Enhancement of the electric dipole moment of the electron in PbO

The a(1) state of PbO can be used to measure the electric dipole moment of the electron d_e. We discuss a semiempirical model for this state, which yields an estimate of the effective electric field on the valence electrons in PbO. Our final result is an upper limit on the measurable energy shift, which is significantly larger than was anticipated earlier: $2|W_d|d_e \ge 2.4\times 10^{25} \textrm{Hz} [ \frac{d_e}{e \textrm{cm}} ]$.Comment: 4 pages, revtex4, no figures, submitted to PR

Modelling CO formation in the turbulent interstellar medium

We present results from high-resolution three-dimensional simulations of turbulent interstellar gas that self-consistently follow its coupled thermal, chemical and dynamical evolution, with a particular focus on the formation and destruction of H2 and CO. We quantify the formation timescales for H2 and CO in physical conditions corresponding to those found in nearby giant molecular clouds, and show that both species form rapidly, with chemical timescales that are comparable to the dynamical timescale of the gas. We also investigate the spatial distributions of H2 and CO, and how they relate to the underlying gas distribution. We show that H2 is a good tracer of the gas distribution, but that the relationship between CO abundance and gas density is more complex. The CO abundance is not well-correlated with either the gas number density n or the visual extinction A_V: both have a large influence on the CO abundance, but the inhomogeneous nature of the density field produced by the turbulence means that n and A_V are only poorly correlated. There is a large scatter in A_V, and hence CO abundance, for gas with any particular density, and similarly a large scatter in density and CO abundance for gas with any particular visual extinction. This will have important consequences for the interpretation of the CO emission observed from real molecular clouds. Finally, we also examine the temperature structure of the simulated gas. We show that the molecular gas is not isothermal. Most of it has a temperature in the range of 10--20 K, but there is also a significant fraction of warmer gas, located in low-extinction regions where photoelectric heating remains effective.Comment: 37 pages, 15 figures; minor revisions, matches version accepted by MNRA

Neuroimmune crosstalk in the central nervous system and its significance for neurological diseases

The central nervous system (CNS) is now known to actively communicate with the immune system to control immune responses both centrally and peripherally. Within the CNS, while studies on glial cells, especially microglia, have highlighted the importance of this cell type in innate immune responses of the CNS, the immune regulatory functions of other cell types, especially neurons, are largely unknown. How neuroimmune cross-talk is homeostatically maintained in neurodevelopment and adult plasticity is even more elusive. Inspiringly, accumulating evidence suggests that neurons may also actively participate in immune responses by controlling glial cells and infiltrated T cells. The potential clinical application of this knowledge warrants a deeper understanding of the mutual interactions between neurons and other types of cells during neurological and immunological processes within the CNS, which will help advance diagnosis, prevention, and intervention of various neurological diseases. The aim of this review is to address the immune function of both glial cells and neurons, and the roles they play in regulating inflammatory processes and maintaining homeostasis of the CNS.Peer reviewe

Re-irradiation and Hyperthermia in Breast Cancer

Half of locoregional recurrences after breast cancer treatment are isolated events. Restaging should be carried out to select patients for curative salvage treatment. The approach depends on the characteristics of the primary and recurrent cancer, previous locoregional and systemic treatments, site of recurrence, comorbidities and the patient's wishes. A multidisciplinary discussion should be associated with the shared decision-making process. In view of the potential long-term disease-free survival, meticulous target volume delineation and selection of the most appropriate techniques should be used to decrease the risk of toxicity. This overview aims to provide clinicians with tools to manage the different scenarios of breast cancer patients with locoregional recurrences in the context of re-irradiation. (C) 2017 The Royal College of Radiologists. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserve