1,513 research outputs found
Variational bounds on the energy dissipation rate in body-forced shear flow
A new variational problem for upper bounds on the rate of energy dissipation
in body-forced shear flows is formulated by including a balance parameter in
the derivation from the Navier-Stokes equations. The resulting min-max problem
is investigated computationally, producing new estimates that quantitatively
improve previously obtained rigorous bounds. The results are compared with data
from direct numerical simulations.Comment: 15 pages, 7 figure
"Ultimate state" of two-dimensional Rayleigh-Benard convection between free-slip fixed temperature boundaries
Rigorous upper limits on the vertical heat transport in two dimensional
Rayleigh-Benard convection between stress-free isothermal boundaries are
derived from the Boussinesq approximation of the Navier-Stokes equations. The
Nusselt number Nu is bounded in terms of the Rayleigh number Ra according to
uniformly in the Prandtl number Pr. This Nusselt
number scaling challenges some theoretical arguments regarding the asymptotic
high Rayleigh number heat transport by turbulent convection.Comment: 4 page
Variational bound on energy dissipation in turbulent shear flow
We present numerical solutions to the extended Doering-Constantin variational
principle for upper bounds on the energy dissipation rate in plane Couette
flow, bridging the entire range from low to asymptotically high Reynolds
numbers. Our variational bound exhibits structure, namely a pronounced minimum
at intermediate Reynolds numbers, and recovers the Busse bound in the
asymptotic regime. The most notable feature is a bifurcation of the minimizing
wavenumbers, giving rise to simple scaling of the optimized variational
parameters, and of the upper bound, with the Reynolds number.Comment: 4 pages, RevTeX, 5 postscript figures are available as one .tar.gz
file from [email protected]
RNA interference screening reveals host CaMK4 as a regulator of cryptococcal uptake and pathogenesis
ABSTRACT
Cryptococcus neoformans
, the causative agent of cryptococcosis, is an opportunistic fungal pathogen that kills over 200,000 individuals annually. This yeast may grow freely in body fluids, but it also flourishes within host cells. Despite extensive research on cryptococcal pathogenesis, host genes involved in the initial engulfment of fungi and subsequent stages of infection are woefully understudied. To address this issue, we combined short interfering RNA silencing and a high-throughput imaging assay to identify host regulators that specifically influence cryptococcal uptake. Of 868 phosphatase and kinase genes assayed, we discovered 79 whose silencing significantly affected cryptococcal engulfment. For 25 of these, the effects were fungus specific, as opposed to general alterations in phagocytosis. Four members of this group significantly and specifically altered cryptococcal uptake; one of them encoded CaMK4, a calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase. Pharmacological inhibition of CaMK4 recapitulated the observed defects in phagocytosis. Furthermore, mice deficient in CaMK4 showed increased survival compared to wild-type mice upon infection with
C. neoformans
. This increase in survival correlated with decreased expression of pattern recognition receptors on host phagocytes known to recognize
C. neoformans
. Altogether, we have identified a kinase that is involved in
C. neoformans
internalization by host cells and in host resistance to this deadly infection.
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Variational bound on energy dissipation in plane Couette flow
We present numerical solutions to the extended Doering-Constantin variational
principle for upper bounds on the energy dissipation rate in turbulent plane
Couette flow. Using the compound matrix technique in order to reformulate this
principle's spectral constraint, we derive a system of equations that is
amenable to numerical treatment in the entire range from low to asymptotically
high Reynolds numbers. Our variational bound exhibits a minimum at intermediate
Reynolds numbers, and reproduces the Busse bound in the asymptotic regime. As a
consequence of a bifurcation of the minimizing wavenumbers, there exist two
length scales that determine the optimal upper bound: the effective width of
the variational profile's boundary segments, and the extension of their flat
interior part.Comment: 22 pages, RevTeX, 11 postscript figures are available as one
uuencoded .tar.gz file from [email protected]
Coherent State path-integral simulation of many particle systems
The coherent state path integral formulation of certain many particle systems
allows for their non perturbative study by the techniques of lattice field
theory. In this paper we exploit this strategy by simulating the explicit
example of the diffusion controlled reaction . Our results are
consistent with some renormalization group-based predictions thus clarifying
the continuum limit of the action of the problem.Comment: 20 pages, 4 figures. Minor corrections. Acknowledgement and reference
correcte
Subdiffusion-limited reactions
We consider the coagulation dynamics A+A -> A and A+A A and the
annihilation dynamics A+A -> 0 for particles moving subdiffusively in one
dimension. This scenario combines the "anomalous kinetics" and "anomalous
diffusion" problems, each of which leads to interesting dynamics separately and
to even more interesting dynamics in combination. Our analysis is based on the
fractional diffusion equation
On the universality of a class of annihilation-coagulation models
A class of -dimensional reaction-diffusion models interpolating
continuously between the diffusion-coagulation and the diffusion-annihilation
models is introduced. Exact relations among the observables of different models
are established. For the one-dimensional case, it is shown how correlations in
the initial state can lead to non-universal amplitudes for time-dependent
particles density.Comment: 18 pages with no figures. Latex file using REVTE
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