Superconducting fluctuation current in a space with the Kerr metric

We study a fluctuation current through a superconducting ring placed in a space with the Kerr metric. This attempt aims at exploring conceptual problem; namely, we are concerned with the question about the condensed state in an extreme space-time. The superconducting ring is supposed to be placed in the space surrounding the Kerr black hole (KBH) such that the rotating axis of the KBH penetrates the center of the ring. The formulation is based on the Landau-Ginzburg free energy functional of linear form. The resultant fluctuation current shows several peculiar features that reflect characteristic aspects of the KBH; that is, the effect of the Kerr metric gives rise to the shift of superconducting transition temperature as well as the scale change of absolute temperature.Comment: 6 pages, 2 figures

The legacy effect in early-stage diabetes: Don't stay by me, cardiovascular disease!

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Activin in the Brain Modulates Anxiety-Related Behavior and Adult Neurogenesis

Activin, a member of the transforming growth factor-β superfamily, is an endocrine hormone that regulates differentiation and proliferation of a wide variety of cells. In the brain, activin protects neurons from ischemic damage. In this study, we demonstrate that activin modulates anxiety-related behavior by analyzing ACM4 and FSM transgenic mice in which activin and follistatin (which antagonizes the activin signal), respectively, were overexpressed in a forebrain-specific manner under the control of the αCaMKII promoter. Behavioral analyses revealed that FSM mice exhibited enhanced anxiety compared to wild-type littermates, while ACM4 mice showed reduced anxiety. Importantly, survival of newly formed neurons in the subgranular zone of adult hippocampus was significantly decreased in FSM mice, which was partially rescued in ACM4/FSM double transgenic mice. Our findings demonstrate that the level of activin in the adult brain bi-directionally influences anxiety-related behavior. These results further suggest that decreases in postnatal neurogenesis caused by activin inhibition affect an anxiety-related behavior in adulthood. Activin and its signaling pathway may represent novel therapeutic targets for anxiety disorder as well as ischemic brain injury

Field experiments to test the use of the normalized-difference vegetation index for phenology detection

Some previous studies have detected the timing of leaf expansion and defoliation using the normalized-difference vegetation index (NDVI), but to examine tree phenology using satellite data, NDVI results should be confirmed using ground-truthing. We examined the relationship between NDVI and tree phenology during leaf expansion and defoliation by simultaneously observing the spectral reflectance of the canopy surface and canopy surface images in a cool-temperate deciduous broad-leaved forest. To define the timing of leaf expansion and defoliation using NDVI, the index should meet three criteria: (1) NDVI should exhibit a monotonous increase or decrease (monotonicity). (2) The relationship between NDVI and the forest canopy\u27s status should be unique (uniqueness). (3) The method is robust against the systematic noise (bias) (robustness). In the spring, NDVI values of 0.2–0.3 (relative values: 0.15–0.28) and 0.6–0.7 (relative values: 0.65–0.78) satisfied all three criteria. NDVI values of 0.6–0.7 can serve as potential criteria for detecting the timing of leaf expansion. In autumn, no NDVI values satisfied all three criteria. Thus, NDVI does not appear to be useful for detecting the timing of defoliation. For an area where evergreen vegetation or snow covers the forest floor in winter, our results suggest that previous uses of NDVI to identify the timing of leaf expansion and defoliation on the basis of the date of the maximum rate of growth or reduction of NDVI and the date with a value midway between the year\u27s maximum and minimum values are misleading