1,998 research outputs found
Well-posedness and asymptotic behavior of a multidimensional model of morphogen transport
Morphogen transport is a biological process, occurring in the tissue of
living organisms, which is a determining step in cell differentiation. We
present rigorous analysis of a simple model of this process, which is a system
coupling parabolic PDE with ODE. We prove existence and uniqueness of solutions
for both stationary and evolution problems. Moreover we show that the solution
converges exponentially to the equilibrium in topology. We
prove all results for arbitrary dimension of the domain. Our results improve
significantly previously known results for the same model in the case of one
dimensional domain
Thermal Casimir effect with general boundary conditions
In this paper we study the system of a scalar quantum field confined between
two plane, isotropic, and homogeneous parallel plates at thermal equilibrium.
We represent the plates by the most general lossless and frequency-independent
boundary conditions that satisfy the conditions of isotropy and homogeneity and
are compatible with the unitarity of the quantum field theory. Under these
conditions we compute the thermal correction to the quantum vacuum energy as a
function of the temperature and the parameters encoding the boundary condition.
The latter enables us to obtain similar results for the pressure between plates
and the quantum thermal correction to the entropy. We find out that our system
is thermodynamically stable for any boundary conditions, and we identify a
critical temperature below which certain boundary conditions yield attractive,
repulsive, and null Casimir forces.Comment: 17 pages, 14 figures. Substantial changes along the text have been
introduce
Functional capacity and self-esteem of people with cerebral palsy
OBJECTIVE: We assessed whether functional capacity predicts self-esteem in people with cerebral palsy (CP).
METHOD: We conducted a cross-sectional observational study of 108 people with CP, ages 16-65 yr, who were residents of Spain. Self-esteem was captured using the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES), and functional capacity using the Barthel Index (BI). Sociodemographic characteristics were recorded. The relationship between the RSES score and the BI score was analyzed using linear regression.
RESULTS: RSES scores increased significantly as BI scores increased (regression coefficient = 0.047, 95% confidence interval [0.017, 0.078], p = .003). People with a higher level of education, active employment, and independent living arrangements tended to have better functional capacity and higher self-esteem.
CONCLUSION: Greater functional capacity predicted higher self-esteem; this effect is probably partly mediated by education, employment, and living arrangements
Analysis of ORF5 and Full-Length Genome Sequences of Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome Virus Isolates of Genotypes 1 and 2 Retrieved Worldwide Provides Evidence that Recombination Is a Common Phenomenon and May Produce Mosaic Isolates
Recombination is currently recognized as a factor for high genetic diversity, but the frequency of such recombination events and the genome segments involved are not well known. In the present study, we initially focused on the detection of recombinant porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) isolates by examining previously published data sets of ORF5 sequences (genotypes 1 and 2) obtained worldwide. We then examined full-length genome sequences in order to determine potential recombination breakpoints along the viral genome. For ORF5, 11 sets of genotype 1 sequences from different geographical areas, including 2 Asian, 1 American, and 7 European regions, and three sets of genotype 2, including sets from China, Mexico, and the United States, were analyzed separately. Potential recombination breakpoints were detected in 10/11 genotype 1 sets, including 9 cases in which the clustering of at least one isolate was different before and after the breakpoints. In genotype 2, potential breakpoints and different tree clustering of at least one strain before and after the breakpoint were observed in 2 out of 3 sets. The results indicated that most of the ORF5 data sets contained at least one recombinant sequence. When the full-length genome sequences were examined, both genotype 1 and 2 sets presented breakpoints (10 and 9, respectively), resulting in significantly different topologies before and after the breakpoints. Mosaic genomes were detected in genotype 1 sequences. These results may have significant implications for the understanding of the molecular epidemiology of PRRSV. IMPORTANCE PRRSV is one of the most important viruses affecting swine production worldwide, causing big economic losses and sanitary problems. One of the key questions on PRRSV arises from its genetic diversity, which is thought to have a direct impact on immunobiology, epidemiology, diagnosis, and vaccine efficacy. One of the causes of this genetic diversity is recombination among strains. This study provides evidence that recombinant PRRSV isolates are common in most of the countries with significant swine production, especially PRRSV genotype 1. This observation has implications in the proper characterization of PRRSV strains, in the future development of phylogenetic studies, and in the development of new PRRSV control strategies. Moreover, the present paper emphasizes the need for a deeper understanding of the mechanisms and circumstances involved in the generation of genetic diversity of PRRSV
The Large Aperture GRB Observatory
The Large Aperture GRB Observatory (LAGO) is aiming at the detection of the
high energy (around 100 GeV) component of Gamma Ray Bursts, using the single
particle technique in arrays of Water Cherenkov Detectors (WCD) in high
mountain sites (Chacaltaya, Bolivia, 5300 m a.s.l., Pico Espejo, Venezuela,
4750 m a.s.l., Sierra Negra, Mexico, 4650 m a.s.l). WCD at high altitude offer
a unique possibility of detecting low gamma fluxes in the 10 GeV - 1 TeV range.
The status of the Observatory and data collected from 2007 to date will be
presented.Comment: 4 pages, proceeding of 31st ICRC 200
Water Cherenkov Detectors response to a Gamma Ray Burst in the Large Aperture GRB Observatory
In order to characterise the behaviour of Water Cherenkov Detectors (WCD)
under a sudden increase of 1 GeV - 1 TeV background photons from a Gamma Ray
Burst (GRB), simulations were conducted and compared to data acquired by the
WCD of the Large Aperture GRB Observatory (LAGO). The LAGO operates arrays of
WCD at high altitude to detect GRBs using the single particle technique. The
LAGO sensitivity to GRBs is derived from the reported simulations of the gamma
initiated particle showers in the atmosphere and the WCD response to
secondaries.Comment: 5 pages, proceeding of the 31st ICRC 200
Galaxies behind the Galactic plane: First results and perspectives from the VVV Survey
Vista Variables in The Via Lactea (VVV) is an ESO variability survey that is
performing observations in near infrared bands (ZYJHKs) towards the Galactic
bulge and part of the disk with the completeness limits at least 3 mag deeper
than 2MASS. In the present work, we searched in the VVV survey data for
background galaxies near the Galactic plane using ZYJHKs photometry that covers
1.636 square degrees. We identified 204 new galaxy candidates by analyzing
colors, sizes, and visual inspection of multi-band (ZYJHKs) images. The galaxy
candidates colors were also compared with the predicted ones by star counts
models considering a more realistic extinction model at the same completeness
limits observed by VVV. A comparison of the galaxy candidates with the expected
one by Milennium simulations is also presented. Our results increase the number
density of known galaxies behind the Milky Way by more than one order of
magnitude. A catalog with galaxy properties including ellipticity, Petrosian
radii and ZYJHKs magnitudes is provided, as well as comparisons of the results
with other surveys of galaxies towards Galactic plane.Comment: 27 pages, 10 figures, 2 tables; in press at The Astronomical Journa
A Multi-Institutional Partnership Catalyzing the Commercialization of Medical Devices and Biotechnology Products.
The commercialization of medical devices and biotechnology products is characterized by high failure rates and long development lead times particularly among start-up enterprises. To increase the success rate of these high-risk ventures, the University of Massachusetts Lowell (UML) and University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS) partnered to create key academic support centers with programs to accelerate entrepreneurship and innovation in this industry. In 2008, UML and UMMS founded the Massachusetts Medical Device Development Center (M2D2), which is a business and technology incubator that provides business planning, product prototyping, laboratory services, access to clinical testing, and ecosystem networking to medical device and biotech startup firms. M2D2 has three physical locations that encompass approximately 40,000 square feet. Recently, M2D2 leveraged these resources to expand into new areas such as health security, point of care technologies for heart, lung, blood, and sleep disorders, and rapid diagnostics to detect SARS-CoV-2. Since its inception, M2D2 has vetted approximately 260 medical device and biotech start-up companies for inclusion in its programs and provided active support to more than 80 firms. This manuscript describes how two UMass campuses leveraged institutional, state, and Federal resources to create a thriving entrepreneurial environment for medical device and biotech companies
A beam-beam monitoring detector for the MPD experiment at NICA
The Multi-Purpose Detector (MPD) is to be installed at the Nuclotron Ion
Collider fAcility (NICA) of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR).
Its main goal is to study the phase diagram of the strongly interacting matter
produced in heavy-ion collisions. These studies, while providing insight into
the physics of heavy-ion collisions, are relevant for improving our
understanding of the evolution of the early Universe and the formation of
neutron stars. In order to extend the MPD trigger capabilities, we propose to
include a high granularity beam-beam monitoring detector (BE-BE) to provide a
level-0 trigger signal with an expected time resolution of 30 ps. This new
detector will improve the determination of the reaction plane by the MPD
experiment, a key measurement for flow studies that provides physics insight
into the early stages of the reaction. In this work, we use simulated Au+Au
collisions at NICA energies to show the potential of such a detector to
determine the event plane resolution, providing further redundancy to the
detectors originally considered for this purpose namely, the Fast Forward
Detector (FFD) and the Hadron Calorimeter (HCAL). We also show our results for
the time resolution studies of two prototype cells carried out at the T10 beam
line at the CERN PS complex.Comment: 16 pages, 12 figures. Updated to published version with added
comments and correction
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