Wilson Loops and Area-Preserving Diffeomorphisms in Twisted Noncommutative Gauge Theory

We use twist deformation techniques to analyse the behaviour under area-preserving diffeomorphisms of quantum averages of Wilson loops in Yang-Mills theory on the noncommutative plane. We find that while the classical gauge theory is manifestly twist covariant, the holonomy operators break the quantum implementation of the twisted symmetry in the usual formal definition of the twisted quantum field theory. These results are deduced by analysing general criteria which guarantee twist invariance of noncommutative quantum field theories. From this a number of general results are also obtained, such as the twisted symplectic invariance of noncommutative scalar quantum field theories with polynomial interactions and the existence of a large class of holonomy operators with both twisted gauge covariance and twisted symplectic invariance.Comment: 23 page

Discrimination of freshwater fish species by Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization- Time Of Flight Mass Spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS): a pilot study

In this study we discriminate three freshwater fish species (the shad Alosa agone Scopoli 1786, the whitefish Coregonus macrophthalmus N?sslin1882 and the roach Rutilus rutilus Linnaeus 1758) by Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization- Time Of Flight Mass Spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) using both muscle and liver tissues. The technology enables to analyze tissues after a simple single-step extraction procedure without any further purification. The molecular profile of muscle tissues showed the most intense peaks at m/z range of 11,354.0 (?2.0 SD) Da, 3508.5 (?1.5 SD) Da and 8567.2 (?1.1 SD) Da for the shad, the whitefish and the roach respectively. The molecular profiles of liver tissues exhibit most of the highest peak intensities in the range between 2000 and 6000 m/z values. The roach shows the clearest pattern with high intensities detected at mass ranges between 3000 and 3550 Da with maxima at m/z 3035.2 (?0.2) Da and 3468.7 (?0.3) Da. The shad shows a shared high peak at m/z 3429.0 (?0.3) Da. The whitefish shows a group of major peaks in the m/z range of 3000-3700 Da with the highest being at 3635 (?0.3) Da. The overall signal pattern generated is highly specific for each species and, according to cluster analyses based on the total number of peaks, we could discriminate the three species

Potential of matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) for the identification of freshwater zooplankton: a pilot study with three Eudiaptomus (Copepoda: Diaptomidae) species

The accurate identification of individuals in zooplankton samples is a crucial step in many plankton studies. Up to now, this has been done primarily by microscopic analysis of morphological characters, and new molecular methodologies are still relatively rarely applied. Another promising technology is matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS), which has had a major impact in applied and systematic microbiology, where it is used for routine high throughput identification of bacteria and fungi. For the present study, we developed a protocol for the rapid acquisition of mass spectra from whole individual copepods. The final protocol enabled us to obtain mass spectra with more than 100 distinct peaks in the mass range of 2000-20 000 Da. A comparison of the mass spectra of three species of Eudiaptomus showed that they could all be clearly discriminated, whereas the mass spectra of different developmental stages and sexes of each particular species were highly similar. Further, a discrimination of con-specific individuals from different habitats was achieved, at least partly, even without extensive optimization of the analytical and statistical procedures. These results indicate the feasibility of identifying copepods by a rapid and simple MALDI-TOF MS analysis, e.g. for population ecology studie

Exploiting the pro-resolving actions of glucocorticoid-induced proteins Annexin A1 and GILZ in infectious diseases.

For decades, glucocorticoids (GC) have been used to treat several inflammatory conditions, including chronic and autoimmune diseases, due to their potent anti-inflammatory properties. In the context of infectious diseases, the use of GCs may be effective as adjuvant to antibiotic therapy by controlling excessive inflammatory responses resulting in better outcome in some cases. However, the use of GCs has been associated with a vast number of side effects, including increased probability of immunosuppression and consequent risk of opportunistic infection. Glucocorticoid-induced leucine zipper (GILZ) and Annexin A1 (AnxA1) are GC-induced proteins intrinsically involved with the anti-inflammatory functions of GCs without the associated adverse metabolic effects. Recent studies have shown that these GC-proteins exhibit pro-resolving effects. An essential characteristic of pro-resolving molecules is their ability to coordinate the resolution of inflammation and promote host defense in most experimental models of infection. Although the role of GILZ and AnxA1 in the context of infectious diseases remain to be better explored, herein we provide an overview of the emerging functions of these GC-proteins obtained from pre-clinical models of infectious diseases

Agronomic and environmental benefits of ‘re-using’ a biodegradable mulching film for two consecutive lettuce cycles

Biodegradable films are a valuable and sustainable alternative to plastic films for mulching soils since they avoid the environmental and economic problems related to plastic removal and dis posal. Nevertheless, the fast degradation of such materials could make them unsuitable for mid-to long-term use. In a field experiment, the agronomic performance of a biodegradable mulching film (MB) was compared to that of conventional low-density polyethylene (LDPE) film for two consecutive lettuce cycles (winter and spring). In the conditions of this trial, MB showed good resistance to atmospheric agents, with a reduction of its integrity and mechanical properties only after six months. The effects on soil temperature and lettuce yield did not differ from those obtained with LDPE films. The effect on harvest timing was the same as that with LDPE in the spring cycle, while in the winter cycle, the harvest was delayed by about five days compared to LDPE. Mulching films reduced nitrate accumulation in leaves mainly during the winter cycle. However, the effect needs to be further explored with experiments in different pedoclimatic conditions that consider the effects of mulching on nitrification and nitrate-reductase activity that could be affected by changes in soil temperature and moisture

High-density EEG power topography and connectivity during confusional arousal.

Confusional arousal is the milder expression of a family of disorders known as Disorders of Arousal (DOA) from non-REM sleep. These disorders are characterized by recurrent abnormal behaviors that occur in a state of reduced awareness for the external environment. Despite frequent amnesia for the nocturnal events, when actively probed, patients are able to report vivid hallucinatory/dream-like mental imagery. Traditional (low-density) scalp and stereo-electroencephalographic (EEG) recordings previously showed a pathological admixture of slow oscillations typical of NREM sleep and wake-like fast-mixed frequencies during these phenomena. However, our knowledge about the specific neural EEG dynamics over the entire brain is limited. We collected 2 consecutive in-laboratory sleep recordings using high-density (hd)-EEG (256 vertex-referenced geodesic system) coupled with standard video-polysomnography (v-PSG) from a 12-year-old drug-naïve and otherwise healthy child with a long-lasting history of sleepwalking. Source power topography and functional connectivity were computed during 20 selected confusional arousal episodes (from -6 to +18 sec after motor onset), and during baseline slow wave sleep preceding each episode (from - 3 to -2 min before onset). We found a widespread increase in slow wave activity (SWA) theta, alpha, beta, gamma power, associated with a parallel decrease in the sigma range during behavioral episodes compared to baseline sleep. Bilateral Broadman area 7 and right Broadman areas 39 and 40 were relatively spared by the massive increase in SWA power. Functional SWA connectivity analysis revealed a drastic increase in the number and complexity of connections from baseline sleep to full-blown episodes, that mainly involved an increased out-flow from bilateral fronto-medial prefrontal cortex and left temporal lobe to other cortical regions. These effects could be appreciated in the 6 sec window preceding behavioral onset. Overall, our results support the idea that DOA are the expression of peculiar brain states, compatible with a partial re-emergence of consciousness

Polychlorinated biphenyl profile in polyhydroxy-alkanoates synthetized from urban organicwastes

Call CIRC-05-2016The microbial synthesis of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) from organic wastes is a valuable process to valorize available renewable resources, such as food wastes and biological sludge. Bioplastics find many applications in various sectors, from medical field to food industry. However, persistent organic pollutants could be transferred from wastes to the final product. The present paper demonstrates that the use of municipal wastes in PHA production is safe for the environment and human health and provides a polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) profile in both commercial and waste-based PHA samples. PCB analysis in several PHA samples showed very low concentrations of the target analytes. Commercial PHA samples showed a similar PCB level with respect to PHA samples from municipal waste/sludge and higher than PHA samples from fruit waste. For all analyzed PCBs, detected concentrations were consistently lower than the ones reported in regulatory framework or guidelines.publishersversionpublishe

Duality and Braiding in Twisted Quantum Field Theory

We re-examine various issues surrounding the definition of twisted quantum field theories on flat noncommutative spaces. We propose an interpretation based on nonlocal commutative field redefinitions which clarifies previously observed properties such as the formal equivalence of Green's functions in the noncommutative and commutative theories, causality, and the absence of UV/IR mixing. We use these fields to define the functional integral formulation of twisted quantum field theory. We exploit techniques from braided tensor algebra to argue that the twisted Fock space states of these free fields obey conventional statistics. We support our claims with a detailed analysis of the modifications induced in the presence of background magnetic fields, which induces additional twists by magnetic translation operators and alters the effective noncommutative geometry seen by the twisted quantum fields. When two such field theories are dual to one another, we demonstrate that only our braided physical states are covariant under the duality.Comment: 35 pages; v2: Typos correcte

Time to change the single-centre approach to management of patients with tuberculosis: a novel network platform with automatic data import and data sharing

Time to change the single-centre approach to TB http://ow.ly/lCeM30hBcbB