A Multiple System of Radio Sources at the Core of the L723 Multipolar Outflow

We present high angular resolution Very Large Array multi-epoch continuum observations at 3.6 cm and 7 mm towards the core of the L723 multipolar outflow revealing a multiple system of four radio sources suspected to be YSOs in a region of only ~4 arcsecs (1200 AU) in extent. The 3.6 cm observations show that the previously detected source VLA 2 contains a close (separation ~0.29 arcsecs or ~90 AU) radio binary, with components (A and B) along a position angle of ~150 degrees. The northern component (VLA 2A) of this binary system is also detected in the 7 mm observations, with a positive spectral index between 3.6 cm and 7 mm. In addition, the source VLA 2A is associated with extended emission along a position angle of ~115 degrees, that we interpret as outflowing shock-ionized gas that is exciting a system of HH objects with the same position angle. A third, weak 3.6 cm source, VLA 2C, that is detected also at 7 mm, is located ~0.7 arcsecs northeast of VLA 2A, and is possibly associated with the water maser emission in the region. The 7 mm observations reveal the presence of an additional source, VLA 2D, located ~3.5 arcsecs southeast of VLA 2A, and with a 1.35 mm counterpart. All these radio continuum sources have a positive spectral index, compatible with them being YSOs. We also propose that the high velocity CO emission observed in the region could be the superposition of multiple outflows (at least three independent bipolar outflows) excited by the YSOs located at the core, instead of the previous interpretations in terms of only one or two outflows.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal (2007 December 6

Diversification of substrate specificities in teleostei Fads2: characterization of Δ4 and Δ6Δ5 desaturases of Chirostoma estor

Currently existing data show that the capability for long-chain PUFA (LC-PUFA) biosynthesis in teleost fish is more diverse than in other vertebrates. Such diversity has been primarily linked to the subfunctionalization that teleostei fatty acyl desaturase (Fads)2 desaturases have undergone during evolution. We previously showed that Chirostoma estor, one of the few representatives of freshwater atherinopsids, had the ability for LC-PUFA biosynthesis from C18 PUFA precursors, in agreement with this species having unusually high contents of DHA. The particular ancestry and pattern of LC-PUFA biosynthesis activity of C. estor make this species an excellent model for study to gain further insight into LC-PUFA biosynthetic abilities among teleosts. The present study aimed to characterize cDNA sequences encoding fatty acyl elongases and desaturases, key genes involved in the LC-PUFA biosynthesis. Results show that C. estor expresses an elongase of very long-chain FA (Elovl)5 elongase and two Fads2 desaturases displaying Δ4 and Δ6/Δ5 specificities, thus allowing us to conclude that these three genes cover all the enzymatic abilities required for LC-PUFA biosynthesis from C18 PUFA. In addition, the specificities of the C. estor Fads2 enabled us to propose potential evolutionary patterns and mechanisms for subfunctionalization of Fads2 among fish lineages

Cross-Sectional Analysis of Nonhomogeneous Anisotropic Active Slender Structures

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/76969/1/AIAA-12451-957.pd

Geometrically Nonlinear Theory of Composite Beams with Deformable Cross Sections

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/76337/1/AIAA-31620-757.pd

Molecular mechanism for bidirectional regulation of CD44 for lipid raft affiliation by palmitoylations and PIP2

The co-localization of Cluster-of-Differentiation-44 protein (CD44) and cytoplasmic adaptors in specific membrane environments is crucial for cell adhesion and migration. The process is controlled by two different pathways: On the one hand palmitoylation keeps CD44 in lipid raft domains and disables the linking to the cytoplasmic adaptor, whereas on the other hand, the presence of phosphatidylinositol-4,5-biphosphate (PIP2) lipids accelerates the formation of the CD44-adaptor complex. The molecular mechanism explaining how CD44 is migrating into and out of the lipid raft domains and its dependence on both palmitoylations and the presence of PIP2 remains, however, elusive. In this study, we performed extensive molecular dynamics simulations to study the raft affinity and translocation of CD44 in phase separated model membranes as well as more realistic plasma membrane environments. We observe a delicate balance between the influence of the palmitoylations and the presence of PIP2 lipids: whereas the palmitoylations of CD44 increases the affinity for raft domains, PIP2 lipids have the opposite effect. Additionally, we studied the association between CD44 and the membrane adaptor FERM in dependence of these factors. We find that the presence of PIP2 lipids allows CD44 and FERM to associate in an experimentally observed binding mode whereas the highly palmitoylated species shows no binding affinity. Together, our results shed light on the sophisticated mechanism on how membrane translocation and peripheral protein association can be controlled by both protein modifications and membrane composition

Identification of vaginal microbiome associated with IVF pregnancy

The factors that cause a preterm birth (PTB) are not completely understood up to date. Moreover, PTB is more common in pregnancies achieved by in-vitro fertilization (IVF) than in spontaneous pregnancies. Our aim was to compare the composition of vaginal microbiome at 12 weeks of gestation between women who conceived naturally or through IVF in order to study whether IVF PTB-risk could be related to vaginal microbiome composition. We performed an observational, prospective and multicentre study among two public hospitals and a fertility private clinic in Spain. Vaginal swabs from 64 pregnant women at 12 weeks of gestation were collected to analyse the microbiome composition by sequencing the V3–V4 region of the 16S rRNA. Our results showed that the vaginal microbiome signature at 12 weeks of pregnancy was different from women who conceived naturally or through IVF. The beta diversity and the genus composition were different between both cohorts. Gardnerella, Neisseria, Prevotella, and Staphylococcus genus were enriched genus in the vaginal microbiome from the IVF group, allowing us to create a balance model to predict both cohorts. Moreover, at species level the L. iners abundance was higher and L. gasseri was lower in the IVF group. As a conclusion, our findings were consistent with a proposed framework in which IVF pregnancy are related to risk for preterm birth (PTB) suggesting vaginal microbiome could be the reason to the relation between IVF pregnancy and risk for PTB

CHEOPS: The ESA Mission for Exo-Planets Characterization Ready for Launch

The European Space Agency (ESA) Science Programme Committee (SPC) selected CHEOPS (Characterizing Exoplanets Satellite) in October 2012 as the first Small-class mission (S1) within the Agency’s Scientific Programme. It is considered as a pilot case for implementing “small science missions” in the agency with the following requirements: science driven mission selected through an open Call; an implementation cycle, from the Call to launch, drastically shorter than for Medium-class (M) and Large-class (L) missions; a strict cost-cap to ESA, with possibly higher Member States involvement than for M or L missions. The CHEOPS mission is devoted to the characterization of known exoplanets orbiting bright stars, achieved through the precise measurement of exoplanet radii using the technique of transit photometry. It was adopted for implementation in February 2014 as a partnership between the ESA Science Programme and Switzerland, with a number of other Member States delivering significant contributions to the instrument development and to operations. The CHEOPS instrument is an optical Ritchey-Chrétien telescope with 300 mm effective aperture diameter and a large external baffle to minimize straylight. The compact CHEOPS spacecraft (approx. 300 kg, 1.5 m size), based on a flight-proven platform, will orbit the Earth in a dawn-dusk Sun Synchronous Orbit at 700 km altitude. CHEOPS completed the Preliminary Design Review at the end of September 2014, and passed the Critical Design Review in May 2016. In the course of 2017, flight platform and payload have been integrated and tested, and then followed by satellite level activities, targeting flight readiness by the end of year 2019. Implementation and validation of the ground segment, which is composed of the MOC (Mission Operations Centre), located in Torrejón (Madrid, Spain) and the SOC (Science Operations Centre), located at the University of Geneva (Switzerland) was achieved in parallel. CHEOPS will be launched as a secondary passenger on a Soyuz from Kourou by end of 2019. The paper describes the latest CHEOPS development status, focusing on the activities for verification and validation of the satellite and the system at large, including the ground segment and the activities in preparation for S/C launch and its operations. Additional details can be found on the ESA and UBE websites referred in [8]

An alternating descent method for the optimal control of the inviscid Burgers equation in the presence of shocks.

We introduce a new optimization strategy to compute numerical approximations of minimizers for optimal control problems governed by scalar conservation laws in the presence of shocks. We focus on the 1 − d inviscid Burgers equation. We first prove the existence of minimizers and, by a -convergence argument, the convergence of discrete minima obtained by means of numerical approximation schemes satisfying the so called onesided Lipschitz condition (OSLC). Then we address the problem of developing efficient descent algorithms. We first consider and compare the existing two possible approaches: the so-called discrete approach, based on a direct computation of gradients in the discrete problem and the so-called continuous one, where the discrete descent direction is obtained as a discrete copy of the continuous one. When optimal solutions have shock discontinuities, both approaches produce highly oscillating minimizing sequences and the effective descent rate is very weak. As a solution we propose a new method, that we shall call alternating descent method, that uses the recent developments of generalized tangent vectors and the linearization around discontinuous solutions. This method distinguishes and alternates the descent directions that move the shock and those that perturb the profile of the solution away of it producing very efficient and fast descent algorithms

Outcomes of patients with COVID-19 requiring extracorporeal membrane oxygenation and continuous renal replacement therapy in the United States

Background Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Some patients develop severe acute respiratory distress syndrome and kidney failure requiring the combination of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) and continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT). Methods Retrospective cohort study of 127 consecutive patients requiring combined ECMO and CRRT support in intensive care units at an ECMO center in Marietta, GA, United States. Results Sixty and 67 patients with and without COVID-19, respectively, required ECMO-CRRT support. After adjusting for confounding variables, patients with COVID-19 had increased mortality at 30 days (hazard ratio [HR], 5.19; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.51–10.7; P<0.001) and 90 days (HR, 6.23; 95% CI, 2.60–14.9; P<0.001). Conclusions In this retrospective study, patients with COVID-19 who required ECMO-CRRT had increased mortality when compared to patients without COVID-19