Degrees of freedom of f(T)f(T) gravity

We investigate the Hamiltonian formulation of $f(T)$ gravity and find that there are five degrees of freedom. The six first class constraints corresponding to the local Lorentz transformation in Teleparallel gravity become second class constraints in $f(T)$ gravity, which leads to the appearance of three extra degrees of freedom and the violation of the local Lorentz invariance in $f(T)$ gravity. In general, there are $D-1$ extra degrees of freedom for $f(T)$ gravity in $D$ dimensions, and this implies that the extra degrees of freedom correspond to one massive vector field or one massless vector field with one scalar field.Comment: 18 pages, some references added, minor revision to appear in JHE

Dual Actions for Born-Infeld and Dp-Brane Theories

Dual actions with respect to U(1) gauge fields for Born-Infeld and $Dp$-brane theories are reexamined. Taking into account an additional condition, i.e. a corollary to the field equation of the auxiliary metric, one obtains an alternative dual action that does not involve the infinite power series in the auxiliary metric given by ref. \cite{s14}, but just picks out the first term from the series formally. New effective interactions of the theories are revealed. That is, the new dual action gives rise to an effective interaction in terms of one interaction term rather than infinite terms of different (higher) orders of interactions physically. However, the price paid for eliminating the infinite power series is that the new action is not quadratic but highly nonlinear in the Hodge dual of a $(p-1)$-form field strength. This non-linearity is inevitable to the requirement the two dual actions are equivalent.Comment: v1: 11 pages, no figures; v2: explanation of effective interactions added; v3: concision made; v4: minor modification mad

Violation of the first law of black hole thermodynamics in f(T)f(T) gravity

We prove that, in general, the first law of black hole thermodynamics, $\delta Q=T\delta S$, is violated in $f(T)$ gravity. As a result, it is possible that there exists entropy production, which implies that the black hole thermodynamics can be in non-equilibrium even in the static spacetime. This feature is very different from that of $f(R)$ or that of other higher derivative gravity theories. We find that the violation of first law results from the lack of local Lorentz invariance in $f(T)$ gravity. By investigating two examples, we note that $f"(0)$ should be negative in order to avoid the naked singularities and superluminal motion of light. When $f"(T)$ is small, the entropy of black holes in $f(T)$ gravity is approximatively equal to $\frac{f'(T)}{4}A$.Comment: 18 pages, no figure, version accepted for publication in JCA

FGF21 ameliorates the neurocontrol of blood pressure in the high fructose-drinking rats

Fibroblast growth factor-21 (FGF21) is closely related to various metabolic and cardiovascular disorders. However, the direct targets and mechanisms linking FGF21 to blood pressure control and hypertension are still elusive. Here we demonstrated a novel regulatory function of FGF21 in the baroreflex afferent pathway (the nucleus tractus solitarii, NTS; nodose ganglion, NG). As the critical co-receptor of FGF21, β-klotho (klb) significantly expressed on the NTS and NG. Furthermore, we evaluated the beneficial effects of chronic intraperitoneal infusion of recombinant human FGF21 (rhFGF21) on the dysregulated systolic blood pressure, cardiac parameters, baroreflex sensitivity (BRS) and hyperinsulinemia in the high fructose-drinking (HFD) rats. The BRS up-regulation is associated with Akt-eNOS-NO signaling activation in the NTS and NG induced by acute intravenous rhFGF21 administration in HFD and control rats. Moreover, the expressions of FGF21 receptors were aberrantly down-regulated in HFD rats. In addition, the up-regulated peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ and -α (PPAR-γ/-α) in the NTS and NG in HFD rats were markedly reversed by chronic rhFGF21 infusion. Our study extends the work of the FGF21 actions on the neurocontrol of blood pressure regulations through baroreflex afferent pathway in HFD rats

A simulation study on the measurement of D0-D0bar mixing parameter y at BES-III

We established a method on measuring the \dzdzb mixing parameter $y$ for BESIII experiment at the BEPCII $e^+e^-$ collider. In this method, the doubly tagged $\psi(3770) \to D^0 \overline{D^0}$ events, with one $D$ decays to CP-eigenstates and the other $D$ decays semileptonically, are used to reconstruct the signals. Since this analysis requires good $e/\pi$ separation, a likelihood approach, which combines the $dE/dx$, time of flight and the electromagnetic shower detectors information, is used for particle identification. We estimate the sensitivity of the measurement of $y$ to be 0.007 based on a $20fb^{-1}$ fully simulated MC sample.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figure

Identification of single nucleotide polymorphism markers associated with resistance to bruchids (Callosobruchus spp.) in wild mungbean (Vigna radiata var. sublobata) and cultivated V. radiata through genotyping by sequencing and quantitative trait locus analysis

Interval mapping of bruchid resistance on physical maps of populations TC1966 x NM94 and V2802. (DOCX 14 kb

The burden and trends of infectious diseases among children aged 14 and below in China from 1990 to 2021: a systematic analysis from the 2021 global burden of disease study

BackgroundInfectious diseases remain one of the leading causes of death among children worldwide. This study aims to analyze the burden and trends of infectious diseases among children aged 0–14 years in China from 1990 to 2021, and evaluate their gender- and age-specific impacts.MethodsThis study utilizes data from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2021 to analyze mortality, incidence, disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), age-standardized mortality rates (ASMR), age-standardized incidence rates (ASIR), and age-standardized DALY rates (ASDR) for infectious diseases in Chinese children. Statistical analysis was performed using R and ggplot2.ResultsFrom 1990 to 2021, China observed substantial declines in pediatric infectious disease burdens. Acute hepatitis mortality decreased from 7,349 deaths (95% UI:5,987–9,059) to 87 (EAPC: −13.78), with a fivefold reduction in ASMR. Enteric infections exhibited the steepest decline: incidence dropped by 86% (EAPC: −6.72), and ASDR fell from 2,257 to 67/100,000. HIV/AIDS deaths rose from 62 to 555 (EAPC:8.28), though post-2018 declines emerged. By 2021, lower respiratory infections remained the leading cause of death (ASMR:5.11/100,000), while upper respiratory infections had the highest incidence. Females showed faster reductions in enteric (EAPC: −7.44 vs. −6.20) and lower respiratory infections (EAPC: −10.39 vs. −9.76). Children under 5 faced the highest burden, particularly for lower respiratory infections (ASMR:13.02/100,000).ConclusionThe overall burden of infectious diseases among children in China has declined, especially for enteric infections and acute hepatitis. The burden of pediatric HIV/AIDS has also decreased in recent years, though adolescent HIV/AIDS education remains a key area of concern. Children under 5 continue to represent the highest burden group. While China’s infectious disease control measures and immunization programs have played a vital role, further strengthening policies to address ongoing challenges is essential for effectively reducing the burden of infectious diseases and achieving the Healthy China 2030 goals

Use of serial analysis of gene expression to reveal the specific regulation of gene expression profile in asthmatic rats treated by acupuncture

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Asthma has become an important public health issue and approximately 300 million people have suffered from the disease worldwide. Nowadays, the use of acupuncture in asthma is increasing. This study intended to systematically analyze and compare the gene expression profiles between the asthmatic and acupuncture-treated asthmatic rat lung, and tried to gain insight into the molecular mechanism underlying the early airway response (EAR) phase of asthma treated by acupuncture.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Four tag libraries of serial analysis of gene expression (SAGE) were established from lung tissues of control rats (CK), asthmatic rats (AS), asthmatic rats treated by acupuncture (ASAC), and control rats treated by acupuncture (CKAC). Bioinformatic analyses were carried out by using the methods including unsupervised hierarchical clustering, functional annotation tool of the database for annotation, visualization, and integrated discovery (DAVID), gene ontology (GO) tree machine, and Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>There were totally 186 differentially expressed tags (P < 0.05, P_CK/AS) between the libraries of CK and AS, 130 differentially expressed tags between libraries of AS/ASAC (P < 0.05, P_AS/ASAC), and 144 differentially expressed tags between libraries of CK/CKAC (P < 0.05, P_CK/CKAC). The gene expression profiles of AS and ASAC were more similar than other libraries via unsupervised SAGE clustering. By comparison of P_CK/ASand P_AS/ASAC, the DAVID genes functional classification was found to be changed from "immune response" to "response to steroid hormone stimulus", and the GO term "antigen processing and presentation of peptide antigen" disappeared in P_AS/ASAC. Totally 3 same KEGG pathways were found among the three groups. Moreover, 21 specific tags of the acupuncture in treating asthma were detected using Venn diagrams.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our SAGE research indicates that the gene expression profile of the EAR phase of asthma could be effectively and specifically regulated by acupuncture, which suggests that the gene expression of immune response and steroid hormone may play an important role in the treatment.</p