5,100 research outputs found
A statistical technique for determining rainfall over land employing Nimbus-6 ESMR measurements
An empirical method was employed to delineate synoptic scale rainfall over land utilizing Nimbus-6 ESMR measurements
Microbial biofilm studies of the environmental control and life support system water recovery test for Space Station Freedom
NASA is developing a water recovery system (WRS) for Space Station Freedom to reclaim human waste water for reuse by astronauts as hygiene or potable water. A water recovery test (WRT) currently in progress investigates the performance of a prototype of the WRS. Analysis of biofilm accumulation, the potential for microbially influenced corrosion (MIC) in the WRT, and studies of iodine disinfection of biofilm are reported. Analysis of WRT components indicated the presence of organic deposits and biofilms in selected tubing. Water samples for the WRT contained acid-producing and sulfate-reducing organisms implicated in corrosion processes. Corrosion of an aluminum alloy was accelerated in the presence of these water samples; however, stainless steel corrosion rates were not accelerated. Biofilm iodine sensitivity tests using an experimental laboratory scale recycled water system containing a microbial check valve (MCV) demonstrated that an iodine concentration of 1 to 2 mg/L was ineffective in eliminating microbial biofilm. For complete disinfection, an initial concentration of 16 mg/L was required, which was gradually reduced by the MCV over 4 to 8 hours to 1 to 2 mg/L. This treatment may be useful in controlling biofilm formation
Drug-like analogues of the parasitic worm-derived immunomodulator ES-62 are therapeutic in the MRL/Lpr model of systemic lupus erythematosus
Introduction ES-62, a phosphorylcholine (PC)-containing immunomodulator secreted by the parasitic worm Acanthocheilonema viteae, protects against nephritis in the MRL/Lpr mouse model of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). However, ES-62 is not suitable for development as a therapy and thus we have designed drug-like small molecule analogues (SMAs) based around its active PC-moiety. To provide proof of concept that ES-62-based SMAs exhibit therapeutic potential in SLE, we have investigated the capacity of two SMAs to protect against nephritis when administered to MRL/Lpr mice after onset of kidney damage.
Methods SMAs 11a and 12b were evaluated for their ability to suppress antinuclear antibody (ANA) generation and consequent kidney pathology in MRL/Lpr mice when administered after the onset of proteinuria.
Results SMAs 11a and 12b suppressed development of ANA and proteinuria. Protection reflected downregulation of MyD88 expression by kidney cells and this was associated with reduced production of IL-6, a cytokine that exhibits promise as a therapeutic target for this condition.
Conclusions SMAs 11a and 12b provide proof of principle that synthetic compounds based on the safe immunomodulatory mechanisms of parasitic worms can exhibit therapeutic potential as a novel class of drugs for SLE, a disease for which current therapies remain inadequate
The parasitic worm-derived immunomodulator, ES-62 and its drug-like small molecule analogues exhibit therapeutic potential in a model of chronic asthma
Chronic asthma is associated with persistent lung inflammation and long-term remodelling of the airways that have proved refractory to conventional treatments such as steroids, despite their efficacy in controlling acute airway contraction and bronchial inflammation. As its recent dramatic increase in industrialised countries has not been mirrored in developing regions, it has been suggested that helminth infection may protect humans against developing asthma. Consistent with this, ES-62, an immunomodulator secreted by the parasitic worm Acanthocheilonema viteae, can prevent pathology associated with chronic asthma (cellular infiltration of the lungs, particularly neutrophils and mast cells, mucus hyper-production and airway thickening) in an experimental mouse model. Importantly, ES-62 can act even after airway remodelling has been established, arresting pathogenesis and ameliorating the inflammatory flares resulting from repeated exposure to allergen that are a debilitating feature of severe chronic asthma. Moreover, two chemical analogues of ES-62, 11a and 12b mimic its therapeutic actions in restoring levels of regulatory B cells and suppressing neutrophil and mast cell responses. These studies therefore provide a platform for developing ES-62-based drugs, with compounds 11a and 12b representing the first step in the development of a novel class of drugs to combat the hitherto intractable disorder of chronic asthma
What makes slow samples slow in the Sherrington-Kirkpatrick model
Using results of a Monte Carlo simulation of the Sherrington-Kirkpatrick
model, we try to characterize the slow disorder samples, namely we analyze
visually the correlation between the relaxation time for a given disorder
sample with several observables of the system for the same disorder sample.
For temperatures below but not too low, fast samples (small relaxation
times) are clearly correlated with a small value of the largest eigenvalue of
the coupling matrix, a large value of the site averaged local field probability
distribution at the origin, or a small value of the squared overlap is more robust) . There is a strong correlation between the values of
the relaxation time for two distinct values of the temperature, but this
correlation decreases as the system size is increased. This may indicate the
onset of temperature chaos
Rain observations in tropical storm Cora
Passive microwave observations were made in tropical storm Cora at 19.35 and 94GHz. These observations suggest that 94GHz is appropriate for mapping the extent of rain over either land or ocean backgrounds and that some rainfall intensity measurement is also possible
Stellar Archaeology in the Galactic halo with the Ultra-Faint Dwarfs: VI. Ursa Major II
We present a B, V color-magnitude diagram (CMD) of the Milky Way dwarf
satellite Ursa Major II (UMa II), spanning the magnitude range from V ~ 15 to V
~ 23.5 mag and extending over a 18 {\times} 18 arcmin2 area centered on the
galaxy. Our photometry goes down to about 2 magnitudes below the galaxy's main
sequence turn-off, that we detected at V ~ 21.5 mag. We have discovered a
bona-fide RR Lyrae variable star in UMa II, which we use to estimate a
conservative dereddened distance modulus for the galaxy of (m-M)0 =
17.70{\pm}0.04{\pm}0.12 mag, where the first error accounts for the
uncertainties of the calibrated photometry, and the second reflects our lack of
information on the metallicity of the star. The corresponding distance to UMa
II is 34.7 {\pm} 0.6 ({\pm} 2.0) kpc. Our photometry shows evidence of a spread
in the galaxy subgiant branch, compatible with a spread in metal abundance in
the range between Z=0.0001 and Z=0.001. Based on our estimate of the distance,
a comparison of the fiducial lines of the Galactic globular clusters (GCs) M68
and M5 ([Fe/H]=-2.27 {\pm} 0.04 dex and -1.33 {\pm} 0.02 dex, respectively),
with the position on the CMD of spectroscopically confirmed galaxy members, may
suggest the existence of stellar populations of different metal abundance/age
in the central region of UMa II.Comment: To appear in Ap
H_2 Absorption and Fluorescence for Gamma Ray Bursts in Molecular Clouds
If a gamma ray burst with strong UV emission occurs in a molecular cloud,
there will be observable consequences resulting from excitation of the
surrounding H2. The UV pulse from the GRB will pump H2 into
vibrationally-excited levels which produce strong absorption at wavelengths <
1650 A. As a result, both the prompt flash and later afterglow will exhibit
strong absorption shortward of 1650 A, with specific spectroscopic features.
Such a cutoff in the emission from GRB 980329 may already have been observed by
Fruchter et al.; if so, GRB 980329 was at redshift 3.0 < z < 4.4 . BVRI
photometry of GRB 990510 could also be explained by H2 absorption if GRB 990510
is at redshift 1.6 < z < 2.3. The fluorescence accompanying the UV pumping of
the H2 will result in UV emission from the GRB which can extend over days or
months, depending on parameters of the ambient medium and beaming of the GRB
flash. The 7.5-13.6 eV fluorescent luminosity is \sim 10^{41.7} erg/s for
standard estimates of the parameters of the GRB and the ambient medium.
Spectroscopy can distinguish this fluorescent emission from other possible
sources of transient optical emission, such as a supernova.Comment: 13 pages, including 4 figures. submitted to Ap.J.(Letters
Hydrodynamic Relaxation of an Electron Plasma to a Near-Maximum Entropy State
Dynamical relaxation of a pure electron plasma in a Malmberg-Penning trap is studied, comparing experiments, numerical simulations and statistical theories of weakly dissipative two-dimensional (2D) turbulence. Simulations confirm that the dynamics are approximated well by a 2D hydrodynamic model. Statistical analysis favors a theoretical picture of relaxation to a near-maximum entropy state with constrained energy, circulation, and angular momentum. This provides evidence that 2D electron fluid relaxation in a turbulent regime is governed by principles of maximum entropy
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