378 research outputs found
The Mass-Radius Relationship for Very Low Mass Stars: Four New Discoveries from the HATSouth Survey
We report the discovery of four transiting F-M binary systems with companions
between 0.1-0.2 Msun in mass by the HATSouth survey. These systems have been
characterised via a global analysis of the HATSouth discovery data, combined
with high-resolution radial velocities and accurate transit photometry
observations. We determined the masses and radii of the component stars using a
combination of two methods: isochrone fitting of spectroscopic primary star
parameters, and equating spectroscopic primary star rotation velocity with
spin-orbit synchronisation. These new very low mass companions are HATS550-016B
(0.110 -0.006/+0.005 Msun, 0.147 -0.004/+0.003 Rsun), HATS551-019B (0.17
-0.01/+0.01 Msun, 0.18 -0.01/+0.01 Rsun), HATS551-021B (0.132 -0.005/+0.014
Msun, 0.154 -0.008/+0.006 Rsun), HATS553-001B (0.20 -0.02/+0.01 Msun, 0.22
-0.01/+0.01 Rsun). We examine our sample in the context of the radius anomaly
for fully-convective low mass stars. Combining our sample with the 13 other
well-studied very low mass stars, we find a tentative 5% systematic deviation
between the measured radii and theoretical isochrone models.Comment: 17 pages, 8 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
HATS-3b: An inflated hot Jupiter transiting an F-type star
We report the discovery by the HATSouth survey of HATS-3b, a transiting
extrasolar planet orbiting a V=12.4 F-dwarf star. HATS-3b has a period of P =
3.5479d, mass of Mp = 1.07MJ, and radius of Rp = 1.38RJ. Given the radius of
the planet, the brightness of the host star, and the stellar rotational
velocity (vsini = 9.0km/s), this system will make an interesting target for
future observations to measure the Rossiter-McLaughlin effect and determine its
spin-orbit alignment. We detail the low/medium-resolution reconnaissance
spectroscopy that we are now using to deal with large numbers of transiting
planet candidates produced by the HATSouth survey. We show that this important
step in discovering planets produces logg and Teff parameters at a precision
suitable for efficient candidate vetting, as well as efficiently identifying
stellar mass eclipsing binaries with radial velocity semi-amplitudes as low as
1 km/s.Comment: 11 pages, 10 figures, submitted to A
HATS-5b: A Transiting hot-Saturn from the HATSouth Survey
We report the discovery of HATS-5b, a transiting hot-Saturn orbiting a G type
star, by the HAT-South survey. HATS-5b has a mass of Mp=0.24 Mj, radius of
Rp=0.91 Rj, and transits its host star with a period of P=4.7634d. The radius
of HATS-5b is consistent with both theoretical and empirical models. The host
star has a V band magnitude of 12.6, mass of 0.94 Msun, and radius of 0.87
Rsun. The relatively high scale height of HATS-5b, and the bright,
photometrically quiet host star, make this planet a favourable target for
future transmission spectroscopy follow-up observations. We reexamine the
correlations in radius, equilibrium temperature, and metallicity of the
close-in gas-giants, and find hot Jupiter-mass planets to exhibit the strongest
dependence between radius and equilibrium temperature. We find no significant
dependence in radius and metallicity for the close-in gas-giant population.Comment: 10 pages, submitted to A
Hats-3b: An inflated hot jupiter transiting an F-type star
We report the discovery by the HATSouth survey of HATS-3b, a transiting extrasolar planet orbiting a V = 12.4 F dwarf star. HATS-3b has a period of P = 3.5479 days, mass of Mp = 1.07 M J, and radius of R p = 1.38 R J. Given the radius of the planet, the
HATS-5b: A transiting hot saturn from the HATsouth survey
We report the discovery of HATS-5b, a transiting hot Saturn orbiting a G-type star, by the HATSouth survey. HATS-5b has a mass of Mp 0.24 MJ, radius of Rp 0.91 R J, and transits its host star with a period of P 4.7634 days. The radius of HATS-5b is consistent with both theoretical and empirical models. The host star has a V-band magnitude of 12.6, mass of 0.94 M â, and radius of 0.87 R. The relatively high scale height of HATS-5b and the bright, photometrically quiet host star make this planet a favorable target for future transmission spectroscopy follow-up observations. We reexamine the correlations in radius, equilibrium temperature, and metallicity of the close-in gas giants and find hot Jupiter-mass planets to exhibit the strongest dependence between radius and equilibrium temperature. We find no significant dependence in radius and metallicity for the close-in gas giant population.Development of the HATSouth project was funded by NSF
MRI grant NSF/AST-0723074, operations are supported by
NASA grant NNX12AH91H, and follow-up observations receive
partial support from grant NSF/AST-1108686. Work at
the Australian National University is supported by ARC Laureate
Fellowship Grant FL0992131. A.J.
acknowledges support from FONDECYT project 1130857,
BASAL CATA PFB-06, and projects IC120009 âMillennium
Institute of Astrophysics (MAS)â and P10-022-F of the Millennium
Science Initiative, Chilean Ministry of Economy. V.S.
acknowledges support form BASAL CATA PFB-06. M.R. acknowledges
support from FONDECYT postdoctoral fellowship
No3120097. R.B. and N.E. acknowledge support from
CONICYT-PCHA/Doctorado Nacional and Fondecyt project
1130857. We acknowledge the
use of the AAVSO Photometric All-Sky Survey (APASS),
funded by the Robert Martin Ayers Sciences Fund, and the
SIMBAD database, operated at CDS, Strasbourg, France. Operations
at the MPG/ESO 2.2 m telescope are jointly performed
by the Max Planck Gesellschaft and the European Southern
Observatory. Australian access to the Magellan Telescopes was supported
through the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure
Strategy of the Australian Federal Government
HATS-1b: The First Transiting Planet Discovered by the HATSouth Survey
We report the discovery of HATS-1b, a transiting extrasolar planet orbiting
the moderately bright V=12.05 G dwarf star GSC 6652-00186, and the first planet
discovered by HATSouth, a global network of autonomous wide-field telescopes.
HATS-1b has a period P~3.4465 d, mass Mp~1.86MJ, and radius Rp~1.30RJ. The host
star has a mass of 0.99Msun, and radius of 1.04Rsun. The discovery light curve
of HATS-1b has near continuous coverage over several multi-day periods,
demonstrating the power of using a global network of telescopes to discover
transiting planets.Comment: Submitted to AJ 10 pages, 5 figures, 6 table
RNAseq Analyses Identify Tumor Necrosis Factor-Mediated Inflammation as a Major Abnormality in ALS Spinal Cord
ALS is a rapidly progressive, devastating neurodegenerative illness of adults that produces disabling weakness and spasticity arising from death of lower and upper motor neurons. No meaningful therapies exist to slow ALS progression, and molecular insights into pathogenesis and progression are sorely needed. In that context, we used high-depth, next generation RNA sequencing (RNAseq, Illumina) to define gene network abnormalities in RNA samples depleted of rRNA and isolated from cervical spinal cord sections of 7 ALS and 8 CTL samples. We aligned \u3e50 million 2X150 bp paired-end sequences/sample to the hg19 human genome and applied three different algorithms (Cuffdiff2, DEseq2, EdgeR) for identification of differentially expressed genes (DEGâs). Ingenuity Pathways Analysis (IPA) and Weighted Gene Co-expression Network Analysis (WGCNA) identified inflammatory processes as significantly elevated in our ALS samples, with tumor necrosis factor (TNF) found to be a major pathway regulator (IPA) and TNFα-induced protein 2 (TNFAIP2) as a major network âhubâ gene (WGCNA). Using the oPOSSUM algorithm, we analyzed transcription factors (TF) controlling expression of the nine DEG/hub genes in the ALS samples and identified TFâs involved in inflammation (NFkB, REL, NFkB1) and macrophage function (NR1H2::RXRA heterodimer). Transient expression in human iPSC-derived motor neurons of TNFAIP2 (also a DEG identified by all three algorithms) reduced cell viability and induced caspase 3/7 activation. Using high-density RNAseq, multiple algorithms for DEG identification, and an unsupervised gene co-expression network approach, we identified significant elevation of inflammatory processes in ALS spinal cord with TNF as a major regulatory molecule. Overexpression of the DEG TNFAIP2 in human motor neurons, the population most vulnerable to die in ALS, increased cell death and caspase 3/7 activation. We propose that therapies targeted to reduce inflammatory TNFα signaling may be helpful in ALS patients
HATS-2b: A transiting extrasolar planet orbiting a K-type star showing starspot activity
We report the discovery of HATS-2b, the second transiting extrasolar planet
detected by the HATSouth survey. HATS-2b is moving on a circular orbit around a
V=13.6 mag, K-type dwarf star (GSC 6665-00236), at a separation of 0.0230 \pm
0.0003 AU and with a period of 1.3541 days. The planetary parameters have been
robustly determined using a simultaneous fit of the HATSouth,
MPG/ESO~2.2\,m/GROND, Faulkes Telescope South/Spectral transit photometry and
MPG/ESO~2.2\,m/FEROS, Euler~1.2\,m/CORALIE, AAT~3.9\,m/CYCLOPS radial-velocity
measurements. HATS-2b has a mass of 1.37 \pm 0.16 M_J, a radius of 1.14 \pm
0.03 R_J and an equilibrium temperature of 1567 \pm 30 K. The host star has a
mass of 0.88 \pm 0.04 M_Sun, radius of 0.89 \pm 0.02 R_Sun and shows starspot
activity. We characterized the stellar activity by analysing two photometric
follow-up transit light curves taken with the GROND instrument, both obtained
simultaneously in four optical bands (covering the wavelength range of
3860-9520 \AA). The two light curves contain anomalies compatible with
starspots on the photosphere of the parent star along the same transit chord.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figures, accepted by A&
The Caenorhabditis elegans GATA Factor ELT-1 Works through the Cell Proliferation Regulator BRO-1 and the Fusogen EFF-1 to Maintain the Seam Stem-Like Fate
Seam cells in Caenorhabditis elegans provide a paradigm for the stem cell mode of division, with the ability to both self-renew and produce daughters that differentiate. The transcription factor RNT-1 and its DNA binding partner BRO-1 (homologues of the mammalian cancer-associated stem cell regulators RUNX and CBFÎČ, respectively) are known rate-limiting regulators of seam cell proliferation. Here, we show, using a combination of comparative genomics and DNA binding assays, that bro-1 expression is directly regulated by the GATA factor ELT-1. elt-1(RNAi) animals display similar seam cell lineage defects to bro-1 mutants, but have an additional phenotype in which seam cells lose their stem cell-like properties and differentiate inappropriately by fusing with the hyp7 epidermal syncytium. This phenotype is dependent on the fusogen EFF-1, which we show is repressed by ELT-1 in seam cells. Overall, our data suggest that ELT-1 has dual roles in the stem-like seam cells, acting both to promote proliferation and prevent differentiation
A Russian Radical Conservative Challenge to the Liberal Global Order: Aleksandr Dugin
The chapter examines Russian political theorist Aleksandr Duginâs (b. 1962) challenge to the Western liberal order. Even though Duginâs project is in many ways a theoretical epitome of Russiaâs contemporary attempt to profile itself as a regional great power with a political and cultural identity distinct from the liberal West, Dugin can also be read in a wider context as one of the currently most prominent representatives of the culturally and intellectually oriented international New Right. The chapter introduces Duginâs role on the Russian right-wing political scene and his international networks, Russian neo-Eurasianism as his ideological footing, and his more recent âfourth political theoryâ as an attempt to formulate a new ideological alternative to liberalism as well as the two other main twentieth-century ideologies, communism and fascism. Duginâs fourth ideology, essentially meant as an alternative to a unipolar postâCold War global hegemony of victorious liberalism, draws inspiration from the German conservative revolutionary movement of the Weimar era. In particular, Martin Heideggerâs philosophy of history, with its thesis of the end of modernity and another beginning of Western thought, and Carl Schmittâs pluralistic model of geopolitics are highlighted as key elements of Duginâs eclectic political thought, which is most appropriately characterized as a form of radical conservatism
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