46,474 research outputs found
A symmetrical method to obtain shear moduli from microrheology
Passive microrheology typically deduces shear elastic loss and storage moduli
from displacement time series or mean-squared displacement (MSD) of thermally
fluctuating probe particles in equilibrium materials. Common data analysis
methods use either Kramers-Kronig (KK) transformations or functional fitting to
calculate frequency-dependent loss and storage moduli. We propose a new
analysis method for passive microrheology that avoids the limitations of both
of these approaches. In this method, we determine both real and imaginary
components of the complex, frequency-dependent response function as direct integral
transforms of the MSD of thermal particle motion. This procedure significantly
improves the high-frequency fidelity of relative to the use of
KK transformation, which has been shown to lead to artifacts in
. We test our method on both model data and experimental
data. Experiments were performed on solutions of worm-like micelles and dilute
collagen solutions. While the present method agrees well with established
KK-based methods at low frequencies, we demonstrate significant improvement at
high frequencies using our symmetric analysis method, up to almost the
fundamental Nyquist limit.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figure
Random laser from engineered nanostructures obtained by surface tension driven lithography
The random laser emission from the functionalized thienyl-S,S-dioxide
quinquethiophene (T5OCx) in confined patterns with different shapes is
demonstrated. Functional patterning of the light emitter organic material in
well defined features is obtained by spontaneous molecular self-assembly guided
by surface tension driven (STD) lithography. Such controlled supramolecular
nano-aggregates act as scattering centers allowing the fabrication of
one-component organic lasers with no external resonator and with desired shape
and efficiency. Atomic force microscopy shows that different geometric pattern
with different supramolecular organization obtained by the lithographic process
tailors the coherent emission properties by controlling the distribution and
the size of the random scatterers
Symmetries of Two Higgs Doublet Model and CP violation
We use the invariance of physical picture under a change of Lagrangian, the
reparametrization invariance in the space of Lagrangians and its particular
case -- the rephrasing invariance, for analysis of the two-Higgs-doublet
extension of the SM. We found that some parameters of theory like tan beta are
reparametrization dependent and therefore cannot be fundamental. We use the
Z2-symmetry of the Lagrangian, which prevents a phi_1 phi_2 transitions,
and the different levels of its violation, soft and hard, to describe a
physical content of the model. In general, the broken Z2-symmetry allows for a
CP violation in the physical Higgs sector. We argue that the 2HDM with a soft
breaking of Z2-symmetry is a natural model in the description of EWSB. To
simplify an analysis we choose among different forms of Lagrangian describing
the same physical reality a specific one, in which the vacuum expectation
values of both Higgs fields are real. A possible CP violation in the Higgs
sector is described by using a two-step procedure with the first step identical
to a diagonalization of mass matrix for CP-even fields in the CP conserved
case. We find very simple necessary and sufficient condition for a CP violation
in the Higgs sector. We determine the range of parameters for which CP
violation and Flavor Changing Neutral Current effects are naturally small,what
corresponds to a small dimensionless mass parameter nu= Re m_{12}^2/(2v1v2). We
discuss how for small nu some Higgs bosons can be heavy, with mass up to about
0.6 TeV, without violating of the unitarity constraints. We discuss main
features of the large nu case, which corresponds for nu -> infty to a
decoupling of heavy Higgs bosons.Comment: 27 pages, extended discussion, references added, one figure, Revtex
A cell-permeable biscyclooctyne as a novel probe for the identification of protein sulfenic acids
Reactive oxygen species act as important second messengers in cell signaling and homeostasis through the oxidation of protein thiols. However, the dynamic nature of protein oxidation and the lack of sensitivity of existing molecular probes have hindered our understanding of such reactions; therefore, new tools are required to address these challenges. We designed a bifunctional variant of the strained bicyclo[6.1.0]nonyne (BCN-E-BCN) that enables the tagging of intracellular protein sulfenic acids for biorthogonal copper-free click chemistry. In validation studies, BCN-E-BCN binds the sulfenylated form of the actin-severing protein cofilin, while mutation of the cognate cysteine residues abrogates its binding. BCN-E-BCN is cell permeable and reacts rapidly with cysteine sulfenic acids in cultured cells. Using different azide-tagged conjugates, we demonstrate that BCN-E-BCN can be used in various applications for the detection of sulfenylated proteins. Remarkably, cycloaddition of an azide-tagged fluorophore to BCN-E-BCN labelled proteins produced in vivo can be visualized by fluorescence microscopy to reveal their subcellular localization. These findings demonstrate a novel and multifaceted approach to the detection and trapping of sulfenic acids
Foeniculum vulgare Essential Oils: Chemical Composition, Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Activities
The essential oils from Foeniculum vulgare commercial aerial parts and fruits were isolated by hydrodistillation, with different distillation times (30 min, I h, 2 h and 3 h), and analyzed by GC and GC-MS. The antioxidant ability was estimated using four distinct methods. Antibacterial activity was determined by the agar diffusion method. Remarkable differences, and worrying from the quality and safety point of view, were detected in the essential oils. trans-Anethole (31-36%), alpha-pinene (14-20%) and limonene (11-13%) were the main components of the essentials oil isolated from F. vulgare dried aerial parts, whereas methyl chavicol (= estragole) (79-88%) was dominant in the fruit oils. With the DPPH method the plant oils showed better antioxidant activity than the fruits oils. With the TBARS method and at higher concentrations, fennel essential oils showed a pro-oxidant activity. None of the oils showed a hydroxyl radical scavenging capacity >50%, but they showed an ability to inhibit 5-lipoxygenase. The essential oils showed a very low antimicrobial activity. In general, the essential oils isolated during 2 h were as effective, from the biological activity point of view, as those isolated during 3 h.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Detections of massive stars in the cluster MCM2005b77, in the star-forming regions GRS G331.3400.36 (S62) and GRS G337.9200.48 (S36)
Large infrared and millimeter wavelength surveys of the Galactic plane have
unveiled more than 600 new bubble HII regions and more than 3000 candidate star
clusters. We present a study of the candidate clusters MCM2005b72, DBS2003-157,
DBS2003-172, and MCM2005b77, based on near-infrared spectroscopy taken with
SofI on the NTT and infrared photometry from the 2MASS, VVV, and GLIMPSE
surveys. We find that (1) MCM2005b72 and DBS2003-157 are subregions of the same
star-forming region, HII GRS G331.34-00.36 (bubble S62). MCM2005b72 coincides
with the central part of this HII region, while DBS2003-157 is a bright
mid-infrared knot of the S62 shell. We detected two O-type stars at extinction
\Aks=1.0-1.3 mag. Their spectrophotometric properties are consistent with the
near-kinematic distance to GRS G331.34-00.36 of 3.9pm0.3 kpc. (2) DBS2003-172
coincides with a bright mid-infrared knot in the S36 shell (GRS G337.92-00.48),
where we detected a pair of candidate He I stars embedded in a small cometary
nebula. (3) The stellar cluster MCM2005b77 is rich in B-type stars, has an
average Aks of 0.91 mag, and is adjacent to the HII region IRAS 16137-5025. The
average spectrophotometric distance of kpc matches the
near-kinematic distance to IRAS 16137-5025 of 5.2pm0.1 kpc.Comment: 22 pages, 11 Figures, ApJ accepte
Experimental evidence of replica symmetry breaking in random lasers
Spin-glass theory is one of the leading paradigms of complex physics and
describes condensed matter, neural networks and biological systems, ultracold
atoms, random photonics, and many other research fields. According to this
theory, identical systems under identical conditions may reach different states
and provide different values for observable quantities. This effect is known as
Replica Symmetry Breaking and is revealed by the shape of the probability
distribution function of an order parameter named the Parisi overlap. However,
a direct experimental evidence in any field of research is still missing. Here
we investigate pulse-to-pulse fluctuations in random lasers, we introduce and
measure the analogue of the Parisi overlap in independent experimental
realizations of the same disordered sample, and we find that the distribution
function yields evidence of a transition to a glassy light phase compatible
with a replica symmetry breaking.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figure
Mechanisms of pelvic floor muscle function and the effect on the urethra during a cough
Background: Current measurement tools have difficulty identifying the automaticphysiologic processes maintaining continence, and many questions still remainabout pelvic floor muscle (PFM) function during automatic events.Objective: To perform a feasibility study to characterise the displacement, velocity,and acceleration of the PFM and the urethra during a cough.Design, setting, and participants: A volunteer convenience sample of 23 continentwomen and 9 women with stress urinary incontinence (SUI) from the generalcommunity of San Francisco Bay Area was studied.Measurements: Methods included perineal ultrasound imaging, motion trackingof the urogenital structures, and digital vaginal examination. Statistical analysisused one-tailed unpaired student t tests, and Welch’s correction was applied whenvariances were unequal.Results and limitations: The cough reflex activated the PFM of continent women tocompress the urogenital structures towards the pubic symphysis, which wasabsent in women with SUI. The maximum accelerations that acted on the PFMduring a cough were generally more similar than the velocities and displacements.The urethras of women with SUI were exposed to uncontrolled transverse accelerationand were displaced more than twice as far ( p = 0.0002), with almost twicethe velocity ( p = 0.0015) of the urethras of continent women. Caution regardingthe generalisability of this study is warranted due to the small number of women inthe SUI group and the significant difference in parity between groups.Conclusions: During a cough, normal PFM function produces timely compressionof the pelvic floor and additional external support to the urethra, reducing displacement,velocity, and acceleration. In women with SUI, who have weakerurethral attachments, this shortening contraction does not occur; consequently,the urethras of women with SUI move further and faster for a longer duratio
- …