The nonlinear anomalous lattice elasticity associated with the high-pressure phase transition in spodumene: A high precission static compression study

The high-pressure behavior of the lattice elasticity of spodumene, LiAlSi2O6, was studied by static compression in a diamond-anvil cell up to 9.3 GPa. Investigations by means of single-crystal XRD and Raman spectroscopy within the hydrostatic limits of the pressure medium focus on the pressure ranges around similar to 3.2 and similar to 7.7 GPa, which have been reported previously to comprise two independent structural phase transitions. While our measurements confirm the well-established first-order C2/c-P2(1)/c transformation at 3.19 GPa (with 1.2% volume discontinuity and a hysteresis between 0.02 and 0.06 GPa), both unit-cell dimensions and the spectral changes observed in high-pressure Raman spectra give no evidence for structural changes related to a second phase transition. Monoclinic lattice parameters and unit-cell volumes at in total 59 different pressure points have been used to re-calculate the lattice-related properties of spontaneous strain, volume strain, and the bulk moduli as a function of pressure across the transition. A modified Landau free energy expansion in terms of a one component order parameter has been developed and tested against these experimentally determined data. The Landau solution provides a much better reproduction of the observed anomalies than any equation-of-state fit to data sets truncated below and above P (tr), thus giving Landau parameters of K (0) = 138.3(2) GPa, K' = 7.46(5), lambda (V) = 33.6(2) GPa, a = 0.486(3), b = -29.4(6) GPa and c = 551(11) GPa

A meta-analytic review of stand-alone interventions to improve body image

Objective Numerous stand-alone interventions to improve body image have been developed. The present review used meta-analysis to estimate the effectiveness of such interventions, and to identify the specific change techniques that lead to improvement in body image. Methods The inclusion criteria were that (a) the intervention was stand-alone (i.e., solely focused on improving body image), (b) a control group was used, (c) participants were randomly assigned to conditions, and (d) at least one pretest and one posttest measure of body image was taken. Effect sizes were meta-analysed and moderator analyses were conducted. A taxonomy of 48 change techniques used in interventions targeted at body image was developed; all interventions were coded using this taxonomy. Results The literature search identified 62 tests of interventions (N = 3,846). Interventions produced a small-to-medium improvement in body image (d+ = 0.38), a small-to-medium reduction in beauty ideal internalisation (d+ = -0.37), and a large reduction in social comparison tendencies (d+ = -0.72). However, the effect size for body image was inflated by bias both within and across studies, and was reliable but of small magnitude once corrections for bias were applied. Effect sizes for the other outcomes were no longer reliable once corrections for bias were applied. Several features of the sample, intervention, and methodology moderated intervention effects. Twelve change techniques were associated with improvements in body image, and three techniques were contra-indicated. Conclusions The findings show that interventions engender only small improvements in body image, and underline the need for large-scale, high-quality trials in this area. The review identifies effective techniques that could be deployed in future interventions

Change of Gene Structure and Function by Non-Homologous End-Joining, Homologous Recombination, and Transposition of DNA

An important objective in genome research is to relate genome structure to gene function. Sequence comparisons among orthologous and paralogous genes and their allelic variants can reveal sequences of functional significance. Here, we describe a 379-kb region on chromosome 1 of maize that enables us to reconstruct chromosome breakage, transposition, non-homologous end-joining, and homologous recombination events. Such a high-density composition of various mechanisms in a small chromosomal interval exemplifies the evolution of gene regulation and allelic diversity in general. It also illustrates the evolutionary pace of changes in plants, where many of the above mechanisms are of somatic origin. In contrast to animals, somatic alterations can easily be transmitted through meiosis because the germline in plants is contiguous to somatic tissue, permitting the recovery of such chromosomal rearrangements. The analyzed region contains the P1-wr allele, a variant of the genetically well-defined p1 gene, which encodes a Myb-like transcriptional activator in maize. The P1-wr allele consists of eleven nearly perfect P1-wr 12-kb repeats that are arranged in a tandem head-to-tail array. Although a technical challenge to sequence such a structure by shotgun sequencing, we overcame this problem by subcloning each repeat and ordering them based on nucleotide variations. These polymorphisms were also critical for recombination and expression analysis in presence and absence of the trans-acting epigenetic factor Ufo1. Interestingly, chimeras of the p1 and p2 genes, p2/p1 and p1/p2, are framing the P1-wr cluster. Reconstruction of sequence amplification steps at the p locus showed the evolution from a single Myb-homolog to the multi-gene P1-wr cluster. It also demonstrates how non-homologous end-joining can create novel gene fusions. Comparisons to orthologous regions in sorghum and rice also indicate a greater instability of the maize genome, probably due to diploidization following allotetraploidization

A 'real puzzle': the views of patients with epilepsy about the organisation of care

BACKGROUND: Little is known about how individuals who have a diagnosis of epilepsy have experienced healthcare services or their views about how they should best be organised to meet their ongoing needs. METHODS: Focus group interviews. Individuals with epilepsy were identified in 5 practices in Wales: 90 were invited, 40 confirmed attendance and 19 individuals attended interviews in 5 groups of size 6, 5, 4, 3 and 1 (Table 2). Inclusion criteria: individuals with a confirmed diagnosis of epilepsy, aged between 18–65. The exclusion criteria were learning disability or an inability to travel to interview locations. RESULTS: The individuals in these group interviews were not 'epilepsy activists' yet they remained critical in extended discussions about the services encountered during their patient careers, wanting more information and advice about how to adapt to problems, particularly after initial diagnosis, more involvement in decision making, rapid access to expertise, preferably local, and improved communication between clinicians. A central concern was the tendency for concerns to be silenced, either overtly, or covertly by perceived haste, so that they felt marginalised, despite their own claims to own expert personal knowledge. CONCLUSIONS: Users of existing services for epilepsy are critical of current systems, especially the lack of attention given to providing information, psychosocial support and the wishes of patients to participate in decision making. Any reorganisation of services for individuals with epilepsy should take into account these perceived problems as well as try to reconcile the tension between the distant and difficult to access expertise of specialists and the local but unconfident support of generalists. The potential benefit of harnessing information technology to allow better liaison should be investigated

Phenotypic and Transcriptomic Response of Auxotrophic Mycobacterium avium Subsp. paratuberculosis leuD Mutant under Environmental Stress

Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) is the causative agent of severe gastroenteritis in cattle. To gain a better understanding of MAP virulence, we investigated the role of leuD gene in MAP metabolism and stress response. For this, we have constructed an auxotrophic strain of MAP by deleting the leuD gene using allelic exchange. The wildtype and mutant strains were then compared for metabolic phenotypic changes using Biolog phenotype microarrays. The responses of both strains to physiologically relevant stress conditions were assessed using DNA microarrays. Transcriptomic data was then analyzed in the context of cellular metabolic pathways and gene networks. Our results showed that deletion of leuD gene has a global effect on both MAP phenotypic and transcriptome response. At the metabolic level, the mutant strain lost the ability to utilize most of the carbon, nitrogen, sulphur, phosphorus and nutrient supplements as energy source. At the transcriptome level, more than 100 genes were differentially expressed in each of the stress condition tested. Systems level network analysis revealed that the differentially expressed genes were distributed throughout the gene network, thus explaining the global impact of leuD deletion in metabolic phenotype. Further, we find that leuD deletion impacted metabolic pathways associated with fatty acids. We verified this by experimentally estimating the total fatty acid content of both mutant and wildtype. The mutant strain had 30% less fatty acid content when compared to wildtype, thus supporting the results from transcriptional and computational analyses. Our results therefore reveal the intricate connection between the metabolism and virulence in MAP

Search for new phenomena in final states with an energetic jet and large missing transverse momentum in pp collisions at √ s = 8 TeV with the ATLAS detector

Results of a search for new phenomena in final states with an energetic jet and large missing transverse momentum are reported. The search uses 20.3 fb−1 of √ s = 8 TeV data collected in 2012 with the ATLAS detector at the LHC. Events are required to have at least one jet with pT > 120 GeV and no leptons. Nine signal regions are considered with increasing missing transverse momentum requirements between Emiss T > 150 GeV and Emiss T > 700 GeV. Good agreement is observed between the number of events in data and Standard Model expectations. The results are translated into exclusion limits on models with either large extra spatial dimensions, pair production of weakly interacting dark matter candidates, or production of very light gravitinos in a gauge-mediated supersymmetric model. In addition, limits on the production of an invisibly decaying Higgs-like boson leading to similar topologies in the final state are presente

Measurement of the cross-section of high transverse momentum vector bosons reconstructed as single jets and studies of jet substructure in pp collisions at √s = 7 TeV with the ATLAS detector

This paper presents a measurement of the cross-section for high transverse momentum W and Z bosons produced in pp collisions and decaying to all-hadronic final states. The data used in the analysis were recorded by the ATLAS detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider at a centre-of-mass energy of √s = 7 TeV;{\rm Te}{\rm V}$and correspond to an integrated luminosity of$4.6\;{\rm f}{{{\rm b}}^{-1}}$. The measurement is performed by reconstructing the boosted W or Z bosons in single jets. The reconstructed jet mass is used to identify the W and Z bosons, and a jet substructure method based on energy cluster information in the jet centre-of-mass frame is used to suppress the large multi-jet background. The cross-section for events with a hadronically decaying W or Z boson, with transverse momentum${{p}_{{\rm T}}}\gt 320\;{\rm Ge}{\rm V}$and pseudorapidity$|\eta |\lt 1.9$, is measured to be${{\sigma }_{W+Z}}=8.5\pm 1.7$ pb and is compared to next-to-leading-order calculations. The selected events are further used to study jet grooming techniques

Search for direct pair production of the top squark in all-hadronic final states in proton-proton collisions at s√=8 TeV with the ATLAS detector

The results of a search for direct pair production of the scalar partner to the top quark using an integrated luminosity of 20.1fb−1 of proton–proton collision data at √s = 8 TeV recorded with the ATLAS detector at the LHC are reported. The top squark is assumed to decay via t˜→tχ˜01 or t˜→ bχ˜±1 →bW(∗)χ˜01 , where χ˜01 (χ˜±1 ) denotes the lightest neutralino (chargino) in supersymmetric models. The search targets a fully-hadronic final state in events with four or more jets and large missing transverse momentum. No significant excess over the Standard Model background prediction is observed, and exclusion limits are reported in terms of the top squark and neutralino masses and as a function of the branching fraction of t˜ → tχ˜01 . For a branching fraction of 100%, top squark masses in the range 270–645 GeV are excluded for χ˜01 masses below 30 GeV. For a branching fraction of 50% to either t˜ → tχ˜01 or t˜ → bχ˜±1 , and assuming the χ˜±1 mass to be twice the χ˜01 mass, top squark masses in the range 250–550 GeV are excluded for χ˜01 masses below 60 GeV

Search for pair-produced long-lived neutral particles decaying to jets in the ATLAS hadronic calorimeter in ppcollisions at √s=8TeV

The ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN is used to search for the decay of a scalar boson to a pair of long-lived particles, neutral under the Standard Model gauge group, in 20.3fb−1of data collected in proton–proton collisions at √s=8TeV. This search is sensitive to long-lived particles that decay to Standard Model particles producing jets at the outer edge of the ATLAS electromagnetic calorimeter or inside the hadronic calorimeter. No significant excess of events is observed. Limits are reported on the product of the scalar boson production cross section times branching ratio into long-lived neutral particles as a function of the proper lifetime of the particles. Limits are reported for boson masses from 100 GeVto 900 GeV, and a long-lived neutral particle mass from 10 GeVto 150 GeV

Fitness, motor competence and body composition as correlates of adolescent neck/shoulder pain: an exploratory cross-sectional study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Adolescent neck/shoulder pain (NSP) is a common and sometimes debilitating problem. Several risk factors for this condition have been investigated, but no studies have previously evaluated associations between fitness, motor competence, body composition and adolescent NSP.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>1608 males and females of mean age 14 years answered questions on their history of NSP (4 measures), and were tested for aerobic fitness, upper and lower limb power, trunk endurance, grip strength, shoulder flexibility, motor competence and anthropometric factors. Univariate and multivariate logistic regressions were used to test for associations between NSP and physical variables.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>There were significant gender differences for most physical and pain variables. After multivariate analysis, males had lower odds of NSP if they had reduced back endurance [OR: 0.66 (95% CI: 0.46–0.97)], reduced persistent control [0.42 (0.19–0.95], and increased muscle power [0.33 (0.12–0.94)], and higher odds of NSP if they had a higher basketball throw [2.47 (1.22–5.00)] and jump performance [3.47 (1.55–7.74)]. Females had lower odds for NSP if they had a reduced jump performance [0.61(0.41–0.92)], a better basketball throw [0.60(0.40–0.90)], lower shoulder flexibility [0.54 (0.30–0.98)] and a higher aerobic capacity [0.61 (0.40–0.93)], and higher odds for NSP if they had greater abdominal endurance [1.57(1.07–2.31)] and greater bimanual dexterity [1.77(1.18–2.65)]. Females showed a U shaped relationship between NSP and back endurance [low: 2.12 (1.20–3.74); high 2.12 (1.18–3.83)].</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Adolescent NSP was associated with fitness and motor competence, although the associations varied with gender, and their strength was limited.</p