3,064 research outputs found
Diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging to detect synchronous uterine endometrial and endocervical adenocarcinoma
Synchronous endometrial and cervical cancer is a very rare condition. This report describes a case of a 46-year-old woman who presented with a cervical mass that measured 5.6 cm along its longest diameter, whose biopsy analysis revealed an endocervical mucinous adenocarcinoma. She was classified as having an IB2 cervical carcinoma and treated with concurrent chemoradiation plus hysterectomy. Pathological and immunohistochemical analysis of the surgical specimens revealed a synchronous endometrioid grade 2 adenocarcinoma in the endometrium, and a well-differentiated mucinous adenocarcinoma in the cervix. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies performed prior to treatment were reviewed and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) maps were generated. The ADC values demonstrated distinct signal intensity differences between the endometrial and endocervical tumors. In conclusion, diffusion-weighted MRI and ADC maps can help to distinguish the site of origin of synchronous tumors
Energy-dispersive X-ray absorption spectroscopy at LNLS: Investigation on strongly correlated metal oxides
An energy-dispersive X-ray absorption spectroscopy beamline mainly dedicated to X-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) and material science under extreme conditions has been implemented in a bending-magnet port at the Brazilian Synchrotron Light Laboratory. Here the beamline technical characteristics are described, including the most important aspects of the mechanics, optical elements and detection set-up. The beamline performance is then illustrated through two case studies on strongly correlated transition metal oxides: an XMCD insight into the modifications of the magnetic properties of Cr-doped manganites and the structural deformation in nickel perovskites under high applied pressure. Š 2010 International Union of Crystallography. Printed in Singapore - all rights reserved.Fil: Cezar, Julio C.. Laboratorio Nacional de Luz SĂncrotron; BrasilFil: Souza Neto, Narcizo M.. Laboratorio Nacional de Luz SĂncrotron; BrasilFil: Piamonteze, CĂnthia. Laboratorio Nacional de Luz SĂncrotron; BrasilFil: Tamura, Edilson. Laboratorio Nacional de Luz SĂncrotron; BrasilFil: Garcia, FlĂĄvio. Laboratorio Nacional de Luz SĂncrotron; BrasilFil: Carvalho, Edson J.. Laboratorio Nacional de Luz SĂncrotron; BrasilFil: Neueschwander, RĂŠgis T.. Laboratorio Nacional de Luz SĂncrotron; BrasilFil: Ramos, Aline Y.. Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique; FranciaFil: Tolentino, HĂŠlio C. N.. Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique; FranciaFil: Caneiro, Alberto. ComisiĂłn Nacional de EnergĂa AtĂłmica. Centro AtĂłmico Bariloche; Argentina. ComisiĂłn Nacional de EnergĂa AtĂłmica. Gerencia del Ărea de EnergĂa Nuclear. Instituto Balseiro; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂficas y TĂŠcnicas; ArgentinaFil: Massa, Nestor Emilio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂficas y TĂŠcnicas. Centro CientĂfico TecnolĂłgico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de QuĂmica InorgĂĄnica "Dr. Pedro J. Aymonino". Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de QuĂmica InorgĂĄnica "Dr. Pedro J. Aymonino"; ArgentinaFil: Martinez Lope, Maria Jesus. Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Madrid; EspaĂąa. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones CientĂficas; EspaĂąaFil: Alonso, JosĂŠ Antonio. Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Madrid; EspaĂąa. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones CientĂficas; EspaĂąaFil: ItiĂŠ, Jean Paul. L'Orme des Merisiers. Synchrotron SOLEIL; Franci
Measurement of the cosmic ray spectrum above eV using inclined events detected with the Pierre Auger Observatory
A measurement of the cosmic-ray spectrum for energies exceeding
eV is presented, which is based on the analysis of showers
with zenith angles greater than detected with the Pierre Auger
Observatory between 1 January 2004 and 31 December 2013. The measured spectrum
confirms a flux suppression at the highest energies. Above
eV, the "ankle", the flux can be described by a power law with
index followed by
a smooth suppression region. For the energy () at which the
spectral flux has fallen to one-half of its extrapolated value in the absence
of suppression, we find
eV.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO
Energy Estimation of Cosmic Rays with the Engineering Radio Array of the Pierre Auger Observatory
The Auger Engineering Radio Array (AERA) is part of the Pierre Auger
Observatory and is used to detect the radio emission of cosmic-ray air showers.
These observations are compared to the data of the surface detector stations of
the Observatory, which provide well-calibrated information on the cosmic-ray
energies and arrival directions. The response of the radio stations in the 30
to 80 MHz regime has been thoroughly calibrated to enable the reconstruction of
the incoming electric field. For the latter, the energy deposit per area is
determined from the radio pulses at each observer position and is interpolated
using a two-dimensional function that takes into account signal asymmetries due
to interference between the geomagnetic and charge-excess emission components.
The spatial integral over the signal distribution gives a direct measurement of
the energy transferred from the primary cosmic ray into radio emission in the
AERA frequency range. We measure 15.8 MeV of radiation energy for a 1 EeV air
shower arriving perpendicularly to the geomagnetic field. This radiation energy
-- corrected for geometrical effects -- is used as a cosmic-ray energy
estimator. Performing an absolute energy calibration against the
surface-detector information, we observe that this radio-energy estimator
scales quadratically with the cosmic-ray energy as expected for coherent
emission. We find an energy resolution of the radio reconstruction of 22% for
the data set and 17% for a high-quality subset containing only events with at
least five radio stations with signal.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO
Measurement of the Radiation Energy in the Radio Signal of Extensive Air Showers as a Universal Estimator of Cosmic-Ray Energy
We measure the energy emitted by extensive air showers in the form of radio
emission in the frequency range from 30 to 80 MHz. Exploiting the accurate
energy scale of the Pierre Auger Observatory, we obtain a radiation energy of
15.8 \pm 0.7 (stat) \pm 6.7 (sys) MeV for cosmic rays with an energy of 1 EeV
arriving perpendicularly to a geomagnetic field of 0.24 G, scaling
quadratically with the cosmic-ray energy. A comparison with predictions from
state-of-the-art first-principle calculations shows agreement with our
measurement. The radiation energy provides direct access to the calorimetric
energy in the electromagnetic cascade of extensive air showers. Comparison with
our result thus allows the direct calibration of any cosmic-ray radio detector
against the well-established energy scale of the Pierre Auger Observatory.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DOI.
Supplemental material in the ancillary file
Targeted Genetic Screen in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Reveals Novel Genetic Variants with Synergistic Effect on Clinical Phenotype
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is underpinned by an oligogenic rare variant architecture. Identified genetic variants of ALS include RNA-binding proteins containing prion-like domains (PrLDs). We hypothesized that screening genes encoding additional similar proteins will yield novel genetic causes of ALS. The most common genetic variant of ALS patients is a G4C2-repeat expansion within C9ORF72. We have shown that G4C2-repeat RNA sequesters RNA-binding proteins. A logical consequence of this is that loss-of-function mutations in G4C2-binding partners might contribute to ALS pathogenesis independently of and/or synergistically with C9ORF72 expansions. Targeted sequencing of genomic DNA encoding either RNA-binding proteins or known ALS genes (n = 274 genes) was performed in ALS patients to identify rare deleterious genetic variants and explore genotype-phenotype relationships. Genomic DNA was extracted from 103 ALS patients including 42 familial ALS patients and 61 young-onset (average age of onset 41 years) sporadic ALS patients; patients were chosen to maximize the probability of identifying genetic causes of ALS. Thirteen patients carried a G4C2-repeat expansion of C9ORF72. We identified 42 patients with rare deleterious variants; 6 patients carried more than one variant. Twelve mutations were discovered in known ALS genes which served as a validation of our strategy. Rare deleterious variants in RNA-binding proteins were significantly enriched in ALS patients compared to control frequencies (p = 5.31E-18). Nineteen patients featured at least one variant in a RNA-binding protein containing a PrLD. The number of variants per patient correlated with rate of disease progression (t-test, p = 0.033). We identified eighteen patients with a single variant in a G4C2-repeat binding protein. Patients with a G4C2-binding protein variant in combination with a C9ORF72 expansion had a significantly faster disease course (t-test, p = 0.025). Our data are consistent with an oligogenic model of ALS. We provide evidence for a number of entirely novel genetic variants of ALS caused by mutations in RNA-binding proteins. Moreover we show that these mutations act synergistically with each other and with C9ORF72 expansions to modify the clinical phenotype of ALS. A key finding is that this synergy is present only between functionally interacting variants. This work has significant implications for ALS therapy development
Performance and Operation of the CMS Electromagnetic Calorimeter
The operation and general performance of the CMS electromagnetic calorimeter
using cosmic-ray muons are described. These muons were recorded after the
closure of the CMS detector in late 2008. The calorimeter is made of lead
tungstate crystals and the overall status of the 75848 channels corresponding
to the barrel and endcap detectors is reported. The stability of crucial
operational parameters, such as high voltage, temperature and electronic noise,
is summarised and the performance of the light monitoring system is presented
Dynamics and determinants of SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR testing on symptomatic individuals attending healthcare centers during 2020 in Bahia, Brazil
RT-PCR testing data provides opportunities to explore regional and individual determinants of test positivity and surveillance infrastructure. Using Generalized Additive Models, we explored 222,515 tests of a random sample of individuals with COVID-19 compatible symptoms in the Brazilian state of Bahia during 2020. We found that age and male gender were the most significant determinants of test positivity. There was evidence of an unequal impact among socio-demographic strata, with higher positivity among those living in areas with low education levels during the first epidemic wave, followed by those living in areas with higher education levels in the second wave. Our estimated probability of testing positive after symptom onset corroborates previous reports that the probability decreases with time, more than halving by about two weeks and converging to zero by three weeks. Test positivity rates generally followed state-level reported cases, and while a single laboratory performed ~90% of tests covering ~99% of the state's area, test turn-around time generally remained below four days. This testing effort is a testimony to the Bahian surveillance capacity during public health emergencies, as previously witnessed during the recent Zika and Yellow Fever outbreaks
A Component of Retinal Light Adaptation Mediated by the Thyroid Hormone Cascade
Analysis with DNA-microrrays and real time PCR show that several genes involved in the thyroid hormone cascade, such as deiodinase 2 and 3 (Dio2 and Dio3) are differentially regulated by the circadian clock and by changes of the ambient light. The expression level of Dio2 in adult rats (2â3 months of age) kept continuously in darkness is modulated by the circadian clock and is up-regulated by 2 fold at midday. When the diurnal ambient light was on, the expression level of Dio2 increased by 4â8 fold and a consequent increase of the related protein was detected around the nuclei of retinal photoreceptors and of neurons in inner and outer nuclear layers. The expression level of Dio3 had a different temporal pattern and was down-regulated by diurnal light. Our results suggest that DIO2 and DIO3 have a role not only in the developing retina but also in the adult retina and are powerfully regulated by light. As the thyroid hormone is a ligand-inducible transcription factor controlling the expression of several target genes, the transcriptional activation of Dio2 could be a novel genomic component of light adaptation
- âŚ