Single-cell transcriptomics analysis of human small antral follicles

Stem cells & developmental biolog

JWST lensed quasar dark matter survey – I. Description and first results

peer reviewedThe flux ratios of gravitationally lensed quasars provide a powerful probe of the nature of dark matter. Importantly, these ratios are sensitive to small-scale structure, irrespective of the presence of baryons. This sensitivity may allow us to study the halo mass function even below the scales where galaxies form observable stars. For accurate measurements, it is essential that the quasar’s light is emitted from a physical region of the quasar with an angular scale of milliarcseconds or larger; this minimizes microlensing effects by stars within the deflector. The warm dust region of quasars fits this criterion, as it has parsec-size physical scales and dominates the spectral energy distribution of quasars at wavelengths greater than 10 μm. The JWST Mid-Infrared Instrument is adept at detecting redshifted light in this wavelength range, offering both the spatial resolution and sensitivity required for accurate gravitational lensing flux ratio measurements. Here, we introduce our survey designed to measure the warm dust flux ratios of 31 lensed quasars. We discuss the flux-ratio measurement technique and present results for the first target, DES J0405-3308. We find that we can measure the quasar warm dust flux ratios with 3 per cent precision. Our simulations suggest that this precision makes it feasible to detect the presence of 107 M dark matter haloes at cosmological distances. Such haloes are expected to be completely dark in cold dark matter models

The Shannon's mutual information of a multiple antenna time and frequency dependent channel: An ergodic operator approach

Consider a random non-centered multiple antenna radio transmission channel. Assume that the deterministic part of the channel is itself frequency selective and that the random multipath part is represented by an ergodic stationary vector process. In the Hilbert space l2(Z), one can associate to this channel a random ergodic self-adjoint operator having a so-called Integrated Density of States (IDS). Shannon's mutual information per receive antenna of this channel coincides then with the integral of a log function with respect to the IDS. In this paper, it is shown that when the numbers of antennas at the transmitter and at the receiver tend to infinity at the same rate, the mutual information per receive antenna tends to a quantity that can be identified and, in fact, is closely related to that obtained within the random matrix approach [I. Telatar, Eur. Trans. Telecommun. 10, 585 (1999)]. This result can be obtained by analyzing the behavior of the Stieltjes transform of the IDS in the regime of the large numbers of antennas. © 2015 AIP Publishing LLC

The Effects of Ram-pressure Stripping and Supernova Winds on the Tidal Stirring of Disky Dwarfs: Enhanced Transformation into Dwarf Spheroidals

A conclusive model for the formation of dwarf spheroidal (dSph) galaxies still remains elusive. Owing to their proximity to the massive spirals Milky Way (MW) and M31, various environmental processes have been invoked to explain their origin. In this context, the tidal stirring model postulates that interactions with MW-sized hosts can transform rotationally supported dwarfs, resembling present-day dwarf irregular (dIrr) galaxies, into systems with the kinematic and structural properties of dSphs. Using N-body+SPH simulations, we investigate the dependence of this transformation mechanism on the gas fraction, f gas, in the disk of the progenitor dwarf. Our numerical experiments incorporate for the first time the combined effects of radiative cooling, ram-pressure stripping, star formation, supernova (SN) winds, and a cosmic UV background. For a given orbit inside the primary galaxy, rotationally supported dwarfs with gas fractions akin to those of observed dIrrs (fgas≳ 0.5), demonstrate a substantially enhanced likelihood and efficiency of transformation into dSphs relative to their collisionless (f gas=0) counterparts. We argue that the combination of ram-pressure stripping and SN winds causes the gas-rich dwarfs to respond more impulsively to tides, augmenting their transformation. When f gas≳ 0.5, disky dwarfs on previously unfavorable low-eccentricity or large-pericenter orbits are still able to transform. On the widest orbits, the transformation is incomplete; the dwarfs retain significant rotational support, a relatively flat shape, and some gas, naturally resembling transition-type systems. We conclude that tidal stirring constitutes a prevalent evolutionary mechanism for shaping the structure of dwarf galaxies within the currently favored CDM cosmological paradigm. © 2017. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.

Dark matter halo merger histories beyond cold dark matter - I. Methods and application to warm dark matter

We describe a methodology to accurately compute halo mass functions, progenitor mass functions, merger rates and merger trees in non-cold dark matter universes using a self-consistent treatment of the generalized extended Press–Schechter formalism. Our approach permits rapid exploration of the subhalo population of galactic haloes in dark matter models with a variety of different particle properties or universes with rolling, truncated or more complicated power spectra. We make detailed comparisons of analytically derived mass functions and merger histories with recent warm dark matter cosmological N-body simulations, and find excellent agreement. We show that once the accretion of smoothly distributed matter is accounted for, coarse-grained statistics such as the mass accretion history of haloes can be almost indistinguishable between cold and warm dark matter cases. However, the halo mass function and progenitor mass functions differ significantly, with the warm dark matter cases being strongly suppressed below the free-streaming scale of the dark matter. We demonstrate the importance of using the correct solution for the excursion set barrier first-crossing distribution in warm dark matter – if the solution for a flat barrier is used instead, the truncation of the halo mass function is much slower, leading to an overestimate of the number of low-mass haloes

X-Ray Properties of Lyman Break Galaxies in the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey

We constrain the X-ray emission properties of Lyman break galaxies (LBGs) at z 3–6 using the 2 Ms Chandra Deep Field North and 1 Ms Chandra Deep Field South. Large samples of LBGs were discovered using the Hubble Space Telescope as part of the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey (GOODS). Deep optical and X-ray imaging over the GOODS fields have allowed us to place the most significant constraints on the X-ray properties of LBGs to date. Mean X-ray properties of 449, 1734, 629, and 247 LBGs with z ~ 3, 4, 5, and 6, respectively, were determined using stacking techniques. When stacked, we detect X-ray emission from LBGs at z ~ 3 (~7 σ) and from an optically bright subset (brightest 25%) of LBGs at z ~ 4 (~3 σ); the latter is the highest redshift detection yet for "normal" galaxies in the X-ray band. The effective exposure times for these stacked observations are 0.7 and 0.5 Gs, respectively. The derived average rest-frame 2.0–8.0 keV luminosities are 1.5 × 1041 and 1.4 × 1041 ergs s-1, respectively. X-ray emission from these LBGs is likely due to high-mass X-ray binaries and Type II supernovae; the corresponding star formation rates are 10–30 M yr-1. The X-ray–to–B-band mean luminosity ratio (LX/LB) at z ~ 3 is somewhat elevated with respect to that measured for starburst galaxies in the local universe (significance ~3 σ). When stacking full samples of LBGs at z ~ 4, 5, and 6, we do not obtain significant detections (<3 σ) and derive rest-frame 2.0–8.0 keV luminosity upper limits (3 σ) of 0.9, 2.8, and 7.1 × 1041 ergs s-1, respectively. These upper limits constrain any widespread active galactic nucleus (AGN) activity in these objects to be modest at best. Furthermore, we find that ~0.5% of our LBGs from z 3 to z 6 are detected individually in the X-ray band. These LBGs have spectral shapes and luminosities characteristic of moderate-power AGNs (e.g., Seyfert galaxies and quasars)

Single-cell reconstruction of follicular remodeling in the human adult ovary

The ovary is perhaps the most dynamic organ in the human body, only rivaled by the uterus. The molecular mechanisms that regulate follicular growth and regression, ensuring ovarian tissue homeostasis, remain elusive. We have performed single-cell RNA-sequencing using human adult ovaries to provide a map of the molecular signature of growing and regressing follicular populations. We have identified different types of granulosa and theca cells and detected local production of components of the complement system by (atretic) theca cells and stromal cells. We also have detected a mixture of adaptive and innate immune cells, as well as several types of endothelial and smooth muscle cells to aid the remodeling process. Our results highlight the relevance of mapping whole adult organs at the single-cell level and reflect ongoing efforts to map the human body. The association between complement system and follicular remodeling may provide key insights in reproductive biology and (in)fertility.Stem cells & developmental biolog

Single-cell reconstruction of follicular remodeling in the human adult ovary

GynecologyCervix cance

Single-cell reconstruction of follicular remodeling in the human adult ovary

The ovary is perhaps the most dynamic organ in the human body, only rivaled by the uterus. The molecular mechanisms that regulate follicular growth and regression, ensuring ovarian tissue homeostasis, remain elusive. We have performed single-cell RNA-sequencing using human adult ovaries to provide a map of the molecular signature of growing and regressing follicular populations. We have identified different types of granulosa and theca cells and detected local production of components of the complement system by (atretic) theca cells and stromal cells. We also have detected a mixture of adaptive and innate immune cells, as well as several types of endothelial and smooth muscle cells to aid the remodeling process. Our results highlight the relevance of mapping whole adult organs at the single-cell level and reflect ongoing efforts to map the human body. The association between complement system and follicular remodeling may provide key insights in reproductive biology and (in)fertility.</p