Measurement of the inclusive and dijet cross-sections of b-jets in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV with the ATLAS detector

The inclusive and dijet production cross-sections have been measured for jets containing b-hadrons (b-jets) in proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of sqrt(s) = 7 TeV, using the ATLAS detector at the LHC. The measurements use data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 34 pb^-1. The b-jets are identified using either a lifetime-based method, where secondary decay vertices of b-hadrons in jets are reconstructed using information from the tracking detectors, or a muon-based method where the presence of a muon is used to identify semileptonic decays of b-hadrons inside jets. The inclusive b-jet cross-section is measured as a function of transverse momentum in the range 20 < pT < 400 GeV and rapidity in the range |y| < 2.1. The bbbar-dijet cross-section is measured as a function of the dijet invariant mass in the range 110 < m_jj < 760 GeV, the azimuthal angle difference between the two jets and the angular variable chi in two dijet mass regions. The results are compared with next-to-leading-order QCD predictions. Good agreement is observed between the measured cross-sections and the predictions obtained using POWHEG + Pythia. MC@NLO + Herwig shows good agreement with the measured bbbar-dijet cross-section. However, it does not reproduce the measured inclusive cross-section well, particularly for central b-jets with large transverse momenta.Comment: 10 pages plus author list (21 pages total), 8 figures, 1 table, final version published in European Physical Journal

Declining extra-pair paternity with laying order associated with initial incubation behavior, but independent of final clutch size in the blue tit

Although functional explanations for female engagement in extra-pair copulation have been studied extensively in birds, little is known about how extra-pair paternity is linked to other fundamental aspects of avian reproduction. However, recent studies indicate that the occurrence of extra-pair offspring may generally decline with laying order, possibly because stimulation by eggs induces incubation, which may suppress female motivation to acquire extra-pair paternity. Here we tested whether experimental inhibition of incubation during the laying phase, induced by the temporary removal of eggs, resulted in increased extra-pair paternity, in concert with a later cessation of laying, in blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus). As expected, experimental females showed a more gradual increase in nocturnal incubation duration over the laying phase and produced larger clutches than controls. Moreover, incubation duration on the night after the first egg was laid predicted how extra-pair paternity declined with laying order, with less incubation being associated with more extra-pair offspring among the earliest eggs in the clutch. However, incubation duration on this first night was unrelated to our experimental treatment and independent of final clutch size. Consequently, the observed decline in extra-pair paternity with laying order was unaffected by our manipulation and larger clutches included proportionally fewer extra-pair offspring. We suggest that female physiological state prior to laying, associated with incubation at the onset of laying, determines motivation to acquire extra-pair paternity independent of final clutch size. This decline in proportion of extra-pair offspring with clutch size may be a general pattern within bird species

Flow-cytometric monitoring of disease-associated expression of 9-O-acetylated sialoglycoproteins in combination with known CD antigens, as an index for MRD in children with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia: a two-year longitudinal follow-up study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Over expression of 9-<it>O-</it>acetylated sialoglycoproteins (Neu5,9Ac₂-GPs, abbreviated as <it>O</it>AcSGP) has been demonstrated as a disease-associated antigen on the lymphoblasts of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL). Achatinin-H, a lectin, has selective affinity towards terminal 9-<it>O-</it>acetylated sialic acids-α2-6-<it>N</it>acetylated galactosamine. Exploring this affinity, enhanced expression of <it>O</it>AcSGP was observed, at the onset of disease, followed by its decrease with chemotherapy and reappearance with relapse. In spite of treatment, patients retain the diseased cells referred to as minimal residual disease (MRD) responsible for relapse. Our aim was to select a suitable template by using the differential expression of <it>O</it>AcSGP along with other known CD antigens to monitor MRD in peripheral blood (PB) and bone marrow (BM) of Indian patients with B- or T-ALL during treatment and correlate it with the disease status.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A two-year longitudinal follow-up study was done with 109 patients from the onset of the disease till the end of chemotherapy, treated under MCP841protocol. Paired samples of PB (n = 1667) and BM (n = 999) were monitored by flow cytometry. Three templates selected for this investigation were <it>O</it>AcSGP⁺CD10⁺CD19⁺or <it>O</it>AcSGP⁺CD34⁺CD19⁺for B-ALL and <it>O</it>AcSGP⁺CD7⁺CD3⁺for T-ALL.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Using each template the level of MRD detection reached 0.01% for a patient in clinical remission (CR). 81.65% of the patients were in CR during these two years while the remaining relapsed. Failure in early clearance of lymphoblasts, as indicated by higher MRD, implied an elevated risk of relapse. Soaring MRD during the chemotherapeutic regimen predicted clinical relapse, at least a month before medical manifestation. Irrespective of B- or T-lineage ALL, the MRD in PB and BM correlated well.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>A range of MRD values can be predicted for the patients in CR, irrespective of their lineage, being 0.03 ± 0.01% (PB) and 0.05 ± 0.015% (BM). These patients may not be stated as normal with respect to the presence of MRD. Hence, MRD study beyond two-years follow-up is necessary to investigate further reduction in MRD, thereby ensuring their disease-free survival. Therefore, we suggest use of these templates for MRD detection, during and post-chemotherapy for proper patient management strategies, thereby helping in personalizing the treatment.</p

Quantifying the effect of population mixing on childhood leukaemia risk: the Seascale cluster

A statistical model was developed based on Poisson regression of incidence of childhood leukaemia and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) in relation to population mixing among all 119 539 children born 1969–1989 to mothers living in Cumbria, north-west England, (excluding Seascale). This model was used to predict the number of cases in Seascale (the village adjacent to the Sellafield nuclear installation) children, born 1950–1989 and diagnosed before 1993. After allowing for age, the incidence of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) and NHL was significantly higher among children born in areas with the highest levels of population mixing, relative risk (RR) = 11.7 (95% confidence interval (CI) 3.2–43) and was highest among children of incomers. The model predicted up to 3.0 (95% CI 1.3–6.0) cases of ALL/NHL in children born in Seascale compared to six observed and 2.0 (95% CI 1.0–3.4) cases in children resident, but not born, in Seascale compared to two observed. Population mixing is a significant risk factor for ALL/NHL, especially in young children, accounting for over 50% of cases in Cumbria and most cases in Seascale. © 1999 Cancer Research Campaig

Characterization of MHC-I in the blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus) reveals low levels of genetic diversity and trans-population evolution across European populations

The major histcompatibility complex (MHC) is a vital component of the adaptive immune system in all vertebrates. This study is the first to characterize MHC class I (MHC-I) in blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus), and we use MHC-I exon 3 sequence data from individuals originating from three locations across Europe: Spain, the Netherlands to Sweden. Our phylogeny of the 17 blue tit MHC-I alleles contains one allele cluster with low nucleotide diversity compared to the remaining more diverse alleles. We found a significant evidence for balancing selection in the peptide-binding region in the diverse allele group only. No separation according to geographic location was found in the phylogeny of alleles. Although the number of MHC-I loci of the blue tit is comparable to that of other passerine species, the nucleotide diversity of MHC-I appears to be much lower than that of other passerine species, including the closely related great tit (Parus major) and the severely inbred Seychelles warbler (Acrocephalus sechellensis). We believe that this initial MHC-I characterization in blue tits provides an important step towards understanding the mechanisms shaping MHC-I diversity in natural populations

I-Motif Structures Formed in the Human c-MYC Promoter Are Highly Dynamic–Insights into Sequence Redundancy and I-Motif Stability

The GC-rich nuclease hypersensitivity element III1 (NHE III1) of the c-MYC promoter largely controls the transcriptional activity of the c-MYC oncogene. The C-rich strand in this region can form I-motif DNA secondary structures. We determined the folding pattern of the major I-motif formed in the NHE III1, which can be formed at near-neutral pH. While we find that the I-motif formed in the four 3′ consecutive runs of cytosines appears to be the most favored, our results demonstrate that the C-rich strand of the c-MYC NHE III1 exhibits a high degree of dynamic equilibration. Using a trisubstituted oligomer of this region, we determined the formation of two equilibrating loop isomers, one of which contains a flipped-out cytosine. Our results indicate that the intercalative cytosine+–cytosine base pairs are not always necessary for an intramolecular I-motif. The dynamic character of the c-MYC I-motif is intrinsic to the NHE III1 sequence and appears to provide stability to the c-MYC I-motif

Structural Basis for Apoptosis Inhibition by Epstein-Barr Virus BHRF1

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is associated with human malignancies, especially those affecting the B cell compartment such as Burkitt lymphoma. The virally encoded homolog of the mammalian pro-survival protein Bcl-2, BHRF1 contributes to viral infectivity and lymphomagenesis. In addition to the pro-apoptotic BH3-only protein Bim, its key target in lymphoid cells, BHRF1 also binds a selective sub-set of pro-apoptotic proteins (Bid, Puma, Bak) expressed by host cells. A consequence of BHRF1 expression is marked resistance to a range of cytotoxic agents and in particular, we show that its expression renders a mouse model of Burkitt lymphoma untreatable. As current small organic antagonists of Bcl-2 do not target BHRF1, the structures of it in complex with Bim or Bak shown here will be useful to guide efforts to target BHRF1 in EBV-associated malignancies, which are usually associated with poor clinical outcomes

Measurements of branching fraction ratios and CP asymmetries in B-+/- -> DCPK +/- decays in hadron collisions

9 páginas, 3 figuras, 2 tablas.-- PACS numbers: 13.25.Hw, 11.30.Er, 14.40.Nd.--CDF Collaboration: et al.We reconstruct B-+/- -> DK +/- decays in a data sample collected by the CDF II detector at the Tevatron collider corresponding to 1 fb(-1) of integrated luminosity. We select decay modes where the D meson decays to either K-pi(+) (flavor eigenstate) or K-K+, pi(-)pi(+) (CP-even eigenstates), and measure the direct CP asymmetry A(CP+) = 0.39 +/- 0.17(stat) +/- 0.04(syst), and the double ratio of CP-even to flavor eigenstate branching fractions RCP+ = 1.30 +/- 0.24(stat) +/- 0.12(syst). These measurements will improve the determination of the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa angle gamma. They are performed here for the first time using data from hadron collisions.We thank the Fermilab staff and the technical staffs of the participating institutions for their vital contributions. This work was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy and National Science Foundation; the Italian Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare; the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan; the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada; the National Science Council of the Republic of China; the Swiss National Science Foundation; the A.P. Sloan Foundation; the Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung, Germany; the Korean Science and Engineering Foundation and the Korean Research Foundation; the Science and Technology Facilities Council and the Royal Society, UK; the Institut National de Physique Nucleaire et Physique des Particules/CNRS; the Russian Foundation for Basic Research; the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, and Programa Consolider- Ingenio 2010, Spain; the Slovak R&D Agency; and the Academy of Finland.Peer reviewe