilm of water–sediment interface in detoxification processes was tested in abiotic and biotic conditions under laboratory conditions. Three toxicants, a herbicide (Diuron), a fungicide (Dimethomorph) and an insecticide (Chlorpyrifos-ethyl) have been tested in water percolating into columns reproducing hyporheic sediment. The detoxification processes were tested by comparing the water quality after 18 days of percolation with and without heterotrophic biofilm. Tested concentrations were 30 mg.Lx1 of Diuron diluted in 0.1% dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), 2 mg.Lx1 of Dimethomorph and 0.1 mg.Lx1 of Chlorpyrifos-ethyl. To characterise the detoxification efficiency of the system, we performed genotoxicity bioassays in amphibian larvae and rotifers and measured the respiration and denitrification of sediments. Although the presence of biofilm increased the production of N-(3,4 dichlorophenyl)-N-(methyl)-urea, a metabolite of diuron, the toxicity did not decrease irrespective of the bioassay. In the presence of biofilm, Dimethomorph concentrations decreased compared with abiotic conditions, from 2 mg.Lx1 to 0.4 mg.Lx1 after 18 days of percolation. For both Dimethomorph and Chlorpyrifos-ethyl additions, assessment of detoxification level by the biofilm depended on the test used: detoxification effect was found with amphibian larvae bioassay and no detoxification was observed with the rotifer test. Heterotrophic biofilm exerts a major influence in the biochemical transformation of contaminants such as pesticides, suggesting that the interface between running water and sediment plays a role in self-purification of stream reaches

An integrative geochronological framework for the pleistocene So'a basin (Flores, Indonesia), and its implications for faunal turnover and hominin arrival

Flores represents a unique insular environment with an extensive record of Pleistocene fossil remains and stone artefacts. In the So\u27a Basin of central Flores these include endemic Stegodon, Komodo dragons, giant tortoises, rats, birds and hominins, and lithic artefacts that can be traced back to at least one million years ago (1 Ma). This comprehensive review presents important new data regarding the dating and faunal sequence of the So\u27a Basin, including the site of Mata Menge where Homo floresiensis-like fossils dating to approximately 0.7 Ma were discovered in 2014. By chemical fingerprinting key silicic tephra originating from local and distal eruptive sources we have now established basin-wide tephrostratigraphic correlations, and, together with new numerical ages, present an update of the chronostratigraphy of the So\u27a Basin, with major implications for the faunal sequence. These results show that a giant tortoise and the diminutive proboscidean Stegodon sondaari last occurred at the site of Tangi Talo ∼1.3 Ma, and not 0.9 Ma as previously thought. We also present new data suggesting that the disappearance of giant tortoise and S. sondaari from the sedimentary record occurred before, and/or was coincident with, the earliest hominin arrival, as evidenced by the first records of lithic artefacts occurring directly below the 1 Ma Wolo Sege Tephra. Artefacts become common in the younger layers, associated with a distinct fauna characterized by the medium-sized Stegodon florensis and giant rat Hooijeromys nusatenggara. Furthermore, we describe a newly discovered terrace fill, which extends the faunal record of Stegodon in the So\u27a Basin to the Late Pleistocene. Our evidence also suggests that the paleoenvironment of the So\u27a Basin became drier around the time of the observed faunal transition and arrival of hominins on the island, which could be related to an astronomically-forced climate response at the onset of the Mid-Pleistocene Transition (MPT; ∼1.25 Ma) leading to increased aridity and monsoonal intensity

The Physarum polycephalum Genome Reveals Extensive Use of Prokaryotic Two-Component and Metazoan-Type Tyrosine Kinase Signaling

Physarum polycephalum is a well-studied microbial eukaryote with unique experimental attributes relative to other experimental model organisms. It has a sophisticated life cycle with several distinct stages including amoebal, flagellated, and plasmodial cells. It is unusual in switching between open and closed mitosis according to specific life-cycle stages. Here we present the analysis of the genome of this enigmatic and important model organism and compare it with closely related species. The genome is littered with simple and complex repeats and the coding regions are frequently interrupted by introns with a mean size of 100 bases. Complemented with extensive transcriptome data, we define approximately 31,000 gene loci, providing unexpected insights into earlyeukaryoteevolution.Wedescribeextensiveuseofhistidinekinase-basedtwo-componentsystemsandtyrosinekinasesignaling, the presence of bacterial and plant type photoreceptors (phytochromes, cryptochrome, and phototropin) and of plant-type pentatricopeptide repeat proteins, as well as metabolic pathways, and a cell cycle control system typically found in more complex eukaryotes. Our analysis characterizes P. polycephalum as a prototypical eukaryote with features attributed to the last common ancestor of Amorphea, that is, the Amoebozoa and Opisthokonts. Specifically, the presence of tyrosine kinases inAcanthamoeba and Physarum as representatives of two distantly related subdivisions ofAmoebozoa argues against the later emergence of tyrosine kinase signaling in the opisthokont lineage and also against the acquisition by horizontal gene transfe

Meta‐analysis of echocardiographic quantification of left ventricular filling pressure

Aims The clinical reliability of echocardiographic surrogate markers of left ventricular filling pressures (LVFPs) across different cardiovascular pathologies remains unanswered. The main objective was to evaluate the evidence of how effectively different echocardiographic indices estimate true LVFP. Methods and results Design: this is a systematic review and meta‐analysis. Data source: Scopus, PubMed and Embase. Eligibility criteria for selecting studies were those that used echocardiography to predict or estimate pulmonary capillary wedge pressure or left ventricular end‐diastolic pressures. Twenty‐seven studies met criteria. Only eight studies (30%) reported both correlation coefficient and bias between non‐invasive and invasively measured LVFPs. The majority of studies (74%) recorded invasive pulmonary capillary wedge pressure as a surrogate for left ventricular end‐diastolic pressures. The pooled correlation coefficient overall was r = 0.69 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.63–0.75, P < 0.01]. Evaluation by cohort demonstrated varying association: heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (11 studies, n = 575, r = 0.59, 95% CI 0.53–0.64) and heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (8 studies, n = 381, r = 0.67, 95% CI 0.61–0.72). Conclusions Echocardiographic indices show moderate pooled association to invasively measured LVFP; however, this varies widely with disease state. In heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, no single echocardiography‐based metric offers a reliable estimate. In heart failure with reduced ejection fraction, mitral inflow‐derived indices (E/e′, E/A, E/Vp, and EDcT) have reasonable clinical applicability. While an integrated approach of several echocardiographic metrics provides the most promise for estimating LVFP reliably, such strategies need further validation in larger, patient‐specific studies

The association of body mass index with long-term clinical outcomes after ticagrelor monotherapy following abbreviated dual antiplatelet therapy in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention: a prespecified sub-analysis of the GLOBAL LEADERS Trial

Background: The efficacy of antiplatelet therapies following percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) may be affected by body mass index (BMI). Methods and results: This is a prespecified subgroup analysis of the GLOBAL LEADERS trial, a prospective, multicenter, open-label, randomized controlled trial in an all-comer population undergoing PCI, comparing the experimental strategy (23-month ticagrelor monotherapy following 1-month dual antiplatelet therapy [DAPT]) with a reference regimen (12-month aspirin monotherapy following 12-month DAPT). A total of 15,968 patients were stratified by baseline BMI with prespecified threshold of 27 kg/m2. Of those, 6973 (43.7%) patients with a BMI < 27 kg/m2 had a higher risk of all-cause mortality at 2 years than those with BMI ≥ 27 kg/m2 (adjusted HR 1.24, 95% CI 1.02–1.49). At 2 years, the rates of the primary endpoint (all-cause mortality or new Q-wave myocardial infarction) were similar between treatment strategies in either BMI group (pinteraction = 0.51). In acute coronary syndrome, however, the experimental strategy was associated with significant reduction of the primary endpoint compared to the reference strategy in patients with BMI < 27 kg/m2 (HR 0.69, 95% CI 0.51–0.94), but not in the ones with BMI ≥ 27 kg/m2 (pinteraction = 0.047). In chronic coronary syndrome, there was no between-group difference in the efficacy and safety of the two antiplatelet strategies. This is a prespecified subgroup analysis of the GLOBAL LEADERS trial, a prospective, multicenter, open-label, randomized controlled trial in an all-comer population undergoing PCI, comparing the experimental strategy (23-month ticagrelor monotherapy following 1-month dual antiplatelet therapy [DAPT]) with a reference regimen (12-month aspirin monotherapy following 12-month DAPT). A total of 15,968 patients were stratified by baseline BMI with prespecified threshold of 27 kg/m2. Of those, 6973 (43.7%) patients with a BMI < 27 kg/m2 had a higher risk of all-cause mortality at 2 years than those with BMI ≥ 27 kg/m2 (adjusted HR 1.24, 95% CI 1.02–1.49). At 2 years, the rates of the primary endpoint (all-cause mortality or new Q-wave myocardial infarction) were similar between treatment strategies in either BMI group (pinteraction = 0.51). In acute coronary syndrome, however, the experimental strategy was associated with significant reduction of the primary endpoint compared to the reference strategy in patients with BMI < 27 kg/m2 (HR 0.69, 95% CI 0.51–0.94), but not in the ones with BMI ≥ 27 kg/m2 (pinteraction = 0.047). In chronic coronary syndrome, there was no between-group difference in the efficacy and safety of the two antiplatelet strategies. This is a prespecified subgroup analysis of the GLOBAL LEADERS trial, a prospective, multicenter, open-label, randomized controlled trial in an all-comer population undergoing PCI, comparing the experimental strategy (23-month ticagrelor monotherapy following 1-month dual antiplatelet therapy [DAPT]) with a reference regimen (12-month aspirin monotherapy following 12-month DAPT). A total of 15,968 patients were stratified by baseline BMI with prespecified threshold of 27 kg/m2. Of those, 6973 (43.7%) patients with a BMI < 27 kg/m2 had a higher risk of all-cause mortality at 2 years than those with BMI ≥ 27 kg/m2 (adjusted HR 1.24, 95% CI 1.02–1.49). At 2 years, the rates of the primary endpoint (a

Supernova Interaction with a Circumstellar Medium

The explosion of a core collapse supernova drives a powerful shock front into the wind from the progenitor star. A layer of shocked circumstellar gas and ejecta develops that is subject to hydrodynamic instabilities. The hot gas can be observed directly by its X-ray emission, some of which is absorbed and re-radiated at lower frequencies by the ejecta and the circumstellar gas. Synchrotron radiation from relativistic electrons accelerated at the shock fronts provides information on the mass loss density if free-free absorption dominates at early times or the size of the emitting region if synchrotron self-absorption dominates. Analysis of the interaction leads to information on the density and structure of the ejecta and the circumstellar medium, and the abundances in these media. The emphasis here is on the physical processes related to the interaction.Comment: 22 pages, 7 figures, to appear as a Chapter in "Supernovae and Gamma-Ray Bursts," edited by K. W. Weiler (Springer-Verlag

Metabolic reprogramming involving glycolysis in the hibernating brown bear skeletal muscle

Background: In mammals, the hibernating state is characterized by biochemical adjustments, which include metabolic rate depression and a shift in the primary fuel oxidized from carbohydrates to lipids. A number of studies of hibernating species report an upregulation of the levels and/or activity of lipid oxidizing enzymes in muscles during torpor, with a concomitant downregulation for glycolytic enzymes. However, other studies provide contrasting data about the regulation of fuel utilization in skeletal muscles during hibernation. Bears hibernate with only moderate hypothermia but with a drop in metabolic rate down to ~ 25% of basal metabolism. To gain insights into how fuel metabolism is regulated in hibernating bear skeletal muscles, we examined the vastus lateralis proteome and other changes elicited in brown bears during hibernation. Results: We show that bear muscle metabolic reorganization is in line with a suppression of ATP turnover. Regulation of muscle enzyme expression and activity, as well as of circulating metabolite profiles, highlighted a preference for lipid substrates during hibernation, although the data suggested that muscular lipid oxidation levels decreased due to metabolic rate depression. Our data also supported maintenance of muscle glycolysis that could be fuelled from liver gluconeogenesis and mobilization of muscle glycogen stores. During hibernation, our data also suggest that carbohydrate metabolism in bear muscle, as well as protein sparing, could be controlled, in part, by actions of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids like docosahexaenoic acid. Conclusions: Our work shows that molecular mechanisms in hibernating bear skeletal muscle, which appear consistent with a hypometabolic state, likely contribute to energy and protein savings. Maintenance of glycolysis could help to sustain muscle functionality for situations such as an unexpected exit from hibernation that would require a rapid increase in ATP production for muscle contraction. The molecular data we report here for skeletal muscles of bears hibernating at near normal body temperature represent a signature of muscle preservation despite atrophying conditions