Species- and organ-specificity of secretory proteins derived from human prostate and seminal vesicles

Polyclonal antibodies against semenogelin (SG) isolated from human seminal vesicle secretion and acid phosphatase (PAP), β‐microseminoprotein (β‐MSP), and Prostate‐Specific Antigen (PSA) derived from human prostatic fluid, as well as a monoclonal antibody against β‐MSP were used for immunocytochemical detection of the respective antigens in different organs from different species. SG immunoreactivity was detected in the epithelium of the pubertal and adult human and in monkey seminal vesicle, ampulla of the vas deferens, and ejaculatory duct. PAP, β‐MSP, and PSA immunoreactivities were detected in the pubertal and adult human prostate and the cranial and caudal monkey prostate. With the exception of a weak PSA immunoreactivity in the proximal portions of the ejaculatory duct, none of the latter antisera reacted with seminal vesicle, ampullary, and ejaculatory duct epithelium. Among the non‐primate species studied (dog, bull, rat, guinea pig) only the canine prostatic epithelium displayed a definite immunoreactivity with the PAP antibody and a moderate reaction with the PSA antibody. No immunoreaction was seen in bull and rat seminal vesicle and canine ampulla of the vas deferens with the SG antibody. The same was true for the (ventral) prostate of rat, bull, and dog for β‐MSP. The epithelium of the rat dorsal prostate showed a slight cross‐reactivity with the monoclonal antibody against β‐MSP and one polyclonal antibody against PSA. The findings indicate a rather strict species‐dependent expression of human seminal proteins which show some similarities in primates, but only marginal relationship to species with different physiology of seminal fluid

Behavior of heuristics and state space structure near SAT/UNSAT transition

We study the behavior of ASAT, a heuristic for solving satisfiability problems by stochastic local search near the SAT/UNSAT transition. The heuristic is focused, i.e. only variables in unsatisfied clauses are updated in each step, and is significantly simpler, while similar to, walksat or Focused Metropolis Search. We show that ASAT solves instances as large as one million variables in linear time, on average, up to 4.21 clauses per variable for random 3SAT. For K higher than 3, ASAT appears to solve instances at the ``FRSB threshold'' in linear time, up to K=7.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures, longer version available as MSc thesis of first author at http://biophys.physics.kth.se/docs/ardelius_thesis.pd

Hubble Space Telescope weak lensing study of the z=0.83 cluster MS 1054-03

We have measured the weak gravitational lensing signal of MS 1054-03, a rich and X-ray luminous cluster of galaxies at a redshift of z=0.83, using a two-colour mosaic of deep WFPC2 images. The small corrections for the size of the PSF and the high number density of background galaxies obtained in these observations result in an accurate and well calibrated measurement of the lensing induced distortion. The strength of the lensing signal depends on the redshift distribution of the background galaxies. We used photometric redshift distributions from the Northern and Southern Hubble Deep Fields to relate the lensing signal to the mass. The predicted variations of the signal as a function of apparent source magnitude and colour agrees well with the observed lensing signal. We determine a mass of (1.2+-0.2)x10^15 Msun within an aperture of radius 1 Mpc. Under the assumption of an isothermal mass distribution, the corresponding velocity dispersion is 1311^{+83}_{-89} km/s. For the mass-to-light ratio we find 269+-37 Msun/Lsun. The errors in the mass and mass-to-light ratio include the contribution from the random intrinsic ellipticities of the source galaxies, but not the (systematic) error due to the uncertainty in the redshift distribution. However, the estimates for the mass and mass-to-light ratio of MS 1054-03 agree well with other estimators, suggesting that the mass calibration works well. The reconstruction of the projected mass surface density shows a complex mass distribution, consistent with the light distribution. The results indicate that MS 1054-03 is a young system. The timescale for relaxation is estimated to be at least 1 Gyr. Averaging the tangential shear around the cluster galaxies, we find that the velocity dispersion of an Lstar galaxy is 203+-33 km/s.Comment: 21 pages, Latex, with 27 figures (3 figures bitmapped), ApJ, in press. Version (with non-bitmapped figures) available at http://www.astro.rug.nl/~hoekstra/papers.htm

Large-Scale QSO-Galaxy Correlations and Weak Lensing

Several recent studies show that bright, intermediate and high redshift optically and radio selected QSOs are positively correlated with nearby galaxies on a range of angular scales up to a degree. Obscuration by unevenly distributed Galactic dust can be ruled out as the cause, leaving weak statistical lensing as the physical process responsible. However the amplitude of correlations on < 1 degree scales is at least a factor of a few larger than lensing model predictions. A possible way to reconcile the observations and theory is to revise the weak lensing formalism. We extend the standard lensing formulation to include the next higher order term (second order) in the geodesic equation of motion for photons. We derive relevant equations applicable in the weak lensing regime, and discuss qualitative properties of the updated formulation. We then perform numerical integrations of the revised equation and study the effect of the extra term using two different types of cosmic mass density fluctuations. We find that nearby large-scale coherent structures increase the amplitude of the predicted lensing-induced correlations between QSOs and foreground galaxies by ~ 10% (not a factor of several required by observations), while the redshift of the optimal, i.e. `most correlated' structures is moved closer to the observer compared to what is predicted using the standard lensing equation.Comment: extended Section 2; 20 pages, including 4 figures, accepted to Ap

Curr Opin Chem Biol

Technological innovations and novel applications have greatly advanced the field of protein microarrays. Over the past two years, different types of protein microarrays have been used for serum profiling, protein abundance determinations, and identification of proteins that bind DNA or small compounds. However, considerable development is still required to ensure common quality standards and to establish large content repertoires. Here, we summarize applications available to date and discuss recent technological achievements and efforts on standardization

Weak Lensing Analysis of the z~0.8 cluster CL 0152-1357 with the Advanced Camera for Surveys

We present a weak lensing analysis of the X-ray luminous cluster CL 0152-1357 at z~0.84 using HST/ACS observations. The unparalleled resolution and sensitivity of ACS enable us to measure weakly distorted, faint background galaxies to the extent that the number density reaches ~175 arcmin^-2. The PSF of ACS has a complicated shape that also varies across the field. We construct a PSF model for ACS from an extensive investigation of 47 Tuc stars in a modestly crowded region. We show that this model PSF excellently describes the PSF variation pattern in the cluster observation when a slight adjustment of ellipticity is applied. The high number density of source galaxies and the accurate removal of the PSF effect through moment-based deconvolution allow us to restore the dark matter distribution of the cluster in great detail. The direct comparison of the mass map with the X-ray morphology from Chandra observations shows that the two peaks of intracluster medium traced by X-ray emission are lagging behind the corresponding dark matter clumps, indicative of an on-going merger. The overall mass profile of the cluster can be well described by an NFW profile with a scale radius of r_s =309+-45 kpc and a concentration parameter of c=3.7+-0.5. The mass estimates from the lensing analysis are consistent with those from X-ray and Sunyaev-Zeldovich analyses. The predicted velocity dispersion is also in good agreement with the spectroscopic measurement from VLT observations. In the adopted WMAP cosmology, the total projected mass and the mass-to-light ratio within 1 Mpc are estimated to be 4.92+-0.44 10^14 solar mass and 95+-8 solar mass/solar luminosity, respectively.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astrophysical Journal. 58 pages, 26 figures. Figures have been degraded to meet size limit; a higher resolution version available at http://acs.pha.jhu.edu/~mkjee/ms_cl0152.pd

Supersoft X-rays reveal a classical nova in the M 31 globular cluster Bol 126

[Abridged] Classical novae (CNe) represent the main class of supersoft X-ray sources (SSSs) in the central region of our neighbouring galaxy M 31. Only three confirmed novae and three SSSs have been discovered in globular clusters (GCs) of any galaxy so far, of which one nova and two SSSs (including the nova) were found in M 31 GCs. To study the SSS state of CNe we carried out a high-cadence X-ray monitoring of the M 31 central area with XMM-Newton and Chandra. We analysed X-ray and optical data of a new transient X-ray source in the M 31 GC Bol 126, discovered serendipitously in Swift observations. Our optical data set was based on regular M 31 monitoring programmes from five different small telescopes. Additionally, we made use of Pan-STARRS 1 data obtained during the PAndromeda survey. Our observations reveal that the X-ray source in Bol 126 is the third SSS in an M 31 GC and can be confirmed as the second CN in the M 31 GC system. This nova is named M31N 2010-10f. Its properties in the X-ray and optical regimes agree with a massive white dwarf (M_WD >~ 1.3 M_sun) in the binary system. Incorporating the data on previously found (suspected) novae in M 31 GCs we used our high-cadence X-ray monitoring observations to estimate a tentative nova rate in the M 31 GC system of 0.05 /yr/GC. An optical estimate, based on the recent 10.5-year WeCAPP survey, gives a lower nova rate, which is compatible with the X-ray rate on the 95% confidence level. There is growing evidence that the nova rate in GCs is higher than expected from primordial binary formation and under conditions as in the field. Dynamical binary formation and/or additional accretion from the intracluster medium are possible scenarios for an increased nova rate, but observational confirmation for this enhancement has been absent, so far. Regular X-ray monitoring observations of M 31 provide a promising strategy to find these novae.Comment: 14 pages, 6 figures, 3 tables; accepted by Astronomy and Astrophysic

HST/Acs Weak-Lensing and Chandra X-Ray Studies of the High-Redshift Cluster MS 1054-0321

We present Hubble Space Telescope/Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) weak-lensing and Chandra X-ray analyses of MS 1054-0321 at z=0.83, the most distant and X-ray luminous cluster in the Einstein Extended Medium-Sensitivity Survey (EMSS). The high-resolution mass reconstruction through ACS weak-lensing reveals the complicated dark matter substructure in unprecedented detail, characterized by the three dominant mass clumps with the four or more minor satellite groups within the current ACS field. The direct comparison of the mass map with the Chandra X-ray image shows that the eastern weak-lensing substructure is not present in the X-ray image and, more interestingly, the two X-ray peaks are displaced away from the hypothesized merging direction with respect to the corresponding central and western mass clumps, possibly because of ram pressure. In addition, as observed in our previous weak-lensing study of another high-redshift cluster CL 0152-1357 at z=0.84, the two dark matter clumps of MS 1054-0321 seem to be offset from the galaxy counterparts. We examine the significance of these offsets and discuss a possible scenario, wherein the dark matter clumps might be moving ahead of the cluster galaxies. The non-parametric weak-lensing mass modeling gives a projected mass of M(r<1 Mpc)=(1.02+-0.15)x 10^{15} solar mass, where the uncertainty reflects both the statistical error and the cosmic shear effects. Our temperature measurement of T=8.9_{-0.8}^{+1.0} keV utilizing the newest available low-energy quantum efficiency degradation prescription for the Chandra instrument, together with the isothermal beta description of the cluster (r_c=16"+-15" and beta=0.78+-0.08), yields a projected mass of M(r<1 Mpc)=(1.2+-0.2) x 10^{15} solar mass, consistent with the weak-lensing result.Comment: Accepted for publication in apj. Full-resolution version can be downloaded from http://acs.pha.jhu.edu/~mkjee/ms1054.pd

Probing the Universe with Weak Lensing

Gravitational lenses can provide crucial information on the geometry of the Universe, on the cosmological scenario of formation of its structures as well as on the history of its components with look-back time. In this review, I focus on the most recent results obtained during the last five years from the analysis of the weak lensing regime. The interest of weak lensing as a probe of dark matter and the for study of the coupling between light and mass on scales of clusters of galaxies, large scale structures and galaxies is discussed first. Then I present the impact of weak lensing for the study of distant galaxies and of the population of lensed sources as function of redshift. Finally, I discuss the potential interest of weak lensing to constrain the cosmological parameters, either from pure geometrical effects observed in peculiar lenses, or from the coupling of weak lensing with the CMB.Comment: To appear Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysiscs Vol. 37. Latex and psfig.sty. Version without figure, 54 pages, 73Kb. Complete version including 13 figures (60 pages) available on ftp.iap.fr anonymous account in /pub/from_users/mellier/AnnualReview ; file ARAAmellier.ps.gz 1.6 M