Observation and study of baryonic B decays: B -> D(*) p pbar, D(*) p pbar pi, and D(*) p pbar pi pi

We present a study of ten B-meson decays to a D(*), a proton-antiproton pair, and a system of up to two pions using BaBar's data set of 455x10^6 BBbar pairs. Four of the modes (B0bar -> D0 p anti-p, B0bar -> D*0 p anti-p, B0bar -> D+ p anti-p pi-, B0bar -> D*+ p anti-p pi-) are studied with improved statistics compared to previous measurements; six of the modes (B- -> D0 p anti-p pi-, B- -> D*0 p anti-p pi-, B0bar -> D0 p anti-p pi- pi+, B0bar -> D*0 p anti-p pi- pi+, B- -> D+ p anti-p pi- pi-, B- -> D*+ p anti-p pi- pi-) are first observations. The branching fractions for 3- and 5-body decays are suppressed compared to 4-body decays. Kinematic distributions for 3-body decays show non-overlapping threshold enhancements in m(p anti-p) and m(D(*)0 p) in the Dalitz plots. For 4-body decays, m(p pi-) mass projections show a narrow peak with mass and full width of (1497.4 +- 3.0 +- 0.9) MeV/c2, and (47 +- 12 +- 4) MeV/c2, respectively, where the first (second) errors are statistical (systematic). For 5-body decays, mass projections are similar to phase space expectations. All results are preliminary.Comment: 28 pages, 90 postscript figures, submitted to LP0

Measurement of the cross-section of high transverse momentum vector bosons reconstructed as single jets and studies of jet substructure in pp collisions at √s = 7 TeV with the ATLAS detector

This paper presents a measurement of the cross-section for high transverse momentum W and Z bosons produced in pp collisions and decaying to all-hadronic final states. The data used in the analysis were recorded by the ATLAS detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider at a centre-of-mass energy of √s = 7 TeV;{\rm Te}{\rm V}$and correspond to an integrated luminosity of$4.6\;{\rm f}{{{\rm b}}^{-1}}$. The measurement is performed by reconstructing the boosted W or Z bosons in single jets. The reconstructed jet mass is used to identify the W and Z bosons, and a jet substructure method based on energy cluster information in the jet centre-of-mass frame is used to suppress the large multi-jet background. The cross-section for events with a hadronically decaying W or Z boson, with transverse momentum${{p}_{{\rm T}}}\gt 320\;{\rm Ge}{\rm V}$and pseudorapidity$|\eta |\lt 1.9$, is measured to be${{\sigma }_{W+Z}}=8.5\pm 1.7$ pb and is compared to next-to-leading-order calculations. The selected events are further used to study jet grooming techniques

Search for the neutral Higgs bosons of the minimal supersymmetric standard model in pp collisions at root s=7 TeV with the ATLAS detector

A search for neutral Higgs bosons of the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM) is reported. The analysis is based on a sample of proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 7TeV recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. The data were recorded in 2011 and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 4.7 fb-1 to 4.8 fb-1. Higgs boson decays into oppositely-charged muon or τ lepton pairs are considered for final states requiring either the presence or absence of b-jets. No statistically significant excess over the expected background is observed and exclusion limits at the 95% confidence level are derived. The exclusion limits are for the production cross-section of a generic neutral Higgs boson, φ, as a function of the Higgs boson mass and for h/A/H production in the MSSM as a function of the parameters mA and tan β in the mhmax scenario for mA in the range of 90GeV to 500 GeV. Copyright CERN

Search for direct pair production of the top squark in all-hadronic final states in proton-proton collisions at s√=8 TeV with the ATLAS detector

The results of a search for direct pair production of the scalar partner to the top quark using an integrated luminosity of 20.1fb−1 of proton–proton collision data at √s = 8 TeV recorded with the ATLAS detector at the LHC are reported. The top squark is assumed to decay via t˜→tχ˜01 or t˜→ bχ˜±1 →bW(∗)χ˜01 , where χ˜01 (χ˜±1 ) denotes the lightest neutralino (chargino) in supersymmetric models. The search targets a fully-hadronic final state in events with four or more jets and large missing transverse momentum. No significant excess over the Standard Model background prediction is observed, and exclusion limits are reported in terms of the top squark and neutralino masses and as a function of the branching fraction of t˜ → tχ˜01 . For a branching fraction of 100%, top squark masses in the range 270–645 GeV are excluded for χ˜01 masses below 30 GeV. For a branching fraction of 50% to either t˜ → tχ˜01 or t˜ → bχ˜±1 , and assuming the χ˜±1 mass to be twice the χ˜01 mass, top squark masses in the range 250–550 GeV are excluded for χ˜01 masses below 60 GeV

Search for pair-produced long-lived neutral particles decaying to jets in the ATLAS hadronic calorimeter in ppcollisions at √s=8TeV

The ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN is used to search for the decay of a scalar boson to a pair of long-lived particles, neutral under the Standard Model gauge group, in 20.3fb−1of data collected in proton–proton collisions at √s=8TeV. This search is sensitive to long-lived particles that decay to Standard Model particles producing jets at the outer edge of the ATLAS electromagnetic calorimeter or inside the hadronic calorimeter. No significant excess of events is observed. Limits are reported on the product of the scalar boson production cross section times branching ratio into long-lived neutral particles as a function of the proper lifetime of the particles. Limits are reported for boson masses from 100 GeVto 900 GeV, and a long-lived neutral particle mass from 10 GeVto 150 GeV

Search for R-parity-violating supersymmetry in events with four or more leptons in sqrt(s) =7 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for new phenomena in final states with four or more leptons (electrons or muons) is presented. The analysis is based on 4.7 fb−1 of $\sqrt{s}=7\;\mathrm{TeV}$ proton-proton collisions delivered by the Large Hadron Collider and recorded with the ATLAS detector. Observations are consistent with Standard Model expectations in two signal regions: one that requires moderate values of missing transverse momentum and another that requires large effective mass. The results are interpreted in a simplified model of R-parity-violating supersymmetry in which a 95% CL exclusion region is set for charged wino masses up to 540 GeV. In an R-parity-violating MSUGRA/CMSSM model, values of m 1/2 up to 820 GeV are excluded for 10 < tan β < 40

Search for high-mass resonances decaying to dilepton final states in pp collisions at s√=7 TeV with the ATLAS detector

The ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider is used to search for high-mass resonances decaying to an electron-positron pair or a muon-antimuon pair. The search is sensitive to heavy neutral Z′ gauge bosons, Randall-Sundrum gravitons, Z * bosons, techni-mesons, Kaluza-Klein Z/γ bosons, and bosons predicted by Torsion models. Results are presented based on an analysis of pp collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 7 TeV corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 4.9 fb−1 in the e + e − channel and 5.0 fb−1 in the μ + μ −channel. A Z ′ boson with Standard Model-like couplings is excluded at 95 % confidence level for masses below 2.22 TeV. A Randall-Sundrum graviton with coupling k/MPl=0.1 is excluded at 95 % confidence level for masses below 2.16 TeV. Limits on the other models are also presented, including Technicolor and Minimal Z′ Models

Pre-Procedural Atorvastatin Mobilizes Endothelial Progenitor Cells: Clues to the Salutary Effects of Statins on Healing of Stented Human Arteries

OBJECTIVES: Recent clinical trials suggest an LDL-independent superiority of intensive statin therapy in reducing target vessel revascularization and peri-procedural myocardial infarctions in patients who undergo percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI). While animal studies demonstrate that statins mobilize endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) which can enhance arterial repair and attenuate neointimal formation, the precise explanation for the clinical PCI benefits of high dose statin therapy remain elusive. Thus we serially assessed patients undergoing PCI to test the hypothesis that high dose Atorvastatin therapy initiated prior to PCI mobilizes EPCs that may be capable of enhancing arterial repair. METHODS AND RESULTS: Statin naïve male patients undergoing angiography for stent placement were randomized to standard therapy without Atorvastatin (n = 10) or treatment with Atorvastatin 80 mg (n = 10) beginning three days prior to stent implantation. EPCs were defined by flow cytometry (e.g., surface marker profile of CD45dim/34+/133+/117+). As well, we also enumerated cultured angiogenic cells (CACs) by standard in vitro culture assay. While EPC levels did not fluctuate over time for the patients free of Atorvastatin, there was a 3.5-fold increase in EPC levels with high dose Atorvastatin beginning within 3 days of the first dose (and immediately pre-PCI) which persisted at 4 and 24 hours post-PCI (p<0.05). There was a similar rise in CAC levels as assessed by in vitro culture. CACs cultured in the presence of Atorvastatin failed to show augmented survival or VEGF secretion but displayed a 2-fold increase in adhesion to stent struts (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: High dose Atorvastatin therapy pre-PCI improves EPC number and CAC number and function in humans which may in part explain the benefit in clinical outcomes seen in patients undergoing coronary interventions

Dysregulation of autophagy and stress granule-related proteins in stress-driven Tau pathology

Imbalance of neuronal proteostasis associated with misfolding and aggregation of Tau protein is a common neurodegenerative feature in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and other Tauopathies. Consistent with suggestions that lifetime stress may be an important AD precipitating factor, we previously reported that environmental stress and high glucocorticoid (GC) levels induce accumulation of aggregated Tau; however, the molecular mechanisms for such process remain unclear. Herein, we monitor a novel interplay between RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) and autophagic machinery in the underlying mechanisms through which chronic stress and high GC levels impact on Tau proteostasis precipitating Tau aggregation. Using molecular, pharmacological and behavioral analysis, we demonstrate that chronic stress and high GC trigger mTOR-dependent inhibition of autophagy, leading to accumulation of Tau aggregates and cell death in P301L-Tau expressing mice and cells. In parallel, we found that environmental stress and GC disturb cellular homeostasis and trigger the insoluble accumulation of different RBPs, such as PABP, G3BP1, TIA-1, and FUS, shown to form stress granules (SGs) and Tau aggregation. Interestingly, an mTOR-driven pharmacological stimulation of autophagy attenuates the GC-driven accumulation of Tau and SG-related proteins as well as the related cell death, suggesting a critical interface between autophagy and the response of the SG-related protein in the neurodegenerative potential of chronic stress and GC. These studies provide novel insights into the RNA-protein intracellular signaling regulating the precipitating role of environmental stress and GC on Tau-driven brain pathology.We would like to thank Professor Juergen Gotz, (University of Queensland, Australia) for the kind offer of eGFP-P301LTau SH-SY5Y cells and Dr. Bruno Almeida for his technical assistance. J.M.S. was granted with a PhD fellowship (SRFH/BD/88932/2012) by Portuguese Foundation for Science & Technology (FCT); I.S. is holder of FCT Investigator grants (IF/01799/2013), C.D. is a recipient of PhD fellowship of PHDoc program and co-tutelle PhD student of UMinho-UPMC universities. This work was funded by FCT research grants "PTDC/SAU-NMC/113934/2009" (I.S.), the Portuguese North Regional Operational Program (ON. 2) under the National Strategic Reference Framework (QREN), through the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER) as well as the Project Estrategico co-funded by FCT (PEst-C/SAU/LA0026/2013) and the European Regional Development Fund COMPETE (FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-037298) as well as the project NORTE-01-0145-FEDER000013, supported by the Northern Portugal Regional Operational Program (NORTE 2020), under the Portugal 2020 Partnership Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER). In addition, this work was partly funded by Canon Foundation in Europe. This work has been also funded by FEDER funds, through the Competitiveness Factors Operational Programme (COMPETE), and by National funds, through the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), under the scope of the project POCI-01-0145FEDER-007038. This study was also supported to BW by grants from NIH (AG050471, NS089544, and ES020395), the BrightFocus Foundation, the Alzheimer Association and the Cure Alzeimer Foundation. Human brain tissue was generously provided by the National Institute of Aging Boston University AD Center (P30AG13846).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio