Right atrial area and right ventricular outflow tract akinetic length predict sustained tachyarrhythmia in repaired tetralogy of Fallot

AIMS: Repaired tetralogy of Fallot (rtoF) patients are at risk of atrial or ventricular tachyarrhythmia and sudden cardiac death. Risk stratification for arrhythmia remains difficult. We investigated whether cardiac anatomy and function predict arrhythmia. METHODS: One-hundred-and-fifty-four adults with rtoF, median age 30.8 (21.9–40.2) years, were studied with a standardised protocol including cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) and prospectively followed up over median 5.6 (4.6–7.0) years for the pre-specified endpoints of new-onset atrial or ventricular tachyarrhythmia (sustained ventricular tachycardia/ventricular fibrillation). RESULTS: Atrial tachyarrhythmia (n = 11) was predicted by maximal right atrial area indexed to body surface area (RAAi) on four-chamber cine-CMR (Hazard ratio 1.17, 95% Confidence Interval 1.07–1.28 per cm(2)/m(2); p = 0.0005, survival receiver operating curve; ROC analysis, area under curve; AUC 0.74 [0.66–0.81]; cut-off value 16 cm(2)/m(2)). Atrial arrhythmia-free survival was reduced in patients with RAAi ≥ 16 cm(2)/m(2) (logrank p = 0.0001). Right ventricular (RV) restrictive physiology on echocardiography (n = 38) related to higher RAAi (p = 0.02) and had similar RV dilatation compared with remaining patients. Ventricular arrhythmia (n = 9) was predicted by CMR RV outflow tract (RVOT) akinetic area length (Hazard ratio 1.05, 95% Confidence Interval 1.01–1.09 per mm; p = 0.003, survival ROC analysis, AUC 0.77 [0.83–0.61]; cut-off value 30 mm) and decreased RV ejection fraction (Hazard ratio 0.93, 95% Confidence Interval 0.87–0.99 per %; p = 0.03). Ventricular arrhythmia-free survival was reduced in patients with RVOT akinetic region length > 30 mm (logrank p = 0.02). CONCLUSION: RAAi predicts atrial arrhythmia and RVOT akinetic region length predicts ventricular arrhythmia in late follow-up of rtoF. These are simple, feasible measurements for inclusion in serial surveillance and risk stratification of rtoF patients

Cavity Induced Interfacing of Atoms and Light

This chapter introduces cavity-based light-matter quantum interfaces, with a single atom or ion in strong coupling to a high-finesse optical cavity. We discuss the deterministic generation of indistinguishable single photons from these systems; the atom-photon entanglement intractably linked to this process; and the information encoding using spatio-temporal modes within these photons. Furthermore, we show how to establish a time-reversal of the aforementioned emission process to use a coupled atom-cavity system as a quantum memory. Along the line, we also discuss the performance and characterisation of cavity photons in elementary linear-optics arrangements with single beam splitters for quantum-homodyne measurements.Comment: to appear as a book chapter in a compilation "Engineering the Atom-Photon Interaction" published by Springer in 2015, edited by A. Predojevic and M. W. Mitchel

Vascular responses of the extremities to transdermal application of vasoactive agents in Caucasian and African descent individuals

This is an accepted manuscript of an article published by Springer in European Journal of Applied Physiology on 04/04/2015, available online: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-015-3164-2 The accepted version of the publication may differ from the final published version.© 2015, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg. Purpose: Individuals of African descent (AFD) are more susceptible to non-freezing cold injury than Caucasians (CAU) which may be due, in part, to differences in the control of skin blood flow. We investigated the skin blood flow responses to transdermal application of vasoactive agents. Methods: Twenty-four young males (12 CAU and 12 AFD) undertook three tests in which iontophoresis was used to apply acetylcholine (ACh 1 w/v %), sodium nitroprusside (SNP 0.01 w/v %) and noradrenaline (NA 0.5 mM) to the skin. The skin sites tested were: volar forearm, non-glabrous finger and toe, and glabrous finger (pad) and toe (pad). Results: In response to SNP on the forearm, AFD had less vasodilatation for a given current application than CAU (P = 0.027–0.004). ACh evoked less vasodilatation in AFD for a given application current in the non-glabrous finger and toe compared with CAU (P = 0.043–0.014) with a lower maximum vasodilatation in the non-glabrous finger (median [interquartile], AFD n = 11, 41[234] %, CAU n = 12, 351[451] %, P = 0.011) and non-glabrous toe (median [interquartile], AFD n = 9, 116[318] %, CAU n = 12, 484[720] %, P = 0.018). ACh and SNP did not elicit vasodilatation in the glabrous skin sites of either group. There were no ethnic differences in response to NA. Conclusion: AFD have an attenuated endothelium-dependent vasodilatation in non-glabrous sites of the fingers and toes compared with CAU. This may contribute to lower skin temperature following cold exposure and the increased risk of cold injuries experienced by AFD.Published versio

Gravitational physics with antimatter

The production of low-energy antimatter provides unique opportunities to search for new physics in an unexplored regime. Testing gravitational interactions with antimatter is one such opportunity. Here a scenario based on Lorentz and CPT violation in the Standard- Model Extension is considered in which anomalous gravitational effects in antimatter could arise.Comment: 5 pages, presented at the International Conference on Exotic Atoms (EXA 2008) and the 9th International Conference on Low Energy Antiproton Physics (LEAP 2008), Vienna, Austria, September 200

Role of mitochondrial raft-like microdomains in the regulation of cell apoptosis

Lipid rafts are envisaged as lateral assemblies of specific lipids and proteins that dissociate and associate rapidly and form functional clusters in cell membranes. These structural platforms are not confined to the plasma membrane; indeed lipid microdomains are similarly formed at subcellular organelles, which include endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi and mitochondria, named raft-like microdomains. In addition, some components of raft-like microdomains are present within ER-mitochondria associated membranes. This review is focused on the role of mitochondrial raft-like microdomains in the regulation of cell apoptosis, since these microdomains may represent preferential sites where key reactions take place, regulating mitochondria hyperpolarization, fission-associated changes, megapore formation and release of apoptogenic factors. These structural platforms appear to modulate cytoplasmic pathways switching cell fate towards cell survival or death. Main insights on this issue derive from some pathological conditions in which alterations of microdomains structure or function can lead to severe alterations of cell activity and life span. In the light of the role played by raft-like microdomains to integrate apoptotic signals and in regulating mitochondrial dynamics, it is conceivable that these membrane structures may play a role in the mitochondrial alterations observed in some of the most common human neurodegenerative diseases, such as Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Huntington's chorea and prion-related diseases. These findings introduce an additional task for identifying new molecular target(s) of pharmacological agents in these pathologies

Discovery of VHE Gamma Radiation from IC443 with the MAGIC Telescope

We report the detection of a new source of very high energy (VHE, E_gamma >= 100GeV) gamma-ray emission located close to the Galactic Plane, MAGIC J0616+225, which is spatially coincident with SNR IC443. The observations were carried out with the MAGIC telescope in the periods December 2005 - January 2006 and December 2006 - January 2007. Here we present results from this source, leading to a VHE gamma-ray signal with a statistical significance of 5.7 sigma in the 2006/7 data and a measured differential gamma-ray flux consistent with a power law, described as dN_gamma/(dA dt dE) = (1.0 +/- 0.2)*10^(-11)(E/0.4 TeV)^(-3.1 +/- 0.3) cm^(-2)s^(-1)TeV^(-1). We briefly discuss the observational technique used and the procedure implemented for the data analysis. The results are put in the perspective of the multiwavelength emission and the molecular environment found in the region of IC443.Comment: Accepted by ApJ Letter

Three-dimensional late gadolinium enhancement cardiovascular magnetic resonance predicts inducibility of ventricular tachycardia in adults with repaired tetralogy of Fallot

Background - Adults with repaired tetralogy of Fallot (rTOF) die prematurely from ventricular tachycardia (VT) and sudden cardiac death. Inducible VT predicts mortality. Ventricular scar, the key substrate for VT, can be non-invasively defined with late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) but whether this relates to inducible VT is unknown. Methods - Sixty-nine consecutive rTOF patients (43 male, mean 40{plus minus}15 years) clinically scheduled for invasive programmed VT-stimulation were prospectively recruited for prior 3D LGE CMR. Ventricular LGE was segmented and merged with reconstructed cardiac chambers and LGE volume measured. Results - VT was induced in 22(31%) patients. Univariable predictors of inducible VT included increased RV LGE (OR 1.15;p=0.001 per cm3), increased non-apical vent LV LGE (OR 1.09;p=0.008 per cm3), older age (OR 1.6;p=0.01 per decile), QRS duration ≥180ms (OR 3.5;p=0.02), history of non-sustained VT (OR 3.5; p=0.02) and previous clinical sustained VT (OR 12.8;p=0.003); only prior sustained VT (OR 8.02;p=0.02) remained independent in bivariable analyses after controlling for RV LGE volume (OR 1.14;p=0.003). An RV LGE volume of 25cm3 had 72% sensitivity and 81% specificity for predicting inducible VT (AUC 0.81;p10cm3 was 100% sensitive and >36cm3 was 100% specific for predicting inducible VT. Conclusions - 3D LGE CMR-defined scar burden is independently associated with inducible VT and may help refine patient selection for programmed VT-stimulation when applied to an at least intermediate clinical risk cohort

Measurement of the Bottom-Strange Meson Mixing Phase in the Full CDF Data Set

We report a measurement of the bottom-strange meson mixing phase \beta_s using the time evolution of B0_s -> J/\psi (->\mu+\mu-) \phi (-> K+ K-) decays in which the quark-flavor content of the bottom-strange meson is identified at production. This measurement uses the full data set of proton-antiproton collisions at sqrt(s)= 1.96 TeV collected by the Collider Detector experiment at the Fermilab Tevatron, corresponding to 9.6 fb-1 of integrated luminosity. We report confidence regions in the two-dimensional space of \beta_s and the B0_s decay-width difference \Delta\Gamma_s, and measure \beta_s in [-\pi/2, -1.51] U [-0.06, 0.30] U [1.26, \pi/2] at the 68% confidence level, in agreement with the standard model expectation. Assuming the standard model value of \beta_s, we also determine \Delta\Gamma_s = 0.068 +- 0.026 (stat) +- 0.009 (syst) ps-1 and the mean B0_s lifetime, \tau_s = 1.528 +- 0.019 (stat) +- 0.009 (syst) ps, which are consistent and competitive with determinations by other experiments.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figures, Phys. Rev. Lett 109, 171802 (2012

Perceived economic self‑sufficiency: a countryand generation‑comparative approach

We thank Michael Camasso and Radha Jagannathan as well as Asimina Christoforou, Gerbert Kraaykamp, Fay Makantasi, Tiziana Nazio, Kyriakos Pierrakakis, Jacqueline O’Reilly and Jan van Deth for their contribution to the CUPESSE project (Seventh Framework Programme; Grant Agreement No. 61325). CUPESSE received additional funding from the Mannheim Centre for European Social Research (MZES) and the Field of Focus 4 “Self-Regulation and Regulation: Individuals and Organisations” at Heidelberg University. We further acknowledge helpful comments on this article by two anonymous reviewers. Julian Rossello provided valuable research assistance.Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (https ://doi.org/10.1057/ s4130 4-018-0186-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.Existing datasets provided by statistical agencies (e.g. Eurostat) show that the economic and financial crisis that unfolded in 2008 significantly impacted the lives and livelihoods of young people across Europe. Taking these official statistics as a starting point, the collaborative research project “Cultural Pathways to Economic Self-Sufficiency and Entrepreneurship in Europe” (CUPESSE) generated new survey data on the economic and social situation of young Europeans (18–35 years). The CUPESSE dataset allows for country-comparative assessments of young people’s perceptions about their socio-economic situation. Furthermore, the dataset includes a variety of indicators examining the socio-economic situation of both young adults and their parents. In this data article, we introduce the CUPESSE dataset to political and social scientists in an attempt to spark a debate on the measurements, patterns and mechanisms of intergenerational transmission of economic self-sufficiency as well as its political implications.CUPESSE project (Seventh Framework Programme; Grant Agreement No. 61325

Pericardial Patch Angioplasty Heals via an Ephrin-B2 and CD34 Positive Cell Mediated Mechanism

Pericardial patches are commonly used in vascular surgery to close arteriotomies. The mechanism of early healing after patch implantation is still not well defined. We used a rat aortic patch model to assess pericardial patch healing and examined Ephrin-B2, a marker of arterial identity, expression within the post-implantation patch. We also determined whether endothelial progenitor cells (EPC) are associated with early patch healing in the arterial environment.Wistar rats (200-250 grams) underwent infrarenal aortic arteriotomy and then closure via bovine or porcine pericardial patch angioplasty. Control groups included subcutaneously implanted patches. Patches were harvested at 0-30 days and analyzed by histology, immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence and Western blot as well as quantitative PCR.Prior to implantation, pericardial patches are largely composed of collagen and are acellular. Following arterial implantation, increasing numbers of CD68-positive cells as well as Ephrin-B2 and CD34 dual-positive cells are found within both bovine and porcine pericardial patches, whereas the infiltrating cells are negative for vWF and α-actin. Porcine patches have a luminal monolayer of cells at day 7, compared to bovine patches that have fewer luminal cells. Subcutaneously implanted patches do not attract Ephrin-B2/CD34-positive cells. By day 30, both bovine and porcine pericardial patches develop a neointima that contains Ephrin-B2, CD34, and VEGFR2-positive cells.Both CD68-positive and Ephrin-B2 and CD34 dual-positive cells infiltrate the pericardial patch early after implantation. Arteriotomy closure via pericardial patch angioplasty shows patch adaptation to the arterial environment that may involve a foreign body response as well as localization of EPC. Arterial remodeling of pericardial patches support endothelialization and may represent a paradigm of healing of scaffolds used for tissue engineering