684 research outputs found
Geodesic motions in extraordinary string geometry
The geodesic properties of the extraordinary vacuum string solution in (4+1)
dimensions are analyzed by using Hamilton-Jacobi method. The geodesic motions
show distinct properties from those of the static one. Especially, any freely
falling particle can not arrive at the horizon or singularity. There exist
stable null circular orbits and bouncing timelike and null geodesics. To get
into the horizon {or singularity}, a particle need to follow a non-geodesic
trajectory. We also analyze the orbit precession to show that the precession
angle has distinct features for each geometry such as naked singularity, black
string, and wormhole.Comment: 15 pages, 11 figure
Axial vector current in an electromagnetic field and low-energy neutrino-photon interactions
An expression for the axial vector current in a strong, slowly varying
electromagnetic field is obtained. We apply this expression to the construction
of the effective action for low-energy neutrino-photon interactions.Comment: 6 pages, references updated, final version to appear in Phys. Rev.
Neutron beam test of CsI crystal for dark matter search
We have studied the response of Tl-doped and Na-doped CsI crystals to nuclear
recoils and 's below 10 keV. The response of CsI crystals to nuclear
recoil was studied with mono-energetic neutrons produced by the
H(p,n)He reaction. This was compared to the response to Compton
electrons scattered by 662 keV -ray. Pulse shape discrimination between
the response to these 's and nuclear recoils was studied, and quality
factors were estimated. The quenching factors for nuclear recoils were derived
for both CsI(Na) and CsI(Tl) crystals.Comment: 21pages, 14figures, submitted to NIM
Characterization of a novel 4.0-kb y-type HMW-GS from Eremopyrum distans
A novel 4.0-kb Fy was sequenced and bacterially expressed. This gene, the largest y-type HMW-GS currently reported, is 4,032-bp long and encodes a mature protein with 1,321 amino acid (AA) residues. The 4.0-kb Fy shows novel modifications in all domains. In the N-terminal, it contains only 67 AA residues, as three short peptides are absent. In the repetitive domain, the undecapeptide RYYPSVTSPQQ is completely lost and the dodecapeptide GSYYPGQTSPQQ is partially absent. A novel motif unit, PGQQ, is present in addition to the two standard motif units PGQGQQ and GYYPTSPQQ. Besides, an extra cysteine residue also occurs in the middle of this domain. The large molecular mass of the 4.0-kb Fy is mainly due to the presence of an extra-long repetitive domain with 1,279 AA residues. The novel 4.0-kb Fy gene is of interest in HMW-GS gene evolution as well as to wheat quality improvement with regard to its longest repetitive domain length and extra cysteines residues
Tracking echovirus eleven outbreaks in Guangdong, China
In April 2019, a suspect cluster of enterovirus cases was reported in a neonatology department in Guangdong, China, resulting in five deaths. We aimed to investigate the pathogen profiles in fatal cases, the circulation and transmission pattern of
the viruses by combining metatranscriptomic, phylogenetic, and epidemiological analyses. Metatranscriptomic sequencing
was used to characterize the enteroviruses. Clinical and environmental surveillance in the local population was performed
to understand the prevalence and genetic diversity of the viruses in the local population. The possible source(s), evolution,
transmission, and recombination of the viruses were investigated by incorporating genomes from the current outbreak,
from local retrospective surveillance, and from public databases. Metatranscriptomic analysis identified Echovirus 11 (E11)
in three fatal cases. Seroprevalence of neutralization antibody to E11 was 35 to 44 per cent in 3â15 age groups of general population, and the viruses were associated with various clinical symptoms. From the viral phylogeny, nosocomial transmissions were identified and all E11 2019 outbreak strains were closely related with E11 strains circulating in local population 2017â19. Frequent recombination occurred among the 2019 Guangdong E11 outbreak strains and various genotypes in enterovirus B species. This study provides an example of combining advanced genetic technology and epidemiological surveillance in pathogen diagnosis, source(s), and transmission tracing during an infectious disease outbreak. The result highlights the hidden E11 circulation and the risk of viral transmission and infection in the young age population in China.
Frequent recombination between Guangdong-like strains and other enterovirus genotypes also implies the prevalence of
these emerging E11 strains
Efficacy and Safety of Nivolumab Plus Ipilimumab in Patients With Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma Previously Treated With Sorafenib The CheckMate 040 Randomized Clinical Trial
IMPORTANCE Most patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are diagnosed with
advanced disease not eligible for potentially curative therapies; therefore, new treatment
options are needed. Combining nivolumab with ipilimumab may improve clinical outcomes
compared with nivolumab monotherapy.
OBJECTIVE To assess efficacy and safety of nivolumab plus ipilimumab in patients with
advanced HCC who were previously treated with sorafenib.
DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS CheckMate 040 is a multicenter, open-label,
multicohort, phase 1/2 study. In the nivolumab plus ipilimumab cohort, patients were
randomized between January 4 and September 26, 2016. Treatment group information was
blinded after randomization. Median follow-up was 30.7 months. Data cutoff for this analysis
was January 2019. Patients were recruited at 31 centers in 10 countries/territories in Asia,
Europe, and North America. Eligible patients had advanced HCC (with/without hepatitis B or
C) previously treated with sorafenib. A total of 148 patients were randomized (50 to arm A
and 49 each to arms B and C).
INTERVENTIONS Patients were randomized 1:1:1 to either nivolumab 1 mg/kg plus ipilimumab 3
mg/kg, administered every 3 weeks (4 doses), followed by nivolumab 240 mg every 2 weeks
(arm A); nivolumab 3 mg/kg plus ipilimumab 1 mg/kg, administered every 3 weeks (4 doses),
followed by nivolumab 240 mg every 2 weeks (arm B); or nivolumab 3 mg/kg every 2 weeks
plus ipilimumab 1 mg/kg every 6 weeks (arm C).
MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Coprimary end points were safety, tolerability, and objective
response rate. Duration of response was also measured (investigator assessed with the
Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors v1.1).
RESULTS Of 148 total participants, 120 were male (81%). Median (IQR) age was 60
(52.5-66.5). At data cutoff (January 2019), the median follow-up was 30.7 months (IQR,
29.9-34.7). Investigator-assessed objective response rate was 32% (95% CI, 20%-47%) in
arm A, 27% (95% CI, 15%-41%) in arm B, and 29% (95% CI, 17%-43%) in arm C. Median
(range) duration of response was not reached (8.3-33.7+) in arm A and was 15.2 months
(4.2-29.9+) in arm B and 21.7 months (2.8-32.7+) in arm C. Any-grade treatment-related
adverse events were reported in 46 of 49 patients (94%) in arm A, 35 of 49 patients (71%) in
arm B, and 38 of 48 patients (79%) in arm C; there was 1 treatment-related death (arm A;
grade 5 pneumonitis).
CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE In this randomized clinical trial, nivolumab plus ipilimumab
had manageable safety, promising objective response rate, and durable responses. The arm A
regimen (4 doses nivolumab 1 mg/kg plus ipilimumab 3 mg/kg every 3 weeks then nivolumab
240 mg every 2 weeks) received accelerated approval in the US based on the results of this
study.
TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT0165887
Pion, kaon, proton and anti-proton transverse momentum distributions from p+p and d+Au collisions at GeV
Identified mid-rapidity particle spectra of , , and
from 200 GeV p+p and d+Au collisions are reported. A
time-of-flight detector based on multi-gap resistive plate chamber technology
is used for particle identification. The particle-species dependence of the
Cronin effect is observed to be significantly smaller than that at lower
energies. The ratio of the nuclear modification factor () between
protons and charged hadrons () in the transverse momentum
range GeV/c is measured to be
(stat)(syst) in minimum-bias collisions and shows little
centrality dependence. The yield ratio of in minimum-bias d+Au
collisions is found to be a factor of 2 lower than that in Au+Au collisions,
indicating that the Cronin effect alone is not enough to account for the
relative baryon enhancement observed in heavy ion collisions at RHIC.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures, 1 table. We extended the pion spectra from
transverse momentum 1.8 GeV/c to 3. GeV/
Heavy quarkonium: progress, puzzles, and opportunities
A golden age for heavy quarkonium physics dawned a decade ago, initiated by
the confluence of exciting advances in quantum chromodynamics (QCD) and an
explosion of related experimental activity. The early years of this period were
chronicled in the Quarkonium Working Group (QWG) CERN Yellow Report (YR) in
2004, which presented a comprehensive review of the status of the field at that
time and provided specific recommendations for further progress. However, the
broad spectrum of subsequent breakthroughs, surprises, and continuing puzzles
could only be partially anticipated. Since the release of the YR, the BESII
program concluded only to give birth to BESIII; the -factories and CLEO-c
flourished; quarkonium production and polarization measurements at HERA and the
Tevatron matured; and heavy-ion collisions at RHIC have opened a window on the
deconfinement regime. All these experiments leave legacies of quality,
precision, and unsolved mysteries for quarkonium physics, and therefore beg for
continuing investigations. The plethora of newly-found quarkonium-like states
unleashed a flood of theoretical investigations into new forms of matter such
as quark-gluon hybrids, mesonic molecules, and tetraquarks. Measurements of the
spectroscopy, decays, production, and in-medium behavior of c\bar{c}, b\bar{b},
and b\bar{c} bound states have been shown to validate some theoretical
approaches to QCD and highlight lack of quantitative success for others. The
intriguing details of quarkonium suppression in heavy-ion collisions that have
emerged from RHIC have elevated the importance of separating hot- and
cold-nuclear-matter effects in quark-gluon plasma studies. This review
systematically addresses all these matters and concludes by prioritizing
directions for ongoing and future efforts.Comment: 182 pages, 112 figures. Editors: N. Brambilla, S. Eidelman, B. K.
Heltsley, R. Vogt. Section Coordinators: G. T. Bodwin, E. Eichten, A. D.
Frawley, A. B. Meyer, R. E. Mitchell, V. Papadimitriou, P. Petreczky, A. A.
Petrov, P. Robbe, A. Vair
Search for the standard model Higgs boson decaying into two photons in pp collisions at sqrt(s)=7 TeV
A search for a Higgs boson decaying into two photons is described. The
analysis is performed using a dataset recorded by the CMS experiment at the LHC
from pp collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 7 TeV, which corresponds to an
integrated luminosity of 4.8 inverse femtobarns. Limits are set on the cross
section of the standard model Higgs boson decaying to two photons. The expected
exclusion limit at 95% confidence level is between 1.4 and 2.4 times the
standard model cross section in the mass range between 110 and 150 GeV. The
analysis of the data excludes, at 95% confidence level, the standard model
Higgs boson decaying into two photons in the mass range 128 to 132 GeV. The
largest excess of events above the expected standard model background is
observed for a Higgs boson mass hypothesis of 124 GeV with a local significance
of 3.1 sigma. The global significance of observing an excess with a local
significance greater than 3.1 sigma anywhere in the search range 110-150 GeV is
estimated to be 1.8 sigma. More data are required to ascertain the origin of
this excess.Comment: Submitted to Physics Letters
Measurement of the Lambda(b) cross section and the anti-Lambda(b) to Lambda(b) ratio with Lambda(b) to J/Psi Lambda decays in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV
The Lambda(b) differential production cross section and the cross section
ratio anti-Lambda(b)/Lambda(b) are measured as functions of transverse momentum
pt(Lambda(b)) and rapidity abs(y(Lambda(b))) in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7
TeV using data collected by the CMS experiment at the LHC. The measurements are
based on Lambda(b) decays reconstructed in the exclusive final state J/Psi
Lambda, with the subsequent decays J/Psi to an opposite-sign muon pair and
Lambda to proton pion, using a data sample corresponding to an integrated
luminosity of 1.9 inverse femtobarns. The product of the cross section times
the branching ratio for Lambda(b) to J/Psi Lambda versus pt(Lambda(b)) falls
faster than that of b mesons. The measured value of the cross section times the
branching ratio for pt(Lambda(b)) > 10 GeV and abs(y(Lambda(b))) < 2.0 is 1.06
+/- 0.06 +/- 0.12 nb, and the integrated cross section ratio for
anti-Lambda(b)/Lambda(b) is 1.02 +/- 0.07 +/- 0.09, where the uncertainties are
statistical and systematic, respectively.Comment: Submitted to Physics Letters
- âŚ