37 research outputs found
Exploring Holographic General Gauge Mediation
We study models of gauge mediation with strongly coupled hidden sectors,
employing a hard wall background as an holographic dual description. The
structure of the soft spectrum depends crucially on the boundary conditions one
imposes on bulk fields at the IR wall. Generically, vector and fermion
correlators have poles at zero momentum, leading to gauge mediation by massive
vector messengers and/or generating Dirac gaugino masses. Instead, non-generic
choices of boundary conditions let one cover all of GGM parameter space.
Enriching the background with R-symmetry breaking scalars, the SSM soft term
structure becomes more constrained and similar to previously studied top-down
models, while retaining the more analytic control the present bottom-up
approach offers.Comment: 28 pages, 4 figures; v2: typos corrected and refs adde
Bone Mineral Density and Vascular Calcification in Children and Young Adults With CKD 4 to 5 or on Dialysis
Introduction: Older adults with chronic kidney disease (CKD) can have low bone mineral density (BMD) with concurrent vascular calcification. Mineral accrual by the growing skeleton may protect young people with CKD from extraosseous calcification. Our hypothesis was that children and young adults with increasing BMD do not develop vascular calcification. Methods: This was a multicenter longitudinal study in children and young people (5–30 years) with CKD stages 4 to 5 or on dialysis. BMD was assessed by tibial peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT) and lumbar spine dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). The following cardiovascular imaging tests were undertaken: cardiac computed tomography for coronary artery calcification (CAC), ultrasound for carotid intima media thickness z-score (cIMTz), pulse wave velocity z-score (PWVz), and carotid distensibility for arterial stiffness. All measures are presented as age-adjusted and sex-adjusted z-scores. Results: One hundred participants (median age 13.82 years) were assessed at baseline and 57 followed up after a median of 1.45 years. Trabecular BMD z-score (TrabBMDz) decreased (P = 0.01), and there was a nonsignificant decrease in cortical BMD z-score (CortBMDz) (P = 0.09). Median cIMTz and PWVz showed nonsignificant increase (P = 0.23 and P = 0.19, respectively). The annualized increase in TrabBMDz (ΔTrabBMDz) was an independent predictor of cIMTz increase (R2 = 0.48, β = 0.40, P = 0.03). Young people who demonstrated statural growth (n = 33) had lower ΔTrabBMDz and also attenuated vascular changes compared with those with static growth (n = 24). Conclusion: This hypothesis-generating study suggests that children and young adults with CKD or on dialysis may develop vascular calcification even as their BMD increases. A presumed buffering capacity of the growing skeleton may offer some protection against extraosseous calcification
Higgs Boson Mass in Low Scale Gauge Mediation Models
We consider low scale gauge mediation models with a very light gravitino
m_{3/2}~16 eV, in the light of recent experimental hints on the Higgs boson
mass. The light gravitino is very interesting since there is no gravitino
over-production problem, but it seems difficult to explain the Higgs boson mass
of ~125 GeV. This is because of the conflict between the light gravitino mass
and heavy SUSY particle masses needed for producing the relatively heavy Higgs
boson mass. We consider two possible extensions in this paper: a singlet
extension of the Higgs sector, and strongly coupled gauge mediation. We show
that there is a large parameter space, in both scenarios, where the Higgs boson
mass of ~125 GeV is explained without any conflict with such a very light
gravitino.Comment: 23 pages, 5 figure
A slice of AdS_5 as the large N limit of Seiberg duality
A slice of AdS_5 is used to provide a 5D gravitational description of 4D
strongly-coupled Seiberg dual gauge theories. An (electric) SU(N) gauge theory
in the conformal window at large N is described by the 5D bulk, while its
weakly coupled (magnetic) dual is confined to the IR brane. This framework can
be used to construct an N = 1 MSSM on the IR brane, reminiscent of the original
Randall-Sundrum model. In addition, we use our framework to study
strongly-coupled scenarios of supersymmetry breaking mediated by gauge forces.
This leads to a unified scenario that connects the extra-ordinary gauge
mediation limit to the gaugino mediation limit in warped space.Comment: 47 Pages, axodraw4j.st
Stabilizing All Kahler Moduli in Type IIB Orientifolds
We describe a simple and robust mechanism that stabilizes all Kahler moduli
in Type IIB orientifold compactifications. This is shown to be possible with
just one non-perturbative contribution to the superpotential coming from either
a D3-instanton or D7-branes wrapped on an ample divisor. This
moduli-stabilization mechanism is similar to and motivated by the one used in
the fluxless G_2 compactifications of M-theory. After explaining the general
idea, explicit examples of Calabi-Yau orientifolds with one and three Kahler
moduli are worked out. We find that the stabilized volumes of all two- and
four-cycles as well as the volume of the Calabi-Yau manifold are controlled by
a single parameter, namely, the volume of the ample divisor. This feature would
dramatically constrain any realistic models of particle physics embedded into
such compactifications. Broad consequences for phenomenology are discussed, in
particular the dynamical solution to the strong CP-problem within the
framework.Comment: RevTeX, 24 pages, 2 tables, 1 figure
Cardiovascular magnetic resonance of pulmonary artery growth and ventricular function after Norwood procedure with Sano modification
For hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS), there have been concerns regarding pulmonary artery growth and ventricular dysfunction after first stage surgery consisting of the Norwood procedure modified with a right ventricle-to-pulmonary artery conduit. We report our experience using cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) to determine and follow pulmonary arterial growth and ventricular function in this cohort
Editorial Board
Source at http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12888-017-1345-8 Background: The duration of untreated psychosis is determined by both patient and service related factors.
Few studies have considered the geographical accessibility of services in relation to treatment delay in early
psychosis. To address this, we investigated whether treatment delay is co-determined by straight-line distance
to hospital based specialist services in a mainly rural mental health context.
Methods: A naturalistic cross-sectional study was conducted among a sample of recent onset psychosis patients
in northern Norway (n = 62). Data on patient and service related determinants were analysed.
Results: Half of the cohort had a treatment delay longer than 4.5 months. In a binary logistic regression model,
straight-line distance was found to make an independent contribution to delay in which we controlled for other
known risk factors.
Conclusions: The determinants of treatment delay are complex. This study adds to previous studies on treatment
delay by showing that the spatial location of services also makes an independent contribution. In addition, it may
be that insidious onset is a more important factor in treatment delay in remote areas, as the logistical implications of
specialist referral are much greater than for urban dwellers. The threshold for making a diagnosis in a remote location
may therefore be higher. Strategies to reduce the duration of untreated psychosis in rural areas would benefit from
improving appropriate referral by crisis services, and the detection of insidious onset of psychosis in community based
specialist services
Cost-effectiveness of minimal interventional procedures for chronic mechanical low back pain: design of four randomised controlled trials with an economic evaluation
Background: Minimal interventional procedures are frequently applied in patients with mechanical low back pain which is defined as pain presumably resulting from single sources: facet, disc, sacroiliac joint or a combination of these. Usually, these minimal interventional procedures are an integral part of a multidisciplinary pain programme. A recent systematic review issued by the Dutch Health Insurance Council showed that the effectiveness of these procedures for the total group of patients with chronic low back pain is yet unclear and cost-effectiveness unknown. The aim of the study is to evaluate whether a multidisciplinary pain programme with minimal interventional procedures is cost-effective compared to the multidisciplinary pain programme alone for patients with chronic mechanical low back pain who did not respond to conservative primary care and were referred to a pain clinic. Methods. All patients with chronic low back pain who are referred to one of the 13 participating pain clinics will be asked to participate in an observational study. Patients with a suspected diagnosis of facet, disc or sacroiliac joint problems will receive a diagnostic block to confirm this diagnosis. If confirmed, they will be asked to participate in a Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT). For each single source a separate RCT will be conducted. Patients with a combination of facet, disc or sacroiliac joint problems will be invited for participation in a RCT as well. An economic evaluation from a societal perspective will be performed alongside these four RCTs. Patients will complete questionnaires at baseline, 3 and 6 weeks, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months after start of the treatment
Calf health from birth to weaning. I. General aspects of disease prevention
Calfhood diseases have a major impact on the economic viability of cattle operations. This is the first in a three part review series on calf health from birth to weaning, focusing on preventive measures. The review considers both pre- and periparturient management factors influencing calf health, colostrum management in beef and dairy calves and further nutrition and weaning in dairy calves
The clinical course of low back pain: a meta-analysis comparing outcomes in randomised clinical trials (RCTs) and observational studies.
BACKGROUND: Evidence suggests that the course of low back pain (LBP) symptoms in randomised clinical trials (RCTs) follows a pattern of large improvement regardless of the type of treatment. A similar pattern was independently observed in observational studies. However, there is an assumption that the clinical course of symptoms is particularly influenced in RCTs by mere participation in the trials. To test this assumption, the aim of our study was to compare the course of LBP in RCTs and observational studies. METHODS: Source of studies CENTRAL database for RCTs and MEDLINE, CINAHL, EMBASE and hand search of systematic reviews for cohort studies. Studies include individuals aged 18 or over, and concern non-specific LBP. Trials had to concern primary care treatments. Data were extracted on pain intensity. Meta-regression analysis was used to compare the pooled within-group change in pain in RCTs with that in cohort studies calculated as the standardised mean change (SMC). RESULTS: 70 RCTs and 19 cohort studies were included, out of 1134 and 653 identified respectively. LBP symptoms followed a similar course in RCTs and cohort studies: a rapid improvement in the first 6 weeks followed by a smaller further improvement until 52 weeks. There was no statistically significant difference in pooled SMC between RCTs and cohort studies at any time point:- 6 weeks: RCTs: SMC 1.0 (95% CI 0.9 to 1.0) and cohorts 1.2 (0.7to 1.7); 13 weeks: RCTs 1.2 (1.1 to 1.3) and cohorts 1.0 (0.8 to 1.3); 27 weeks: RCTs 1.1 (1.0 to 1.2) and cohorts 1.2 (0.8 to 1.7); 52 weeks: RCTs 0.9 (0.8 to 1.0) and cohorts 1.1 (0.8 to 1.6). CONCLUSIONS: The clinical course of LBP symptoms followed a pattern that was similar in RCTs and cohort observational studies. In addition to a shared 'natural history', enrolment of LBP patients in clinical studies is likely to provoke responses that reflect the nonspecific effects of seeking and receiving care, independent of the study design