Spin polarization in a two-dimensional electron gas

We evaluate the charge and longitudinal spin response functions of a two-dimensional electron gas with $e^2/r$ interactions in an arbitrary state of spin polarization, using a structurally self-consistent approach to treat exchange and correlations. From the results we assess the nature of the magnetic order in the electronic ground state in zero magnetic field as a function of electron density. We find that states of partial spin polarization are thermodynamically unstable at all values of the coupling strength and that a first-order phase transition occurs with increasing coupling strength from the magnetically disorderd (paramagnetic) phase to the fully spin-polarized (ferromagnetic) phase. This behavior is in qualitative agreement with diffusion Monte Carlo data, although the location of the phase transition is underestimated in our calculations.Comment: 12 pages, 10 figuer

The Diversity of Theoretical Classifications: Scholarly Treatment of the Monarchic Political Formula in the Analysis of Modernization Efforts in Pahlavi Iran

The study of the Iranian monarchy under Mohammad Reza Shah from 1941 to 1979 is assumed to rely on the monarchic political formula as a determining factor for policy analysis. However, the monarchic political formula is not consistently or universally understood as an influential factor in social and political modernization efforts under the Shah. In fact, scholars at times apply their own definitions of the term monarchy inconsistently, potentially causing confusion among students of Iranian history and international relations. In this study, four influential theorists\u27 work is examined in relation to their understanding of the monarchic political formula during Mohammad Reza Shah\u27s modernization efforts in Iran. Their treatments of the Shah\u27s modernization efforts are studied in conjunction with their definitions of the term monarchy , providing the foundation for critical analysis of scholarly treatment of this important topic in political science

Procjena in vitro protoskolicidne učinkovitosti metanolnih biljnih ekstrakata na hidatidne ciste

The present study aimed at an evaluation of the protoscolicidal potential of methanolic extracts of three herbs; Ferula asafoetida (dried latex), Trachyspermum ammi (fruits) and Hippophae salicifolia (leaves) at three different concentrations (10, 20 and 30 mg/mL) for 20, 40 and 60 minute treatment intervals, with respect to standard allopathic drug albendazole. The in-vitro viability of the protoscolices was assessed by the Eosin exclusion method. The slope of mortality and lethal concentration for 50% (LC50) was determined from the regression graphs of the probit mortality of protoscolices plotted against log values of increasing concentrations of herbal extracts for 60 minute treatment intervals. The percentage of mortality caused by various extracts at concentrations ranging from 10-30 mg/mL varied from 29.54-97.76% with maximum mortality of 97.76, 97.30 and 81.91% recorded with methanolic extracts of F. asafoetida, T. ammi and H. salicifolia, respectively. Among all the extracts, the highest protoscolicidal activity was exhibited by F. asafoetida at 20 and 30 mg/mL concentrations in the 60 (97.16%) and 40/60 minutes (97.20% and 97.76%) treatments, respectively, and it showed a minimum LC50 value of 0.204, followed by T. ammi at 0.933. As compared to the standard allopathic drug, albendazole, the methanolic extracts of F. asafoetida and T. ammi exhibited better or comparable protoscolicidal activities.Cilj je istraživanja bila procjena protoskolicidnog potencijala metanolnih ekstrakata triju biljaka: Ferula asafoetida (sušena smola), Trachyspermum ammi (voće) i Hippophae salicifolia (lišće) u trima različitim koncentracijama (10, 20 i 30 mg/mL) u 20, 40 i 60-minutnim pokusnim intervalima u odnosu na standardni alopatski lijek albendazol. In vitro vitalnost protoskoleksa procijenjena je metodom isključivanja eozina. Krivulja pomora i smrtonosne koncentracije za 50 % (LC50) određena je iz regresijskih grafikona mortaliteta protoskoleksa u odnosu na log vrijednosti rastućih koncentracija biljnih ekstrakata tijekom 60-minutnog intervala. Pomor uzrokovan različitim ekstraktima u koncentracijama od 10 do 30 mg/mL varirao je od 29,54 do 97,76 % s najvišim postotkom od 97,76, 97,30 i 81,91 % u slučaju metanolnih ekstrakata F. asafoetida, T. ammi i H. salicifolia. Od svih primijenjenih ekstrakata najvišu protoskolicidnu aktivnost imala je F. asafoetida u koncentracijama od 20 i 30 mg/mL tijekom tretmana od 60 (97,16 %) i 40/60 minuta (97,20 i 97,76%), te je pokazala minimalnu vrijednost LC50 od 0,204, praćenu s T. ammi od 0,933. Usporedbom sa standardnim antiparazitikom albendazolom, metanolni ekstrakti biljaka F. asafoetida i T. ammi ostvarili su bolji ili slični protoskolicidni učinak

Hypertension in the Pediatric Kidney Transplant Recipient.

Hypertension after kidney transplant is a frequent occurrence in pediatric patients. It is a risk factor for graft loss and contributes to the significant burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in this population. The etiology of posttransplant hypertension is multifactorial including donor factors, recipient factors, medications, and lifestyle factors similar to those prevalent in the general population. Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring has emerged as the most reliable method for measuring hypertension in pediatric transplant recipients, and many consider it to be essential in the care of these patients. Recent technological advances including measurement of carotid intima-media thickness, pulse wave velocity, and myocardial strain using specked echocardiography and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging have improved our ability to assess CVD burden. Since hypertension remains underrecognized and inadequately treated, an early diagnosis and an appropriate control should be the focus of therapy to help improve patient and graft survival

Celastrus aculeatus Merr. suppresses the induction and progression of autoimmune arthritis by modulating immune response to heat-shock protein 65

Complementary and alternative medicine products are increasingly being used for the treatment of autoimmune diseases. However, the mechanisms of action of these agents are not fully defined. Using the rat adjuvant arthritis (AA) model of human rheumatoid arthritis, we determined whether the ethanol extract of Celastrus aculeatus Merr. (Celastrus), a Chinese herb, can down-modulate the severity of AA, and also examined the Celastrus-induced changes in immune responses to the disease-related antigen mycobacterial heat-shock protein 65 (Bhsp65). AA was induced in the Lewis (LEW; RT.1l) rat by immunization subcutaneously with heat-killed M. tuberculosis H37Ra (Mtb). Celastrus was fed to LEW rats by gavage daily, beginning either before Mtb challenge (preventive regimen) or after the onset of AA (therapeutic regimen). An additional group of rats was given methotrexate for comparison. All rats were graded regularly for the signs of arthritis. In parallel, the draining lymph node cells of Celastrus-treated rats were tested for proliferative and cytokine responses, whereas their sera were tested for the inflammatory mediator nitric oxide. Celastrus feeding suppressed both the induction as well as the progression of AA, and the latter effect was comparable to that of methotrexate. Celastrus treatment induced relative deviation of the cytokine response to anti-inflammatory type and enhanced the production of anti-Bhsp65 antibodies, which are known to be protective against AA. Celastrus feeding also reduced the levels of nitric oxide. On the basis of our results, we suggest further systematic exploration of Celastrus as an adjunct therapeutic modality for rheumatoid arthritis

The determinants of susceptibility/resistance to adjuvant arthritis in rats

Adjuvant arthritis (AA) serves as an excellent model for human rheumatoid arthritis. AA is readily inducible in certain rat strains, but not in others. Susceptibility/resistance to AA is determined by multiple factors. Among the genetic factors, both MHC and non-MHC genes contribute to arthritis susceptibility, and specific quantitative trait loci show association with the severity of the disease. Differential T-cell proliferative and cytokine responses, as well as antibody responses, to heat-shock proteins are evident when comparing AA-susceptible and AA-resistant rats. In addition, neuroendocrine factors and the housing environment can further modulate arthritis susceptibility/severity in particular rat strains

Primary ovarian ectopic pregnancy: an unusual case study

Ovarian pregnancy is rare variant of ectopic pregnancy. An accurate preoperative diagnosis is very challenging various advances in diagnostic modalities like Transvaginal ultrasonography has evolved in identifying an ovarian pregnancy. It results in significant maternal morbidity, fetal loss, repeat ectopic, impairment of subsequent fertility. The case report a 34-year female who presented with pain and severe anemia and explored keeping in view ruptured tubal ectopic but intraoperatively diagnosed as primary ovarian pregnancy and managed conservatively by ovarian wedge resection

Deconvolving Genomic Regulatory Heterogeneity with Self-Reporting Transposons

A cell’s identity is a function of the genes expressed in that cell, which are in turn regulated by transcription factors. Over the last decade, single-cell RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) has emerged as a powerful class of techniques to characterize cellular diversity in heterogeneous tissues. These methods barcode transcripts by their cell-of-origin and assign them to specific genes. The resulting high-dimensional data are further processed to reveal clusters of cells sharing transcriptional states. Annotating these clusters, based on either known or discovered marker genes, offers a glimpse into the dynamic composition of an organ or biological process. While single-cell RNA-seq excels at describing cell states, it alone does not inform us about the mechanisms maintaining a particular state. In recent years, multi-modal single cell technologies have flourished, combining single cell RNA-seq with at least one other genomic modality. As a result, joint assays now exist for simultaneously assaying gene expression and, respectively, genotype, methylation, chromatin accessibility, and lineage. Collectively, these methods aim to connect gene expression to regulatory processes in the genome, thereby gaining insight into the molecular foundations underpinning cellular identity. Transcription factors are key protein regulators of gene expression. Master transcription factors organize gene regulatory networks to promote differentiation or homeostasis and are often used as markers of cell type. Unfortunately, no methods exist to measure single-cell RNA-seq and map transcription factor binding in those same cells. Such a technique would be uniquely poised to identify both the identity of a cell and candidate regulatory elements contributing to that identity. The Mitra Lab has developed transposon calling cards as an alternative assay to map transcription factor binding, using transcription factor-transposase fusions to mark binding sites with deposited transposon sequences. Here, I present a single cell extension of this technique using a novel construct, the self-reporting transposon, whose genomic location can be mapped from single-cell RNA-seq libraries. Thus, in one workflow, single cell calling cards identifies cell types in complex systems and deconvolves cell-type-specific regulatory elements bound by a transcription factor in those cell types. The remainder of this dissertation is organized as follows. Chapter 1 reviews the biological and technological context for this work, with particular focus on single-cell RNA-seq techniques and methods to assay transcription factor binding sites. Chapter 2 presents the central advancement of this dissertation, the self-reporting transposon and its use in single cell calling cards to map cell-type-specific transcription factor binding sites in complex systems. Chapter 3 discusses the qBED track, a medium for visualizing calling cards data, and its accompanying data format for storing results. Chapter 4 examines the Bayesian blocks algorithm, a method adopted from the astrophysics community, and employs it to call peaks in calling cards data. Chapter 5 explores a new use for self-reporting transposons as surveyors of chromosomal compartmentalization. Chapter 6 concludes this dissertation, offering suggestions for future work and positing a broader role for self-reporting transposons in genomics