Two-dimensional Quantum Black Holes, Branes in BTZ and Holography

We solve semiclassical Einstein equations in two dimensions with a massive source and we find a static, thermodynamically stable, quantum black hole solution in the Hartle-Hawking vacuum state. We then study the black hole geometry generated by a boundary mass sitting on a non-zero tension 1-brane embedded in a three-dimensional BTZ black hole. We show that the two geometries coincide and we extract, using holographic relations, information about the CFT living on the 1-brane. Finally, we show that the quantum black hole has the same temperature of the bulk BTZ, as expected from the holographic principle.Comment: 10 pages, 2 figures, RevTex, ``point particle of mass \mu '' changed with ``massive boundary source'' for better clarity. Action in (50) written in Z_2 symmetric form. Appendix clarified. Minor corrections and references added. Version accepted for pubblication in PRD15 (2006

The ‘ForensOMICS’ approach for postmortem interval estimation from human bone by integrating metabolomics, lipidomics, and proteomics

The combined use of multiple omics allows to study complex interrelated biological processes in their entirety. We applied a combination of metabolomics, lipidomics and proteomics to human bones to investigate their combined potential to estimate time elapsed since death (i.e., the postmortem interval [PMI]). This 'ForensOMICS' approach has the potential to improve accuracy and precision of PMI estimation of skeletonized human remains, thereby helping forensic investigators to establish the timeline of events surrounding death. Anterior midshaft tibial bone was collected from four female body donors before their placement at the Forensic Anthropology Research Facility owned by the Forensic Anthropological Center at Texas State (FACTS). Bone samples were again collected at selected PMIs (219-790-834-872days). Liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC-MS) was used to obtain untargeted metabolomic, lipidomic, and proteomic profiles from the pre- and post-placement bone samples. The three omics blocks were investigated independently by univariate and multivariate analyses, followed by Data Integration Analysis for Biomarker discovery using Latent variable approaches for Omics studies (DIABLO), to identify the reduced number of markers describing postmortem changes and discriminating the individuals based on their PMI. The resulting model showed that pre-placement metabolome, lipidome and proteome profiles were clearly distinguishable from post-placement ones. Metabolites in the pre-placement samples suggested an extinction of the energetic metabolism and a switch towards another source of fuelling (e.g., structural proteins). We were able to identify certain biomolecules with an excellent potential for PMI estimation, predominantly the biomolecules from the metabolomics block. Our findings suggest that, by targeting a combination of compounds with different postmortem stability, in the future we could be able to estimate both short PMIs, by using metabolites and lipids, and longer PMIs, by using proteins

Casimir-like tunneling-induced electronic forces

We study the quantum forces that act between two nearby conductors due to electronic tunneling. We derive an expression for these forces by calculating the flux of momentum arising from the overlap of evanescent electronic fields. Our result is written in terms of the electronic reflection amplitudes of the conductors and it has the same structure as Lifshitz's formula for the electromagnetically mediated Casimir forces. We evaluate the tunneling force between two semiinfinite conductors and between two thin films separated by an insulating gap. We discuss some applications of our results.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figs, submitted to Proc. of QFEXT'05, to be published in J. Phys.

Cobertura do solo e área foliar de uma cultivar de soja de hábito determinado cultivada no sistema de plantio cruzado.

O sistema denominado Plantio Cruzado surgiu no Brasil com o objetivo de aumentar a densidade de plantas de soja sem concentrar demasiadamente as plantas na linha, o que acarretaria em competição intraespecífica muito intensa. Com essa técnica, alguns produtores de diversas regiões do Brasil têm conseguido superar a marca de 6 t ha-1 de grãos de soja. A partir desse contexto, objetivou-se com o presente trabalho avaliar a cobertura do solo e a área foliar da cultivar de soja de hábito determinado, BRS 294 RR, cultivada nos sistemas de plantio cruzado e não cruzado. O experimento foi conduzido na Fazenda Experimental da Embrapa Soja, Londrina, PR, durante o período de outubro de 2011 a março de 2012. Utilizou-se o delineamento de blocos ao acaso em esquema fatorial 2 x 2 x 2, com três repetições. Os tratamentos foram formados pela combinação de dois espaçamentos entre fileiras (0,4 e 0,6 m), duas densidades de semeadura (375.000 e 562.500 sementes por hectare) e dois sistemas de plantio (plantio cruzado e não cruzado). Em geral, o plantio cruzado, o aumento da densidade de plantas e a redução do espaçamento entre fileiras proporcionaram incrementos na cobertura do solo pelas plantas de soja da cultivar BRS 294 RR. O plantio cruzado não afetou a área foliar por planta, mas aumentou a porcentagem de solo descoberto com palha ou plantas de soja no início do ciclo de desenvolvimento da cultura

Cobertura do solo e área foliar de uma cultivar de soja de hábito indeterminado cultivada no sistema de plantio cruzado.

A modificação do arranjo espacial das plantas de soja pode ser a forma mais rápida de aumento da média de rendimento de grãos de soja, sem alterações na sustentabilidade dos sistemas de produção. A partir desse cenário, objetivou-se com o presente trabalho avaliar a cobertura do solo e a área foliar de uma cultivar de soja de hábito indeterminado, BRS 359 RR, cultivada no sistema de plantio cruzado e não cruzado. O experimento foi realizado a campo localizado na Fazenda Experimental da Embrapa Soja em Londrina-PR, durante o período de outubro de 2011 a março de 2012. Utilizou-se o delineamento de blocos ao acaso em esquema fatorial 2 x 2 x 2, com três repetições. Os tratamentos foram formados pela combinação de dois espaçamentos (0,4 e 0,6 m), duas densidades de semeadura (375.000 e 562.500 sementes por hectare) e dois sistemas de plantio (plantio cruzado e não cruzado). No plantio cruzado, o aumento da densidade de plantas e a redução do espaçamento entre fileiras proporcionaram incrementos na cobertura do solo pelas plantas de soja da cultivar BRS 359 RR. O plantio cruzado aumentou a porcentagem de solo descoberto por palha e plantas de soja no início do ciclo de desenvolvimento da cultura

Bone Proteomics Method Optimization for Forensic Investigations

\ua9 2024 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.The application of proteomic analysis to forensic skeletal remains has gained significant interest in improving biological and chronological estimations in medico-legal investigations. To enhance the applicability of these analyses to forensic casework, it is crucial to maximize throughput and proteome recovery while minimizing interoperator variability and laboratory-induced post-translational protein modifications (PTMs). This work compared different workflows for extracting, purifying, and analyzing bone proteins using liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS)/MS including an in-StageTip protocol previously optimized for forensic applications and two protocols using novel suspension-trap technology (S-Trap) and different lysis solutions. This study also compared data-dependent acquisition (DDA) with data-independent acquisition (DIA). By testing all of the workflows on 30 human cortical tibiae samples, S-Trap workflows resulted in increased proteome recovery with both lysis solutions tested and in decreased levels of induced deamidations, and the DIA mode resulted in greater sensitivity and window of identification for the identification of lower-abundance proteins, especially when open-source software was utilized for data processing in both modes. The newly developed S-Trap protocol is, therefore, suitable for forensic bone proteomic workflows and, particularly when paired with DIA mode, can offer improved proteomic outcomes and increased reproducibility, showcasing its potential in forensic proteomics and contributing to achieving standardization in bone proteomic analyses for forensic applications

Diversidade Genética de bactérias endofíticas de Musa sp.

Foram isoladas 23 bactérias endofíticas de tecido foliar da cultivar Pacovan. A análise da diversidade genética foi realizada por meio das técnicas de ERIC e BOX-PCR a partir das quais foram obtidas 16 e 21 bandas polimórficas respectivamente. Os dados de similaridade com base na análise polifásica obtido pelo Coeficiente de Dice variaram entre 10% a 90% indicando alta diversidade genética entre os isolados analisados. Utilizando 60% de similaridade como critério para formação de OTUs (Operational Taxonomic Units) foram identificadas 7 possíveis OTUs

Current exposure of Italian women of reproductive age to PFOS and PFOA: a human biomonitoring study

Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) concentrations were determined in serum samples collected in 2011-2012 from 549 nulliparous Italian women of reproductive age who resided in six different Italian Regions. Assessment of exposure to perfluorinated compounds was part of a large human biomonitoring study (Project Life Plus "Womenbiopop") that aimed at examining the exposure of women of reproductive age to priority organic pollutants. The median concentrations of PFOS and PFOA were 2.43, and 1.55ngg-1, respectively. Significant differences in the concentrations of both compounds were observed among the six Regions. Women from central Italy had the highest levels of both compounds, followed by women from northern Italy, and southern Italy. No differences in the PFOS concentrations were found between women from urban/industrial areas and women from rural areas, whereas the levels of PFOA were significantly higher in women residing in urban/industrial areas than in women residing in rural areas. Taken together, the observed concentrations confirm that the overall exposure of the Italian population is among the lowest observed in industrialized countries. A downward temporal trend in exposure was observed for both compounds when comparing the results from the present study with those assessed in a study conducted in 2008

Microfluidic-based immunohistochemistry for breast cancer diagnosis: a comparative clinical study.

Breast cancer is a highly heterogeneous disease. The efficacy of tailored therapeutic strategies relies on the precise detection of diagnostic biomarkers by immunohistochemistry (IHC). Therefore, considering the increasing incidence of breast cancer cases, a concomitantly time-efficient and accurate diagnosis is clinically highly relevant. Microfluidics is a promising innovative technology in the field of tissue diagnostic, enabling for rapid, reliable, and automated immunostaining. We previously reported the microfluidic-based HER2 (human epidermal growth factor receptor 2) detection in breast carcinomas to greatly correlate with the HER2 gene amplification level. Here, we aimed to develop a panel of microfluidic-based IHC protocols for prognostic and therapeutic markers routinely assessed for breast cancer diagnosis, namely HER2, estrogen/progesterone receptor (ER/PR), and Ki67 proliferation factor. The microfluidic IHC protocol for each marker was optimized to reach high staining quality comparable to the standard procedure, while concomitantly shortening the staining time to 16 min-excluding deparaffinization and antigen retrieval step-with a turnaround time reduction up to 7 folds. Comparison of the diagnostic score on 50 formaldehyde-fixed paraffin-embedded breast tumor resections by microfluidic versus standard staining showed high concordance (overall agreement: HER2 94%, ER 95.9%, PR 93.6%, Ki67 93.7%) and strong correlation (ρ coefficient: ER 0.89, PR 0.88, Ki67 0.87; p < 0.0001) for all the analyzed markers. Importantly, HER2 genetic reflex test for all discordant cases confirmed the scores obtained by the microfluidic technique. Overall, the microfluidic-based IHC represents a clinically validated equivalent approach to the standard chromogenic staining for rapid, accurate, and automated breast cancer diagnosis