Strangeness Enhancement in p+p, p+Pb and Pb+Pb Collisions at LHC Energies

We investigate whether the quark gluon plasma (QGP) is created in small colliding systems from analyses of various hadron yields and their ratios in proton-proton (p+p), proton-lead (p+Pb) and lead-lead (Pb+Pb) collisions at LHC energies. Recently, the ALICE Collaboration reports enhancement of yield ratio of multi-strange hadrons to charged pions as a function of multiplicity at mid-rapidity. Motivated by these results, we develop the dynamical core-corona initialization framework and find that our results describe tendencies of the ALICE data especially for multi-strange hadrons. These results indicate that the QGP is partly formed in high multiplicity events in small colliding systems.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures; contribution to the proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Quarks and Nuclear Physics (QNP2018), Tsukuba, November 13-17, 201

Effects of Aberrant Pax6 Gene Dosage on Mouse Corneal Pathophysiology and Corneal Epithelial Homeostasis

Background: Altered dosage of the transcription factor PAX6 causes multiple human eye pathophysiologies. PAX6(+/-) heterozygotes suffer from aniridia and aniridia-related keratopathy (ARK), a corneal deterioration that probably involves a limbal epithelial stem cell (LESC) deficiency. Heterozygous Pax6(+/Sey-Neu) (Pax6(+/-)) mice recapitulate the human disease and are a good model of ARK. Corneal pathologies also occur in other mouse Pax6 mutants and in PAX77(Tg/-) transgenics, which over-express Pax6 and model human PAX6 duplication. Methodology/Principal Findings: We used electron microscopy to investigate ocular defects in Pax6(+/-) heterozygotes (low Pax6 levels) and PAX77(Tg/-) transgenics (high Pax6 levels). As well as the well-documented epithelial defects, aberrant Pax6 dosage had profound effects on the corneal stroma and endothelium in both genotypes, including cellular vacuolation, similar to that reported for human macular corneal dystrophy. We used mosaic expression of an X-linked LacZ transgene in X-inactivation mosaic female (XLacZ(Tg/-)) mice to investigate corneal epithelial maintenance by LESC clones in Pax6(+/-) and PAX77(Tg/-) mosaic mice. PAX77(Tg/-) mosaics, over-expressing Pax6, produced normal corneal epithelial radial striped patterns (despite other corneal defects), suggesting that centripetal cell movement was unaffected. Moderately disrupted patterns in Pax6(+/-) mosaics were corrected by introducing the PAX77 transgene (in Pax6(+/-), PAX77(Tg/-) mosaics). Pax6(Leca4/+), XLacZ(Tg/-) mosaic mice (heterozygous for the Pax6(Leca4) missense mutation) showed more severely disrupted mosaic patterns. Corrected corneal epithelial stripe numbers (an indirect estimate of active LESC clone numbers) declined with age (between 15 and 30 weeks) in wild-type XLacZ(Tg/-) mosaics. In contrast, corrected stripe numbers were already low at 15 weeks in Pax6(+/-) and PAX77(Tg/-) mosaic corneas, suggesting Pax6 under-and over-expression both affect LESC clones. Conclusions/Significance: Pax6(+/-) and PAX77(Tg/-) genotypes have only relatively minor effects on LESC clone numbers but cause more severe corneal endothelial and stromal defects. This should prompt further investigations of the pathophysiology underlying human aniridia and ARK

Analysis of compound heterozygotes reveals that the mouse floxed Pax6 tm1Ued allele produces abnormal eye phenotypes

Analysis of abnormal phenotypes produced by different types of mutations has been crucial for our understanding of gene function. Some floxed alleles that retain a neomycin-resistance selection cassette (neo cassette) are not equivalent to wild-type alleles and provide useful experimental resources. Pax6 is an important developmental gene and the aim of this study was to determine whether the floxed Pax6(tm1Ued) (Pax6(fl)) allele, which has a retained neo cassette, produced any abnormal eye phenotypes that would imply that it differs from the wild-type allele. Homozygous Pax6(fl/fl) and heterozygous Pax6(fl/+) mice had no overt qualitative eye abnormalities but morphometric analysis showed that Pax6(fl/fl) corneas tended be thicker and smaller in diameter. To aid identification of weak effects, we produced compound heterozygotes with the Pax6(Sey-Neu) (Pax6(−)) null allele. Pax6(fl/−) compound heterozygotes had more severe eye abnormalities than Pax6(+/−) heterozygotes, implying that Pax6(fl) differs from the wild-type Pax6(+) allele. Immunohistochemistry showed that the Pax6(fl/−) corneal epithelium was positive for keratin 19 and negative for keratin 12, indicating that it was abnormally differentiated. This Pax6(fl) allele provides a useful addition to the existing Pax6 allelic series and this study demonstrates the utility of using compound heterozygotes with null alleles to unmask cryptic effects of floxed alleles. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s11248-016-9962-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

Evaluation of Pax6 Mutant Rat as a Model for Autism

Autism is a highly variable brain developmental disorder and has a strong genetic basis. Pax6 is a pivotal player in brain development and maintenance. It is expressed in embryonic and adult neural stem cells, in astrocytes in the entire central nervous system, and in neurons in the olfactory bulb, amygdala, thalamus, and cerebellum, functioning in highly context-dependent manners. We have recently reported that Pax6 heterozygous mutant (rSey2/+) rats with a spontaneous mutation in the Pax6 gene, show impaired prepulse inhibition (PPI). In the present study, we further examined behaviors of rSey2/+ rats and revealed that they exhibited abnormality in social interaction (more aggression and withdrawal) in addition to impairment in rearing activity and in fear-conditioned memory. Ultrasonic vocalization (USV) in rSey2+ rat pups was normal in male but abnormal in female. Moreover, treatment with clozapine successfully recovered the defects in sensorimotor gating function, but not in fear-conditioned memory. Taken together with our prior human genetic data and results in other literatures, rSey2/+ rats likely have some phenotypic components of autism

Hemizygous Le-Cre Transgenic Mice Have Severe Eye Abnormalities on Some Genetic Backgrounds in the Absence of LoxP Sites

Eye phenotypes were investigated in Le-Cre(Tg/-); Pax6(fl/+) mice, which were expected to show tissue-specific reduction of Pax6 in surface ectoderm derivatives. To provide a better comparison with our previous studies of Pax6(+/-) eye phenotypes, hemizygous Le-Cre(Tg/-) and heterozygous Pax6(fl/+)mice were crossed onto the CBA/Ca genetic background. After the Le-Cre transgene had been backcrossed to CBA/Ca for seven generations, significant eye abnormalities occurred in some hemizygous Le-Cre(Tg/-); Pax6(+/+) controls (without a floxed Pax6(fl) allele) as well as experimental Le-Cre(Tg/-); Pax6(fl/+) mice. However, no abnormalities were seen in Le-Cre(-/-); Pax6(fl/+) or Le-Cre(-/-); Pax6(+/+) controls (without the Le-Cre transgene). The severity and frequency of the eye abnormalities in Le-Cre(Tg/-); Pax6(+/+) control mice diminished after backcrossing Le-Cre(Tg/-) mice to the original FVB/N strain for two generations, showing that the effect was reversible. This genetic background effect suggests that the eye abnormalities are a consequence of an interaction between the Le-Cre transgene and alleles of unknown modifier genes present in certain genetic backgrounds. The abnormalities were also ameliorated by introducing additional Pax6 gene copies on a CBA/Ca background, suggesting involvement of Pax6 depletion in Le-Cre(Tg/-); Pax6(+/+) mice rather than direct action of Cre recombinase on cryptic pseudo-loxP sites. One possibility is that expression of Cre recombinase from the Pax6-Le regulatory sequences in the Le-Cre transgene depletes cofactors required for endogenous Pax6 gene expression. Our observation that eye abnormalities can occur in hemizygous Le-Cre(Tg/-); Pax6(+/+) mice, in the absence of a floxed allele, demonstrates the importance of including all the relevant genetic controls in Cre-loxP experiments

Transport Properties in Protic and Aprotic Ionic Liquids

We have made several studies of the transport properties of ionic liquids, the viscosity (η), molar conductivity (Λ), and ion self-diffusion coefficients (DSi), at atmospheric as well as high pressures [1-4]. The data have been analyzed in terms of the Stokes-Einstein-Sutherland (SES) relation, linking DSi with η, the Walden relation, linking Λ with η, and the Nernst-Einstein (NE) relation, linking Λ with DSi. These relations are empirical as for ionic liquids, but showed certain patterns. The SES plots, ln(DSi/T) vs. ln(1/η), provided the straight lines with the slopes t being slightly smaller than unity. The very similar results were obtained for the Walden plots, ln(Λ) vs. ln(1/η). These two relations bring about the linear correlations between ln(ΛT) and ln(DS+ + DS-) with the slopes t very close to unity, which implies that the deviation parameters Δ in the NE relation are independent of temperature and pressure. This correlation is also useful to verify the consistency of the experimental results. Based on the above-mentioned transport properties, we further calculated and discussed the velocity cross-correlation coefficients for like and unlike ion interactions and the Laity resistance coefficients. In the present talk, we attempt to extend such phenomenological aproach to protic ionic liquids as well as typical aprotic ionic liquids

Viscosity Scaling of the Self-diffusion and Velocity Cross-correlation Coefficients of Two Functionalised Ionic Liquids and of their Non-functionalized Analogues

Ion self-diffusion coefficients have been measured for ionic liquids based on the cations N-acetoxyethyl-N,N-dimethyl-N-ethylammonium ([N112,2OCO1]+) and its non-functionalised analogue, N,N-dimethyl-N-ethyl-N-pentylammonium ([N1125]+), and N,N-dimethyl-N-ethyl-N-methoxyethoxyethylammonium ([N112,2O2O1]+), and its analogue, N,N-dimethyl-N-ethyl-N-heptylammonium ([N1127]+) and the bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)amide anion. The functionalised chain on an ammonium cation has the same length, in terms of the number of atoms, as the non-functionalised chain of the corresponding analogue. For [N112,2OCO1][Tf2N] and [N1127][Tf2N], the cation and anion self-diffusion coefficients are equal, within experimental error, whereas for [N1125][Tf2N], the cation diffuses more quickly, and for [N112,2O2O1][Tf2N], it is the anion that diffuses more quickly than the ether-functionalised cation. But these differences are relatively small, just beyond experimental error. The data are used to calculate velocity cross-correlation coefficients (VCC or fij) and distinct diffusion coefficients (Ddij). Both the self-diffusion and distinct diffusion coefficients are analysed in terms of (fractional) Stokes-Einstein-Sutherland equations. Though the self-diffusion coefficients, as with the conductivity and viscosity, show marked differences in absolute terms between the functionalised and non-functionalised forms, being higher for the ethoxy-substituted IL and lower for the acetoxy-substituted IL, these are largely removed by scaling with the viscosity. Thus the transport properties are better understood as functions of the viscosity rather than the temperature and density, per se. The presence of the alkoxy-substituted side chains is known to change the local mesoscopic liquid structure, but it appears once this is done, the transport properties scale correspondingly. In the case of the acetoxy-substituted IL, this is also largely the case, but the the Nernst-Einstein deviation parameter , Δ, which depends on the difference between the anion-cation VCC and the mean of the cation-cation and anion-anion VCCs, is smaller than that of its analogue salt, and also temperature dependent