4,064 research outputs found
On the use of evanescent fields to investigate nanoscale phenomena - from optical forces to cellular processes.
Influence of a monitored aerobic training and a low-energy diet on serum leptin concentration in obese women
The study focused on the influence of a 9-week monitored energy deficit on serum leptin level in 16 obese women. Additionally, measurements of body components and total cholesterol (CHO), HDL cholesterol (HDL) and triacylglycerols (TRG) concentration in blood were carried out, concentration of LDL cholesterol (LDL) was evaluated. Energy deficit was induced by a diet and “fat burning” type exercises. Leptin concentration in blood serum was significantly higher before (41.7±16.5 ng/ml) than after the accomplishment of experiment (24.7±16.2 ng/ml). Body mass decreased, which was mainly due to a drop in body fat (from 36.6±13.9 kg to 29.0±12.5 kg). All changes have been statistically significant at the level of P<0.001. A significant decrease of CHO (from 187.9±26.3 mg/dl to 167.1±25.4 mg/dl; P<0.001) and LDL (from 115.5±25.1 mg/dl to 102.3±21.5 mg/dl; P<0.05) concentration in blood was noticed. However, changes in HDL and TRG concentration were statistically insignificant. There was a statistically significant correlation (P<0.05) recorded between changes in leptin concentration in blood and changes in body mass, BMI and body fat (0.51; 0.58; 0.64 respectively). No correlation was observed between leptin and lean body mass, CHO, HDL, LDL or TRG
Elevating crop disease resistance with cloned genes
Essentially all plant species exhibit heritable genetic variation for resistance to a variety of plant diseases caused by fungi, bacteria, oomycetes or viruses. Disease losses in crop monocultures are already significant, and would be greater but for applications of disease-controlling agrichemicals. For sustainable intensification of crop production, we argue that disease control should as far as possible be achieved using genetics rather than using costly recurrent chemical sprays. The latter imply CO2 emissions from diesel fuel and potential soil compaction from tractor journeys. Great progress has been made in the past 25 years in our understanding of the molecular basis of plant disease resistance mechanisms, and of how pathogens circumvent them. These insights can inform more sophisticated approaches to elevating disease resistance in crops that help us tip the evolutionary balance in favour of the crop and away from the pathogen. We illustrate this theme with an account of a genetically modified (GM) blight-resistant potato trial in Norwich, using the Rpi-vnt1.1 gene isolated from a wild relative of potato, Solanum venturii, and introduced by GM methods into the potato variety Desiree
Head-on collisions of unequal mass black holes in D=5 dimensions
We study head-on collisions of unequal mass black hole binaries in D=5
space-time dimensions, with mass ratios between 1:1 and 1:4. Information about
gravitational radiation is extracted by using the Kodama-Ishibashi
gauge-invariant formalism and details of the apparent horizon of the final
black hole. For the first time, we present waveforms, total integrated energy
and momentum for this process. Our results show surprisingly good agreement,
within 5% or less, with those extrapolated from linearized, point-particle
calculations. Our results also show that consistency with the area theorem
bound requires that the same process in a large number of spacetime dimensions
must display new features.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures, RevTex4. v2: Published versio
Numerical Relativity in D dimensional space-times: Collisions of unequal mass black holes
We present unequal mass head-on collisions of black holes in D = 5 dimensional space-times. We have simulated BH systems with mass ratios q = 1,1/2,1/3,1/4. We extract the total energy radiated throughout the collision and compute the linear momentum flux and the recoil velocity of the final black hole. The numerical results show very good agreement with point particle calculations when extrapolated to this limit
Numerical Relativity in D dimensional space-times: Collisions of unequal mass black holes
We present unequal mass head-on collisions of black holes in D = 5 dimensional space-times. We have simulated BH systems with mass ratios q = 1,1/2,1/3,1/4. We extract the total energy radiated throughout the collision and compute the linear momentum flux and the recoil velocity of the final black hole. The numerical results show very good agreement with point particle calculations when extrapolated to this limit
Numerical Relativity in D dimensional space-times: Collisions of unequal mass black holes
We present unequal mass head-on collisions of black holes in D = 5 dimensional space-times. We have simulated BH systems with mass ratios q = 1,1/2,1/3,1/4. We extract the total energy radiated throughout the collision and compute the linear momentum flux and the recoil velocity of the final black hole. The numerical results show very good agreement with point particle calculations when extrapolated to this limit
How Do Axisymmetric Black Holes Grow Monopole and Dipole Hair?
We study the dynamical formation of scalar monopole and dipole hair in scalar
Gauss-Bonnet theory and dynamical Chern-Simons theory. We prove that the
spherically-symmetric mode of the dipole hair is completely determined by the
product of the mass of the spacetime and the value of the monopole hair. We
then show that the dynamics of the mode of the dipole hair is
intimately tied to the appearance of the event horizon during axisymmetric
collapse, which results in the radiation of certain modes that could have been
divergent in the future of the collapse. We confirm these analytical
predictions by simulating the gravitational collapse of a rapidly rotating
neutron star in the decoupling limit, both in scalar Gauss-Bonnet and dynamical
Chern-Simons theory. Our results, combined with those of Ref.~\cite{R:2022cwe},
provide a clear physical picture of the dynamics of scalar monopole and dipole
radiation in axisymmetric and spherical gravitational collapse in these
theories.Comment: v2-matches published version in PR
Nuclear factor-kappa B: Glucocorticoid-induced leucine zipper interface analogs suppress pathology in an Alzheimer's disease model
Introduction
Glucocorticoid-induced leucine zipper is a regulatory protein that sequesters activated nuclear factor-kappa B p65. Previously, we showed that rationally designed analogs of the p65-binding domain of glucocorticoid-induced leucine zipper, referred to as glucocorticoid-induced leucine zipper analogs (GAs), inhibited amyloid β–induced metabolic activity and inflammatory cytokines in mixed brain cell cultures. Here, we investigate the therapeutic efficacy of GA in an Alzheimer's disease model.
Methods
GA and control peptides were synthesized covalently as peptide amides with the cell-penetrating agent. C57Bl/6J mice induced with lipopolysaccharide-mediated neuroinflammation (250 mg/kg i.p/day for six days) were treated on alternate days with GA-1, GA-2, or control peptides (25 mg/kg i.v). Brain tissues were assessed for gliosis, cytokines, and antiapoptotic factors.
Results
The brain tissues of GA-1– and GA-2–treated mice exhibited significantly reduced gliosis, suppressed inflammatory cytokines, and elevated antiapoptotic factors.
Discussion
The antineuroinflammatory effects of GA suggest potential therapeutic application for Alzheimer's disease
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