146 research outputs found
Frame Combination Techniques for Ultra High-Contrast Imaging
We summarize here an experimental frame combination pipeline we developed for
ultra high-contrast imaging with systems like the upcoming VLT SPHERE
instrument. The pipeline combines strategies from the Drizzle technique, the
Spitzer IRACproc package, and homegrown codes, to combine image sets that may
include a rotating field of view and arbitrary shifts between frames. The
pipeline is meant to be robust at dealing with data that may contain non-ideal
effects like sub-pixel pointing errors, missing data points, non-symmetrical
noise sources, arbitrary geometric distortions, and rapidly changing point
spread functions. We summarize in this document individual steps and
strategies, as well as results from preliminary tests and simulations.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures, SPIE conference pape
A Method for the Quantification of Intracellular Zidovudine Nucleotides
An assay to quantify the phosphorylation products of zidovudine (AZT) in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) was developed. Extracts of PBMC were separated by high-performance liquid chromatography. Eluted AZT mono- (MP), di- (DP), and triphosphate (TP) were collected in separate portions. Treatment with alkaline phosphatase yielded equimolar amounts ofAZT, which after solid-phase enrichment were assayed by radioimmunoassay. Detection limit was 0.1 pmol/106 PBMC for each nucleotide. Recoveries of 102%-118% were observed. AZT nucleotides were measured in samples from three patients receiving 250 mg ofAZT every 12 h. Intracellular concentrations of AZT-MP after 1-2 h ranged from 0.9 to 1.4 pmol/106 PBMC and then declined to 0.3-1.1 pmol/106 PBMC after 4 h. AZT-DP and AZT-TP reached concentrations of 0.3-0.5 pmol/106 PBMC after 1-2 h and could not be detected after 4 h in any of the three patients. Duplicate determinations deviated by <20
Influence of molecular temperature on the coherence of fullerenes in a near-field interferometer
We study C70 fullerene matter waves in a Talbot-Lau interferometer as a
function of their temperature. While the ideal fringe visibility is observed at
moderate molecular temperatures, we find a gradual degradation of the
interference contrast if the molecules are heated before entering the
interferometer. A method is developed to assess the distribution of the
micro-canonical temperatures of the molecules in free flight. This way the
heating-dependent reduction of interference contrast can be compared with the
predictions of quantum theory. We find that the observed loss of coherence
agrees quantitatively with the expected decoherence rate due to the thermal
radiation emitted by the hot molecules.Comment: 11 pages, 9 figure
Collisional decoherence observed in matter wave interferometry
We study the loss of spatial coherence in the extended wave function of
fullerenes due to collisions with background gases. From the gradual
suppression of quantum interference with increasing gas pressure we are able to
support quantitatively both the predictions of decoherence theory and our
picture of the interaction process. We thus explore the practical limits of
matter wave interferometry at finite gas pressures and estimate the required
experimental vacuum conditions for interferometry with even larger objects.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
The secret chambers in the Chephren Pyramid
Pyramids are the greatest architectural achievement of ancient civilization,
so people all over the world are curious as to the purpose of such huge
constructions. No other structure has been studied as thoroughly, nor have so
many books and articles been written about it. We created a computer model of
the pyramid. To validate the model, we compare our calculations with the
experimental data of Luis W. Alvarez. The fact that the Egyptians set up 2.5
million stone blocks without any purpose seems to be unimaginable. Therefore,
we attempt to examine the internal structure of the pyramid using muon
tomography. With our measurements we performed and verified a calibration of
the attenuation of muons for primary beam momenta of 2.5 GeV/c and 3 GeV/c at
the T9 experimental area of CERN.Comment: The authors of the paper are winners of the CERN Beamline for Schools
2016 competition. To be submitted to the
journal Physics Educatio
Decoherence of matter waves by thermal emission of radiation
Emergent quantum technologies have led to increasing interest in decoherence
- the processes that limit the appearance of quantum effects and turn them into
classical phenomena. One important cause of decoherence is the interaction of a
quantum system with its environment, which 'entangles' the two and distributes
the quantum coherence over so many degrees of freedom as to render it
unobservable. Decoherence theory has been complemented by experiments using
matter waves coupled to external photons or molecules, and by investigations
using coherent photon states, trapped ions and electron interferometers. Large
molecules are particularly suitable for the investigation of the
quantum-classical transition because they can store much energy in numerous
internal degrees of freedom; the internal energy can be converted into thermal
radiation and thus induce decoherence. Here we report matter wave
interferometer experiments in which C70 molecules lose their quantum behaviour
by thermal emission of radiation. We find good quantitative agreement between
our experimental observations and microscopic decoherence theory. Decoherence
by emission of thermal radiation is a general mechanism that should be relevant
to all macroscopic bodies.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
Theory of decoherence in a matter wave Talbot-Lau interferometer
We present a theoretical framework to describe the effects of decoherence on
matter waves in Talbot-Lau interferometry. Using a Wigner description of the
stationary beam the loss of interference contrast can be calculated in closed
form. The formulation includes both the decohering coupling to the environment
and the coherent interaction with the grating walls. It facilitates the
quantitative distinction of genuine quantum interference from the expectations
of classical mechanics. We provide realistic microscopic descriptions of the
experimentally relevant interactions in terms of the bulk properties of the
particles and show that the treatment is equivalent to solving the
corresponding master equation in paraxial approximation.Comment: 20 pages, 4 figures (minor corrections; now in two-column format
Performance of a Multiplex Serological Helicobacter pylori Assay on a Novel Microfluidic Assay Platform
International audienceInfection with Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) occurs in 50% of the world population, and is associated with the development of ulcer and gastric cancer. Serological diagnostic tests indicate an H. pylori infection by detecting antibodies directed against H. pylori proteins. In addition to line blots, multiplex assay platforms provide smart solutions for the simultaneous analysis of antibody responses towards several H. pylori proteins. We used seven H. pylori proteins (FliD, gGT, GroEL, HpaA, CagA, VacA, and HP0231) and an H. pylori lysate for the development of a multiplex serological assay on a novel microfluidic platform. The reaction limited binding regime in the microfluidic channels allows for a short incubation time of 35 min. The developed assay showed very high sensitivity (99%) and specificity (100%). Besides sensitivity and specificity, the technical validation (intra-assay CV = 3.7 ± 1.2% and inter-assay CV = 5.5 ± 1.2%) demonstrates that our assay is also a robust tool for the analysis of the H. pylori-specific antibody response. The integration of the virulence factors CagA and VacA allow for the assessment of the risk for gastric cancer development. The short assay time and the performance of the platform shows the potential for implementation of such assays in a clinical setting
Development of a Bead-Based Multiplex Assay for the Analysis of the Serological Response against the Six Pathogens HAV, HBV, HCV, CMV, T. gondii, and H. pylori
The spread of infectious diseases and vaccination history are common subjects of epidemiological and immunological research studies. Multiplexed serological assays are useful tools for assessing both current and previous infections as well as vaccination efficacy. We developed a serological multi-pathogen assay for hepatitis A, B and C virus, cytomegalovirus (CMV), Toxoplasma gondii, and Helicobacter pylori using a bead-based multiplex assay format. The multi-pathogen assay consisting of 15 antigens was utilized for the analysis of the serological response in elderly individuals of an influenza vaccination study (n = 34). The technical assay validation revealed a mean intra-assay precision of coefficient of variation (CV) = 3.2 ± 1.5% and a mean inter-assay precision of CV = 8.2 ± 5.3% across all 15 antigens and all tested samples, indicating a robust test system. Furthermore, the assay shows high sensitivities (ranging between 94% and 100%) and specificities (ranging between 93% and 100%) for the different pathogens. The highest seroprevalence rates in our cohort were observed for hepatitis A virus (HAV; 73.5%), followed by CMV (70.6%), T. gondii (67.6%) and H. pylori (32.4%). Seroprevalences for hepatitis B virus (HBV, 8.8%) and hepatitis C virus (HCV, 0%) were low. The seroprevalences observed in our study were similar to those from other population-based studies in Germany. In summary, we conclude that our multiplex serological assay represents a suitable tool for epidemiological studies
Coordinating Role of RXR alpha in Downregulating Hepatic Detoxification during Inflammation Revealed by Fuzzy-Logic Modeling
During various inflammatory processes circulating cytokines including IL-6, IL-1 beta, and TNF alpha elicit a broad and clinically relevant impairment of hepatic detoxification that is based on the simultaneous downregulation of many drug metabolizing enzymes and transporter genes. To address the question whether a common mechanism is involved we treated human primary hepatocytes with IL-6, the major mediator of the acute phase response in liver, and characterized acute phase and detoxification responses in quantitative gene expression and (phospho-)proteomics data sets. Selective inhibitors were used to disentangle the roles of JAK/STAT, MAPK, and PI3K signaling pathways. A prior knowledge-based fuzzy logic model comprising signal transduction and gene regulation was established and trained with perturbation-derived gene expression data from five hepatocyte donors. Our model suggests a greater role of MAPK/PI3K compared to JAK/STAT with the orphan nuclear receptor RXR alpha playing a central role in mediating transcriptional downregulation. Validation experiments revealed a striking similarity of RXRa gene silencing versus IL-6 induced negative gene regulation (r(s) = 0.79;P<0.0001). These results concur with RXRa functioning as obligatory heterodimerization partner for several nuclear receptors that regulate drug and lipid metabolism
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