9,523 research outputs found
Serological protein profiling of neuroblastoma by ProteinChip SELDI-TOF technology
Serological proteins of neuroblastoma were profiled and analyzed by ProteinChip-SELDI-TOF MS technology with five types of protein chips. By comparing with normal control, a number of protein or polypeptide signals were found significantly and consistently different in their intensities (expression levels) in tumor sera. Interestingly, nine polypeptide peaks in these proteomic features can be simultaneously detected with consistent variations by more than one type of protein chips. None of the expression differences of these nine polypeptides was found in similar comparisons between healthy controls and hepatomas. Preliminary protein identification showed hints for that some of these proteomic alterations may be closely related to the tumorigenesis of neuroblastoma. These results demonstrated the potential of serological biomarker identification for neuroblastoma by ProteinChip-SELDI technology.postprin
VHE Gamma-ray Afterglow Emission from Nearby GRBs
Gamma-ray Bursts (GRBs) are among the potential extragalactic sources of
very-high-energy (VHE) gamma-rays. We discuss the prospects of detecting VHE
gamma-rays with current ground-based Cherenkov instruments during the afterglow
phase. Using the fireball model, we calculate the synchrotron self-Compton
(SSC) emission from forward-shock electrons. The modeled results are compared
with the observational afterglow data taken with and/or the sensitivity level
of ground-based VHE instruments (e.g. STACEE, H.E.S.S., MAGIC, VERITAS, and
Whipple). We find that modeled SSC emission from bright and nearby bursts such
as GRB 030329 are detectable by these instruments even with a delayed
observation time of ~10 hours.Comment: Proceeding of "Heidelberg International Symposium on High Energy
Gamma-Ray Astronomy", held in Heidelberg, 7-11 July 2008, submitted to AIP
Conference Proceedings. 4 pages, 3 figures, 1 tabl
Low-Reynolds number swimming in gels
Many microorganisms swim through gels, materials with nonzero zero-frequency
elastic shear modulus, such as mucus. Biological gels are typically
heterogeneous, containing both a structural scaffold (network) and a fluid
solvent. We analyze the swimming of an infinite sheet undergoing transverse
traveling wave deformations in the "two-fluid" model of a gel, which treats the
network and solvent as two coupled elastic and viscous continuum phases. We
show that geometric nonlinearities must be incorporated to obtain physically
meaningful results. We identify a transition between regimes where the network
deforms to follow solvent flows and where the network is stationary. Swimming
speeds can be enhanced relative to Newtonian fluids when the network is
stationary. Compressibility effects can also enhance swimming velocities.
Finally, microscopic details of sheet-network interactions influence the
boundary conditions between the sheet and network. The nature of these boundary
conditions significantly impacts swimming speeds.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures, submitted to EP
On the volume functional of compact manifolds with boundary with constant scalar curvature
We study the volume functional on the space of constant scalar curvature
metrics with a prescribed boundary metric. We derive a sufficient and necessary
condition for a metric to be a critical point, and show that the only domains
in space forms, on which the standard metrics are critical points, are geodesic
balls. In the zero scalar curvature case, assuming the boundary can be
isometrically embedded in the Euclidean space as a compact strictly convex
hypersurface, we show that the volume of a critical point is always no less
than the Euclidean volume bounded by the isometric embedding of the boundary,
and the two volumes are equal if and only if the critical point is isometric to
a standard Euclidean ball. We also derive a second variation formula and apply
it to show that, on Euclidean balls and ''small'' hyperbolic and spherical
balls in dimensions 3 to 5, the standard space form metrics are indeed saddle
points for the volume functional
Discovery of an unidentified Fermi object as a black widow-like millisecond pulsar
The Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope has revolutionized our knowledge of the
gamma-ray pulsar population, leading to the discovery of almost 100 gamma-ray
pulsars and dozens of gamma-ray millisecond pulsars (MSPs). Although the
outer-gap model predicts different sites of emission for the radio and
gamma-ray pulsars, until now all of the known gamma-ray MSPs have been visible
in the radio. Here we report the discovery of a "radio-quiet" gamma-ray
emitting MSP candidate by using Fermi, Chandra, Swift, and optical
observations. The X-ray and gamma-ray properties of the source are consistent
with known gamma-ray pulsars. We also found a 4.63-hr orbital period in optical
and X-ray data. We suggest that the source is a black widow-like MSP with a
~0.1 solar-mass late-type companion star. Based on the profile of the optical
and X-ray light-curves, the companion star is believed to be heated by the
pulsar while the X-ray emissions originate from pulsar magnetosphere and/or
from intra-binary shock. No radio detection of the source has been reported yet
and although no gamma-ray/radio pulsation has been found, we estimated that the
spin period of the MSP is ~3-5 ms based on the inferred gamma-ray luminosity.Comment: 6 pages, 2 figures; accepted for publication in ApJ
Beating patterns of filaments in viscoelastic fluids
Many swimming microorganisms, such as bacteria and sperm, use flexible
flagella to move through viscoelastic media in their natural environments. In
this paper we address the effects a viscoelastic fluid has on the motion and
beating patterns of elastic filaments. We treat both a passive filament which
is actuated at one end, and an active filament with bending forces arising from
internal motors distributed along its length. We describe how viscoelasticity
modifies the hydrodynamic forces exerted on the filaments, and how these
modified forces affect the beating patterns. We show how high viscosity of
purely viscous or viscoelastic solutions can lead to the experimentally
observed beating patterns of sperm flagella, in which motion is concentrated at
the distal end of the flagella
Discovery of gamma-ray emission from the supernova remnant Kes 17 with Fermi Large Area Telescope
We report the discovery of GeV emission at the position of supernova remnant
Kes 17 by using the data from the Large Area Telescope on board the Fermi
Gamma-ray Space Telescope. Kes 17 can be clearly detected with a significance
of ~12 sigma in the 1 - 20 GeV range. Moreover, a number of gamma-ray sources
were detected in its vicinity. The gamma-ray spectrum of Kes 17 can be well
described by a simple power-law with a photon index of ~ 2.4. Together with the
multi-wavelength evidence for its interactions with the nearby molecular cloud,
the gamma-ray detection suggests that Kes 17 is a candidate acceleration site
for cosmic-rays.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figures, 1 table, accepted for publication in ApJ Lette
A Reasonable Bias Approach to Gerrymandering: Using Automated Plan Generation to Evaluate Redistricting Proposals
Here, we present our findings, analogous to those on the efficiency gap in Part I.B of our Article published in the print edition of the William & Mary Law Review, on the other measures of partisan fairness
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