Full Sky Study of Diffuse Galactic Emission at Decimeter Wavelengths

A detailed knowledge of the Galactic radio continuum is of high interest for studies of the dynamics and structure of the Galaxy as well as for the problem of foreground removal in Cosmic Microwave Background measurements. In this work we present a full-sky study of the diffuse Galactic emission at frequencies of few GHz, where synchrotron radiation is by far the dominant component. We perform a detailed combined analysis of the extended surveys at 408, 1420 and 2326 MHz (by Haslam et al. 1982, Reich 1982, Reich & Reich, 1986 and Jonas et al. 1998, respectively). Using the technique applied by Schlegel et al. (1998) to the IRAS data, we produce destriped versions of the three maps. This allows us to construct a nearly-full-sky map of the spectral index and of the normalization factor with sub-degree angular resolution. The resulting distribution of the spectral indices has an average of beta = 2.695 and dispersion sigma_{beta} = 0.120. This is representative for the Galactic diffuse synchrotron emission, with only minor effects from free-free emission and point sources.Comment: 10 pages, 16 jpeg figures, accepted to Astronomy & Astrophysics, Comments and figure adde

Coherent Manipulation of Orbital Feshbach Molecules of Two-Electron Atoms

Ultracold molecules have experienced increasing attention in recent years. Compared to ultracold atoms, they possess several unique properties that make them perfect candidates for the implementation of new quantum-technological applications in several fields, from quantum simulation to quantum sensing and metrology. In particular, ultracold molecules of two-electron atoms (such as strontium or ytterbium) also inherit the peculiar properties of these atomic species, above all the possibility to access metastable electronic states via direct excitation on optical clock transitions with ultimate sensitivity and accuracy. In this paper we report on the production and coherent manipulation of molecular bound states of two fermionic $^{173}$Yb atoms in different electronic (orbital) states $^1$S$_0$ and $^3$P$_0$ in proximity of a scattering resonance involving atoms in different spin and electronic states, called orbital Feshbach resonance. We demonstrate that orbital molecules can be coherently photoassociated starting from a gas of ground-state atoms in a three-dimensional optical lattices by observing several photoassociation and photodissociation cycles. We also show the possibility to coherently control the molecular internal state by using Raman-assisted transfer to swap the nuclear spin of one of the atoms forming the molecule, thus demonstrating a powerful manipulation and detection tool of these molecular bound states. Finally, by exploiting this peculiar detection technique we provide first information on the lifetime of the molecular states in a many-body setting, paving the way towards future investigations of strongly interacting Fermi gases in a still unexplored regime.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figure

Thalassaemia Intermedia: an Update

Our understanding of the molecular and pathophysiological mechanisms underlying the disease process in patients with thalassaemia intermedia (TI) has substantially increased over the past decade. TI encompasses a wide clinical spectrum of beta-thalassaemia phenotypes. Some TI patients are asymptomatic until adult life, whereas others are symptomatic from as young as 2 years of age. A number of clinical complications commonly associated with TI are rarely seen in thalassaemia major, including extramedullary hematopoiesis, leg ulcers, gallstones, thrombosis and pulmonary hypertension. There are a number of options currently available for managing patients with TI, including transfusion therapy, iron chelation therapy, modulation of foetal haemoglobin production and haematopoietic stem cell transplantation. However, at present, there are no clear guidelines for an orchestrated optimal treatment plan

Synthetic dimensions and spin-orbit coupling with an optical clock transition

We demonstrate a novel way of synthesizing spin-orbit interactions in ultracold quantum gases, based on a single-photon optical clock transition coupling two long-lived electronic states of two-electron $^{173}$Yb atoms. By mapping the electronic states onto effective sites along a synthetic "electronic" dimension, we have engineered synthetic fermionic ladders with tunable magnetic fluxes. We have detected the spin-orbit coupling with fiber-link-enhanced clock spectroscopy and directly measured the emergence of chiral edge currents, probing them as a function of the magnetic field flux. These results open new directions for the investigation of topological states of matter with ultracold atomic gases.Comment: Minor changes with respect to v1 (we have corrected some typos, fixed the use of some mathematical symbols, added one reference

Long-term bone outcomes in Italian patients with Gaucher disease type 1 or type 3 treated with imiglucerase: A sub-study from the International Collaborative Gaucher Group (ICGG) Gaucher Registry

Background: Gaucher disease (GD) is a lysosomal storage disorder. We evaluated the “real-world” effectiveness of first-line imiglucerase on long-term bone outcomes in Italian patients in the International Collaborative Gaucher Group (ICGG) Gaucher Registry. Methods: Patients treated with imiglucerase for ≥2 years and with bone assessments at baseline and during follow-up were selected. Data on bone pain, bone crises, marrow infiltration, avascular necrosis, infarction, lytic lesions, Erlenmeyer flask deformity, bone fractures, mineral density, and imiglucerase dosage were evaluated. Results: Data on bone manifestations were available for 73 of 229 patients (31.9 %). Bone crises frequency decreased significantly from baseline to the most recent follow-up (p < 0.001), with some improvement observed in bone pain prevalence. Bone pain and bone crises prevalence decreased significantly from baseline at 2 to <4 and 4 to <6 years (all p < 0.05). A low median (25th, 75th percentile) baseline imiglucerase dosage was identified in patients reporting bone pain or bone crises (15.0 [13.7, 30.0] and 22.8 [17.5, 36.0] U/kg once every 2 weeks, respectively). Conclusion: Our study suggests that the management of GD in Italy, with regards to imiglucerase dosage, is suboptimal and confirms the need for clinicians to monitor and correctly treat bone disease according to best practice guidelines

Time through colors: A kinetic model of red vermilion darkening from Raman spectra

Darkening of Red Vermilion (cinnabar) is a well-known phenomenon which needs, at the moment, a full comprehension of its nature. Some paintings reveal a disfiguring process of blackening degradation of Red Vermilion, albeit other relics preserve the original color during the time. The presence of halide elements like Cl− ions, in addition to the light exposure, represents the most alleged cause to explain the darkening phenomenon. However, the real effect of chlorine impurities is still not completely understood. In this study, starting from a multi-technique characterization, we propose a kinetic model of mutual composition of alpha/beta cinnabar derived by the experimental darkening of pure alpha synthetic cinnabar intentionally doped with Cl− ions and treated under prolonged UV light exposure. The model was further applied to ancient samples by analyzing the Raman spectra of antique cinnabar pigments belonging to manuscripts of XIII-XVII centuries

Resolution of the type material of the Asian elephant, Elephas maximus Linnaeus, 1758 (Proboscidea, Elephantidae)

The understanding of Earth’s biodiversity depends critically on the accurate identification and nomenclature of species. Many species were described centuries ago, and in a surprising number of cases their nomenclature or type material remain unclear or inconsistent. A prime example is provided by Elephas maximus, one of the most iconic and well-known mammalian species, described and named by Linnaeus (1758) and today designating the Asian elephant. We used morphological, ancient DNA (aDNA), and high-throughput ancient proteomic analyses to demonstrate that a widely discussed syntype specimen of E. maximus, a complete foetus preserved in ethanol, is actually an African elephant, genus Loxodonta. We further discovered that an additional E. maximus syntype, mentioned in a description by John Ray (1693) cited by Linnaeus, has been preserved as an almost complete skeleton at the Natural History Museum of the University of Florence. Having confirmed its identity as an Asian elephant through both morphological and ancient DNA analyses, we designate this specimen as the lectotype of E. maximus