The Cytotoxic T Lymphocyte Antigen-4+49A/G Single Nucleotide Polymorphism Association With Visceral Leishmaniasis

Background: Several lines of evidence approve that innate and adaptive immunity play key roles in the defense against visceral leishmaniasis (VL). The polymorphism within the cytotoxic T lymphocyte antigen 4 (CTLA-4) gene alters its expression. Objectives: The main aim of this study was to evaluate the polymorphism within the +49 position of the CTLA-4 gene of Iranian patients with VL in comparison with healthy controls. Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 88 patients with clinical presentations of VL, who were seropositive for Leishmania (group 1), 86 patients without clinical presentations but seropositive (group 2), and 115 healthy controls (group 3) were assessed with respect to the CTLA-4 +49A/G polymorphism, using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). The anti-Leishmania antibody titration was evaluated using an immunofluorescence method. Results: Our results indicated that both CTLA-4 +49A/G polymorphisms were significantly associated with VL. Conclusions: According to the results, the polymorphisms within the +49 position of CTLA-4 can be associated with VL and may be considered as risk factors for the disease

On the experimental verification of quantum complexity in linear optics

The first quantum technologies to solve computational problems that are beyond the capabilities of classical computers are likely to be devices that exploit characteristics inherent to a particular physical system, to tackle a bespoke problem suited to those characteristics. Evidence implies that the detection of ensembles of photons, which have propagated through a linear optical circuit, is equivalent to sampling from a probability distribution that is intractable to classical simulation. However, it is probable that the complexity of this type of sampling problem means that its solution is classically unverifiable within a feasible number of trials, and the task of establishing correct operation becomes one of gathering sufficiently convincing circumstantial evidence. Here, we develop scalable methods to experimentally establish correct operation for this class of sampling algorithm, which we implement with two different types of optical circuits for 3, 4, and 5 photons, on Hilbert spaces of up to 50,000 dimensions. With only a small number of trials, we establish a confidence >99% that we are not sampling from a uniform distribution or a classical distribution, and we demonstrate a unitary specific witness that functions robustly for small amounts of data. Like the algorithmic operations they endorse, our methods exploit the characteristics native to the quantum system in question. Here we observe and make an application of a "bosonic clouding" phenomenon, interesting in its own right, where photons are found in local groups of modes superposed across two locations. Our broad approach is likely to be practical for all architectures for quantum technologies where formal verification methods for quantum algorithms are either intractable or unknown.Comment: Comments welcom

Laboratory astrophysical collisionless shock experiments on Omega and NIF

© Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd. We are performing scaled astrophysics experiments on Omega and on NIF. Laser driven counter-streaming interpenetrating supersonic plasma flows can be studied to understand astrophysical electromagnetic plasma phenomena in a controlled laboratory setting. In our Omega experiments, the counter-streaming flow plasma state is measured using Thomson scattering diagnostics, demonstrating the plasma flows are indeed super-sonic and in the collisionless regime. We observe a surprising additional electron and ion heating from ion drag force in the double flow experiments that are attributed to the ion drag force and electrostatic instabilities. [1] A proton probe is used to image the electric and magnetic fields. We observe unexpected large, stable and reproducible electromagnetic field structures that arise in the counter-streaming flows [2]. The Biermann battery magnetic field generated near the target plane, advected along the flows, and recompressed near the midplane explains the cause of such self-organizing field structures [3]. A D3He implosion proton probe image showed very clear filamentary structures; three-dimensional Particle-In-Cell simulations and simulated proton radiography images indicate that these filamentary structures are generated by Weibel instabilities and that the magnetization level (ratio of magnetic energy over kinetic energy in the system) is ∼0.01 [4]. These findings have very high astrophysical relevance and significant implications. We expect to observe true collisionless shock formation when we use >100 kJ laser energy on NIF

Laboratory astrophysical collisionless shock experiments on Omega and NIF

We are performing scaled astrophysics experiments on Omega and on NIF. Laser driven counter-streaming interpenetrating supersonic plasma flows can be studied to understand astrophysical electromagnetic plasma phenomena in a controlled laboratory setting. In our Omega experiments, the counter-streaming flow plasma state is measured using Thomson scattering diagnostics, demonstrating the plasma flows are indeed super-sonic and in the collisionless regime. We observe a surprising additional electron and ion heating from ion drag force in the double flow experiments that are attributed to the ion drag force and electrostatic instabilities. [1] A proton probe is used to image the electric and magnetic fields. We observe unexpected large, stable and reproducible electromagnetic field structures that arise in the counter-streaming flows [2]. The Biermann battery magnetic field generated near the target plane, advected along the flows, and recompressed near the midplane explains the cause of such self-organizing field structures [3]. A D3He implosion proton probe image showed very clear filamentary structures; three-dimensional Particle-In-Cell simulations and simulated proton radiography images indicate that these filamentary structures are generated by Weibel instabilities and that the magnetization level (ratio of magnetic energy over kinetic energy in the system) is ∼0.01 [4]. These findings have very high astrophysical relevance and significant implications. We expect to observe true collisionless shock formation when we use >100 kJ laser energy on NIF

Collisionless shock experiments with lasers and observation of Weibel instabilities

Astrophysical collisionless shocks are common in the universe, occurring in supernova remnants, gamma ray bursts, and protostellar jets. They appear in colliding plasma flows when the mean free path for ion-ion collisions is much larger than the system size. It is believed that such shocks could be mediated via the electromagnetic Weibel instability in astrophysical environments without preexisting magnetic fields. Here, we present laboratory experiments using high-power lasers and investigate the dynamics of high-Mach-number collisionless shock formation in two interpenetrating plasma streams. Our recent proton-probe experiments on Omega show the characteristic filamentary structures of the Weibel instability that are electromagnetic in nature with an inferred magnetization level as high as ∼1% [C. M. Huntington et al., "Observation of magnetic field generation via the weibel instability in interpenetrating plasma flows," Nat. Phys. 11, 173-176 (2015)]. These results imply that electromagnetic instabilities are significant in the interaction of astrophysical conditions

Laboratory evidence of dynamo amplification of magnetic fields in a turbulent plasma

Magnetic fields are ubiquitous in the Universe. Diffuse radiosynchrotron emission observations and Faraday rotation measurements have revealed magnetic field strengths ranging from a few nG and tens of µG in extragalactic disks, halos and clusters [1], up to hundreds of TG in magnetars, as inferred from their spin-down [2]. The energy density of these fields is typically comparable to the energy density of the fluid motions of the plasma in which they are embedded, making magnetic fields essential players in the dynamics of the luminous matter. The standard theoretical model for the origin of these strong magnetic fields is through the amplification of tiny seed fields via turbulent dynamo to the level consistent with current observations [3–7]. Here we demonstrate, using laser-produced colliding plasma flows, that turbulence is indeed capable of rapidly amplifying seed fields to near equipartition with the turbulent fluid motions. These results support the notion that turbulent dynamo is a viable mechanism responsible for the observed present-day magnetization