2,926 research outputs found
Charming Higgs bosons:Constraint on the Higgs-charm coupling from a search for Higgs boson decays to charm quarks with the ATLAS detector
Charming Higgs bosons:Constraint on the Higgs-charm coupling from a search for Higgs boson decays to charm quarks with the ATLAS detector
A search for a Standard Model Higgs boson decaying to a pair of charm quarks is presented. The analysis focuses on the associated production with a W or Z boson performed by the ATLAS collaboration using data collected between 2015 and 2018. Flavour tagging algorithms are used to identify jets originating from the hadronisation of charm quarks. The analysis method is validated with the simultaneous measurement of the WW, WZ and ZZ production, with observed (expected) significances of 2.6 (2.2) standard deviations for the Z decay to a pair of charm quarks and 3.8 (4.6) standard deviations for the W decay to a charm quark and a lighter quark. The search for the Higgs boson decay to a pair of charm quarks yields an observed (expected) limit of 26 (31) times the predicted cross-section times branching ratio, corresponding to an observed (expected) constraint on the charm Yukawa coupling modifier |c| < 8.5 (12.4), at 95% confidence level. A combination with the ATLAS measurement of the Higgs boson decay to a pair of bottom quarks is performed, allowing a constraint to be set on the ratio c / b without assumptions on the width of the Higgs boson. The ratio is constrained to be |c / b| < 4.5 at 95% confidence level, smaller than the ratio of the bottom and charm quark masses and therefore determines the Higgs-charm coupling to be weaker than the Higgs-bottom quark coupling at 95% confidence level
Patient-controlled intravenous morphine analgesia combined with transcranial direct current stimulation for post-thoracotomy pain: A cost-effectiveness study and a feasibility for its future implementation
This prospective randomized study aims to evaluate the feasibility and cost-effectiveness of combining transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) with patient controlled intravenous morphine analgesia (PCA-IV) as part of multimodal analgesia after thoracotomy. Patients assigned to the active treatment group (a-tDCS
IMPs: an RNA-binding protein family that provides a link between stem cell maintenance in normal development and cancer.
IMPs, also known as insulin-like growth factor 2 (IGF2) messenger RNA (mRNA)-binding proteins (IGF2BPs), are highly conserved oncofetal RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) that regulate RNA processing at several levels, including localization, translation, and stability. Three mammalian IMP paralogs (IMP1-3) have been identified that are expressed in most organs during embryogenesis, where they are believed to play an important role in cell migration, metabolism, and stem cell renewal. Whereas some IMP2 expression is retained in several adult mouse organs, IMP1 and IMP3 are either absent or expressed at very low levels in most tissues after birth. However, all three paralogs can be re-expressed upon malignant transformation and are found in a broad range of cancer types where their expression often correlates with poor prognosis. IMPs appear to resume their physiological functions in malignant cells, which not only contribute to tumor progression but participate in the establishment and maintenance of tumor cell hierarchies. This review summarizes our current understanding of the functions of IMPs during normal development and focuses on a series of recent observations that have provided new insight into how their physiological functions enable IMPs to play a potentially key role in cancer stem cell maintenance and tumor growth
Super-Earths: A New Class of Planetary Bodies
Super-Earths, a class of planetary bodies with masses ranging from a few
Earth-masses to slightly smaller than Uranus, have recently found a special
place in the exoplanetary science. Being slightly larger than a typical
terrestrial planet, super-Earths may have physical and dynamical
characteristics similar to those of Earth whereas unlike terrestrial planets,
they are relatively easier to detect. Because of their sizes, super-Earths can
maintain moderate atmospheres and possibly dynamic interiors with plate
tectonics. They also seem to be more common around low-mass stars where the
habitable zone is in closer distances. This article presents a review of the
current state of research on super-Earths, and discusses the models of the
formation, dynamical evolution, and possible habitability of these objects.
Given the recent advances in detection techniques, the detectability of
super-Earths is also discussed, and a review of the prospects of their
detection in the habitable zones of low-mass stars is presented.Comment: A (non-technical) review of the literature on the current state
ofresearch on super-Earths. The topics include observation, formation,
dynamical evolution, habitability, composition, interior dynamics, magnetic
field, atmosphere, and propsect of detection. The article has 44 pages, 27
figures, and 203 references. It has been accepted for publication in the
journal Contemporary Physics (2011
The fusion protein SS18-SSX1 employs core Wnt pathway transcription factors to induce a partial Wnt signature in synovial sarcoma.
Expression of the SS18/SYT-SSX fusion protein is believed to underlie the pathogenesis of synovial sarcoma (SS). Recent evidence suggests that deregulation of the Wnt pathway may play an important role in SS but the mechanisms whereby SS18-SSX might affect Wnt signaling remain to be elucidated. Here, we show that SS18/SSX tightly regulates the elevated expression of the key Wnt target AXIN2 in primary SS. SS18-SSX is shown to interact with TCF/LEF, TLE and HDAC but not β-catenin in vivo and to induce Wnt target gene expression by forming a complex containing promoter-bound TCF/LEF and HDAC but lacking β-catenin. Our observations provide a tumor-specific mechanistic basis for Wnt target gene induction in SS that can occur in the absence of Wnt ligand stimulation
Effect of transcranial direct current stimulation combined with patient-controlled intravenous morphine analgesia on analgesic use and post-thoracotomy pain. A prospective, randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled, proof-of-concept clinical trial
Background: Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is used for various chronic pain conditions, but experience with tDCS for acute postoperative pain is limited. This study investigated the effect of tDCS vs. sham stimulation on postoperative morphine consumption and pain intensity after thoracotomy.
Methods: This is a single-center, prospective, randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled trial in lung cancer patients undergoing thoracotomy under general anesthesia. All patients received patient-controlled (PCA) intravenous morphine and intercostal nerve blocks at the end of surgery. The intervention group (a-tDCS, n = 31) received anodal tDCS over the left primary motor cortex (C3-Fp2) for 20 min at 1.2 mA, on five consecutive days; the control group (n = 31) received sham stimulation. Morphine consumption, number of analgesia demands, and pain intensity at rest, with movement and with cough were recorded at the following intervals: immediately before (T1), immediately after intervention (T2), then every hour for 4 h (Т3-Т6), then every 6 h (Т7-Т31) for 5 days. We recorded outcomes on postoperative days 1 and 5 and conducted a phone interview inquiring about chronic pain 1 year later (NCT03005548).
Results: A total of 62 patients enrolled, but tDCS was prematurely stopped in six patients. Fifty-five patients (27 a-tDCS, 28 sham) had three or more tDCS applications and were included in the analysis. Cumulative morphine dose in the first 120 h after surgery was significantly lower in the tDCS [77.00 (54.00-123.00) mg] compared to sham group [112.00 (79.97-173.35) mg, p = 0.043, Cohen\u27s d = 0.42]. On postoperative day 5, maximum visual analog scale (VAS) pain score with cough was significantly lower in the tDCS group [29.00 (20.00-39.00) vs. 44.50 (30.00-61.75) mm, p = 0.018], and pain interference with cough was 80% lower [10.00 (0.00-30.00) vs. 50.00 (0.00-70.00), p = 0.013]. One year after surgery, there was no significant difference between groups with regard to chronic pain and analgesic use.
Conclusion: In lung cancer patients undergoing thoracotomy, three to five tDCS sessions significantly reduced cumulative postoperative morphine use, maximum VAS pain scores with cough, and pain interference with cough on postoperative day 5, but there was no obvious long-term benefit from tDCS
Life Beyond the Solar System: Space Weather and Its Impact on Habitable Worlds
The search of life in the Universe is a fundamental problem of astrobiology
and a major priority for NASA. A key area of major progress since the NASA
Astrobiology Strategy 2015 (NAS15) has been a shift from the exoplanet
discovery phase to a phase of characterization and modeling of the physics and
chemistry of exoplanetary atmospheres, and the development of observational
strategies for the search for life in the Universe by combining expertise from
four NASA science disciplines including heliophysics, astrophysics, planetary
science and Earth science. The NASA Nexus for Exoplanetary System Science
(NExSS) has provided an efficient environment for such interdisciplinary
studies. Solar flares, coronal mass ejections and solar energetic particles
produce disturbances in interplanetary space collectively referred to as space
weather, which interacts with the Earth upper atmosphere and causes dramatic
impact on space and ground-based technological systems. Exoplanets within close
in habitable zones around M dwarfs and other active stars are exposed to
extreme ionizing radiation fluxes, thus making exoplanetary space weather (ESW)
effects a crucial factor of habitability. In this paper, we describe the recent
developments and provide recommendations in this interdisciplinary effort with
the focus on the impacts of ESW on habitability, and the prospects for future
progress in searching for signs of life in the Universe as the outcome of the
NExSS workshop held in Nov 29 - Dec 2, 2016, New Orleans, LA. This is one of
five Life Beyond the Solar System white papers submitted by NExSS to the
National Academy of Sciences in support of the Astrobiology Science Strategy
for the Search for Life in the Universe.Comment: 5 pages, the white paper was submitted to the National Academy of
Sciences in support of the Astrobiology Science Strategy for the Search for
Life in the Univers
Cost-effectiveness of the Perioperative Pain Management Bundle a registry-based study.
INTRODUCTION
The Perioperative Pain Management Bundle was introduced in 10 Serbian PAIN OUT network hospitals to improve the quality of postoperative pain management. The Bundle consists of 4 elements: informing patients about postoperative pain treatment options; administering a full daily dose of 1-2 non-opioid analgesics; administering regional blocks and/or surgical wound infiltration; and assessing pain after surgery. In this study, we aimed to assess the cost-effectiveness of the Bundle during the initial 24 h after surgery.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
The assessment of cost-effectiveness was carried out by comparing patients before and after Bundle implementation and by comparing patients who received all Bundle elements to those with no Bundle element. Costs of postoperative pain management included costs of the analgesic medications, costs of labor for administering these medications, and related disposable materials. A multidimensional Pain Composite Score (PCS), the effectiveness measurement, was obtained by averaging variables from the International Pain Outcomes questionnaire evaluating pain intensity, interference of pain with activities and emotions, and side effects of analgesic medications. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) was calculated as the incremental change in costs divided by the incremental change in PCS and plotted on the cost-effectiveness plane along with the economic preference analysis.
RESULTS
The ICER value calculated when comparing patients before and after Bundle implementation was 181.89 RSD (1.55 EUR) with plotted ICERs located in the northeast and southeast quadrants of the cost-effectiveness plane. However, when comparing patients with no Bundle elements and those with all four Bundle elements, the calculated ICER was -800.63 RSD (-6.82 EUR) with plotted ICERs located in the southeast quadrant of the cost-effectiveness plane. ICER values differ across surgical disciplines.
CONCLUSION
The proposed perioperative pain management Bundle is cost-effective. The cost-effectiveness varies depending on the number of implemented Bundle elements and fluctuates across surgical disciplines
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