Identification of Radiopure Titanium for the LZ Dark Matter Experiment and Future Rare Event Searches

The LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) experiment will search for dark matter particle interactions with a detector containing a total of 10 tonnes of liquid xenon within a double-vessel cryostat. The large mass and proximity of the cryostat to the active detector volume demand the use of material with extremely low intrinsic radioactivity. We report on the radioassay campaign conducted to identify suitable metals, the determination of factors limiting radiopure production, and the selection of titanium for construction of the LZ cryostat and other detector components. This titanium has been measured with activities of $^{238}$U$_{e}$~$<$1.6~mBq/kg, $^{238}$U$_{l}$~$<$0.09~mBq/kg, $^{232}$Th$_{e}$~$=0.28\pm 0.03$~mBq/kg, $^{232}$Th$_{l}$~$=0.25\pm 0.02$~mBq/kg, $^{40}$K~$<$0.54~mBq/kg, and $^{60}$Co~$<$0.02~mBq/kg (68\% CL). Such low intrinsic activities, which are some of the lowest ever reported for titanium, enable its use for future dark matter and other rare event searches. Monte Carlo simulations have been performed to assess the expected background contribution from the LZ cryostat with this radioactivity. In 1,000 days of WIMP search exposure of a 5.6-tonne fiducial mass, the cryostat will contribute only a mean background of $0.160\pm0.001$(stat)$\pm0.030$(sys) counts.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in Astroparticle Physic

Quantitative measurements of inequality in geographic accessibility to pediatric care in Oita Prefecture, Japan: Standardization with complete spatial randomness

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>A quantitative measurement of inequality in geographic accessibility to pediatric care as well as that of mean distance or travel time is very important for priority setting to ensure fair access to pediatric facilities. However, conventional techniques for measuring inequality is inappropriate in geographic settings. Since inequality measures of access distance or travel time is strongly influenced by the background geographic distribution patterns, they cannot be directly used for regional comparisons of geographic accessibility. The objective of this study is to resolve this issue by using a standardization approach.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Travel times to the nearest pediatric care were calculated for all children in Oita Prefecture, Japan. Relative mean differences were considered as the inequality measure for secondary medical service areas, and were standardized with an expected value estimated from a Monte Carlo simulation based on complete spatial randomness.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The observed mean travel times in the area considered averaged 4.50 minutes, ranging from 1.83 to 7.02 minutes. The mean of the observed inequality measure was 1.1, ranging from 0.9 to 1.3. The expected values of the inequality measure varied according to the background geographic distribution pattern of children, which ranged from 0.3 to 0.7. After standardizing the observed inequality measure with the expected one, we found that the ranks of the inequality measure were reversed for the observed areas.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Using the indicator proposed in this paper, it is possible to compare the inequality in geographic accessibility among regions. Such a comparison may facilitate priority setting in health policy and planning.</p

Levosimendan: a cardiovascular drug to prevent liver ischemia-reperfusion injury?

INTRODUCTION: Temporary occlusion of the hepatoduodenal ligament leads to an ischemic-reperfusion (IR) injury in the liver. Levosimendan is a new positive inotropic drug, which induces preconditioning-like adaptive mechanisms due to opening of mitochondrial KATP channels. The aim of this study was to examine possible protective effects of levosimendan in a rat model of hepatic IR injury. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Levosimendan was administered to male Wistar rats 1 hour (early pretreatment) or 24 hours (late pretreatment) before induction of 60-minute segmental liver ischemia. Microcirculation of the liver was monitored by laser Doppler flowmeter. After 24 hours of reperfusion, liver and blood samples were taken for histology, immuno- and enzyme-histochemistry (TUNEL; PARP; NADH-TR) as well as for laboratory tests. Furthermore, liver antioxidant status was assessed and HSP72 expression was measured. RESULTS: In both groups pretreated with levosimendan, significantly better hepatic microcirculation was observed compared to respective IR control groups. Similarly, histological damage was also reduced after levosimendan administration. This observation was supported by significantly lower activities of serum ALT (pearly = 0.02; plate = 0.005), AST (pearly = 0.02; plate = 0.004) and less DNA damage by TUNEL test (pearly = 0.05; plate = 0.034) and PAR positivity (pearly = 0.02; plate = 0.04). Levosimendan pretreatment resulted in significant improvement of liver redox homeostasis. Further, significantly better mitochondrial function was detected in animals receiving late pretreatment. Finally, HSP72 expression was increased by IR injury, but it was not affected by levosimendan pretreatment. CONCLUSION: Levosimendan pretreatment can be hepatoprotective and it could be useful before extensive liver resection

Attenuation of Skeletal Muscle and Renal Injury to the Lower Limb following Ischemia-Reperfusion Using mPTP Inhibitor NIM-811.

INTRODUCTION: Operation on the infrarenal aorta and large arteries of the lower extremities may cause rhabdomyolysis of the skeletal muscle, which in turn may induce remote kidney injury. NIM-811 (N-metyl-4-isoleucine-cyclosporine) is a mitochondria specific drug, which can prevent ischemic-reperfusion (IR) injury, by inhibiting mitochondrial permeability transition pores (mPTP). OBJECTIVES: Our aim was to reduce damages in the skeletal muscle and the kidney after IR of the lower limb with NIM-811. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Wistar rats underwent 180 minutes of bilateral lower limb ischemia and 240 minutes of reperfusion. Four animal groups were formed called Sham (receiving vehicle and sham surgery), NIM-Sham (receiving NIM-811 and sham surgery), IR (receiving vehicle and surgery), and NIM-IR (receiving NIM-811 and surgery). Serum, urine and histological samples were taken at the end of reperfusion. NADH-tetrazolium staining, muscle Wet/Dry (W/D) ratio calculations, laser Doppler-flowmetry (LDF) and mean arterial pressure (MAP) monitoring were performed. Renal peroxynitrite concentration, serum TNF-alpha and IL-6 levels were measured. RESULTS: Less significant histopathological changes were observable in the NIM-IR group as compared with the IR group. Serum K+ and necroenzyme levels were significantly lower in the NIM-IR group than in the IR group (LDH: p<0.001; CK: p<0.001; K+: p = 0.017). Muscle mitochondrial viability proved to be significantly higher (p = 0.001) and renal function parameters were significantly better (creatinine: p = 0.016; FENa: p<0.001) in the NIM-IR group in comparison to the IR group. Serum TNF-alpha and IL-6 levels were significantly lower (TNF-alpha: p = 0.003, IL-6: p = 0.040) as well as W/D ratio and peroxynitrite concentration were significantly lower (p = 0.014; p<0.001) in the NIM-IR group than in the IR group. CONCLUSION: NIM-811 could have the potential of reducing rhabdomyolysis and impairment of the kidney after lower limb IR injury

Projected WIMP sensitivity of the LUX-ZEPLIN dark matter experiment

LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) is a next-generation dark matter direct detection experiment that will operate 4850 feet underground at the Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF) in Lead, South Dakota, USA. Using a two-phase xenon detector with an active mass of 7 tonnes, LZ will search primarily for low-energy interactions with weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs), which are hypothesized to make up the dark matter in our galactic halo. In this paper, the projected WIMP sensitivity of LZ is presented based on the latest background estimates and simulations of the detector. For a 1000 live day run using a 5.6-tonne fiducial mass, LZ is projected to exclude at 90% confidence level spin-independent WIMP-nucleon cross sections above 1.4 × 10-48cm2 for a 40 GeV/c2 mass WIMP. Additionally, a 5σ discovery potential is projected, reaching cross sections below the exclusion limits of recent experiments. For spin-dependent WIMP-neutron(-proton) scattering, a sensitivity of 2.3 × 10−43 cm2 (7.1 × 10−42 cm2) for a 40 GeV/c2 mass WIMP is expected. With underground installation well underway, LZ is on track for commissioning at SURF in 2020

Projected sensitivities of the LUX-ZEPLIN experiment to new physics via low-energy electron recoils

LUX-ZEPLIN is a dark matter detector expected to obtain world-leading sensitivity to weakly-interacting massive particles interacting via nuclear recoils with a ∼ 7 -tonne xenon target mass. This paper presents sensitivity projections to several low-energy signals of the complementary electron recoil signal type: 1) an effective neutrino magnetic moment, and 2) an effective neutrino millicharge, both for p p -chain solar neutrinos, 3) an axion flux generated by the Sun, 4) axionlike particles forming the Galactic dark matter, 5) hidden photons, 6) mirror dark matter, and 7) leptophilic dark matter. World-leading sensitivities are expected in each case, a result of the large 5.6 t 1000 d exposure and low expected rate of electron-recoil backgrounds in the < 100     keV energy regime. A consistent signal generation, background model and profile-likelihood analysis framework is used throughout