11,776 research outputs found
Local trace formulae and scaling asymptotics in Toeplitz quantization, II
In the spectral theory of positive elliptic operators, an important role is
played by certain smoothing kernels, related to the Fourier transform of the
trace of a wave operator, which may be heuristically interpreted as smoothed
spectral projectors asymptotically drifting to the right of the spectrum. In
the setting of Toeplitz quantization, we consider analogues of these, where the
wave operator is replaced by the Hardy space compression of a linearized
Hamiltonian flow, possibly composed with a family of zeroth order Toeplitz
operators. We study the local asymptotics of these smoothing kernels, and
specifically how they concentrate on the fixed loci of the linearized dynamics.Comment: Typos corrected. Slight expository change
Improved CMB anisotropy constraints on primordial magnetic fields from the post-recombination ionization history
We investigate the impact of a stochastic background of Primordial Magnetic
Fields (PMF) generated before recombination on the ionization history of the
Universe and on the Cosmic Microwave Background radiation (CMB).
Pre-recombination PMFs are dissipated during recombination and reionization via
decaying MHD turbulence and ambipolar diffusion. This modifies the local matter
and electron temperatures and thus affects the ionization history and Thomson
visibility function. We use this effect to constrain PMFs described by a
spectrum of power-law type, extending our previous study (based on a
scale-invariant spectrum) to arbitrary spectral index. We derive upper bounds
on the integrated amplitude of PMFs due to the separate effect of ambipolar
diffusion and MHD decaying turbulence and their combination. We show that
ambipolar diffusion is relevant for whereas for MHD
turbulence is more important. The bound marginalized over the spectral index on
the integrated amplitude of PMFs with a sharp cut-off is nG. We discuss the quantitative relevance of the assumptions on
the damping mechanism and the comparison with previous bounds.Comment: 11 pages, 21 figures. Minor updates to match the published versio
Isocurvature fluctuations in the effective Newton's constant
We present a new isocurvature mode present in scalar-tensor theories of
gravity that corresponds to a regular growing solution in which the energy of
the relativistic degrees of freedom and the scalar field that regulates the
gravitational strength compensate during the radiation dominated epoch on
scales much larger than the Hubble radius. We study this isocurvature mode and
its impact on anisotropies of the cosmic microwave background for the simplest
scalar-tensor theory, i.e. the extended Jordan-Brans-Dicke gravity, in which
the scalar field also drives the acceleration of the Universe. We use Planck
data to constrain the amplitude of this isocurvature mode in the case of fixed
correlation with the adiabatic mode and we show how this mode could be
generated in a simple two field inflation model.Comment: Version updated to match published version. No changes in the result
Identification of the het-r vegetative incompatibility gene of Podospora anserina as a member of the fast evolving HNWD gene family
In fungi, vegetative incompatibility is a conspecific non-self recognition mechanism that restricts formation of viable heterokaryons when incompatible alleles of specific het loci interact. In Podospora anserina, three non-allelic incompatibility systems have been genetically defined involving interactions between het-c and het-d, het-c and het-e, het-r and het-v. het-d and het-e are paralogues belonging to the HNWD gene family that encode proteins of the STAND class. HET-D and HET-E proteins comprise an N-terminal HET effector domain, a central GTP binding site and a C-terminal WD repeat domain constituted of tandem repeats of highly conserved WD40 repeat units that define the specificity of alleles during incompatibility. The WD40 repeat units of the members of this HNWD family are undergoing concerted evolution. By combining genetic analysis and gain of function experiments, we demonstrate that an additional member of this family, HNWD2, corresponds to the het-r non-allelic incompatibility gene. As for het-d and het-e, allele specificity at the het-r locus is determined by the WD repeat domain. Natural isolates show allelic variation for het-
Bioaccumulation modelling and sensitivity analysis for discovering key players in contaminated food webs: the case study of PCBs in the Adriatic Sea
Modelling bioaccumulation processes at the food web level is the main step to analyse the effects of pollutants at the global
ecosystem level. A crucial question is understanding which species play a key role in the trophic transfer of contaminants to
disclose the contribution of feeding linkages and the importance of trophic dependencies in bioaccumulation dynamics. In this
work we present a computational framework to model the bioaccumulation of organic chemicals in aquatic food webs, and to
discover key species in polluted ecosystems. As a result, we reconstruct the first PCBs bioaccumulation model of the Adriatic food
web, estimated after an extensive review of published concentration data. We define a novel index aimed to identify the key species
in contaminated networks, Sensitivity Centrality, and based on sensitivity analysis. The index is computed from a dynamic ODE
model parametrised from the estimated PCBs bioaccumulation model and compared with a set of established trophic indices of
centrality. Results evidence the occurrence of PCBs biomagnification in the Adriatic food web, and highlight the dependence of
bioaccumulation on trophic dynamics and external factors like fishing activity. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the introduced
Sensitivity Centrality in identifying the set of species with the highest impact on the total contaminant flows and on the efficiency
of contaminant transport within the food web
Silicon photomultiplers in Very High Energy gamma-ray astrophysics
In the last ten years silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) have gained terrain in
experiments and applications in which photomultiplier tubes have been the
dominant photosensors during decades. Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes
(IACTs) for very high energy (VHE, E50 GeV) gamma-ray astronomy are
experiencing the same process. Until now FACT was the only IACT using SiPMs. In
the Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA), the next-generation VHE gamma-ray
observatory, at least 70 telescopes equipped with SiPMs are planned to be
built. The first prototypes have already been constructed and are now being
commissioned. Here we discuss some of the advantages and drawbacks of using
SiPMs in VHE gamma-ray astronomy and provide a brief overview of different
developments related to the use of SiPMs in IACTs.Comment: Accepted for publication in JINST. 9 pages, 7 figures. Proceedings of
the 5th INFIER
Circulating tumour cells: insights into tumour heterogeneity
Tumour heterogeneity is a major barrier to cure breast cancer. It can exist between patients with different intrinsic subtypes of breast cancer or within an individual patient with breast cancer. In the latter case, heterogeneity has been observed between different metastatic sites, between metastatic sites and the original primary tumour, and even within a single tumour at either a metastatic or a primary site. Tumour heterogeneity is a function of two separate, although linked, processes. First, genetic instability is a hallmark of malignancy, and results in âfixedâ genetic changes that are almost certainly carried forward through progression of the cancer over time, with increasingly complex additional genetic changes in new metastases as they arise. The second type of heterogeneity is due to differential but âplasticâ expression of various genes important in the biology and response to various therapies. Together, these processes result in highly variable cancers with differential response, and resistance, to both targeted (e.g. endocrine or antiâhuman epithelial growth receptor type 2 ( HER 2) agents) and nontargeted therapies (e.g. chemotherapy). Ideally, tumour heterogeneity would be monitored over time, especially in relation to therapeutic strategies. However, biopsies of metastases require invasive and costly procedures, and biopsies of multiple metastases, or serially over time, are impractical. Circulating tumour cells ( CTC s) represent a potential surrogate for tissueâbased cancer and therefore might provide the opportunity to monitor serial changes in tumour biology. Recent advances have enabled accurate and reliable quantification and molecular characterization of CTC s with regard to a number of important biomarkers including oestrogen receptor alpha and HER 2. Preliminary data have demonstrated that expression of these markers between CTC s in individual patients with metastatic breast cancer reflects the heterogeneity of the underlying tumours. Future studies are designed to determine the clinical utility of these novel technologies in either research or routine clinical settings.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/99056/1/joim12047.pd
Measurement of angular momentum transport in turbulent flow between independently rotating cylinders
We present measurements of the angular momentum flux (torque) in
Taylor-Couette flow of water between independently rotating cylinders for all
regions of the \(\Omega_1, \Omega_2\) parameter space at high Reynolds
numbers, where \(\Omega_2\) is the inner (outer) cylinder angular
velocity. We find that the Rossby number Ro = \(\Omega_1 -
\Omega_2\)/\Omega_2 fully determines the state and torque as compared to
G(Ro = \infty) \equiv \Gi. The ratio G/\Gi is a linear function of
in four sections of the parameter space. For flows with
radially-increasing angular momentum, our measured torques greatly exceed those
of previous experiments [Ji \textit{et al.}, Nature, \textbf{444}, 343 (2006)],
but agree with the analysis of Richard and Zahn [Astron. Astrophys.,
\textbf{347}, 734 (1999)].Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, to appear in Physical Review Letter
- âŠ