303 research outputs found
Composite Higgs Sketch
The coupling of a composite Higgs to the standard model fields can deviate
substantially from the standard model values. In this case perturbative
unitarity might break down before the scale of compositeness is reached, which
would suggest that additional composites should lie well below this scale. In
this paper we account for the presence of an additional spin 1 custodial
triplet of rhos. We examine the implications of requiring perturbative
unitarity up to the compositeness scale and find that one has to be close to
saturating certain unitarity sum rules involving the Higgs and the rho
couplings. Given these restrictions on the parameter space we investigate the
main phenomenological consequences of the spin 1 triplet. We find that they can
substantially enhance the Higgs di-photon rate at the LHC even with a reduced
Higgs coupling to gauge bosons. The main existing LHC bounds arise from
di-boson searches, especially in the experimentally clean channel where the
charged rhos decay to a W-boson and a Z, which then decay leptonically. We find
that a large range of interesting parameter space with 700 GeV < m(rho) < 2 TeV
is currently experimentally viable.Comment: 37 pages, 12 figures; v4: sum rule corrected, conclusions unchange
Exploring T and S parameters in Vector Meson Dominance Models of Strong Electroweak Symmetry Breaking
We revisit the electroweak precision tests for Higgsless models of strong
EWSB. We use the Vector Meson Dominance approach and express S and T via
couplings characterizing vector and axial spin-1 resonances of the strong
sector. These couplings are constrained by the elastic unitarity and by
requiring a good UV behavior of various formfactors. We pay particular
attention to the one-loop contribution of resonances to T (beyond the chiral
log), and to how it can improve the fit. We also make contact with the recent
studies of Conformal Technicolor. We explain why the second Weinberg sum rule
never converges in these models, and formulate a condition necessary for
preserving the custodial symmetry in the IR.Comment: 35 pages, 7 figures; v3: refs added, to appear in JHE
One-Loop Calculation of the Oblique S Parameter in Higgsless Electroweak Models
We present a one-loop calculation of the oblique S parameter within Higgsless
models of electroweak symmetry breaking and analyze the phenomenological
implications of the available electroweak precision data. We use the most
general effective Lagrangian with at most two derivatives, implementing the
chiral symmetry breaking SU(2)_L x SU(2)_R -> SU(2)_{L+R} with Goldstones,
gauge bosons and one multiplet of vector and axial-vector massive resonance
states. Using the dispersive representation of Peskin and Takeuchi and imposing
the short-distance constraints dictated by the operator product expansion, we
obtain S at the NLO in terms of a few resonance parameters. In
asymptotically-free gauge theories, the final result only depends on the
vector-resonance mass and requires M_V > 1.8 TeV (3.8 TeV) to satisfy the
experimental limits at the 3 \sigma (1\sigma) level; the axial state is always
heavier, we obtain M_A > 2.5 TeV (6.6 TeV) at 3\sigma (1\sigma). In
strongly-coupled models, such as walking or conformal technicolour, where the
second Weinberg sum rule does not apply, the vector and axial couplings are not
determined by the short-distance constraints; but one can still derive a lower
bound on S, provided the hierarchy M_V < M_A remains valid. Even in this less
constrained situation, we find that in order to satisfy the experimental limits
at 3\sigma one needs M_{V,A} > 1.8 TeV.Comment: 34 pages, 9 figures. Version published in JHEP. Some references and
sentences have been added to facilitate the discussio
Six operations and Lefschetz-Verdier formula for Deligne-Mumford stacks
Laszlo and Olsson constructed Grothendieck's six operations for constructible
complexes on Artin stacks in \'etale cohomology under an assumption of finite
cohomological dimension, with base change established on the level of sheaves.
In this article we give a more direct construction of the six operations for
complexes on Deligne-Mumford stacks without the finiteness assumption and
establish base change theorems in derived categories. One key tool in our
construction is the theory of gluing finitely many pseudofunctors developed in
arXiv:1211.1877. As an application, we prove a Lefschetz-Verdier formula for
Deligne-Mumford stacks. We include both torsion and -adic coefficients.Comment: 62 pages. v5, v4: minor improvements; v3: added a Lefschetz-Verdier
formula; v2: moved the appendix in v1 to arXiv:1211.187
The Gene Regulatory Cascade Linking Proneural Specification with Differentiation in Drosophila Sensory Neurons
Temporal expression profiling of sensory precursor cells reveals how the atonal proneural transcription factor regulates a specialized neuronal differentiation pathway
General Composite Higgs Models
We construct a general class of pseudo-Goldstone composite Higgs models,
within the minimal SO(5)/SO(4) coset structure, that are not necessarily of
moose-type. We characterize the main properties these models should have in
order to give rise to a Higgs mass around 125 GeV. We assume the existence of
relatively light and weakly coupled spin 1 and 1/2 resonances. In absence of a
symmetry principle, we introduce the Minimal Higgs Potential (MHP) hypothesis:
the Higgs potential is assumed to be one-loop dominated by the SM fields and
the above resonances, with a contribution that is made calculable by imposing
suitable generalizations of the first and second Weinberg sum rules. We show
that a 125 GeV Higgs requires light, often sub-TeV, fermion resonances. Their
presence can also be important for the models to successfully pass the
electroweak precision tests. Interestingly enough, the latter can also be
passed by models with a heavy Higgs around 320 GeV. The composite Higgs models
of the moose-type considered in the literature can be seen as particular limits
of our class of models.Comment: 51 pages, 12 figures, 5 appendices; v2: Corrected estimates of \delta
g_b in appendix B, references fixed, several minor improvements; v3: minor
improvements, to appear in JHE
Oblique S and T Constraints on Electroweak Strongly-Coupled Models with a Light Higgs
Using a general effective Lagrangian implementing the chiral symmetry breaking SU(2)L x SU(2)R -> SU(2){L+R}, we present a one-loop calculation of the oblique S and T parameters within electroweak strongly-coupled models with a light scalar. Imposing a proper ultraviolet behaviour, we determine S and T at next-to-leading order in terms of a few resonance parameters. The constraints from the global fit to electroweak precision data force the massive vector and axial-vector states to be heavy, with masses above the TeV scale, and suggest that the W+W- and ZZ couplings of the Higgs-like scalar should be close to the Standard Model value. Our findings are generic, since they only rely on soft requirements on the short-distance properties of the underlying strongly-coupled theory, which are widely satisfied in more specific scenarios
Chronic Intranasal Treatment with an Anti-Aβ30-42 scFv Antibody Ameliorates Amyloid Pathology in a Transgenic Mouse Model of Alzheimer's Disease
Amyloid-beta peptide (Aβ)-directed active and passive immunization therapeutic strategies reduce brain levels of Aβ, decrease the severity of beta-amyloid plaque pathology and reverse cognitive deficits in mouse models of Alzheimer's disease (AD). As an alternative approach to passive immunization with full IgG molecules, single-chain variable fragment (scFv) antibodies can modulate or neutralize Aβ-related neurotoxicity and inhibit its aggregation in vitro. In this study, we characterized a scFv derived from a full IgG antibody raised against the C-terminus of Aβ, and studied its passage into the brains of APP transgenic mice, as well as its potential to reduce Aβ-related pathology. We found that the scFv entered the brain after intranasal application, and that it bound to beta-amyloid plaques in the cortex and hippocampus of APP transgenic mice. Moreover, the scFv inhibited Aβ fibril formation and Aβ-mediated neurotoxicity in vitro. In a preventative therapeutic approach chronic intranasal treatment with scFv reduced congophilic amyloid angiopathy (CAA) and beta-amyloid plaque numbers in the cortex of APPswe/PS1dE9 mice. This reduction of CAA and plaque pathology was associated with a redistribution of brain Aβ from the insoluble fraction to the soluble peptide pool. Due to their lack of the effector domain of full IgG, scFv may represent an alternative tool for the treatment of Aβ-related pathology without triggering Fc-mediated effector functions. Additionally, our observations support the possibility that Aβ-directed immunotherapy can reduce Aβ deposition in brain vessels in transgenic mice
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