A numerical simulation of a "super-Earth" core delivery from ~ 100 AU to ~ 8 AU

We use SPH simulations with an approximate radiative cooling prescription to model evolution of a massive and large ($\sim 100$ AU) very young protoplanetary disc. We also model dust growth and gas-grain dynamics with a second fluid approach. It is found that the disc fragments onto a large number of $\sim 10$ Jupiter mass clumps that cool and contract slowly. Some of the clumps evolve onto eccentric orbits delivering them into the inner tens of AU, where they are disrupted by tidal forces from the star. Dust grows and sediments inside the clumps, displaying a very strong segregation, with the largest particles forming dense cores in the centres. The density of the dust cores may exceed that of the gas and is limited only by the numerical constraints, indicating that these cores should collapse into rocky planetary cores. One particular giant planet embryo migrates inward close enough to be disrupted at about 10 AU, leaving a self-bound solid core of about 7.5 \mearth mass on a low eccentricity orbit at a radius of $\sim$ 8 AU. These simulations support the recent suggestions that terrestrial and giant planets may be the remnants of tidally disrupted giant planet embryos.Comment: Accepted by MNRAS. Animations of the simulation are available at http://www.astro.le.ac.uk/~shc14/Movie

Magnetic fields during the early stages of massive star formation - I. Accretion and disk evolution

We present simulations of collapsing 100 M_\sun mass cores in the context of massive star formation. The effect of variable initial rotational and magnetic energies on the formation of massive stars is studied in detail. We focus on accretion rates and on the question under which conditions massive Keplerian disks can form in the very early evolutionary stage of massive protostars. For this purpose, we perform 12 simulations with different initial conditions extending over a wide range in parameter space. The equations of magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) are solved under the assumption of ideal MHD. We find that the formation of Keplerian disks in the very early stages is suppressed for a mass-to-flux ratio normalised to the critical value \mu below 10, in agreement with a series of low-mass star formation simulations. This is caused by very efficient magnetic braking resulting in a nearly instantaneous removal of angular momentum from the disk. For weak magnetic fields, corresponding to \mu > 10, large-scale, centrifugally supported disks build up with radii exceeding 100 AU. A stability analysis reveals that the disks are supported against gravitationally induced perturbations by the magnetic field and tend to form single stars rather than multiple objects. We find protostellar accretion rates of the order of a few 10^-4 M_\sun yr^-1 which, considering the large range covered by the initial conditions, vary only by a factor of ~ 3 between the different simulations. We attribute this fact to two competing effects of magnetic fields. On the one hand, magnetic braking enhances accretion by removing angular momentum from the disk thus lowering the centrifugal support against gravity. On the other hand, the combined effect of magnetic pressure and magnetic tension counteracts gravity by exerting an outward directed force on the gas in the disk thus reducing the accretion onto the protostars.Comment: 22 pages, 17 figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS, updated to final versio

In Vitro Cytochrome P450 Formation of a Mono-Hydroxylated Metabolite of Zearalenone Exhibiting Estrogenic Activities: Possible Occurrence of This Metabolite in Vivo

The mycoestrogen zearalenone (ZEN), as well as its reduced metabolites, which belong to the endocrine disruptor bio-molecule family, are substrates for various enzymes involved in steroid metabolism. In addition to its reduction by the steroid dehydrogenase pathway, ZEN also interacts with hepatic detoxification enzymes, which convert it into hydroxylated metabolites (OH-ZEN). Due to their structures to that of estradiol, ZEN and its derived metabolites bind to the estrogen receptors and are involved in endocrinal perturbations and are possibly associated with estrogen-dependent cancers. The primary aim of this present study was to identify the enzymatic cytochrome P450 isoforms responsible for the formation of the most abundant OH-ZEN. We thus studied its in vitro formation using hepatic microsomes in a range of animal model systems including man. OH-ZEN was also recovered in liver and urine of rats treated orally with ZEN. Finally we compared the activity of ZEN and its active metabolites (α-ZAL and OH-ZEN) on estrogen receptors using HeLa ER-α and ER-β reporter cell lines as reporters. OH-ZEN estrogenic activities were revealed to be limited and not as significant as those of ZEN or α-ZAL

The effect of cooling on the global stability of self-gravitating protoplanetary discs

Using a local model Gammie (2001) has shown that accretion discs with cooling times t_cool <= 3/Omega fragment into gravitationally bound objects, while those with cooling times t_cool > 3/Omega evolve into a quasi-steady state. We use three-dimensional smoothed particle hydrodynamic simulations of protoplanetary accretion discs to test if the local results hold globally. We find that for disc masses appropriate for T Tauri discs, the fragmentation boundary still occurs at a cooling time close to t_cool = 3/Omega. For more massive discs, which are likely to be present at an earlier stage of the star formation process, fragmentation occurs for longer cooling times, but still within a factor of two of that predicted using a local model. These results have implications not only for planet formation in protoplanetary discs and star formation in AGN discs, but also for the redistribution of angular momentum which could be driven by the presence of relatively massive objects within the accretion disc.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA