241 research outputs found
MAD Adaptive Optics Imaging of High Luminosity Quasars: A Pilot Project
We present near-IR images of five luminous quasars at z~2 and one at z~4
obtained with an experimental adaptive optics instrument at the ESO Very Large
Telescope. The observations are part of a program aimed at demonstrating the
capabilities of multi-conjugated adaptive optics imaging combined with the use
of natural guide stars for high spatial resolution studies on large telescopes.
The observations were mostly obtained under poor seeing conditions but in two
cases. In spite of these non optimal conditions, the resulting images of point
sources have cores of FWHM ~0.2 arcsec. We are able to characterize the host
galaxy properties for 2 sources and set stringent upper limits to the galaxy
luminosity for the others. We also report on the expected capabilities for
investigating the host galaxies of distant quasars with adaptive optics systems
coupled with future Extremely Large Telescopes. Detailed simulations show that
it will be possible to characterize compact (2-3 kpc) quasar host galaxies for
QSOs at z = 2 with nucleus K-magnitude spanning from 15 to 20 (corresponding to
absolute magnitude -31 to -26) and host galaxies that are 4 mag fainter than
their nuclei.Comment: 19 pages, 12 figures, accepted for pubblication in The Astronomical
Journa
On-sky results of the adaptive optics MACAO for the new IR-spectrograph CRIRES at VLT
The adaptive optics MACAO has been implemented in 6 focii of the VLT
observatory, in three different flavors. We present in this paper the results
obtained during the commissioning of the last of these units, MACAO-CRIRES.
CRIRES is a high-resolution spectrograph, which efficiency will be improved by
a factor two at least for point-sources observations with a NGS brighter than
R=15. During the commissioning, Strehl exceeding 60% have been observed with
fair seeing conditions, and a general description of the performance of this
curvature adaptive optics system is done.Comment: SPIE conference 2006, Advances in adaptive optics, 12 pages, 11
figure
The jet of the BL Lac object PKS 0521 -365 in the near-IR : MAD adaptive optics observations
BL Lac objects are low--power active nuclei exhibiting a variety of peculiar
properties that are caused by the presence of a relativistic jet and
orientation effects.
We present here adaptive optics near-IR images at high spatial resolution of
the nearby BL Lac object PKS 0521-365, which is known to display a prominent
jet both at radio and optical frequencies. The observations were obtained in
Ks--band using the ESO multi-conjugated adaptive optics demonstrator at the
Very Large Telescope. This allowed us to obtain images with 0.1 arcsec
effective resolution. We performed a detailed analysis of the jet and its
related features from the near-IR images, and combined them with images
previously obtained with HST in the R band and by a re-analysis of VLA radio
maps. We find a remarkable similarity in the structure of the jet at radio,
near-IR, and optical wavelengths. The broad--band emission of the jet knots is
dominated by synchrotron radiation, while the nucleus also exhibits a
significant inverse Compton component. We discovered the near-IR counterpart of
the radio hotspot and found that the near-IR flux is consistent with being a
synchrotron emission from radio to X-ray. The bright red object (red-tip),
detached but well aligned with the jet, is well resolved in the near-IR and has
a linear light profile. Since it has no radio counterpart, we propose that it
is a background galaxy not associated with the jet. The new adaptive optics
near-IR images and previous observations at other frequencies allow us to study
the complex environment around the remarkable BL Lac object PKS 0521-365. These
data exemplify the capabilities of multi conjugate adaptive optics observations
of extragalactic extended sources.Comment: accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics 9 pages. A & A
2009, in pres
On the radio and NIR jet of PKS 2155-304 and its close environment
PKS 2155-304 is one of the brightest BL Lac object in the sky and a very well
studied target from radio to TeV bands. We report on high-resolution (~ 0.12
arcsec) direct imaging of the field of PKS 2155-304 using adaptive optics
near-IR observations in J and Ks bands obtained with the ESO multi-conjugate
adaptive optic demonstrator (MAD) at the Very Large Telescope. These data are
complemented with archival VLA images at various frequencies to investigate the
properties of the close environment of the source. We characterized the faint
galaxies that form the poor group associated to the target. No radio emission
is present for these galaxies, while an old radio jet at ~ 20 kpc from the
nucleus of PKS 2155-304 and a jet-like structure of ~ 2 kpc (~ 1 arcsec) in the
eastern direction are revealed. No counterparts of these radio jets are found
in the NIR or in archival Chandra observations.Comment: 10 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in The Astronomical
Journa
Molecular diagnostic and genetic characterization of highly pathogenic viruses: application during Crimean–Congo haemorrhagic fever virus outbreaks in Eastern Europe and the Middle East
AbstractSeveral haemorrhagic fevers are caused by highly pathogenic viruses that must be handled in Biosafety level 4 (BSL–4) containment. These zoonotic infections have an important impact on public health and the development of a rapid and differential diagnosis in case of outbreak in risk areas represents a critical priority. We have demonstrated the potential of a DNA resequencing microarray (PathogenID v2.0) for this purpose. The microarray was first validated in vitro using supernatants of cells infected with prototype strains from five different families of BSL-4 viruses (e.g. families Arenaviridae, Bunyaviridae, Filoviridae, Flaviviridae and Paramyxoviridae). RNA was amplified based on isothermal amplification by Phi29 polymerase before hybridization. We were able to detect and characterize Nipah virus and Crimean–Congo haemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) in the brains of experimentally infected animals. CCHFV was finally used as a paradigm for epidemics because of recent outbreaks in Turkey, Kosovo and Iran. Viral variants present in human sera were characterized by BLASTN analysis. Sensitivity was estimated to be 105–106 PFU/mL of hybridized cDNA. Detection specificity was limited to viral sequences having ˜13–14% of global divergence with the tiled sequence, or stretches of ˜20 identical nucleotides. These results highlight the benefits of using the PathogenID v2.0 resequencing microarray to characterize geographical variants in the follow-up of haemorrhagic fever epidemics; to manage patients and protect communities; and in cases of bioterrorism
Resolving Stellar Populations outside the Local Group: MAD observations of UKS2323-326
We present a study aimed at deriving constraints on star formation at
intermediate ages from the evolved stellar populations in the dwarf irregular
galaxy UKS2323-326. These observations were also intended to demonstrate the
scientific capabilities of the multi-conjugated adaptive optics demonstrator
(MAD) implemented at the ESO Very Large Telescope as a test-bench of adaptive
optics (AO) techniques. We perform accurate, deep photometry of the field using
J and Ks band AO images of the central region of the galaxy. The near-infrared
(IR) colour-magnitude diagrams clearly show the sequences of asymptotic giant
branch (AGB) stars, red supergiants, and red giant branch (RGB) stars down to
~1 mag below the RGB tip. Optical-near-IR diagrams, obtained by combining our
data with Hubble Space Telescope observations, provide the best separation of
stars in the various evolutionary stages. The counts of AGB stars brighter than
the RGB tip allow us to estimate the star formation at intermediate ages.
Assuming a Salpeter initial mass function, we find that the star formation
episode at intermediate ages produced ~6x10^5 M_sun of stars in the observed
region.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, Accepted for publication in A&A Letter
Inhibition of somatosensory mechanotransduction by annexin A6
Mechanically activated, slowly adapting currents in sensory neurons have been linked to noxious mechanosensation. The conotoxin NMB-1 (noxious mechanosensation blocker-1) blocks such currents and inhibits mechanical pain. Using a biotinylated form of NMB-1 in mass spectrometry analysis, we identified 67 binding proteins in sensory neurons and a sensory neuron-derived cell line, of which the top candidate was annexin A6, a membrane-associated calcium-binding protein. Annexin A6-deficient mice showed increased sensitivity to mechanical stimuli. Sensory neurons from these mice showed increased activity of the cation channel Piezo2, which mediates a rapidly adapting mechano-gated current linked to proprioception and touch, and a decrease in mechanically activated, slowly adapting currents. Conversely, overexpression of annexin A6 in sensory neurons inhibited rapidly adapting currents that were partially mediated by Piezo2. Furthermore, overexpression of annexin A6 in sensory neurons attenuated mechanical pain in a mouse model of osteoarthritis, a disease in which mechanically evoked pain is particularly problematic. These data suggest that annexin A6 can be exploited to inhibit chronic mechanical pain
Emerging Pattern of Rabies Deaths and Increased Viral Infectivity
Most human rabies deaths in the United States can be attributed to unrecognized exposures to rabies viruses associated with bats, particularly those associated with two infrequently encountered bat species (Lasionycteris noctivagans and Pipistrellus subflavus). These human rabies cases tend to cluster in the southeastern and northwestern United States. In these regions, most rabies deaths associated with bats in nonhuman terrestrial mammals are also associated with virus variants specific to these two bat species rather than more common bat species; outside of these regions, more common bat rabies viruses contribute to most transmissions. The preponderance of rabies deaths connected with the two uncommon L. noctivagans and P. subflavus bat rabies viruses is best explained by their evolution of increased viral infectivity
MCAO near-IR photometry of the Globular Cluster NGC 6388: MAD observations in crowded fields
Deep photometry of crowded fields, such as Galactic Globular Clusters, is
severely limited by the actual resolution of ground-based telescopes. On the
other hand, the Hubble Space Telescope does not provide the near-infrared (NIR)
filters needed to allow large color baselines. In this work we aim at
demonstrating how ground based observations can reach the required resolution
when using Multi-Conjugated Adaptive Optic (MCAO) devices in the NIR, such as
the experimental infrared camera (MAD) available on the VLT. This is
particularly important since these corrections are planned to be available on
all ground--based telescopes in the near future. We do this by combining the
infrared photometry obtained by MAD/VLT with ACS/HST optical photometry of our
scientific target, the bulge globular cluster NGC 6388, in which we imaged two
fields. In particular, we constructed color-magnitude diagrams with an
extremely wide color baseline in order to investigate the presence of multiple
stellar populations in this cluster. From the analysis of the external field,
observed with better seeing conditions, we derived the deepest optical-NIR CMD
of NGC 6388 to date. The high-precision photometry reveals that two distinct
sub-giant branches are clearly present in this cluster. We also use the CMD
from the central region to estimate the distance ((m-M)=15.33) and the
reddening (E(B-V)=0.38) for this cluster. We estimate the age to be ~11.5+/-
1.5 Gyr. The large relative-age error reflects the bimodal distribution of the
SGB stars. This study clearly demonstrates how MCAO correction in the NIR bands
implemented on ground based telescopes can complement the high-resolution
optical data from HST.Comment: 9 pages, 10 figures. Accepted for publication on A. &
A One Medicine Mission for an Effective Rabies Therapy
Despite the disease's long history, little progress has been made toward a treatment for rabies. The prognosis for patient recovery remains dire. For any prospect of survival, patients require aggressive critical care, which physicians in rabies endemic areas may be reluctant or unable to provide given the cost, clinical expertise required, and uncertain outcome. Systematic clinical research into combination therapies is further hampered by sporadic occurrence of cases. In this Perspective, we examine the case for a One Medicine approach to accelerate development of an effective therapy for rabies through the veterinary care and investigational treatment of naturally infected dogs in appropriate circumstances. We review the pathogenesis of rabies virus in humans and dogs, including recent advances in our understanding of the molecular basis for the severe neurological dysfunction. We propose that four categories of disease process need to be managed in patients: viral propagation, neuronal degeneration, inflammation and systemic compromise. Compassionate critical care and investigational treatment of naturally infected dogs receiving supportive therapy that mimics the human clinical scenario could increase opportunities to study combination therapies that address these processes, and to identify biomarkers for prognosis and therapeutic response. We discuss the safety and ethics of this approach, and introduce the Canine Rabies Treatment Initiative, a non-profit organization with the mission to apply a One Medicine approach to the investigation of diagnostic, prognostic, and therapeutic options for rabies in naturally infected dogs, to accelerate transformation of rabies into a treatable disease for all patients
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