292 research outputs found
Prominence Activation by Coronal Fast Mode Shock
An X5.4 class flare occurred in active region (AR) NOAA11429 on 2012 March 7.
The flare was associated with very fast coronal mass ejection (CME) with its
velocity of over 2500 km/s. In the images taken with STEREO-B/COR1, a dome-like
disturbance was seen to detach from expanding CME bubble and propagated
further. A Type-II radio burst was also observed at the same time. On the other
hand, in EUV images obtained by SDO/AIA, expanding dome-like structure and its
foot print propagating to the north were observed. The foot print propagated
with its average speed of about 670 km/s and hit a prominence located at the
north pole and activated it. While the activation, the prominence was strongly
brightened. On the basis of some observational evidence, we concluded that the
foot print in AIA images and the ones in COR1 images are the same, that is MHD
fast mode shock front. With the help of a linear theory, the fast mode mach
number of the coronal shock is estimated to be between 1.11 and 1.29 using the
initial velocity of the activated prominence. Also, the plasma compression
ratio of the shock is enhanced to be between 1.18 and 2.11 in the prominence
material, which we consider to be the reason of the strong brightening of the
activated prominence. The applicability of linear theory to the shock problem
is tested with nonlinear MHD simulation
Generation of Alfven Waves by Magnetic Reconnection
In this paper, results of 2.5-dimensional magnetohydrodynamical simulations
are reported for the magnetic reconnection of non-perfectly antiparallel
magnetic fields. The magnetic field has a component perpendicular to the
computational plane, that is, guide field. The angle theta between magnetic
field lines in two half regions is a key parameter in our simulations whereas
the initial distribution of the plasma is assumed to be simple; density and
pressure are uniform except for the current sheet region. Alfven waves are
generated at the reconnection point and propagate along the reconnected field
line. The energy fluxes of the Alfven waves and magneto-acoustic waves (slow
mode and fast mode) generated by the magnetic reconnection are measured. Each
flux shows the similar time evolution independent of theta. The percentage of
the energies (time integral of energy fluxes) carried by the Alfven waves and
magneto-acoustic waves to the released magnetic energy are calculated. The
Alfven waves carry 38.9%, 36.0%, and 29.5% of the released magnetic energy at
the maximum (theta=80^\circ) in the case of beta=0.1, 1, and 20 respectively,
where beta is the plasma beta (the ratio of gas pressure to magnetic pressure).
The magneto-acoustic waves carry 16.2% (theta=70^\circ), 25.9%
(theta=60^\circ), and 75.0% (theta=180^\circ) of the energy at the maximum.
Implications of these results for solar coronal heating and acceleration of
high-speed solar wind are discussed.Comment: Accepted for publication in PASJ. 24 pages, 11 figure
Reaction-diffusion kinetics on lattice at the microscopic scale
Lattice-based stochastic simulators are commonly used to study biological
reaction-diffusion processes. Some of these schemes that are based on the
reaction-diffusion master equation (RDME), can simulate for extended spatial
and temporal scales but cannot directly account for the microscopic effects in
the cell such as volume exclusion and diffusion-influenced reactions.
Nonetheless, schemes based on the high-resolution microscopic lattice method
(MLM) can directly simulate these effects by representing each finite-sized
molecule explicitly as a random walker on fine lattice voxels. The theory and
consistency of MLM in simulating diffusion-influenced reactions have not been
clarified in detail. Here, we examine MLM in solving diffusion-influenced
reactions in 3D space by employing the Spatiocyte simulation scheme. Applying
the random walk theory, we construct the general theoretical framework
underlying the method and obtain analytical expressions for the total rebinding
probability and the effective reaction rate. By matching Collins-Kimball and
lattice-based rate constants, we obtained the exact expressions to determine
the reaction acceptance probability and voxel size. We found that the size of
voxel should be about 2% larger than the molecule. MLM is validated by
numerical simulations, showing good agreement with the off-lattice
particle-based method, eGFRD. MLM run time is more than an order of magnitude
faster than eGFRD when diffusing macromolecules with typical concentrations in
the cell. MLM also showed good agreements with eGFRD and mean-field models in
case studies of two basic motifs of intracellular signaling, the protein
production-degradation process and the dual phosphorylation cycle. Moreover,
when a reaction compartment is populated with volume-excluding obstacles, MLM
captures the non-classical reaction kinetics caused by anomalous diffusion of
reacting molecules
Brain Alterations and Mini-Mental State Examination in Patients with Progressive Supranuclear Palsy: Voxel-Based Investigations Using 18F-Fluorodeoxyglucose Positron Emission Tomography and Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Background/Aims: The aim of this study was to compare differences in morphological and functional changes in brain regions in individual patients with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) and correlate their Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score with anatomy and function using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET). Methods: Sixteen PSP patients and 20 age-matched healthy volunteers underwent FDG-PET and 3-dimensional MRI. Gray matter, white matter and metabolic activity were compared between patients and normal controls. In addition, possible correlations between the MMSE score and brain function/anatomy were examined. Results: The PSP group had reduced cerebral glucose metabolism, and lower gray and white matter volumes in the frontal lobes and midbrain compared with normal controls. In PSP subjects, the metabolic changes observed in the PET scans were greater than the loss in gray and white matter observed in the MRI scans. The MMSE scores were positively correlated with volume and FDG uptake in the frontal lobe. Conclusion: FDG-PET is a more effective tool in the diagnosis of PSP than MRI. Atrophy and hypometabolism in the frontal lobe are as important as in the basal midbrain for differentiating PSP patients who primarily exhibit cognitive dysfunction from normal controls
Urinary sludge caused by ceftriaxone in a young boy
It is known that ceftriaxone administration is associated with biliary pseudolithiasis, although the development of urolithiasis has been rarely reported. We encountered a young male with bacterial meningitis complicated by urinary precipitates composed of ceftriaxone-calcium salt which is confirmed by high-performance liquid chromatography. This patient suggested that ceftriaxone significantly increased urinary excretion of calcium, which may be linked to ceftriaxone-related urolithiasis or sludge. It is therefore worthwhile to monitor the levels of urinary calcium to creatinine ratio in patients on ceftriaxone, as they may be at greater risk for developing large stones and renal damage
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