A Mechanism for Chronic Filarial Hydrocele with Implications for Its Surgical Repair

Chronic hydrocele is the accumulation of fluid around the testis leading to an increase in the volume of the scrotal contents. Depending on the volume of fluid, hydrocele can be disfiguring and even incapacitating. Chronic hydrocele has multiple etiologies, but irrespective of the cause, surgery is the standard form of treatment and this can be done using different surgical techniques. The prevalence of chronic hydrocele in bancroftian filariasis endemic areas—a parasitic disease transmitted by mosquito—is very high and represents the most common clinical manifestation of bancroftosis, following by swollen legs of lower limbs or lymphedema among women. In Greater Recife, northeastern, Brazil, a bancroftian filariasis endemic area, a pioneering, prospective surgical study proposes a new mechanism for filarial-induced hydrocele and presents evidence that the filarial hydrocele fluid may damage the testis. Thus, based on the findings presented, the authors propose that in bancroftian filariasis endemic areas hydrocele patients should be operated on using a specific surgical technique in order to avoid recurrence of the disease, and consequently, additional damage to the testicle

Characterization of variational quantum algorithms using free fermions

We study variational quantum algorithms from the perspective of free fermions. By deriving the explicit structure of the associated Lie algebras, we show that the Quantum Approximate Optimization Algorithm (QAOA) on a one-dimensional lattice -- with and without decoupled angles -- is able to prepare all fermionic Gaussian states respecting the symmetries of the circuit. Leveraging these results, we numerically study the interplay between these symmetries and the locality of the target state, and find that an absence of symmetries makes nonlocal states easier to prepare. An efficient classical simulation of Gaussian states, with system sizes up to $80$ and deep circuits, is employed to study the behavior of the circuit when it is overparameterized. In this regime of optimization, we find that the number of iterations to converge to the solution scales linearly with system size. Moreover, we observe that the number of iterations to converge to the solution decreases exponentially with the depth of the circuit, until it saturates at a depth which is quadratic in system size. Finally, we conclude that the improvement in the optimization can be explained in terms of of better local linear approximations provided by the gradients

Photoproduction at collider energies: from RHIC and HERA to the LHC

We present the mini-proceedings of the workshop on ``Photoproduction at collider energies: from RHIC and HERA to the LHC'' held at the European Centre for Theoretical Studies in Nuclear Physics and Related Areas (ECT*, Trento) from January 15 to 19, 2007. The workshop gathered both theorists and experimentalists to discuss the current status of investigations of high-energy photon-induced processes at different colliders (HERA, RHIC, and Tevatron) as well as preparations for extension of these studies at the LHC. The main physics topics covered were: (i) small-$x$ QCD in photoproduction studies with protons and in electromagnetic (aka. ultraperipheral) nucleus-nucleus collisions, (ii) hard diffraction physics at hadron colliders, and (iii) photon-photon collisions at very high energies: electroweak and beyond the Standard Model processes. These mini-proceedings consist of an introduction and short summaries of the talks presented at the meeting

Oxidation of graphene on metals

We use low-energy electron microscopy to investigate how graphene is removed from Ru(0001) and Ir(111) by reaction with oxygen. We find two mechanisms on Ru(0001). At short times, oxygen reacts with carbon monomers on the surrounding Ru surface, decreasing their concentration below the equilibrium value. This undersaturation causes a flux of carbon from graphene to the monomer gas. In this initial mechanism, graphene is etched at a rate that is given precisely by the same non-linear dependence on carbon monomer concentration that governs growth. Thus, during both growth and etching, carbon attaches and detaches to graphene as clusters of several carbon atoms. At later times, etching accelerates. We present evidence that this process involves intercalated oxygen, which destabilizes graphene. On Ir, this mechanism creates observable holes. It also occurs mostly quickly near wrinkles in the graphene islands, depends on the orientation of the graphene with respect to the Ir substrate, and, in contrast to the first mechanism, can increase the density of carbon monomers. We also observe that both layers of bilayer graphene islands on Ir etch together, not sequentially.Comment: 15 pages, 10 figures. Manuscript revised to improve discussion, following referee comments. Accepted for publication in Journal of Physical Chemistry C, Feb. 11, 201

An X-ray Imaging Study of the Stellar Population in RCW49

We present the results of a high-resolution X-ray imaging study of the stellar population in the Galactic massive star-forming region RCW49 and its central OB association Westerlund 2. We obtained a 40 ks X-ray image of a 17'x17' field using the Chandra X-ray Observatory and deep NIR images using the Infrared Survey Facility in a concentric 8'3x8'3 region. We detected 468 X-ray sources and identified optical, NIR, and Spitzer Space Telescope MIR counterparts for 379 of them. The unprecedented spatial resolution and sensitivity of the X-ray image, enhanced by optical and infrared imaging data, yielded the following results: (1) The central OB association Westerlund 2 is resolved for the first time in the X-ray band. X-ray emission is detected from all spectroscopically-identified early-type stars in this region. (2) Most (86%) X-ray sources with optical or infrared identifications are cluster members in comparison with a control field in the Galactic Plane. (3) A loose constraint (2--5 kpc) for the distance to RCW49 is derived from the mean X-ray luminosity of T Tauri stars. (4) The cluster X-ray population consists of low-mass pre--main-sequence and early-type stars as obtained from X-ray and NIR photometry. About 30 new OB star candidates are identified. (5) We estimate a cluster radius of 6'--7' based on the X-ray surface number density profiles. (6) A large fraction (90%) of cluster members are identified individually using complimentary X-ray and MIR excess emission. (7) The brightest five X-ray sources, two Wolf-Rayet stars and three O stars, have hard thermal spectra.Comment: 19 pages, 17 figures, 4 tables. ApJ in pres

Varying Fine Structure Constant and Black Hole Physics

Recent astrophysical observations suggest that the value of fine structure constant $\alpha=e^2/\hbar c$ may be slowly increasing with time. This may be due to an increase of $e$ or a decrease of $c$, or both. In this article, we argue from model independent considerations that this variation should be considered adiabatic. Then, we examine in detail the consequences of such an adiabatic variation in the context of a specific model of quantized charged black holes. We find that the second law of black hole thermodynamics is obeyed, regardless of the origin of the variation, and that interesting constraints arise on the charge and mass of black holes. Finally, we estimate the work done on a black hole of mass $M$ due to the proposed $\alpha$ variation.Comment: 7 Pages, Revtex. Reference added, minor changes. Version to appear in Class. Quant. Gra

Novel low resistivity glass: MRPC detectors for ultra high rate applications

Abstract Multigap Resistive Plate Chambers (MRPCs) are often used as time-of-flight (TOF) detectors for high-energy physics and nuclear experiments thanks to their excellent time accuracy. For the Compressed Baryonic Matter (CBM) TOF system, MRPCs are required to work at particle fluxes on the order of 1-10 kHz/ c m 2 for the outer region and 10-25 kHz/ c m 2 for the central region. Better time resolution will allow particle identification with TOF techniques to be performed at higher momenta. From our previous studies, a time resolution of 25 ps has been obtained with a 20-gap MRPC of 140 μ m gap size with enhanced rate capbability. By using a new type of commercially available thin low-resistivity glass, further improvement MRPC rate capability is possible. In order to study the rate capability of the 10-gap MRPC built with this new low-resistivity glass, we have performed tests using the continuous electron beam at ELBE. This 10-gap MRPC, with 160 μ m gaps, reaches 97% efficiency at 19.2 kV and a time resolution of 36 ps at particle fluxes near 2 kHz/ c m 2 . At a flux of 100 kHz/ c m 2 , the efficiency is still above 95% and a time resolution of 50 ps is obtained, which would fulfil the requirement of CBM TOF system

Evaluation of the GenoType MTBDRsl Version 2.0 Assay for second-line drug resistance detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates in South Africa

Early detection of resistance to second-line antituberculosis drugs is important for the management of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). The GenoType MTBDRsl version 2.0 (VER 2.0) line probe assay has been redesigned for molecular detection of resistance-conferring mutations of fluoroquinolones (FLQ) (gyrA and gyrB genes) and second-line injectable drugs (SLID) (rrs and eis genes). The study evaluated the diagnostic performance of the GenoType MTBDRsl VER 2.0 assay for the detection of second-line drug resistance compared with phenotypic drug susceptibility testing (DST), using the Bactec MGIT 960 system on Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex isolates from South Africa. A total of 268 repository isolates collected between 2012 and 2014, which were rifampin monoresistant or MDR based on DST, were selected. MTBDRsl VER 2.0 testing was performed on these isolates and the results analyzed. The MTBDRsl VER 2.0 sensitivity and specificity indices for culture isolates were the following: FLQ, 100% (95% confidence interval [CI] 95.8 to 100%) and 98.9% (95% CI, 96.1 to 99.9%); SLID, 89.2% (95% CI, 79.1 to 95.6%) and 98.5% (95% CI, 95.7 to 99.7%). The sensitivity and specificity observed for individual SLID were the following: amikacin, 93.8% (95% CI, 79.2 to 99.2%) and 98.5% (95% CI, 95.5 to 99.7%); kanamycin, 89.2% (95% CI, 79.1 to 95.6%) and 98.5% (95% CI, 95.5 to 99.7%); and capreomycin, 86.2% (95% CI, 68.3 to 96.1%) and 95.9% (95% CI, 92.2 to 98.2%). An interoperator reproducibility of 100% and an overall interlaboratory performance of 93% to 96% were found. The overall improvement in sensitivity and specificity with excellent reproducibility makes the GenoType MTBDRsl VER 2.0 a highly suitable tool for rapid screening of clinical isolates for second-line drug resistance for use in high-burden TB/HIV settings.CTB NICD/NHLShttp://jcm.asm.org2017-09-30Medical Microbiolog

Influence of uncorrelated overlayers on the magnetism in thin itinerant-electron films

The influence of uncorrelated (nonmagnetic) overlayers on the magnetic properties of thin itinerant-electron films is investigated within the single-band Hubbard model. The Coulomb correlation between the electrons in the ferromagnetic layers is treated by using the spectral density approach (SDA). It is found that the presence of nonmagnetic layers has a strong effect on the magnetic properties of thin films. The Curie temperatures of very thin films are modified by the uncorrelated overlayers. The quasiparticle density of states is used to analyze the results. In addition, the coupling between the ferromagnetic layers and the nonmagnetic layers is discussed in detail. The coupling depends on the band occupation of the nonmagnetic layers, while it is almost independent of the number of the nonmagnetic layers. The induced polarization in the nonmagnetic layers shows a long-range decreasing oscillatory behavior and it depends on the coupling between ferromagnetic and nonmagnetic layers.Comment: 9 pages, RevTex, 6 figures, for related work see: http://orion.physik.hu-berlin.d