245 research outputs found
Measuring the Lyapunov exponent using quantum mechanics
We study the time evolution of two wave packets prepared at the same initial
state, but evolving under slightly different Hamiltonians. For chaotic systems,
we determine the circumstances that lead to an exponential decay with time of
the wave packet overlap function. We show that for sufficiently weak
perturbations, the exponential decay follows a Fermi golden rule, while by
making the difference between the two Hamiltonians larger, the characteristic
exponential decay time becomes the Lyapunov exponent of the classical system.
We illustrate our theoretical findings by investigating numerically the overlap
decay function of a two-dimensional dynamical system.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figure
A Solvable Regime of Disorder and Interactions in Ballistic Nanostructures, Part I: Consequences for Coulomb Blockade
We provide a framework for analyzing the problem of interacting electrons in
a ballistic quantum dot with chaotic boundary conditions within an energy
(the Thouless energy) of the Fermi energy. Within this window we show that the
interactions can be characterized by Landau Fermi liquid parameters. When ,
the dimensionless conductance of the dot, is large, we find that the disordered
interacting problem can be solved in a saddle-point approximation which becomes
exact as (as in a large-N theory). The infinite theory shows a
transition to a strong-coupling phase characterized by the same order parameter
as in the Pomeranchuk transition in clean systems (a spontaneous
interaction-induced Fermi surface distortion), but smeared and pinned by
disorder. At finite , the two phases and critical point evolve into three
regimes in the plane -- weak- and strong-coupling regimes separated
by crossover lines from a quantum-critical regime controlled by the quantum
critical point. In the strong-coupling and quantum-critical regions, the
quasiparticle acquires a width of the same order as the level spacing
within a few 's of the Fermi energy due to coupling to collective
excitations. In the strong coupling regime if is odd, the dot will (if
isolated) cross over from the orthogonal to unitary ensemble for an
exponentially small external flux, or will (if strongly coupled to leads) break
time-reversal symmetry spontaneously.Comment: 33 pages, 14 figures. Very minor changes. We have clarified that we
are treating charge-channel instabilities in spinful systems, leaving
spin-channel instabilities for future work. No substantive results are
change
Cholera Toxin Regulates a Signaling Pathway Critical for the Expansion of Neural Stem Cell Cultures from the Fetal and Adult Rodent Brains
Background: New mechanisms that regulate neural stem cell (NSC) expansion will contribute to improved assay systems and the emerging regenerative approach that targets endogenous stem cells. Expanding knowledge on the control of stem cell self renewal will also lead to new approaches for targeting the stem cell population of cancers. Methodology/Principal Findings: Here we show that Cholera toxin regulates two recently characterized NSC markers, the Tie2 receptor and the transcription factor Hes3, and promotes the expansion of NSCs in culture. Cholera toxin increases immunoreactivity for the Tie2 receptor and rapidly induces the nuclear localization of Hes3. This is followed by powerful cultured NSC expansion and induction of proliferation both in the presence and absence of mitogen. Conclusions/Significance: Our data suggest a new cell biological mechanism that regulates the self renewal and differentiation properties of stem cells, providing a new logic to manipulate NSCs in the context of regenerative disease and cancer
Universal scaling in the branching of the Tree of Life
Understanding the patterns and processes of diversification of life in the
planet is a key challenge of science. The Tree of Life represents such
diversification processes through the evolutionary relationships among the
different taxa, and can be extended down to intra-specific relationships. Here
we examine the topological properties of a large set of interspecific and
intraspecific phylogenies and show that the branching patterns follow
allometric rules conserved across the different levels in the Tree of Life, all
significantly departing from those expected from the standard null models. The
finding of non-random universal patterns of phylogenetic differentiation
suggests that similar evolutionary forces drive diversification across the
broad range of scales, from macro-evolutionary to micro-evolutionary processes,
shaping the diversity of life on the planet.Comment: 6 pages + 19 of Supporting Informatio
Stable interference of EWS–FLI1 in an Ewing sarcoma cell line impairs IGF-1/IGF-1R signalling and reveals TOPK as a new target
BACKGROUND: Ewing sarcoma is a paradigm of solid tumour -bearing chromosomal translocations resulting in fusion proteins that act as deregulated transcription factors. Ewing sarcoma translocations fuse the EWS gene with an ETS transcription factor, mainly FLI1. Most of the EWS–FLI1 target genes still remain unknown and many have been identified in heterologous model systems
Consensus-Phenotype Integration of Transcriptomic and Metabolomic Data Implies a Role for Metabolism in the Chemosensitivity of Tumour Cells
Using transcriptomic and metabolomic measurements from the NCI60 cell line panel,
together with a novel approach to integration of molecular profile data, we show
that the biochemical pathways associated with tumour cell chemosensitivity to
platinum-based drugs are highly coincident, i.e. they describe a consensus
phenotype. Direct integration of metabolome and transcriptome data at the point
of pathway analysis improved the detection of consensus pathways by 76%,
and revealed associations between platinum sensitivity and several metabolic
pathways that were not visible from transcriptome analysis alone. These pathways
included the TCA cycle and pyruvate metabolism, lipoprotein uptake and
nucleotide synthesis by both salvage and de novo pathways. Extending the
approach across a wide panel of chemotherapeutics, we confirmed the specificity
of the metabolic pathway associations to platinum sensitivity. We conclude that
metabolic phenotyping could play a role in predicting response to platinum
chemotherapy and that consensus-phenotype integration of molecular profiling
data is a powerful and versatile tool for both biomarker discovery and for
exploring the complex relationships between biological pathways and drug
response
The "Statinth" wonder of the world: a panacea for all illnesses or a bubble about to burst
After the introduction of statins in the market as effective lipid lowering agents, they were shown to have effects other than lipid lowering. These actions were collectively referred to as 'pleiotropic actions of statins.' Pleiotropism of statins formed the basis for evaluating statins for several indications other than lipid lowering. Evidence both in favour and against is available for several of these indications. The current review attempts to critically summarise the available data for each of these indications
Phylogenetic Analysis of Pelecaniformes (Aves) Based on Osteological Data: Implications for Waterbird Phylogeny and Fossil Calibration Studies
) were also assessed. The antiquity of these taxa and their purported status as stem members of extant families makes them valuable for studies of higher-level avian diversification. (sister taxon to Phalacrocoracidae). These relationships are invariant when ‘backbone’ constraints based on recent avian phylogenies are imposed.Relationships of extant pelecaniforms inferred from morphology are more congruent with molecular phylogenies than previously assumed, though notable conflicts remain. The phylogenetic position of the Plotopteridae implies that wing-propelled diving evolved independently in plotopterids and penguins, representing a remarkable case of convergent evolution. Despite robust support for the placement of fossil taxa representing key calibration points, the successive outgroup relationships of several “stem fossil + crown family” clades are variable and poorly supported across recent studies of avian phylogeny. Thus, the impact these fossils have on inferred patterns of temporal diversification depends heavily on the resolution of deep nodes in avian phylogeny
- …