Type Ia Supernova Properties as a Function of the Distance to the Host Galaxy in the SDSS-II SN Survey

We use type-Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) discovered by the SDSS-II SN Survey to search for dependencies between SN Ia properties and the projected distance to the host galaxy center, using the distance as a proxy for local galaxy properties (local star-formation rate, local metallicity, etc.). The sample consists of almost 200 spectroscopically or photometrically confirmed SNe Ia at redshifts below 0.25. The sample is split into two groups depending on the morphology of the host galaxy. We fit light-curves using both MLCS2k2 and SALT2, and determine color (AV, c) and light-curve shape (delta, x1) parameters for each SN Ia, as well as its residual in the Hubble diagram. We then correlate these parameters with both the physical and the normalized distances to the center of the host galaxy and look for trends in the mean values and scatters of these parameters with increasing distance. The most significant (at the 4-sigma level) finding is that the average fitted AV from MLCS2k2 and c from SALT2 decrease with the projected distance for SNe Ia in spiral galaxies. We also find indications that SNe in elliptical galaxies tend to have narrower light-curves if they explode at larger distances, although this may be due to selection effects in our sample. We do not find strong correlations between the residuals of the distance moduli with respect to the Hubble flow and the galactocentric distances, which indicates a limited correlation between SN magnitudes after standardization and local host metallicity.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal (33 pages, 5 figures, 8 tables

The GALEX Arecibo SDSS Survey. I. Gas Fraction Scaling Relations of Massive Galaxies and First Data Release

We introduce the GALEX Arecibo SDSS Survey (GASS), an on-going large program that is gathering high quality HI-line spectra using the Arecibo radio telescope for an unbiased sample of ~1000 galaxies with stellar masses greater than 10^10 Msun and redshifts 0.025<z<0.05, selected from the SDSS spectroscopic and GALEX imaging surveys. The galaxies are observed until detected or until a low gas mass fraction limit (1.5-5%) is reached. This paper presents the first Data Release, consisting of ~20% of the final GASS sample. We use this data set to explore the main scaling relations of HI gas fraction with galaxy structure and NUV-r colour. A large fraction (~60%) of the galaxies in our sample are detected in HI. We find that the atomic gas fraction decreases strongly with stellar mass, stellar surface mass density and NUV-r colour, but is only weakly correlated with galaxy bulge-to-disk ratio (as measured by the concentration index of the r-band light). We also find that the fraction of galaxies with significant (more than a few percent) HI decreases sharply above a characteristic stellar surface mass density of 10^8.5 Msun kpc^-2. The fraction of gas-rich galaxies decreases much more smoothly with stellar mass. One of the key goals of GASS is to identify and quantify the incidence of galaxies that are transitioning between the blue, star-forming cloud and the red sequence of passively-evolving galaxies. Likely transition candidates can be identified as outliers from the mean scaling relations between gas fraction and other galaxy properties. [abridged]Comment: 25 pages, 12 figures. Accepted for publication in MNRAS. Version with high resolution figures available at http://www.mpa-garching.mpg.de/GASS/pubs.ph

The GALEX Arecibo SDSS Survey II: The Star Formation Efficiency of Massive Galaxies

We use measurements of the HI content, stellar mass and star formation rates in ~190 massive galaxies with stellar masses greater than 10^10 Msun, obtained from the Galex Arecibo SDSS Survey (GASS) described in Paper I (Catinella et al. 2010) to explore the global scaling relations associated with the bin-averaged ratio of the star formation rate over the HI mass, which we call the HI-based star formation efficiency (SFE). Unlike the mean specific star formation rate, which decreases with stellar mass and stellar mass surface density, the star formation efficiency remains relatively constant across the sample with a value close to SFE = 10^-9.5 yr^-1 (or an equivalent gas consumption timescale of ~3 Gyr). Specifically, we find little variation in SFE with stellar mass, stellar mass surface density, NUV-r color and concentration. We interpret these results as an indication that external processes or feedback mechanisms that control the gas supply are important for regulating star formation in massive galaxies. An investigation into the detailed distribution of SFEs reveals that approximately 5% of the sample shows high efficiencies with SFE > 10^-9 yr^-1, and we suggest that this is very likely due to a deficiency of cold gas rather than an excess star formation rate. Conversely, we also find a similar fraction of galaxies that appear to be gas-rich for their given specific star-formation rate, although these galaxies show both a higher than average gas fraction and lower than average specific star formation rate. Both of these populations are plausible candidates for "transition" galaxies, showing potential for a change (either decrease or increase) in their specific star formation rate in the near future. We also find that 36+/-5% of the total HI mass density and 47+/-5% of the total SFR density is found in galaxies with stellar mass greater than 10^10 Msun. [abridged]Comment: 18 pages, 11 figures. Accepted for publication in MNRAS. GASS publications and released data can be found at http://www.mpa-garching.mpg.de/GASS/index.ph

Novel genetic loci associated with hippocampal volume

The hippocampal formation is a brain structure integrally involved in episodic memory, spatial navigation, cognition and stress responsiveness. Structural abnormalities in hippocampal volume and shape are found in several common neuropsychiatric disorders. To identify the genetic underpinnings of hippocampal structure here we perform a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of 33,536 individuals and discover six independent loci significantly associated with hippocampal volume, four of them novel. Of the novel loci, three lie within genes (ASTN2, DPP4 and MAST4) and one is found 200 kb upstream of SHH. A hippocampal subfield analysis shows that a locus within the MSRB3 gene shows evidence of a localized effect along the dentate gyrus, subiculum, CA1 and fissure. Further, we show that genetic variants associated with decreased hippocampal volume are also associated with increased risk for Alzheimer's disease (rg =-0.155). Our findings suggest novel biological pathways through which human genetic variation influences hippocampal volume and risk for neuropsychiatric illness

Abstracts from the 8th International Conference on cGMP Generators, Effectors and Therapeutic Implications

This work was supported by a restricted research grant of Bayer AG

Convalescent plasma in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 (RECOVERY): a randomised controlled, open-label, platform trial

SummaryBackground Azithromycin has been proposed as a treatment for COVID-19 on the basis of its immunomodulatoryactions. We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of azithromycin in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19.Methods In this randomised, controlled, open-label, adaptive platform trial (Randomised Evaluation of COVID-19Therapy [RECOVERY]), several possible treatments were compared with usual care in patients admitted to hospitalwith COVID-19 in the UK. The trial is underway at 176 hospitals in the UK. Eligible and consenting patients wererandomly allocated to either usual standard of care alone or usual standard of care plus azithromycin 500 mg once perday by mouth or intravenously for 10 days or until discharge (or allocation to one of the other RECOVERY treatmentgroups). Patients were assigned via web-based simple (unstratified) randomisation with allocation concealment andwere twice as likely to be randomly assigned to usual care than to any of the active treatment groups. Participants andlocal study staff were not masked to the allocated treatment, but all others involved in the trial were masked to theoutcome data during the trial. The primary outcome was 28-day all-cause mortality, assessed in the intention-to-treatpopulation. The trial is registered with ISRCTN, 50189673, and ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04381936.Findings Between April 7 and Nov 27, 2020, of 16 442 patients enrolled in the RECOVERY trial, 9433 (57%) wereeligible and 7763 were included in the assessment of azithromycin. The mean age of these study participants was65·3 years (SD 15·7) and approximately a third were women (2944 [38%] of 7763). 2582 patients were randomlyallocated to receive azithromycin and 5181 patients were randomly allocated to usual care alone. Overall,561 (22%) patients allocated to azithromycin and 1162 (22%) patients allocated to usual care died within 28 days(rate ratio 0·97, 95% CI 0·87–1·07; p=0·50). No significant difference was seen in duration of hospital stay (median10 days [IQR 5 to >28] vs 11 days [5 to >28]) or the proportion of patients discharged from hospital alive within 28 days(rate ratio 1·04, 95% CI 0·98–1·10; p=0·19). Among those not on invasive mechanical ventilation at baseline, nosignificant difference was seen in the proportion meeting the composite endpoint of invasive mechanical ventilationor death (risk ratio 0·95, 95% CI 0·87–1·03; p=0·24).Interpretation In patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19, azithromycin did not improve survival or otherprespecified clinical outcomes. Azithromycin use in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 should be restrictedto patients in whom there is a clear antimicrobial indication