1,999 research outputs found
Low Energy Neutrino Physics after SNO and KamLAND
In the recent years important discoveries in the field of low energy neutrino
physics (E in the MeV range) have been achieved. Results of the
solar neutrino experiment SNO show clearly flavor transitions from to
. In addition, the long standing solar neutrino problem is
basically solved. With KamLAND, an experiment measuring neutrinos emitted from
nuclear reactors at large distances, evidence for neutrino oscillations has
been found. The values for the oscillation parameters, amplitude and phase,
have been restricted. In this paper the potential of future projects in low
energy neutrino physics is discussed. This encompasses future solar and reactor
experiments as well as the direct search for neutrino masses. Finally the
potential of a large liquid scintillator detector in an underground laboratory
for supernova neutrino detection, solar neutrino detection, and the search for
proton decay is discussed.Comment: Invited brief review, World Scientific Publishing Compan
Uromodulin (Tamm–Horsfall protein): guardian of urinary and systemic homeostasis
Biology has taught us that a protein as abundantly made and conserved among species as Tamm–Horsfall protein (THP or uromodulin) cannot just be a waste product serving no particular purpose. However, for many researchers, THP is merely a nuisance during urine proteome profiling or exosome purification and for clinicians an enigmatic entity without clear disease implications. Thanks to recent human genetic and correlative studies and animal modeling, we now have a renewed appreciation of this highly prevalent protein in not only guarding urinary homeostasis, but also serving as a critical mediator in systemic inter-organ signaling. Beyond a mere barrier that lines the tubules, or a surrogate for nephron mass, mounting evidence suggests that THP is a multifunctional protein critical for modulating renal ion channel activity, salt/water balance, renal and systemic inflammatory response, intertubular communication, mineral crystallization and bacterial adhesion. Indeed, mutations in THP cause a group of inherited kidney diseases, and altered THP expression is associated with increased risks of urinary tract infection, kidney stone, hypertension, hyperuricemia and acute and chronic kidney diseases. Despite the recent surge of information surrounding THP’s physiological functions and disease involvement, our knowledge remains incomplete regarding how THP is normally regulated by external and intrinsic factors, how precisely THP deficiency leads to urinary and systemic pathophysiology and in what clinical settings THP can be used as a theranostic biomarker and a target for modulation to improve patient outcomes
The Kr2Det project: Search for mass-3 state contribution |U_{e3}|^2 to the electron neutrino using a one reactor - two detector oscillation experiment at Krasnoyarsk underground site
The main physical goal of the project is to search with reactor antineutrinos
for small mixing angle oscillations in the atmospheric mass parameter region
around {\Delta}m^{2}_{atm} ~ 2.5 10^{-3} eV^2 in order to find the element
U_{e3} of the neutrino mixing matrix or to set a new more stringent constraint
(U_{e3} is the contribution of mass-3 state to the electron neutrino flavor
state). To achieve this we propose a "one reactor - two detector" experiment:
two identical antineutrino spectrometers with 50 ton liquid scintillator
targets located at ~100 m and ~1000 m from the Krasnoyarsk underground reactor
(~600 mwe). In no-oscillation case ratio of measured positron spectra of the
\bar{{\nu}_e} + p \to e^{+} + n reaction is energy independent. Deviation from
a constant value of this ratio is the oscillation signature. In this scheme
results do not depend on the exact knowledge of the reactor power, nu_e
spectra, burn up effects, target volumes and, which is important, the
backgrounds can periodically be measured during reactor OFF periods. In this
letter we present the Krasnoyarsk reactor site, give a schematic description of
the detectors, calculate the neutrino detection rates and estimate the
backgrounds. We also outline the detector monitoring and calibration
procedures, which are of a key importance. We hope that systematic
uncertainties will not accede 0.5% and the sensitivity U^{2}_{e3} ~4 10^{-3}
(at {\Delta}m^{2} = 2.5 10^{-3} eV^2) can be achieved.Comment: Latex 2e, 9 pages and 5 ps figure
A new ordering principle for the classical statistical analysis of Poisson processes with background
Inspired by the recent proposal by Feldman and Cousins of a ``unified
approach to the classical statistical analysis of small signals'' based on a
choice of ordering in Neyman's construction of classical confidence intervals,
I propose a new ordering principle for the classical statistical analysis of
Poisson processes with background which minimizes the effect on the resulting
confidence intervals of the observation of less background events than
expected. The new ordering principle is applied to the calculation of the
confidence region implied by the recent null result of the KARMEN neutrino
oscillation experiment.Comment: 16 pages including 5 figures, RevTeX. Final version published in
Phys. Rev. D 59 (1999) 05300
Sensitivity of the Immunohistochemistry technique in central nervous system fragments of cattle and horses naturally infected by rabies virus
A raiva é uma zoonose viral que acomete o sistema nervoso central (SNC) de mamíferos, considerada um grave problema de saúde pública. Herbívoros (bovinos e equinos) são frequentemente acometidos pela in-fecção após serem atacados por morcegos hematófagos (Desmodus rotundus). A técnica de imunofluorescência direta (IFD) realizada em tecidos frescos, recomendada pela Organização Mundial de Saúde (OMS), é utilizada para o diagnóstico da raiva. A técnica de imuno-histoquímica (IHQ) é utilizada para detectar antígenos em tecidos fixados, pelo uso de anticorpos monoclonais/policlonais. O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar a sensibilidade da IHQ na detecção de antígenos do vírus da raiva em amostras de SNC de herbívoros fixadas em formol, analisando a distribuição antigênica em diferentes fragmentos do SNC. Os resultados demonstraram concordância das técnicas de IFD e IHQ. A IHQ mostrou maior sensibilidade em amostras de bovinos em relação às de equinos, especialmente quando realizada em fragmentos de cerebelo e tronco encefálico. A detecção de antígeno nestes fragmentos foi mais consistente para ambas as técnicas, nas duas espécies. Estes resultados demonstram que a IHQ pode ser empregada para a vigilância epidemiológica da raiva, entretanto, recomenda-se cautela ao se empregar a IHQ para diagnóstico de doença em herbívoros, especialmente quando o fragmento encaminhado ao laboratório for apenas o hipocampo.Rabies is a viral zoonosis that causes disease in the central nervous system (CNS) of mammals and it is considered a serious problem of public health. Herbivorous (bovines and equines) are often infected after being attacked by vampire bats (Desmodus rotundus). The direct fluorescent antibody technique is used as a diagnostic test to detect viral antigens in fresh tissues and is recommended by the World Health Organization. The immunohistochemistry technique (IHC) is used to detect the viral antigen through the use of monoclonal/policlonal antibodies in formalin-fixed tissues. The aim of this work was to evaluate the sensitivity of the IHC in samples of CNS of herbivorous fixed in formol, analyzing the antigenic distribution in different fragments of the CNS. The results demonstrated good agreement between the two techniques for the rabies diagnosis. The IHC presented higher sensitivity in samples of cattle comparing to horse samples, especially in fragments of cerebellum and brain stem. These fragments demonstrated to be more suitable for antigen detection by both techniques in the two species. These data demonstrate that the IHC is suitable for rabies vigilance yet cautions should be taken in examining cattle and horses samples, when the submitted specimen is only the hippocampus
Is CP Violation Observable in Long Baseline Neutrino Oscillation Experiments ?
We have studied CP violation originated by the phase of the neutrino mixing
matrix in the long baseline neutrino oscillation experiments. The direct
measurements of CP violation is the difference of the transition probabilities
between CP-conjugate channels. In those experiments, the CP violating effect is
not suppressed if the highest neutrino mass scale is taken to be 1\sim 5 \eV,
which is appropriate for the cosmological hot dark matter. Assuming the
hierarchy for the neutrino masses, the upper bounds of CP violation have been
caluculated for three cases, in which mixings are constrained by the recent
short baseline ones. The calculated upper bounds are larger than ,
which will be observable in the long baseline accelerator experiments. The
matter effect, which is not CP invariant, has been also estimated in those
experiments.Comment: 28 pages, LaTex file, 6 figures included using epsfig Matter effect
is estimated(Figs.3(a) (b)). Physical parameters are change
Effects of neutrino oscillations and neutrino magnetic moments on elastic neutrino-electron scattering
We consider elastic antineutrino-electron scattering taking into account
possible effects of neutrino masses and mixing and of neutrino magnetic moments
and electric dipole moments. Having in mind antineutrinos produced in a nuclear
reactor we compute, in particular, the weak-electromagnetic interference terms
which are linear in the magnetic (electric dipole) moments and also in the
neutrino masses. We show that these terms are, however, suppressed compared to
the pure weak and electromagnetic cross section. We also comment upon the
possibility of using the electromagnetic cross section to investigate neutrino
oscillations.Comment: 12 pages, REVTEX file, no figures, submitted to Phys.Rev.
Constraints on long-baseline neutrino oscillation probabilities and CP asymmetries from neutrino oscillation data
We consider long-baseline neutrino oscillations in the framework of two
schemes with mixing of four massive neutrinos which can accommodate all the
existing indications in favour of neutrino mixing. Within these schemes, we
derive bounds on the oscillation probabilities and the CP-odd
neutrino-antineutrino asymmetries in long-baseline experiments. Using the
results of short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments, we obtain rather
strong upper bounds on the long-baseline probabilities 1-P(nu_e->nu_e) and
P(nu_mu->nu_e). Nevertheless, the projected sensitivities of the MINOS and
ICARUS experiments are better than our bounds. We also show that there are no
corresponding constraints for nu_mu->nu_mu and nu_mu->nu_tau long-baseline
oscillations and that the CP-odd asymmetry in the latter channel can reach the
maximal value allowed by the unitarity of the mixing matrix. Some schemes with
mixing of three neutrinos are also considered.Comment: 32 pages including 5 figures, RevTeX. New discussion of the matter
effect
Neutrino mass matrix with U(2) flavor symmetry and neutrino oscillations
The three neutrino mass matrices in the model are studied
focusing on the neutrino oscillation experiments. The atmospheric neutrino
anomaly could be explained by the large oscillation.
The long baseline experiments are expected to detect signatures of the neutrino
oscillation even if the atmospheric neutrino anomaly is not due to the neutrino
oscillation. However, the model cannot solve the solar neutrino deficit while
it could be reconciled with the LSND data.Comment: 12 pages, LaTex file, to be published in PR
Constraining Almost Degenerate Three-Flavor Neutrinos
We discuss constraints on a scenario of almost degenerate three-flavor
neutrinos imposed by the solar and the atmospheric neutrino anomalies, hot dark
matter, and neutrinoless double decays. It is found that in the
Majorana version of the model the region with relatively large is
favored and a constraint on the CP violating phases is obtained.Comment: 19 pages (uses revtex), including 6 figures (uses epsf
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