3,648 research outputs found
Differentiation of Human Embryonic Stem Cells into Cells with Corneal Keratocyte Phenotype
Corneal transparency depends on a unique extracellular matrix secreted by stromal keratocytes, mesenchymal cells of neural crest lineage. Derivation of keratocytes from human embryonic stem (hES) cells could elucidate the keratocyte developmental pathway and open a potential for cell-based therapy for corneal blindness. This study seeks to identify conditions inducing differentiation of pluripotent hES cells to the keratocyte lineage. Neural differentiation of hES cell line WA01(H1) was induced by co-culture with mouse PA6 fibroblasts. After 6 days of co-culture, hES cells expressing cell-surface NGFR protein (CD271, p75NTR) were isolated by immunoaffinity adsorption, and cultured as a monolayer for one week. Keratocyte phenotype was induced by substratum-independent pellet culture in serum-free medium containing ascorbate. Gene expression, examined by quantitative RT-PCR, found hES cells co-cultured with PA6 cells for 6 days to upregulate expression of neural crest genes including NGFR, SNAI1, NTRK3, SOX9, and MSX1. Isolated NGFR-expressing cells were free of PA6 feeder cells. After expansion as a monolayer, mRNAs typifying adult stromal stem cells were detected, including BMI1, KIT, NES, NOTCH1, and SIX2. When these cells were cultured as substratum-free pellets keratocyte markers AQP1, B3GNT7, PTDGS, and ALDH3A1 were upregulated. mRNA for keratocan (KERA), a cornea-specific proteoglycan, was upregulated more than 10,000 fold. Culture medium from pellets contained high molecular weight keratocan modified with keratan sulfate, a unique molecular component of corneal stroma. These results show hES cells can be induced to differentiate into keratocytes in vitro. Pluripotent stem cells, therefore, may provide a renewable source of material for development of treatment of corneal stromal opacities. © 2013 Chan et al
Thermodynamic instability of doubly spinning black objects
We investigate the thermodynamic stability of neutral black objects with (at
least) two angular momenta. We use the quasilocal formalism to compute the
grand canonical potential and show that the doubly spinning black ring is
thermodynamically unstable. We consider the thermodynamic instabilities of
ultra-spinning black objects and point out a subtle relation between the
microcanonical and grand canonical ensembles. We also find the location of the
black string/membrane phases of doubly spinning black objects.Comment: 25 pages, 7 figures v2: matches the published versio
Holographic Reconstruction and Renormalization in Asymptotically Ricci-flat Spacetimes
In this work we elaborate on an extension of the AdS/CFT framework to a
subclass of gravitational theories with vanishing cosmological constant. By
building on earlier ideas, we construct a correspondence between Ricci-flat
spacetimes admitting asymptotically hyperbolic hypersurfaces and a family of
conformal field theories on a codimension two manifold at null infinity. By
truncating the gravity theory to the pure gravitational sector, we find the
most general spacetime asymptotics, renormalize the gravitational action,
reproduce the holographic stress tensors and Ward identities of the family of
CFTs and show how the asymptotics is mapped to and reconstructed from conformal
field theory data. In even dimensions, the holographic Weyl anomalies identify
the bulk time coordinate with the spectrum of central charges with
characteristic length the bulk Planck length. Consistency with locality in the
bulk time direction requires a notion of locality in this spectrum.Comment: 44 pages, 4 figures. v2: minor changes in section
Simonsenia aveniformis sp nov (Bacillariophyceae), molecular phylogeny and systematics of the genus, and a new type of canal raphe system
The genus Simonsenia is reviewed and S. aveniformis described as new for science by light and electron microscopy. The new species originated from estuarine environments in southern Iberia (Atlantic coast) and was isolated into culture. In LM, Simonsenia resembles Nitzschia, with bridges (fibulae) beneath the raphe, which is marginal. It is only electron microscope (EM) examination that reveals the true structure of the raphe system, which consists of a raphe canal raised on a keel (wing), supported by rib like braces (fenestral bars) and tube-like portulae; between the portulae the keel is perforated by open windows (fenestrae). Based on the presence of portulae and a fenestrated keel, Simonsenia has been proposed to be intermediate between Bacillariaceae and Surirellaceae. However, an rbcL phylogeny revealed that Simonsenia belongs firmly in the Bacillariaceae, with which it shares a similar chloroplast arrangement, rather than in the Surirellaceae. Lack of homology between the surirelloid and simonsenioid keels is reflected in subtle differences in the morphology and ontogeny of the portulae and fenestrae. The diversity of Simonsenia has probably been underestimated, particularly in the marine environment.Polish National Science Centre in Cracow within the Maestro program [N 2012/04/A/ST10/00544]; Sciences and Technologies Foundation-FCT (Portugal) [SFRH/BD/62405/2009]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Interstellar Dust Close to the Sun
The low density interstellar medium (ISM) close to the Sun and inside of the
heliosphere provides a unique laboratory for studying interstellar dust grains.
Grain characteristics in the nearby ISM are obtained from observations of
interstellar gas and dust inside of the heliosphere and the interstellar gas
towards nearby stars. Comparison between the gas composition and solar
abundances suggests that grains are dominated by olivines and possibly some
form of iron oxide. Measurements of the interstellar Ne/O ratio by the
Interstellar Boundary Explorer spacecraft indicate that a high fraction of
interstellar oxygen in the ISM must be depleted onto dust grains. Local
interstellar abundances are consistent with grain destruction in ~150 km/s
interstellar shocks, provided that the carbonaceous component is hydrogenated
amorphous carbon and carbon abundances are correct. Variations in relative
abundances of refractories in gas suggest variations in the history of grain
destruction in nearby ISM. The large observed grains, > 1 micron, may indicate
a nearby reservoir of denser ISM. Theoretical three-dimensional models of the
interaction between interstellar dust grains and the solar wind predict that
plumes of about 0.18 micron dust grains form around the heliosphere.Comment: 2011 AGOS Taiwan meeting; accepted for publication in Earth, Planets
and Spac
Analyticity, Unitarity and One-loop Graviton Corrections to Compton Scattering
We compute spin-flip cross section for graviton photoproduction on a spin-1/2
target of finite mass. Using this tree-level result, we find one-loop graviton
correction to the spin-flip low-energy forward Compton scattering amplitude by
using Gerasimov-Drell-Hearn sum rule. We show that this result agrees with the
corresponding perturbative computations, implying the validity of the sum rule
at one-loop level, contrary to the previous claims. We discuss possible effects
from the black hole production and string Regge trajectory exchange at very
high energies. These effects seem to soften the UV divergence present at
one-loop graviton level. Finally, we discuss the relation of these observations
with the models that involve extra dimensions.Comment: 15 pages, 3 figure
Diminished temperature and vegetation seasonality over northern high latitudes
Global temperature is increasing, especially over northern lands (>50° N), owing to positive feedbacks1. As this increase is most pronounced in winter, temperature seasonality (ST)—conventionally defined as the difference between summer and winter temperatures—is diminishing over time2, a phenomenon that is analogous to its equatorward decline at an annual scale. The initiation, termination and performance of vegetation photosynthetic activity are tied to threshold temperatures3. Trends in the timing of these thresholds and cumulative temperatures above them may alter vegetation productivity, or modify vegetation seasonality (SV), over time. The relationship between ST and SV is critically examined here with newly improved ground and satellite data sets. The observed diminishment of ST and SV is equivalent to 4° and 7° (5° and 6°) latitudinal shift equatorward during the past 30 years in the Arctic (boreal) region. Analysis of simulations from 17 state-of-the-art climate models4 indicates an additional STdiminishment equivalent to a 20° equatorward shift could occur this century. How SV will change in response to such large projected ST declines and the impact this will have on ecosystem services5 are not well understood. Hence the need for continued monitoring6 of northern lands as their seasonal temperature profiles evolve to resemble thosefurther south.Lopullinen vertaisarvioitu käsikirjoitu
Rotating black holes with equal-magnitude angular momenta in d=5 Einstein-Gauss-Bonnet theory
We construct rotating black hole solutions in Einstein-Gauss-Bonnet theory in
five spacetime dimensions. These black holes are asymptotically flat, and
possess a regular horizon of spherical topology and two equal-magnitude angular
momenta associated with two distinct planes of rotation. The action and global
charges of the solutions are obtained by using the quasilocal formalism with
boundary counterterms generalized for the case of Einstein-Gauss-Bonnet theory.
We discuss the general properties of these black holes and study their
dependence on the Gauss-Bonnet coupling constant . We argue that most
of the properties of the configurations are not affected by the higher
derivative terms. For fixed the set of black hole solutions terminates
at an extremal black hole with a regular horizon, where the Hawking temperature
vanishes and the angular momenta attain their extremal values. The domain of
existence of regular black hole solutions is studied. The near horizon geometry
of the extremal solutions is determined by employing the entropy function
formalism.Comment: 25 pages, 7 figure
Shaping black holes with free fields
Starting from a metric Ansatz permitting a weak version of Birkhoff's theorem
we find static black hole solutions including matter in the form of free scalar
and p-form fields, with and without a cosmological constant \Lambda. Single
p-form matter fields permit multiple possibilities, including dyonic solutions,
self-dual instantons and metrics with Einstein-Kaelher horizons. The inclusion
of multiple p-forms on the other hand, arranged in a homogeneous fashion with
respect to the horizon geometry, permits the construction of higher dimensional
dyonic p-form black holes and four dimensional axionic black holes with flat
horizons, when \Lambda<0. It is found that axionic fields regularize black hole
solutions in the sense, for example, of permitting regular -- rather than
singular -- small mass Reissner-Nordstrom type black holes. Their cosmic string
and Vaidya versions are also obtained.Comment: 38 pages. v2: minor changes, published versio
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