Long-range nematic order and anomalous fluctuations in suspensions of swimming filamentous bacteria

We study the collective dynamics of elongated swimmers in a very thin fluid layer by devising long, filamentous, non-tumbling bacteria. The strong confinement induces weak nematic alignment upon collision, which, for large enough density of cells, gives rise to global nematic order. This homogeneous but fluctuating phase, observed on the largest experimentally-accessible scale of millimeters, exhibits the properties predicted by standard models for flocking such as the Vicsek-style model of polar particles with nematic alignment: true long-range nematic order and non-trivial giant number fluctuations.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures. Supplemental Material: 6 pages, 3 figure

遊泳バクテリアの集団ダイナミクスにおける秩序とゆらぎ

学位の種別: 課程博士審査委員会委員 : （主査）東京大学教授 古澤 力, 東京大学准教授 伊藤 伸泰, 東京理科大学講師 住野 豊, 東京大学准教授 野口 博司, 東京大学教授 樋口 秀男University of Tokyo(東京大学

Effect of oral supplementation with branched-chain amino acid granules on serum albumin level in the early stage of cirrhosis: a randomized pilot study.

Summary. The present study was undertaken to examine changes in the levels of amino acids, particularly branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), following exacerbation of liver cirrhosis and to determine the optimal timing of starting nutritional therapy using BCAA. In patients with well-compensated cirrhosis, both the aminoacid composition and the albumin level were normal. However, as the disease advanced, BCAA first began to decrease, causing amino-acid imbalance, and this change was later followed by a decrease in albumin. We reviewed the criteria for determining indications for treatment with a BCAA formula (Livact), which is currently used after a decrease in albumin level. In patients in whom the BCAA-to-tyrosine ratio (BTR) was less than 4.0 despite normal albumin levels, the use of the BCAA preparation prevented a decrease in albumin. In view of this result, it is advisable to administer the BCAA formula following a reduction in BTR rather than to begin its use following a decrease in albumin