Associated Top Quark-Higgs Boson Production at the LHC

We compute the O(alpha_s^3) inclusive cross section for the process pp -> t-tbar-h in the Standard Model, at sqrt(s)=14 TeV. The next-to-leading order corrections drastically reduce the renormalization and factorization scale dependence of the Born cross section and increase the total cross section for renormalization and factorization scales larger than m_t. These corrections have important implications for models of new physics involving the top quark.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, RevTeX

Experimental study of the normal zone propagation velocity in double-layer 2G-HTS wires by thermal and electrical methods

The Normal Zone Propagation Velocity (NZPV) of a double-layer second generation (2G) high temperature superconducting (HTS) wire manufactured by American Superconductor has been measured by electrical and thermal methods, and the results have been compared and discussed. The NZPV values determined by the voltage traces are ranging from 3.8 mm/s at 0.4 Ic to 19.2 mm/s at 0.9 Ic; while from 5.9 mm/s to 18.3 mm/s by the temperature traces. NZPV determined by these two approaches agrees well with each other. Also, NZPV of double-layer YBCO tape is close to that of conventional single-layer superconducting tape.This work was supported in part by the EPSRC under Grant NMZF/064.This is the accepted manuscript. The final version is available from IEEE at http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/articleDetails.jsp?arnumber=6963291&sortType%3Dasc_p_Sequence%26filter%3DAND%28p_IS_Number%3A6353170%29%26rowsPerPage%3D50

iTRAQ proteomics analysis reveals that PI3K is highly associated with bupivacaine-induced neurotoxicity pathways

Bupivacaine, a commonly used local anesthetic, has potential neurotoxicity through diverse signaling pathways. However, the key mechanism of bupivacaine-induced neurotoxicity remains unclear. Cultured human SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells were treated (bupivacaine) or untreated (control) with bupivacaine for 24 h. Compared to the control group, bupivacaine significantly increased cyto-inhibition, cellular reactive oxygen species, DNA damage, mitochondrial injury, apoptosis (increased TUNEL-positive cells, cleaved caspase 3, and Bcl-2/Bax), and activated autophagy (enhanced LC3II/LC3I ratio). To explore changes in protein expression and intercommunication among the pathways involved in bupivacaine-induced neurotoxicity, an 8-plex iTRAQ proteomic technique and bioinformatics analysis were performed. Compared to the control group, 241 differentially expressed proteins were identified, of which, 145 were up-regulated and 96 were down-regulated. Bioinformatics analysis of the cross-talk between the significant proteins with altered expression in bupivacaine-induced neurotoxicity indicated that phosphatidyl-3-kinase (PI3K) was the most frequently targeted protein in each of the interactions. We further confirmed these results by determining the downstream targets of the identified signaling pathways (PI3K, Akt, FoxO1, Erk, and JNK). In conclusion, our study demonstrated that PI3K may play a central role in contacting and regulating the signaling pathways that contribute to bupivacaine-induced neurotoxicity.postprin

An Exact No Free Lunch Theorem for Community Detection

A precondition for a No Free Lunch theorem is evaluation with a loss function which does not assume a priori superiority of some outputs over others. A previous result for community detection by Peel et al. (2017) relies on a mismatch between the loss function and the problem domain. The loss function computes an expectation over only a subset of the universe of possible outputs; thus, it is only asymptotically appropriate with respect to the problem size. By using the correct random model for the problem domain, we provide a stronger, exact No Free Lunch theorem for community detection. The claim generalizes to other set-partitioning tasks including core/periphery separation, $k$-clustering, and graph partitioning. Finally, we review the literature of proposed evaluation functions and identify functions which (perhaps with slight modifications) are compatible with an exact No Free Lunch theorem

Dose-dependent effects of luteinizing hormone and follicle stimulating hormone on in vitro maturation, apoptosis, secretion function and expression of follicle stimulating hormone receptor and luteinizing hormone receptor of sheep oocytes

TThe present study compared the effects of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH) on in vitro maturation (IVM), apoptosis, and secretion function in sheep oocytes, as well as gene expressions of the receptors (FSHR, LHR, and GnRHR) in cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs). The COCs were recovered from sheep ovaries and pooled in groups. The COCs were cultured for 24 hours in IVM medium supplemented with various concentrations of LH (5–30 μg/mL) and FSH (5–30 IU/mL). They were allocated to LH-1 (5 µg/mL), LH-2 (10 µg/mL), LH-3 (20 µg/mL), and LH-4 (30 µg/mL) groups, and FSH-1 (5 IU/mL), FSH-2 (10 IU/mL), FSH-3 (20 IU/mL), and FSH-4 (30IU/mL) groups. The apoptosis of COCs was assessed by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labelling (TUNEL). The maturation rates of oocytes improved gradually as LH and FSH concentration increased from 0 to 10 μg/mL(IU/mL), reaching a peak value of 44.1% of LH-2 and 48.5% of FSH-2 group. Oocyte apoptosis rates of LH-2 and FSH-2 groups were the lowest among LH- and FSH-treated groups, respectively. The germinal vesicle breakdown (GVBD) rate of the FSH-2 group was higher than that of the control group (CG) and FSH-4 groups. The GVBD rate of LH-2 group also increased in comparison with the CG group. FSH concentration of the FSH-2 group was greater than that of CG. Expression levels of FSHR, LHR, and GnRHR mRNAs of FSH-2, LH-3, and LH-3 group, respectively, were higher than CG. Levels of FSHR proteins in FSH-2 and FSH-3 groups were greater than CG. Levels of GnRHR proteins were increased with a maximum increment of FSH-4. The FSH and LH supplemented into the IVM medium could promote the maturation rate, reduce the apoptosis rate of sheep oocytes, and increase FSH concentrations in IVM medium fluid. Additionally, FSH and LH enhanced expression levels of FSHR, LHR, and GnRHR mRNAs of sheep COCs.Keywords: Apoptosis, cumulus-oocyte complexes, germinal vesicle breakdown, protein expression, recepto

Self-Organizing Maps Algorithm for Parton Distribution Functions Extraction

We describe a new method to extract parton distribution functions from hard scattering processes based on Self-Organizing Maps. The extension to a larger, and more complex class of soft matrix elements, including generalized parton distributions is also discussed.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, to be published in the proceedings of ACAT 2011, 14th International Workshop on Advanced Computing and Analysis Techniques in Physics Researc

Intermittent emission of particles from three coupled condensates in a one-dimensional lattice

We investigate particle emission, driven by periodically modulating the interaction strength, from three coupled Bose-Einstein condensates in a one-dimensional lattice. Within perturbative analyses, which lead to the regimes of instabilities for different modes, we not only obtain two main frequencies, under which the system can emit a large particle jet, but also find that the emission is distinctly intermittent rather than continuous. The time evolution of the trapped particles exhibits a stair-like decay, and a larger drive induces a more significant intermittency. We further shed light on the dynamics of the stimulating process, and demonstrate that instead of a real suspension, the intermittency represents a build-up stage of the particles. The theoretical framework might be generalized, to the explorations on other multiple-condensate systems with analogous configurations and couplings.Comment: 7 pages, 10 figure