Mycobacterium tuberculosis Drives Expansion of Low-Density Neutrophils Equipped With Regulatory Activities

In human tuberculosis (TB) neutrophils represent the most commonly infected phagocyte but their role in protection and pathology is highly contradictory. Moreover, a subset of low-density neutrophils (LDNs) has been identified in TB, but their functions remain unclear. Here, we have analyzed total neutrophils and their low-density and normal-density (NDNs) subsets in patients with active TB disease, in terms of frequency, phenotype, functional features, and gene expression signature. Full-blood counts from Healthy Donors (H.D.), Latent TB infected, active TB, and cured TB patients were performed. Frequency, phenotype, burst activity, and suppressor T cell activity of the two different subsets were assessed by flow cytometry while NETosis and phagocytosis were evaluated by confocal microscopy. Expression analysis was performed by using the semi-quantitative RT-PCR array technology. Elevated numbers of total neutrophils and a high neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio distinguished patients with active TB from all the other groups. PBMCs of patients with active TB disease contained elevated percentages of LDNs compared with those of H.D., with an increased expression of CD66b, CD33, CD15, and CD16 compared to NDNs. Transcriptomic analysis of LDNs and NDNs purified from the peripheral blood of TB patients identified 12 genes differentially expressed: CCL5, CCR5, CD4, IL10, LYZ, and STAT4 were upregulated, while CXCL8, IFNAR1, NFKB1A, STAT1, TICAM1, and TNF were downregulated in LDNs, as compared to NDNs. Differently than NDNs, LDNs failed to phagocyte live Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis) bacilli, to make oxidative burst and NETosis, but caused significant suppression of antigen-specific and polyclonal T cell proliferation which was partially mediated by IL-10. These insights add a little dowel of knowledge in understanding the pathogenesis of human TB

Reverse electrodialysis heat engine with multi-effect distillation: Exergy analysis and perspectives

The increasing worldwide energy demand is rising the interest on alternative power production technologies based on renewable and emission-free energy sources. In this regard, the closed-loop reverse electrodialysis heat engine is a promising technology with the potential to convert low-grade heat into electric power. The reverse electrodialysis technology has been under investigation in the last years to explore the real potentials for energy generation from natural and artificial solutions, and recent works have been addressing also the potential of its coupling with regeneration strategies, looking at medium and large energy supply purposes. In this work, for the first time, a comprehensive exergy analysis at component level is applied to a reverse electrodialysis heat engine with multi-effect distillation in order to determine the real capability of the waste heat to power conversion, identifying and quantifying the sources of exergy destruction. In particular, sensitivity analyses have been performed to assess the influence of the main operating conditions (i.e. solutions concentration and velocity) and design features (aspect ratio of the pile), characterizing the most advantageous scenarios and including the effect of new generations of membranes. Results show that the multi-effect distillation unit is the main source of exergy destruction. Also, using high-performing membranes, inlet solutions concentration and velocity of 4.5\u20130.01 mol/L and 0.2\u20130.36 cm/s, respectively, a global exergy efficiency of 24% is reached for the system, proving the high potential of this technology to sustainably convert waste heat into power

Apparent Lorentz violation with superluminal Majorana neutrinos at OPERA?

From the data release of OPERA - CNGS experiment, and publicly announced on 23 September 2011, we cast a phenomenological model based on a Majorana neutrino state carrying a fictitious imaginary mass term, already discussed by Majorana in 1932. This mass term can be induced by the interaction with the matter of the Earth's crust during the 735 Km travel. Within the experimental errors, we prove that the model fits with OPERA, MINOS and supernova SN1987a data. Possible violations to Lorentz invariance due to quantum gravity effects have been considered.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, 1 table, updated with new data, new figure. Higgs mass expected at (273.56 {\pm} 0.01) Ge

Properties of electrons scattered on a strong plane electromagnetic wave with a linear polarization: classical treatment

The relations among the components of the exit momenta of ultrarelativistic electrons scattered on a strong electromagnetic wave of a low (optical) frequency and linear polarization are established using the exact solutions to the equations of motion with radiation reaction included (the Landau-Lifshitz equation). It is found that the momentum components of the electrons traversed the electromagnetic wave depend weakly on the initial values of the momenta. These electrons are mostly scattered at the small angles to the direction of propagation of the electromagnetic wave. The maximum Lorentz factor of the electrons crossed the electromagnetic wave is proportional to the work done by the electromagnetic field and is independent of the initial momenta. The momentum component parallel to the electric field strength vector of the electromagnetic wave is determined only by the diameter of the laser beam measured in the units of the classical electron radius. As for the reflected electrons, they for the most part lose the energy, but remain relativistic. There is a reflection law for these electrons that relates the incident and the reflection angles and is independent of any parameters.Comment: 12 pp, 3 fig

Inflationary Reheating in Grand Unified Theories

Grand unified theories may display multiply interacting fields with strong coupling dynamics. This poses two new problems: (1) What is the nature of chaotic reheating after inflation, and (2) How is reheating sensitive to the mass spectrum of these theories ? We answer these questions in two interesting limiting cases and demonstrate an increased efficiency of reheating which strongly enhances non-thermal topological defect formation, including monopoles and domain walls. Nevertheless, the large fluctuations may resolve this monopole problem via a modified Dvali-Liu-Vachaspati mechanism in which non-thermal destabilsation of discrete symmetries occurs at reheating.Comment: 4 pages, 5 ps figures - 1 colour, Revtex. Further (colour & 3-D) figures available from http://www.sissa.it/~bassett/reheating/ . Matched to version to appear in Phys. Rev. let

Status and Recent Results of the Acoustic Neutrino Detection Test System AMADEUS

The AMADEUS system is an integral part of the ANTARES neutrino telescope in the Mediterranean Sea. The project aims at the investigation of techniques for acoustic neutrino detection in the deep sea. Installed at a depth of more than 2000m, the acoustic sensors of AMADEUS are based on piezo-ceramics elements for the broad-band recording of signals with frequencies ranging up to 125kHz. AMADEUS was completed in May 2008 and comprises six "acoustic clusters", each one holding six acoustic sensors that are arranged at distances of roughly 1m from each other. The clusters are installed with inter-spacings ranging from 15m to 340m. Acoustic data are continuously acquired and processed at a computer cluster where online filter algorithms are applied to select a high-purity sample of neutrino-like signals. 1.6 TB of data were recorded in 2008 and 3.2 TB in 2009. In order to assess the background of neutrino-like signals in the deep sea, the characteristics of ambient noise and transient signals have been investigated. In this article, the AMADEUS system will be described and recent results will be presented.Comment: 7 pages, 8 figures. Proceedings of ARENA 2010, the 4th International Workshop on Acoustic and Radio EeV Neutrino Detection Activitie

The ANTARES Optical Beacon System

ANTARES is a neutrino telescope being deployed in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of a three dimensional array of photomultiplier tubes that can detect the Cherenkov light induced by charged particles produced in the interactions of neutrinos with the surrounding medium. High angular resolution can be achieved, in particular when a muon is produced, provided that the Cherenkov photons are detected with sufficient timing precision. Considerations of the intrinsic time uncertainties stemming from the transit time spread in the photomultiplier tubes and the mechanism of transmission of light in sea water lead to the conclusion that a relative time accuracy of the order of 0.5 ns is desirable. Accordingly, different time calibration systems have been developed for the ANTARES telescope. In this article, a system based on Optical Beacons, a set of external and well-controlled pulsed light sources located throughout the detector, is described. This calibration system takes into account the optical properties of sea water, which is used as the detection volume of the ANTARES telescope. The design, tests, construction and first results of the two types of beacons, LED and laser-based, are presented.Comment: 21 pages, 18 figures, submitted to Nucl. Instr. and Meth. Phys. Res.

The Antares Collaboration : Contributions to the 34th International Cosmic Ray Conference (ICRC 2015, The Hague)

The ANTARES detector, completed in 2008, is the largest neutrino telescope in the Northern hemisphere. Located at a depth of 2.5 km in the Mediterranean Sea, 40 km off the Toulon shore, its main goal is the search for astrophysical high energy neutrinos. In this paper we collect the 21 contributions of the ANTARES collaboration to the 34th International Cosmic Ray Conference (ICRC 2015). The scientific output is very rich and the contributions included in these proceedings cover the main physics results, ranging from steady point sources, diffuse searches, multi-messenger analyses to exotic physics

Search for muon-neutrino emission from GeV and TeV gamma-ray flaring blazars using five years of data of the ANTARES telescope

The ANTARES telescope is well-suited for detecting astrophysical transient neutrino sources as it can observe a full hemisphere of the sky at all times with a high duty cycle. The background due to atmospheric particles can be drastically reduced, and the point-source sensitivity improved, by selecting a narrow time window around possible neutrino production periods. Blazars, being radio-loud active galactic nuclei with their jets pointing almost directly towards the observer, are particularly attractive potential neutrino point sources, since they are among the most likely sources of the very high-energy cosmic rays. Neutrinos and gamma rays may be produced in hadronic interactions with the surrounding medium. Moreover, blazars generally show high time variability in their light curves at different wavelengths and on various time scales. This paper presents a time-dependent analysis applied to a selection of flaring gamma-ray blazars observed by the FERMI/LAT experiment and by TeV Cherenkov telescopes using five years of ANTARES data taken from 2008 to 2012. The results are compatible with fluctuations of the background. Upper limits on the neutrino fluence have been produced and compared to the measured gamma-ray spectral energy distribution.Comment: 27 pages, 16 figure