Extreme AO Observations of Two Triple Asteroid Systems with SPHERE

We present the discovery of a new satellite of asteroid (130) Elektra - S/2014 (130) 1 - in differential imaging and in integral field spectroscopy data over multiple epochs obtained with SPHERE/VLT. This new (second) moonlet of Elektra is about 2 km across, on an eccentric orbit and about 500 km away from the primary. For a comparative study, we also observed another triple asteroid system (93) Minerva. For both systems, component-resolved reflectance spectra of the satellites and primary were obtained simultaneously. No significant spectral difference was observed between the satellites and the primary for either triple system. We find that the moonlets in both systems are more likely to have been created by sub-disruptive impacts as opposed to having been captured.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, 1 table, accepted to be published in the Astrophysical Journal Letter

Extreme genetic diversity in asexual grass thrips populations.

The continuous generation of genetic variation has been proposed as one of the main factors explaining the maintenance of sexual reproduction in nature. However, populations of asexual individuals may attain high levels of genetic diversity through within-lineage diversification, replicate transitions to asexuality from sexual ancestors and migration. How these mechanisms affect genetic variation in populations of closely related sexual and asexual taxa can therefore provide insights into the role of genetic diversity for the maintenance of sexual reproduction. Here, we evaluate patterns of intra- and interpopulation genetic diversity in sexual and asexual populations of Aptinothrips rufus grass thrips. Asexual A. rufus populations are found throughout the world, whereas sexual populations appear to be confined to few locations in the Mediterranean region. We found that asexual A. rufus populations are characterized by extremely high levels of genetic diversity, both in comparison with their sexual relatives and in comparison with other asexual species. Migration is extensive among asexual populations over large geographic distances, whereas close sexual populations are strongly isolated from each other. The combination of extensive migration with replicate evolution of asexual lineages, and a past demographic expansion in at least one of them, generated high local clone diversities in A. rufus. These high clone diversities in asexual populations may mimic certain benefits conferred by sex via genetic diversity and could help explain the extreme success of asexual A. rufus populations

Sex-biased gene expression is repeatedly masculinized in asexual females.

Males and females feature strikingly different phenotypes, despite sharing most of their genome. A resolution of this apparent paradox is through differential gene expression, whereby genes are expressed at different levels in each sex. This resolution, however, is likely to be incomplete, leading to conflict between males and females over the optimal expression of genes. Here we test the hypothesis that gene expression in females is constrained from evolving to its optimum level due to sexually antagonistic selection on males, by examining changes in sex-biased gene expression in five obligate asexual species of stick insect, which do not produce males. We predicted that the transcriptome of asexual females would be feminized as asexual females do not experience any sexual conflict. Contrary to our prediction we find that asexual females feature masculinized gene expression, and hypothesise that this is due to shifts in female optimal gene expression levels following the suppression of sex

Health related quality of life in pregeriatric patients with chronic diseases at urban, public supported clinics

BACKGROUND: Understanding health-related quality of life (HRQOL) leads to more effective and focused healthcare. America's growing health disparities makes it is increasingly necessary to understand the HRQOL of pregeriatric individuals who are now 55–64 years old, i.e. before they are eligible for federally mandated health care at age 65. Our study measured the self-perceived HRQOL of pregeriatric, poor patients with multiple chronic diseases treated at 2 public clinics. METHODS: Consecutive patients aged 55–64 years, many with multiple chronic diseases, responded in an interview to the 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF–36) as a general measure of HRQOL during a regular visit to one of two university-staffed urban public clinics. RESULTS: The perceived physical and mental functioning of 316 pregeriatric patients was tabulated from SF–36 scores to yield their HRQOL. Their scores were statistically significantly lower than those of the general US pregeriatric population and lower than averages for US patients with multiple chronic diseases. All eight subscale scores of SF–36 were 16% to 36% lower compared with the averages of the general US pregeriatric population. Further, as the number of chronic diseases increased, the lower was the HRQOL. Lower physical and mental scores were associated with a lower income, unemployment, and higher numbers of multiple chronic diseases. CONCLUSION: Chronic diseases have a powerful negative impact on perceived mental and physical functioning in pregeriatric patients. HRQOL information can assist health care providers to gain a more complete picture of their pregeriatric patients' health

Очищення водних систем від надлишку фосфатів за допомогою бентоніту, активованого надвисокочастотним випромінюванням

The sorption properties of natural bentonite irradiated with microwaves were studied on the sample of the removal of phosphate ions from concentrated solutions. Physical and chemical methods of analysis and graphical-analytical processing of experimental results are used. The bentonite sorption parameters are determined in static conditions. The concentration of phosphate ions in working solutions before and after sorption purification is determined by photometric method. Bentonite samples were used as sorbent in various preliminary preparations. The first option is a native (unprocessed) sample; the second option is bentonite activated by washing it with pure water under the action of a microwave ("stimulated"); the third option – microwave irradiation of the bentonite suspension is made directly in the working solutions of phosphates ("direct irradiation"). It is shown that the latter method of activation significantly increases the sorption capacity of bentonite by phosphate ion compared to the native and "stimulated" sorbent. The adsorption curves of phosphate ions by bentonite with "direct irradiation" of the solution by microwaves are well described by the Langmuir model. The boundary equilibrium adsorption of phosphates (monolayer capacity) is 6.13 mg/g for the "direct irradiation" method, compared to 2.54 mg/g ("stimulated" sample) and 1.15 mg/g (native sample). It is suggested that as a result of irradiation of the microwave suspension, it is possible to overcome the activation barrier and the emergence of microcrystals of insoluble phosphates on the surface of the sorbent crystals. As a result, the sorption capacitance of bentonite by phosphate ion increases sharply. Significant influence of acidity and temperature of the solution on adsorption parameters of phosphate ions by bentonite is noted. The result of the study is a quantitative assessment of the positive effect of microwave irradiation on improving the sorption parameters of bentonite as a promising sorbent for the purification of wastewater from excess phosphates. Further work in this direction should be directed to establish a clear influence of power, duration, frequency and other characteristics of ultrahigh-frequency radiation on the sorption characteristics of natural sorbents.Вивчено сорбційні властивості бентоніту, опроміненого мікрохвилями, на прикладі вилучення ним фосфат-іонів із концентрованих розчинів. Використано фізико-хімічні методи аналізу та графічно-аналітичну обробку результатів експериментів. Досліджено нативні (необроблені) зразки сорбенту та зразки, опромінені мікрохвилями у два способи: а) попереднє промивання бентоніту чистою водою під дією мікрохвиль ("стимуляція"); б) опромінення мікрохвилями суспензії бентоніту безпосередньо в робочих розчинах фосфатів ("пряме опромінення"). Показано, що останній спосіб активації збільшує сорбційну здатність бентоніту за фосфат-іоном порівняно з нативним та "стимульованим" сорбентом. Криві адсорбції фосфат-іонів бентонітом під час "прямого опромінення" розчину мікрохвилями добре описано моделлю Ленгмюра. Гранична рівноважна адсорбція фосфатів (ємність моношару) становить 6,13 мг/г для способу "прямого опромінення", порівняно з 2,54 мг/г ("стимульований" зразок) та 1,15 мг/г (нативний зразок). Припущено, що внаслідок опромінення суспензії мікрохвилями можливо подолати активаційний бар'єр та зароджуються мікрокристали нерозчинних фосфатів на поверхні кристалів сорбенту. Внаслідок цього різко збільшується сорбційна ємність бентоніту за фосфат-іоном. Відзначено значний вплив кислотності та температури розчину на параметри адсорбції фосфат-іонів бентонітом

Multi-Transition Study of M51's Molecular Gas Spiral Arms

Two selected regions in the molecular gas spiral arms in M51 were mapped with the Owens Valley Radio Observatory (OVRO) mm-interferometer in the 12CO(2-1), 13CO(1-0), C18O(1-0), HCN(1-0) and HCO+(1-0) emission lines. The CO data have been combined with the 12CO(1-0) data from Aalto et al. (1999) covering the central 3.5kpc to study the physical properties of the molecular gas. All CO data cubes were short spacing corrected using IRAM 30m (12CO(1-0): NRO 45m) single dish data. A large velocity gradient (LVG) analysis finds that the giant molecular clouds (GMCs) are similar to Galactic GMCs when studied at 180pc (120pc) resolution with an average kinetic temperature of T_kin = 20(16)K and H_2 density of n(H_2) = 120(240)cm^(-3) when assuming virialized clouds (a constant velocity gradient dv/dr. The associated conversion factor between H_2 mass and CO luminosity is close to the Galactic value for most regions analyzed. Our findings suggest that the GMC population in the spiral arms of M51 is similar to those of the Milky Way and therefore the strong star formation occurring in the spiral arms has no strong impact on the molecular gas in the spiral arms. Extinction inferred from the derived H_2 column density is very high (A_V about 15 - 30 mag), about a factor of 5-10 higher than the average value derived toward HII regions. Thus a significant fraction of the ongoing star formation could be hidden inside the dust lanes of the spiral arms. A comparison of MIPS 24um and H_alpha data, however, suggests that this is not the case and most of the GMCs studied here are not (yet) forming stars. We also present low (4.5") resolution OVRO maps of the HCN(1-0) and HCO+(1-0) emission at the location of the brightest 12CO(1-0) peak.Comment: 41 pages, 12 figures, 7 tables; accepted for publication by Ap

ЗАБРУДНЕННЯ АТМОСФЕРНОГО ПОВІТРЯ АВТОМОБІЛЬНИМ ТРАНСПОРТОМ НА В’ЇЗДАХ ДО М. ЛЬВОВА

Introduction. Atmospheric air pollution by mobile sources, which includes automotive transport, is a problem of large cities, in particular Lviv. This problem especially applies to main streets at the entrances to the city. Studying regularities of pollutant concentrations in the air depending on the time of day is an important task, the solution of which will make it possible to predict periods exceeding the maximum allowable concentrations.Purpose. The purpose of the work is to establish the factors of atmospheric air pollution at the main entrances to the city of Lviv and their forecasting.Methods. The article uses methods of analysis and statistical methods of research based on open data of air quality measurements.Results. The analysis of publications shows that the use of road transport is currently growing in Ukraine, which causes an increase in emissions of pollutants. Within the framework of various governmental and non-governmental projects, atmospheric air pollution in cities is monitored, however, the indicators that are determined relate mainly to the concentration of dust particles. However, the biggest source of pollution is the exhaust gases of internal combustion engines, which contain NO2, NO, SO2, CO, etc. The Open Data of Lviv online resource was used to research the state and dynamics of pollution, in particular, the monitoring of pollutant concentrations at city intersections in spring, summer, autumn and winter for several years. In total, for four pollutants during the years 2021-2023, an exceedance of the threshold limit values was observed for CO up to 22% and for NO2 up to 30%. According to other indicators, there were no excesses.Based on the monitoring of pollution and traffic intensity at the entrances presented by the data of the mobile operator, a model was built, which makes it possible to forecast the periods of exceeding the threshold limit values of pollutants at the main entrances to the city of Lviv. Using the model, it was found that exceeding the threshold limit values during the day is unequal, which can be caused by the daily migration of the population from suburban areas and the flow of transit vehicles through the city.Conclusion. Thus, the problem of air pollution at the main entrances to the city of Lviv relates to exceeding the threshold limit values of NO2 and CO. It can be solved by improving traffic patterns and improving commuter transport, which can replace private vehicles for daily commutes to the city in the morning and back home in the evening.Проблема. Забруднення атмосферного повітря рухомими джерелами, до яких відносять автомобільний транспорт, є проблемою великих міст, зокрема Львова. Особливо це стосується магістральних вулиць на в’їздах у місто. Вивчення закономірностей концентрації забруднювачів у повітрі від часу доби є актуальним завданням, вирішення якого дасть можливість прогнозувати періоди перевищення гранично допустимих концентрацій.Мета. Метою роботи є встановлення чинників забруднень атмосферного повітря на основних в’їздах у місто Львів та їх прогнозування.Методи дослідження. У роботі застосовано методи аналізу та статистичні методи досліджень за відкритими даними вимірювань якості повітря.Основні результати досліджень. Аналіз публікацій свідчить, що використання автомобільного транспорту на теперішній час в Україні зростає, що спричиняє збільшення викидів забруднюючих речовин. В рамках різноманітних державних та неурядових проектів проводиться моніторинг забруднень атмосферного повітря у містах, однак показники, які визначаються, стосуються переважно концентрації часток пилу. Але найбільшим джерелом забруднень є вихлопні гази двигунів внутрішнього згоряння, у яких містяться NO2, NO, SO2, CO та ін. Для досліджень стану та динаміки забруднень використано онлайн-ресурс Відкриті дані Львова, зокрема моніторинг концентрацій забруднювачів на перехрестях міста навесні, влітку, восени та взимку протягом декількох років. Загалом за чотирма забруднювачами упродовж 2021-2023 років перевищення ГДК спостерігалося для CO до 22% та для NO2 до 30%. За іншими показниками перевищень не було. За даними моніторингу забруднень та інтенсивності трафіку на в’їздах за даними мобільного оператора побудовано модель, за допомогою якої можна прогнозувати періоди перевищення ГДК забруднювачів на основних в’їздах до міста Львова. За допомогою моделі виявлено, що перевищення ГДК протягом доби є неоднаковим, що може бути зумовлене добовою міграцією населення з приміських зон та потоком транзитного автотранспорту через місто.Висновки. Таким чином, проблема забруднення повітря на основних в’їздах у місто Львів стосується перевищення ГДК NO2 і CO. Її можна вирішити удосконаленням схем дорожнього руху та покращенням руху приміського транспорту, який може замінити приватний автотранспорт для щоденного добирання до міста вранці та повернення додому увечері

Skeletal muscle transcriptional coactivator PGC-1alpha mediates mitochondrial, but not metabolic, changes during calorie restriction

Calorie restriction (CR) is a dietary intervention that extends lifespan and healthspan in a variety of organisms. CR improves mitochondrial energy production, fuel oxidation, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging in skeletal muscle and other tissues, and these processes are thought to be critical to the benefits of CR. PGC-1alpha is a transcriptional coactivator that regulates mitochondrial function and is induced by CR. Consequently, many of the mitochondrial and metabolic benefits of CR are attributed to increased PGC-1alpha activity. To test this model, we examined the metabolic and mitochondrial response to CR in mice lacking skeletal muscle PGC-1alpha (MKO). Surprisingly, MKO mice demonstrated a normal improvement in glucose homeostasis in response to CR, indicating that skeletal muscle PGC-1alpha is dispensable for the whole-body benefits of CR. In contrast, gene expression profiling and electron microscopy (EM) demonstrated that PGC-1alpha is required for the full CR-induced increases in mitochondrial gene expression and mitochondrial density in skeletal muscle. These results demonstrate that PGC-1alpha is a major regulator of the mitochondrial response to CR in skeletal muscle, but surprisingly show that neither PGC-1alpha nor mitochondrial biogenesis in skeletal muscle are required for the whole-body metabolic benefits of CR

Design optimization of ironless multi-stage axial-flux permanent magnet generators for offshore wind turbines

Direct-driven ironless-stator machines have been reported to have low requirements on the strength of the supporting structures. This feature is attractive for offshore wind turbines, where lightweight generators are preferred. However, to produce sufficient torque, ironless generators are normally designed with large diameters, which can be a challenge to the machine’s structural reliability. The ironless multi-stage axial-flux permanent magnet generator (MS-AFPMG) has the advantages of ironless machines but a relatively small diameter. The objective of this article is to present the design optimization and performance investigation of the ironless MS-AFPMG. An existing design strategy, which employs two- and three-dimensional static finite element analyses and genetic algorithm for machine optimization, is improved with the aim of reducing the calculation load and calculation time. This improved design strategy is used to investigate the optimal ironless MS-AFPMG. Some intrinsic features of this kind of machine are revealed