70 research outputs found
The Quark-Photon Vertex and the Pion Charge Radius
The rainbow truncation of the quark Dyson-Schwinger equation is combined with
the ladder Bethe-Salpeter equation for the dressed quark-photon vertex to study
the low-momentum behavior of the pion electromagnetic form factor. With model
gluon parameters previously fixed by the pion mass and decay constant, the pion
charge radius is found to be in excellent agreement with the data. When
the often-used Ball-Chiu Ansatz is used to construct the quark-photon vertex
directly from the quark propagator, less than half of is generated.
The remainder of is seen to be attributable to the presence of the
-pole in the solution of the ladder Bethe-Salpeter equation.Comment: 21 pages, 9 figure
Extended Superscaling of Electron Scattering from Nuclei
An extended study of scaling of the first and second kinds for inclusive
electron scattering from nuclei is presented. Emphasis is placed on the
transverse response in the kinematic region lying above the quasielastic peak.
In particular, for the region in which electroproduction of resonances is
expected to be important, approximate scaling of the second kind is observed
and the modest breaking of it is shown probably to be due to the role played by
an inelastic version of the usual scaling variable.Comment: LaTeX, 36 pages including 5 color postscript figures and 4 postscript
figure
Open Issues on the Synthesis of Evolved Stellar Populations at Ultraviolet Wavelengths
In this paper we briefly review three topics that have motivated our (and
others') investigations in recent years within the context of evolutionary
population synthesis techniques. These are: The origin of the FUV up-turn in
elliptical galaxies, the age-metallicity degeneracy, and the study of the
mid-UV rest-frame spectra of distant red galaxies. We summarize some of our
results and present a very preliminary application of a UV grid of theoretical
spectra in the analysis of integrated properties of aged stellar populations.
At the end, we concisely suggest how these topics can be tackled once the World
Space Observatory enters into operation in the midst of this decade.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in Astrophysics & Space
Science, UV Universe special issu
Shell-model calculations of neutrino scattering from 12C
Neutrino reaction cross-sections, , ,
-capture and photoabsorption rates on C are computed within a
large-basis shell-model framework, which included excitations up to
. When ground-state correlations are included with an open
-shell the predictions of the calculations are in reasonable agreement with
most of the experimental results for these reactions. Woods-Saxon radial wave
functions are used, with their asymptotic forms matched to the experimental
separation energies for bound states, and matched to a binding energy of 0.01
MeV for unbound states. For comparison purposes, some results are given for
harmonic oscillator radial functions. Closest agreement between theory and
experiment is achieved with unrestricted shell-model configurations and
Woods-Saxon radial functions. We obtain for the neutrino-absorption inclusive
cross sections: cm for the
decay-in-flight flux in agreement with the LSND datum of
cm; and cm for the decay-at-rest flux, less than the
experimental result of cm.Comment: 19 pages. ReVTeX. No figure
Superscaling of Inclusive Electron Scattering from Nuclei
We investigate the degree to which the concept of superscaling, initially
developed within the framework of the relativistic Fermi gas model, applies to
inclusive electron scattering from nuclei. We find that data obtained from the
low energy loss side of the quasielastic peak exhibit the superscaling
property, i.e., the scaling functions f(\psi') are not only independent of
momentum transfer (the usual type of scaling: scaling of the first kind), but
coincide for A \geq 4 when plotted versus a dimensionless scaling variable
\psi' (scaling of the second kind). We use this behavior to study as yet poorly
understood properties of the inclusive response at large electron energy loss.Comment: 33 pages, 12 color EPS figures, LaTeX2e using BoxedEPSF macros; email
to [email protected]
Sustained VWFâADAMTSâ13 axis imbalance and endotheliopathy in long COVID syndrome is related to immune dysfunction
Background
Prolonged recovery is common after acute SARS-CoV-2 infection; however, the pathophysiological mechanisms underpinning Long COVID syndrome remain unknown. VWF/ADAMTS-13 imbalance, dysregulated angiogenesis, and immunothrombosis are hallmarks of acute COVID-19. We hypothesized that VWF/ADAMTS-13 imbalance persists in convalescence together with endothelial cell (EC) activation and angiogenic disturbance. Additionally, we postulate that ongoing immune cell dysfunction may be linked to sustained EC and coagulation activation.
Patients and methods
Fifty patients were reviewed at a minimum of 6âweeks following acute COVID-19. ADAMTS-13, Weibel Palade Body (WPB) proteins, and angiogenesis-related proteins were assessed and clinical evaluation and immunophenotyping performed. Comparisons were made with healthy controls (n = 20) and acute COVID-19 patients (n = 36).
Results
ADAMTS-13 levels were reduced (p = 0.009) and the VWF-ADAMTS-13 ratio was increased in convalescence (p = 0.0004). Levels of platelet factor 4 (PF4), a putative protector of VWF, were also elevated (p = 0.0001). A non-significant increase in WPB proteins Angiopoietin-2 (Ang-2) and Osteoprotegerin (OPG) was observed in convalescent patients and WPB markers correlated with EC parameters. Enhanced expression of 21 angiogenesis-related proteins was observed in convalescent COVID-19. Finally, immunophenotyping revealed significantly elevated intermediate monocytes and activated CD4+ and CD8+ T cells in convalescence, which correlated with thrombin generation and endotheliopathy markers, respectively.
Conclusion
Our data provide insights into sustained EC activation, dysregulated angiogenesis, and VWF/ADAMTS-13 axis imbalance in convalescent COVID-19. In keeping with the pivotal role of immunothrombosis in acute COVID-19, our findings support the hypothesis that abnormal T cell and monocyte populations may be important in the context of persistent EC activation and hemostatic dysfunction during convalescence
Radiative Decays, Nonet Symmetry and SU(3) Breaking
We re-examine the problem of simultaneously describing in a consistent way
all radiative and leptonic decays of light mesons (V -> P gamma, P -> V gamma,
P -> gamma gamma, V -> e^+ e^-). For this purpose, we rely on the Hidden Local
Symmetry model in both its anomalous and non--anomalous sectors. We show that
the SU(3) symmetry breaking scheme proposed by Bando, Kugo and Yamawaki,
supplemented with nonet symmetry breaking in the pseudoscalar sector, allows
one to reach a nice agreement with all data, except for the K^{*+/-} radiative
decay. An extension of this breaking pattern allows one to account for this
particular decay mode too. Considered together, the whole set of radiative
decays provides a pseudoscalar mixing angle theta_P ~ -11^o and a value for
theta_V which is ~ 3^o from that of ideal mixing. We also show that it is
impossible, in a practical sense, to disentangle the effects of nonet symmetry
breaking and those of glue inside the eta', using only light meson decays.Comment: 36 pages. Published versio
ADAMTS13 regulation of VWF multimer distribution in severe COVIDâ19
Background
Consistent with fulminant endothelial cell activation, elevated plasma von Willebrand factor (VWF) antigen levels have been reported in patients with COVID-19. The multimeric size and function of VWF are normally regulated through A Disintegrin And Metalloprotease with ThrombSpondin Motif type 1 motif, member 13 (ADAMTS-13)--mediated proteolysis.
Objectives
This study investigated the hypothesis that ADAMTS-13 regulation of VWF multimer distribution may be impaired in severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection contributing to the observed microvascular thrombosis.
Patients and Methods
Patients with COVID-19 (n = 23) were recruited from the Beaumont Hospital Intensive Care Unit (ICU) in Dublin. Plasma VWF antigen, multimer distribution, ADAMTS-13 activity, and known inhibitors thereof were assessed.
Results
We observed markedly increased VWF collagen-binding activity in patients with severe COVID-19 compared to controls (median 509.1 versus 94.3 IU/dl). Conversely, plasma ADAMTS-13 activity was significantly reduced (median 68.2 IU/dl). In keeping with an increase in VWF:ADAMTS-13 ratio, abnormalities in VWF multimer distribution were common in patients with COVID-19, with reductions in high molecular weight VWF multimers. Terminal sialylation regulates VWF susceptibility to proteolysis by ADAMTS-13 and other proteases. We observed that both N- and O-linked sialylation were altered in severe COVID-19. Furthermore, plasma levels of the ADAMTS-13 inhibitors interleukin-6, thrombospondin-1, and platelet factor 4 were significantly elevated.
Conclusions
These findings support the hypothesis that SARS-CoV-2 is associated with profound quantitative and qualitative increases in plasma VWF levels, and a multifactorial down-regulation in ADAMTS-13 function. Further studies will be required to determine whether therapeutic interventions to correct ADAMTS-13-VWF multimer dysfunction may be useful in COVID-microvascular thrombosis and angiopathy
Scale-free static and dynamical correlations in melts of monodisperse and Flory-distributed homopolymers: A review of recent bond-fluctuation model studies
It has been assumed until very recently that all long-range correlations are
screened in three-dimensional melts of linear homopolymers on distances beyond
the correlation length characterizing the decay of the density
fluctuations. Summarizing simulation results obtained by means of a variant of
the bond-fluctuation model with finite monomer excluded volume interactions and
topology violating local and global Monte Carlo moves, we show that due to an
interplay of the chain connectivity and the incompressibility constraint, both
static and dynamical correlations arise on distances . These
correlations are scale-free and, surprisingly, do not depend explicitly on the
compressibility of the solution. Both monodisperse and (essentially)
Flory-distributed equilibrium polymers are considered.Comment: 60 pages, 49 figure
Horizontal Branch Stars: The Interplay between Observations and Theory, and Insights into the Formation of the Galaxy
We review HB stars in a broad astrophysical context, including both variable
and non-variable stars. A reassessment of the Oosterhoff dichotomy is
presented, which provides unprecedented detail regarding its origin and
systematics. We show that the Oosterhoff dichotomy and the distribution of
globular clusters (GCs) in the HB morphology-metallicity plane both exclude,
with high statistical significance, the possibility that the Galactic halo may
have formed from the accretion of dwarf galaxies resembling present-day Milky
Way satellites such as Fornax, Sagittarius, and the LMC. A rediscussion of the
second-parameter problem is presented. A technique is proposed to estimate the
HB types of extragalactic GCs on the basis of integrated far-UV photometry. The
relationship between the absolute V magnitude of the HB at the RR Lyrae level
and metallicity, as obtained on the basis of trigonometric parallax
measurements for the star RR Lyrae, is also revisited, giving a distance
modulus to the LMC of (m-M)_0 = 18.44+/-0.11. RR Lyrae period change rates are
studied. Finally, the conductive opacities used in evolutionary calculations of
low-mass stars are investigated. [ABRIDGED]Comment: 56 pages, 22 figures. Invited review, to appear in Astrophysics and
Space Scienc
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