High-resolution N-body Simulations of Galactic Cannibalism: The Magellanic Stream

Hierarchical clustering represents the favoured paradigm for galaxy formation throughout the Universe; due to its proximity, the Magellanic system offers one of the few opportunities for astrophysicists to decompose the full six-dimensional phase-space history of a satellite in the midst of being cannibalised by its host galaxy. The availability of improved observational data for the Magellanic Stream and parallel advances in computational power has led us to revisit the canonical tidal model describing the disruption of the Small Magellanic Cloud and the consequent formation of the Stream. We suggest improvements to the tidal model in light of these recent advances.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures, LaTeX (gcdv.sty). Refereed contribution to the 5th Galactic Chemodynamics conference held in Swinburne, July 2003. Accepted for publication in PASA. Version with high resolution figures available at http://astronomy.swin.edu.au/staff/tconnors/publications.htm

N-body simulations of the Magellanic Stream

A suite of high-resolution N-body simulations of the Magellanic Clouds -- Milky Way system are presented and compared directly with newly available data from the HI Parkes All-Sky Survey (HIPASS). We show that the interaction between Small and Large Magellanic Clouds results in both a spatial and kinematical bifurcation of both the Stream and the Leading Arm. The spatial bifurcation of the Stream is readily apparent in the HIPASS data, and the kinematical bifurcation is also tentatively identified. This bifurcation provides strong support for the tidal disruption origin for the Magellanic Stream. A fiducial model for the Magellanic Clouds is presented upon completion of an extensive parameter survey of the potential orbital configurations of the Magellanic Clouds and the viable initial boundary conditions for the disc of the Small Magellanic Cloud. The impact of the choice of these critical parameters upon the final configurations of the Stream and Leading Arm is detailed.Comment: Accepted by MNRAS, 07 Jun 2006. 14 pages, 14 figures, 3 tables. LaTeX (mn2e.sty). File with decent resolution images (strongly recommended) available at http://astronomy.swin.edu.au/~tconnors/publications/ . References added; distance and HI-LOres difference figures added; clearer figures; discussion added to, but conclusions unchange

On the origin of anomalous velocity clouds in the Milky Way

We report that neutral hydrogen (HI) gas clouds, resembling High Velocity Clouds (HVCs) observed in the Milky Way (MW), appear in MW-sized disk galaxies formed in high-resolution Lambda Cold Dark Matter (LCDM) cosmological simulations which include gas-dynamics, radiative cooling, star formation, supernova feedback, and metal enrichment. Two such disk galaxies are analyzed, and HI column density and velocity distributions in all-sky Aitoff projections are constructed. The simulations demonstrate that LCDM is able to create galaxies with sufficient numbers of anomalous velocity gas clouds consistent with the HVCs observed within the MW, and that they are found within a galactocentric radius of 150 kpc. We also find that one of the galaxies has a polar gas ring, with radius 30 kpc, which appears as a large structure of HVCs in the Aitoff projection. Such large structures may share an origin similar to extended HVCs observed in the MW, such as Complex C.Comment: Accepted by ApJL, 08 Jun 2006. 5 pages, 5 figures, 1 table. LaTeX (emulateapj.cls). File with high resolution images available at http://astronomy.swin.edu.au/~tconnors/publications/ . References added; discussion added to, but conclusions unchange

The Changing Landscape for Stroke\ua0Prevention in AF: Findings From the GLORIA-AF Registry Phase 2

Background GLORIA-AF (Global Registry on Long-Term Oral Antithrombotic Treatment in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation) is a prospective, global registry program describing antithrombotic treatment patterns in patients with newly diagnosed nonvalvular atrial fibrillation at risk of stroke. Phase 2 began when dabigatran, the first non\u2013vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulant (NOAC), became available. Objectives This study sought to describe phase 2 baseline data and compare these with the pre-NOAC era collected during phase 1. Methods During phase 2, 15,641 consenting patients were enrolled (November 2011 to December 2014); 15,092 were eligible. This pre-specified cross-sectional analysis describes eligible patients\u2019 baseline characteristics. Atrial fibrillation disease characteristics, medical outcomes, and concomitant diseases and medications were collected. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results Of the total patients, 45.5% were female; median age was 71 (interquartile range: 64, 78) years. Patients were from Europe (47.1%), North America (22.5%), Asia (20.3%), Latin America (6.0%), and the Middle East/Africa (4.0%). Most had high stroke risk (CHA2DS2-VASc [Congestive heart failure, Hypertension, Age  6575 years, Diabetes mellitus, previous Stroke, Vascular disease, Age 65 to 74 years, Sex category] score  652; 86.1%); 13.9% had moderate risk (CHA2DS2-VASc = 1). Overall, 79.9% received oral anticoagulants, of whom 47.6% received NOAC and 32.3% vitamin K antagonists (VKA); 12.1% received antiplatelet agents; 7.8% received no antithrombotic treatment. For comparison, the proportion of phase 1 patients (of N = 1,063 all eligible) prescribed VKA was 32.8%, acetylsalicylic acid 41.7%, and no therapy 20.2%. In Europe in phase 2, treatment with NOAC was more common than VKA (52.3% and 37.8%, respectively); 6.0% of patients received antiplatelet treatment; and 3.8% received no antithrombotic treatment. In North America, 52.1%, 26.2%, and 14.0% of patients received NOAC, VKA, and antiplatelet drugs, respectively; 7.5% received no antithrombotic treatment. NOAC use was less common in Asia (27.7%), where 27.5% of patients received VKA, 25.0% antiplatelet drugs, and 19.8% no antithrombotic treatment. Conclusions The baseline data from GLORIA-AF phase 2 demonstrate that in newly diagnosed nonvalvular atrial fibrillation patients, NOAC have been highly adopted into practice, becoming more frequently prescribed than VKA in Europe and North America. Worldwide, however, a large proportion of patients remain undertreated, particularly in Asia and North America. (Global Registry on Long-Term Oral Antithrombotic Treatment in Patients With Atrial Fibrillation [GLORIA-AF]; NCT01468701

Centrality evolution of the charged-particle pseudorapidity density over a broad pseudorapidity range in Pb-Pb collisions at root s(NN)=2.76TeV

Peer reviewe

Overall Survival Benefit for Patients with Relapsed Hodgkin Lymphoma Treated with Brentuximab Vedotin After Autologous Stem Cell Transplant

Abstract Abstract 3701 Background: Salvage chemotherapy and autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) in the management of relapsed or refractory Hodgkin's lymphoma (HL) results in prolonged disease-free survival in only around 50% of patients (pts). Median survival following relapse from ASCT is estimated at 2.4 years, with poor outcomes in those experiencing relapse or progressive disease within one year from ASCT (Horning 2008 et al). Recently, a pivotal multicenter Phase 2 trial investigated the efficacy of brentuximab vedotin (BV) in pts with recurrent HL following ASCT. The study demonstrated an overall response rate of 75% and median duration of response of 6.7 months. Furthermore, 34% of patients achieved a complete response (CR), with a median progression free survival of 29 months (mos). Whether treatment with BV renders an OS benefit in pts with relapsed or refractory disease after ASCT remains to be determined. Objective: 1) To compare OS in pts with relapsed HL after receiving ASCT in a cohort of 102 HL pts treated with BV, with 756 pts from 6 international centers before the introduction of BV. 2) To evaluate predictors of durable CR in pts treated with BV. Methods: Kaplan-Meier method was used to depict time-to-event outcomes, including OS. The Chi-square test was used to evaluate the association between two categorical variables and log-rank test to compare time-to-event endpoints among pt groups. Based on the univariate proportional hazard model, we examined whether certain variables (sex, stage at diagnosis, number of prior treatments, and time to CR) were predictors of CR duration in pts receiving BV. Results: In the non-randomized comparison between those with relapsed-refractory HL following ASCT who received BV and those who did not, pts were well matched by age, with a relatively higher percentage of females treated on the pivotal study. Dates of progression from ASCT ranged from 1996–2009 in the BV group and 1981–2003 in the international cohort. Median follow-up after ASCT for the censored observations of pts who received BV and those in the international cohort was 49.4 and 58.8 mos. The difference in median OS was statistically significant (p 4 doses. Conclusions: While the impact of BV on OS can only be determined through a randomized clinical trial, our analysis indicated that treatment with BV in pts with relapsed/refractory HL following ASCT is associated with prolonged OS when compared with historical control patients. Those who achieve a rapid CR with BV may also have a longer duration of response. A randomized clinical trial is ongoing to evaluate prospectively the efficacy of BV following ASCT. Disclosures: Chen: Seattle Genetics, Inc.: Consultancy, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau. Gopal:Seattle Genetics, Inc.: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding. Ansell:Seattle Genetics, Inc.: Research Funding; Celgene: Consultancy. Savage:Seattle Genetics, Inc.: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding. Ramchandren:Seattle Genetics, Inc.: Speakers Bureau. Forero-Torres:Seattle Genetics: Research Funding. Moskowitz:Seattle Genetics: Speakers Bureau. Connors:Seattle Genetics, Inc.: Research Funding. de Vos:Seattle Genetics: Speakers Bureau. Engert:Takeda: Honoraria, Research Funding; Millennium: Honoraria, Research Funding. Illidge:Seattle Genetics, Inc.: Consultancy, Research Funding; Millennium/Takeda: Consultancy, Honoraria. Morschhauser:Takeda: Honoraria. Younes:Seattle Genetics: Honoraria

Toward Sustainable Environmental Quality: Priority Research Questions for North America.

Anticipating, identifying, and prioritizing strategic needs represent essential activities by research organizations. Decided benefits emerge when these pursuits engage globally important environment and health goals, including the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. To this end, horizon scanning efforts can facilitate identification of specific research needs to address grand challenges. We report and discuss 40 priority research questions following engagement of scientists and engineers in North America. These timely questions identify the importance of stimulating innovation and developing new methods, tools, and concepts in environmental chemistry and toxicology to improve assessment and management of chemical contaminants and other diverse environmental stressors. Grand challenges to achieving sustainable management of the environment are becoming increasingly complex and structured by global megatrends, which collectively challenge existing sustainable environmental quality efforts. Transdisciplinary, systems-based approaches will be required to define and avoid adverse biological effects across temporal and spatial gradients. Similarly, coordinated research activities among organizations within and among countries are necessary to address the priority research needs reported here. Acquiring answers to these 40 research questions will not be trivial, but doing so promises to advance sustainable environmental quality in the 21st century. Environ Toxicol Chem 2019;38:1606-1624. © 2019 The Authors. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of SETAC