20,632 research outputs found
CAPACITY UNDER THE NEGOTIABLE INSTRUMENTS LAWS OF THE AMERICAS: A COMPARATIVE STUDY
Closely related to the legal rules that regulate the different aspects and effects of endorsement is the question of capacity to endorse bills of exchange. This forms part of negotiatory capacity in general, which, in a broad sense, may be defined as the faculty of a person to acquire rights and to assume obligations on negotiable instruments
Prostaglandin E2 promotes features of replicative senescence in chronically activated human CD8+ T cells.
Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), a pleiotropic immunomodulatory molecule, and its free radical catalyzed isoform, iso-PGE2, are frequently elevated in the context of cancer and chronic infection. Previous studies have documented the effects of PGE2 on the various CD4+ T cell functions, but little is known about its impact on cytotoxic CD8+ T lymphocytes, the immune cells responsible for eliminating virally infected and tumor cells. Here we provide the first demonstration of the dramatic effects of PGE2 on the progression of human CD8+ T cells toward replicative senescence, a terminal dysfunctional state associated multiple pathologies during aging and chronic HIV-1 infection. Our data show that exposure of chronically activated CD8+ T cells to physiological levels of PGE2 and iso-PGE2 promotes accelerated acquisition of markers of senescence, including loss of CD28 expression, increased expression of p16 cell cycle inhibitor, reduced telomerase activity, telomere shortening and diminished production of key cytotoxic and survival cytokines. Moreover, the CD8+ T cells also produced higher levels of reactive oxygen species, suggesting that the resultant oxidative stress may have further enhanced telomere loss. Interestingly, we observed that even chronic activation per se resulted in increased CD8+ T cell production of PGE2, mediated by higher COX-2 activity, thus inducing a negative feedback loop that further inhibits effector function. Collectively, our data suggest that the elevated levels of PGE2 and iso-PGE2, seen in various cancers and HIV-1 infection, may accelerate progression of CD8+ T cells towards replicative senescence in vivo. Inhibition of COX-2 activity may, therefore, provide a strategy to counteract this effect
Mass enhancement, correlations, and strong coupling superconductivity in the beta-pyrochlore KOs2O6
To assess electron correlation and electron-phonon coupling in the recently
discovered beta-pyrochlores KOs2O6 and RbOs2O6, we have performed specific heat
measurements in magnetic fields up to 14 T. We present data from high quality
single crystalline KOs2O6, showing that KOs2O6 is a strong coupling
superconductor with a coupling parameter lambda_ep \approx 1.0 to 1.6 (RbOs2O6:
lambda_ep \approx 1). The estimated Sommerfeld coefficient of KOs2O6, gamma=76
to 110 mJ/(mol K^2), is twice that of RbOs2O6 [gamma=44 mJ/(mol K^2)]. Using
strong-coupling corrections, we extract useful thermodynamic parameters of
KOs2O6. Quantifying lambda_ep allows us to determine the mass enhancement over
the calculated band electronic density of states. A significant contribution in
addition to the electron-phonon term of lambda_c=1.7 to 4.3 is deduced. In an
effort to understand the origin of the enhancement mechanism, we also
investigate an unusual energetically low-lying phonon. There are three phonon
modes per RbOs2O6, suggestive of the phonon source being the rattling motion of
the alkali ion. This dynamic instability of the alkali ions causes large
scattering of the charge carriers which shows up in an unusual temperature
dependence of the electrical resistivity.Comment: Accepted for publication in PR
GRB990123: Evidence that the Gamma Rays Come from a Central Engine
GRB990123 was a long complex gamma-ray burst with an optical transient that
started early within the gamma-ray phase. The peak and power law decay of the
early optical emission strongly indicates the presence of a decelerating
relativistic shell during that phase. Prior to this burst, it was not known if
the shell decelerated during the burst, so an external shock origin for the
gamma rays was still possible. If the gamma-rays are produced in the external
shock, then the pulse widths should reflect the observed deceleration of the
shell and increase by about 2.3. We analyze the fine time structure observed in
the gamma-ray data from BATSE and determine that the width of the peaks do not
increase as expected for a decelerating shell; the later pulses are, at most, a
factor of 1.15 longer than the earlier pulses. We also analyze the variability
to determine what fraction of the shell's surface could be involved in the
production of the gamma rays, the so-called surface filling factor. For
GRB990123 we find a filling factor of 0.008. The lack of pulse width evolution
eliminates the only remaining kinematically acceptable external shock
explanation for the gamma-ray phase and, thus, the gamma rays must originate at
a central engine.Comment: 14 pages, 3 embedded figues, Latex, Submitted to ApJ
Superconductivity in Geometrically Frustrated Pyrochlore RbOs2O6
We report the basic thermodynamic properties of the new geometrically
frustrated beta-pyrochlore bulk superconductor RbOs2O6 with a critical
temperature Tc = 6.4 K. Specific heat measurements are performed in magnetic
fields up to 12 T. The electronic density of states at the Fermi level in the
normal state results in gamma = (33.7 \pm 0.2) mJ/mol_f.u./K^2. In the
superconducting state, the specific heat follows conventional BCS-type behavior
down to 1 K, i.e. over three orders of magnitude in specific heat data. The
upper critical field slope at Tc is 1.2 T/K, corresponding to a Maki-parameter
alpha = 0.64 \pm 0.1. From the upper critical field mu0 Hc2 \approx 6 T at 0 K,
we estimate a Ginzburg-Landau coherence length xi \approx 7.4 nm. RbOs2O6 is
the second reported metallic AB2O6 type pyrochlore compound after KOs2O6, and
one of only three pyrochlore superconductors in addition to Cd2Re2O7 and
KOs2O6
Magnetic soft modes in the locally distorted triangular antiferromagnet alpha-CaCr2O4
In this paper we explore the phase diagram and excitations of a distorted
triangular lattice antiferromagnet. The unique two-dimensional distortion
considered here is very different from the 'isosceles'-type distortion that has
been extensively investigated. We show that it is able to stabilize a 120{\deg}
spin structure for a large range of exchange interaction values, while new
structures are found for extreme distortions. A physical realization of this
model is \alpha-CaCr2O4 which has 120{\deg} structure but lies very close to
the phase boundary. This is verified by inelastic neutron scattering which
reveals unusual roton-like minima at reciprocal space points different from
those corresponding to the magnetic order.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures and lots of spin-wave
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