On the order of BEC transition in weakly interacting gases predicted by mean-field theory

Predictions from Hartree-Fock (HF), Popov (P), Yukalov-Yukalova (YY) and $t$-matrix approximations regarding the thermodynamics from the normal to the BEC phase in weakly interacting Bose gases are considered. By analyzing the dependence of the chemical potential $\mu$ on temperature $T$ and particle density $\rho$ we show that none of them predicts a second-order phase transition as required by symmetry-breaking general considerations. In this work we find that the isothermal compressibility $\kappa_{T}$ predicted by these theories does not diverge at criticality as expected in a true second-order phase transition. Moreover the isotherms $\mu=\mu(\rho,T)$ typically exhibit a non-singled valued behavior in the vicinity of the BEC transition, a feature forbidden by general thermodynamic principles. This behavior can be avoided if a first order phase transition is appealed. The facts described above show that although these mean field approximations give correct results near zero temperature they are endowed with thermodynamic anomalies in the vicinity of the BEC transition. We address the implications of these results in the interpretation of current experiments with ultracold trapped alkali gases.Comment: 16 pages, 5 figure

Long-term effect of 2 intensive statin regimens on treatment and incidence of cardiovascular events in familial hypercholesterolemia : The SAFEHEART study

Funding: This study was supported by Fundación Hipercolesterolemia Familiar; Grant G03/181 Grant 08-2008 Centro Nacional de Investigaci?n Cardiovascular (CNIC).Background: Maximal doses of potent statins are the basement of treatment of familial hypercholesterolemia (FH). Little is known about the use of different statin regimens in FH. Objectives: The objectives of the study were to describe the treatment changes and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) goal achievement with atorvastatin (ATV) and rosuvastatin (RV) in the SAFEHEART cohort, as well as to analyze the incidence of atherosclerotic cardiovascular events (ACVEs) and changes in the cardiovascular risk. Methods: SAFEHEART is a prospective follow-up nationwide cohort study in a molecularly defined FH population. The patients were contacted on a yearly basis to obtain relevant changes in life habits, medication, and ACVEs. Results: A total of 1939 patients were analyzed. Median follow-up was 6.6 years (5-10). The estimated 10-year risk according the SAFEHEART risk equation was 1.61 (0.67-3.39) and 1.22 (0.54-2.93) at enrollment for ATV and RV, respectively (P <.001). There were no significant differences at the follow-up: 1.29 (0.54-2.82) and 1.22 (0.54-2.76) in the ATV and RV groups, respectively (P =.51). Sixteen percent of patients in primary prevention with ATV and 18% with RV achieved an LDL-C <100 mg/dL and 4% in secondary prevention with ATV and 5% with RV achieved an LDL-C <70 mg/dL. The use of ezetimibe was marginally greater in the RV group. One hundred sixty ACVEs occurred during follow-up, being its incidence rate 1.1 events/100 patient-years in the ATV group and 1.2 in the RV group (P =.58). Conclusion: ATV and RV are 2 high-potency statins widely used in FH. Although the reduction in LDL-C levels was greater with RV than with ATV, the superiority of RV for reducing ACVEs was not demonstrated

Competitiveness and communication for effective inoculation byRhizobium, Bradyrhizobium and vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi

After a short summary on the ecology and rhizosphere biology of symbiotic bacteria and vesicular-arbuscular (VA) mycorrhiza fungi and their application as microbial inocula, results on competitiveness and communication are summarized. Stress factors such as high temperature, low soil pH, aluminium concentrations and phytoalexins produced by the host plants were studied withRhizobium leguminosarum bv.phaseoli andRhizobium tropici onPhaseolus beans. Quantitative data for competitiveness were obtained by usinggus + (glucoronidase) labelled strains, which produce blue-coloured nodules. ForPhaseolus-nodulating rhizobia, a group specific DNA probe was also developed, which did not hybridize with more than 20 other common soil and rhizosphere bacteria. Results from several laboratories contributing to knowledge of signal exchange and communication in theRhizobium/Bradyrhizobium legume system are summarized in a new scheme, including also defense reactions at the early stages of legume nodule initiation. Stimulating effects of flavonoids on germination and growth of VA mycorrhiza fungi were also found. A constitutive antifungal compound in pea roots, -isoxazolinonyl-alanine, was characterized

The Magdalena Ridge Observatory Interferometer: 2014 status update

The Magdalena Ridge Observatory Interferometer has been designed to be a 10 × 1.4 m aperture long-baseline optical/near-infrared interferometer in an equilateral "Y" configuration, and is being deployed west of Socorro, NM on the Magdalena Ridge. Unfortunately, first light for the facility has been delayed due to the current difficult funding regime, but during the past two years we have made substantial progress on many of the key subsystems for the array. The design of all these subsystems is largely complete, and laboratory assembly and testing, and the installation and site acceptance testing of key components on the Ridge are now underway. This paper serves as an overview and update on the facility's present status and changes since 2012, and the plans for future activities and eventual operations of the facilities. © (2014) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.The Magdalena Ridge Observatory Interferometer is funded by the U.S. Department of Transportation, the State of New Mexico, and New Mexico Tech with previous funding from the Navy Research Laboratory (NRL, agreement no. N00173-01-2-C902).This is the final published version of the article, also available from SPIE at http://proceedings.spiedigitallibrary.org/proceeding.aspx?articleid=1891908. Copyright 2014 Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers. One print or electronic copy may be made for personal use only. Systematic reproduction and distribution, duplication of any material in this paper for a fee or for commercial purposes, or modification of the content of the paper are prohibited. http://dx.doi.org/10.1117/12.205733

Perturbation of the Dimer Interface of Triosephosphate Isomerase and its Effect on Trypanosoma cruzi

Most of the enzymes of parasites have their counterpart in the host. Throughout evolution, the three-dimensional architecture of enzymes and their catalytic sites are highly conserved. Thus, identifying molecules that act exclusively on the active sites of the enzymes from parasites is a difficult task. However, it is documented that the majority of enzymes consist of various subunits, and that conservation in the interface of the subunits is lower than in the catalytic site. Indeed, we found that there are significant differences in the interface between the two subunits of triosephosphate isomerase from Homo sapiens and Trypanosoma cruzi (TcTIM), which causes Chagas disease in the American continent. In the search for agents that specifically inhibit TcTIM, we found that 2,2′-dithioaniline (DTDA) is far more effective in inactivating TcTIM than the human enzyme, and that its detrimental effect is due to perturbation of the dimer interface. Remarkably, DTDA prevented the growth of Escherichia coli cells that had TcTIM instead of their own TIM and killed T. cruzi epimastigotes in culture. Thus, this study highlights a new approach base of targeting molecular interfaces of dimers

Search for squarks and gluinos in events with isolated leptons, jets and missing transverse momentum at s√=8 TeV with the ATLAS detector

The results of a search for supersymmetry in final states containing at least one isolated lepton (electron or muon), jets and large missing transverse momentum with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider are reported. The search is based on proton-proton collision data at a centre-of-mass energy s√=8 TeV collected in 2012, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 20 fb−1. No significant excess above the Standard Model expectation is observed. Limits are set on supersymmetric particle masses for various supersymmetric models. Depending on the model, the search excludes gluino masses up to 1.32 TeV and squark masses up to 840 GeV. Limits are also set on the parameters of a minimal universal extra dimension model, excluding a compactification radius of 1/R c = 950 GeV for a cut-off scale times radius (ΛR c) of approximately 30

Single hadron response measurement and calorimeter jet energy scale uncertainty with the ATLAS detector at the LHC

The uncertainty on the calorimeter energy response to jets of particles is derived for the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). First, the calorimeter response to single isolated charged hadrons is measured and compared to the Monte Carlo simulation using proton-proton collisions at centre-of-mass energies of sqrt(s) = 900 GeV and 7 TeV collected during 2009 and 2010. Then, using the decay of K_s and Lambda particles, the calorimeter response to specific types of particles (positively and negatively charged pions, protons, and anti-protons) is measured and compared to the Monte Carlo predictions. Finally, the jet energy scale uncertainty is determined by propagating the response uncertainty for single charged and neutral particles to jets. The response uncertainty is 2-5% for central isolated hadrons and 1-3% for the final calorimeter jet energy scale.Comment: 24 pages plus author list (36 pages total), 23 figures, 1 table, submitted to European Physical Journal

Measurements of fiducial and differential cross sections for Higgs boson production in the diphoton decay channel at s√=8 TeV with ATLAS

Measurements of fiducial and differential cross sections are presented for Higgs boson production in proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of s√=8 TeV. The analysis is performed in the H → γγ decay channel using 20.3 fb−1 of data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. The signal is extracted using a fit to the diphoton invariant mass spectrum assuming that the width of the resonance is much smaller than the experimental resolution. The signal yields are corrected for the effects of detector inefficiency and resolution. The pp → H → γγ fiducial cross section is measured to be 43.2 ±9.4(stat.) − 2.9 + 3.2 (syst.) ±1.2(lumi)fb for a Higgs boson of mass 125.4GeV decaying to two isolated photons that have transverse momentum greater than 35% and 25% of the diphoton invariant mass and each with absolute pseudorapidity less than 2.37. Four additional fiducial cross sections and two cross-section limits are presented in phase space regions that test the theoretical modelling of different Higgs boson production mechanisms, or are sensitive to physics beyond the Standard Model. Differential cross sections are also presented, as a function of variables related to the diphoton kinematics and the jet activity produced in the Higgs boson events. The observed spectra are statistically limited but broadly in line with the theoretical expectations

Landscape characteristics shape surface soil microbiomes in the Chihuahuan Desert

IntroductionSoil microbial communities, including biological soil crust microbiomes, play key roles in water, carbon and nitrogen cycling, biological weathering, and other nutrient releasing processes of desert ecosystems. However, our knowledge of microbial distribution patterns and ecological drivers is still poor, especially so for the Chihuahuan Desert.MethodsThis project investigated the effects of trampling disturbance on surface soil microbiomes, explored community composition and structure, and related patterns to abiotic and biotic landscape characteristics within the Chihuahuan Desert biome. Composite soil samples were collected in disturbed and undisturbed areas of 15 long-term ecological research plots in the Jornada Basin, New Mexico. Microbial diversity of cross-domain microbial groups (total Bacteria, Cyanobacteria, Archaea, and Fungi) was obtained via DNA amplicon metabarcode sequencing. Sequence data were related to landscape characteristics including vegetation type, landforms, ecological site and state as well as soil properties including gravel content, soil texture, pH, and electrical conductivity.ResultsFilamentous Cyanobacteria dominated the photoautotrophic community while Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria dominated among the heterotrophic bacteria. Thaumarchaeota were the most abundant Archaea and drought adapted taxa in Dothideomycetes and Agaricomycetes were most abundant fungi in the soil surface microbiomes. Apart from richness within Archaea (p = 0.0124), disturbed samples did not differ from undisturbed samples with respect to alpha diversity and community composition (p ≥ 0.05), possibly due to a lack of frequent or impactful disturbance. Vegetation type and landform showed differences in richness of Bacteria, Archaea, and Cyanobacteria but not in Fungi. Richness lacked strong relationships with soil variables. Landscape features including parent material, vegetation type, landform type, and ecological sites and states, exhibited stronger influence on relative abundances and microbial community composition than on alpha diversity, especially for Cyanobacteria and Fungi. Soil texture, moisture, pH, electrical conductivity, lichen cover, and perennial plant biomass correlated strongly with microbial community gradients detected in NMDS ordinations.DiscussionOur study provides first comprehensive insights into the relationships between landscape characteristics, associated soil properties, and cross-domain soil microbiomes in the Chihuahuan Desert. Our findings will inform land management and restoration efforts and aid in the understanding of processes such as desertification and state transitioning, which represent urgent ecological and economical challenges in drylands around the world

Measurement of χ c1 and χ c2 production with s√ = 7 TeV pp collisions at ATLAS

The prompt and non-prompt production cross-sections for the χ c1 and χ c2 charmonium states are measured in pp collisions at s√ = 7 TeV with the ATLAS detector at the LHC using 4.5 fb−1 of integrated luminosity. The χ c states are reconstructed through the radiative decay χ c → J/ψγ (with J/ψ → μ + μ −) where photons are reconstructed from γ → e + e − conversions. The production rate of the χ c2 state relative to the χ c1 state is measured for prompt and non-prompt χ c as a function of J/ψ transverse momentum. The prompt χ c cross-sections are combined with existing measurements of prompt J/ψ production to derive the fraction of prompt J/ψ produced in feed-down from χ c decays. The fractions of χ c1 and χ c2 produced in b-hadron decays are also measured