34,124 research outputs found
Landau level spectroscopy of ultrathin graphite layers
Far infrared transmission experiments are performed on ultrathin epitaxial
graphite samples in a magnetic field. The observed cyclotron resonance-like and
electron-positron-like transitions are in excellent agreement with the
expectations of a single-particle model of Dirac fermions in graphene, with an
effective velocity of c* = 1.03 x 10^6 m/s.Comment: 4 pages 4 figures Slight revisions following referees' comments. One
figure modifie
Assessment of Lactobacillus crispatus´ role in vaginal infections: friend or foe?
Lactobacillus spp. are the most prevalent microorganisms in the vaginal milleu. Several probiotic mechanisms have been associated with Lactobacillus, but the most relevant one is lactate production – resulting in a low pH value, typical of the healthy vagina. However, its pathogenic state is still unknown. We aim to elucidate the role of a commensal vaginal microorganism, Lactobacillus crispatus, in vaginal infections. Twenty-four vaginal washes have been collected from women attending a gynaecology consultation of a private clinic. The samples were categorized according with clinical diagnosis at the time of sampling. The distribution of bacterial species, and their prevalence was assessed by Next-Generation Sequencing of the 16S rRNA V4 region. In addition, L- and D-lactate concentration, and LDH enzymatic activity was quantified in all washes by a commercial kit. Detection of Candida spp. was performed by PCR. L. crispatus was dominant (>70%) in 11 out of 24 samples – diagnosed for vaginal atrophy (VA, 3), cytolytic vaginosis (CV, 2) and lactobacillosis (LB, 2). Lactate was increased in CV, LB and VA cases only. The remaining samples, diagnosed for vulvovaginal candidosis in its majority, had lower prevalence of L. crispatus; and lower to moderate lactate metabolite. There was not a direct relationship between LDH enzymatic activity and clinical diagnosis. L. crispatus dominance, associated with increased lactate production, was observed in CV, LB and VA cases. These results indicate that this microorganism might have a role in dysbiosis of the vagina associated with these specific pathologies.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Role of Lactobacillus crispatus in vaginal infections: insights from metagenomics and metabolomics studies
Objective: Lactobacillus spp. constitute the most prevalent bacterial microorganism in the vaginal milleu. Several probiotic mechanisms have been associated with Lactobacillus, but the most relevant one is lactate production – resulting in a low pH value, typical of the healthy vagina. We aim to elucidate the role of a native vaginal microorganism, Lactobacillus crispatus, in vaginal infections.
Methods: Twenty-four vaginal washes have been collected from women (mean 38±14 years of age) attending a gynecology consultation of a private clinic. The samples were categorized according with clinical diagnosis at the time of sampling. The distribution of bacterial species, and their prevalence was assessed by next-generation sequencing of the 16S V4 region. In addition, lactate was quantified in all washes by a commercial kit.
Results: L. crispatus was dominant (>70%) in 11 out of 24 samples – diagnosed for vaginal atrophy (VA, 3), cytolytic vaginosis (CV, 2), lactobacillosis (LB, 2) and vulvovaginal candidosis (VVC, 1). For three samples, diagnostic was inconclusive. Lactate was increased in CV, LB and VA cases only. One sample, diagnosed with VVC had 23% dominance of L. crispatus; and lower lactate metabolite. L. crispatus was not detected in the remaining 12 cases (6 VVC, 4 VA, 1 healthy and 1 inconclusive). Of these, only 5 samples had moderate lactate metabolite.
Conclusions: L. crispatus dominance, associated with increased lactate production, was observed in CV, LB and VA cases. These results indicate that this microorganism might have a role in dysbiosis of the vagina associated with these specific pathologies.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Valence instability of cerium under pressure in the Kondo-like perovskite LaCeSrMnO
Effect of hydrostatic pressure and magnetic field on electrical resistance of
the Kondo-like perovskite manganese oxide,
LaCeSrMnO with a ferrimagnetic ground state, have
been investigated up to 2.1 GPa and 9 T. In this compound, the Mn-moments
undergo double exchange mediated ferromagnetic ordering at
280 K and there is a resistance maximum, at about 130 K which is
correlated with an antiferromagnetic ordering of {\it cerium} with respect to
the Mn-sublattice moments. Under pressure, the shifts to lower
temperature at a rate of d/d = -162 K/GPa and disappears at a
critical pressure 0.9 GPa. Further, the coefficient, of
term due to Kondo scattering decreases linearly with increase of
pressure showing an inflection point in the vicinity of . These
results suggest that {\it cerium} undergoes a transition from Ce state
to Ce/Ce mixed valence state under pressure. In contrast to
pressure effect, the applied magnetic field shifts to higher
temperature presumably due to enhanced ferromagnetic Mn moments.Comment: to be published in Phys. Rev. B (rapid commun
Lactobacillus crispatus as the etiological agent in cytolytic vaginosis
Introduction: Lactobacillus spp. dominate the vaginal niche but can also be involved in other vaginal dysbiosis, such as cytolytic vaginosis (CV), which remains poorly studied. It is characterized by a cryptic symptomatology, that often confounds the clinic.
Goals: The aim of this work was to search for the etiological agent of CV, by studying the vaginal microbiome and metabolomics of women afflicted with this disease and compare it with women with other clinical diagnostic.
Methods: Twenty-one vaginal washes have been collected from women attending a gynaecology consultation of a private clinic. The samples were categorized according with clinical diagnosis at the time of sampling (CV, 11; vulvovaginal candidosis, 8; Healthy, 2). The distribution of bacterial species, and their prevalence was assessed by next-generation sequencing of the 16S V4 region. In addition, total lactate D-lactic acid and L-lactic acid was quantified in all washes by a commercial kit, as well as lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity.
Results: L. crispatus was dominant (>70%) in all CV samples. Lactate was increased in CV in comparison with other cases. The presence of D-lactic acid isomer was associated with presence of L. crispatus. LDH activity was increased in vaginal washes that tested positive for the presence of L. crispatus, however no direct association was found with CV cases.
Discussion/Conclusions: The microbiome of women afflicted with CV was dominated in all cases by L. crispatus, contrarily with the results obtained for women diagnosed with other clinical symptomatology. In addition, the finding that an increase in D-lactic acid is associated with CV patients can be related to the role of L. crispatus in CV. The determination of LDH activity did not correlate exclusively with CV cases. On the other hand, D-lactic acid and total lactate quantification could be used as a valuable biomarker to diagnose this cryptic vaginal infection.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Resonant Excitation of Graphene K-Phonon and Intra-Landau-Level Excitons in Magneto-Optical Spectroscopy
Precise infrared magnetotransmission experiments have been performed in
magnetic fields up to 32 T on a series of multilayer epitaxial graphene
samples. We observe changes in the spectral features and broadening of the main
cyclotron transition when the incoming photon energy is in resonance with the
lowest Landau level separation and the energy of a K point optical phonon. We
have developed a theory that explains and quantitatively reproduces the
frequency and magnetic field dependence of the phenomenon as the absorption of
a photon together with the simultaneous creation of an intervalley,
intra-Landau-level exciton, and a K phonon.Comment: Main manuscript (5 pages); Supplementary Material (18 pages
Automated detection of lung nodules in low-dose computed tomography
A computer-aided detection (CAD) system for the identification of pulmonary
nodules in low-dose multi-detector computed-tomography (CT) images has been
developed in the framework of the MAGIC-5 Italian project. One of the main
goals of this project is to build a distributed database of lung CT scans in
order to enable automated image analysis through a data and cpu GRID
infrastructure. The basic modules of our lung-CAD system, consisting in a 3D
dot-enhancement filter for nodule detection and a neural classifier for
false-positive finding reduction, are described. The system was designed and
tested for both internal and sub-pleural nodules. The database used in this
study consists of 17 low-dose CT scans reconstructed with thin slice thickness
(~300 slices/scan). The preliminary results are shown in terms of the FROC
analysis reporting a good sensitivity (85% range) for both internal and
sub-pleural nodules at an acceptable level of false positive findings (1-9
FP/scan); the sensitivity value remains very high (75% range) even at 1-6
FP/scanComment: 4 pages, 2 figures: Proceedings of the Computer Assisted Radiology
and Surgery, 21th International Congress and Exhibition, Berlin, Volume 2,
Supplement 1, June 2007, pp 357-35
Inelastic and elastic collision rates for triplet states of ultracold strontium
We report measurement of the inelastic and elastic collision rates for
^{88}Sr atoms in the (5s5p)^3P_0 state in a crossed-beam optical dipole trap.
This is the first measurement of ultracold collision properties of a ^3P_0
level in an alkaline-earth atom or atom with similar electronic structure.
Since the (5s5p)^3P_0 state is the lowest level of the triplet manifold, large
loss rates indicate the importance of principle-quantum-number-changing
collisions at short range. We also provide an estimate of the collisional loss
rates for the (5s5p){^3P_2} state.Comment: 4 pages 5 figure
SU(4) symmetry breaking revealed by magneto-optical spectroscopy in epitaxial graphene
Refined infrared magnetotransmission experiments have been performed in
magnetic fields B up to 35 T on a series of multilayer epitaxial graphene
samples. Following the main optical transition involving the n=0 Landau level
(LL), we observe a new absorption transition increasing in intensity with
magnetic fields B>26 T. Our analysis shows that this is a signature of the
breaking of the SU(4) symmetry of the n=0 LL. Using a quantitative model, we
show that the only symmetry-breaking scheme consistent with our experiments is
a charge density wave (CDW)
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