ILCRoot Tracker and Vertex Detector Hits Response to MARS15 Simulated Backgrounds in the Muon Collider

Abstract Results from a simulation of the background for a muon collider, and the hits response of a silicon tracking detector to this backgroundare presented.The backgroundcausedbydecaysofthe750 GeV/ c beam μ + and μ − was simulated using the MARS15 program, which included the infrastructure of the beam line elements near the detector and the 10 ∘ nozzles that shield the detector from this background. The ILCRoot framework, along with the Geant4 program, was used to simulate the hits response of the tracker and vertex silicon detectors to the muon-decay background remaining after the shielding nozzles. Results include the hit distributions in these detectors, the fractions of type-specific background particles producing these hits and illustrate the use of timing of the hits to suppress the muon beam background

Acute amnestic syndrome in fornix lesions: a systematic review of reported cases with a focus on differential diagnosis

IntroductionAcute amnestic syndrome is an uncommon clinical presentation of neurological disease. Differential diagnosis encompasses several syndromes including Wernicke-Korsakoff and transient global amnesia (TGA). Structural lesions of the fornix account for a minority of cases of acute amnestic syndromes. Etiology varies from iatrogenic injury to ischemic, inflammatory, or neoplastic lesions. A prompt diagnosis of the underlying pathology is essential but challenging. The aim of this review is to systematically review the existing literature regarding cases of acute amnestic syndrome associated with non-iatrogenic lesions of the fornix.MethodsWe performed a systematic literature search on PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science up to September 2023 to identify case reports and case series of patients with amnestic syndrome due to fornix lesions. The systematic review was conducted according to PRISMA guidelines. The research was limited to articles written in English. Cases of fornix damage directly ascribable to a surgical procedure were excluded.ResultsA total of 52 publications reporting 55 cases were included in the review. Focusing on acute/subacute onset, vascular etiology was highly prevalent, being responsible for 78% of cases, 40/55 (74%) of which were due to acute ischemic stroke. The amnestic syndrome was characterized by anterograde amnesia in all patients, associated with retrograde amnesia in 27% of cases. Amnesia was an isolated presentation in most cases. Up to two thirds of patients had persistent memory deficits of any severity at follow-up.DiscussionAcute amnestic syndrome can be rarely caused by fornix lesions. In most cases of acute/subacute presentation, the etiology is ischemic stroke, mainly caused by strokes involving the subcallosal artery territory. The differential diagnosis is challenging and a distinction from common mimics is often difficult on a clinical basis. A high index of suspicion should be maintained to avoid misdiagnosis and provide adequate acute treatment to patients with time-dependent disease, also employing advanced neuroimaging. More research is needed to better understand the outcome and identify prognostic factors in patients with amnestic syndrome due to fornix lesions

Introduction of Probiotic-Based Sanitation in the Emergency Ward of a Children's Hospital During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Background: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) represents a major threat to public health, especially in the hospital environment, and the massive use of disinfectants to prevent COVID-19 transmission might intensify this risk, possibly leading to future AMR pandemics. However, the control of microbial contamination is crucial in hospitals, since hospital microbiomes can cause healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), which are particularly frequent and severe in pediatric wards due to children having high susceptibility. Aim: We have previously reported that probiotic-based sanitation (PCHS) could stably decrease pathogens and their AMR in the hospital environment, reduce associated HAIs in adult hospitals, and inactivate enveloped viruses. Here, we aimed to test the effect of PCHS in the emergency room (ER) of a children's hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Conventional chemical disinfection was replaced by PCHS for 2 months during routine ER sanitation; the level of environmental bioburden was characterized before and at 2, 4, and 9 weeks after the introduction of PCHS. Microbial contamination was monitored simultaneously by conventional culture-based CFU count and molecular assays, including 16S rRNA NGS for bacteriome characterization and microarrays for the assessment of the resistome of the contaminating population. The presence of SARS-CoV-2 was also monitored by PCR. Results and conclusions: PCHS usage was associated with a stable 80% decrease in surface pathogens compared to levels detected for chemical disinfection (P < 0.01), accompanied by an up to 2 log decrease in resistance genes (Pc < 0.01). The effects were reversed when reintroducing chemical disinfection, which counteracted the action of the PCHS. SARS-CoV-2 was not detectable in both the pre-PCHS and PCHS periods. As the control of microbial contamination is a major issue, especially during pandemic emergencies, collected data suggest that PCHS may be successfully used to control virus spread without simultaneous worsening of the AMR concern

Potential Use of a Combined Bacteriophage–Probiotic Sanitation System to Control Microbial Contamination and AMR in Healthcare Settings: A Pre-Post Intervention Study

Microbial contamination in the hospital environment is a major concern for public health, since it significantly contributes to the onset of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), which are further complicated by the alarming level of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) of HAI-associated pathogens. Chemical disinfection to control bioburden has a temporary effect and can favor the selection of resistant pathogens, as observed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, probiotic-based sanitation (probiotic cleaning hygiene system, PCHS) was reported to stably abate pathogens, AMR, and HAIs. PCHS action is not rapid nor specific, being based on competitive exclusion, but the addition of lytic bacteriophages that quickly and specifically kill selected bacteria was shown to improve PCHS effectiveness. This study aimed to investigate the effect of such combined probiotic–phage sanitation (PCHSφ) in two Italian hospitals, targeting staphylococcal contamination. The results showed that PCHSφ could provide a significantly higher removal of staphylococci, including resistant strains, compared with disinfectants (−76%, p < 0.05) and PCHS alone (−50%, p < 0.05). Extraordinary sporadic chlorine disinfection appeared compatible with PCHSφ, while frequent routine chlorine usage inactivated the probiotic/phage components, preventing PCHSφ action. The collected data highlight the potential of a biological sanitation for better control of the infectious risk in healthcare facilities, without worsening pollution and AMR concerns

Letter of Intent: Muonium R&D/Physics Program at the MTA

With the planned turn-on of the PIP-II 800 MeV superconducting proton linac, Fermilab will potentially become the world's best laboratory at which to carry out fundamental muon measurements, sensitive searches for symmetry violation, and precision tests of theory. In preparation, we propose to develop the techniques that will be needed. An R&D and physics program is proposed at the Fermilab MeV Test Area to use the existing 400 MeV Linac to demonstrate the efficient production of a slow muonium beam using $\mu^+$ stopped in a ~100-$\mu$m-thick layer of superfluid helium, and to use that beam to measure muonium gravity.Comment: 3 pages, submitted to Fermila

A search for resonant production of ttˉt\bar{t} pairs in $4.8\ \rm{fb}^{-1}ofintegratedluminosityof of integrated luminosity of p\bar{p}collisionsat collisions at \sqrt{s}=1.96\ \rm{TeV}$

We search for resonant production of tt pairs in 4.8 fb^{-1} integrated luminosity of ppbar collision data at sqrt{s}=1.96 TeV in the lepton+jets decay channel, where one top quark decays leptonically and the other hadronically. A matrix element reconstruction technique is used; for each event a probability density function (pdf) of the ttbar candidate invariant mass is sampled. These pdfs are used to construct a likelihood function, whereby the cross section for resonant ttbar production is estimated, given a hypothetical resonance mass and width. The data indicate no evidence of resonant production of ttbar pairs. A benchmark model of leptophobic Z \rightarrow ttbar is excluded with m_{Z'} < 900 GeV at 95% confidence level.Comment: accepted for publication in Physical Review D Sep 21, 201

Combined search for the standard model Higgs boson decaying to a bb pair using the full CDF data set

We combine the results of searches for the standard model Higgs boson based on the full CDF Run II data set obtained from sqrt(s) = 1.96 TeV p-pbar collisions at the Fermilab Tevatron corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 9.45/fb. The searches are conducted for Higgs bosons that are produced in association with a W or Z boson, have masses in the range 90-150 GeV/c^2, and decay into bb pairs. An excess of data is present that is inconsistent with the background prediction at the level of 2.5 standard deviations (the most significant local excess is 2.7 standard deviations).Comment: To be published in Phys. Rev. Lett (v2 contains minor updates based on comments from PRL

Observation of Exclusive Gamma Gamma Production in p pbar Collisions at sqrt{s}=1.96 TeV

We have observed exclusive \gamma\gamma production in proton-antiproton collisions at \sqrt{s}=1.96 TeV, using data from 1.11 \pm 0.07 fb^{-1} integrated luminosity taken by the Run II Collider Detector at Fermilab. We selected events with two electromagnetic showers, each with transverse energy E_T > 2.5 GeV and pseudorapidity |\eta| < 1.0, with no other particles detected in -7.4 < \eta < +7.4. The two showers have similar E_T and azimuthal angle separation \Delta\phi \sim \pi; 34 events have two charged particle tracks, consistent with the QED process p \bar{p} to p + e^+e^- + \bar{p} by two-photon exchange, while 43 events have no charged tracks. The number of these events that are exclusive \pi^0\pi^0 is consistent with zero and is < 15 at 95% C.L. The cross section for p\bar{p} to p+\gamma\gamma+\bar{p} with |\eta(\gamma)| < 1.0 and E_T(\gamma) > 2.5$ GeV is 2.48^{+0.40}_{-0.35}(stat)^{+0.40}_{-0.51}(syst) pb.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figure