Molecular Community Analysis of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi in Roots of Geothermal Soils in Yellowstone National Park (USA)

To better understand adaptation of plants and their mycorrhizae to extreme environmental conditions, we analyzed the composition of communities of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) in roots from geothermal sites in Yellowstone National Park (YNP), USA. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi were identified using molecular methods including seven specific primer pairs for regions of the ribosomal DNA that amplify different subgroups of AMF. Roots of Dichanthelium lanuginosum, a grass only occurring in geothermal areas, were sampled along with thermal and nonthermal Agrostis scabra and control plants growing outside the thermally influenced sites. In addition, root samples of Agrostis stolonifera from geothermal areas of Iceland were analyzed to identify possible common mycosymbionts between these geographically isolated locations. In YNP, 16 ribosomal DNA phylotypes belonging to the genera Archaeospora, Glomus, Paraglomus, Scutellospora, and Acaulospora were detected. Eight of these phylotypes could be assigned to known morphospecies, two others have been reported previously in molecular studies from different environments, and six were new to science. The most diverse and abundant lineage was Glomus group A, with the most frequent phylotype corresponding to Glomus intraradices. Five of the seven phylotypes detected in a preliminary sampling in a geothermal area in Iceland were also found in YNP. Nonthermal vegetation was dominated by a high diversity of Glomus group A phylotypes while nonthermal plants were not. Using multivariate analyses, a subset of three phylotypes were determined to be associated with geothermal conditions in the field sites analyzed. In conclusion, AMF communities in geothermal soils are distinct in their composition, including both unique phylotypes and generalist fungi that occur across a broad range of environmental condition

Epithelial cell–derived secreted and transmembrane 1a signals to activated neutrophils during pneumococcal pneumonia

Airway epithelial cell responses are critical to the outcome of lung infection. In this study, we aimed to identify unique contributions of epithelial cells during lung infection. To differentiate genes induced selectively in epithelial cells during pneumonia, we compared genome-wide expression profiles from three sorted cell populations: epithelial cells from uninfected mouse lungs, epithelial cells from mouse lungs with pneumococcal pneumonia, and nonepithelial cells from those same infected lungs. Of 1,166 transcripts that were more abundant in epithelial cells from infected lungs compared with nonepithelial cells from the same lungs or from epithelial cells of uninfected lungs, 32 genes were identified as highly expressed secreted products. Especially strong signals included two related secreted and transmembrane (Sectm) 1 genes, Sectm1a and Sectm1b. Refinement of sorting strategies suggested that both Sectm1 products were induced predominantly in conducting airway epithelial cells. Sectm1 was induced during the early stages of pneumococcal pneumonia, and mutation of NF-kB RelA in epithelial cells did not diminish its expression. Instead, type I IFN signaling was necessary and sufficient for Sectm1 induction in lung epithelial cells, mediated by signal transducer and activator of transcription 1. For target cells, Sectm1a bound to myeloid cells preferentially, in particular Ly6GbrightCD11bbright neutrophils in the infected lung. In contrast, Sectm1a did not bind to neutrophils from uninfected lungs. Sectm1a increased expression of the neutrophil-attracting chemokine CXCL2 by neutrophils from the infected lung. We propose that Sectm1a is an epithelial product that sustains a positive feedback loop amplifying neutrophilic inflammation during pneumococcal pneumonia

Wear Behavior of Low-Cost, Lightweight TiC/Ti-6Al-4V Composite Under Fretting: Effectiveness of Solid-Film Lubricant Counterparts

The wear behavior of low-cost, lightweight 10-wt% TiC-particulate-reinforced Ti-6Al-4V matrix composite (TiC/Ti- 6Al-4V) was examined under fretting at 296, 423, and 523 K in air. Bare 10-wt% TiC/Ti-6Al-4V hemispherical pins were used in contact with dispersed multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs), magnetron-sputtered diamondlike carbon/chromium (DLC/Cr), magnetron-sputtered graphite-like carbon/chromium (GLC/Cr), and magnetron-sputtered molybdenum disulphide/titanium (MoS2/Ti) deposited on Ti-6Al-4V, Ti-48Al-2Cr-2Nb, and nickel-based superalloy 718. When TiC/Ti-6Al-4V was brought into contact with bare Ti-6Al-4V, bare Ti-48Al-2Cr-2Nb, and bare nickel-based superalloy 718, strong adhesion, severe galling, and severe wear occurred. However, when TiC/Ti-6Al-4V was brought into contact with MWNT, DLC/Cr, GLC/Cr, and MoS2/Ti coatings, no galling occurred in the contact, and relatively minor wear was observed regardless of the coating. All the solid-film lubricants were effective from 296 to 523 K, but the effectiveness of the MWNT, DLC/Cr, GLC/Cr, and MoS2/Ti coatings decreased as temperature increased

Search for squarks and gluinos with the ATLAS detector in final states with jets and missing transverse momentum using √s=8 TeV proton-proton collision data

A search for squarks and gluinos in final states containing high-p T jets, missing transverse momentum and no electrons or muons is presented. The data were recorded in 2012 by the ATLAS experiment in s√=8 TeV proton-proton collisions at the Large Hadron Collider, with a total integrated luminosity of 20.3 fb−1. Results are interpreted in a variety of simplified and specific supersymmetry-breaking models assuming that R-parity is conserved and that the lightest neutralino is the lightest supersymmetric particle. An exclusion limit at the 95% confidence level on the mass of the gluino is set at 1330 GeV for a simplified model incorporating only a gluino and the lightest neutralino. For a simplified model involving the strong production of first- and second-generation squarks, squark masses below 850 GeV (440 GeV) are excluded for a massless lightest neutralino, assuming mass degenerate (single light-flavour) squarks. In mSUGRA/CMSSM models with tan β = 30, A 0 = −2m 0 and μ > 0, squarks and gluinos of equal mass are excluded for masses below 1700 GeV. Additional limits are set for non-universal Higgs mass models with gaugino mediation and for simplified models involving the pair production of gluinos, each decaying to a top squark and a top quark, with the top squark decaying to a charm quark and a neutralino. These limits extend the region of supersymmetric parameter space excluded by previous searches with the ATLAS detector

Measurement of the cross-section and charge asymmetry of WW bosons produced in proton-proton collisions at s=8\sqrt{s}=8 TeV with the ATLAS detector

This paper presents measurements of the $W^+ \rightarrow \mu^+\nu$ and $W^- \rightarrow \mu^-\nu$ cross-sections and the associated charge asymmetry as a function of the absolute pseudorapidity of the decay muon. The data were collected in proton--proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 8 TeV with the ATLAS experiment at the LHC and correspond to a total integrated luminosity of 20.2~\mbox{fb^{-1}}. The precision of the cross-section measurements varies between 0.8% to 1.5% as a function of the pseudorapidity, excluding the 1.9% uncertainty on the integrated luminosity. The charge asymmetry is measured with an uncertainty between 0.002 and 0.003. The results are compared with predictions based on next-to-next-to-leading-order calculations with various parton distribution functions and have the sensitivity to discriminate between them.Comment: 38 pages in total, author list starting page 22, 5 figures, 4 tables, submitted to EPJC. All figures including auxiliary figures are available at https://atlas.web.cern.ch/Atlas/GROUPS/PHYSICS/PAPERS/STDM-2017-13

Search for direct production of charginos and neutralinos in events with three leptons and missing transverse momentum in √s = 7 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for the direct production of charginos and neutralinos in final states with three electrons or muons and missing transverse momentum is presented. The analysis is based on 4.7 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data delivered by the Large Hadron Collider and recorded with the ATLAS detector. Observations are consistent with Standard Model expectations in three signal regions that are either depleted or enriched in Z-boson decays. Upper limits at 95% confidence level are set in R-parity conserving phenomenological minimal supersymmetric models and in simplified models, significantly extending previous results

Measurement of the production of a W boson in association with a charm quark in pp collisions at √s = 7 TeV with the ATLAS detector

The production of a W boson in association with a single charm quark is studied using 4.6 fb−1 of pp collision data at s√ = 7 TeV collected with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. In events in which a W boson decays to an electron or muon, the charm quark is tagged either by its semileptonic decay to a muon or by the presence of a charmed meson. The integrated and differential cross sections as a function of the pseudorapidity of the lepton from the W-boson decay are measured. Results are compared to the predictions of next-to-leading-order QCD calculations obtained from various parton distribution function parameterisations. The ratio of the strange-to-down sea-quark distributions is determined to be 0.96+0.26−0.30 at Q 2 = 1.9 GeV2, which supports the hypothesis of an SU(3)-symmetric composition of the light-quark sea. Additionally, the cross-section ratio σ(W + +c¯¯)/σ(W − + c) is compared to the predictions obtained using parton distribution function parameterisations with different assumptions about the s−s¯¯¯ quark asymmetry

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