317 research outputs found
The Post-Pericenter Evolution of the Galactic Center Source G2
In early 2014 the fast-moving near-infrared source G2 reached its closest
approach to the supermassive black hole Sgr A* in the Galactic Center. We
report on the evolution of the ionized gaseous component and the dusty
component of G2 immediately after this event, revealed by new observations
obtained in 2015 and 2016 with the SINFONI integral field spectrograph and the
NACO imager at the ESO VLT. The spatially resolved dynamics of the Br
line emission can be accounted for by the ballistic motion and tidal shearing
of a test-particle cloud that has followed a highly eccentric Keplerian orbit
around the black hole for the last 12 years. The non-detection of a drag force
or any strong hydrodynamic interaction with the hot gas in the inner accretion
zone limits the ambient density to less than a few 10 cm at the
distance of closest approach (1500 ), assuming G2 is a spherical cloud
moving through a stationary and homogeneous atmosphere. The dust continuum
emission is unresolved in L'-band, but stays consistent with the location of
the Br emission. The total luminosity of the Br and L' emission
has remained constant to within the measurement uncertainty. The nature and
origin of G2 are likely related to that of the precursor source G1, since their
orbital evolution is similar, though not identical. Both object are also likely
related to a trailing tail structure, which is continuously connected to G2
over a large range in position and radial velocity.Comment: 17 pages, 12 figures; accepted for publication in Ap
Optical Distortion in the NACO Imager
In this research note, we present a set of distortion solutions that may be
used to correct geometric optical distortion in images taken with the S13
camera of the NACO adaptive optics imager.Comment: published in the RNAA
Sgr A* near-infrared flares from reconnection events in a magnetically arrested disc
Large-amplitude Sgr A* near-infrared flares result from energy injection into
electrons near the black hole event horizon. Astrometry data show continuous
rotation of the emission region during bright flares, and corresponding
rotation of the linear polarization angle. One broad class of physical flare
models invokes magnetic reconnection. Here we show that such a scenario can
arise in a general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulation of a
magnetically arrested disc. Saturation of magnetic flux triggers eruption
events, where magnetically dominated plasma is expelled from near the horizon
and forms a rotating, spiral structure. Dissipation occurs via reconnection at
the interface of the magnetically dominated plasma and surrounding fluid. This
dissipation is associated with large increases in near-infrared emission in
models of Sgr A*, with durations and amplitudes consistent with the observed
flares. Such events occur at roughly the timescale to re-accumulate the
magnetic flux from the inner accretion disc, 10h for Sgr A*. We study
near-infrared observables from one sample event to show that the emission
morphology tracks the boundary of the magnetically dominated region. As the
region rotates around the black hole, the near-infrared centroid and linear
polarization angle both undergo continuous rotation, similar to the behavior
seen in Sgr A* flares.Comment: revised version, MNRAS, in pres
Multiwavelength Variability of Sagittarius A* in 2019 July
We report timing analysis of near-infrared (NIR), X-ray, and sub-millimeter
(submm) data during a three-day coordinated campaign observing Sagittarius A*.
Data were collected at 4.5 micron with the Spitzer Space Telescope, 2-8 keV
with the Chandra X-ray Observatory, 3-70 keV with NuSTAR, 340 GHz with ALMA,
and at 2.2 micron with the GRAVITY instrument on the Very Large Telescope
Interferometer. Two dates show moderate variability with no significant lags
between the submm and the infrared at 99% confidence. July 18 captured a
moderately bright NIR flare (F_K ~ 15 mJy) simultaneous with an X-ray flare (F
~ 0.1 cts/s) that most likely preceded bright submm flux (F ~ 5.5 Jy) by about
+34 (+14 -33) minutes at 99% confidence. The uncertainty in this lag is
dominated by the fact that we did not observe the peak of the submm emission. A
synchrotron source cooled through adiabatic expansion can describe a rise in
the submm once the synchrotron-self-Compton NIR and X-ray peaks have faded.
This model predicts high GHz and THz fluxes at the time of the NIR/X-ray peak
and electron densities well above those implied from average accretion rates
for Sgr A*. However, the higher electron density postulated in this scenario
would be in agreement with the idea that 2019 was an extraordinary epoch with a
heightened accretion rate. Since the NIR and X-ray peaks can also be fit by a
non-thermal synchrotron source with lower electron densities, we cannot rule
out an unrelated chance coincidence of this bright submm flare with the
NIR/X-ray emission.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journa
Replication and Virus-Induced Transcriptome of HAdV-5 in Normal Host Cells versus Cancer Cells - Differences of Relevance for Adenoviral Oncolysis
Adenoviruses (Ads), especially HAdV-5, have been genetically equipped with tumor-restricted replication potential to enable applications in oncolytic cancer therapy. Such oncolytic adenoviruses have been well tolerated in cancer patients, but their anti-tumor efficacy needs to be enhanced. In this regard, it should be considered that cancer cells, dependent on their tissue of origin, can differ substantially from the normal host cells to which Ads are adapted by complex virus-host interactions. Consequently, viral replication efficiency, a key determinant of oncolytic activity, might be suboptimal in cancer cells. Therefore, we have analyzed both the replication kinetics of HAdV-5 and the virus-induced transcriptome in human bronchial epithelial cells (HBEC) in comparison to cancer cells. This is the first report on genome-wide expression profiling of Ads in their native host cells. We found that E1A expression and onset of viral genome replication are most rapid in HBEC and considerably delayed in melanoma cells. In squamous cell lung carcinoma cells, we observed intermediate HAdV-5 replication kinetics. Infectious particle production, viral spread and lytic activity of HAdV-5 were attenuated in melanoma cells versus HBEC. Expression profiling at the onset of viral genome replication revealed that HAdV-5 induced the strongest changes in the cellular transcriptome in HBEC, followed by lung cancer and melanoma cells. We identified prominent regulation of genes involved in cell cycle and DNA metabolism, replication and packaging in HBEC, which is in accord with the necessity to induce S phase for viral replication. Strikingly, in melanoma cells HAdV-5 triggered opposing regulation of said genes and, in contrast to lung cancer cells, no weak S phase induction was detected when using the E2F promoter as reporter. Our results provide a rationale for improving oncolytic adenoviruses either by adaptation of viral infection to target tumor cells or by modulating tumor cell functions to better support viral replication
First direct detection of an exoplanet by optical interferometry; Astrometry and K-band spectroscopy of HR8799 e
To date, infrared interferometry at best achieved contrast ratios of a few
times on bright targets. GRAVITY, with its dual-field mode, is now
capable of high contrast observations, enabling the direct observation of
exoplanets. We demonstrate the technique on HR8799, a young planetary system
composed of four known giant exoplanets. We used the GRAVITY fringe tracker to
lock the fringes on the central star, and integrated off-axis on the HR8799e
planet situated at 390 mas from the star. Data reduction included
post-processing to remove the flux leaking from the central star and to extract
the coherent flux of the planet. The inferred K band spectrum of the planet has
a spectral resolution of 500. We also derive the astrometric position of the
planet relative to the star with a precision on the order of 100as. The
GRAVITY astrometric measurement disfavors perfectly coplanar stable orbital
solutions. A small adjustment of a few degrees to the orbital inclination of HR
8799 e can resolve the tension, implying that the orbits are close to, but not
strictly coplanar. The spectrum, with a signal-to-noise ratio of
per spectral channel, is compatible with a late-type L brown dwarf. Using
Exo-REM synthetic spectra, we derive a temperature of \,K and a
surface gravity of cm/s. This corresponds to a radius
of and a mass of , which is an independent confirmation of mass estimates from evolutionary
models. Our results demonstrate the power of interferometry for the direct
detection and spectroscopic study of exoplanets at close angular separations
from their stars.Comment: published in A&
Identification of differentially expressed subnetworks based on multivariate ANOVA
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Since high-throughput protein-protein interaction (PPI) data has recently become available for humans, there has been a growing interest in combining PPI data with other genome-wide data. In particular, the identification of phenotype-related PPI subnetworks using gene expression data has been of great concern. Successful integration for the identification of significant subnetworks requires the use of a search algorithm with a proper scoring method. Here we propose a multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA)-based scoring method with a greedy search for identifying differentially expressed PPI subnetworks.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Given the MANOVA-based scoring method, we performed a greedy search to identify the subnetworks with the maximum scores in the PPI network. Our approach was successfully applied to human microarray datasets. Each identified subnetwork was annotated with the Gene Ontology (GO) term, resulting in the phenotype-related functional pathway or complex. We also compared these results with those of other scoring methods such as <it>t </it>statistic- and mutual information-based scoring methods. The MANOVA-based method produced subnetworks with a larger number of proteins than the other methods. Furthermore, the subnetworks identified by the MANOVA-based method tended to consist of highly correlated proteins.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This article proposes a MANOVA-based scoring method to combine PPI data with expression data using a greedy search. This method is recommended for the highly sensitive detection of large subnetworks.</p
Biosynthesis of Unusual Moth Pheromone Components Involves Two Different Pathways in the Navel Orangeworm, Amyelois transitella
The sex pheromone of the navel orangeworm, Amyelois transitella (Walker) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), consists of two different types of components, one type including (11Z,13Z)-11,13-hexadecadienal (11Z,13Z-16:Ald) with a terminal functional group containing oxygen, similar to the majority of moth pheromones reported, and another type including the unusual long-chain pentaenes, (3Z,6Z,9Z,12Z,15Z)-3,6,9,12,15-tricosapentaene (3Z,6Z,9Z,12Z,15Z-23:H) and (3Z,6Z,9Z,12Z,15Z)- 3,6,9,12,15-pentacosapentaene (3Z,6Z,9Z,12Z,15Z-25:H). After decapitation of females, the titer of 11Z,13Z-16:Ald in the pheromone gland decreased significantly, whereas the titer of the pentaenes remained unchanged. Injection of a pheromone biosynthesis activating peptide (PBAN) into the abdomens of decapitated females restored the titer of 11Z,13Z-16:Ald and even increased it above that in intact females, whereas the titer of the pentaenes in the pheromone gland was not affected by PBAN injection. In addition to common fatty acids, two likely precursors of 11Z,13Z-16:Ald, i.e., (Z)-11-hexadecenoic and (11Z,13Z)-11,13-hexadecadienoic acid, as well as traces of (Z)-6-hexadecenoic acid, were found in gland extracts. In addition, pheromone gland lipids contained (5Z,8Z,11Z,14Z,17Z)-5,8,11,14,17-icosapentaenoic acid, which also was found in extracts of the rest of the abdomen. Deuterium-labeled fatty acids, (16,16,16-D3)-hexadecanoic acid and (Z)-[13,13,14,14,15,15,16,16,16-D9]-11-hexadecenoic acid, were incorporated into 11Z,13Z-16:Ald after topical application to the sex pheromone gland coupled with abdominal injection of PBAN. Deuterium label was incorporated into the C23 and C25 pentaenes after injection of (9Z,12Z,15Z)- [17,17,18,18,18-D5]-9,12,15-octadecatrienoic acid into 1–2 d old female pupae. These labeling results, in conjunction with the composition of fatty acid intermediates found in pheromone gland extracts, support different pathways leading to the two pheromone components. 11Z,13Z-16:Ald is probably produced in the pheromone gland by Δ11 desaturation of palmitic acid to 11Z-16:Acid followed by a second desaturation to form 11Z,13Z-16:Acid and subsequent reduction and oxidation. The production of 3Z,6Z,9Z,12Z,15Z-23:H and 3Z,6Z,9Z,12Z,15Z-25:H may take place outside the pheromone gland, and appears to start from linolenic acid, which is elongated and desaturated to form (5Z,8Z,11Z,14Z,17Z)-5,8,11,14,17-icosapentaenoic acid, followed by two or three further elongation steps and finally reductive decarboxylation
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