D→π,lνD \rightarrow \pi, l \nu Semileptonic Decays, ∣Vcd∣|V_{cd}| and 2nd^{nd} Row Unitarity from Lattice QCD

We present a new calculation of the $D \rightarrow \pi, l \nu$ semileptonic form factor $f^{D \rightarrow \pi}_+(q^2)$ at $q^2 = 0$ based on HISQ charm and light valence quarks on MILC $N_f = 2 +1$ lattices. Using methods developed recently for HPQCD's study of $D \rightarrow K, l \nu$ decays, we find $f^{D \rightarrow \pi}_+(0) = 0.666(29)$. This signifies a better than factor of two improvement in errors for this quantity compared to previous calculations. Combining the new result with CLEO-c branching fraction data, we extract the CKM matrix element $|V_{cd}| = 0.225(6)_{exp.}(10)_{lat.}$, where the first error comes from experiment and the second from theory. With a total error of $\sim5.3$\% the accuracy of direct determination of $|V_{cd}|$ from $D$ semileptonic decays has become comparable to (and in good agreement with) that from neutrino scattering. We also check for second row unitarity using this new $|V_{cd}|$, HPQCD's earlier $|V_{cs}|$ and $|V_{cb}|$ from the Fermilab Lattice \& MILC collaborations. We find $|V_{cd}|^2 + |V_{cs}|^2 + |V_{cb}|^2 = 0.976(50)$, improving on the current PDG2010 value.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figures, and 4 table

The Pioneer Anomaly

Radio-metric Doppler tracking data received from the Pioneer 10 and 11 spacecraft from heliocentric distances of 20-70 AU has consistently indicated the presence of a small, anomalous, blue-shifted frequency drift uniformly changing with a rate of ~6 x 10^{-9} Hz/s. Ultimately, the drift was interpreted as a constant sunward deceleration of each particular spacecraft at the level of a_P = (8.74 +/- 1.33) x 10^{-10} m/s^2. This apparent violation of the Newton's gravitational inverse-square law has become known as the Pioneer anomaly; the nature of this anomaly remains unexplained. In this review, we summarize the current knowledge of the physical properties of the anomaly and the conditions that led to its detection and characterization. We review various mechanisms proposed to explain the anomaly and discuss the current state of efforts to determine its nature. A comprehensive new investigation of the anomalous behavior of the two Pioneers has begun recently. The new efforts rely on the much-extended set of radio-metric Doppler data for both spacecraft in conjunction with the newly available complete record of their telemetry files and a large archive of original project documentation. As the new study is yet to report its findings, this review provides the necessary background for the new results to appear in the near future. In particular, we provide a significant amount of information on the design, operations and behavior of the two Pioneers during their entire missions, including descriptions of various data formats and techniques used for their navigation and radio-science data analysis. As most of this information was recovered relatively recently, it was not used in the previous studies of the Pioneer anomaly, but it is critical for the new investigation.Comment: 165 pages, 40 figures, 16 tables; accepted for publication in Living Reviews in Relativit

SAKK 24/09: safety and tolerability of bevacizumab plus paclitaxel vs. bevacizumab plus metronomic cyclophosphamide and capecitabine as first-line therapy in patients with HER2-negative advanced stage breast cancer - a multicenter, randomized phase III trial.

BACKGROUND: Adding bevacizumab to chemotherapy improves response rates and progression-free survival (PFS) in metastatic breast cancer (mBC). We aimed to demonstrate decreased toxicity with metronomic chemotherapy/bevacizumab compared with paclitaxel/bevacizumab. METHODS: This multicenter, randomized phase III trial compared bevacizumab with either paclitaxel (arm A) or daily oral capecitabine-cyclophosphamide (arm B) as first-line treatment in patients with HER2-negative advanced breast cancer. The primary endpoint was the incidence of selected grade 3-5 adverse events (AE) including: febrile neutropenia, infection, sensory/motor neuropathy, and mucositis. Secondary endpoints included objective response rate, disease control rate, PFS, overall survival (OS), quality of life (QoL), and pharmacoeconomics. The study was registered prospectively with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT01131195 on May 25, 2010. RESULTS: Between September 2010 and December 2012, 147 patients were included at 22 centers. The incidence of primary endpoint-defining AEs was similar in arm A (25 % [18/71]; 95 % CI 15-35 %) and arm B (24 % [16/68]; 95 % CI 13-34 %; P = 0.96). Objective response rates were 58 % (42/73; 95 % CI 0.46-0.69) and 50 % (37/74; 95 % CI 0.39-0.61) in arms A and B, respectively (P = 0.45). Median PFS was 10.3 months (95 % CI 8.7-11.3) in arm A and 8.5 months (95 % CI 6.5-11.9) in arm B (P = 0.90). Other secondary efficacy endpoints were not significantly different between study arms. The only statistically significant differences in QoL were less hair loss and less numbness in arm B. Treatment costs between the two arms were equivalent. CONCLUSION: This trial failed to meet its primary endpoint of a reduced rate of prespecified grade 3-5 AEs with metronomic bevacizumab, cyclophosphamide and capecitabine

B-s -\u3e D(s)l nu form factors and the fragmentation fraction ratio f(s)/f(d)

We present a lattice quantum chromodynamics determination of the scalar and vector form factors for the B-s -\u3e D(s)l. decay over the full physical range of momentum transfer. In conjunction with future experimental data, our results will provide a new method to extract vertical bar V-cb vertical bar, which may elucidate the current tension between exclusive and inclusive determinations of this parameter. Combining the form factor results at nonzero recoil with recent HPQCD results for the B -\u3e Dl(v) form factors, we determine the ratios f(0)(Bs -\u3e Ds) (M-pi(2))/f(0)(B -\u3e D) (M-K(2))=1.000(62) and f(0)(Bs -\u3e Ds) (M-pi(2))/f(0)(B -\u3e D)(M-pi(2))=1.006(62). These results give the fragmentation fraction ratios f(s)/f(d) = 0.310(30)(stat)(21)(syst)(6)(theor)(38)(latt) and f(s)/f(d) = 0.307(16)(stat)(21)(syst)(23)(theor)(44)(latt), respectively. The fragmentation fraction ratio is an important ingredient in experimental determinations of Bs meson branching fractions at hadron colliders, in particular for the rare decay B(B-s -\u3emu(+)mu(-). In addition to the form factor results, we make the first prediction of the branching fraction ratio R(D-s) = B(B-s -\u3e D-s tau nu)/B(B-s -\u3e D-s tau nu)= 0.301(6), where l is an electron or muon. Current experimental measurements of the corresponding ratio for the semileptonic decays of B mesons disagree with Standard Model expectations at the level of nearly four standard deviations. Future experimental measurements of R(D-s) may help understand this discrepancy

Erratum to: 36th International Symposium on Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1186/s13054-016-1208-6.]

Consumer Perspectives on Access to Directâ toâ Consumer Genetic Testing: Role of Demographic Factors and the Testing Experience

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/137391/1/milq12262.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/137391/2/milq12262_am.pd

Longitudinal analysis of risk factors associated with severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection among hemodialysis patients and healthcare personnel in outpatient hemodialysis centers

In this prospective, longitudinal study, we examined the risk factors for severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection among a cohort of chronic hemodialysis (HD) patients and healthcare personnel (HCPs) over a 6-month period. The risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection among HD patients and HCPs was consistently associated with a household member having SARS-CoV-2 infection