Baryonic D Decay Ds+→pnˉD_s^+\to p\bar n and Its Implication

The channel $D_s^+\to p\bar n$ is the only kinematically allowed baryonic D decay. It proceeds solely through the W-annihilation topology. Hence, a recent observation of this mode by CLEO will shed light on the dynamics of W-annihilation. At the short-distance level, its branching ratio is very small, of order $10^{-6}$, owing to chiral suppression. It receives long-distance contributions through final-state scattering of the leading tree and color-suppressed amplitudes. Assuming that the long-distance enhancement of W-annihilation in the baryonic D decay is similar to that in the mesonic $D_s^+$ decay, where the latter can be obtained from the analysis of the diagrammatic approach, we find that $D_s^+\to p\bar n$ becomes visible. The observation of this baryonic D decay implies the dynamical enhancement of the W-annihilation topology in the $D_s^+$ decay.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figures, one reference added, to appear in PL

The role of concurrent chemoradiotherapy in the treatment of locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma among endemic population: a meta-analysis of the phase iii randomized trials

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The main objective of this meta-analysis was to determine the clinical benefit of concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) compared with radiation alone (RT) in the treatment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients in endemic geographic areas.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Using a prospective meta-analysis protocol, two independent investigators reviewed the publications and extracted the data. Published randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in which patients with NPC in endemic areas were randomly assigned to receive CCRT or RT alone were included.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Seven trials (totally 1608 patients) were eligible. Risk ratios (RRs) of 0.63 (95% CI, 0.50 to 0.80), 0.76 (95% CI, 0.61 to 0.93) and 0.74 (95% CI, 0.62 to 0.89) were observed for 2, 3 and 5 years OS respectively in favor of the CCRT group. The RRs were larger than that detected in the previously reported meta-analyses (including both endemic and non-endemic), indicating that the relative benefit of survival was smaller than what considered before.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This is the first meta-analysis of CCRT vs. RT alone in NPC treatment which included studies only done in endemic area. The results confirmed that CCRT was more beneficial compared with RT alone. However, the relative benefit of CCRT in endemic population might be less than that from previous meta-analyses.</p

IL-12 RB1 Genetic Variants Contribute to Human Susceptibility to Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Infection among Chinese

BACKGROUND: Cytokines play important roles in antiviral action. We examined whether polymorphisms of interleukin (IL)-12 receptor B1 (IL-12RB1) affect the susceptibility to and outcome of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). METHODS: A case-control study was carried out in Chinese SARS patients and healthy controls. The genotypes of 4SNPs on IL-12 RB1 gene, +705A/G,+1158T/C, +1196G/C and +1664 C/T, were determined by PCR-RFLP. Haplotypes were estimated from the genotype data using the expectation-maximisation algorithm. RESULTS: Comparison between patients and close contacts showed that individuals with the +1664 C/T (CT and TT) genotype had a 2.09-fold (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.90-7.16) and 2.34-fold (95% CI, 1.79-13.37) increased risk of developing SARS, respectively. For any of the other three polymorphisms, however, no significant difference can be detected in allele or genotype frequencies between patients and controls. Additionally, estimation of the frequencies of multiple-locus haplotypes revealed potential risk haplotypes (GCCT) for SARS infection. CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicate that genetic variants of IL12RB1confer genetic susceptibility to SARS infection, but not necessary associated with the progression of the disease in Chinese population

Searches for B0(s)→J/ψppˉ and B+→J/ψppˉπ+ decays

The results of searches for B0(s)→J/ψ pp¯ and B + → J/ψ p p¯ π+ decays are reported. The analysis is based on a data sample, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 1.0 fb−1 of pp collisions, collected with the LHCb detector. An excess with 2.8 σ significance is seen for the decay B0s→J/ψ pp¯ and an upper limit on the branching fraction is set at the 90 % confidence level: B(B0s→J/ψ pp¯) < 4.8 × 10−6, which is the first such limit. No significant signals are seen for B0 → J/ψ pp¯ and B+ → J/ψ pp¯ π + decays, for which the corresponding limits are set: B(B0→J/ψ pp¯) < 5.2 × 10−7, which significantly improves the existing limit; and B(B+→J/ψ pp¯π+) < 5.0 × 10−7, which is the first limit on this branching fraction

Upregulation of miR-31* Is Negatively Associated with Recurrent/Newly Formed Oral Leukoplakia

BACKGROUND: Oral leukoplakia (OLK) is a potentially malignant disorder of the oral cavity. However, the underlying mechanism of OLK is still unclear. In this study, we explore possible miRNAs involved in OLK. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Using miRNA microarrays, we profiled miRNA expression in OLK and malignantly transformed OLK (mtOLK) tissue samples. The upregulation of miR-31*, miR-142-5p, miR-33a, miR-1259, miR-146b-5p, miR-886-3p, miR-886-5p, miR-519d, and miR-301a along with the downregulation of miR-572, miR-611, miR-602, miR-675, miR-585, miR-623, miR-637, and miR-1184 in mtOLK were new observations. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analyses confirmed that miR-31* is highly expressed in mtOLK. There was a significant difference between the FISH score (p<0.05) in patients with or without recurrent/newly formed OLK. Functional analyses demonstrated that a miR-31* inhibitor decreased apoptosis in the Leuk-1, which is an immortalized oral epithelial cell line spontaneously derived from an oral leukoplakia lesion. miR-31* regulated apoptosis, cell proliferation, migration, and invasion in the HOIEC, which is a HPV E6/E7-immortalized oral epithelial cell line. Furthermore, miR-31* modulated the biological functions of apoptosis, cell proliferation, cell cycle, migration, and invasion in the oral squamous cell carcinoma cell line, Cal-27. Using bioinformatic analyses and dual luciferase reporter assays, we determined that the 3' untranslated region of fibroblast growth factor 3 (FGF3) is the target of miR-31*. Expression of FGF3 was downregulated or upregulated in the presence of a miR-31* mimic or inhibitor, respectively. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Upregulation of miR-31* is negatively associated with recurrent/newly formed OLK. MiR-31* may exert similar but distinguishable effects on biological function in oral cells with different malignant potential. FGF3 is the target of miR-31*. miR-31* may play an important role during OLK progression through regulating FGF3. MiRNA* strands may also have prominent roles in oral carcinogenesis

A state of the art of required techniques for employing activated carbon in renewable energy powered adsorption applications

This paper reviews, for the first time, the measurement adsorption characteristics techniques to facilitate optimal testing of the validity of adsorbent materials in adsorption applications. Thermo-physical properties, adsorption characteristics and modelling techniques are presented. The characterisation of material thermo-physical properties includes true and bulk densities, specific heat capacity, surface area, pore volume distribution and thermal conductivity. The adsorption characteristics were categorized into adsorption isotherms and kinetics including experimental and theoretical equations. A range of models used in the simulation of adsorption cooling systems is presented and discussed. The paper highlights the conditions for which each measurement technique is most suitable and the limitations of modelling techniques, which is a vital element in the robust assessment of the performance of adsorption cooling units

Robust estimation of bacterial cell count from optical density

Optical density (OD) is widely used to estimate the density of cells in liquid culture, but cannot be compared between instruments without a standardized calibration protocol and is challenging to relate to actual cell count. We address this with an interlaboratory study comparing three simple, low-cost, and highly accessible OD calibration protocols across 244 laboratories, applied to eight strains of constitutive GFP-expressing E. coli. Based on our results, we recommend calibrating OD to estimated cell count using serial dilution of silica microspheres, which produces highly precise calibration (95.5% of residuals &lt;1.2-fold), is easily assessed for quality control, also assesses instrument effective linear range, and can be combined with fluorescence calibration to obtain units of Molecules of Equivalent Fluorescein (MEFL) per cell, allowing direct comparison and data fusion with flow cytometry measurements: in our study, fluorescence per cell measurements showed only a 1.07-fold mean difference between plate reader and flow cytometry data