Systematic characterization of novel lncRNAs responding to phosphate starvation in Arabidopsis thaliana

published_or_final_versio

Rates, costs and determinants of lumbar spine imaging in population-based women born in 1973-1978: Data from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health

ObjectiveThere are concerns that lumbar spine imaging represents low value care. Our aim was to examine the use of lumbar spine imaging [radiography, computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)] over 20 years, and costs and person-level characteristics of imaging in a large cohort of Australian women.MethodsThe Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health (ALSWH) is a longitudinal population-based survey of women randomly selected from national health insurance scheme (Medicare) database. This study examined 13458 women born in 1973-1978 who consented to link their ALSWH and Medical Benefits Scheme records. Self-reported data on demographics, body mass index, depression, physical and mental health, and back pain were collected in each survey performed in 1996, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2009, 2012, and 2015. Data on lumbar spine imaging from 1996 to 2015 were obtained from the Medical Benefits Scheme database.Results38.9% of women underwent some form of lumbar spine imaging over 20 years. While radiography increased from 1996 to 2011 and decreased thereafter, CT and MRI continued to increase from 1996 to 2015. In women with self-reported back pain, depression and poorer physical health were associated with imaging, with no significant differences in types of imaging. Based on imaging rates in ALSWH, the estimated costs for Australian women aged 30-39 years were AU$51,735,649 over 2011-2015.ConclusionsLumbar spine imaging was common in population-based Australian women, with rates increasing over 20 years. Depression and poor physical health were associated with lumbar spine imaging. Raising awareness of this in clinicians is likely to result in significant cost savings if clinical guidelines are followed, with the potential of freeing resources for high value care and health outcomes

Single-virion sequencing of lamivudine-treated HBV populations reveal population evolution dynamics and demographic history.

BACKGROUND: Viral populations are complex, dynamic, and fast evolving. The evolution of groups of closely related viruses in a competitive environment is termed quasispecies. To fully understand the role that quasispecies play in viral evolution, characterizing the trajectories of viral genotypes in an evolving population is the key. In particular, long-range haplotype information for thousands of individual viruses is critical; yet generating this information is non-trivial. Popular deep sequencing methods generate relatively short reads that do not preserve linkage information, while third generation sequencing methods have higher error rates that make detection of low frequency mutations a bioinformatics challenge. Here we applied BAsE-Seq, an Illumina-based single-virion sequencing technology, to eight samples from four chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients - once before antiviral treatment and once after viral rebound due to resistance. RESULTS: With single-virion sequencing, we obtained 248-8796 single-virion sequences per sample, which allowed us to find evidence for both hard and soft selective sweeps. We were able to reconstruct population demographic history that was independently verified by clinically collected data. We further verified four of the samples independently through PacBio SMRT and Illumina Pooled deep sequencing. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, we showed that single-virion sequencing yields insight into viral evolution and population dynamics in an efficient and high throughput manner. We believe that single-virion sequencing is widely applicable to the study of viral evolution in the context of drug resistance and host adaptation, allows differentiation between soft or hard selective sweeps, and may be useful in the reconstruction of intra-host viral population demographic history

Suppressing molecular motions for enhanced room-temperature phosphorescence of metal-free organic materials

Metal-free organic phosphorescent materials are attractive alternatives to the predominantly used organometallic phosphors but are generally dimmer and are relatively rare, as, without heavy-metal atoms, spin-orbit coupling is less efficient and phosphorescence usually cannot compete with radiationless relaxation processes. Here we present a general design rule and a method to effectively reduce radiationless transitions and hence greatly enhance phosphorescence efficiency of metal-free organic materials in a variety of amorphous polymer matrices, based on the restriction of molecular motions in the proximity of embedded phosphors. Covalent cross-linking between phosphors and polymer matrices via Diels-Alder click chemistry is devised as a method. A sharp increase in phosphorescence quantum efficiency is observed in a variety of polymer matrices with this method, which is ca. two to five times higher than that of phosphor-doped polymer systems having no such covalent linkage.ope

First Observation of Radiative B^0 -> \phi K^0 \gamma Decays and Measurements of Their Time-Dependent CP Violation

We report the first observation of the radiative decay B^0 -> \phi K^0 \gamma using a data sample of 772 x 10^6 B B-bar pairs collected at the \Upsilon(4S) resonance with the Belle detector at the KEKB asymmetric-energy e^+e^- collider. We observe a signal of 37+/-8 events with a significance of 5.4 standard deviations including systematic uncertainties. The measured branching fraction is ${\cal B}(B^0 -> \phi K^0 \gamma) = (2.74\pm 0.60 \pm 0.32) \times 10^{-6}$, where the uncertainties are statistical and systematic, respectively. We also report the first measurements of time-dependent CP violation parameters: ${\mathcal S}_{\phi K_S^0 \gamma} = +0.74^{+0.72}_{-1.05} (stat)^{+0.10}_{-0.24} (syst)$ and ${\mathcal A}_{\phi K_S^0 \gamma} = +0.35 +/- 0.58 (stat)^{+0.23}_{-0.10} (syst)$. Furthermore, we measure ${\mathcal B}(B^+ -> \phi K^+ \gamma) = (2.48 +/- 0.30 +/- 0.24) x 10^{-6}$, ${\mathcal A}_{CP} = -0.03 +/- 0.11 +/- 0.08$ and find that the signal is concentrated in the M_{\phi K} mass region near threshold.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, Modified version is to be published in PRD(RC

Evidence for CP Violation in the Decay D+→KS0π+D^+\rightarrow K^0_S\pi^+

We observe evidence for CP violation in the decay $D^+\rightarrow K^0_S\pi^+$ using a data sample with an integrated luminosity of 977 fb$^{-1}$ collected by the Belle detector at the KEKB $e^+e^-$ asymmetric-energy collider. The CP asymmetry in the decay is measured to be $(-0.363\pm0.094\pm0.067)$, which is 3.2 standard deviations away from zero, and is consistent with the expected CP violation due to the neutral kaon in the final state.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figure

Search for charmonium and charmonium-like states in \Upsilon(2S) radiative decays

Using a sample of 158 million \Upsilon(2S) events collected with the Belle detector, charmonium and charmonium-like states with even charge parity are searched for in \Upsilon(2S) radiative decays. No significant \chi_{cJ} or \eta_c signal is observed and the following upper limits at 90% confidence level (C.L.) are obtained: BR(\Upsilon(2S)\to \gamma \chi_{c0})< 1.0 \times 10^{-4}, BR(\Upsilon(2S) \to \gamma \chi_{c1})<3.6 \times 10^{-6}, BR(\Upsilon(2S) \to \gamma \chi_{c2})<1.5 \times 10^{-5}, and BR(\Upsilon(2S) \to \gamma \eta_c)< 2.7 \times 10^{-5}. No significant signal of any charmonium-like state is observed, and we obtain the limits \BR(\Upsilon(2S)\to \gamma X(3872))\times\BR(X(3872)\to\pi^+\pi^-J/\psi)< 0.8 \times 10^{-6}, BR(\Upsilon(2S) \to \gamma X(3872))\times BR(X(3872)\to\pi^+\pi^-\pi^0 J/\psi)< 2.4\times 10^{-6}, BR(\Upsilon(2S) \to \gamma X(3915))\times BR(X(3915)\to\omega J/\psi)< 2.8\times 10^{-6}, BR(\Upsilon(2S) \to \gamma Y(4140))\times BR(Y(4140)\to\phi J/\psi)) < 1.2\times 10^{-6}, and BR(\Upsilon(2S) \to \gamma X(4350))\times BR(X(4350)\to\phi J/\psi))< 1.3\times 10^{-6} at 90% C.L.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figures, 1 tabl

Search for double charmonium decays of the P-wave spin-triplet bottomonium states

Using a sample of 158 million $\Upsilon(2S)$ events collected with the Belle detector, we search for the first time for double charmonium decays of the $P$-wave spin-triplet bottomonium states ($\Upsilon(2S) \to \gamma \chi_{bJ}$, \chi_{bJ} \to \jpsi \jpsi, \jpsi \psp, \psp \psp for J=0, 1, and 2). No significant $\chi_{bJ}$ signal is observed in the double charmonium mass spectra, and we obtain the following upper limits, \BR(\chi_{bJ} \to \jpsi \jpsi)<7.1\times 10^{-5}, $2.7\times 10^{-5}$, $4.5\times 10^{-5}$, \BR(\chi_{bJ} \to \jpsi \psp)<1.2\times 10^{-4}, $1.7\times 10^{-5}$, $4.9\times 10^{-5}$, \BR(\chi_{bJ} \to \psp \psp)<3.1\times 10^{-5}, $6.2\times 10^{-5}$, $1.6\times 10^{-5}$ for J=0, 1, and 2, respectively, at the 90% confidence level. These limits are significantly lower than the central values (with uncertainties of 50% to 70%) predicted using the light cone formalism but are consistent with calculations using the NRQCD factorization approach.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures, 1 tabl

Observation of X(3872)→J/ψγX(3872)\to J/\psi \gamma and search for X(3872)→ψ′γX(3872)\to\psi'\gamma in B decays

We report a study of $B\to (J/\psi \gamma) K$ and $B\to (\psi' \gamma)K$ decay modes using $772\times 10^{6}$ $B\bar{B}$ events collected at the \Upsilon(4S)$resonance with the Belle detector at the KEKB energy-asymmetric$e^+ e^-$collider. We observe$X(3872) \to J/\psi \gamma$and report the first evidence for$\chi_{c2} \to J/\psi \gamma$in$B\to (X_{c\bar{c}}\gamma) K$decays, while in a search for$X(3872) \to \psi' \gamma$no significant signal is found. We measure the branching fractions,$\mathcal{B}(B^{\pm} \to X(3872) K^{\pm}) \mathcal{B}(X(3872) \to J/\psi\gamma)$$=$$(1.78^{+0.48}_{-0.44}\pm 0.12)\times 10^{-6}$,$\mathcal{B} (B^{\pm} \to\chi_{c2} K^{\pm})$$=$$(1.11^{+0.36}_{-0.34} \pm 0.09) \times 10^{-5}$,$\mathcal{B}(B^{\pm} \to X(3872) K^{\pm}) \mathcal{B}(X(3872) \to \psi'\gamma)$$<$$3.45\times 10^{-6}$ (upper limit at 90% C.L.) and also provide upper limits for other searches.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figure