The Role of Stellar Feedback in the Dynamics of HII Regions

Stellar feedback is often cited as the biggest uncertainty in galaxy formation models today. This uncertainty stems from a dearth of observational constraints as well as the great dynamic range between the small scales (<1 pc) where the feedback occurs and the large scales of galaxies (>1 kpc) that are shaped by this feedback. To bridge this divide, in this paper we aim to assess observationally the role of stellar feedback at the intermediate scales of HII regions. In particular, we employ multiwavelength data to examine several stellar feedback mechanisms in a sample of 32 HII regions in the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds (LMC and SMC, respectively). Using optical, infrared, radio, and X-ray images, we measure the pressures exerted on the shells from the direct stellar radiation, the dust-processed radiation, the warm ionized gas, and the hot X-ray emitting gas. We find that the warm ionized gas dominates over the other terms in all of the sources, although two have comparable dust-processed radiation pressures to their warm gas pressures. The hot gas pressures are comparatively weak, while the direct radiation pressures are 1-2 orders of magnitude below the other terms. We discuss the implications of these results, particularly highlighting evidence for hot gas leakage from the HII shells and regarding the momentum deposition from the dust-processed radiation to the warm gas. Furthermore, we emphasize that similar observational work should be done on very young HII regions to test whether direct radiation pressure and hot gas can drive the dynamics at early times.Comment: 19 pages, 8 figures; accepted by Ap

Regulation of brain endothelial barrier function by microRNAs in health and neuroinflammation

Brain endothelial cells constitute the major cellular element of the highly specialized blood–brain barrier (BBB) and thereby contribute to CNS homeostasis by restricting entry of circulating leukocytes and blood-borne molecules into the CNS. Therefore, compromised function of brain endothelial cells has serious consequences for BBB integrity. This has been associated with early events in the pathogenesis of several disorders that affect the CNS, such as multiple sclerosis, HIV-associated neurologic disorder, and stroke. Recent studies demonstrate that brain endothelial microRNAs play critical roles in the regulation of BBB function under normal and neuroinflammatory conditions. This review will focus on emerging evidence that indicates that brain endothelial microRNAs regulate barrier function and orchestrate various phases of the neuroinflammatory response, including endothelial activation in response to cytokines as well as restoration of inflamed endothelium into a quiescent state. In particular, we discuss novel microRNA regulatory mechanisms and their contribution to cellular interactions at the neurovascular unit that influence the overall function of the BBB in health and during neuroinflammatio

Theoretical and experimental SERS study of thiocarbonyl compounds adsorbed on metal nanoparticles

Thiocarbonyl compounds have been reported to exhibit interesting biological and pharmacological properties but they are many often characterized by their toxicological effects. However the chemistry of thiobenzoic acid (TBA) and thiobenzamide (TB) has not been fully studied yet. Some of the biological studies of TBA are related to the tautomerism of thiocarboxylic acids and the important role that the -C(=O)-S and -C(=S)-O functional groups play in the catalytic activities of enzymes such as cysteine or serine proteases.1 From a chemical point of view, thiocarboxylates are an interesting type of molecules having two different donor atoms, a soft sulfur donor atom and a hard oxygen donor one. The presence of these unlike groups can lead to the bonding with metal surfaces. Likewise the interaction of thiobenzamide and their derivatives with metals is of great interest because both the sulfur and nitrogen atoms are also able to coordinate with the surface. Therefore the high affinity of these molecules for metal surfaces makes them suitable SERS target adsorbates. Taking advantage of the fact that SERS spectroscopy is both surface selective and highly sensitive we have attempted to determine the molecular structure of TBA and TB once they are adsorbed on the metal. The main objective of this work is focussed on discussing the observed vibrational wavenumber shifts of TBA and TB upon adsorption on silver nanoparticles. In this work the SERS substrates have been prepared by using different colloidal silver solutions according to the method described by Creighton et al.2 and Leopold and Lendl.3 The analysis of the vibrational wavenumbers shifts of the Raman and SERS spectra allow us to know the adsorption process (Figure 1). In the case of TBA, the wavenumber of the SERS band assigned to (C=O) vibrational mode shows an important blue shift up to 40 cm-1 with respect to the Raman whereas the (C-S) band undergoes a red shift up to 40 cm-1. These results suggest a unidentate coordination of TBA to the silver surface through the sulfur atom. On the other hand, the SERS band assigned in the case of TB to Amide III (mainly (CN)) exhibits a significant blueshift up to 41 cm-1, and the SERS band assigned to Amide I (mainly (CS)) shows a red shift up to 11 cm-1. These wavenumber shifts indicate that TB interacts to the silver surface through the sulfur atom. Interestingly, in previous SERS studies of pyridinecarboxamides and benzamide we have observed that some SERS bands assigned to 1;ring, Amide I (mainly (C=O)) and Amide III (mainly C-N)) show wavenumber shifts of +50, -50 and +10 cm-1, respectively, which were attributed to the deprotonation of carboxamide group.4,5 Finally, in order to verify experimental results DFT calculations have been carried out for different silver complexes of TBA and TB concluding that the unidentate coordination is the most likely interaction of both of them.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Chemical abundances of damped Lyman alpha systems in the XQ-100 survey

The XQ-100 survey has provided high signal-noise spectra of 100 redshift 3-4.5 quasars with the X-Shooter spectrograph. The metal abundances for 13 elements in the 41 damped Lyman alpha systems (DLAs) identified in the XQ-100 sample are presented, and an investigation into abundances of a variety of DLA classes is conducted. The XQ-100 DLA sample contains five DLAs within 5000 km/s of their host quasar (proximate DLAs; PDLAs) as well as three sightlines which contain two DLAs within 10,000 km/s of each other along the same line-of-sight (multiple DLAs; MDLAs). Combined with previous observations in the literature, we demonstrate that PDLAs with logN(HI)<21.0 show lower [S/H] and [Fe/H] (relative to intervening systems with similar redshift and N(HI)), whilst higher [S/H] and [Si/H] are seen in PDLAs with logN(HI)>21.0. These abundance discrepancies are independent of their line-of-sight velocity separation from the host quasar, and the velocity width of the metal lines (v90). Contrary to previous studies, MDLAs show no difference in [alpha/Fe] relative to single DLAs matched in metallicity and redshift. In addition, we present follow-up UVES data of J0034+1639, a sightline containing three DLAs, including a metal-poor DLA with [Fe/H]=-2.82 (the third lowest [Fe/H] in DLAs identified to date) at z=4.25. Lastly we study the dust-corrected [Zn/Fe], emphasizing that near-IR coverage of X-Shooter provides unprecedented access to MgII, CaII and TiII lines (at redshifts 3-4) to provide additional evidence for subsolar [Zn/Fe] ratio in DLAs.Comment: Accepted to MNRAS. 19 pages plus Appendix material (102 pages total

Near-Infrared Polarimetric Adaptive Optics Observations of NGC 1068: A torus created by a hydromagnetic outflow wind

We present J' and K' imaging linear polarimetric adaptive optics observations of NGC 1068 using MMT-Pol on the 6.5-m MMT. These observations allow us to study the torus from a magnetohydrodynamical (MHD) framework. In a 0.5" (30 pc) aperture at K', we find that polarisation arising from the passage of radiation from the inner edge of the torus through magnetically aligned dust grains in the clumps is the dominant polarisation mechanism, with an intrinsic polarisation of 7.0%$\pm$2.2%. This result yields a torus magnetic field strength in the range of 4$-$82 mG through paramagnetic alignment, and 139$^{+11}_{-20}$ mG through the Chandrasekhar-Fermi method. The measured position angle (P.A.) of polarisation at K$'$ is found to be similar to the P.A. of the obscuring dusty component at few parsec scales using infrared interferometric techniques. We show that the constant component of the magnetic field is responsible for the alignment of the dust grains, and aligned with the torus axis onto the plane of the sky. Adopting this magnetic field configuration and the physical conditions of the clumps in the MHD outflow wind model, we estimate a mass outflow rate $\le$0.17 M$_{\odot}$ yr$^{-1}$ at 0.4 pc from the central engine for those clumps showing near-infrared dichroism. The models used were able to create the torus in a timescale of $\geq$10$^{5}$ yr with a rotational velocity of $\leq$1228 km s$^{-1}$ at 0.4 pc. We conclude that the evolution, morphology and kinematics of the torus in NGC 1068 can be explained within a MHD framework.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figures, Accepted by MNRA

Применение метода проектов для формирования знаний о природе у детей дошкольного возраста

В ВКР представлено одно из средств формирования экологического образования у детей дошкольного возраста метод проектов. Это дидактическое средство активизации познавательного и творческого развития ребенка и одновременно формирование его личностных качеств. Знания, приобретаемые детьми в ходе метода проектов, становятся достоянием их личного опыта. Экспериментируя, ребенок ищет ответ на вопрос и тем самым, развивает творческие способности, коммуникативные навыки. Экологическое образование детей дошкольного возраста – это многоаспектное качество, включающее в себя экологические представления и знания ребенка о пользе природе и всего живого, понимание детьми элементарных взаимосвязей, существующих в природе, умения и навыки эмоционально-чувственного взаимодействия с природными объектами и гуманно-действенного взаимодействия человека с ней. Эффективным средством формирования знаний о природе у детей дошкольного возраста является использование метода проектов, цель которого – посредством познавательно-исследовательской деятельности, которая организуется во взаимодействии с детьми и экологические представления и знания, положительное эмоциональное отношение к природе

Current research into brain barriers and the delivery of therapeutics for neurological diseases: a report on CNS barrier congress London, UK, 2017.

This is a report on the CNS barrier congress held in London, UK, March 22-23rd 2017 and sponsored by Kisaco Research Ltd. The two 1-day sessions were chaired by John Greenwood and Margareta Hammarlund-Udenaes, respectively, and each session ended with a discussion led by the chair. Speakers consisted of invited academic researchers studying the brain barriers in relation to neurological diseases and industry researchers studying new methods to deliver therapeutics to treat neurological diseases. We include here brief reports from the speakers