568 research outputs found
On the solar cycle variation in the barometer coefficients of high latitude neutron monitors
Evaluation of barometer coefficients of neutron monitors located at high latitudes has been performed by using the results of the spherical harmonic analysis based on the records from around twenty stations for twelve years from January 1966 to December 1977. The average of data at eight stations, where continuous records are available for twelve years, show that the absolute value of barometer coefficient is in positive correlation with the cosmic ray neutron intensity. The variation rate of the barometer coefficient to the cosmic ray neutron intensity is influenced by the changes in the cutoff rigidity and in the primary spectrum
Cell adhesion molecules nectins and associating proteins: Implications for physiology and pathology
Nectins have recently been identified as new cell adhesion molecules (CAMs) consisting of four members. They show immunoglobulin-like structures and exclusively localize at adherens junctions (AJs) between two neighboring cells. During the formation of cell–cell junctions, nectins function in cooperation with or independently of cadherins, major CAMs at AJs. Similar to cadherins, which are linked to the actin cytoskeleton by binding to catenins, nectins also bind to afadin through their C-terminal region and are linked to the actin cytoskeleton. In addition to nectins, there are nectin-like molecules (Necls), which resemble nectins in their structures and consist of five members. Nectins and Necls are involved in the formation of various kinds of cell–cell adhesion, and also play key roles in diverse cellular functions including cell movement, proliferation, survival, and differentiation. Thus, nectins and Necls are crucial for physiology and pathology of multicellular organisms
Magnetic excitations in SrCu2O3: a Raman scattering study
We investigated temperature dependent Raman spectra of the one-dimensional
spin-ladder compound SrCu2O3. At low temperatures a two-magnon peak is
identified at 3160+/-10 cm^(-1) and its temperature dependence analyzed in
terms of a thermal expansion model. We find that the two-magnon peak position
must include a cyclic ring exchange of J_cycl/J_perp=0.09-0.25 with a coupling
constant along the rungs of J_perp approx. 1215 cm^(-1) (1750 K) in order to be
consistent with other experiments and theoretical results.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
Optical conductivity of rattling phonons in type-I clathrate BaGaGe
A series of infrared-active optical phonons have been detected in type-I
clathrate BaGaGe by terahertz time-domain spectroscopy. The
conductivity spectra with the lowest-lying peaks at 1.15 and 1.80 THz are
identified with so-called rattling phonons, i.e., optical modes of the guest
ion Ba with symmetry in the oversized tetrakaidecahedral
cage. The temperature dependence of the spectra from these modes are totally
consistent with calculations based on a one-dimensional anharmonic potential
model that, with decreasing temperature, the shape becomes asymmetrically sharp
associated with a softening for the weight to shift to lower frequency. These
temperature dependences are determined, without any interaction effects, by the
Bose-factor for optical excitations of anharmonic phonons with the nonequally
spaced energy levels.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Spin-phonon coupled modes in the incommensurate phases of doped CuGeO
The doping effect of the folded phonon mode at 98 cm was investigated
on the Si-doped CuGeO by magneto-optical measurements in far-infrared (FIR)
region under high magnetic field. The folded phonon mode at 98 cm
appears not only in the dimerized (D) phase but also in the
dimerized-anitiferromagnetic (DAF) phase on the doped CuGeO. The splitting
was observed in the incommensurate (IC) phase and the antiferromagnetically
ordered incommensurate (IAF) phase above . The split-off branches exhibit
different field dependence from that of the pure CuGeO in the vicinity of
, and the discrepancy in the IAF phase is larger than that in the IC
phase. It is caused by the interaction between the solitons and the impurities.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures, resubmitted to Phys. Rev.
Far-Infrared Spectroscopy in Spin-Peierls Compound CuGeO_3 under High Magnetic Fields
Polarized far-infrared (FIR) spectroscopic measurements and FIR
magneto-optical studies were performed on the inorganic spin-Peierls compound
CuGeO_3. An absorption line, which was found at 98 cm in the dimerized
phase (D phase), was assigned to a folded phonon mode of B symmetry. The
splitting of the folded mode into two components in the incommensurate phase
(IC phase) has been observed for the first time. A new broad absorption
centered at 63 cm was observed only in the axis
polarization, which was assigned to a magnetic excitation from singlet ground
state to a continuum state.Comment: 9 pages multicolREVTeX, 10 figure
Cystic hygroma and potential airway obstruction in a newborn: a case report and review of the literature
BACKGROUND: Cervical cystic hygroma is a benign congenital malformation of the lymphatic system. Incidence of cystic hygroma is 1/6000 live births. We present a case of right neck mass with potential respiratory compromise in a newborn.
CASE PRESENTATION: The patient was a full term baby girl with an incidental finding of right neck mass which was described on ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging as a cystic lesion in the nasopharynx and right neck which inferiorly followed the course of the right carotid artery, consistent with cystic hygroma. She started with respiratory compromise, and a follow-up magnetic resonance imaging showed increased size of the cystic hygroma. Dexamethasone was started to reduce fluid build up in the mass. When the cystic hygroma was found to be inseparable from the right half of the thyroid gland, the otolaryngologist performed hemithyroidectomy.
CONCLUSION: The patient had neuropraxia involving the marginal mandibular branch of the facial nerve, which was expected to correct with time. Large cervical cystic hygromas may surround or displace neurovascular structures making their identification quite challenging intraoperatively. A team of experienced surgeons will help to ensure a successful surgical outcome
Reduction in Phencyclidine Induced Sensorimotor Gating Deficits in the Rat Following Increased System Xc − Activity in the Medial Prefrontal Cortex
Rationale: Aspects of schizophrenia, including deficits in sensorimotor gating, have been linked to glutamate dysfunction and/or oxidative stress in the prefrontal cortex. System xc −, a cystine–glutamate antiporter, is a poorly understood mechanism that contributes to both cellular antioxidant capacity and glutamate homeostasis.
Objectives: Our goal was to determine whether increased system xc − activity within the prefrontal cortex would normalize a rodent measure of sensorimotor gating.
Methods: In situ hybridization was used to map messenger RNA (mRNA) expression of xCT, the active subunit of system xc −, in the prefrontal cortex. Prepulse inhibition was used to measure sensorimotor gating; deficits in prepulse inhibition were produced using phencyclidine (0.3–3 mg/kg, sc). N-Acetylcysteine (10–100 μM) and the system xc − inhibitor (S)-4-carboxyphenylglycine (CPG, 0.5 μM) were used to increase and decrease system xc − activity, respectively. The uptake of 14C-cystine into tissue punches obtained from the prefrontal cortex was used to assay system xc − activity.
Results: The expression of xCT mRNA in the prefrontal cortex was most prominent in a lateral band spanning primarily the prelimbic cortex. Although phencyclidine did not alter the uptake of 14C-cystine in prefrontal cortical tissue punches, intraprefrontal cortical infusion of N-acetylcysteine (10–100 μM) significantly reduced phencyclidine- (1.5 mg/kg, sc) induced deficits in prepulse inhibition. N-Acetylcysteine was without effect when coinfused with CPG (0.5 μM), indicating an involvement of system xc −.
Conclusions: These results indicate that phencyclidine disrupts sensorimotor gating through system xc − independent mechanisms, but that increasing cystine–glutamate exchange in the prefrontal cortex is sufficient to reduce behavioral deficits produced by phencyclidine
A New Abstract Domain for the Representation of Mathematically Equivalent Expressions
International audienceExact computations being in general not tractable for computers, they are approximated by floating-point computations. This is the source of many errors in numerical programs. Because the floating-point arithmetic is not intuitive, these errors are very di cult to detect and to correct by hand and we consider the problem of automatically synthesizing accurate formulas.We consider that a program would return an exact result if the computations were carried out using real numbers. In practice, roundo errors arise during the execution and these errors are closely related to the way formulas are written. Our approach is based on abstract interpretation. We introduce Abstract Program Equivalence Graphs (APEGs) to represent in polynomial size an exponential number of mathematically equivalent expressions. The concretization of an APEG yields expressions of very di erent shapes and accuracies. Then, we extract optimized expressions from APEGs by searching the most accurate concrete expressions among the set of represented expressions
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