471 research outputs found

    A Case of Swallow Syncope Associated With Cold Beverage Ingestion

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    Swallow syncope (also known as deglutition syncope) is a relatively rare type of syncope that is treatable if diagnosed correctly. We report a case of a 39-year-old man with recurrent swallow syncope. The patient did not have structural heart disease. He developed a complete atrioventricular block upon drinking a cold beverage (Chilsung cider) while undergoing a repeated head-up tilt test. The patient was advised to avoid cold beverages and has been symptom free for 5 months

    Engineered Contrast Agents in a Single Structure for T1-T2 Dual Magnetic Resonance Imaging

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    [EN] The development of contrast agents (CAs) for Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) with T-1-T-2 dual-mode relaxivity requires the accurate assembly of T-1 and T-2 magnetic centers in a single structure. In this context, we have synthesized a novel hybrid material by monitoring the formation of Prussian Blue analogue Gd(H2O)(4)[Fe(CN)(6)] nanoparticles with tailored shape (from nanocrosses to nanorods) and size, and further protection with a thin and homogeneous silica coating through hydrolysis and polymerization of silicate at neutral pH. The resulting Gd(H2O)(4)[Fe(CN)(6)]@SiO2 magnetic nanoparticles are very stable in biological fluids. Interestingly, this combination of Gd and Fe magnetic centers closely packed in the crystalline network promotes a magnetic synergistic effect, which results in significant improvement of longitudinal relaxivity with regards to soluble Gd3+ chelates, whilst keeping the high transversal relaxivity inherent to the iron component. As a consequence, this material shows excellent activity as MRI CA, improving positive and negative contrasts in T-1- and T-2-weighted MR images, both in in vitro (e.g., phantom) and in vivo (e.g., Sprague-Dawley rats) models. In addition, this hybrid shows a high biosafety profile and has strong ability to incorporate organic molecules on the surface with variable functionality, displaying great potential for further clinical application.Financial support of the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (projects TEC2016-80976-R and SEV-2016-0683) is gratefully acknowledged. Dr E. M. Rivero thanks the Cursol Foundation for a post-doctoral scholarship. A. C. G. also thanks the La Caixa Foundation for a Ph.D. scholarship. We fully appreciate the assistance of the Electron Microscopy Service of the UPV and INSCANNER S.L.Cabrera-García, A.; Checa-Chavarria, E.; Pacheco-Torres, J.; Bernabeu-Sanz, A.; Vidal Moya, JA.; Rivero-Buceta, EM.; Sastre Navarro, GI.... (2018). 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Chemistry of Materials, 29(10), 4411-4417. doi:10.1021/acs.chemmater.7b00884Choi, J., Lee, J.-H., Shin, T.-H., Song, H.-T., Kim, E. Y., & Cheon, J. (2010). Self-Confirming «AND» Logic Nanoparticles for Fault-Free MRI. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 132(32), 11015-11017. doi:10.1021/ja104503gShin, T.-H., Choi, J., Yun, S., Kim, I.-S., Song, H.-T., Kim, Y., … Cheon, J. (2014). T1andT2Dual-Mode MRI Contrast Agent for Enhancing Accuracy by Engineered Nanomaterials. ACS Nano, 8(4), 3393-3401. doi:10.1021/nn405977tCheng, K., Yang, M., Zhang, R., Qin, C., Su, X., & Cheng, Z. (2014). Hybrid Nanotrimers for Dual T1 and T2-Weighted Magnetic Resonance Imaging. ACS Nano, 8(10), 9884-9896. doi:10.1021/nn500188yZhou, Z., Huang, D., Bao, J., Chen, Q., Liu, G., Chen, Z., … Gao, J. (2012). A Synergistically EnhancedT1-T2Dual-Modal Contrast Agent. Advanced Materials, 24(46), 6223-6228. doi:10.1002/adma.201203169Huang, G., Li, H., Chen, J., Zhao, Z., Yang, L., Chi, X., … Gao, J. (2014). Tunable T1and T2contrast abilities of manganese-engineered iron oxide nanoparticles through size control. Nanoscale, 6(17), 10404. doi:10.1039/c4nr02680bPerrier, M., Kenouche, S., Long, J., Thangavel, K., Larionova, J., Goze-Bac, C., … Guari, Y. (2013). Investigation on NMR Relaxivity of Nano-Sized Cyano-Bridged Coordination Polymers. Inorganic Chemistry, 52(23), 13402-13414. doi:10.1021/ic401710jPerera, V. S., Yang, L. D., Hao, J., Chen, G., Erokwu, B. O., Flask, C. A., … Huang, S. D. (2014). Biocompatible Nanoparticles of KGd(H2O)2[Fe(CN)6]·H2O with Extremely HighT1-Weighted Relaxivity Owing to Two Water Molecules Directly Bound to the Gd(III) Center. Langmuir, 30(40), 12018-12026. doi:10.1021/la501985pCai, X., Gao, W., Ma, M., Wu, M., Zhang, L., Zheng, Y., … Shi, J. (2015). A Prussian Blue-Based Core-Shell Hollow-Structured Mesoporous Nanoparticle as a Smart Theranostic Agent with Ultrahigh pH-Responsive Longitudinal Relaxivity. Advanced Materials, 27(41), 6382-6389. doi:10.1002/adma.201503381Yang, L., Zhou, Z., Liu, H., Wu, C., Zhang, H., Huang, G., … Gao, J. (2015). Europium-engineered iron oxide nanocubes with high T1and T2contrast abilities for MRI in living subjects. Nanoscale, 7(15), 6843-6850. doi:10.1039/c5nr00774gCabrera-García, A., Vidal-Moya, A., Bernabeu, Á., Sánchez-González, J., Fernández, E., & Botella, P. (2015). Gd–Si oxide mesoporous nanoparticles with pre-formed morphology prepared from a Prussian blue analogue template. Dalton Transactions, 44(31), 14034-14041. doi:10.1039/c5dt01928aCabrera-García, A., Vidal-Moya, A., Bernabeu, Á., Pacheco-Torres, J., Checa-Chavarria, E., Fernández, E., & Botella, P. (2016). Gd-Si Oxide Nanoparticles as Contrast Agents in Magnetic Resonance Imaging. Nanomaterials, 6(6), 109. doi:10.3390/nano6060109Botella, P., Corma, A., & Quesada, M. (2012). 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    Observation of associated near-side and away-side long-range correlations in √sNN=5.02  TeV proton-lead collisions with the ATLAS detector

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    Two-particle correlations in relative azimuthal angle (Δϕ) and pseudorapidity (Δη) are measured in √sNN=5.02  TeV p+Pb collisions using the ATLAS detector at the LHC. The measurements are performed using approximately 1  μb-1 of data as a function of transverse momentum (pT) and the transverse energy (ΣETPb) summed over 3.1<η<4.9 in the direction of the Pb beam. The correlation function, constructed from charged particles, exhibits a long-range (2<|Δη|<5) “near-side” (Δϕ∼0) correlation that grows rapidly with increasing ΣETPb. A long-range “away-side” (Δϕ∼π) correlation, obtained by subtracting the expected contributions from recoiling dijets and other sources estimated using events with small ΣETPb, is found to match the near-side correlation in magnitude, shape (in Δη and Δϕ) and ΣETPb dependence. The resultant Δϕ correlation is approximately symmetric about π/2, and is consistent with a dominant cos⁡2Δϕ modulation for all ΣETPb ranges and particle pT

    Measurement of the cross-section of high transverse momentum vector bosons reconstructed as single jets and studies of jet substructure in pp collisions at √s = 7 TeV with the ATLAS detector

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    This paper presents a measurement of the cross-section for high transverse momentum W and Z bosons produced in pp collisions and decaying to all-hadronic final states. The data used in the analysis were recorded by the ATLAS detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider at a centre-of-mass energy of √s = 7 TeV;{\rm Te}{\rm V}andcorrespondtoanintegratedluminosityof and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 4.6\;{\rm f}{{{\rm b}}^{-1}}.ThemeasurementisperformedbyreconstructingtheboostedWorZbosonsinsinglejets.ThereconstructedjetmassisusedtoidentifytheWandZbosons,andajetsubstructuremethodbasedonenergyclusterinformationinthejetcentreofmassframeisusedtosuppressthelargemultijetbackground.ThecrosssectionforeventswithahadronicallydecayingWorZboson,withtransversemomentum. The measurement is performed by reconstructing the boosted W or Z bosons in single jets. The reconstructed jet mass is used to identify the W and Z bosons, and a jet substructure method based on energy cluster information in the jet centre-of-mass frame is used to suppress the large multi-jet background. The cross-section for events with a hadronically decaying W or Z boson, with transverse momentum {{p}_{{\rm T}}}\gt 320\;{\rm Ge}{\rm V}andpseudorapidity and pseudorapidity |\eta |\lt 1.9,ismeasuredtobe, is measured to be {{\sigma }_{W+Z}}=8.5\pm 1.7$ pb and is compared to next-to-leading-order calculations. The selected events are further used to study jet grooming techniques

    Jet energy measurement with the ATLAS detector in proton-proton collisions at root s=7 TeV

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    The jet energy scale and its systematic uncertainty are determined for jets measured with the ATLAS detector at the LHC in proton-proton collision data at a centre-of-mass energy of √s = 7TeV corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 38 pb-1. Jets are reconstructed with the anti-kt algorithm with distance parameters R=0. 4 or R=0. 6. Jet energy and angle corrections are determined from Monte Carlo simulations to calibrate jets with transverse momenta pT≥20 GeV and pseudorapidities {pipe}η{pipe}<4. 5. The jet energy systematic uncertainty is estimated using the single isolated hadron response measured in situ and in test-beams, exploiting the transverse momentum balance between central and forward jets in events with dijet topologies and studying systematic variations in Monte Carlo simulations. The jet energy uncertainty is less than 2. 5 % in the central calorimeter region ({pipe}η{pipe}<0. 8) for jets with 60≤pT<800 GeV, and is maximally 14 % for pT<30 GeV in the most forward region 3. 2≤{pipe}η{pipe}<4. 5. The jet energy is validated for jet transverse momenta up to 1 TeV to the level of a few percent using several in situ techniques by comparing a well-known reference such as the recoiling photon pT, the sum of the transverse momenta of tracks associated to the jet, or a system of low-pT jets recoiling against a high-pT jet. More sophisticated jet calibration schemes are presented based on calorimeter cell energy density weighting or hadronic properties of jets, aiming for an improved jet energy resolution and a reduced flavour dependence of the jet response. The systematic uncertainty of the jet energy determined from a combination of in situ techniques is consistent with the one derived from single hadron response measurements over a wide kinematic range. The nominal corrections and uncertainties are derived for isolated jets in an inclusive sample of high-pT jets. Special cases such as event topologies with close-by jets, or selections of samples with an enhanced content of jets originating from light quarks, heavy quarks or gluons are also discussed and the corresponding uncertainties are determined. © 2013 CERN for the benefit of the ATLAS collaboration

    Search for the neutral Higgs bosons of the minimal supersymmetric standard model in pp collisions at root s=7 TeV with the ATLAS detector

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    A search for neutral Higgs bosons of the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM) is reported. The analysis is based on a sample of proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 7TeV recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. The data were recorded in 2011 and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 4.7 fb-1 to 4.8 fb-1. Higgs boson decays into oppositely-charged muon or τ lepton pairs are considered for final states requiring either the presence or absence of b-jets. No statistically significant excess over the expected background is observed and exclusion limits at the 95% confidence level are derived. The exclusion limits are for the production cross-section of a generic neutral Higgs boson, φ, as a function of the Higgs boson mass and for h/A/H production in the MSSM as a function of the parameters mA and tan β in the mhmax scenario for mA in the range of 90GeV to 500 GeV. Copyright CERN

    Search for R-parity-violating supersymmetry in events with four or more leptons in sqrt(s) =7 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

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    A search for new phenomena in final states with four or more leptons (electrons or muons) is presented. The analysis is based on 4.7 fb−1 of s=7  TeV \sqrt{s}=7\;\mathrm{TeV} proton-proton collisions delivered by the Large Hadron Collider and recorded with the ATLAS detector. Observations are consistent with Standard Model expectations in two signal regions: one that requires moderate values of missing transverse momentum and another that requires large effective mass. The results are interpreted in a simplified model of R-parity-violating supersymmetry in which a 95% CL exclusion region is set for charged wino masses up to 540 GeV. In an R-parity-violating MSUGRA/CMSSM model, values of m 1/2 up to 820 GeV are excluded for 10 < tan β < 40

    Search for high-mass resonances decaying to dilepton final states in pp collisions at s√=7 TeV with the ATLAS detector

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    The ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider is used to search for high-mass resonances decaying to an electron-positron pair or a muon-antimuon pair. The search is sensitive to heavy neutral Z′ gauge bosons, Randall-Sundrum gravitons, Z * bosons, techni-mesons, Kaluza-Klein Z/γ bosons, and bosons predicted by Torsion models. Results are presented based on an analysis of pp collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 7 TeV corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 4.9 fb−1 in the e + e − channel and 5.0 fb−1 in the μ + μ −channel. A Z ′ boson with Standard Model-like couplings is excluded at 95 % confidence level for masses below 2.22 TeV. A Randall-Sundrum graviton with coupling k/MPl=0.1 is excluded at 95 % confidence level for masses below 2.16 TeV. Limits on the other models are also presented, including Technicolor and Minimal Z′ Models

    Various correlations in a Heisenberg XXZ spin chain both in thermal equilibrium and under the intrinsic decoherence

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    In this paper we discuss various correlations measured by the concurrence (C), classical correlation (CC), quantum discord (QD), and geometric measure of discord (GMD) in a two-qubit Heisenberg XXZ spin chain in the presence of external magnetic field and Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya (DM) anisotropic antisymmetric interaction. Based on the analytically derived expressions for the correlations for the cases of thermal equilibrium and the inclusion of intrinsic decoherence, we discuss and compare the effects of various system parameters on the correlations in different cases. The results show that the anisotropy Jz is considerably crucial for the correlations in thermal equilibrium at zero temperature limit but ineffective under the consideration of the intrinsic decoherence, and these quantities decrease as temperature T rises on the whole. Besides, J turned out to be constructive, but B be detrimental in the manipulation and control of various quantities both in thermal equilibrium and under the intrinsic decoherence which can be avoided by tuning other system parameters, while D is constructive in thermal equilibrium, but destructive in the case of intrinsic decoherence in general. In addition, for the initial state Ψ1(0)>=12(01>+10>)|\Psi_1(0) > = \frac{1}{\sqrt{2}} (|01 > + |10 >), all the correlations except the CC, exhibit a damping oscillation to a stable value larger than zero following the time, while for the initial state Ψ2(0)>=12(00>+11>)|\Psi_2(0) > = \frac{1}{\sqrt{2}} (|00 > + |11 >), all the correlations monotonously decrease, but CC still remains maximum. Moreover, there is not a definite ordering of these quantities in thermal equilibrium, whereas there is a descending order of the CC, C, GMD and QD under the intrinsic decoherence with a nonnull B when the initial state is Ψ2(0)>|\Psi_2(0) >.Comment: 8 pages, 7 figure

    Genetic variability of hepatitis C virus before and after combined therapy of interferon plus ribavirin

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    We present an analysis of the selective forces acting on two hepatitis C virus genome regions previously postulated to be involved in the viral response to combined antiviral therapy. One includes the three hypervariable regions in the envelope E2 glycoprotein, and the other encompasses the PKR binding domain and the V3 domain in the NS5A region. We used a cohort of 22 non-responder patients to combined therapy (interferon alpha-2a plus ribavirin) for which samples were obtained before initiation of therapy and after 6 or/and 12 months of treatment. A range of 25-100 clones per patient, genome region and time sample were sequenced. These were used to detect general patterns of adaptation, to identify particular adaptation mechanisms and to analyze the patterns of evolutionary change in both genome regions. These analyses failed to detect a common adaptive mechanism for the lack of response to antiviral treatment in these patients. On the contrary, a wide range of situations were observed, from patients showing no positively selected sites to others with many, and with completely different topologies in the reconstructed phylogenetic trees. Altogether, these results suggest that viral strategies to evade selection pressure from the immune system and antiviral therapies do not result from a single mechanism and they are likely based on a range of different alternatives, in which several different changes, or their combination, along the HCV genome confer viruses the ability to overcome strong selective [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]
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