Lorentz-Violating Supergravity

The standard forms of supersymmetry and supergravity are inextricably wedded to Lorentz invariance. Here a Lorentz-violating form of supergravity is proposed. The superpartners have exotic properties that are not possible in a theory with exact Lorentz symmetry and microcausality. For example, the bosonic sfermions have spin 1/2 and the fermionic gauginos have spin 1. The theory is based on a phenomenological action that is shown to follow from a simple microscopic and statistical picture.Comment: 15 pages; to be published in Proceedings of Beyond the Desert 2003 (Castle Ringberg, Tegernsee, Germany, 9-14 June 2003), edited by H. V. Klapdor-Kleingrothau

Type II spiral ganglion afferent neurons drive medial olivocochlear reflex suppression of the cochlear amplifier.

The dynamic adjustment of hearing sensitivity and frequency selectivity is mediated by the medial olivocochlear efferent reflex, which suppresses the gain of the 'cochlear amplifier' in each ear. Such efferent feedback is important for promoting discrimination of sounds in background noise, sound localization and protecting the cochleae from acoustic overstimulation. However, the sensory driver for the olivocochlear reflex is unknown. Here, we resolve this longstanding question using a mouse model null for the gene encoding the type III intermediate filament peripherin (Prph). Prph((-/-)) mice lacked type II spiral ganglion neuron innervation of the outer hair cells, whereas innervation of the inner hair cells by type I spiral ganglion neurons was normal. Compared with Prph((+/+)) controls, both contralateral and ipsilateral olivocochlear efferent-mediated suppression of the cochlear amplifier were absent in Prph((-/-)) mice, demonstrating that outer hair cells and their type II afferents constitute the sensory drive for the olivocochlear efferent reflex

Participatory mapping for transformation: multiple visual representation of foodscapes and environment in informal settlements in Nairobi

Although branded as ‘obstructionists’ and major agents of ‘disease and filth’ by city authorities, food vendors remain the pivotal node in the local food system in most informal settlements; therefore, their interaction with the environment and infrastructure services, and challenges they face to keep the food safe to eat, requires further grounded exploration. Food vendors from informal settlements in Nairobi, Kenya, who are acting as mappers and change agents, are building multi-layered views of places through the deliberative process of knowledge coproduction by participatory sensing, which lead to opportunities and challenges to improve those places

Myocardial expression of a constitutively active alpha 1B-adrenergic receptor in transgenic mice induces cardiac hypertrophy.

Transgenic mice were generated by using the alpha-myosin heavy chain promoter coupled to the coding sequence of a constitutively active mutant alpha 1B-adrenergic receptor (AR). These transgenic animals demonstrated cardiac-specific expression of this alpha 1-AR with resultant activation of phospholipase C as shown by increased myocardial diacylglycerol content. A phenotype consistent with cardiac hypertrophy developed in adult transgenic mice with increased heart/body weight ratios, myocyte cross-sectional areas, and ventricular atrial natriuretic factor mRNA levels relative to nontransgenic controls. These transgenic animals may provide insight into the biochemical triggers that induce hypertrophy in cardiac disease and serve as a convenient experimental model for studies of this condition

Layer-by-layer assembly of multi-layered droplet interface bilayers (multi-DIBs)

Droplet interface bilayers (DIBs) have tremendous promise as platforms for fundamental biomembrane studies and in biotechnology. Being composed of a single bilayer however limits their biomimetic potential, as many cell membrane motifs are composed of multiple aligned bilayers. We describe a technology to manufacture cell-sized multi-layered DIBs (multi-DIBs) by coating giant unilamellar vesicles with a further monolayer, and allowing such structures to make contact with themselves or a monolayer coated droplet. This easily customisable strategy will pave the way for an expanded repertoire of DIB functionality, for example by facilitating the incorporation of multiple-bilayer spanning protein complexes

Crassostrea Ariakensis In Chesapeake Bay: Growth, Disease And Mortality In Shallow Subtidal Environments

In April 2004, triploid native (Crassostrea virginica) and nonnative (Crassostrea ariakensis) oysters were deployed in cages at four sites along a salinity gradient in Chesapeake Bay. In Maryland, the lowest salinity site was located in the Severn River and two low to mid-salinity sites were located in the Choptank and Patuxent Rivers. The highest salinity site was located in the York River in Virginia. Growth, disease acquisition, and mortality were measured in the deployed oysters through August 2006. Although ANOVA revealed that the nonnative oysters were significantly larger at the end of the experiment than the native oysters at all sites, the differences were much greater at the Virginia site (59 mm) than in Maryland waters (9-23 mm). With the exception of C. ariakensis in the Severn River, Perkinsus marinus infected both species at all sites. Prevalences and weighted prevalences in both species remained relatively low throughout the experiment, but native oysters consistently acquired higher prevalences and weighted prevalences than C. ariakensis by August 2006. With the exception of several mortality-inducing events including winter freezing and hypoxic exposure, mortality was generally low in both species. No disease-related mortality was suspected in either species given the low weighted prevalences observed. In the York River, where a substantial natural spatfall occurred in 2004, more native spat were found on C. ariakensis than on C. virginica. To our knowledge, this is the first comparison of triploid C. ariakensis to triploid C. virginica conducted in the field. Because we did not observe substantial disease-related mortality, it is too soon to draw conclusions regarding the disease tolerance of C. ariakensis in the field or its viability as a replacement for the native species

Biomimetic Behaviours in Hydrogel Artificial Cells through Embedded Organelles

Artificial cells are biomimetic structures formed from molecular building blocks that replicate biological processes, behaviors, and architectures. Of these building blocks, hydrogels have emerged as ideal, yet underutilized candidates to provide a gel-like chassis in which to incorporate both biological and nonbiological componentry which enables the replication of cellular functionality. Here, we demonstrate a microfluidic strategy to assemble biocompatible cell-sized hydrogel-based artificial cells with a variety of different embedded functional subcompartments, which act as engineered synthetic organelles. The organelles enable the recreation of increasingly biomimetic behaviors, including stimulus-induced motility, content release through activation of membrane-associated proteins, and enzymatic communication with surrounding bioinspired compartments. In this way, we showcase a foundational strategy for the bottom–up construction of hydrogel-based artificial cell microsystems which replicate fundamental cellular behaviors, paving the way for the construction of next-generation biotechnological devices

Measurement delay associated with the Guardian RT continuous glucose monitoring system.

AIMS: Using compartment modelling, we assessed the time delay between blood glucose and sensor glucose measured by the Guardian RT continuous glucose monitoring system in young subjects with Type 1 diabetes (T1D). METHODS: Twelve children and adolescents with T1D treated by continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion (male/female 7/5; age 13.1 +/- 4.2 years; body mass index 21.9 +/- 4.3 kg/m(2); mean +/- sd) were studied over 19 h in a Clinical Research Facility. Guardian RT was calibrated every 6 h and sensor glucose measured every 5 min. Reference blood glucose was measured every 15 min using a YSI 2300 STAT Plus Analyser. A population compartment model of sensor glucose-blood glucose kinetics was adopted to estimate the time delay, the calibration scale and the calibration shift. RESULTS: The population median of the time delay was 15.8 (interquartile range 15.2, 16.5) min, which was corroborated by correlation analysis between blood glucose and 15-min delayed sensor glucose. The delay has a relatively low intersubject variability, with 95% of individuals predicted to have delays between 10.4 and 24.3 min. Population medians (interquartile range) for the scale and shift are 0.800 (0.777, 0.823) (unitless) and 1.66 (1.47, 1.84) mmol/l, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: In young subjects with T1D, the total time delay associated with the Guardian RT system was approximately 15 min. This is twice that expected on physiological grounds, suggesting a 5- to 10-min delay because of data processing. Delays above 25 min are rarely to be observed

Pleosporales

One hundred and five generic types of Pleosporales are described and illustrated. A brief introduction and detailed history with short notes on morphology, molecular phylogeny as well as a general conclusion of each genus are provided. For those genera where the type or a representative specimen is unavailable, a brief note is given. Altogether 174 genera of Pleosporales are treated. Phaeotrichaceae as well as Kriegeriella, Zeuctomorpha and Muroia are excluded from Pleosporales. Based on the multigene phylogenetic analysis, the suborder Massarineae is emended to accommodate five families, viz. Lentitheciaceae, Massarinaceae, Montagnulaceae, Morosphaeriaceae and Trematosphaeriaceae

A filament of dark matter between two clusters of galaxies

It is a firm prediction of the concordance Cold Dark Matter (CDM) cosmological model that galaxy clusters live at the intersection of large-scale structure filaments. The thread-like structure of this "cosmic web" has been traced by galaxy redshift surveys for decades. More recently the Warm-Hot Intergalactic Medium (WHIM) residing in low redshift filaments has been observed in emission and absorption. However, a reliable direct detection of the underlying Dark Matter skeleton, which should contain more than half of all matter, remained elusive, as earlier candidates for such detections were either falsified or suffered from low signal-to-noise ratios and unphysical misalignements of dark and luminous matter. Here we report the detection of a dark matter filament connecting the two main components of the Abell 222/223 supercluster system from its weak gravitational lensing signal, both in a non-parametric mass reconstruction and in parametric model fits. This filament is coincident with an overdensity of galaxies and diffuse, soft X-ray emission and contributes mass comparable to that of an additional galaxy cluster to the total mass of the supercluster. Combined with X-ray observations, we place an upper limit of 0.09 on the hot gas fraction, the mass of X-ray emitting gas divided by the total mass, in the filament.Comment: Nature, in pres