Study of the doubly charmed tetraquark T+cc

Quantum chromodynamics, the theory of the strong force, describes interactions of coloured quarks and gluons and the formation of hadronic matter. Conventional hadronic matter consists of baryons and mesons made of three quarks and quark-antiquark pairs, respectively. Particles with an alternative quark content are known as exotic states. Here a study is reported of an exotic narrow state in the D0D0π+ mass spectrum just below the D*+D0 mass threshold produced in proton-proton collisions collected with the LHCb detector at the Large Hadron Collider. The state is consistent with the ground isoscalar T+cc tetraquark with a quark content of ccu⎯⎯⎯d⎯⎯⎯ and spin-parity quantum numbers JP = 1+. Study of the DD mass spectra disfavours interpretation of the resonance as the isovector state. The decay structure via intermediate off-shell D*+ mesons is consistent with the observed D0π+ mass distribution. To analyse the mass of the resonance and its coupling to the D*D system, a dedicated model is developed under the assumption of an isoscalar axial-vector T+cc state decaying to the D*D channel. Using this model, resonance parameters including the pole position, scattering length, effective range and compositeness are determined to reveal important information about the nature of the T+cc state. In addition, an unexpected dependence of the production rate on track multiplicity is observed

High-dose 5-fluorouracil and leucovorin as second-line chemotherapy in patients with platinum-resistant epithelial ovarian cancer

Contains fulltext : 22176___.PDF (publisher's version ) (Open Access

Selective hydrogenation of 5-ethoxymethylfurfural over alumina-supported heterogeneous catalysts

We report here the synthesis and testing of a set of 48 alumina-supported catalysts for hydrogenation of 5-ethoxymethylfurfural. This catalytic reaction is very important in the context of converting biomass to biofuels. The catalysts are composed of one main metal (gold, copper, iridium, nickel, palladium, platinum, rhodium, ruthenium) and one promoter metal (bismuth, chromium, iron, sodium, tin, tungsten). Using a 16-parallel trickle-flow reactor, we tested all 48 catalyst combinations under a variety of conditions. The results show that both substrate conversion and product selectivity are sensitive towards temperature changes and solvent effects. The best results of >99% yield to the desired product, 5-ethoxymethylfurfuryl alcohol, are obtained using an iridium/chromium (Ir/Cr) catalyst. The mechanistic implications of different possible reaction pathways in this complex hydrogenation system are discussed

Macitentan for the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis: The randomised controlled MUSIC trial

PubMed ID: 23682110Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is a progressive, fatal disease. This prospective, randomised, double-blind, multicentre, parallel-group, placebo-controlled phase II trial (NCT00903331) investigated the efficacy and safety of the endothelin receptor antagonist macitentan in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Eligible subjects were adults with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis of <3 years duration and a histological pattern of usual interstitial pneumonia on surgical lung biopsy. The primary objective was to demonstrate that macitentan (10 mg once daily) positively affected forced vital capacity versus placebo. Using a centralised system, 178 subjects were randomised (2:1) to macitentan (n=119) or placebo (n=59). The median change from baseline up to month 12 in forced vital capacity was -0.20 L in the macitentan arm and -0.20 L in the placebo arm. Overall, no differences between treatments were observed in pulmonary function tests or time to disease worsening or death. Median exposures to macitentan and placebo were 14.5 months and 15.0 months, respectively. Alanine and/or aspartate aminotransferase elevations over three times upper limit of normal arose in 3.4% of macitentan-treated subjects and 5.1% of placebo recipients. In conclusion, the primary objective was not met. Long-term exposure to macitentan was well tolerated with a similar, low incidence of elevated hepatic aminotransferases in each treatment group. Copyright © ERS 2013.Actelion Pharmaceuticals Ltd