Low Mass Companions for Five Solar-Type Stars from the Magellan Planet Search Program

We report low mass companions orbiting five Solar-type stars that have emerged from the Magellan precision Doppler velocity survey, with minimum (Msini) masses ranging from 1.2 to 25 Mjup. These nearby target stars range from mildly metal-poor to metal-rich, and appear to have low chromospheric activity. The companions to the brightest two of these stars have previously been reported from the CORALIE survey. Four of these companions (HD 48265-b, HD 143361-b, HD 28185-b, HD 111232-b) are low-mass Jupiter-like planets in eccentric intermediate and long-period orbits. On the other hand, the companion to HD 43848 appears to be a long period brown dwarf in a very eccentric orbit.Comment: Accepted for publication on ApJ, 26 pages, 10 figures, 7 table

Silene gazulensis sp. Nov. (Caryophyllaceae): un nuevo endemismo del entorno del estrecho de Gibraltar

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Neisseria gonorrhoeae Pilus Attenuates Cytokine Response of Human Fallopian Tube Explants

Background. A role for pilus during attachment of Neisseria gonorrhoeae to epithelia of the female reproductive tract is currently assumed. However, Pil− gonococci have been observed during infection of the reproductive tract, which prompted us to examine the effect of pili on the dynamics of infection and the inflammatory responses of mucosal explants of the human Fallopian tube. Methods. Mucosal explants were infected in vitro with Opa negative Pil− and Pil+N. gonorrhoeae strains. Results. Piliation enhanced gonococcal adherence to the epithelium within 3 h of infection (P < 0.05) but thereafter did not offer advantage to gonococci to colonize the epithelial cell surface (P > 0.05). No differences were found between the strains in numbers of gonococci inside epithelial cells. Pil− bacteria induced higher levels (P < 0.05) of IL-1β, TNF-α, GM-CSF, MCP-1, and MIP-1β than Pil+ bacteria. There were no differences between both strains in LOS pattern, and Pil expression did not change after coincubation with mucosal strips. Conclusions. Results show that gonococcal invasion of the human Fallopian tube can occur independently of pilus or Opa expression, and suggest that pilus, by inhibition of several key elements of the initial inflammatory response, facilitates sustained infection of this organ

Accidental ulcer infestation due Tenebrio molitor in an AIDS patient: canthariasis

Canthariasis is a disease of humans caused by the infestation of beetle larvae. It is the second important insectal disease after myiasis. Several species of beetles are reported to cause the disease in gastrointestinal tract, urogenital system, nasal sinuses, ears and faces of mammals. The mealworm beetle, Tenebrio molitor, a species of darkling beetle, is a widespread pest that usually feeds on stored grain. The human infestation by this worm is extremely rarely reported, we described a case of T. molitor infestation in a AIDS patient in Colombia

Solución de la ecuación de schrödinger para potenciales uni-dimensionales usando el método de la matriz de transferencia

El Método generalizado de Matriz de Transferencia (MMT) aparece como una alternativa de investigación a los fenómenos cuánticos dentro de materiales semiconductores y componentes opto electrónicos. En el presente trabajo el MMT es aplicado a los fenómenos de propagación de una partícula a través de un pozo o una barrera de potencial para el caso cuántico, deduciendo las relaciones de las amplitudes de dispersión mediante los coeficientes de la matriz de transferencia (transmisión y reflexión). Los resultados obtenidos son comparados con literatura relacionada, para así  determinar la veracidad y el alcance de el MMT, el cual a saber puede ser aplicado al estudio de muchos otros problemas de propagación de ondas y electrones, incluso en medios estratificados como cristales fotónicos.The Generalized Method of Transfer Matrix (MMT) appears as an alternative to quantum phenomena research in semiconductor materials and optoelectronic components.In this paper the MMT is applied to the propagation phenomena of a particle through a well or a potential barrier to the quantum case. The relations scattering amplitudes are deduced using the coefficients of the transfer matrix (transmission and reflection). The results are compared with related literature, to determine the accuracy and scope of the MMT, namely which can be applied to study many other problems of wave propagation and electrons, even in layered media as photonic crystals

High energy solar neutrinos and p-wave contributions to ^3He(p,\nue^+)^4He

High energy solar neutrinos can come from the hep reaction ^3He(p,\nue^+)^4He with a large end point energy of 18.8 MeV. Understanding the hep reaction may be important for interpreting solar neutrino spectra. We calculate the contribution of the axial charge transition $^3P_0\to ^1S_0$ to the hep thermonuclear S factor using a one-body reaction model involving a nucleon moving in optical potentials. Our result is comparable to or larger than previous calculations of the s-wave Gamow Teller contribution. This indicates that the hep reaction may have p-wave strength leading to an enhancement of the S factor.Comment: 4 pages, 1 ps figure, very minor changes, Phys. Rev. C in pres

Purification, characterization and crystallization of the F-ATPase from Paracoccus denitrificans.

The structures of F-ATPases have been determined predominantly with mitochondrial enzymes, but hitherto no F-ATPase has been crystallized intact. A high-resolution model of the bovine enzyme built up from separate sub-structures determined by X-ray crystallography contains about 85% of the entire complex, but it lacks a crucial region that provides a transmembrane proton pathway involved in the generation of the rotary mechanism that drives the synthesis of ATP. Here the isolation, characterization and crystallization of an integral F-ATPase complex from the α-proteobacterium Paracoccus denitrificans are described. Unlike many eubacterial F-ATPases, which can both synthesize and hydrolyse ATP, the P. denitrificans enzyme can only carry out the synthetic reaction. The mechanism of inhibition of its ATP hydrolytic activity involves a ζ inhibitor protein, which binds to the catalytic F₁-domain of the enzyme. The complex that has been crystallized, and the crystals themselves, contain the nine core proteins of the complete F-ATPase complex plus the ζ inhibitor protein. The formation of crystals depends upon the presence of bound bacterial cardiolipin and phospholipid molecules; when they were removed, the complex failed to crystallize. The experiments open the way to an atomic structure of an F-ATPase complex.his work was funded by the intramural programme of the Medical Research Council via MRC programme U105663150 to J.E.W., and by support from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council to M.J.O.W