Two-dimensional coherent spectroscopy of trion-polaritons and exciton-polaritons in atomically thin transition metal dichalcogenides

We present a microscopic many-body calculation of the nonlinear two-dimensional coherent spectroscopy (2DCS) of trion-polaritons and exciton-polaritons in charge-tunable transition-metal-dichalcogenides monolayers placed in an optical microcavity. The charge tunability leads to an electron gas with nonzero density that brings brightness to the trion - a polaron quasiparticle formed by an exciton with a nonzero residue bounded to the electron gas. As a result, a trion-polariton is created under strong light-matter coupling, as observed in the recent experiment by Sidler \textit{et al.} {[}Nat. Phys. \textbf{13}, 255 (2017){]}. We analyze in detail the structure of trion-polaritons, by solving an extended Chevy ansatz for the trion quasiparticle wave-function. We confirm that the effective light-matter coupling for trion-polaritons is determined by the residue of the trion quasiparticle. The solution of the full many-body polaron states within Chevy ansatz enables us to microscopically calculate the nonlinear 2DCS spectrum of both trion-polaritons and exciton-polaritons. We predict the existence of three kinds of off-diagonal cross-peaks in the 2DCS spectrum, as an indication of the coherence among the different branches of trion-polaritons and exciton-polaritons. Due to the sensitivity of 2DCS spectrum to quasiparticle interactions, our work provides a good starting point to explore the strong nonlinearity exhibited by trion-polaritons in some recent exciton-polariton experiments.Comment: 13 pages, 9 figure

The membrane-associated fraction of cyclase associate protein 1 translocates to the cytosol upon platelet stimulation

Platelets undergo profound shape changes upon adhesion to damaged blood vessel walls that are mediated by reorganisation of the actin cytoskeleton in response to receptor-mediated signalling cascades. The highly conserved 56 kDa multidomain cyclase associated protein 1 (CAP1) works in concert with cofilin and profilin to modulate actin filament turnover by facilitating cofilin-mediated actin filament severing and depolymerisation and catalysing profilin-mediated regeneration of actin monomers for reutilisation in growing filaments. CAP1 is abundant in platelets but its roles remain unexplored. We report that in suspended platelets CAP1 localises predominantly at the cell cortex whereas in spread platelets it is uniformly distributed in the cytoplasm, with enrichment at the cell cortex and the periphery of actin nodules. Upon subcellular fractionation most CAP1 was found cytosolic but part associated to the membrane fraction in an actin-independent manner. Interestingly, upon stimulation with thrombin a significant proportion of the membrane-associated CAP1 translocates to the cytosol. This relocalisation was prevented by prior treatment with PGI2 or the nitric oxide donor GSNO, or by inhibition of GSK3. Our results place CAP1 at a crossroad of signalling pathways that control platelet activation by contributing to actin remodelling at the cell cortex and actin nodules during platelet spreading

Negative Feedback Regulation of Wnt4 Signaling by EAF1 and EAF2/U19

Previous studies indicated that EAF (ELL-associated factor) family members, EAF1 and EAF2/U19, play a role in cancer and embryogenesis. For example, EAF2/U19 may serve as a tumor suppressor in prostate cancer. At the same time, EAF2/U19 is a downstream factor in the non-canonical Wnt 4 signaling pathway required for eye development in Xenopus laevis, and along with EAF1, contributes to convergence and extension movements in zebrafish embryos through Wnt maintenance. Here, we used zebrafish embryos and mammalian cells to show that both EAF1 and EAF2/U19 were up-regulated by Wnt4 (Wnt4a). Furthermore, we found that EAF1 and EAF2/U19 suppressed Wnt4 expression by directly binding to the Wnt4 promoter as seen in chromatin immunoprecipitation assays. These findings indicate that an auto-regulatory negative feedback loop occurs between Wnt4 and the EAF family, which is conserved between zebrafish and mammalian. The rescue experiments in zebrafish embryos showed that early embryonic development required the maintenance of the appropriate levels of Wnt4a through the feedback loop. Others have demonstrated that the tumor suppressors p63, p73 and WT1 positively regulate Wnt4 expression while p21 has the opposite effect, suggesting that maintenance of appropriate Wnt4 expression may also be critical for adult tissue homeostasis and prevention against tumor initiation. Thus, the auto-regulatory negative feedback loop that controls expression of Wnt4 and EAF proteins may play an important role in both embryonic development and tumor suppression. Our findings provide the first convincing line of evidence that EAF and Wnt4 form an auto-regulatory negative feedback loop in vivo

Salivary DNA loads for human herpesviruses 6 and 7 are correlated with disease phenotype in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) is a complex chronic condition affecting multiple body systems, with unknown cause, unclear pathogenesis mechanisms, and fluctuating symptoms which may lead to severe debilitation. It is frequently reported to have been triggered by an infection, but there are no clear differences in exposure to, or seroprevalence of, any particular viruses between people with ME/CFS and healthy individuals. However, herpes viruses have been repeatedly hypothesized to underlie the chronic relapsing/remitting form of MS/CFS due to their persistence in a latent form with periodic reactivation. It is possible that ME/CFS is associated with herpes virus reactivation, which has not been detectable previously due to insufficiently sensitive testing methods. Saliva samples were collected from 30 people living with ME/CFS at monthly intervals for 6 months and at times when they experienced symptom exacerbation, as well as from 14 healthy control individuals. The viral DNA load of the nine humanherpes viruses was determined by digital droplet PCR. Symptoms were assessed by questionnaire at each time point. Human herpesvirus (HHV) 6B, HHV-7, herpes simplex virus 1 and Epstein-Barr virus were detectable within the saliva samples, with higher HHV-6B and HHV-7 viral loads detected in people with ME/CFS than in healthy controls. Participants with ME/CFS could be broadly separated into two groups: one group displayed fluctuating patterns of herpesviruses detectable across the 6 months while the second group displayed more stable viral presentation. In the first group, there was positive correlation between HHV-6B and HHV-7 viral load and severity of symptom scores, including pain, neurocognition, and autonomic dysfunction. The results indicate that fluctuating viral DNA load correlates with ME/CFS symptoms: this is in accordance with the hypothesis that pathogenesis is related to herpesvirus reactivation state, and this should be formally tested. Herpesvirus reactivation might be a cause or consequence of dysregulated immune function seen in ME/CFS. The sampling strategy and molecular tools developed here permit such large-scale epidemiological investigations

The UK ME/CFS Biobank for biomedical research on Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) and Multiple Sclerosis.

The UK ME/CFS Biobank was launched in August 2011 following extensive consultation with professionals and patient representatives. The bioresource aims to enhance research on myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), related to pathophysiology, biomarkers and therapeutic approaches. The cohort includes 18-60 year olds, encompassing 284 clinically-confirmed ME/CFS cases, 60 neurologist-diagnosed multiple sclerosis (MS) cases, and 135 healthy individuals. The Biobank contains blood samples, aliquoted into serum, plasma, peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC), red blood cells/granulocyte pellet, whole blood, and RNA (totalling 29,863 aliquots). Extensive dataset (700 clinical and socio-demographic variables/participant) enables comprehensive phenotyping. Potential reuse is conditional to ethical approval

Social, Structural and Behavioral Determinants of Overall Health Status in a Cohort of Homeless and Unstably Housed HIV-Infected Men

Background: Previous studies indicate multiple influences on the overall health of HIV-infected persons; however, few assess and rank longitudinal changes in social and structural barriers that are disproportionately found in impoverished populations. We empirically ranked factors that longitudinally impact the overall health status of HIV-infected homeless and unstably housed men. Methods and Findings: Between 2002 and 2008, a cohort of 288 HIV+ homeless and unstably housed men was recruited and followed over time. The population was 60 % non-Caucasian and the median age was 41 years; 67 % of study participants reported recent drug use and 20 % reported recent homelessness. At baseline, the median CD4 cell count was 349 cells/ml and 18 % of eligible persons (CD4,350) took antiretroviral therapy (ART). Marginal structural models were used to estimate the population-level effects of behavioral, social, and structural factors on overall physical and mental health status (measured by the SF-36), and targeted variable importance (tVIM) was used to empirically rank factors by their influence. After adjusting for confounding, and in order of their influence, the three factors with the strongest negative effects on physical health were unmet subsistence needs, Caucasian race, and no reported source of instrumental support. The three factors with the strongest negative effects on mental health were unmet subsistence needs, not having a close friend/confidant, and drug use. ART adherence.90 % ranked 5th for its positive influence on mental health, and viral loa

The KIDSCREEN-52 Quality of Life Measure for Children and Adolescents (KIDSCREEN-52-HRQOL): Reliability and Validity of the Korean Version

The KIDSCREEN-52 quality-of-life (KIDSCREEN-52-HRQOL) is a relevant, worldwide tool used for assessing the health-related quality of life in children and adolescents. The purpose of this study was to define measurement properties of the Korean version of the KIDSCREEN-52 HRQOL. The original questionnaire was translated following international translation guidelines. Analysis regarding psychometric properties showed that the Cronbach-alpha ranged from 0.77 to 0.95. The correlation coefficient between the PedQL and KIDSCREEN-52 dimensions were high for the assessments of similar constructs. Therefore, the Korean version of the KIDSCREEN-52 was found to be suitable for use in Korean adolescents

FlyMine: an integrated database for Drosophila and Anopheles genomics.

FlyMine is a data warehouse that addresses one of the important challenges of modern biology: how to integrate and make use of the diversity and volume of current biological data. Its main focus is genomic and proteomics data for Drosophila and other insects. It provides web access to integrated data at a number of different levels, from simple browsing to construction of complex queries, which can be executed on either single items or lists

Dense matter with eXTP

In this White Paper we present the potential of the Enhanced X-ray Timing and Polarimetry (eXTP) mission for determining the nature of dense matter; neutron star cores host an extreme density regime which cannot be replicated in a terrestrial laboratory. The tightest statistical constraints on the dense matter equation of state will come from pulse profile modelling of accretion-powered pulsars, burst oscillation sources, and rotation-powered pulsars. Additional constraints will derive from spin measurements, burst spectra, and properties of the accretion flows in the vicinity of the neutron star. Under development by an international Consortium led by the Institute of High Energy Physics of the Chinese Academy of Science, the eXTP mission is expected to be launched in the mid 2020s.Comment: Accepted for publication on Sci. China Phys. Mech. Astron. (2019