Charged black holes in Einsteinian cubic gravity and nonuniqueness

Black holes are the simplest objects in the universe. They correspond to extreme deformations of spacetime geometry, and can exist even devoid of matter. In general relativity, (electro)vacuum black holes are uniquely determined by their mass, charge and angular momentum. This feature follows from a uniqueness theorem, which can be evaded if one considers higher dimensions or matter fields coupled to gravity. Here we find that Einsteinian cubic gravity, a well-motivated modification of Einstein gravity that includes third-order curvature corrections in accordance with low-energy effective theory expectations, admits black hole solutions with charge greater than mass, when minimally coupled to a Maxwell field. Moreover, we find that, in this regime, there can be two asymptotically flat black holes with the same charge and mass, posing the first example of vacuum black hole nonuniqueness in four dimensions that is free from pathologies. Examination of these black hole's thermodynamics reveals that when two branches coexist only the larger black hole is thermodynamically stable, while the smaller branch has negative specific heat. Einsteinian cubic gravity unveils two further surprising features. The charged black holes do not possess an inner horizon, in contrast with the usual Reissner-Nordstr\"om spacetime, thus avoiding the need to resort to strong cosmic censorship to uphold determinism. In addition to black holes, there exists a one-parameter family of naked singularity spacetimes sharing the same mass and charge as the former, but not continuously connected with them. These naked singularities exist in the under-extremal regime, being present even in pure (uncharged) Einsteinian cubic gravity.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures; v2: matches published version, slightly expanded introduction, perturbative analysis moved from appendix to main text, added references, results unchange

Dynamical analysis on f(R,G)f(R,\mathcal{G}) cosmology

We use a dynamical system approach to study the cosmological viability of $f(R,\mathcal{G})$ gravity theories. The method consists of formulating the evolution equations as an autonomous system of ODEs, using suitable variables. The formalism is applied to a class of models in which $f(R,\mathcal{G})\propto R^{n}\mathcal{G}^{1-n}$ and its solutions and corresponding stability are analysed in detail. New accelerating solutions that can be attractors in the phase space are found. We also find that this class of models does not exhibit a matter-dominated epoch, a solution which is inconsistent with current cosmological observations.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figures. Accepted for publication in Classical and Quantum Gravit

A Population of Compact Elliptical Galaxies Detected with the Virtual Observatory

Compact elliptical galaxies are characterized by small sizes and high stellar densities. They are thought to form through tidal stripping of massive progenitors. However, only a handful of them were known, preventing us from understanding the role played by this mechanism in galaxy evolution. We present a population of 21 compact elliptical galaxies gathered with the Virtual Observatory. Follow-up spectroscopy and data mining, using high-resolution images and large databases, show that all the galaxies exhibit old metal-rich stellar populations different from those of dwarf elliptical galaxies of similar masses but similar to those of more massive early-type galaxies, supporting the tidal stripping scenario. Their internal properties are reproduced by numerical simulations, which result in compact dynamically hot remnants resembling the galaxies in our sample.Comment: 26 pages, 5 figures, 2 tables. Science in press, published in Science Express on 1/Oct/2009. Full resolution figures in the supplementary online material are available from the Science Magazine web-sit

Use of Novel Drying Technologies to Improve the Retention of Infused Olive Leaf Polyphenols

The infusion of phenolic extracts in dried fruits constitutes an interesting means of improving their nutritional content. However, drying can affect the further process of impregnation. In this work, different drying treatments (air temperature and ultrasound application) were applied to apple samples and impregnated with olive leaf extract. The application of ultrasound during drying did not significantly (p<0.05) affect the infusion capacity of samples, but the ultrasonically assisted dried samples showed a greater antioxidant capacity than those conventionally dried. The highest content of oleuropein and verbascoside was found in samples dried at low temperature using ultrasound.The authors acknowledge the financial support of the Spanish Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad (MINECO) and FEDER, and the Generalitat Valenciana (from the projects DPI2012-37466-CO3-03, PROMETEO/2010/062, and the FPI fellowship granted to J.V. Santacatalina).Santacatalina Bonet, JV.; Ahmad-Qasem Mateo, MH.; Barrajón-Catalán, E.; Micol, V.; García Pérez, JV.; Cárcel Carrión, JA. (2015). Use of Novel Drying Technologies to Improve the Retention of Infused Olive Leaf Polyphenols. Drying Technology. 33(9):1051-1060. https://doi.org/10.1080/07373937.2014.982251S1051106033

Influence of air temperature on drying kinetics and antioxidant potential of olive pomace

This work aims to evaluate the influence of olive pomace drying (a solid by-product of the olive oil industry) on both antioxidant potential and drying kinetics. The two main fractions of olive pomace (pits, PI and pulps + peels, P + P) were characterized by image analysis and density measurement. The drying process was analyzed in experiments carried out at different temperatures (from 50 to 150 C) and mathematically described from the diffusion and Weibull models. The antioxidant potential of the extracts (ethanol water 80:20 v/v, 22 ± 1 C, 170 rpm for 24 h) obtained from the dry product was analyzed by measuring the total phenolic content and antioxidant capacity and the main polyphenols were quantified by HPLC DAD/MS MS. The drying behavior of olive pomace was well described by considering the diffusion in the PI and P + P fractions separately and the influence of temperature on effective moisture diffusivities was quantified by an Arrhenius type equation. The antioxidant potential was only mildly influenced by the drying temperature. However, long drying times at the highest temperature tested (150 C) significantly (p < 0.05) increased the antioxidant potentialThe authors acknowledge the Generalitat Valenciana (PROMETEO/2010/062 and PROMETEO/2012/007) and Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad (AGL2011-29857-C03-04) for their financial support and the Ministerio de Educacion, Cultura y Deporte of Spain for the financing through the Formacion de Profesorado Universitario del Programa Nacional de Formacion de Recursos Humanos de Investigacion.Ahmad-Qasem Mateo, MH.; Barrajón Catalán, E.; Micol, V.; Cárcel Carrión, JA.; García Pérez, JV. (2013). Influence of air temperature on drying kinetics and antioxidant potential of olive pomace. Journal of Food Engineering. 119(3):516-524. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfoodeng.2013.06.027S516524119

HST Observations of the White Dwarf Cooling Sequence of M4

We investigate in detail the white dwarf cooling sequence of the globular cluster Messier 4. In particular we study the influence of various systematic uncertainties, both observational and theoretical, on the determination of the cluster age from the white dwarf cooling sequence. These include uncertainties in the distance to the cluster and the extinction along the line of sight, as well as the white dwarf mass, envelope and core compositions and the white dwarf --main sequence mass relation. We find that fitting to the full two-dimensional colour-magnitude diagram offers a more robust method for age determination than the traditional method of fitting the one-dimensional white dwarf luminosity function. After taking into account the various uncertainties, we find a best fit age of 12.1 Gyr, with a 95% lower limit of 10.3 Gyr. We also perform fits using two other sets of cooling models from the literature. The models of Chabrier et al (2000) yield an encouragingly similar result, although the models of Salaris et al (2000) do not provide as good a fit. Our results support our previous determination of a delay between the formation of the Galactic halo and the onset of star formation in the Galactic disk.Comment: many pages, 43 postscript figures, submitted to Ap

Resilient Response to Combined Heat and Drought Stress Conditions of a Tomato Germplasm Collection, Including Natural and Ethyl Methanesulfonate-Induced Variants

Agricultural systems are currently facing significant issues, primarily due to population growth rates in the context of global climate change. Rising temperatures cause plant heat stress and impact crop yield, which in turn compromises global food production and safety. Climate change is also having a significant impact on water availability around the world, and droughts are becoming more frequent and severe in many regions. The combined effect of both heat and drought stresses increases plant damage, resulting in reduced plant development and productivity loss. Therefore, developing heat&ndash;drought-tolerant crop varieties is crucial for enhancing yield under these challenging conditions. Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.), a major vegetable crop highly appreciated for its nutritional qualities, is particularly sensitive to extreme temperatures, which have a significant negative impact on tomato fruit setting and cause male gametophyte abortion. In this work, a classical genetic approach was employed to identify tomato genotypes showing a resilient response to combined heat and drought stress conditions. A phenotype screening of a natural germplasm collection and an ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS) mutagenized population resulted in the identification of a significant number of tomato lines tolerant to combined heat and drought conditions, specifically 161 EMS lines and 24 natural accessions as tolerant. In addition, TILLING and Eco-TILLING analyses were used as proof-of-concept to isolate new genetic variants of genes previously reported as key regulators of abiotic stress responses in different species. The identification of these variants holds the potential to provide suitable plant material for breeding programs focused on enhancing tomato resilience to adverse climate conditions

A multinational consensus on dysphagia in Parkinson's disease: screening, diagnosis and prognostic value

Background Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by a combination of motor and non-motor dysfunction. Dysphagia is a common symptom in PD, though it is still too frequently underdiagnosed. Consensus is lacking on screening, diagnosis, and prognosis of dysphagia in PD. Objective To systematically review the literature and to define consensus statements on the screening and the diagnosis of dysphagia in PD, as well as on the impact of dysphagia on the prognosis and quality of life (QoL) of PD patients. Methods A multinational group of experts in the field of neurogenic dysphagia and/or PD conducted a systematic revision of the literature published since January 1990 to February 2021 and reported the results according to PRISMA guidelines. The output of the research was then analyzed and discussed in a consensus conference convened in Pavia, Italy, where the consensus statements were drafted. The final version of statements was subsequently achieved by e-mail consensus. Results Eighty-five papers were used to inform the Panel's statements even though most of them were of Class IV quality. The statements tackled four main areas: (1) screening of dysphagia: timing and tools; (2) diagnosis of dysphagia: clinical and instrumental detection, severity assessment; (3) dysphagia and QoL: impact and assessment; (4) prognostic value of dysphagia; impact on the outcome and role of associated conditions. Conclusions The statements elaborated by the Consensus Panel provide a framework to guide the neurologist in the timely detection and accurate diagnosis of dysphagia in PD

The European internet-based patient and research database for primary immunodeficiencies: results 2006-2008

Primary immunodeficiencies (PID) are rare diseases; therefore transnational studies are essential to maximize the scientific outcome and to improve diagnosis and therapy. In order to estimate the prevalence of PID in Europe as well as to establish and evaluate harmonized guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of PID, the European Society for Immunodeficiencies (ESID) has developed an internet-based database for clinical and research data on patients with PID. This database is a platform for epidemiological analyses as well as the development of new diagnostic and therapeutic strategies and the identification of novel disease-associated genes. Within 4 years, 7430 patients from 39 countries have been documented in the ESID database. Common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) represents the most common entity, with 1540 patients or 20.7% of all entries, followed by isolated immunoglobulin (Ig)G subclass deficiency (546 patients, 7.4%). Evaluations show that the average life expectancy for PID patients varies from 1 to 49 years (median), depending on the type of PID. The prevalence and incidence of PID remains a key question to be answered. As the registration progress is far from finished we can only calculate minimum values for PID, with e.g. France currently showing a minimum prevalence of 3.72 patients per 100,000 inhabitants. The most frequently documented permanent treatment is immunoglobulin replacement; 2819 patients (42% of all patients alive) currently receive this form of treatment

Major Role for Amphotericin B–Flucytosine Combination in Severe Cryptococcosis

BACKGROUND: The Infectious Diseases Society of America published in 2000 practical guidelines for the management of cryptococcosis. However, treatment strategies have not been fully validated in the various clinical settings due to exclusion criteria during therapeutic trials. We assessed here the optimal therapeutic strategies for severe cryptococcosis using the observational prospective CryptoA/D study after analyzing routine clinical care of cryptococcosis in university or tertiary care hospitals. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Patients were enrolled if at least one culture grew positive with Cryptococcus neoformans. Control of sterilization was warranted 2 weeks (Wk2) and 3 months (Mo3) after antifungal therapy onset. 208 HIV-positive or -negative adult patients were analyzed. Treatment failure (death or mycological failure) at Wk2 and Mo3 was the main outcome measured. Combination of amphotericin B+flucytosine (AMB+5FC) was the best regimen for induction therapy in patients with meningoencephalitis and in all patients with high fungal burden and abnormal neurology. In those patients, treatment failure at Wk2 was 26% in the AMB+5FC group vs. 56% with any other treatments (p<0.001). In patients treated with AMB+5FC, factors independently associated with Wk2 mycological failure were high serum antigen titer (OR [95%CI] = 4.43[1.21-16.23], p = 0.025) and abnormal brain imaging (OR = 3.89[1.23-12.31], p = 0.021) at baseline. Haematological malignancy (OR = 4.02[1.32-12.25], p = 0.015), abnormal neurology at baseline (OR = 2.71[1.10-6.69], p = 0.030) and prescription of 5FC for less than 14 days (OR = 3.30[1.12-9.70], p = 0.030) were independently associated with treatment failure at Mo3. CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE: Our results support the conclusion that induction therapy with AMB+5FC for at least 14 days should be prescribed rather than any other induction treatments in all patients with high fungal burden at baseline regardless of their HIV serostatus and of the presence of proven meningoencephalitis