Whole Genome and Tandem Duplicate Retention facilitated Glucosinolate Pathway Diversification in the Mustard Family.

Plants share a common history of successive whole genome duplication (WGD) events retaining genomic patterns of duplicate gene copies (ohnologs) organized in conserved syntenic blocks. Duplication was often proposed to affect the origin of novel traits during evolution. However, genetic evidence linking WGD to pathway diversification is scarce. We show that WGD and Tandem Duplication (TD) accelerated genetic versatility of plant secondary metabolism, exemplified with the glucosinolate (GS) pathway in the Mustard Family. GS biosynthesis is a well-studied trait, employing at least 52 biosynthetic and regulatory genes in the model plant Arabidopsis. In a phylogenomics approach, we identified 67 GS loci in Aethionema arabicum of the tribe Aethionemae, sister group to all Mustard Family members. All but one of the Arabidopsis GS gene families evolved orthologs in Aethionema and all but one of the orthologous sequence pairs exhibit synteny. The 45% fraction of duplicates among all protein-coding genes in Arabidopsis was increased to 95 and 97% for Arabidopsis and Aethionema GS pathway inventory, respectively. Compared to the 22% average for all protein-coding genes in Arabidopsis, 52 and 56% of Aethionema and Arabidopsis GS loci align to ohnolog copies dating back to the last common WGD event. While 15% of all Arabidopsis genes are organized in tandem arrays, 45% and 48% of GS loci in Arabidopsis and Aethionema descend from TD, respectively. We describe a sequential combination of tandem- and whole genome duplication events driving gene family extension, thereby expanding the evolutionary playground for functional diversification and thus potential novelty and success

H\"older-continuous rough paths by Fourier normal ordering

We construct in this article an explicit geometric rough path over arbitrary $d$-dimensional paths with finite $1/\alpha$-variation for any $\alpha\in(0,1)$. The method may be coined as 'Fourier normal ordering', since it consists in a regularization obtained after permuting the order of integration in iterated integrals so that innermost integrals have highest Fourier frequencies. In doing so, there appear non-trivial tree combinatorics, which are best understood by using the structure of the Hopf algebra of decorated rooted trees (in connection with the Chen or multiplicative property) and of the Hopf shuffle algebra (in connection with the shuffle or geometric property). H\"older continuity is proved by using Besov norms. The method is well-suited in particular in view of applications to probability theory (see the companion article \cite{Unt09} for the construction of a rough path over multidimensional fractional Brownian motion with Hurst index $\alpha<1/4$, or \cite{Unt09ter} for a short survey in that case).Comment: 50 pages, 6 figure

Composite quarks and leptons in higher space-time dimensions

A new approach towards the composite structure of quarks and leptons in the context of the higher dimensional unified theories is proposed. Owing to the certain strong dynamics, much like an ordinary QCD, every possible vectorlike multiplets of composites appear in higher dimensional bulk space-time, however, through a proper Sherk-Schwarz compactification only chiral set of composite quarks and leptons survive as the massless states in four dimensions. In this scenario restrictions related with the 't Hooft's anomaly matching condition are turned out to be avoided and, as a result, the composite models look rather simple and economic. We demonstrate our approach by an explicit construction of model of preons and their composites unified in the supersymmetric SU(5) GUT in five space-time dimensions. The model predicts exactly three families of the composite quarks and leptons being the triplets of the chiral horizontal symmetry SU(3)_h which automatically appears in the composite spectrum when going to ordinary four dimensions.Comment: 13 pages, tcilatex, no figures, v2 - misprints correcte

Magnetic properties of exactly solvable doubly decorated Ising-Heisenberg planar models

Applying the decoration-iteration procedure, we introduce a class of exactly solvable doubly decorated planar models consisting both of the Ising- and Heisenberg-type atoms. Exact solutions for the ground state, phase diagrams and basic physical quantities are derived and discussed. The detailed analysis of the relevant quantities suggests the existence of an interesting quantum antiferromagnetic phase in the system.Comment: 9 pages, 9 figures, submitted to Physical Review

Hadronic Mass Spectrum Analysis of D+ into K- pi+ mu+ nu Decay and Measurement of the K*(892)^0 Mass and Width

We present a Kpi mass spectrum analysis of the four-body semileptonic charm decay D+ into K- pi+ mu+ nu in the range of 0.65 GeV < mKpi < 1.5 GeV. We observe a non-resonant contribution of 5.30 +- 0.74 +0.99 -0.51 % with respect to the total D+ into K- pi+ mu+ nu decay. For the K*(892)^0 resonance, we obtain a mass of 895.41 +- 0.32 +0.35 -0.36 MeV, a width of 47.79 +- 0.86 +1.3 -1.1 MeV, and a Blatt-Weisskopf damping factor parameter of 3.96 +- 0.54 +0.72 -0.90 GeV^(-1). We also report 90 % CL upper limits of 4 % and 0.64 % for the branching ratios of D+ into K*(1680)^0 mu+ nu with respect to D+ into K- pi+ mu+ nu and D+ into K*(1430)^0 mu+ nu with respect to D+ into K- pi+ mu+ nu, respectively.Comment: 14 page

Measurements of the Production, Decay and Properties of the Top Quark: A Review

With the full Tevatron Run II and early LHC data samples, the opportunity for furthering our understanding of the properties of the top quark has never been more promising. Although the current knowledge of the top quark comes largely from Tevatron measurements, the experiments at the LHC are poised to probe top-quark production and decay in unprecedented regimes. Although no current top quark measurements conclusively contradict predictions from the standard model, the precision of most measurements remains statistically limited. Additionally, some measurements, most notably the forward-backward asymmetry in top quark pair production, show tantalizing hints of beyond-the-Standard-Model dynamics. The top quark sample is growing rapidly at the LHC, with initial results now public. This review examines the current status of top quark measurements in the particular light of searching for evidence of new physics, either through direct searches for beyond the standard model phenomena or indirectly via precise measurements of standard model top quark properties

The composition of the protosolar disk and the formation conditions for comets

Conditions in the protosolar nebula have left their mark in the composition of cometary volatiles, thought to be some of the most pristine material in the solar system. Cometary compositions represent the end point of processing that began in the parent molecular cloud core and continued through the collapse of that core to form the protosun and the solar nebula, and finally during the evolution of the solar nebula itself as the cometary bodies were accreting. Disentangling the effects of the various epochs on the final composition of a comet is complicated. But comets are not the only source of information about the solar nebula. Protostellar disks around young stars similar to the protosun provide a way of investigating the evolution of disks similar to the solar nebula while they are in the process of evolving to form their own solar systems. In this way we can learn about the physical and chemical conditions under which comets formed, and about the types of dynamical processing that shaped the solar system we see today. This paper summarizes some recent contributions to our understanding of both cometary volatiles and the composition, structure and evolution of protostellar disks.Comment: To appear in Space Science Reviews. The final publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11214-015-0167-

Global Search for New Physics with 2.0/fb at CDF

Data collected in Run II of the Fermilab Tevatron are searched for indications of new electroweak-scale physics. Rather than focusing on particular new physics scenarios, CDF data are analyzed for discrepancies with the standard model prediction. A model-independent approach (Vista) considers gross features of the data, and is sensitive to new large cross-section physics. Further sensitivity to new physics is provided by two additional algorithms: a Bump Hunter searches invariant mass distributions for "bumps" that could indicate resonant production of new particles; and the Sleuth procedure scans for data excesses at large summed transverse momentum. This combined global search for new physics in 2.0/fb of ppbar collisions at sqrt(s)=1.96 TeV reveals no indication of physics beyond the standard model.Comment: 8 pages, 7 figures. Final version which appeared in Physical Review D Rapid Communication