42 research outputs found
The use of computer-assisted image analysis in measuring the histological structure of the human median nerve
Background and aim: The aim of this study was to assess the histological
structure of the median nerve and its motor branch (number and arrangement
of nerve bundles) and the cross-sectional area (CSA) of the median nerve (on
the level of the carpal tunnel).
Material and methods: This study has been conducted using median nerves
dissected from cadavers stored in a 10% solution of formaldehyde at the Department
of Anatomy of the Jagiellonian University Medical College and cadavers
from the Department of Forensic Medicine of the Jagiellonian University
Medical College. After dissection the median nerves were stained with haematoxylin
and eosin and histological slides were prepared. These were later photographed
(16 x magnification) and analysed using ImageJ software. The research
protocol was approved by the Jagiellonian University Ethics Committee
(registry KBET/209/B/2002).
Results: The studied group comprised 8 women and 22 men (age between
23–92 years), yielding a total of 60 median nerves (30 right vs. 30 left). In
4 (6.67%) cases an accessory motor branch was found. The mean CSA of the
median nerve was 0.19 cm2. The median nerves from the right hand had
a statistically larger CSA (p = 0.017). The number of nerve bundles in the
median nerve varied between 13 to 38 and in the motor branch of the median
nerve between 4 to 14.
Conclusions: The nerve bundles of the median nerve, at the level of the carpal
tunnel, display no particular type of arrangement. ImageJ software proved useful
in the assessment of the histological structure of the human median nerve and
its motor branch
The composition of the protosolar disk and the formation conditions for comets
Conditions in the protosolar nebula have left their mark in the composition
of cometary volatiles, thought to be some of the most pristine material in the
solar system. Cometary compositions represent the end point of processing that
began in the parent molecular cloud core and continued through the collapse of
that core to form the protosun and the solar nebula, and finally during the
evolution of the solar nebula itself as the cometary bodies were accreting.
Disentangling the effects of the various epochs on the final composition of a
comet is complicated. But comets are not the only source of information about
the solar nebula. Protostellar disks around young stars similar to the protosun
provide a way of investigating the evolution of disks similar to the solar
nebula while they are in the process of evolving to form their own solar
systems. In this way we can learn about the physical and chemical conditions
under which comets formed, and about the types of dynamical processing that
shaped the solar system we see today.
This paper summarizes some recent contributions to our understanding of both
cometary volatiles and the composition, structure and evolution of protostellar
disks.Comment: To appear in Space Science Reviews. The final publication is
available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11214-015-0167-
Herschel observations of EXtra-Ordinary Sources (HEXOS): Observations of H2O and its isotopologues towards Orion KL
We report the detection of more than 48 velocity-resolved ground rotational state transitions of H 16
2 O, H 18
2 O, and H 17
2 O â most for the first time
â in both emission and absorption toward Orion KL using Herschel/HIFI. We show that a simple fit, constrained to match the known emission
and absorption components along the line of sight, is in excellent agreement with the spectral profiles of all the water lines. Using the measured
H 18
2 O line fluxes, which are less affected by line opacity than their H 16
2 O counterparts, and an escape probability method, the column densities
of H 18
2 O associated with each emission component are derived. We infer total water abundances of 7.4 Ă 10â5, 1.0Ă 10â5, and 1.6 Ă 10â5 for the
plateau, hot core, and extended warm gas, respectively. In the case of the plateau, this value is consistent with previous measures of the Orion-KL
water abundance as well as those of other molecular outflows. In the case of the hot core and extended warm gas, these values are somewhat higher
than water abundances derived for other quiescent clouds, suggesting that these regions are likely experiencing enhanced water-ice sublimation
from (and reduced freeze-out onto) grain surfaces due to the warmer dust in these sources
Water in star-forming regions: physics and chemistry from clouds to disks as probed by <i>Herschel</i> spectroscopy
Herschel observations of EXtra-Ordinary Sources (HEXOS): Detection of hydrogen fluoride in absorption towards Orion KL
We report a detection of the fundamental rotational transition of hydrogen fluoride in absorption towards Orion KL using Herschel/HIFI. After the
removal of contaminating features associated with common molecules (âweedsâ), the HF spectrum shows a P-Cygni profile, with weak redshifted
emission and strong blue-shifted absorption, associated with the low-velocity molecular outflow. We derive an estimate of 2.9 Ă 1013 cmâ2 for the
HF column density responsible for the broad absorption component. Using our best estimate of the H2 column density within the low-velocity
molecular outflow, we obtain a lower limit of âŒ1.6 Ă 10â10 for the HF abundance relative to hydrogen nuclei, corresponding to âŒ0.6% of the solar
abundance of fluorine. This value is close to that inferred from previous ISO observations of HF J = 2â1 absorption towards Sgr B2, but is in
sharp contrast to the lower limit of 6 Ă 10â9 derived by Neufeld et al. for cold, foreground clouds on the line of sight towards G10.6-0.4
Herschel observations of deuterated water towards Sgr B2(M)
Observations of HDO are an important complement for studies of water, because they give strong constraints on the formation processes â grain
surfaces versus energetic process in the gas phase, e.g. in shocks. The HIFI observations of multiple transitions of HDO in Sgr B2(M) presented
here allow the determination of the HDO abundance throughout the envelope, which has not been possible before with ground-based observations
only. The abundance structure has been modeled with the spherical Monte Carlo radiative transfer code RATRAN, which also takes radiative
pumping by continuum emission from dust into account. The modeling reveals that the abundance of HDO rises steeply with temperature from
a low abundance (2.5 Ă 10â11) in the outer envelope at temperatures below 100 K through a medium abundance (1.5 Ă 10â9) in the inner
envelope/outer core at temperatures between 100 and 200 K, and finally a high abundance ( 3.5 Ă 10â9) at temperatures above 200 K in the hot
core
Reversal of infall in SgrB2(M) revealed by Herschel/HIFI observations of HCN lines at THz frequencies
Aims. To investigate the accretion and feedback processes in massive star formation, we analyze the shapes of emission lines from hot molecular
cores, whose asymmetries trace infall and expansion motions.
Methods. The high-mass star forming region SgrB2(M) was observed with Herschel/HIFI (HEXOS key project) in various lines of HCN and
its isotopologues, complemented by APEX data. The observations are compared to spherically symmetric, centrally heated models with density
power-law gradient and different velocity fields (infall or infall+expansion), using the radiative transfer code RATRAN.
Results. The HCN line profiles are asymmetric, with the emission peak shifting from blue to red with increasing J and decreasing line opacity
(HCN to H13CN). This is most evident in the HCN 12â11 line at 1062 GHz. These line shapes are reproduced by a model whose velocity field
changes from infall in the outer part to expansion in the inner part.
Conclusions. The qualitative reproduction of the HCN lines suggests that infall dominates in the colder, outer regions, but expansion dominates
in the warmer, inner regions. We are thus witnessing the onset of feedback in massive star formation, starting to reverse the infall and finally
disrupting the whole molecular cloud. To obtain our result, the THz lines uniquely covered by HIFI were critically important
Herschel observations of EXtra-Ordinary Sources (HEXOS): The present and future of spectral surveys with Herschel/HIFI
We present initial results from the Herschel GT key program: Herschel observations of EXtra-Ordinary Sources (HEXOS) and outline the promise
and potential of spectral surveys with Herschel/HIFI. The HIFI instrument offers unprecedented sensitivity, as well as continuous spectral coverage
across the gaps imposed by the atmosphere, opening up a largely unexplored wavelength regime to high-resolution spectroscopy. We show the
spectrum of Orion KL between 480 and 560 GHz and from 1.06 to 1.115 THz. From these data, we confirm that HIFI separately measures the dust
continuum and spectrally resolves emission lines in Orion KL. Based on this capability we demonstrate that the line contribution to the broad-band
continuum in this molecule-rich source is âŒ20â40% below 1 THz and declines to a few percent at higher frequencies. We also tentatively identify
multiple transitions of HD18O in the spectra. The first detection of this rare isotopologue in the interstellar medium suggests that HDO emission is
optically thick in the Orion hot core with HDO/H2O ⌠0.02. We discuss the implications of this detection for the water D/H ratio in hot cores
Herschel observations of EXtra-Ordinary Sources (HEXOS): The Terahertz spectrum of Orion KL seen at high spectral resolution
We present the first high spectral resolution observations of Orion KL in the frequency ranges 1573.4â1702.8 GHz (band 6b) and
1788.4â1906.8 GHz (band 7b) obtained using the HIFI instrument on board the Herschel Space Observatory. We characterize the main emission
lines found in the spectrum, which primarily arise from a range of components associated with Orion KL including the hot core, but also
see widespread emission from components associated with molecular outflows traced by H2O, SO2, and OH. We find that the density of observed
emission lines is significantly diminished in these bands compared to lower frequency Herschel/HIFI bands