Dissecting a complex chemical stress: chemogenomic profiling of plant hydrolysates.

The efficient production of biofuels from cellulosic feedstocks will require the efficient fermentation of the sugars in hydrolyzed plant material. Unfortunately, plant hydrolysates also contain many compounds that inhibit microbial growth and fermentation. We used DNA-barcoded mutant libraries to identify genes that are important for hydrolysate tolerance in both Zymomonas mobilis (44 genes) and Saccharomyces cerevisiae (99 genes). Overexpression of a Z. mobilis tolerance gene of unknown function (ZMO1875) improved its specific ethanol productivity 2.4-fold in the presence of miscanthus hydrolysate. However, a mixture of 37 hydrolysate-derived inhibitors was not sufficient to explain the fitness profile of plant hydrolysate. To deconstruct the fitness profile of hydrolysate, we profiled the 37 inhibitors against a library of Z. mobilis mutants and we modeled fitness in hydrolysate as a mixture of fitness in its components. By examining outliers in this model, we identified methylglyoxal as a previously unknown component of hydrolysate. Our work provides a general strategy to dissect how microbes respond to a complex chemical stress and should enable further engineering of hydrolysate tolerance

Search for Branons at LEP

We search, in the context of extra-dimension scenarios, for the possible existence of brane fluctuations, called branons. Events with a single photon or a single Z-boson and missing energy and momentum collected with the L3 detector in e^+ e^- collisions at centre-of-mass energies sqrt{s}=189-209$ GeV are analysed. No excess over the Standard Model expectations is found and a lower limit at 95% confidence level of 103 GeV is derived for the mass of branons, for a scenario with small brane tensions. Alternatively, under the assumption of a light branon, brane tensions below 180 GeV are excluded

Measurement of Exclusive rho^0 rho^0 Production in Two-Photon Collisions at High Q^2 at LEP

Exclusive rho rho production in two-photon collisions involving a single highly virtual photon is studied with data collected at LEP at centre-of-mass energies 89GeV < \sqrt{s} < 209GeV with a total integrated luminosity of 854.7pb^-1 The cross section of the process gamma gamma^* -> rho rho is determined as a function of the photon virtuality, Q^2 and the two-photon centre-of-mass energy, Wgg, in the kinematic region: 1.2GeV^2 < Q^2 < 30GeV^2 and 1.1GeV < Wgg < 3GeV

Search for a Higgs Boson Decaying into Two Photons at LEP

A Higgs particle produced in association with a Z boson and decaying into two photons is searched for in the data collected by the L3 experiment at LEP. All possible decay modes of the Z boson are investigated. No signal is observed in 447.5 pb^-1 of data recorded at centre-of-mass energies up to 209 GeV. Limits on the branching fraction of the Higgs boson decay into two photons as a function of the Higgs mass are derived. A lower limit on the mass of a fermiophobic Higgs boson is set at 105.4 GeV at 95% confidence level

Search for Heavy Isosinglet Neutrino in e+e- Annihilation at LEP

We report on a search for the first generation heavy neutrino that is an isosinglet under the standard SU(2)_L gauge group. The data collected with the L3 detector at center-of-mass energies between 130 GeV and 208 GeV are used.The decay channel N_e --> eW is investigated and no evidence is found for a heavy neutrino, N_e, in a mass range between 80 GeV and 205 GeV. Upper limits on the mixing parameter between the heavy and light neutrino are derived

Dark matter annihilation and its effect on CMB and Hydrogen 21 cm observations

If dark matter is made up of Weakly Interacting Massive Particles, the annihilation of these particles in halos results in energy being released, some of which is absorbed by gas, causing partial ionization and heating. Dark matter annihilation may result in partial ionization and gas heating at high redshifts, even before the formation of the first stars. It is shown that early ionization results in a transfer of power to higher multipoles in the large angle CMB polarization power spectra. Future CMB experiments may be able to place constraints on certain light dark matter models. We also investigate the effect of gas heating on the expected H21 cm power spectrum. Heating by particle annihilation results in a decrease in the amplitude of the H21 cm power spectrum as the gas temperature $T$ becomes comparable to the CMB temperature $T_\gamma$, and then an increase as $T > T_\gamma$. The result is a minimum in the power spectrum at the redshift for which $T \approx T_\gamma$. Only certain models (low particle masses $\sim$ 10 GeV, or favorable halo parameters) show this effect. Within these models, observations of the H21 cm power spectrum at multiple redshifts can help us obtain constraints on dark matter particle and halo properties.Comment: We correct an error in the calculation of $\kappa$ in Eq. 6. This results in a ~ factor 2 increase in the magnitude of the results. New plots have been computed. Replaced to reflect the published versio

f1_1(1285) Formation in Two-Photon Collisions at LEP

The $\eta \pi^+ \pi^-$ final state in two-photon collisions is studied with the L3 detector at LEP, at centre-of-mass energies from 183 to 209~GeV with an integrated luminosity of 664.6~pb$^{-1}$. The f$_1$(1285) meson is observed and the $Q^2$ dependence of its production is compared to different form factor models. The $\gamma\gamma$-coupling parameter $\tilde\Gamma_{\gamma\gamma}$ is found to be $3.5 \pm 0.6\,(stat.) \pm 0.5\,(sys.)$~keV. The branching fraction $\Gamma\bigl({\rm f}_1(1285)\rightarrow{\rm a}_0\pi\bigr) / \Gamma\bigl({\rm f}_1(1285)\rightarrow\eta\pi\pi\bigr)$ is also measured.The eta pi^+ pi^- final state in two-photon collisions is studied with the L3 detector at LEP, at centre-of-mass energies from 183 to 209 GeV with an integrated luminosity of 664.6/pb. The f_1(1285) meson is observed and the Q^2 dependence of its production is compared to different form factor models. The gamma-gamma coupling parameter is found to be 3.5 +/- 0.6(stat.) +/- 0.5(sys.) keV. The branching fraction (f_1(1285) -> a_0 pi) / (f_1(1285) -> eta pi pi) is also measured.The ηπ + π − final state in two-photon collisions is studied with the L3 detector at LEP, at centre-of-mass energies from 183 to 209 GeV with an integrated luminosity of 664.6 pb −1 . The f 1 (1285) meson is observed and the Q 2 dependence of its production is compared to different form factor models. The γγ -coupling parameter Γ γγ is found to be 3.5±0.6(stat.)±0.5(sys.) keV. The branching fraction Γ (f 1 (1285)→a 0 π )/ Γ (f 1 (1285)→ ηππ ) is also measured

Measurement of the Shadowing of High-Energy Cosmic Rays by the Moon: A Search for TeV-Energy Antiprotons

The shadowing of high-energy cosmic rays by the Moon has been observed with a significance of 9.4 standard deviations with the L3+C muon spectrometer at CERN. A significant effect of the Earth magnetic field is observed. Since no event deficit on the east side of the Moon has been observed, an upper limit at 90% confidence level on the antiproton to proton ratio of 0.11 is obtained for primary energies around 1 TeV

Study of Multiphoton Final States and Tests of QED in e+e- collisions at \root(s) up to 209 GeV

The process e+ e- -> n gamma with n>=2 is studied at centre-of-mass energies ranging from \root(s)=192 to 208 GeV. The data sample corresponds to a total integrated luminosity of 427 1/pb. The total and differential cross sections are found to be in agreement with the QED expectations. Using all the data collected with the L3 detector above the Z pole, limits on deviations from QED, excited electrons, contact interactions, extra space dimensions and excited spin-3/2 leptons are set