6,831 research outputs found
Reinforcing the link between the double red clump and the X-shaped bulge of the Milky Way
The finding of a double red clump in the luminosity function of the Milky Way bulge has been interpreted as evidence for an X-shaped structure. Recently, an alternative explanation has been suggested, where the double red clump is an effect of multiple stellar populations in a classical spheroid. In this Letter we provide an observational assessment of this scenario and show that it is not consistent with the behaviour of the red clump across different lines of sight, particularly at high distances from the Galactic plane. Instead, we confirm that the shape of the red clump magnitude distribution closely follows the distance distribution expected for an X-shaped bulge at critical Galactic latitudes. We also emphasize some key observational properties of the bulge red clump that should not be neglected in the search for alternative scenarios
Beryllium abundances in stars hosting giant planets
We have derived beryllium abundances in a wide sample of stars hosting
planets, with spectral types in the range F7V-K0V, aimed at studying in detail
the effects of the presence of planets on the structure and evolution of the
associated stars. Predictions from current models are compared with the derived
abundances and suggestions are provided to explain the observed
inconsistencies. We show that while still not clear, the results suggest that
theoretical models may have to be revised for stars with Teff<5500K. On the
other hand, a comparison between planet host and non-planet host stars shows no
clear difference between both populations. Although preliminary, this result
favors a ``primordial'' origin for the metallicity ``excess'' observed for the
planetary host stars. Under this assumption, i.e. that there would be no
differences between stars with and without giant planets, the light element
depletion pattern of our sample of stars may also be used to further
investigate and constraint Li and Be depletion mechanisms.Comment: A&A in press -- accepted on the 22/02/2002 (11 pages, 6 figures
included
Herida antebraquial infectada por Aeromonas hydrophila
Se presenta un caso de celulitis por Aeromonas hydrophila, en un paciente de
23 años, tras una herida antebraquial producida en el medio acuático. La celulitis se resolvió
mediante desbridamiento agresivo y quimioterapia. En los controles posteriores no se han
apreciado déficits funcionales tras la infección.A case of Aeromonas hidrophila cellulitis developped in a 23-year-old patient,
after aquatic environment forearm wound is presented. His cellulitis was effectively resolved
with aggressive debridement and chemotherapy. Follow-up examinations have shown no residual
functional deficits from the infection
Spatial distribution of small hydrocarbons in the neighborhood of the Ultra Compact HII region Monoceros R2
We study the chemistry of small hydrocarbons in the photon-dominated regions
(PDRs) associated with the ultra-compact HII region Mon R2. Our goal is to
determine the variations of the abundance of small hydrocarbons in a high-UV
irradiated PDR and investigate their chemistry. We present an observational
study of CH, CCH and c-CH in Mon R2 combining data obtained with the
IRAM 30m telescope and Herschel. We determine the column densities of these
species, and compare their spatial distributions with that of polycyclic
aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH). We compare the observational results with different
chemical models to explore the relative importance of gas-phase, grain-surface
and time-dependent chemistry in these environments. The emission of the small
hydrocarbons show different patterns. The CCH emission is extended while CH and
c-CH are concentrated towards the more illuminated layers of the PDR.
The ratio of the column densities of c-CH and CCH shows spatial
variations up to a factor of a few, increasing from
_3_2 in the envelope to a maximum of
towards the 8m emission peak. Comparing these results
with other galactic PDRs, we find that the abundance of CCH is quite constant
over a wide range of G, whereas the abundance of c-CH is higher in
low-UV PDRs. In Mon R2, the gas-phase steady-state chemistry can account
relatively well for the abundances of CH and CCH in the most exposed layers of
the PDR, but falls short by a factor of 10 to reproduce c-CH.
In the molecular envelope, time-dependent effects and grain surface chemistry
play a dominant role in determining the hydrocarbons abundances. Our study
shows that CCH and c-CH present a complex chemistry in which UV
photons, grain-surface chemistry and time dependent effects contribute to
determine their abundances.Comment: 18 pages, 11 figures, 7 tables. Proposed for acceptance in A&A.
Abstract abridge
Are beryllium abundances anomalous in stars with giant planets?
In this paper we present beryllium (Be) abundances in a large sample of 41
extra-solar planet host stars, and for 29 stars without any known
planetary-mass companion, spanning a large range of effective temperatures. The
Be abundances were derived through spectral synthesis done in standard Local
Thermodynamic Equilibrium, using spectra obtained with various instruments. The
results seem to confirm that overall, planet-host stars have ``normal'' Be
abundances, although a small, but not significant, difference might be present.
This result is discussed, and we show that this difference is probably not due
to any stellar ``pollution'' events. In other words, our results support the
idea that the high-metal content of planet-host stars has, overall, a
``primordial'' origin. However, we also find a small subset of planet-host
late-F and early-G dwarfs that might have higher than average Be abundances.
The reason for the offset is not clear, and might be related either to the
engulfment of planetary material, to galactic chemical evolution effects, or to
stellar-mass differences for stars of similar temperature.Comment: 15 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy &
Astrophysic
Adding genetic scores to risk models in colorectal cancer
Colorectal cancer (CRC) represents the second most common cancer worldwide and the third leading cause of cancer death. Most CRCs arise from premalignant colorectal lesions (mainly adenomas) that require years to develop an invasive disease..
Beryllium anomalies in solar-type field stars
We present a study of beryllium (Be) abundances in a large sample of field
solar-type dwarfs and sub-giants spanning a large range of effective
temperatures. The analysis shows that Be is severely depleted for F stars, as
expected by the light-element depletion models. However, we also show that
Beryllium abundances decrease with decreasing temperature for stars cooler than
6000 K, a result that cannot be explained by current theoretical models
including rotational mixing, but that is, at least in part, expected from the
models that take into account internal wave physics. In particular, the light
element abundances of the coolest and youngest stars in our sample suggest that
Be, as well as lithium (Li), has already been burned early during their
evolution. Furthermore, we find strong evidence for the existence of a Be-gap
for solar-temperature stars. The analysis of Li and Be abundances in the
sub-giants of our sample also shows the presence of one case that has still
detectable amounts of Li, while Be is severely depleted. Finally, we compare
the derived Be abundances with Li abundances derived using the same set of
stellar parameters. This gives us the possibility to explore the temperatures
for which the onset of Li and Be depletion occurs.Comment: 16 pages, 13 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy &
Astrophysic
Engineered microenvironments for synergistic VEGF - integrin signalling during vascularization
We have engineered polymer-based microenvironments that promote vasculogenesis both in vitro and in vivo through synergistic integrin-growth factor receptor signalling. Poly(ethyl acrylate) (PEA) triggers spontaneous organization of fibronectin (FN) into nanonetworks which provide availability of critical binding domains. Importantly, the growth factor binding (FNIII12-14) and integrin binding (FNIII9-10) regions are simultaneously available on FN fibrils assembled on PEA. This material platform promotes synergistic integrin/VEGF signalling which is highly effective for vascularization events in vitro with low concentrations of VEGF. VEGF specifically binds to FN fibrils on PEA compared to control polymers (poly(methyl acrylate), PMA) where FN remains in a globular conformation and integrin/GF binding domains are not simultaneously available. The vasculogenic response of human endothelial cells seeded on these synergistic interfaces (VEGF bound to FN assembled on PEA) was significantly improved compared to soluble administration of VEGF at higher doses. Early onset of VEGF signalling (PLCγ1 phosphorylation) and both integrin and VEGF signalling (ERK1/2 phosphorylation) were increased only when VEGF was bound to FN nanonetworks on PEA, while soluble VEGF did not influence early signalling. Experiments with mutant FN molecules with impaired integrin binding site (FN-RGE) confirmed the role of the integrin binding site of FN on the vasculogenic response via combined integrin/VEGF signalling. In vivo experiments using 3D scaffolds coated with FN and VEGF implanted in the murine fat pad demonstrated pro-vascularization signalling by enhanced formation of new tissue inside scaffold pores. PEA-driven organization of FN promotes efficient presentation of VEGF to promote vascularization in regenerative medicine applications
Low X-ray Luminosity Galaxy Clusters. III: Weak Lensing Mass Determination at 0.18 z 0.70
This is the third of a series of papers of low X-ray luminosity galaxy
clusters. In this work we present the weak lensing analysis of eight clusters,
based on observations obtained with the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph in the
, and passbands. For this purpose, we have developed a pipeline
for the lensing analysis of ground-based images and we have performed tests
applied to simulated data. We have determined the masses of seven galaxy
clusters, six of them measured for the first time. For the four clusters with
availably spectroscopic data, we find a general agreement between the velocity
dispersions obtained via weak lensing assuming a Singular Isothermal Sphere
profile, and those obtained from the redshift distribution of member galaxies.
The correlation between our weak lensing mass determinations and the X-ray
luminosities are suitably fitted by other observations of the
relation and models
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