166 research outputs found
Topological excitations in 2D spin system with high spin
We construct a class of topological excitations of a mean field in a
two-dimensional spin system represented by a quantum Heisenberg model with high
powers of exchange interaction. The quantum model is associated with a
classical one (the continuous classical analogue) that is based on a
Landau-Lifshitz like equation, and describes large-scale fluctuations of the
mean field. On the other hand, the classical model is a Hamiltonian system on a
coadjoint orbit of the unitary group SU() in the case of spin . We
have found a class of mean field configurations that can be interpreted as
topological excitations, because they have fixed topological charges. Such
excitations change their shapes and grow preserving an energy.Comment: 10 pages, 1 figur
Non-abelian gauge antisymmetric tensor fields
We construct the theory of non-abelian gauge antisymmetric tensor fields,
which generalize the standard Yang-MIlls fields and abelian gauge p-forms. The
corresponding gauge group acts on the space of inhomogeneous differential forms
and it is shown to be a supergroup. The wide class of generalized Chern-Simons
actions is constructed.Comment: 20 pages, Late
Non-holomorphic terms in N=2 SUSY Wilsonian actions and RG equation
In this paper we first investigate the Ansatz of one of the present authors
for K(\Psi,\bar\Psi), the adimensional modular invariant non-holomorphic
correction to the Wilsonian effective Lagrangian of an N=2 globally
supersymmetric gauge theory. The renormalisation group beta-function of the
theory crucially allows us to express K(\Psi,\bar\Psi) in a form that easily
generalises to the case in which the theory is coupled to N_F hypermultiplets
in the fundamental representation of the gauge group. This function satisfies
an equation which should be viewed as a fully non-perturbative ``non-chiral
superconformal Ward identity". We also determine its renormalisation group
equation. Furthermore, as a first step towards checking the validity of this
Ansatz, we compute the contribution to K(\Psi,\bar\Psi) from instantons of
winding number k=1 and k=2. As a by-product of our analysis we check a
non-renormalisation theorem for N_F=4.Comment: 39 pages, LaTex file, no figure
Geometric phases in adiabatic Floquet theory, abelian gerbes and Cheon's anholonomy
We study the geometric phase phenomenon in the context of the adiabatic
Floquet theory (the so-called the Floquet theory). A double
integration appears in the geometric phase formula because of the presence of
two time variables within the theory. We show that the geometric phases are
then identified with horizontal lifts of surfaces in an abelian gerbe with
connection, rather than with horizontal lifts of curves in an abelian principal
bundle. This higher degree in the geometric phase gauge theory is related to
the appearance of changes in the Floquet blocks at the transitions between two
local charts of the parameter manifold. We present the physical example of a
kicked two-level system where these changes are involved via a Cheon's
anholonomy. In this context, the analogy between the usual geometric phase
theory and the classical field theory also provides an analogy with the
classical string theory.Comment: This new version presents a more complete geometric structure which
is topologically non trivia
How much do health care providers value a community-based asthma care program? β a survey to collect their opinions on the utilities of and barriers to its uptake
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>A comprehensive asthma care program (ACP) based on Canadian Asthma Consensus Guidelines was implemented in 8 primary care sites in Ontario, Canada. A survey was distributed to health care providers' (HCPs) to collect their opinions on the utilities of and barriers to the uptake of the ACP.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A 39-item self-administered survey was mailed to 184 HCPs and support staff involved in delivering the ACP at the end of implementation. The items were presented in mixed formats with most items requiring responses on a five-point Likert scale. Distributions of responses were analyzed and compared across types of HCPs and sites.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Of the 184 surveys distributed, 108 (59%) were returned, and of that, 83 were completed by HCPs who had clinical contact with the patients. Overall, 95% of the HCPs considered the ACP useful for improving asthma care management. Most HCPs favored using the asthma care map (72%), believed it decreased uncertainties and variations in patient management (91%), and considered it a convenient and reliable source of information (86%). The most commonly reported barrier was time required to complete the asthma care map. Over half of the HCPs reported challenges to using spirometry, while almost 40% identified barriers to using the asthma action plan.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Contrary to the notion that physicians believe that guidelines foster cookbook medicine, our study showed that HCPs believed that the ACP offered an effective and reliable approach for enhancing asthma care and management in primary care.</p
Independent effects of grazing and tide pool habitats on the early colonisation of an intertidal community on western Antarctic Peninsula
Renal amyloidosis in children
Renal amyloidosis is a detrimental disease caused by the deposition of amyloid fibrils. A child with renal amyloidosis may present with proteinuria or nephrotic syndrome. Chronic renal failure may follow. Amyloid fibrils may deposit in other organs as well. The diagnosis is through the typical appearance on histopathology. Although chronic infections and chronic inflammatory diseases used to be the causes of secondary amyloidosis in children, the most frequent cause is now autoinflammatory diseases. Among this group of diseases, the most frequent one throughout the world is familial Mediterranean fever (FMF). FMF is typically characterized by attacks of clinical inflammation in the form of fever and serositis and high acute-phase reactants. Persisting inflammation in inadequately treated disease is associated with the development of secondary amyloidosis. The main treatment is colchicine. A number of other monogenic autoinflammatory diseases have also been identified. Among them cryopyrin-associated periodic syndrome (CAPS) is outstanding with its clinical features and the predilection to develop secondary amyloidosis in untreated cases. The treatment of secondary amyloidosis mainly depends on the treatment of the disease. However, a number of new treatments for amyloid per se are in the pipeline
Adaptation and Preadaptation of Salmonella enterica to Bile
Bile possesses antibacterial activity because bile salts disrupt membranes, denature proteins, and damage DNA. This study describes mechanisms employed by the bacterium Salmonella enterica to survive bile. Sublethal concentrations of the bile salt sodium deoxycholate (DOC) adapt Salmonella to survive lethal concentrations of bile. Adaptation seems to be associated to multiple changes in gene expression, which include upregulation of the RpoS-dependent general stress response and other stress responses. The crucial role of the general stress response in adaptation to bile is supported by the observation that RpoSβ mutants are bile-sensitive. While adaptation to bile involves a response by the bacterial population, individual cells can become bile-resistant without adaptation: plating of a non-adapted S. enterica culture on medium containing a lethal concentration of bile yields bile-resistant colonies at frequencies between 10β6 and 10β7 per cell and generation. Fluctuation analysis indicates that such colonies derive from bile-resistant cells present in the previous culture. A fraction of such isolates are stable, indicating that bile resistance can be acquired by mutation. Full genome sequencing of bile-resistant mutants shows that alteration of the lipopolysaccharide transport machinery is a frequent cause of mutational bile resistance. However, selection on lethal concentrations of bile also provides bile-resistant isolates that are not mutants. We propose that such isolates derive from rare cells whose physiological state permitted survival upon encountering bile. This view is supported by single cell analysis of gene expression using a microscope fluidic system: batch cultures of Salmonella contain cells that activate stress response genes in the absence of DOC. This phenomenon underscores the existence of phenotypic heterogeneity in clonal populations of bacteria and may illustrate the adaptive value of gene expression fluctuations
Genetic Population Structure in the Antarctic Benthos: Insights from the Widespread Amphipod, Orchomenella franklini
Currently there is very limited understanding of genetic population structure in the Antarctic benthos. We conducted one of the first studies of microsatellite variation in an Antarctic benthic invertebrate, using the ubiquitous amphipod Orchomenella franklini (Walker, 1903). Seven microsatellite loci were used to assess genetic structure on three spatial scales: sites (100 s of metres), locations (1β10 kilometres) and regions (1000 s of kilometres) sampled in East Antarctica at Casey and Davis stations. Considerable genetic diversity was revealed, which varied between the two regions and also between polluted and unpolluted sites. Genetic differentiation among all populations was highly significant (FSTβ=β0.086, RSTβ=β0.139, p<0.001) consistent with the brooding mode of development in O. franklini. Hierarchical AMOVA revealed that the majority of the genetic subdivision occurred across the largest geographical scale, with Nemβ1 suggesting insufficient gene flow to prevent independent evolution of the two regions, i.e., Casey and Davis are effectively isolated. Isolation by distance was detected at smaller scales and indicates that gene flow in O. franklini occurs primarily through stepping-stone dispersal. Three of the microsatellite loci showed signs of selection, providing evidence that localised adaptation may occur within the Antarctic benthos. These results provide insights into processes of speciation in Antarctic brooders, and will help inform the design of spatial management initiatives recently endorsed for the Antarctic benthos
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