2,625 research outputs found
Scaling of Anisotropic Flows and Nuclear Equation of State in Intermediate Energy Heavy Ion Collisions
Elliptic flow () and hexadecupole flow () of light clusters have
been studied in details for 25 MeV/nucleon Kr + Sn at large
impact parameters by Quantum Molecular Dynamics model with different potential
parameters. Four parameter sets which include soft or hard equation of state
(EOS) with/without symmetry energy term are used. Both number-of-nucleon ()
scaling of the elliptic flow versus transverse momentum () and the scaling
of versus have been demonstrated for the light clusters
in all above calculation conditions. It was also found that the ratio of
keeps a constant of 1/2 which is independent of for all the
light fragments. By comparisons among different combinations of EOS and
symmetry potential term, the results show that the above scaling behaviors are
solid which do not depend the details of potential, while the strength of flows
is sensitive to EOS and symmetry potential term.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure
Observation of Interplanetary Scintillation with Single-Station Mode at Urumqi
The Sun affects the Earth's physical phenomena in multiple ways, in
particular the material in interplanetary space comes from coronal expansion in
the form of inhomogeneous plasma flow (solar wind), which is the primary source
of the interplanetary medium. Ground-based Interplanetary Scintillation (IPS)
observations are an important and effective method for measuring solar wind
speed and the structures of small diameter radio sources. We discuss one mode
of ground-based single-station observations: Single-Station Single-Frequency
(SSSF) mode. To realize the SSSF mode, a new system has been established at
Urumqi Astronomical Observatory (UAO), China, and a series of experimental
observations were carried out successfully from May to December, 2008
Constraints on Lorentz invariance violation from gamma-ray burst GRB090510
We obtain modified dispersion relations by requiring the vanishing of
determinant of inverse of modified photon propagators in Lorentz invariance
violation (LIV) theory. Inspired by these dispersion relations, we give a more
general dispersion relation with less assumption and apply it to the recent
observed gamma-ray burst GRB090510 to extract various constraints on LIV
parameters. We find that the constraint on quantum gravity mass is slightly
larger than the Planck mass but is consistent with the other recent
observations, so the corresponding LIV coefficient has reached the
natural order () as one expects. From our analysis, the linear LIV
corrections to photon group velocity might be not excluded yet.Comment: 10 latex pages, no figures, version accepted for publication in PR
Metallic surface states in a correlated d-electron topological Kondo insulator candidate FeSb2
The resistance of a conventional insulator diverges as temperature approaches
zero. The peculiar low temperature resistivity saturation in the 4f Kondo
insulator (KI) SmB6 has spurred proposals of a correlation-driven topological
Kondo insulator (TKI) with exotic ground states. However, the scarcity of model
TKI material families leaves difficulties in disentangling key ingredients from
irrelevant details. Here we use angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy
(ARPES) to study FeSb2, a correlated d-electron KI candidate that also exhibits
a low temperature resistivity saturation. On the (010) surface, we find a rich
assemblage of metallic states with two-dimensional dispersion. Measurements of
the bulk band structure reveal band renormalization, a large
temperature-dependent band shift, and flat spectral features along certain high
symmetry directions, providing spectroscopic evidence for strong correlations.
Our observations suggest that exotic insulating states resembling those in SmB6
and YbB12 may also exist in systems with d instead of f electrons
Operator entanglement of two-qubit joint unitary operations revisited: Schmidt number approach
Operator entanglement of two-qubit joint unitary operations is revisited.
Schmidt number is an important attribute of a two-qubit unitary operation, and
may have connection with the entanglement measure of the unitary operator. We
found the entanglement measure of two-qubit unitary operators is classified by
the Schmidt number of the unitary operators. The exact relation between the
operator entanglement and the parameters of the unitary operator is clarified
too.Comment: To appear in the Brazilian Journal of Physic
Enhanced Virus-Specific CD8\u3csup\u3e+\u3c/sup\u3e T Cell Responses by Listeria Monocytogenes-Infected Dendritic Cells in the Context of Tim-3 Blockade
In this study, we engineered Listeria monocytogens (Lm) by deleting the LmΔactA/ΔinlB virulence determinants and inserting HCV-NS5B consensus antigens to develop a therapeutic vaccine against hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. We tested this recombinant Lm-HCV vaccine in triggering of innate and adaptive immune responses in vitro using immune cells from HCV-infected and uninfected individuals. This live-attenuated Lm-HCV vaccine could naturally infect human dendritic cells (DC), thereby driving DC maturation and antigen presentation, producing Th1 cytokines, and triggering CTL responses in uninfected individuals. However, vaccine responses were diminished when using DC and T cells derived from chronically HCV-infected individuals, who express higher levels of inhibitory molecule Tim-3 on immune cells. Notably, blocking Tim-3 signaling significantly improved the innate and adaptive immune responses in chronically HCV-infected patients, indicating that novel strategies to enhance the potential of antigen presentation and cellular responses are essential for developing an effective therapeutic vaccine against HCV infection
Study on the One-Proton Halo Structure in Al
The Glauber theory has been used to investigate the reaction cross section of
proton-rich nucleus Al. A core plus a proton structure is assumed for
Al. HO-type density distribution is used for the core while the density
distribution for the valence proton is calculated by solving the eigenvalue
problem of Woods-Saxon potential. The transparency function in an analytical
expression is obtained adopting multi-Gaussian expansion for the density
distribution. Coulomb correction and finite-range interaction are introduced.
This modified Glauber model is apt for halo nuclei. A dominate s-wave is
suggested for the last proton in Al from our analysis which is possible
in the RMF calculation.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Tim-3 Negatively Regulates IL-12 Expression by Monocytes in HCV Infection
T cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain-containing protein 3 (Tim-3) is a newly identified negative immunomodulator that is up-regulated on dysfunctional T cells during viral infections. The expression and function of Tim-3 on human innate immune responses during HCV infection, however, remains poorly characterized. In this study, we report that Tim-3 is constitutively expressed on human resting CD14+ monocyte/macrophages (M/MØ) and functions as a cap to block IL-12, a key pro-inflammatory cytokine linking innate and adaptive immune responses. Tim-3 expression is significantly reduced and IL-12 expression increased upon stimulation with Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) ligand - lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and TLR7/8 ligand - R848. Notably, Tim-3 is over-expressed on un-stimulated as well as TLR-stimulated M/MØ, which is inversely associated with the diminished IL-12 expression in chronically HCV-infected individuals when compared to healthy subjects. Up-regulation of Tim-3 and inhibition of IL-12 are also observed in M/MØ incubated with HCV-expressing hepatocytes, as well as in primary M/MØ or monocytic THP-1 cells incubated with HCV core protein, an effect that mimics the function of complement C1q and is reversible by blocking the HCV core/gC1qR interaction. Importantly, blockade of Tim-3 signaling significantly rescues HCV-mediated inhibition of IL-12, which is primarily expressed by Tim-3 negative M/MØ. Tim-3 blockade reduces HCV core-mediated expression of the negative immunoregulators PD-1 and SOCS-1 and increases STAT-1 phosphorylation. Conversely, blocking PD-1 or silencing SOCS-1 gene expression also decreases Tim-3 expression and enhances IL-12 secretion and STAT-1 phosphorylation. These findings suggest that Tim-3 plays a crucial role in negative regulation of innate immune responses, through crosstalk with PD-1 and SOCS-1 and limiting STAT-1 phosphorylation, and may be a novel target for immunotherapy to HCV infection
Efficient inhibition of lung cancer in murine model by plasmid-encoding VEGF short hairpin RNA in combination with low-dose DDP
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>VEGF is a well-validated target for antiangiogenic intervention in cancer. To date, RNAi technology has been proven to be a promising approach for targeted therapy. DDP is frequently used as a first-line drug in chemotherapy for lung cancer but usually causes severe toxicity. In this study, we investigated a novel strategy of administering and combining RNAi mediated VEGF-targeted therapy with DDP for treatment of lung cancer, with the aim of increasing efficacy and decreasing toxicity.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>In this study, a plasmid encoding VEGF shRNA was constructed to knockdown VEGF both in vitro and in vivo. In vitro, specificity and potency of the targeting sequence were validated in A549 lung adenocarcinoma cells by RT-PCR and ELISA assays. In vivo, therapy experiments were conducted on nude mice bearing A549 xenograft tumors. The VEGF shRNA expressing plasmids were administered systemically in combination with low-dose DDP on a frequent basis. The tumor volume and weight were measured. MVD, the number of apoptotic cells and proliferation index in tumor tissues were assessed by CD31, TUNEL and PCNA immunostaining.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The VEGF shRNA was highly effective in attenuating VEGF expression both in vitro and in vivo. The treatment with the VEGF shRNA alone reduced the mean tumor weight by 49.40% compared with the blank control (P < 0.05). The treatment with the VEGF shRNA plus DDP yielded maximal benefits by reducing the mean tumor weight by 83.13% compared with the blank control (P < 0.01). The enhanced antitumor efficacy was associated with decreased angiogenesis and increased induction of apoptosis.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our study demonstrated synergistic antitumor activity of combined VEGF shRNA expressing plasmids and low-dose DDP with no overt toxicity, suggesting potential applications of the combined approach in the treatment of lung cancer.</p
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