265 research outputs found
Does Stellar Feedback Create HI Holes? An HST/VLA Study of Holmberg II
We use deep HST/ACS F555W and F814W photometry of resolved stars in the M81
Group dwarf irregular galaxy Ho II to study the hypothesis that the holes
identified in the neutral ISM (HI) are created by stellar feedback. From the
deep photometry, we construct color-magnitude diagrams (CMDs) and measure the
star formation histories (SFHs) for stars contained in HI holes from two
independent holes catalogs, as well as select control fields, i.e., similar
sized regions that span a range of HI column densities. Converting the recent
SFHs into stellar feedback energies, we find that enough energy has been
generated to have created all holes. However, the required energy is not always
produced over a time scale that is less than the estimated kinematic age of the
hole. The combination of the CMDs, recent SFHs, and locations of young stars
shows that the stellar populations inside HI holes are not coherent,
single-aged, stellar clusters, as previously suggested, but rather multi-age
populations distributed across each hole. From a comparison of the modeled and
observed integrated magnitudes, and the locations and energetics of stars
inside of HI holes, we propose a potential new model: a viable mechanism for
creating the observed HI holes in Ho II is stellar feedback from multiple
generations of SF spread out over tens or hundreds of Myr, and thus, the
concept of an age for an HI hole is intrinsically ambiguous. We further find
that \halpha and 24 micron emission, tracers of the most recent star formation,
do not correlate well with the positions of the HI holes. However, UV emission,
which traces star formation over roughly the last 100 Myr, shows a much better
correlation with the locations of the HI holes.Comment: Accepted for Publication in The Astrophysical Journal; 28 Pages, 31
Figures, a version of this paper with full resolution figures is available at
http://homepages.spa.umn.edu/~dweisz/ho_ii_weisz.pd
The M81 Group Dwarf Irregular Galaxy DDO 165. I. High Velocity Neutral Gas in a Post-Starburst System
We present new multi-configuration VLA HI spectral line observations of the
M81 group dIrr post-starburst galaxy DDO 165. The HI morphology is complex,
with multiple column density peaks surrounding a large region of very low HI
surface density that is offset from the center of the stellar distribution. The
bulk of the neutral gas is associated with the southern section of the galaxy;
a secondary peak in the north contains ~15% of the total HI mass. These
components appear to be kinematically distinct, suggesting that either tidal
processes or large-scale blowout have recently shaped the ISM of DDO 165. Using
spatially-resolved position-velocity maps, we find multiple localized
high-velocity gas features. Cross-correlating with radius-velocity analyses, we
identify eight shell/hole structures in the ISM with a range of sizes (~400-900
pc) and expansion velocities (~7-11 km/s). These structures are compared with
narrow- and broad-band imaging from KPNO and HST. Using the latter data, recent
works have shown that DDO 165's previous "burst" phase was extended temporally
(>1 Gyr). We thus interpret the high-velocity gas features, HI holes, and
kinematically distinct components of the galaxy in the context of the immediate
effects of "feedback" from recent star formation. In addition to creating HI
holes and shells, extended star formation events are capable of creating
localized high velocity motion of the surrounding interstellar material. A
companion paper connects the energetics from the HI and HST data.Comment: The Astrophysical Journal, in press. Full-resolution version
available on request from the first autho
Telomerase Maintains Telomere Structure in Normal Human Cells
AbstractIn normal human cells, telomeres shorten with successive rounds of cell division, and immortalization correlates with stabilization of telomere length. These observations suggest that human cancer cells achieve immortalization in large part through the illegitimate activation of telomerase expression. Here, we demonstrate that the rate-limiting telomerase catalytic subunit hTERT is expressed in cycling primary presenescent human fibroblasts, previously believed to lack hTERT expression and telomerase activity. Disruption of telomerase activity in normal human cells slows cell proliferation, restricts cell lifespan, and alters the maintenance of the 3′ single-stranded telomeric overhang without changing the rate of overall telomere shortening. Together, these observations support the view that telomerase and telomere structure are dynamically regulated in normal human cells and that telomere length alone is unlikely to trigger entry into replicative senescence
Complete genome sequence of Candidatus Ruthia magnifica
The hydrothermal vent clam Calyptogena magnifica (Bivalvia: Mollusca) is a member of the Vesicomyidae. Species within this family form symbioses with chemosynthetic Gammaproteobacteria. They exist in environments such as hydrothermal vents and cold seeps and have a rudimentary gut and feeding groove, indicating a large dependence on their endosymbionts for nutrition. The C. magnifica symbiont, Candidatus Ruthia magnifica, was the first intracellular sulfur-oxidizing endosymbiont to have its genome sequenced (Newton et al. 2007). Here we expand upon the original report and provide additional details complying with the emerging MIGS/MIMS standards. The complete genome exposed the genetic blueprint of the metabolic capabilities of the symbiont. Genes which were predicted to encode the proteins required for all the metabolic pathways typical of free-living chemoautotrophs were detected in the symbiont genome. These include major pathways including carbon fixation, sulfur oxidation, nitrogen assimilation, as well as amino acid and cofactor/vitamin biosynthesis. This genome sequence is invaluable in the study of these enigmatic associations and provides insights into the origin and evolution of autotrophic endosymbiosis
PIK3CA-associated developmental disorders exhibit distinct classes of mutations with variable expression and tissue distribution
Mosaicism is increasingly recognized as a cause of developmental disorders with the advent of next-generation sequencing (NGS). Mosaic mutations of PIK3CA have been associated with the widest spectrum of phenotypes associated with overgrowth and vascular malformations. We performed targeted NGS using 2 independent deep-coverage methods that utilize molecular inversion probes and amplicon sequencing in a cohort of 241 samples from 181 individuals with brain and/or body overgrowth. We identified PIK3CA mutations in 60 individuals. Several other individuals (n = 12) were identified separately to have mutations in PIK3CA by clinical targetedpanel testing (n = 6), whole-exome sequencing (n = 5), or Sanger sequencing (n = 1). Based on the clinical and molecular features, this cohort segregated into three distinct groups: (a) severe focal overgrowth due to low-level but highly activating (hotspot) mutations, (b) predominantly brain overgrowth and less severe somatic overgrowth due to less-activating mutations, and (c) intermediate phenotypes (capillary malformations with overgrowth) with intermediately activating mutations. Sixteen of 29 PIK3CA mutations were novel. We also identified constitutional PIK3CA mutations in 10 patients. Our molecular data, combined with review of the literature, show that PIK3CA-related overgrowth disorders comprise a discontinuous spectrum of disorders that correlate with the severity and distribution of mutations
Searching for Signatures of Cosmic String Wakes in 21cm Redshift Surveys using Minkowski Functionals
Minkowski Functionals are a powerful tool for analyzing large scale
structure, in particular if the distribution of matter is highly non-Gaussian,
as it is in models in which cosmic strings contribute to structure formation.
Here we apply Minkowski functionals to 21cm maps which arise if structure is
seeded by a scaling distribution of cosmic strings embeddded in background
fluctuations, and then test for the statistical significance of the cosmic
string signals using the Fisher combined probability test. We find that this
method allows for detection of cosmic strings with ,
which would be improvement over current limits by a factor of about 3.Comment: Matches published versio
The ACS Nearby Galaxy Survey Treasury II. Young Stars and their Relation to Halpha and UV Emission Timescales in the M81 Outer Disk
We have obtained resolved stellar photometry from Hubble Space Telescope
(HST) Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) observations of a field in the outer
disk of M81 as part of the ACS Nearby Galaxy Survey Treasury (ANGST). Motivated
by the recent discovery of extended UV (XUV) disks around many nearby spiral
galaxies, we use the observed stellar population to derive the recent star
formation histories of five ~0.5 kpc-sized regions within this field. These
regions were selected on the basis of their UV luminosity from GALEX and
include two HII regions, two regions which are UV-bright but Halpha-faint, and
one "control" region faint in both UV and Halpha. We estimate our effective SFR
detection limit at ~2 x 10^-4 Msun/yr, which is lower than that of GALEX for
regions of this size. As expected, the HII regions contain massive main
sequence stars (in the mass range 18-27 Msun, based on our best extinction
estimates), while similar massive main sequence stars are lacking in the
UV-bright/Halpha-faint regions. The observations are consistent with stellar
ages 16 Myr in the UV-bright/Halpha-faint
regions. All regions but the control have formed ~10^4 Msun of stars over the
past ~65 Myr. Thus, our results, for at least one small area in the outer disk
of M81, are consistent with an age difference being sufficient to explain the
observed discrepancy between star-forming regions detected in Halpha and those
detected exclusively in UV. However, our data cannot conclusively rule out
other explanations, such as a strongly truncated initial mass function (IMF).Comment: 18 pages, 12 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ, paper with
full resolution figures available:
http://www.nearbygalaxies.org/papers/M81_Halpha_uv.pd
Three-Dimensional Neurophenotyping of Adult Zebrafish Behavior
The use of adult zebrafish (Danio rerio) in neurobehavioral research is rapidly expanding. The present large-scale study applied the newest video-tracking and data-mining technologies to further examine zebrafish anxiety-like phenotypes. Here, we generated temporal and spatial three-dimensional (3D) reconstructions of zebrafish locomotion, globally assessed behavioral profiles evoked by several anxiogenic and anxiolytic manipulations, mapped individual endpoints to 3D reconstructions, and performed cluster analysis to reconfirm behavioral correlates of high- and low-anxiety states. The application of 3D swim path reconstructions consolidates behavioral data (while increasing data density) and provides a novel way to examine and represent zebrafish behavior. It also enables rapid optimization of video tracking settings to improve quantification of automated parameters, and suggests that spatiotemporal organization of zebrafish swimming activity can be affected by various experimental manipulations in a manner predicted by their anxiolytic or anxiogenic nature. Our approach markedly enhances the power of zebrafish behavioral analyses, providing innovative framework for high-throughput 3D phenotyping of adult zebrafish behavior
The Long-Baseline Neutrino Experiment: Exploring Fundamental Symmetries of the Universe
The preponderance of matter over antimatter in the early Universe, the
dynamics of the supernova bursts that produced the heavy elements necessary for
life and whether protons eventually decay --- these mysteries at the forefront
of particle physics and astrophysics are key to understanding the early
evolution of our Universe, its current state and its eventual fate. The
Long-Baseline Neutrino Experiment (LBNE) represents an extensively developed
plan for a world-class experiment dedicated to addressing these questions. LBNE
is conceived around three central components: (1) a new, high-intensity
neutrino source generated from a megawatt-class proton accelerator at Fermi
National Accelerator Laboratory, (2) a near neutrino detector just downstream
of the source, and (3) a massive liquid argon time-projection chamber deployed
as a far detector deep underground at the Sanford Underground Research
Facility. This facility, located at the site of the former Homestake Mine in
Lead, South Dakota, is approximately 1,300 km from the neutrino source at
Fermilab -- a distance (baseline) that delivers optimal sensitivity to neutrino
charge-parity symmetry violation and mass ordering effects. This ambitious yet
cost-effective design incorporates scalability and flexibility and can
accommodate a variety of upgrades and contributions. With its exceptional
combination of experimental configuration, technical capabilities, and
potential for transformative discoveries, LBNE promises to be a vital facility
for the field of particle physics worldwide, providing physicists from around
the globe with opportunities to collaborate in a twenty to thirty year program
of exciting science. In this document we provide a comprehensive overview of
LBNE's scientific objectives, its place in the landscape of neutrino physics
worldwide, the technologies it will incorporate and the capabilities it will
possess.Comment: Major update of previous version. This is the reference document for
LBNE science program and current status. Chapters 1, 3, and 9 provide a
comprehensive overview of LBNE's scientific objectives, its place in the
landscape of neutrino physics worldwide, the technologies it will incorporate
and the capabilities it will possess. 288 pages, 116 figure
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