Testing the resolving power of two-dimensional K+K+ interferometry

We show results from an analysis performed to test the resolving power of a two-dimensional χ2 method proposed previously when applied to the case of kaon interferometry, where no significant contribution from long-lived resonances is expected. For that purpose, use is made of the preliminary E859 K+K+ interferometry data from Si+Au collisions at 14.6/4 GeV/c. Although less sensitivity is achieved in the present case, this analysis seems to favor scenarios with no resonance formation at the AGS energy range. The possible compatibility of data with zero decoupling proper time interval, conjectured by the three-dimensional experimental analysis, is also investigated and is ruled out when considering more realistic dynamical models with expanding sources. Furthermore, these results strongly emphasize that the static Gaussian parametrization cannot be trusted under more realistic conditions, leading to a distorted or even wrong interpretation of the source parameters.

Search for fractionally charged particles in pp collisions at √s=7 TeV

A search is presented for free heavy long-lived fractionally charged particles produced in pp collisions at √s=7 TeV. The data sample was recorded by the CMS detector at the LHC and corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 5.0 fb-1. Candidate fractionally charged particles are identified by selecting tracks with associated low charge measurements in the silicon tracking detector. Observations are found to be consistent with expectations for background processes. The results of the search are used to set upper limits on the cross section for pair production of fractionally charged, massive spin-1/2 particles that are neutral under SU(3)C and SU(2)L. We exclude at 95% confidence level such particles with electric charge ±2e/3 with masses below 310 GeV, and those with charge ±e/3 with masses below 140 GeV. © 2013 CERN. Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the http://creativecommons.org/ licenses/by/3.0/Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI.

Influência das proteínas Yops de Yersinia pseudotuberculosis na resposta imune humoral murina

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Temporal and Spatial Scaling of the Genetic Structure of a Vector-Borne Plant Pathogen

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Search for displaced supersymmetry in events with an electron and a muon with large impact parameters

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Continental degassing of He-4 by surficial discharge of deep groundwater

Radiogenic He-4 is produced by the decay of uranium and thorium in the Earths mantle and crust. From here, it is degassed to the atmosphere(1-5) and eventually escapes to space(1,5,6). Assuming that all of the He-4 produced is degassed, about 70% of the total He-4 degassed from Earth comes from the continental crust(2,-5,7). However, the outgoing flux of crustal He-4 has not been directly measured at the Earths surface(2) and the migration pathways are poorly understood(2-4,7,8). Here we present measurements of helium isotopes and the long-lived cosmogenic radio-isotope Kr-81 in the deep, continental-scale Guarani aquifer in Brazil and show that crustal He-4 reaches the atmosphere primarily by the surficial discharge of deep groundwater. We estimate that He-4 in Guarani groundwater discharge accounts for about 20% of the assumed global flux from continental crust, and that other large aquifers may account for about 33%. Old groundwater ages suggest that He-4 in the Guarani aquifer accumulates over half- to one-million-year timescales. We conclude that He-4 degassing from the continents is regulated by groundwater discharge, rather than episodic tectonic events, and suggest that the assumed steady state between crustal production and degassing of He-4, and its resulting atmospheric residence time, should be re-examined.

D-oscillons in the standard model extension

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Search for disappearing tracks in proton-proton collisions at root s=8 TeV

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Especialização hemisférica e assimetrias comportamentais: o lado da cama tem gênero?

Data relative on the side occupied by females in double beds were collected in order to evaluate the feasebility to carryout a more extensive study to determine if this behavioral pattern is lateralized. Information relative to the side occupied in the bed, manual lateralization, how long lived togheter, and other related questions were collected in a sample of 229 women aged from 20 to 65 years old. Total frequencies of the bed side occupied showed to be equivalent, however, the left side showed to be chosen significantly more (70%)(χ2 = 5.4; 1 d.f.; p<0.05) when the choice was stated to be spontaneous (i.e, not determined by an impositive factor) . It is concluded that the obtained data give favourable support to an extensive study on the subject, which inserts into the area of research devoted to the understanding of the functional characteristics of central nervous functioning.

History and fate of a small isolated population of Weddell seals at White Island, Antarctica

Weddell seals (Leptonychotes weddellii Lesson) at White Island, Antarctica form a small, completely enclosed, natural population hypothesized to be of recent origin, likely founded by individuals from nearby Erebus Bay. This population constitutes an ideal model to document a founder event and ensuing genetic drift, with implications for conservation. Here we combined historical accounts, census and tagging data since the late 1960s, and genetic data (41 microsatellite loci and mitochondrial DNA sequences) from 84 individuals representing nearly all individuals present between 1990 and 2000 to investigate the history of the founding of the White Island population, document its population dynamics and evaluate possible future threats. We fully resolved parental relationships over three overlapping generations. Cytonuclear disequilibrium among the first generation suggested that it comprised the direct descendants of a founding group. We estimated that the White Island population was founded by a small group of individuals that accessed the island during a brief break in the surrounding sea ice in the mid-1950s, consistent with historical accounts. Direct and indirect methods of calculating effective population size were highly congruent and suggested a minimum founding group consisting of three females and two males. The White Island population showed altered reproductive dynamics compared to Erebus Bay, including highly skewed sex ratio, documented inbred mating events, and the oldest known reproducing Weddell seals. A comparison with the putative source population showed that the White Island population has an effective inbreeding coefficient (Fe) of 0.29. Based on a pedigree analysis including the hypothesized founding group, 86% of the individuals for whom parents were known had inbreeding coefficients ranging 0.09–0.31. This high level of inbreeding was correlated with reduced pup survival. Seals at White Island therefore face the combined effects of low genetic variability, lack of immigration, and inbreeding depression. Ultimately, this study provides evidence of the effects of natural isolation on a large, long-lived vertebrate and can provide clues to the potential effects of anthropogenic- caused isolation of similar taxa.

Evaluating the legacy of landscape history: extinction debt and species credit in bird and small mammal assemblages in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest

There is now an extensive literature on extinction debt following deforestation. However, the potential for species credit in landscapes that have experienced a change from decreasing to expanding forest cover has received little attention. Both delayed responses should depend on current landscape forest cover and on species life-history traits, such as longevity, as short-lived species are likely to respond faster than long-lived species. We evaluated the effects of historical and present-day local forest cover on two vertebrate groups with different longevities understorey birds and non-flying small mammals - in forest patches at three Atlantic Forest landscapes. Our work investigated how the probability of extinction debt and species credit varies (i) amongst landscapes with different proportions of forest cover and distinct trajectories of forest cover change, and (ii) between taxa with different life spans. Our results suggest that the existence of extinction debt and species credit, as well as the potential for their future payment and/or receipt, is not only related to forest cover trajectory but also to the amount of remaining forest cover at the landscape scale. Moreover, differences in bird and small mammal life spans seem to be insufficient to affect differently their probability of showing time-delayed responses to landscape change. Synthesis and applications. Our work highlights the need for considering not only the trajectory of deforestation/regeneration but also the amount of forest cover at landscape scale when investigating time-delayed responses to landscape change. As many landscapes are experiencing a change from decreasing to expanding forest cover, understanding the association of extinction and immigration processes, as well as their interactions with the landscape dynamic, is a key factor to plan conservation and restoration actions in human-altered landscapes.

The Regulation of Rasd1 Expression by Glucocorticoids and Prolactin Controls Peripartum Maternal Insulin Secretion

The transition from gestation to lactation is characterized by a robust adaptation of maternal pancreatic beta-cells. Consistent with the loss of beta-cell mass, glucose-induced insulin secretion is down-regulated in the islets of early lactating dams. Extensive experimental evidence has demonstrated that the surge of prolactin is responsible for the morphofunctional remodeling of the maternal endocrine pancreas during pregnancy, but the precise molecular mechanisms by which this phenotype is rapidly reversed after delivery are not completely understood. This study investigated whether glucocorticoid-regulated expression of Rasd1/Dexras, a small inhibitoryGprotein, is involved in this physiological plasticity. Immunofluorescent staining demonstrated that Rasd1 is localized within pancreatic beta-cells. Rasd1 expression in insulin-secreting cells was increased by dexamethasone and decreased by prolactin. In vivo data confirmed that Rasd1 expression is decreased in islets from pregnant rats and increased in islets from lactating mothers. Knockdown of Rasd1 abolished the inhibitory effects of dexamethasone on insulin secretion and the protein kinase A, protein kinase C, and ERK1/2 pathways. Chromatin immunoprecipitation experiments revealed that glucocorticoid receptor (GR) and signal transducer and activator of transcription 5b (STAT5b) cooperatively mediate glucocorticoid-induced Rasd1 expression in islets. Prolactin inhibited the stimulatory effect of GR/STAT5b complex on Rasd1 transcription. Overall, our data indicate that the stimulation of Rasd1 expression by glucocorticoid at the end of pregnancy reverses the increased insulin secretion that occurs during pregnancy. Prolactin negatively regulates this pathway by inhibiting GR/STAT5b transcriptional activity on the Rasd1 gene. (Endocrinology 153: 3668-3678, 2012)

Quantum exchange interaction of spherically symmetric plasmoids

We study nano-sized spherically symmetric plasma structures which are radial nonlinear oscillations of electrons in plasma. The effective interaction of these plasmoids via quantum exchange forces between ions is described. We calculate the energy of this interaction for the case of a dense plasma. The conditions when the exchange interaction is attractive are examined and it is shown that separate plasmoids can form a single object. The application of our results to the theoretical description of stable atmospheric plasma structures is considered. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Expression of NADPH oxidase in human pancreatic islets

Aims: NADPH oxidase (NOX) is a known source of superoxide anions in phagocytic and non-phagocytic cells. In this study, the presence of this enzyme in human pancreatic islets and the importance of NADPH oxidase in human beta-cell function were investigated. Main methods and key findings: In isolated human pancreatic islets, the expression of NADPH oxidase components was evidenced by real-time PCR (p22(PHOX), p47(PHOX) and p67(PHOX)), Western blotting (p47(PHOX) and p67(PHOX)) and immunohistochemistry (p47(PHOX), p67(PHOX) and gp91(PHOX)). Immunohistochemistry experiments showed co-localization of p47(PHOX), p67(PHOX) and gp91(PHOX) (isoform 2 of NADPH oxidase-NOX2) with insulin secreting cells. Inhibition of NADPH oxidase activity impaired glucose metabolism and glucose-stimulated insulin secretion. Significance: These findings demonstrate the presence of the main intrinsic components of NADPH oxidase comprising the NOX2 isoform in human pancreatic islets, whose activity also contributes to human beta-cell function. (C) 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Petrogenesis of syntectonic granites emplaced at the transition from thrusting to transcurrent tectonics in post-collisional setting: Whole-rock and Sr-Nd-Pb isotope geochemistry in the Neoproterozoic Quatro Ilhas and Mariscal Granites, Southern Brazil

The Neoproterozoic post-collisional period in southern Brazil (650-580 Ma) is characterized by substantial volumes of magma emplaced along the active shear zones that compose the Southern Brazilian Shear Belt. The early-phase syntectonic magmatism (630-610 Ma) is represented by the porphyritic, high-K, metaluminous to peraluminous Quatro Ilhas Granitoids and the younger heterogranular, slightly peraluminous Mariscal Granite. Quatro II has Granitoids include three main petrographic varieties (muscovite-biotite granodiorite mbg; biotite monzogranite - bmz: and leucogranite - lcg) that, although sharing some significant geochemical characteristics, are not strictly comagmatic, as shown by chemical and Sr-Nd-Pb isotope data. The most primitive muscovite-biotite granodiorite was produced by contamination of more mafic melts (possibly with some mantle component) with peraluminous crustal melts; the biotite monzogranite, although more felsic, has higher Ca, MgO,TiO2 and Ba, and lower K2O, FeOt, Sr and Rb contents, possibly reflecting some mixing with coeval mafic magmas of tholeiitic affinity; the leucogranite may be derived from pure crustal melts. The Mariscal Granite is formed by two main granite types which occur intimately associated in the same pluton, one with higher K (5-6.5 wt.% K2O) high Rb and lower CaO, Na2O, Ba and Zr as compared to the other (3-5 wt.% of K2O). The two Mariscal Granite varieties have compositional correspondence with fine-grained granites (fgg) that occur as tabular bodies which intruded the Quatro Ilhas Granoitoids before they were fully crystallized, and are inferred to correspond to the Mariscal Granite feeders, an interpretation that is reinforced by similar U-Pb zircon crystallization ages. The initial evolution of the post-collisional magmatism, marked by the emplacement of the Quatro Ilhas Granitoids varieties, activated sources that produced mantle and crustal magmas whose emplacement was controlled both by flat-lying and transcurrent structures. The transition from thrust to transcurrent-related tectonics coincides with the increase in the proportion of crustal-derived melts. The transcurrent tectonics seems to have played an essential role in the generation of mantle-derived magmas and may have facilitated their interaction with crustal melts which seem to be to a large extent the products of reworking of orthogneiss protoliths. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.