353 research outputs found
Pseudo-Hermiticity and some consequences of a generalized quantum condition
We exploit the hidden symmetry structure of a recently proposed non-Hermitian
Hamiltonian and of its Hermitian equivalent one. This sheds new light on the
pseudo-Hermitian character of the former and allows access to a generalized
quantum condition. Special cases lead to hyperbolic and Morse-like potentials
in the framework of a coordinate-dependent mass model.Comment: 10 pages, no figur
PFTAIRE Kinase L63 Interactor 1A (Pif1A Protein) Is Required for Actin Cone Movement during Spermatid Individualization in Drosophila melanogaster
A useful model for determining the mechanisms by which actin and actin binding proteins control cellular architecture is the Drosophila melanogaster process of spermatogenesis. During the final step of spermatogenesis, 64 syncytial spermatids individualized as stable actin cones move synchronously down the axonemes and remodel the membranes. To identify new genes involved in spermatid individualization, we screened a collection of Drosophila male-sterile mutants and found that, in the line Z3-5009, actin cones formed near to the spermatid nuclei but failed to move, resulting in failed spermatid individualization. However, we show by phalloidin actin staining, electron microscopy and immunocytochemical localization of several actin binding proteins that the early cones had normal structure. We sequenced the genome of the Z3-5009 line and identified mutations in the PFTAIRE kinase L63 interactor 1A (Pif1A) gene. Quantitative real-time PCR showed that Pif1A transcript abundance was decreased in the mutant, and a transgene expressing Pif1A fused to green fluorescent protein (GFP) was able to fully rescue spermatid individualization and male fertility. Pif1A-GFP localized to the front of actin cones before initiation of movement. We propose that Pif1A plays a pivotal role in directing actin cone movement
Graded extension of SO(2,1) Lie algebra and the search for exact solutions of Dirac equation by point canonical transformations
SO(2,1) is the symmetry algebra for a class of three-parameter problems that
includes the oscillator, Coulomb and Morse potentials as well as other problems
at zero energy. All of the potentials in this class can be mapped into the
oscillator potential by point canonical transformations. We call this class the
"oscillator class". A nontrivial graded extension of SO(2,1) is defined and its
realization by two-dimensional matrices of differential operators acting in
spinor space is given. It turns out that this graded algebra is the
supersymmetry algebra for a class of relativistic potentials that includes the
Dirac-Oscillator, Dirac-Coulomb and Dirac-Morse potentials. This class is, in
fact, the relativistic extension of the oscillator class. A new point canonical
transformation, which is compatible with the relativistic problem, is
formulated. It maps all of these relativistic potentials into the
Dirac-Oscillator potential.Comment: Replaced with a more potrable PDF versio
Isospectrality of conventional and new extended potentials, second-order supersymmetry and role of PT symmetry
We develop a systematic approach to construct novel completely solvable
rational potentials. Second-order supersymmetric quantum mechanics dictates the
latter to be isospectral to some well-studied quantum systems.
symmetry may facilitate reconciling our approach to the requirement that the
rationally-extended potentials be singularity free. Some examples are shown.Comment: 13 pages, no figure, some additions to introduction and conclusion, 4
more references; to be published in Special issue of Pramana - J. Phy
Reanalysis of single-cell RNA sequencing data does not support herpes simplex virus 1 latency in non-neuronal ganglionic cells in mice
Most individuals are latently infected with herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1), and it is well-established that HSV-1 establishes latency in sensory neurons of peripheral ganglia. However, it was recently proposed that latent HSV-1 is also present in immune cells recovered from the ganglia of experimentally infected mice. Here, we reanalyzed the single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-Seq) data that formed the basis for that conclusion. Unexpectedly, off-target priming in 3â scRNA-Seq experiments enabled the detection of non-polyadenylated HSV-1 latency-associated transcript (LAT) intronic RNAs. However, LAT reads were near-exclusively detected in mixed populations of cells undergoing cell death. Specific loss of HSV-1 LAT and neuronal transcripts during quality control filtering indicated widespread destruction of neurons, supporting the presence of contaminating cell-free RNA in other cells following tissue processing. In conclusion, the reported detection of latent HSV-1 in non-neuronal cells is best explained using compromised scRNA-Seq datasets. IMPORTANCE Most people are infected with herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) during their life. Once infected, the virus generally remains in a latent (silent) state, hiding within the neurons of peripheral ganglia. Periodic reactivation (reawakening) of the virus may cause fresh diseases such as cold sores. A recent study using single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-Seq) proposed that HSV-1 can also establish latency in the immune cells of mice, challenging existing dogma. We reanalyzed the data from that study and identified several flaws in the methodologies and analyses performed that invalidate the published conclusions. Specifically, we showed that the methodologies used resulted in widespread destruction of neurons which resulted in the presence of contaminants that confound the data analysis. We thus conclude that there remains little to no evidence for HSV-1 latency in immune cells.</p
L2 series solutions of the Dirac equation for power-law potentials at rest mass energy
We obtain solutions of the three dimensional Dirac equation for radial
power-law potentials at rest mass energy as an infinite series of square
integrable functions. These are written in terms of the confluent
hypergeometric function and chosen such that the matrix representation of the
Dirac operator is tridiagonal. The "wave equation" results in a three-term
recursion relation for the expansion coefficients of the spinor wavefunction
which is solved in terms of orthogonal polynomials. These are modified versions
of the Meixner-Pollaczek polynomials and of the continuous dual Hahn
polynomials. The choice depends on the values of the angular momentum and the
power of the potential.Comment: 13 pages, 1 Tabl
A general scheme for the effective-mass Schrodinger equation and the generation of the associated potentials
A systematic procedure to study one-dimensional Schr\"odinger equation with a
position-dependent effective mass (PDEM) in the kinetic energy operator is
explored. The conventional free-particle problem reveals a new and interesting
situation in that, in the presence of a mass background, formation of bound
states is signalled. We also discuss coordinate-transformed, constant-mass
Schr\"odinger equation, its matching with the PDEM form and the consequent
decoupling of the ambiguity parameters. This provides a unified approach to
many exact results known in the literature, as well as to a lot of new ones.Comment: 16 pages + 1 figure; minor changes + new "free-particle" problem;
version published in Mod. Phys. Lett.
Resolving the backbone tilt of crystalline poly(3-hexylthiophene) with resonant tender X-ray diffraction
The way in which conjugated polymers pack in the solid state strongly affects the performance of polymer-based optoelectronic devices. However, even for the most crystalline conjugated polymers the precise packing of chains within the unit cell is not well established. Here we show that by performing resonant X-ray diffraction experiments at the sulfur K-edge we are able to resolve the tilting of the planar backbones of crystalline poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) within the unit cell. This approach exploits the anisotropic nature of the X-ray optical properties of conjugated polymers, enabling us to discern between different proposed crystal structures. By comparing our data with simulations based on different orientations, a tilting of the planar conjugated backbone with respect to the side chain stacking direction of 30 ± 5° is determined
Inference of population splits and mixtures from genome-wide allele frequency data
Many aspects of the historical relationships between populations in a species
are reflected in genetic data. Inferring these relationships from genetic data,
however, remains a challenging task. In this paper, we present a statistical
model for inferring the patterns of population splits and mixtures in multiple
populations. In this model, the sampled populations in a species are related to
their common ancestor through a graph of ancestral populations. Using
genome-wide allele frequency data and a Gaussian approximation to genetic
drift, we infer the structure of this graph. We applied this method to a set of
55 human populations and a set of 82 dog breeds and wild canids. In both
species, we show that a simple bifurcating tree does not fully describe the
data; in contrast, we infer many migration events. While some of the migration
events that we find have been detected previously, many have not. For example,
in the human data we infer that Cambodians trace approximately 16% of their
ancestry to a population ancestral to other extant East Asian populations. In
the dog data, we infer that both the boxer and basenji trace a considerable
fraction of their ancestry (9% and 25%, respectively) to wolves subsequent to
domestication, and that East Asian toy breeds (the Shih Tzu and the Pekingese)
result from admixture between modern toy breeds and "ancient" Asian breeds.
Software implementing the model described here, called TreeMix, is available at
http://treemix.googlecode.comComment: 28 pages, 6 figures in main text. Attached supplement is 22 pages, 15
figures. This is an updated version of the preprint available at
http://precedings.nature.com/documents/6956/version/
Evolutionary history of endogenous Human Herpesvirus 6 reflects human migration out of Africa
Human herpesvirus 6A and 6B (HHV-6) can integrate into the germline, and as a result, âŒ70 million people harbor the genome of one of these viruses in every cell of their body. Until now, it has been largely unknown if 1) these integrations are ancient, 2) if they still occur, and 3) whether circulating virus strains differ from integrated ones. Here, we used next-generation sequencing and mining of public human genome data sets to generate the largest and most diverse collection of circulating and integrated HHV-6 genomes studied to date. In genomes of geographically dispersed, only distantly related people, we identified clades of integrated viruses that originated from a single ancestral event, confirming this with fluorescent in situ hybridization to directly observe the integration locus. In contrast to HHV-6B, circulating and integrated HHV-6A sequences form distinct clades, arguing against ongoing integration of circulating HHV-6A or âreactivationâ of integrated HHV-6A. Taken together, our study provides the first comprehensive picture of the evolution of HHV-6, and reveals that integration of heritable HHV-6 has occurred since the time of, if not before, human migrations out of Africa
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