29,656 research outputs found
Stochastic dynamics of adhesion clusters under shared constant force and with rebinding
Single receptor-ligand bonds have finite lifetimes, so that biological
systems can dynamically react to changes in their environment. In cell
adhesion, adhesion bonds usually act cooperatively in adhesion clusters.
Outside the cellular context, adhesion clusters can be probed quantitatively by
attaching receptors and ligands to opposing surfaces. Here we present a
detailed theoretical analysis of the stochastic dynamics of a cluster of
parallel bonds under shared constant loading and with rebinding. Analytical
solutions for the appropriate one-step master equation are presented for
special cases, while the general case is treated with exact stochastic
simulations. If the completely dissociated state is modeled as an absorbing
boundary, mean cluster lifetime is finite and can be calculated exactly. We
also present a detailed analysis of fluctuation effects and discuss various
approximations to the full stochastic description.Comment: Revtex, 29 pages, 23 postscript figures included (some with reduced
image quality
Superconducting phase transition in the Nambu - Jona-Lasinio model
The Nambu - Bogoliubov - de Gennes method is applied to the problem of
superconducting QCD. The effective quark-quark interaction is described within
the framework of the Nambu - Jona-Lasinio model. The details of the phase
diagram are given as a function of the strength of the quark-quark coupling
constant . It is find that there is no superconducting phase
transition when one uses the relation between the coupling constants
and of the Nambu - Jona-Lasinio model which follows from the
Fierz transformation. However, for other values of one can find a
rich phase structure containing both the chiral and the superconducting phase
transitions.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figure
Wavelet Features for Recognition of First Episode of Schizophrenia from MRI Brain Images
Machine learning methods are increasingly used in various fields of medicine, contributing to early diagnosis and better quality of care. These outputs are particularly desirable in case of neuropsychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia, due to the inherent potential for creating a new gold standard in the diagnosis and differentiation of particular disorders. This paper presents a scheme for automated classification from magnetic resonance images based on multiresolution representation in the wavelet domain. Implementation of the proposed algorithm, utilizing support vector machines classifier, is introduced and tested on a dataset containing 104 patients with first episode schizophrenia and healthy volunteers. Optimal parameters of different phases of the algorithm are sought and the quality of classification is estimated by robust cross validation techniques. Values of accuracy, sensitivity and specificity over 71% are achieved
Suitability of a CMV/EGFP cassette to monitor stable expression from human artificial chromosomes but not transient transfer in the cells forming viable clones
Human artificial chromosomes (HACs) were generated by transfer of telomerized PAC constructs containing alpha satellite DNA of various human chromosomes. To monitor which cells took up constructs and subsequently formed stable clones under blasticidin S (BS) selection, a CMV/EGFP expression cassette was inserted into a HAC construct based on chromosome 5 alpha satellite DNA (142 kb). Lipofection into HT1080 cells resulted in a small proportion of cells exhibiting bright green fluorescence on day 1. Areas containing such early green cells were marked, and plates monitored over 2 weeks. In only one out of 41 marked areas, a viable clone developed. In the remaining 40 areas, the green cells ceased division at 1-8 cells. In contrast, outside the marked areas, 16 stable clones formed which did not exhibit green fluorescence during the first cell divisions, but all cells of each became green around day 4 -6. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analysis of isolated clonal lines demonstrated low copy HAC formation without integration. We conclude that transient expression of an EGFP marker on HAC DNA is not a suitable means for the identification of the proportion of transfected cells which are capable of forming viable clones. One explanation could be that the high copy number required to consistently detect transient EGFP expression (Schindelhauer and Laner, 2002) impairs viability and clone formation. Copyright (C) 2004 S. Karger AG, Basel
Targeting of cytochrome b2 into the mitochondrial intermembrane space
Cytochrome b2 contains 2-fold targeting information: an amino-terminal signal for targeting to the mitochondrial matrix, followed by a second cleavable sorting signal that functions in directing the precursor into the mitochondrial intermembrane space. The role of the second sorting sequence was analyzed by replacing one, two or all of the three positively charged amino acid residues which are present at the amino-terminal side of the hydrophobic core by uncharged residues or an acidic residue. With a number of these mutant precursor proteins, processing to the mature form was reduced or completely abolished and at the same time targeting to the matrix space occurred. The accumulation in the matrix depended on a high level of intramitochondrial ATP. At low levels of matrix ATP, the mutant proteins were sorted into the intermembrane space like the wild-type precursors. The results: (i) suggest the existence of one or more matrix components that specifically recognize the second sorting signal and thereby trigger the translocation into the intermembrane space; (ii) indicate that the mutant signals have reduced ability to interact with the recognition component(s) and then embark on the default pathway into the matrix by interacting with mitochondrial hsp70 in conjunction with matrix ATP; (iii) strongly argue against a mechanism by which the hydrophobic segment of the sorting sequence stops translocation in the hydrophobic phase of the inner membrane
Experimental Generation and Observation of Intrinsic Localized Spin Wave Modes in an Antiferromagnet
By driving with a microwave pulse the lowest frequency antiferromagnetic
resonance of the quasi 1-D biaxial antiferromagnet (C_2 H_5 NH_3)_2 CuCl_4 into
an unstable region intrinsic localized spin waves have been generated and
detected in the spin wave gap. These findings are consistent with the
prediction that nonlinearity plus lattice discreteness can lead to localized
excitations with dimensions comparable to the lattice constant.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in Physical Review
Letter
Determination of the sticking probability of hydrocarbons on an amorphous hydrocarbons surface
Polarization singularities from unfolding an optical vortex through a birefringent crystal
Optical vortices (nodal lines and phase singularities) are the generic singularities of scalar optics but are unstable in vector optics. We investigate experimentally and theoretically the unfolding of a uniformly polarized optical vortex beam on propagation through a birefringent crystal and characterize the output field in terms of polarization singularities (C lines and points of circular polarization; L surfaces and lines of linear polarization). The field is described both in the 2-dimensional transverse plane, and in three dimensions, where the third is abstract, representing an optical path length propagated through the crystal. Many phenomena of singular optics, such as topological charge conservation and singularity reconnections, occur naturally in the description
Decomposition of multicomponent mass spectra using Bayesian probability theory
We present a method for the decomposition of mass spectra of mixture gases
using Bayesian probability theory. The method works without any calibration
measurement and therefore applies also to the analysis of spectra containing
unstable species. For the example of mixtures of three different hydrocarbon
gases the algorithm provides concentrations and cracking coefficients of each
mixture component as well as their confidence intervals. The amount of
information needed to obtain reliable results and its relation to the accuracy
of our analysis are discussed
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