The use of the mouse chimera assay to detect early embryonic damage from male mice exposed to low-dose radiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oudiz, D.; Warner, P.; Walsh, K.J.; Wiley, L.

1990-01-01

Mouse chimeras are in vitro aggregations of two 4-cell embryos and are used to detect subtle, nonlethal changes, which are expressed as a proliferative disadvantage in exposed embryos. One of the embryos is labeled with a viable dye (FITC) in order to determine the relative cellular contribution of each embryo when the chimera is dissociated 40 hours later. This proliferative disadvantage has been seen at doses which do not produce an effect on cell number when the embryos are cultured singly. Previously, the assay has detected a decrease in cellular proliferation in embryos from male mice exposed to a single dose of x-radiation as low as 0.05 Gy. In the current study, male mice were irradiated with a single dose of 0, 0.001, 0.01, or 0.05 Gy, and then serially mated for the next 8 weeks to unexposed females. Chimeras were constructed from control and treated embryos. Embryos from males treated with 0.05 Gy exhibited a significant decrease in cellular proliferation during weeks 6 and 7 post-irradiation. A similar decrease was seen in the males treated with 0.01 Gy. No reductions were observed from embryos cultured singly in any of the treatment groups

Gargoyles, Grotesques, & Chimeras

Science.gov (United States)

Wilbert, Nancy Corrigan

2010-01-01

Gargoyles, grotesques, and chimeras are scary, mythical (and sometimes humorous) creatures that have functional, decorative, and spiritual significance in medieval architecture. In this article, the author describes how her ceramics students created contemporary versions of gargoyles, chimeras, and grotesque faces. (Contains 1 online resource.)

A Phase 1 Study of 4 Live, Recombinant Human Cytomegalovirus Towne/Toledo Chimera Vaccines in Cytomegalovirus-Seronegative Men.

Science.gov (United States)

Adler, Stuart P; Manganello, Anne-Marie; Lee, Ronzo; McVoy, Michael A; Nixon, Daniel E; Plotkin, Stanley; Mocarski, Edward; Cox, Josephine H; Fast, Patricia E; Nesterenko, Pavlo A; Murray, Susan E; Hill, Ann B; Kemble, George

2016-11-01

 Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection causes disease in newborns and transplant recipients. A HCMV vaccine (Towne) protects transplant recipients.  The genomes of Towne and the nonattenuated Toledo strain were recombined, yielding 4 Towne/Toledo chimera vaccines. Each of 36 HCMV-seronegative men received 1 subcutaneous dose of 10, 100, or 1000 plaque-forming units (PFU) in cohorts of 3. Safety and immunogenicity were evaluated over 12 weeks after immunization and for 52 weeks for those who seroconverted.  There were no serious local or systemic reactions. No subject had HCMV in urine or saliva. For chimera 3, none of 9 subjects seroconverted. For chimera 1, 1 of 9 seroconverted (the seroconverter received 100 PFU). For chimera 2, 3 subjects seroconverted (1 received 100 PFU, and 2 received 1000 PFU). For chimera 4, 7 subjects seroconverted (1 received 10 PFU, 3 received 100 PFU, and 3 received 1000 PFU). All 11 seroconverters developed low but detectable levels of neutralizing activity. CD4 + T-cell responses were detectable in 1 subject (who received 100 PFU of chimera 4). Seven subjects receiving chimera 2 or 4 had detectable CD8 + T-cell responses to IE1; 3 responded to 1-2 additional antigens.  The Towne/Toledo chimera vaccine candidates were well tolerated and were not excreted. Additional human trials of chimeras 2 and 4 are appropriate.  NCT01195571. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press for the Infectious Diseases Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, e-mail journals.permissions@oup.com.

Multiple scroll wave chimera states

Science.gov (United States)

Maistrenko, Volodymyr; Sudakov, Oleksandr; Osiv, Oleksiy; Maistrenko, Yuri

2017-06-01

We report the appearance of three-dimensional (3D) multiheaded chimera states that display cascades of self-organized spatiotemporal patterns of coexisting coherence and incoherence. We demonstrate that the number of incoherent chimera domains can grow additively under appropriate variations of the system parameters generating thereby head-adding cascades of the scroll wave chimeras. The phenomenon is derived for the Kuramoto model of N 3 identical phase oscillators placed in the unit 3D cube with periodic boundary conditions, parameters being the coupling radius r and phase lag α. To obtain the multiheaded chimeras, we perform the so-called `cloning procedure' as follows: choose a sample single-headed 3D chimera state, make appropriate scale transformation, and put some number of copies of them into the unit cube. After that, start numerical simulations with slightly perturbed initial conditions and continue them for a sufficiently long time to confirm or reject the state existence and stability. In this way it is found, that multiple scroll wave chimeras including those with incoherent rolls, Hopf links and trefoil knots admit this sort of multiheaded regeneration. On the other hand, multiple 3D chimeras without spiral rotations, like coherent and incoherent balls, tubes, crosses, and layers appear to be unstable and are destroyed rather fast even for arbitrarily small initial perturbations.

Immune tolerance in radiation chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Awaya, Kazuhiko; Kuniki, Hiromichi; Neki, Miyuki

1978-01-01

Establishment of immune tolerance in radiation chimeras and the mechanism of maintaining it were discussed from certain points. Semiallogeneic radiation chimeras are mostly of long-living, and the hematopoietic organ of this individual consists mainly of the cells derived from the marrow donor, i. e., F 1 -type cells. F 1 -type lymphocytes can distinguish parental strain cells from themselves. In these chimeras, a F 1 -skin graft maintains to be fresh as long as the host is alive, showing immune tolerance effective through its life. In establishment and maintenance of this immune tolerance, the suppressing mechanism of host-type or F 1 -type seems to be involved. The allogeneic radiation chimera has very poor long-survival rate compared with that of the semiallogeneic radiation chimera. To raise this survival rate, efforts are now being made from the immunological point of view. (Ueda, J.)

Radiobiological research on carnation chimerae Dianthus Caryophyllus L

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pereau-Leroy, Pierre.

1975-01-01

A radiobiological study of periclinal carnation chimerae is carried out by subjecting whole plants and cuttings at different physiological stages to cobalt 60 gamma radiation under different dose and dose rate conditions. The effects of these treatments are observed during cultivation of the treated plants and by microscopic examination of irradiated meristem sections. The destruction of meristem cells in proportions varying with the irradiation conditions leads to structural changes in the chimerae; the more frequent change is the formation of genetically homogeneous stalks from different genotypes existing in the irradiated plant. Treatment by ionizing radiations is thus a practical means of detecting periclinical chimerae which, as in the case of carnations, are very common in plants grown by vegetative propagation. However since more than two independent meristem cell groups are usually present it is not possible by this method alone to define the distribution of the differentent genotypes in these groups; additional genetic studies or cell labelling such as chlorophyll or genoma mutations are then necessary [fr

Periclinal chimera technique: new plant breeding approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Gakpetor, P M; Mohammed, H; Moreti, D; Nassar, N M A

2017-09-21

Plant interspecific periclinal chimeras are a mosaic formed by tissues from two species. They are manipulated here as an efficient plant breeding tool for cassava root yields. In this study, plants synthesized from two chimeras, designated as chimera 2 and chimera 4, were characterized morphologically and cytologically to unravel the origin of their tissue layers (L2 and L3). Root yield of the two chimeras was also evaluated. Chimera 2 that was developed from graft union between Manihot fortalezensis (F) as scion and M. esculenta (E) as rootstock and the same in chimera 4 was developed from grafting triploid cassava cultivar (2n = 54) (C) as scion and M. pohlii (P) (2n = 36) as rootstock. A new method of inducing interspecific chimeras without using hormones was also tested in this study. Five combinations between four cassava cultivars on one side and M. fortalezensis and an interspecific hybrid (M. glaziovii x M. esculenta) on the other side were experimented to determine compatibility between the parents. Wild species always gave L2 and L3, independent of being used as rootstock or scion. L3 is responsible for producing pericycle. Thus, its performance was different in each chimera due to specific epigenetic interaction. Of 48 grafts, it was obtained one chimera giving a percentage of 2.1% that is little lower than using hormones but much efficient to use. Chimera induction efficiency in this investigation was the same when using hormones. Thus, our new, less labor, and more cost-effective technique is as much efficient as hormones and is much potential to employ as an effective plant breeding method boosting cassava root yield.

Enstore with Chimera namespace provider

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Litvintsev, Dmitry; Moibenko, Alexander; Oleynik, Gene; Zalokar, Michael

2012-01-01

Enstore is a mass storage system developed by Fermilab that provides distributed access and management of data stored on tapes. It uses a namespace service, PNFS, developed by DESY to provide a filesystem-like view of the stored data. PNFS is a legacy product and is being replaced by a new implementation, called Chimera, which is also developed by DESY. Chimera offers multiple advantages over PNFS in terms of performance and functionality. The Enstore client component, encp, has been modified to work with Chimera, as well as with any other namespace provider. We performed high load end-to-end acceptance test of Enstore with the Chimera namespace. This paper describes the modifications to Enstore, the test procedure and the results of the acceptance testing.

Chimera states in mechanical oscillator networks

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Martens, Erik Andreas; Thutupalli, Shashi; Fourrière, Antoine

2013-01-01

of identical oscillators, numerous theoretical studies in recent years have revealed the intriguing possibility of "chimera states," in which the symmetry of the oscillator population is broken into a synchronous part and an asynchronous part. However, a striking lack of empirical evidence raises the question...... of whether chimeras are indeed characteristic of natural systems. This calls for a palpable realization of chimera states without any fine-tuning, from which physical mechanisms underlying their emergence can be uncovered. Here, we devise a simple experiment with mechanical oscillators coupled...... in a hierarchical network to show that chimeras emerge naturally from a competition between two antagonistic synchronization patterns. We identify a wide spectrum of complex states, encompassing and extending the set of previously described chimeras. Our mathematical model shows that the self-organization observed...

Non-identical multiplexing promotes chimera states

Science.gov (United States)

Ghosh, Saptarshi; Zakharova, Anna; Jalan, Sarika

2018-01-01

We present the emergence of chimeras, a state referring to coexistence of partly coherent, partly incoherent dynamics in networks of identical oscillators, in a multiplex network consisting of two non-identical layers which are interconnected. We demonstrate that the parameter range displaying the chimera state in the homogeneous first layer of the multiplex networks can be tuned by changing the link density or connection architecture of the same nodes in the second layer. We focus on the impact of the interconnected second layer on the enlargement or shrinking of the coupling regime for which chimeras are displayed in the homogeneous first layer. We find that a denser homogeneous second layer promotes chimera in a sparse first layer, where chimeras do not occur in isolation. Furthermore, while a dense connection density is required for the second layer if it is homogeneous, this is not true if the second layer is inhomogeneous. We demonstrate that a sparse inhomogeneous second layer which is common in real-world complex systems can promote chimera states in a sparse homogeneous first layer.

The viral envelope is not sufficient to transfer the unique broad cell tropism of Bungowannah virus to a related pestivirus.

Science.gov (United States)

Richter, Maria; Reimann, Ilona; Schirrmeier, Horst; Kirkland, Peter D; Beer, Martin

2014-10-01

Bungowannah virus is the most divergent pestivirus, and both origin and reservoir host have not been identified so far. We therefore performed in vitro tropism studies, which showed that Bungowannah virus differs remarkably from other pestiviruses. Interestingly, cell lines of vervet monkey, mouse, human and even of bat origin were susceptible. This broad in vitro tropism was not observed for a chimeric bovine viral diarrhoea virus (BVDV) expressing all structural proteins of Bungowannah virus. The viral envelope was not sufficient to completely transfer the cell tropism of Bungowannah virus to another pestivirus, and viral RNA replication was either markedly reduced or not detectable in a number of different cell lines for the tested BVDV strain and the chimera. We therefore suggest that the replication machinery together with the viral envelope is responsible for the unique broad cell tropism of Bungowannah virus. © 2014 The Authors.

Nonspecific suppressor elements in murine allogeneic radiation chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Urso, P.; Gengozian, N.

1979-01-01

Spleen cells from long-term mouse allogeneic radiation chimeras were tested for their ability to modulate the graft-versus-host (GVH) or plaque-forming cell (PFC) response of normal lymphocytes transplanted in lethally x-irradiated recipients. In vivo GVH proliferation of normal lymphocytes (syngeneic to donor cells of the chimera) against antigens of host-type in which the chimeric state had been established was reduced by chimera cells. Inhibition varied, some chimeras suppressing GVH more than others and a few not suppressing at all. The suppressive effect was abrogated if the chimera cells were treated with anti-THETA; treatment with anti-IgM did not eliminate this activity. When mixtures of normal donor lymphocytes and chimera cells were given to irradiated recipients genetically different from host or donor, reduction of donor cell GVH also occurred. Further, chimera cells reduced the GVH activity of normal host cells in irradiated recipients differing from the host at one H-2 locus and from the donor at minor histocompatibility loci. The modulating effect of spleen cells from chimeras on the PFC response by normal lymphocytes also varied. Six chimeras induced a 25 to 90% suppression, two enhanced the response, and one showed no effect. Where suppression occurred, treatment of chimera cells with anti-THETA most often, but not always, restored PFC production. Our results show that the suppressive action of splenic lymphoid cells by chimeras is highly nonspecific and variable in expression. We suggest that tolerance in chimeras may be mediated by nonspecific suppressor elements leading to unresponsiveness to a variety of antigens including SRBC

Mobility-induced persistent chimera states

Science.gov (United States)

Petrungaro, Gabriela; Uriu, Koichiro; Morelli, Luis G.

2017-12-01

We study the dynamics of mobile, locally coupled identical oscillators in the presence of coupling delays. We find different kinds of chimera states in which coherent in-phase and antiphase domains coexist with incoherent domains. These chimera states are dynamic and can persist for long times for intermediate mobility values. We discuss the mechanisms leading to the formation of these chimera states in different mobility regimes. This finding could be relevant for natural and technological systems composed of mobile communicating agents.

Solvable model for chimera states of coupled oscillators.

Science.gov (United States)

Abrams, Daniel M; Mirollo, Rennie; Strogatz, Steven H; Wiley, Daniel A

2008-08-22

Networks of identical, symmetrically coupled oscillators can spontaneously split into synchronized and desynchronized subpopulations. Such chimera states were discovered in 2002, but are not well understood theoretically. Here we obtain the first exact results about the stability, dynamics, and bifurcations of chimera states by analyzing a minimal model consisting of two interacting populations of oscillators. Along with a completely synchronous state, the system displays stable chimeras, breathing chimeras, and saddle-node, Hopf, and homoclinic bifurcations of chimeras.

Chimera states in three dimensions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maistrenko, Yuri; Sudakov, Oleksandr; Osiv, Oleksiy; Maistrenko, Volodymyr

2015-01-01

The chimera state is a recently discovered dynamical phenomenon in arrays of nonlocally coupled oscillators, that displays a self-organized spatial pattern of coexisting coherence and incoherence. In this paper, the first evidence of three-dimensional chimera states is reported for the Kuramoto model of phase oscillators in 3D grid topology with periodic boundary conditions. Systematic analysis of the dependence of the spatiotemporal dynamics on the range and strength of coupling shows that there are two principal classes of the chimera patterns which exist in large domains of the parameter space: (I) oscillating and (II) spirally rotating. Characteristic examples from the first class include coherent as well as incoherent balls, tubes, crosses, and layers in incoherent or coherent surrounding; the second class includes scroll waves with incoherent, randomized rolls of different modality and dynamics. Numerical simulations started from various initial conditions indicate that the states are stable over the integration time. Videos of the dynamics of the chimera states are presented in supplementary material. It is concluded that three-dimensional chimera states, which are novel spatiotemporal patterns involving the coexistence of coherent and incoherent domains, can represent one of the inherent features of nature. (paper)

The Dependence of Chimera States on Initial Conditions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Feng Yue-E; Li Hai-Hong

2015-01-01

A chimera state consisting of both coherent and incoherent groups is a fascinating spatial pattern in non-locally coupled identical oscillators. It is thought that random initial conditions hardly evolve to chimera states. In this work, we study the dependence of chimera states on initial conditions. We show that random initial conditions may lead to chimera states and the chance of realizing chimera states becomes increasing when the model parameters are moving away from the boundary of their stable regime. (paper)

Using CHIMERA detector at LNS for gamma-particle coincidences

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cardella G.

2016-01-01

Full Text Available We have recently evaluated the quality of γ-ray angular distributions that can be extracted in particle-gamma coincidence measurements using the CHIMERA detector at LNS. γ-rays have been detected using the CsI(Tl detectors of the spherical part of the CHIMERA array. Very clean γ-rays angular distributions were extracted in reactions induced by different stable beams impinging on 12C thin targets. The results evidenced an effect of projectile spin flip on the γ-rays angular distributions. γ-particle coincidence measurements were also performed in reactions induced by neutron rich exotic beams produced through in-flight fragmentation at LNS. In recent experiments also the Farcos array was used to improve energy and angular resolution measurements of the detected charged particles. Results obtained with both stable and radioactive beams are reported.

Chimera patterns in the Kuramoto–Battogtokh model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smirnov, Lev; Osipov, Grigory; Pikovsky, Arkady

2017-01-01

Kuramoto and Battogtokh (2002 Nonlinear Phenom. Complex Syst . 5 380) discovered chimera states represented by stable coexisting synchrony and asynchrony domains in a lattice of coupled oscillators. After a reformulation in terms of a local order parameter, the problem can be reduced to partial differential equations. We find uniformly rotating, spatially periodic chimera patterns as solutions of a reversible ordinary differential equation, and demonstrate a plethora of such states. In the limit of neutral coupling they reduce to analytical solutions in the form of one- and two-point chimera patterns as well as localized chimera solitons. Patterns at weakly attracting coupling are characterized by virtue of a perturbative approach. Stability analysis reveals that only the simplest chimeras with one synchronous region are stable. (letter)

Chimera patterns in the Kuramoto-Battogtokh model

Science.gov (United States)

Smirnov, Lev; Osipov, Grigory; Pikovsky, Arkady

2017-02-01

Kuramoto and Battogtokh (2002 Nonlinear Phenom. Complex Syst. 5 380) discovered chimera states represented by stable coexisting synchrony and asynchrony domains in a lattice of coupled oscillators. After a reformulation in terms of a local order parameter, the problem can be reduced to partial differential equations. We find uniformly rotating, spatially periodic chimera patterns as solutions of a reversible ordinary differential equation, and demonstrate a plethora of such states. In the limit of neutral coupling they reduce to analytical solutions in the form of one- and two-point chimera patterns as well as localized chimera solitons. Patterns at weakly attracting coupling are characterized by virtue of a perturbative approach. Stability analysis reveals that only the simplest chimeras with one synchronous region are stable.

Enhancing UCSF Chimera through web services.

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Conrad C; Meng, Elaine C; Morris, John H; Pettersen, Eric F; Ferrin, Thomas E

2014-07-01

Integrating access to web services with desktop applications allows for an expanded set of application features, including performing computationally intensive tasks and convenient searches of databases. We describe how we have enhanced UCSF Chimera (http://www.rbvi.ucsf.edu/chimera/), a program for the interactive visualization and analysis of molecular structures and related data, through the addition of several web services (http://www.rbvi.ucsf.edu/chimera/docs/webservices.html). By streamlining access to web services, including the entire job submission, monitoring and retrieval process, Chimera makes it simpler for users to focus on their science projects rather than data manipulation. Chimera uses Opal, a toolkit for wrapping scientific applications as web services, to provide scalable and transparent access to several popular software packages. We illustrate Chimera's use of web services with an example workflow that interleaves use of these services with interactive manipulation of molecular sequences and structures, and we provide an example Python program to demonstrate how easily Opal-based web services can be accessed from within an application. Web server availability: http://webservices.rbvi.ucsf.edu/opal2/dashboard?command=serviceList. © The Author(s) 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

Chimera states in bipartite networks of FitzHugh-Nagumo oscillators

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Zhi-Min; Cheng, Hong-Yan; Feng, Yuee; Li, Hai-Hong; Dai, Qiong-Lin; Yang, Jun-Zhong

2018-04-01

Chimera states consisting of spatially coherent and incoherent domains have been observed in different topologies such as rings, spheres, and complex networks. In this paper, we investigate bipartite networks of nonlocally coupled FitzHugh-Nagumo (FHN) oscillators in which the units are allocated evenly to two layers, and FHN units interact with each other only when they are in different layers. We report the existence of chimera states in bipartite networks. Owing to the interplay between chimera states in the two layers, many types of chimera states such as in-phase chimera states, antiphase chimera states, and out-of-phase chimera states are classified. Stability diagrams of several typical chimera states in the coupling strength-coupling radius plane, which show strong multistability of chimera states, are explored.

All-Optical envelope detection and fiber transmission of wireless signals by external injection of a DFB laser

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Prince, Kamau; Tafur Monroy, Idelfonso

2008-01-01

We outline a novel method for all-optical envelope detection of wireless signals by exploiting cross-gain modulation effects in a distributed feedback laser operating with optical injection. We successfully demonstrate envelope detection of a 20-GHz carrier amplitude-shift-keying modulated signal...

An Experimental Study of Cavitation Detection in a Centrifugal Pump Using Envelope Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Tan, Chek Zin; Leong, M. Salman

Cavitation represents one of the most common faults in pumps and could potentially lead to a series of failure in mechanical seal, impeller, bearing, shaft, motor, etc. In this work, an experimental rig was setup to investigate cavitation detection using vibration envelope analysis method, and measured parameters included sound, pressure and flow rate for feasibility of cavitation detection. The experiment testing included 3 operating points of the centrifugal pump (B.E.P, 90% of B.E.P and 80% of B.E.P). Suction pressure of the centrifugal pump was decreased gradually until the inception point of cavitation. Vibration measurements were undertaken at various locations including casing, bearing, suction and discharge flange of the centrifugal pump. Comparisons of envelope spectrums under cavitating and non-cavitating conditions were presented. Envelope analysis was proven useful in detecting cavitation over the 3 testing conditions. During the normal operating condition, vibration peak synchronous to rotational speed was more pronounced. It was however during cavitation condition, the half order sub-harmonic vibration component was clearly evident in the envelope spectrums undertaken at all measurement locations except at the pump bearing. The possible explanation of the strong sub-harmonic (½ of BPF) during cavitation existence in the centrifugal pump was due to insufficient time for the bubbles to collapse completely before the end of the single cycle.

Refining the intrinsic chimera flap: a review.

Science.gov (United States)

Agarwal, Jayant P; Agarwal, Shailesh; Adler, Neta; Gottlieb, Lawrence J

2009-10-01

Reconstruction of complex tissue deficiencies in which each missing component is in a different spatial relationship to each other can be particularly challenging, especially in patients with limited recipient vessels. The chimera flap design is uniquely suited to reconstruct these deformities. Chimera flaps have been previously defined in many ways with 2 main categories: prefabricated or intrinsic. Herein we attempt to clarify the definition of a true intrinsic chimeric flap and provide examples of how these constructs provide a method for reconstruction of complex defects. The versatility of the intrinsic chimera flap and its procurement from 7 different vascular systems is described. A clarification of the definition of a true intrinsic chimera flap is described. In addition, construction of flaps from the lateral femoral circumflex, deep circumflex iliac, inferior gluteal, peroneal, subscapular, thoracodorsal, and radial arterial systems is described to showcase the versatility of these chimera flaps. A true intrinsic chimera flap must consist of more than a single tissue type. Each of the tissue components receives its blood flow from separate vascular branches or perforators that are connected to a single vascular source. These vascular branches must be of appropriate length to allow for insetting with 3-dimensional spatial freedom. There are a multitude of sites from which true intrinsic chimera flaps may be harvested.

Quantum walk on a chimera graph

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Shu; Sun, Xiangxiang; Wu, Jizhou; Zhang, Wei-Wei; Arshed, Nigum; Sanders, Barry C.

2018-05-01

We analyse a continuous-time quantum walk on a chimera graph, which is a graph of choice for designing quantum annealers, and we discover beautiful quantum walk features such as localization that starkly distinguishes classical from quantum behaviour. Motivated by technological thrusts, we study continuous-time quantum walk on enhanced variants of the chimera graph and on diminished chimera graph with a random removal of vertices. We explain the quantum walk by constructing a generating set for a suitable subgroup of graph isomorphisms and corresponding symmetry operators that commute with the quantum walk Hamiltonian; the Hamiltonian and these symmetry operators provide a complete set of labels for the spectrum and the stationary states. Our quantum walk characterization of the chimera graph and its variants yields valuable insights into graphs used for designing quantum-annealers.

Chimera States in Neural Oscillators

Science.gov (United States)

Bahar, Sonya; Glaze, Tera

2014-03-01

Chimera states have recently been explored both theoretically and experimentally, in various coupled nonlinear oscillators, ranging from phase-oscillator models to coupled chemical reactions. In a chimera state, both coherent and incoherent (or synchronized and desynchronized) states occur simultaneously in populations of identical oscillators. We investigate chimera behavior in a population of neural oscillators using the Huber-Braun model, a Hodgkin-Huxley-like model originally developed to characterize the temperature-dependent bursting behavior of mammalian cold receptors. One population of neurons is allowed to synchronize, with each neuron receiving input from all the others in its group (global within-group coupling). Subsequently, a second population of identical neurons is placed under an identical global within-group coupling, and the two populations are also coupled to each other (between-group coupling). For certain values of the coupling constants, the neurons in the two populations exhibit radically different synchronization behavior. We will discuss the range of chimera activity in the model, and discuss its implications for actual neural activity, such as unihemispheric sleep.

Synthesis of periclinal chimera in cassava.

Science.gov (United States)

Nassar, N M A; Bomfim, N

2013-02-27

We provide the first report on the synthesis of a very productive interspecific periclinal chimera of cassava, with large and edible roots. The epidermal tissue of the chimera was formed by the cultivated species Manihot esculenta (E), and the subepidermis and internal tissue were formed by the wild species, Manihot fortalezensis (F). We used cytogenetics and morphological analyses to determine the origins of all tissues. These results may offer potential for the development of new lines for crop improvement based on the use of chimera composed of different combinations of wild species and cultivars.

Clustered chimera states in systems of type-I excitability

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vüllings, Andrea; Omelchenko, Iryna; Hövel, Philipp; Hizanidis, Johanne

2014-01-01

The chimera state is a fascinating phenomenon of coexisting synchronized and desynchronized behaviour that was discovered in networks of nonlocally coupled identical phase oscillators over ten years ago. Since then, chimeras have been found in numerous theoretical and experimental studies and more recently in models of neuronal dynamics as well. In this work, we consider a generic model for a saddle-node bifurcation on a limit cycle representative of neural excitability type I. We obtain chimera states with multiple coherent regions (clustered chimeras/multi-chimeras) depending on the distance from the excitability threshold, the range of nonlocal coupling and the coupling strength. A detailed stability diagram for these chimera states and other interesting coexisting patterns (like traveling waves) is presented. (paper)

Generalized synchronization between chimera states

Science.gov (United States)

Andrzejak, Ralph G.; Ruzzene, Giulia; Malvestio, Irene

2017-05-01

Networks of coupled oscillators in chimera states are characterized by an intriguing interplay of synchronous and asynchronous motion. While chimera states were initially discovered in mathematical model systems, there is growing experimental and conceptual evidence that they manifest themselves also in natural and man-made networks. In real-world systems, however, synchronization and desynchronization are not only important within individual networks but also across different interacting networks. It is therefore essential to investigate if chimera states can be synchronized across networks. To address this open problem, we use the classical setting of ring networks of non-locally coupled identical phase oscillators. We apply diffusive drive-response couplings between pairs of such networks that individually show chimera states when there is no coupling between them. The drive and response networks are either identical or they differ by a variable mismatch in their phase lag parameters. In both cases, already for weak couplings, the coherent domain of the response network aligns its position to the one of the driver networks. For identical networks, a sufficiently strong coupling leads to identical synchronization between the drive and response. For non-identical networks, we use the auxiliary system approach to demonstrate that generalized synchronization is established instead. In this case, the response network continues to show a chimera dynamics which however remains distinct from the one of the driver. Hence, segregated synchronized and desynchronized domains in individual networks congregate in generalized synchronization across networks.

A New Approximate Chimera Donor Cell Search Algorithm

Science.gov (United States)

Holst, Terry L.; Nixon, David (Technical Monitor)

1998-01-01

The objectives of this study were to develop chimera-based full potential methodology which is compatible with overflow (Euler/Navier-Stokes) chimera flow solver and to develop a fast donor cell search algorithm that is compatible with the chimera full potential approach. Results of this work included presenting a new donor cell search algorithm suitable for use with a chimera-based full potential solver. This algorithm was found to be extremely fast and simple producing donor cells as fast as 60,000 per second.

Time-delayed feedback control of coherence resonance chimeras

Science.gov (United States)

Zakharova, Anna; Semenova, Nadezhda; Anishchenko, Vadim; Schöll, Eckehard

2017-11-01

Using the model of a FitzHugh-Nagumo system in the excitable regime, we investigate the influence of time-delayed feedback on noise-induced chimera states in a network with nonlocal coupling, i.e., coherence resonance chimeras. It is shown that time-delayed feedback allows for the control of the range of parameter values where these chimera states occur. Moreover, for the feedback delay close to the intrinsic period of the system, we find a novel regime which we call period-two coherence resonance chimera.

Re-configurable digital receiver for optically envelope detected half cycle BPSK and MSK radio-on-fiber signals

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Guerrero Gonzalez, Neil; Prince, Kamau; Zibar, Darko

2011-01-01

We present the first known integration of a digital receiver into optically envelope detection radio-on-fiber systems. We also present a re-configurable scheme for two different types of optically envelope detected wireless signals while keeping the complexity of used optical components low. Our...... novel digital receiver consists of a digital signal processing unit integrating functions such as filtering, peak-powers detection, symbol synchronization and signal demodulation for optically envelope detected half-cycle binary phase-shift-keying and minimum-shift-keying signals. Furthermore, radio......-frequency signal down-conversion is not required in our proposed approach; simplifying evens more the optical receiver front-end. We experimentally demonstrate error-free optical transmission (bit-error rate corresponding to 10−3 related to FEC-compatible levels) for both 416.6 Mbit/s half-cycle binary phase...

Antibody responses in allogeneic radiation chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Coico, R.F.

1982-01-01

The construction of long-lived allogeneic radiation chimeras, free of graft-versus-host disease, has been achieved using serologic elimination of Thy 1 + cells from donor bone marrow. Humoral immune function was not restored in these animals as evidenced by lack of primary antibody responses to a T cell-dependent antigen, namely, sheep erythrocytes (SRBC) both in vivo and in vitro. No evidence for a suppressor cell-mediated mechanism was found. Using separated chimera spleen cell populations and specific helper cell soluble mediators, the functional capabilities of chimera B cells, T cells, and macrophages were assessed. These findings suggested that the failure of chimeras to produce antibody is not the result of impaired B cell, T cell, or macrophage function, but rather, that it is due to ineffective cellular interactions. Physiologic cellular interactions depend upon the sharing of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) determinants between interacting cells. However, the self-recognition repertoire of developing T cells may be influenced by the environment which these cells differentiate such that they learn to recognize host MHC determinants as self. These findings support the interpretation that the immunologic hyporeactivity of allogeneic bone marrow chimeras reflects the role of the host environment in restricting the interactive capabilities of donor-derived cells

R Peak Detection Method Using Wavelet Transform and Modified Shannon Energy Envelope.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Jeong-Seon; Lee, Sang-Woong; Park, Unsang

2017-01-01

Rapid automatic detection of the fiducial points-namely, the P wave, QRS complex, and T wave-is necessary for early detection of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). In this paper, we present an R peak detection method using the wavelet transform (WT) and a modified Shannon energy envelope (SEE) for rapid ECG analysis. The proposed WTSEE algorithm performs a wavelet transform to reduce the size and noise of ECG signals and creates SEE after first-order differentiation and amplitude normalization. Subsequently, the peak energy envelope (PEE) is extracted from the SEE. Then, R peaks are estimated from the PEE, and the estimated peaks are adjusted from the input ECG. Finally, the algorithm generates the final R features by validating R-R intervals and updating the extracted R peaks. The proposed R peak detection method was validated using 48 first-channel ECG records of the MIT-BIH arrhythmia database with a sensitivity of 99.93%, positive predictability of 99.91%, detection error rate of 0.16%, and accuracy of 99.84%. Considering the high detection accuracy and fast processing speed due to the wavelet transform applied before calculating SEE, the proposed method is highly effective for real-time applications in early detection of CVDs.

Chimera Grid Tools

Science.gov (United States)

Chan, William M.; Rogers, Stuart E.; Nash, Steven M.; Buning, Pieter G.; Meakin, Robert

2005-01-01

Chimera Grid Tools (CGT) is a software package for performing computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis utilizing the Chimera-overset-grid method. For modeling flows with viscosity about geometrically complex bodies in relative motion, the Chimera-overset-grid method is among the most computationally cost-effective methods for obtaining accurate aerodynamic results. CGT contains a large collection of tools for generating overset grids, preparing inputs for computer programs that solve equations of flow on the grids, and post-processing of flow-solution data. The tools in CGT include grid editing tools, surface-grid-generation tools, volume-grid-generation tools, utility scripts, configuration scripts, and tools for post-processing (including generation of animated images of flows and calculating forces and moments exerted on affected bodies). One of the tools, denoted OVERGRID, is a graphical user interface (GUI) that serves to visualize the grids and flow solutions and provides central access to many other tools. The GUI facilitates the generation of grids for a new flow-field configuration. Scripts that follow the grid generation process can then be constructed to mostly automate grid generation for similar configurations. CGT is designed for use in conjunction with a computer-aided-design program that provides the geometry description of the bodies, and a flow-solver program.

Double-well chimeras in 2D lattice of chaotic bistable elements

Science.gov (United States)

Shepelev, I. A.; Bukh, A. V.; Vadivasova, T. E.; Anishchenko, V. S.; Zakharova, A.

2018-01-01

We investigate spatio-temporal dynamics of a 2D ensemble of nonlocally coupled chaotic cubic maps in a bistability regime. In particular, we perform a detailed study on the transition ;coherence - incoherence; for varying coupling strength for a fixed interaction radius. For the 2D ensemble we show the appearance of amplitude and phase chimera states previously reported for 1D ensembles of nonlocally coupled chaotic systems. Moreover, we uncover a novel type of chimera state, double-well chimera, which occurs due to the interplay of the bistability of the local dynamics and the 2D ensemble structure. Additionally, we find double-well chimera behavior for steady states which we call double-well chimera death. A distinguishing feature of chimera patterns observed in the lattice is that they mainly combine clusters of different chimera types: phase, amplitude and double-well chimeras.

Chimera states in mechanical oscillator networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Martens, Erik Andreas; Thutupalli, Shashi; Fourrière, Antoine; Hallatschek, Oskar

2013-06-25

The synchronization of coupled oscillators is a fascinating manifestation of self-organization that nature uses to orchestrate essential processes of life, such as the beating of the heart. Although it was long thought that synchrony and disorder were mutually exclusive steady states for a network of identical oscillators, numerous theoretical studies in recent years have revealed the intriguing possibility of "chimera states," in which the symmetry of the oscillator population is broken into a synchronous part and an asynchronous part. However, a striking lack of empirical evidence raises the question of whether chimeras are indeed characteristic of natural systems. This calls for a palpable realization of chimera states without any fine-tuning, from which physical mechanisms underlying their emergence can be uncovered. Here, we devise a simple experiment with mechanical oscillators coupled in a hierarchical network to show that chimeras emerge naturally from a competition between two antagonistic synchronization patterns. We identify a wide spectrum of complex states, encompassing and extending the set of previously described chimeras. Our mathematical model shows that the self-organization observed in our experiments is controlled by elementary dynamical equations from mechanics that are ubiquitous in many natural and technological systems. The symmetry-breaking mechanism revealed by our experiments may thus be prevalent in systems exhibiting collective behavior, such as power grids, optomechanical crystals, or cells communicating via quorum sensing in microbial populations.

Numerical analysis of the chimera states in the multilayered network model

Science.gov (United States)

Goremyko, Mikhail V.; Maksimenko, Vladimir A.; Makarov, Vladimir V.; Ghosh, Dibakar; Bera, Bidesh K.; Dana, Syamal K.; Hramov, Alexander E.

2017-03-01

We numerically study the interaction between the ensembles of the Hindmarsh-Rose (HR) neuron systems, arranged in the multilayer network model. We have shown that the fully identical layers, demonstrated individually different chimera due to the initial mismatch, come to the identical chimera state with the increase of inter-layer coupling. Within the multilayer model we also consider the case, when the one layer demonstrates chimera state, while another layer exhibits coherent or incoherent dynamics. It has been shown that the interactions chimera-coherent state and chimera-incoherent state leads to the both excitation of chimera as from the ensemble of fully coherent or incoherent oscillators, and suppression of initially stable chimera state

Implementing real-time robotic systems using CHIMERA II

Science.gov (United States)

Stewart, David B.; Schmitz, Donald E.; Khosla, Pradeep K.

1990-01-01

A description is given of the CHIMERA II programming environment and operating system, which was developed for implementing real-time robotic systems. Sensor-based robotic systems contain both general- and special-purpose hardware, and thus the development of applications tends to be a time-consuming task. The CHIMERA II environment is designed to reduce the development time by providing a convenient software interface between the hardware and the user. CHIMERA II supports flexible hardware configurations which are based on one or more VME-backplanes. All communication across multiple processors is transparent to the user through an extensive set of interprocessor communication primitives. CHIMERA II also provides a high-performance real-time kernel which supports both deadline and highest-priority-first scheduling. The flexibility of CHIMERA II allows hierarchical models for robot control, such as NASREM, to be implemented with minimal programming time and effort.

Bistable Chimera Attractors on a Triangular Network of Oscillator Populations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Martens, Erik Andreas

2010-01-01

. This triangular network is the simplest discretization of a continuous ring of oscillators. Yet it displays an unexpectedly different behavior: in contrast to the lone stable chimera observed in continuous rings of oscillators, we find that this system exhibits two coexisting stable chimeras. Both chimeras are......, as usual, born through a saddle-node bifurcation. As the coupling becomes increasingly local in nature they lose stability through a Hopf bifurcation, giving rise to breathing chimeras, which in turn get destroyed through a homoclinic bifurcation. Remarkably, one of the chimeras reemerges by a reversal...

77 FR 65602 - Chimera Energy Corporation; Order of Suspension of Trading

Science.gov (United States)

2012-10-29

... SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION [File No. 500-1] Chimera Energy Corporation; Order of... lack of current and accurate information concerning the securities of Chimera Energy Corporation (``Chimera'') because of questions regarding the accuracy of statements by Chimera in press releases to...

Breathing chimera in a system of phase oscillators

Science.gov (United States)

Bolotov, M. I.; Smirnov, L. A.; Osipov, G. V.; Pikovsky, A. S.

2017-09-01

Chimera states consisting of synchronous and asynchronous domains in a medium of nonlinearly coupled phase oscillators have been considered. Stationary inhomogeneous solutions of the Ott-Antonsen equation for a complex order parameter that correspond to fundamental chimeras have been constructed. The direct numerical simulation has shown that these structures under certain conditions are transformed to oscillatory (breathing) chimera regimes because of the development of instability.

Interspecies chimera between primate embryonic stem cells and mouse embryos: monkey ESCs engraft into mouse embryos, but not post-implantation fetuses.

Science.gov (United States)

Simerly, Calvin; McFarland, Dave; Castro, Carlos; Lin, Chih-Cheng; Redinger, Carrie; Jacoby, Ethan; Mich-Basso, Jocelyn; Orwig, Kyle; Mills, Parker; Ahrens, Eric; Navara, Chris; Schatten, Gerald

2011-07-01

Unequivocal evidence for pluripotency in which embryonic stem cells contribute to chimeric offspring has yet to be demonstrated in human or nonhuman primates (NHPs). Here, rhesus and baboons ESCs were investigated in interspecific mouse chimera generated by aggregation or blastocyst injection. Aggregation chimera produced mouse blastocysts with GFP-nhpESCs at the inner cell mass (ICM), and embryo transfers (ETs) generated dimly-fluorescencing abnormal fetuses. Direct injection of GFP-nhpESCs into blastocysts produced normal non-GFP-fluorescencing fetuses. Injected chimera showed >70% loss of GFP-nhpESCs after 21 h culture. Outgrowths of all chimeric blastocysts established distinct but separate mouse- and NHP-ESC colonies. Extensive endogenous autofluorescence compromised anti-GFP detection and PCR analysis did not detect nhpESCs in fetuses. NhpESCs localize to the ICM in chimera and generate pregnancies. Because primate ESCs do not engraft post-implantation, and also because endogenous autofluorescence results in misleading positive signals, interspecific chimera assays for pluripotency with primate stem cells is unreliable with the currently available ESCs. Testing primate ESCs reprogrammed into even more naïve states in these inter-specific chimera assays will be an important future endeavor. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Persistent chimera states in nonlocally coupled phase oscillators

OpenAIRE

Suda, Yusuke; Okuda, Koji

2015-01-01

Chimera states in the systems of nonlocally coupled phase oscillators are considered stable in the continuous limit of spatially distributed oscillators. However, it is reported that in the numerical simulations without taking such limit, chimera states are chaotic transient and finally collapse into the completely synchronous solution. In this Rapid Communication, we numerically study chimera states by using the coupling function different from the previous studies and obtain the result that...

Comparison of intensity discrimination, increment detection, and comodulation masking release in the envelope and audio-frequency domains

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nelson, Paul C.; Ewert, Stephan; Carney, Laurel H.

In the audio-frequency domain, the envelope apparently plays an important role in detection of intensity increments and in comodulation masking release (CMR). The current study addressed the question whether the second-order envelope ("venelope") contributes similarly for comparable experiments i...

Chimera states in nonlocally coupled phase oscillators with biharmonic interaction

Science.gov (United States)

Cheng, Hongyan; Dai, Qionglin; Wu, Nianping; Feng, Yuee; Li, Haihong; Yang, Junzhong

2018-03-01

Chimera states, which consist of coexisting domains of coherent and incoherent parts, have been observed in a variety of systems. Most of previous works on chimera states have taken into account specific form of interaction between oscillators, for example, sinusoidal coupling or diffusive coupling. Here, we investigate chimera dynamics in nonlocally coupled phase oscillators with biharmonic interaction. We find novel chimera states with features such as that oscillators in the same coherent cluster may split into two groups with a phase difference around π/2 and that oscillators in adjacent coherent clusters may have a phase difference close to π/2. The different impacts of the coupling ranges in the first and the second harmonic interactions on chimera dynamics are investigated based on the synchronous dynamics in globally coupled phase oscillators. Our study suggests a new direction in the field of chimera dynamics.

Cell surface appearance of unexpected host MHC determinants on thymocytes from radiation bone marrow chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sharrow, S.O.; Mathieson, B.J.; Singer, A.

1981-01-01

The phenotypic appearance of cell surface antigens on murine thymocytes from long-term radiation bone marrow chimeras was analyzed using indirect immunofluorescence and flow microfluorometry. Cells maturing in the thymi of these mice were typed for MHC (Kk, I-Ak, H-2b, Kb, and Ib) and non-MHC (Lty 1, Ly 9, and TL) determinants. All cells were of donor origin as determined by non-MHC (Ly) phenotype in P1 leads to P2, P1 x P2 leads to P1, and P1 leads to P2 radiation chimeras. In contrast, the MHC phenotypes of these thymocytes were markedly affected by the host environment. Specifically, H-2 and I-A determinants of both parental phenotypes were detected on thymocytes from P1 leads to P1 x P2 chimeras; I-A determinants of host phenotype were present, whereas I-A determinants of donor phenotype were reduced on thymocytes from P1 x P2 leads to P1 chimeras; and thymocytes from P1 leads to P2 chimeras possessed H-2 and I-A determinants of host phenotype but showed reduction of donor I-A phenotype determinants. The appearance of host cell surface H-2 and I-A determinants on thymocytes from chimeras closely parallels the functional recognition of MHC determinants by T cells from chimeric mice and thus may be significantly related to the development of the self-recognition repertoire by maturing T cells

Optimal design of tweezer control for chimera states

Science.gov (United States)

Omelchenko, Iryna; Omel'chenko, Oleh E.; Zakharova, Anna; Schöll, Eckehard

2018-01-01

Chimera states are complex spatio-temporal patterns which consist of coexisting domains of spatially coherent and incoherent dynamics in systems of coupled oscillators. In small networks, chimera states usually exhibit short lifetimes and erratic drifting of the spatial position of the incoherent domain. A tweezer feedback control scheme can stabilize and fix the position of chimera states. We analyze the action of the tweezer control in small nonlocally coupled networks of Van der Pol and FitzHugh-Nagumo oscillators, and determine the ranges of optimal control parameters. We demonstrate that the tweezer control scheme allows for stabilization of chimera states with different shapes, and can be used as an instrument for controlling the coherent domains size, as well as the maximum average frequency difference of the oscillators.

α-Peptide/ß-Peptoid Chimeras

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Olsen, Christian Adam; Bonke, Gitte; Vedel, Line

2007-01-01

We describe the synthesis and characterization of the first generation of oligomers consisting of alternating repeats of a-amino acids and chiral N-alkyl-ß-alanine (ß-peptoid) residues. These chimeras are stable toward proteolysis, non-hemolytic, and possess antibacterial activity comparable...... to well-known antimicrobial agents. Moreover, the chimeras exhibit length-dependent, concentration-dependent, solvent-dependent, and ion-strength-dependent ellipticity, indicating the presence of a secondary structure in solution. Thus, a-peptide/ß-peptoid oligomers represent a promising novel...

All-optical packet envelope detection using a slow semiconductor saturable absorber gate and a semiconductor optical amplifier

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Porzi, C.; Fresi, F.; Poti, L.; Bogoni, A.; Guina, M.; Orsila, L.; Okhotnikov, O.; Calabretta, N.

2008-01-01

Abstract—We propose a simple and effective scheme for alloptical packet envelope detection (AO-PED), exploiting a slow saturable absorber-based vertical cavity semiconductor gate and a semiconductor optical amplifier. A high extinction ratio of 15 dB was measured for the recovered envelope signal.

Allogeneic radiation chimeras induced in SPF mice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sado, Toshihiko; Kamisaku, Hitoko

1977-01-01

During the past two decades much has been learned concerning the immunobiology of bone marrow chimeras induced in experimental animals as well as in man. However, from the basic as well as clinical points of view, there still remain many unsolved questions yet to be resolved. In this presentation, we discussed some of our recent results on the immunobiology of radiation chimeras induced in specific-pathogen-free (SPF) mice. These included the following: (a) contribution of graft versus host reaction (GVHR) as well non- GVHR mediated immunologic mechanism(s) to the expression of immunologic dysfunctions observed in allogeneic and certain semiallogeneic chimeras, (b) existence of immunoregulatory mechanism as a basis for the apparent lack of immunologic reactivity (tolerance) to the host- as well as to the donor-type alloantigens in situ in successful allogeneic bone marrow chimeras, and (c) the effect of microflora of the environment on the stability of such immunoregulatory mechanisms and its possible mechanism of action. (auth.)

Symmetries of Chimera States

Science.gov (United States)

Kemeth, Felix P.; Haugland, Sindre W.; Krischer, Katharina

2018-05-01

Symmetry broken states arise naturally in oscillatory networks. In this Letter, we investigate chaotic attractors in an ensemble of four mean-coupled Stuart-Landau oscillators with two oscillators being synchronized. We report that these states with partially broken symmetry, so-called chimera states, have different setwise symmetries in the incoherent oscillators, and in particular, some are and some are not invariant under a permutation symmetry on average. This allows for a classification of different chimera states in small networks. We conclude our report with a discussion of related states in spatially extended systems, which seem to inherit the symmetry properties of their counterparts in small networks.

Is repulsion good for the health of chimeras?

Science.gov (United States)

Jalan, Sarika; Ghosh, Saptarshi; Patra, Bibhabasu

2017-10-01

Yes! Very much so. A chimera state refers to the coexistence of a coherent-incoherent dynamical evolution of identically coupled oscillators. We investigate the impact of multiplexing of a layer having repulsively coupled oscillators on the occurrence of chimeras in the layer having attractively coupled identical oscillators. We report that there exists an enhancement in the appearance of the chimera state in one layer of the multiplex network in the presence of repulsive coupling in the other layer. Furthermore, we show that a small amount of inhibition or repulsive coupling in one layer is sufficient to yield the chimera state in another layer by destroying its synchronized behavior. These results can be used to obtain insight into dynamical behaviors of those systems where both attractive and repulsive couplings exist among their constituents.

Chimera regimes in a ring of oscillators with local nonlinear interaction

Science.gov (United States)

Shepelev, Igor A.; Zakharova, Anna; Vadivasova, Tatiana E.

2017-03-01

One of important problems concerning chimera states is the conditions of their existence and stability. Until now, it was assumed that chimeras could arise only in ensembles with nonlocal character of interactions. However, this assumption is not exactly right. In some special cases chimeras can be realized for local type of coupling [1-3]. We propose a simple model of ensemble with local coupling when chimeras are realized. This model is a ring of linear oscillators with the local nonlinear unidirectional interaction. Chimera structures in the ring are found using computer simulations for wide area of values of parameters. Diagram of the regimes on plane of control parameters is plotted and scenario of chimera destruction are studied when the parameters are changed.

Metaphysical and ethical perspectives on creating animal-human chimeras.

Science.gov (United States)

Eberl, Jason T; Ballard, Rebecca A

2009-10-01

This paper addresses several questions related to the nature, production, and use of animal-human (a-h) chimeras. At the heart of the issue is whether certain types of a-h chimeras should be brought into existence, and, if they are, how we should treat such creatures. In our current research environment, we recognize a dichotomy between research involving nonhuman animal subjects and research involving human subjects, and the classification of a research protocol into one of these categories will trigger different ethical standards as to the moral permissibility of the research in question. Are a-h chimeras entitled to the more restrictive and protective ethical standards applied to human research subjects? We elucidate an Aristotelian-Thomistic metaphysical framework in which to argue how such chimeras ought to be defined ontologically. We then examine when the creation of, and experimentation upon, certain types of a-h chimeras may be morally permissible.

The chimera state in colloidal phase oscillators with hydrodynamic interaction

Science.gov (United States)

Hamilton, Evelyn; Bruot, Nicolas; Cicuta, Pietro

2017-12-01

The chimera state is the incongruous situation where coherent and incoherent populations coexist in sets of identical oscillators. Using driven non-linear oscillators interacting purely through hydrodynamic forces at low Reynolds number, previously studied as a simple model of motile cilia supporting waves, we find concurrent incoherent and synchronised subsets in small arrays. The chimeras seen in simulation display a "breathing" aspect, reminiscent of uniformly interacting phase oscillators. In contrast to other systems where chimera has been observed, this system has a well-defined interaction metric, and we know that the emergent dynamics inherit the symmetry of the underlying Oseen tensor eigenmodes. The chimera state can thus be connected to a superposition of eigenstates, whilst considering the mean interaction strength within and across subsystems allows us to make a connection to more generic (and abstract) chimeras in populations of Kuramoto phase oscillators. From this work, we expect the chimera state to emerge in experimental observations of oscillators coupled through hydrodynamic forces.

Characterization of host lymphoid cells in antibody-facilitated bone marrow chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McCarthy, S.A.; Griffith, I.J.; Gambel, P.; Francescutti, L.H.; Wegmann, T.G.

1985-01-01

The authors have produced stable murine antibody-facilitated (AF) chimeras by the simultaneous injection of P1 bone marrow cells and anti-P2 monoclonal antibody into normal (unirradiated) adult (P1 X P2)F1 recipients. These AF chimeras are healthy, long-lived, and exhibit no overt signs of graft-versus-host disease. They are immunocompetent and tolerant of host, P2-encoded alloantigens. Donor cell engraftment and takeover, monitored by glucosephosphate isomerase isozyme patterns, is usually complete (greater than 95%) in the peripheral blood, bone marrow, and hemopoietic stem cell compartments of long-term (greater than 3 months posttransplantation) AF chimeras. The authors report here, however, that splenic, lymph node, and thymic leukocytes of AF chimeras represent donor/host chimeric populations. Spleen cell populations of AF chimeras exhibit substantial chimera-to-chimera variation in the preponderant residual host cell type(s) present. Interpretations of the implications of these findings are discussed

Connecting the Kuramoto Model and the Chimera State

Science.gov (United States)

Kotwal, Tejas; Jiang, Xin; Abrams, Daniel M.

2017-12-01

Since its discovery in 2002, the chimera state has frequently been described as a counterintuitive, puzzling phenomenon. The Kuramoto model, in contrast, has become a celebrated paradigm useful for understanding a range of phenomena related to phase transitions, synchronization, and network effects. Here we show that the chimera state can be understood as emerging naturally through a symmetry-breaking bifurcation from the Kuramoto model's partially synchronized state. Our analysis sheds light on recent observations of chimera states in laser arrays, chemical oscillators, and mechanical pendula.

Petascale supernova simulation with CHIMERA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Messer, O E B [National Center for Computational Sciences, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831-6008 (United States); Bruenn, S W [Department of Physics, Florida Atlantic University, 777 W Glades Road, Boca Raton, FL 33431-0991 (United States); Blondin, J M [Department of Physics, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695-8202 (United States); Hix, W R [Physics Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831-6354 (United States); Mezzacappa, A [Physics Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831-6354 (United States); Dirk, C J [Department of Physics, Florida Atlantic University, 777 W Glades Road, Boca Raton, FL 33431-0991 (United States)

2007-07-15

CHIMERA is a multi-dimensional radiation hydrodynamics code designed to study core-collapse supernovae. The code is made up of three essentially independent parts: a hydrodynamics module, a nuclear burning module, and a neutrino transport solver combined within an operator-split approach. We describe some major algorithmic facets of the code and briefly discuss some recent results. The multi-physics nature of the problem, and the specific implementation of that physics in CHIMERA, provide a rather straightforward path to effective use of multi-core platforms in the near future.

Chimera states in networks of logistic maps with hierarchical connectivities

Science.gov (United States)

zur Bonsen, Alexander; Omelchenko, Iryna; Zakharova, Anna; Schöll, Eckehard

2018-04-01

Chimera states are complex spatiotemporal patterns consisting of coexisting domains of coherence and incoherence. We study networks of nonlocally coupled logistic maps and analyze systematically how the dilution of the network links influences the appearance of chimera patterns. The network connectivities are constructed using an iterative Cantor algorithm to generate fractal (hierarchical) connectivities. Increasing the hierarchical level of iteration, we compare the resulting spatiotemporal patterns. We demonstrate that a high clustering coefficient and symmetry of the base pattern promotes chimera states, and asymmetric connectivities result in complex nested chimera patterns.

Expression of Leukemia-Associated Nup98 Fusion Proteins Generates an Aberrant Nuclear Envelope Phenotype.

Science.gov (United States)

Fahrenkrog, Birthe; Martinelli, Valérie; Nilles, Nadine; Fruhmann, Gernot; Chatel, Guillaume; Juge, Sabine; Sauder, Ursula; Di Giacomo, Danika; Mecucci, Cristina; Schwaller, Jürg

2016-01-01

Chromosomal translocations involving the nucleoporin NUP98 have been described in several hematopoietic malignancies, in particular acute myeloid leukemia (AML). In the resulting chimeric proteins, Nup98's N-terminal region is fused to the C-terminal region of about 30 different partners, including homeodomain (HD) transcription factors. While transcriptional targets of distinct Nup98 chimeras related to immortalization are relatively well described, little is known about other potential cellular effects of these fusion proteins. By comparing the sub-nuclear localization of a large number of Nup98 fusions with HD and non-HD partners throughout the cell cycle we found that while all Nup98 chimeras were nuclear during interphase, only Nup98-HD fusion proteins exhibited a characteristic speckled appearance. During mitosis, only Nup98-HD fusions were concentrated on chromosomes. Despite the difference in localization, all tested Nup98 chimera provoked morphological alterations in the nuclear envelope (NE), in particular affecting the nuclear lamina and the lamina-associated polypeptide 2α (LAP2α). Importantly, such aberrations were not only observed in transiently transfected HeLa cells but also in mouse bone marrow cells immortalized by Nup98 fusions and in cells derived from leukemia patients harboring Nup98 fusions. Our findings unravel Nup98 fusion-associated NE alterations that may contribute to leukemogenesis.

Chimera States in Two Populations with Heterogeneous Phase-lag

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Martens, Erik Andreas; Bick, Christian; Panaggio, Mark

2016-01-01

The simplest network of coupled phase-oscillators exhibiting chimera states is given by two populations with disparate intra- and inter-population coupling strengths. We explore the effects of heterogeneous coupling phase-lags between the two populations. Such heterogeneity arises naturally......-uniform synchronization, including in-phase and anti-phase synchrony, full incoherence (splay state), chimera states with phase separation of 0 or π between populations, and states where both populations remain desynchronized. These desynchronized states exhibit stable, oscillatory, and even chaotic dynamics. Moreover......, we identify the bifurcations through which chimera and desynchronized states emerge. Stable chimera states and desynchronized solutions, which do not arise for homogeneous phase-lag parameters, emerge as a result of competition between synchronized in-phase, anti-phase equilibria, and fully...

Chimera states in coupled Kuramoto oscillators with inertia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Olmi, Simona

2015-01-01

The dynamics of two symmetrically coupled populations of rotators is studied for different values of the inertia. The system is characterized by different types of solutions, which all coexist with the fully synchronized state. At small inertia, the system is no more chaotic and one observes mainly quasi-periodic chimeras, while the usual (stationary) chimera state is not anymore observable. At large inertia, one observes two different kind of chaotic solutions with broken symmetry: the intermittent chaotic chimera, characterized by a synchronized population and a population displaying a turbulent behaviour, and a second state where the two populations are both chaotic but whose dynamics adhere to two different macroscopic attractors. The intermittent chaotic chimeras are characterized by a finite life-time, whose duration increases as a power-law with the system size and the inertia value. Moreover, the chaotic population exhibits clear intermittent behavior, displaying a laminar phase where the two populations tend to synchronize, and a turbulent phase where the macroscopic motion of one population is definitely erratic. In the thermodynamic limit, these states survive for infinite time and the laminar regimes tends to disappear, thus giving rise to stationary chaotic solutions with broken symmetry contrary to what observed for chaotic chimeras on a ring geometry

Chimera states in coupled Kuramoto oscillators with inertia

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Olmi, Simona, E-mail: simona.olmi@fi.isc.cnr.it [CNR - Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche - Istituto dei Sistemi Complessi, via Madonna del Piano 10, I-50019 Sesto Fiorentino (Italy); INFN Sez. Firenze, via Sansone, 1 - I-50019 Sesto Fiorentino (Italy)

2015-12-15

The dynamics of two symmetrically coupled populations of rotators is studied for different values of the inertia. The system is characterized by different types of solutions, which all coexist with the fully synchronized state. At small inertia, the system is no more chaotic and one observes mainly quasi-periodic chimeras, while the usual (stationary) chimera state is not anymore observable. At large inertia, one observes two different kind of chaotic solutions with broken symmetry: the intermittent chaotic chimera, characterized by a synchronized population and a population displaying a turbulent behaviour, and a second state where the two populations are both chaotic but whose dynamics adhere to two different macroscopic attractors. The intermittent chaotic chimeras are characterized by a finite life-time, whose duration increases as a power-law with the system size and the inertia value. Moreover, the chaotic population exhibits clear intermittent behavior, displaying a laminar phase where the two populations tend to synchronize, and a turbulent phase where the macroscopic motion of one population is definitely erratic. In the thermodynamic limit, these states survive for infinite time and the laminar regimes tends to disappear, thus giving rise to stationary chaotic solutions with broken symmetry contrary to what observed for chaotic chimeras on a ring geometry.

Chimera states in coupled Kuramoto oscillators with inertia.

Science.gov (United States)

Olmi, Simona

2015-12-01

The dynamics of two symmetrically coupled populations of rotators is studied for different values of the inertia. The system is characterized by different types of solutions, which all coexist with the fully synchronized state. At small inertia, the system is no more chaotic and one observes mainly quasi-periodic chimeras, while the usual (stationary) chimera state is not anymore observable. At large inertia, one observes two different kind of chaotic solutions with broken symmetry: the intermittent chaotic chimera, characterized by a synchronized population and a population displaying a turbulent behaviour, and a second state where the two populations are both chaotic but whose dynamics adhere to two different macroscopic attractors. The intermittent chaotic chimeras are characterized by a finite life-time, whose duration increases as a power-law with the system size and the inertia value. Moreover, the chaotic population exhibits clear intermittent behavior, displaying a laminar phase where the two populations tend to synchronize, and a turbulent phase where the macroscopic motion of one population is definitely erratic. In the thermodynamic limit, these states survive for infinite time and the laminar regimes tends to disappear, thus giving rise to stationary chaotic solutions with broken symmetry contrary to what observed for chaotic chimeras on a ring geometry.

Chimera states: Effects of different coupling topologies

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Bera, Bidesh K.; Majhi, Soumen; Ghosh, Dibakar; Perc, Matjaž

2017-04-01

Collective behavior among coupled dynamical units can emerge in various forms as a result of different coupling topologies as well as different types of coupling functions. Chimera states have recently received ample attention as a fascinating manifestation of collective behavior, in particular describing a symmetry breaking spatiotemporal pattern where synchronized and desynchronized states coexist in a network of coupled oscillators. In this perspective, we review the emergence of different chimera states, focusing on the effects of different coupling topologies that describe the interaction network connecting the oscillators. We cover chimera states that emerge in local, nonlocal and global coupling topologies, as well as in modular, temporal and multilayer networks. We also provide an outline of challenges and directions for future research.

Chimera states in a Hodgkin-Huxley model of thermally sensitive neurons

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Glaze, Tera A.; Lewis, Scott; Bahar, Sonya

2016-08-01

Chimera states occur when identically coupled groups of nonlinear oscillators exhibit radically different dynamics, with one group exhibiting synchronized oscillations and the other desynchronized behavior. This dynamical phenomenon has recently been studied in computational models and demonstrated experimentally in mechanical, optical, and chemical systems. The theoretical basis of these states is currently under active investigation. Chimera behavior is of particular relevance in the context of neural synchronization, given the phenomenon of unihemispheric sleep and the recent observation of asymmetric sleep in human patients with sleep apnea. The similarity of neural chimera states to neural "bump" states, which have been suggested as a model for working memory and visual orientation tuning in the cortex, adds to their interest as objects of study. Chimera states have been demonstrated in the FitzHugh-Nagumo model of excitable cells and in the Hindmarsh-Rose neural model. Here, we demonstrate chimera states and chimera-like behaviors in a Hodgkin-Huxley-type model of thermally sensitive neurons both in a system with Abrams-Strogatz (mean field) coupling and in a system with Kuramoto (distance-dependent) coupling. We map the regions of parameter space for which chimera behavior occurs in each of the two coupling schemes.

Deterministic and stochastic control of chimera states in delayed feedback oscillator

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Semenov, V. [Department of Physics, Saratov State University, Astrakhanskaya Str. 83, 410012 Saratov (Russian Federation); Zakharova, A.; Schöll, E. [Institut für Theoretische Physik, TU Berlin, Hardenbergstraße 36, 10623 Berlin (Germany); Maistrenko, Y. [Institute of Mathematics and Center for Medical and Biotechnical Research, NAS of Ukraine, Tereschenkivska Str. 3, 01601 Kyiv (Ukraine)

2016-06-08

Chimera states, characterized by the coexistence of regular and chaotic dynamics, are found in a nonlinear oscillator model with negative time-delayed feedback. The control of these chimera states by external periodic forcing is demonstrated by numerical simulations. Both deterministic and stochastic external periodic forcing are considered. It is shown that multi-cluster chimeras can be achieved by adjusting the external forcing frequency to appropriate resonance conditions. The constructive role of noise in the formation of a chimera states is shown.

Spiral wave chimera states in large populations of coupled chemical oscillators

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Totz, Jan Frederik; Rode, Julian; Tinsley, Mark R.; Showalter, Kenneth; Engel, Harald

2018-03-01

The coexistence of coherent and incoherent dynamics in a population of identically coupled oscillators is known as a chimera state1,2. Discovered in 20023, this counterintuitive dynamical behaviour has inspired extensive theoretical and experimental activity4-15. The spiral wave chimera is a particularly remarkable chimera state, in which an ordered spiral wave rotates around a core consisting of asynchronous oscillators. Spiral wave chimeras were theoretically predicted in 200416 and numerically studied in a variety of systems17-23. Here, we report their experimental verification using large populations of nonlocally coupled Belousov-Zhabotinsky chemical oscillators10,18 in a two-dimensional array. We characterize previously unreported spatiotemporal dynamics, including erratic motion of the asynchronous spiral core, growth and splitting of the cores, as well as the transition from the chimera state to disordered behaviour. Spiral wave chimeras are likely to occur in other systems with long-range interactions, such as cortical tissues24, cilia carpets25, SQUID metamaterials26 and arrays of optomechanical oscillators9.

Detection of Hepatitis C core antibody by dual-affinity yeast chimera and smartphone-based electrochemical sensing.

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Aronoff-Spencer, Eliah; Venkatesh, A G; Sun, Alex; Brickner, Howard; Looney, David; Hall, Drew A

2016-12-15

Yeast cell lines were genetically engineered to display Hepatitis C virus (HCV) core antigen linked to gold binding peptide (GBP) as a dual-affinity biobrick chimera. These multifunctional yeast cells adhere to the gold sensor surface while simultaneously acting as a "renewable" capture reagent for anti-HCV core antibody. This streamlined functionalization and detection strategy removes the need for traditional purification and immobilization techniques. With this biobrick construct, both optical and electrochemical immunoassays were developed. The optical immunoassays demonstrated detection of anti-HCV core antibody down to 12.3pM concentrations while the electrochemical assay demonstrated higher binding constants and dynamic range. The electrochemical format and a custom, low-cost smartphone-based potentiostat ($20 USD) yielded comparable results to assays performed on a state-of-the-art electrochemical workstation. We propose this combination of synthetic biology and scalable, point-of-care sensing has potential to provide low-cost, cutting edge diagnostic capability for many pathogens in a variety of settings. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Mechanisms of tolerance in murine radiation bone marrow chimeras. I. Nonspecific suppression of alloreactivity by spleen cells from early, but not late, chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Auchincloss, H. Jr.; Sachs, D.H.

1983-01-01

Allogeneic chimeras were prepared using lethally irradiated B6 hosts and untreated marrow from exsanguinated BALB/c donors. For about two months after reconstitution, chimeras had very weak antihost cell-mediated lymphocytotoxicity (CML) reactivity and little third-party alloreactivity. During this time a cell population capable of suppressing CML reactivity against both host and third-party alloantigens (i.e., antigen-nonspecific) was demonstrated in chimera spleens by in vitro mixing experiments. The putative suppressor cells were Thy-1-negative and radiation-sensitive. Subsequently, mature chimeras showed host tolerance and strong third-party alloreactivity. At this point suppressor mechanisms could no longer be demonstrated. These data are consistent with a clonal elimination hypothesis in that they do not provide evidence to indicate that maintenance of specific immune tolerance is mediated by an active suppressor mechanism

Stable amplitude chimera states in a network of locally coupled Stuart-Landau oscillators

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Premalatha, K.; Chandrasekar, V. K.; Senthilvelan, M.; Lakshmanan, M.

2018-03-01

We investigate the occurrence of collective dynamical states such as transient amplitude chimera, stable amplitude chimera, and imperfect breathing chimera states in a locally coupled network of Stuart-Landau oscillators. In an imperfect breathing chimera state, the synchronized group of oscillators exhibits oscillations with large amplitudes, while the desynchronized group of oscillators oscillates with small amplitudes, and this behavior of coexistence of synchronized and desynchronized oscillations fluctuates with time. Then, we analyze the stability of the amplitude chimera states under various circumstances, including variations in system parameters and coupling strength, and perturbations in the initial states of the oscillators. For an increase in the value of the system parameter, namely, the nonisochronicity parameter, the transient chimera state becomes a stable chimera state for a sufficiently large value of coupling strength. In addition, we also analyze the stability of these states by perturbing the initial states of the oscillators. We find that while a small perturbation allows one to perturb a large number of oscillators resulting in a stable amplitude chimera state, a large perturbation allows one to perturb a small number of oscillators to get a stable amplitude chimera state. We also find the stability of the transient and stable amplitude chimera states and traveling wave states for an appropriate number of oscillators using Floquet theory. In addition, we also find the stability of the incoherent oscillation death states.

Plant chimeras: The good, the bad, and the 'Bizzaria'.

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Frank, Margaret H; Chitwood, Daniel H

2016-11-01

Chimeras - organisms that are composed of cells of more than one genotype - captured the human imagination long before they were formally described and used in the laboratory. These organisms owe their namesake to a fire-breathing monster from Greek mythology that has the head of a lion, the body of a goat, and the tail of a serpent. The first description of a non-fictional chimera dates back to the middle of the seventeenth century when the Florentine gardener Pietro Nati discovered an adventitious shoot growing from the graft junction between sour orange (Citrus aurantium) and citron (Citrus medica). This perplexing chimera that grows with sectors phenotypically resembling each of the citrus progenitors inspired discussion and wonder from the scientific community and was fittingly named the 'Bizzaria'. Initially, the 'Bizzaria' was believed to be an asexual hybrid that formed from a cellular fusion between the grafted parents; however, in-depth cellular analyses carried out centuries later demonstrated that the 'Bizzaria', along with other chimeras, owe their unique sectored appearance to a conglomeration of cells from the two donors. Since this pivotal discovery at the turn of the twentieth century, chimeras have served both as tools and as unique biological phenomena that have contributed to our understanding of plant development at the cellular, tissue, and organismal level. Rapid advancements in genome sequencing technologies have enabled the establishment of new model species with novel morphological and developmental features that enable the generation of chimeric organisms. In this review, we show that genetic mosaic and chimera studies provide a technologically simple way to delve into the organismal, genetic, and genomic inner workings underlying the development of diverse model organisms. Moreover, we discuss the unique opportunity that chimeras present to explore universal principles governing intercellular communication and the coordination of

Simple and complex chimera states in a nonlinearly coupled oscillatory medium

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Bolotov, Maxim; Smirnov, Lev; Osipov, Grigory; Pikovsky, Arkady

2018-04-01

We consider chimera states in a one-dimensional medium of nonlinear nonlocally coupled phase oscillators. In terms of a local coarse-grained complex order parameter, the problem of finding stationary rotating nonhomogeneous solutions reduces to a third-order ordinary differential equation. This allows finding chimera-type and other inhomogeneous states as periodic orbits of this equation. Stability calculations reveal that only some of these states are stable. We demonstrate that an oscillatory instability leads to a breathing chimera, for which the synchronous domain splits into subdomains with different mean frequencies. Further development of instability leads to turbulent chimeras.

Progress in Grid Generation: From Chimera to DRAGON Grids

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Liou, Meng-Sing; Kao, Kai-Hsiung

1994-01-01

Hybrid grids, composed of structured and unstructured grids, combines the best features of both. The chimera method is a major stepstone toward a hybrid grid from which the present approach is evolved. The chimera grid composes a set of overlapped structured grids which are independently generated and body-fitted, yielding a high quality grid readily accessible for efficient solution schemes. The chimera method has been shown to be efficient to generate a grid about complex geometries and has been demonstrated to deliver accurate aerodynamic prediction of complex flows. While its geometrical flexibility is attractive, interpolation of data in the overlapped regions - which in today's practice in 3D is done in a nonconservative fashion, is not. In the present paper we propose a hybrid grid scheme that maximizes the advantages of the chimera scheme and adapts the strengths of the unstructured grid while at the same time keeps its weaknesses minimal. Like the chimera method, we first divide up the physical domain by a set of structured body-fitted grids which are separately generated and overlaid throughout a complex configuration. To eliminate any pure data manipulation which does not necessarily follow governing equations, we use non-structured grids only to directly replace the region of the arbitrarily overlapped grids. This new adaptation to the chimera thinking is coined the DRAGON grid. The nonstructured grid region sandwiched between the structured grids is limited in size, resulting in only a small increase in memory and computational effort. The DRAGON method has three important advantages: (1) preserving strengths of the chimera grid; (2) eliminating difficulties sometimes encountered in the chimera scheme, such as the orphan points and bad quality of interpolation stencils; and (3) making grid communication in a fully conservative and consistent manner insofar as the governing equations are concerned. To demonstrate its use, the governing equations are

Assessing reprogramming by chimera formation and tetraploid complementation.

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Li, Xin; Xia, Bao-long; Li, Wei; Zhou, Qi

2015-01-01

Pluripotent stem cells can be evaluated by pluripotent markers expression, embryoid body aggregation, teratoma formation, chimera contribution and even more, tetraploid complementation. Whether iPS cells in general are functionally equivalent to normal ESCs is difficult to establish. Here, we present the detailed procedure for chimera formation and tetraploid complementation, the most stringent criterion, to assessing pluripotency.

Chimera states and the interplay between initial conditions and non-local coupling

Science.gov (United States)

Kalle, Peter; Sawicki, Jakub; Zakharova, Anna; Schöll, Eckehard

2017-03-01

Chimera states are complex spatio-temporal patterns that consist of coexisting domains of coherent and incoherent dynamics. We study chimera states in a network of non-locally coupled Stuart-Landau oscillators. We investigate the impact of initial conditions in combination with non-local coupling. Based on an analytical argument, we show how the coupling phase and the coupling strength are linked to the occurrence of chimera states, flipped profiles of the mean phase velocity, and the transition from a phase- to an amplitude-mediated chimera state.

Chimera states in two-dimensional networks of locally coupled oscillators

Science.gov (United States)

Kundu, Srilena; Majhi, Soumen; Bera, Bidesh K.; Ghosh, Dibakar; Lakshmanan, M.

2018-02-01

Chimera state is defined as a mixed type of collective state in which synchronized and desynchronized subpopulations of a network of coupled oscillators coexist and the appearance of such anomalous behavior has strong connection to diverse neuronal developments. Most of the previous studies on chimera states are not extensively done in two-dimensional ensembles of coupled oscillators by taking neuronal systems with nonlinear coupling function into account while such ensembles of oscillators are more realistic from a neurobiological point of view. In this paper, we report the emergence and existence of chimera states by considering locally coupled two-dimensional networks of identical oscillators where each node is interacting through nonlinear coupling function. This is in contrast with the existence of chimera states in two-dimensional nonlocally coupled oscillators with rectangular kernel in the coupling function. We find that the presence of nonlinearity in the coupling function plays a key role to produce chimera states in two-dimensional locally coupled oscillators. We analytically verify explicitly in the case of a network of coupled Stuart-Landau oscillators in two dimensions that the obtained results using Ott-Antonsen approach and our analytical finding very well matches with the numerical results. Next, we consider another type of important nonlinear coupling function which exists in neuronal systems, namely chemical synaptic function, through which the nearest-neighbor (locally coupled) neurons interact with each other. It is shown that such synaptic interacting function promotes the emergence of chimera states in two-dimensional lattices of locally coupled neuronal oscillators. In numerical simulations, we consider two paradigmatic neuronal oscillators, namely Hindmarsh-Rose neuron model and Rulkov map for each node which exhibit bursting dynamics. By associating various spatiotemporal behaviors and snapshots at particular times, we study the chimera

Tools for integrated sequence-structure analysis with UCSF Chimera

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Huang Conrad C

2006-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Comparing related structures and viewing the structures in the context of sequence alignments are important tasks in protein structure-function research. While many programs exist for individual aspects of such work, there is a need for interactive visualization tools that: (a provide a deep integration of sequence and structure, far beyond mapping where a sequence region falls in the structure and vice versa; (b facilitate changing data of one type based on the other (for example, using only sequence-conserved residues to match structures, or adjusting a sequence alignment based on spatial fit; (c can be used with a researcher's own data, including arbitrary sequence alignments and annotations, closely or distantly related sets of proteins, etc.; and (d interoperate with each other and with a full complement of molecular graphics features. We describe enhancements to UCSF Chimera to achieve these goals. Results The molecular graphics program UCSF Chimera includes a suite of tools for interactive analyses of sequences and structures. Structures automatically associate with sequences in imported alignments, allowing many kinds of crosstalk. A novel method is provided to superimpose structures in the absence of a pre-existing sequence alignment. The method uses both sequence and secondary structure, and can match even structures with very low sequence identity. Another tool constructs structure-based sequence alignments from superpositions of two or more proteins. Chimera is designed to be extensible, and mechanisms for incorporating user-specific data without Chimera code development are also provided. Conclusion The tools described here apply to many problems involving comparison and analysis of protein structures and their sequences. Chimera includes complete documentation and is intended for use by a wide range of scientists, not just those in the computational disciplines. UCSF Chimera is free for non-commercial use and is

Development of cassava periclinal chimera may boost production.

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Bomfim, N; Nassar, N M A

2014-02-10

Plant periclinal chimeras are genotypic mosaics arranged concentrically. Trials to produce them to combine different species have been done, but pratical results have not been achieved. We report for the second time the development of a very productive interspecific periclinal chimera in cassava. It has very large edible roots up to 14 kg per plant at one year old compared to 2-3 kg in common varieties. The epidermal tissue formed was from Manihot esculenta cultivar UnB 032, and the subepidermal and internal tissue from the wild species, Manihot fortalezensis. We determined the origin of tissues by meiotic and mitotic chromosome counts, plant anatomy and morphology. Epidermal features displayed useful traits to deduce tissue origin: cell shape and size, trichome density and stomatal length. Chimera roots had a wholly tuberous and edible constitution with smaller starch granule size and similar distribution compared to cassava. Root size enlargement might have been due to an epigenetic effect. These results suggest a new line of improved crop based on the development of interspecific chimeras composed of different combinations of wild and cultivated species. It promises boosting cassava production through exceptional root enlargement.

Chaotic weak chimeras and their persistence in coupled populations of phase oscillators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bick, Christian; Ashwin, Peter

2016-01-01

Nontrivial collective behavior may emerge from the interactive dynamics of many oscillatory units. Chimera states are chaotic patterns of spatially localized coherent and incoherent oscillations. The recently-introduced notion of a weak chimera gives a rigorously testable characterization of chimera states for finite-dimensional phase oscillator networks. In this paper we give some persistence results for dynamically invariant sets under perturbations and apply them to coupled populations of phase oscillators with generalized coupling. In contrast to the weak chimeras with nonpositive maximal Lyapunov exponents constructed so far, we show that weak chimeras that are chaotic can exist in the limit of vanishing coupling between coupled populations of phase oscillators. We present numerical evidence that positive Lyapunov exponents can persist for a positive measure set of this inter-population coupling strength. (paper)

Computing Flows Using Chimera and Unstructured Grids

Science.gov (United States)

Liou, Meng-Sing; Zheng, Yao

2006-01-01

DRAGONFLOW is a computer program that solves the Navier-Stokes equations of flows in complexly shaped three-dimensional regions discretized by use of a direct replacement of arbitrary grid overlapping by nonstructured (DRAGON) grid. A DRAGON grid (see figure) is a combination of a chimera grid (a composite of structured subgrids) and a collection of unstructured subgrids. DRAGONFLOW incorporates modified versions of two prior Navier-Stokes-equation-solving programs: OVERFLOW, which is designed to solve on chimera grids; and USM3D, which is used to solve on unstructured grids. A master module controls the invocation of individual modules in the libraries. At each time step of a simulated flow, DRAGONFLOW is invoked on the chimera portion of the DRAGON grid in alternation with USM3D, which is invoked on the unstructured subgrids of the DRAGON grid. The USM3D and OVERFLOW modules then immediately exchange their solutions and other data. As a result, USM3D and OVERFLOW are coupled seamlessly.

Pulse shape method for the Chimera silicon detectors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pagano, A.; Arena, N.; Cardella, G.; D' Andrea, M.; Filippo, E. de; Fichera, F.; Giudice, N.; Guardone, N.; Grimaldi, A.; Nicotra, D.; Papa, M.; Pirrone, S.; Politi, G.; Rapicavoli, C.; Rizza, G.; Russotto, P.; Sacca, G.; Urso, S.; Lanzano, G. [Catania Univ., INFN Catania and Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia (Italy); Alderighi, M.; Sechi, G. [INFN Milano and Istituto di Fisica Cosmica CNR, Milano (Italy); Amorini, F.; Anzalone, A.; Cali, C.; Campagna, V.; Cavallaro, S.; Di Stefano, A.; Giustolisi, F.; La Guidara, E.; Lanzalone, G.; Maiolino, C.; Porto, F.; Rizzo, F.; Salamone, S. [Catania Univ., INFN-LNS and Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia (Italy); Auditore, L.; Trifiro, A.; Trimarchi, M. [Messina Univ., INFN and Dipartimento di Fisica (Italy); Bassini, R.; Boiano, C.; Guazzoni, P.; Russo, S.; Sassi, M.; Zetta, L. [Milano Univ., INFN Milano and Dipartimento di Fisica (Italy); Blicharska, J.; Grzeszczuk, A. [Silesia Univ., Institute of Physics, Katowice (Poland); Chatterjee, M.B. [Saha Institute Of Nuclear Physics, Kolkata (India); Geraci, E.; Zipper, W. [Bologna Univ., INFN Bologna and Dipartimento di Fisica (Italy); Rosato, E.; Vigilante, M. [Napoli Univ., INFN and Dipartimento di Fisica (Italy); Schroder, W.U.; T-ke, J. [Rochester Univ., Dept. of Chemistry, Rochester, N.Y. (United States)

2003-07-01

Since January 2003, the 4{pi} CHIMERA (Charged Heavy Ions Mass and Energy Resolving Array) detector in its full configuration has successfully been operated at the 'Catania Laboratori Nazionali del Sud' (LNS) accelerator facility. The detector has been used with a variety of beams from the Superconducting Cyclotron in heavy-ion reaction studies at Fermi bombarding energies. Future experiments with a focus on isospin physics at Fermi energies, planned for both primary and less intense secondary particle beams, suggest the development of new and more versatile experimental particle identification methods. Recent achievements in implementing specific pulse shape particle identification methods for CHIMERA silicon detectors are reported. They suggest an upgrade of the present charge and mass identification capability of CHIMERA by a simple extension of the method. (authors)

Targeted chimera delivery to ovarian cancer cells by heterogeneous gold magnetic nanoparticle

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Yao; Xu, Mengjiao; Guo, Yi; Tu, Keyao; Wu, Weimin; Wang, Jianjun; Tong, Xiaowen; Wu, Wenjuan; Qi, Lifeng; Shi, Donglu

2017-01-01

Efficient delivery of small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) to the targeted cells has remained a significant challenge in clinical applications. In the present study, we developed a novel aptamer-siRNA chimera delivery system mediated by cationic Au-Fe3O4 nanoparticles (NPs). The chimera constructed by VEGF RNA aptamer and Notch3 siRNA was bonded with heterogeneous Au-Fe3O4 nanoparticles by electrostatic interaction. The obtained complex exhibited much higher silencing efficiency against Notch3 gene compared with chimera alone and lipofectamine-siRNA complex, and improved the antitumor effects of the loaded chimera. Moreover, the efficient delivery of the chimera by Au-Fe3O4 NPs could reverse multi-drug resistance (MDR) of ovarian cancer cells against the chemotherapeutic drug cisplatin, indicating its potential capability for future targeted cancer therapy while overcoming MDR.

Chimera: Experiencing Language Arts.

Science.gov (United States)

Paul, Rebecca K.

1991-01-01

Describes the production of a dramatic musical, Chimera: A Journey to Redoubtia, at Chapman Elementary School in Anchor Point, Alaska. Student participation in the project, and students' rewards from participation, are detailed. Benefits of the integration of dramatics into the language arts curriculum are listed. (BB)

Deficiency in early development of the thymus-dependent cells in irradiation chimeras attributable to recipient's environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iwabuchi, C.; Iwabuchi, K.; Kobayashi, S.; Ogasawara, K.; Negishi, I.; Wang, B.Y.; Wambua, P.P.; Arase, H.; Fukushi, N.; Itoh, Y.

1991-01-01

Bone marrow chimeras were prepared using reciprocal combinations of AKR and C3H mice. When C3H mice were recipients, the number of thymocytes recoverable from such chimeras (C3H recipient chimeras) was small as compared with that from chimeras for which AKR mice were used as recipients (AKR recipient chimeras) regardless of donor strain. The thymocytes from C3H recipient chimeras showed a profound deficiency in generating proliferative responses to stimulation by anti-CD3 mAb (2C11) or anti-TCR (alpha, beta) mAb (H57-597), even though the expression of CD3 and TCR molecules fell within the same range as that in AKR recipient chimeras. Furthermore, after stimulation with immobilized 2C11, the proportion of IL-2R+ cells in the thymocytes from C3H recipient chimeras was much less than that in AKR recipient chimeras. However, no significant difference in proliferative responses to 2C11 plus PMA, in influx of Ca2+ after stimulation with 2C11 or IL-2 production in response to 2C11 plus PMA or PMA plus A23187 was demonstrated between C3H and AKR recipient chimeras. These findings suggest that the thymocytes from C3H recipient chimeras have a deficiency in the signal transduction system as compared with chimeras for which AKR mice are the recipients. The thymic stromal component involved in this difference in the C3H recipient chimeras is discussed

Mechanisms of tolerance in murine radiation bone marrow chimeras. II. Absence of nonspecific suppression in mature chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Auchincloss, H. Jr.; Sachs, D.H.

1983-01-01

Spleen cells from a series of allogeneic bone marrow chimeras were sensitized in vitro with stimulator cells from major histocompatibility complex recombinant strains of mice. The combinations were chosen such that both tolerated (host or donor) and nontolerated (third-party) antigens were present on the same stimulator cells in order to determine whether the tolerated host antigens might elicit nonspecific suppressor mechanisms affecting the cell-mediated lympholysis (CML) response to the nontolerated antigens. No evidence for such nonspecific suppression was obtained in several types of assays. Therefore, if suppressor mechanisms exist that mediate such tolerance in mature allogeneic chimeras then these mechanisms must be highly antigen-specific

Chimera-like states in structured heterogeneous networks

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Bo; Saad, David

2017-04-01

Chimera-like states are manifested through the coexistence of synchronous and asynchronous dynamics and have been observed in various systems. To analyze the role of network topology in giving rise to chimera-like states, we study a heterogeneous network model comprising two groups of nodes, of high and low degrees of connectivity. The architecture facilitates the analysis of the system, which separates into a densely connected coherent group of nodes, perturbed by their sparsely connected drifting neighbors. It describes a synchronous behavior of the densely connected group and scaling properties of the induced perturbations.

Generation of an adenovirus-parvovirus chimera with enhanced oncolytic potential.

Science.gov (United States)

El-Andaloussi, Nazim; Bonifati, Serena; Kaufmann, Johanna K; Mailly, Laurent; Daeffler, Laurent; Deryckère, François; Nettelbeck, Dirk M; Rommelaere, Jean; Marchini, Antonio

2012-10-01

In this study, our goal was to generate a chimeric adenovirus-parvovirus (Ad-PV) vector that combines the high-titer and efficient gene transfer of adenovirus with the anticancer potential of rodent parvovirus. To this end, the entire oncolytic PV genome was inserted into a replication-defective E1- and E3-deleted Ad5 vector genome. As we found that parvoviral NS expression inhibited Ad-PV chimera production, we engineered the parvoviral P4 early promoter, which governs NS expression, by inserting into its sequence tetracycline operator elements. As a result of these modifications, P4-driven expression was blocked in the packaging T-REx-293 cells, which constitutively express the tetracycline repressor, allowing high-yield chimera production. The chimera effectively delivered the PV genome into cancer cells, from which fully infectious replication-competent parvovirus particles were generated. Remarkably, the Ad-PV chimera exerted stronger cytotoxic activities against various cancer cell lines, compared with the PV and Ad parental viruses, while being still innocuous to a panel of tested healthy primary human cells. This Ad-PV chimera represents a novel versatile anticancer agent which can be subjected to further genetic manipulations in order to reinforce its enhanced oncolytic capacity through arming with transgenes or retargeting into tumor cells.

Construction and characterization of the interdomain chimeras using Cry11Aa and Cry11Ba from Bacillus thuringiensis and identification of a possible novel toxic chimera.

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Yunjun; Zhao, Qiang; Zheng, Dasheng; Ding, Xuezhi; Wang, Jingfang; Hu, Quanfang; Yuan, Zhiming; Park, Hyun-Woo; Xia, Liqiu

2014-01-01

Three structural domains of mosquitocidal Cry11Aa and Cry11Ba from Bacillus thuringiensis were exchanged to produce interdomain chimeras [BAA (11Ba/11Aa/11Aa), ABA (11Aa/11Ba/11Aa), AAB (11Aa/11Aa/11Ba), ABB (11Aa/11Ba/11Ba), BAB (11Ba/11Aa/11Ba), BBA (11Ba/11Ba/11Aa]. Chimeras BAB, BAA, BBA, and AAB formed inclusion bodies in the crystal-negative B. thuringiensis host and produced expected protein bands on SDS-PAGE gel. However, no inclusion body or target protein could be found for chimeras ABA and ABB. In bioassays using the fourth-instar larvae of Culex quinquefasciatus and Aedes aegypti, AAB had ~50 % lethal concentrations of 4.8 and 2.2 μg ml(-1), respectively; however, the rest of chimeras were not toxic. This study thus helps to understand the domain-function relationships of the Cry11Aa and Cry11Ba toxins. The toxic chimera, AAB, might be a candidate for mosquito control as its amino acid sequence is different from the two parental toxins.

MODELS FOR MOUSE CHIMERA PRODUCTION: AGGREGATION OF ES CELLS WITH CLEAVAGE STAGE EMBRYOS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

STANCA CLAUDIA

2007-01-01

Full Text Available In a mutant ES cells↔ wild-type embryo chimera, ES cells behave more like epiblastcells. They can contribute to the primitive ectoderm layers, which give rise to all theembryonic tissues and some extraembryonic tissues (Beddington and Robertson,1989, but not to trophectoderm or primitive endoderm. Using transgenic ES celllines, aggregated with cleavage stage host embryo, ES cells can integrate randomlyin the embryo proper. If they will be take part in the formation of ICM (inner cellmass, it will be possible to obtain germline chimera animals. To generate ES cells↔ cleavage stage host embryo chimeras, we used (CD-1 mice as donors of hostembryos as well as recipients of manipulated embryos. For chimera production, weused fluorescent-labeled ES cell line (CD1/EGFP, because in this case we canfollow the fate of ES cells during the embryonic development. We produced thechimers using “aggregation chimera technique”. 8 cells stage zona pellucida free,mouse embryos were aggregated in an aggregation plates, with a clump of ES cells(10 – 15 cells. The chimera embryos were cultivated for 24 hours in the incubator(at 37 °C, 5% CO2 in air. The chimera blastocysts resulted after cultivation, weretransferred to the uterus of the 2.5-dpc pseudo pregnant females.

MODELS FOR MOUSE CHIMERA PRODUCTION: AGGREGATION OF ES CELLS WITH CLEAVAGE STAGE EMBRYOS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

CLAUDIA STANCA

2007-05-01

Full Text Available In a mutant ES cells↔ wild-type embryo chimera, ES cells behave more like epiblastcells. They can contribute to the primitive ectoderm layers, which give rise to all theembryonic tissues and some extraembryonic tissues (Beddington and Robertson,1989, but not to trophectoderm or primitive endoderm. Using transgenic ES celllines, aggregated with cleavage stage host embryo, ES cells can integrate randomlyin the embryo proper. If they will be take part in the formation of ICM (inner cellmass, it will be possible to obtain germline chimera animals. To generate ES cells↔ cleavage stage host embryo chimeras, we used (CD-1 mice as donors of hostembryos as well as recipients of manipulated embryos. For chimera production, weused fluorescent-labeled ES cell line (CD1/EGFP, because in this case we canfollow the fate of ES cells during the embryonic development. We produced thechimers using “aggregation chimera technique”. 8 cells stage zona pellucida free,mouse embryos were aggregated in an aggregation plates, with a clump of ES cells(10 – 15 cells. The chimera embryos were cultivated for 24 hours in the incubator(at 37 °C, 5% CO2 in air. The chimera blastocysts resulted after cultivation, weretransferred to the uterus of the 2.5-dpc pseudo pregnant females.

Interordinal chimera formation between medaka and zebrafish for analyzing stem cell differentiation.

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, Ni; Chen, Songlin; Ge, Ruowen; Song, Jianxing; Yi, Meisheng; Hong, Yunhan

2012-08-10

Chimera formation is a standard test for pluripotency of stem cells in vivo. Interspecific chimera formation between distantly related organisms offers also an attractive approach for propagating endangered species. Parameters influencing interspecies chimera formation have remained poorly elucidated. Here, we report interordinal chimera formation between medaka and zebrafish, which separated ∼320 million years ago and exhibit a more than 2-fold difference in developmental speed. We show that, on transplantation into zebrafish blastulae, both noncultivated blastomeres and long-term cultivated embryonic stem (ES) cells of medaka adopted the zebrafish developmental program and differentiated into physiologically functional cell types including pigment cells, blood cells, and cardiomyocytes. We also show that medaka ES cells express differentiation gene markers during chimeric embryogenesis. Therefore, the evolutionary distance and different embryogenesis speeds do not produce donor-host incompatibility to compromise chimera formation between medaka and zebrafish, and molecular markers are valuable for analyzing lineage commitment and cell differentiation in interspecific chimeric embryos.

Chimera states in a population of identical oscillators under planar ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

finding, observed in both a collection of van der Pol oscillators and chaotic Rössler oscillators, fur- ther simplifies the existence criterion for chimeras, thereby broadens the range of their applicability to real-world situations. Keywords. Synchronization; chimera; Rössler system; van der Pol oscillator. PACS Nos 05.45.

Chimera States in Continuous Media: Existence and Distinctness

Science.gov (United States)

Nicolaou, Zachary G.; Riecke, Hermann; Motter, Adilson E.

2017-12-01

The defining property of chimera states is the coexistence of coherent and incoherent domains in systems that are structurally and spatially homogeneous. The recent realization that such states might be common in oscillator networks raises the question of whether an analogous phenomenon can occur in continuous media. Here, we show that chimera states can exist in continuous systems even when the coupling is strictly local, as in many fluid and pattern forming media. Using the complex Ginzburg-Landau equation as a model system, we characterize chimera states consisting of a coherent domain of a frozen spiral structure and an incoherent domain of amplitude turbulence. We show that in this case, in contrast with discrete network systems, fluctuations in the local coupling field play a crucial role in limiting the coherent regions. We suggest these findings shed light on new possible forms of coexisting order and disorder in fluid systems.

A chimeric measles virus with a lentiviral envelope replicates exclusively in CD4+/CCR5+ cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mourez, Thomas; Mesel-Lemoine, Mariana; Combredet, Chantal; Najburg, Valerie; Cayet, Nadege; Tangy, Frederic

2011-01-01

We generated a replicating chimeric measles virus in which the hemagglutinin and fusion surface glycoproteins were replaced with the gp160 envelope glycoprotein of simian immunodeficiency virus (SIVmac239). Based on a previously cloned live-attenuated Schwarz vaccine strain of measles virus (MV), this chimera was rescued at high titers using reverse genetics in CD4+ target cells. Cytopathic effect consisted in the presence of large cell aggregates evolving to form syncytia, as observed during SIV infection. The morphology of the chimeric virus was identical to that of the parent MV particles. The presence of SIV gp160 as the only envelope protein on chimeric particles surface altered the cell tropism of the new virus from CD46+ to CD4+ cells. Used as an HIV candidate vaccine, this MV/SIVenv chimeric virus would mimic transient HIV-like infection, benefiting both from HIV-like tropism and the capacity of MV to replicate in dendritic cells, macrophages and lymphocytes.

Interspecific in vitro assay for the chimera-forming ability of human pluripotent stem cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Masaki, Hideki; Kato-Itoh, Megumi; Umino, Ayumi; Sato, Hideyuki; Hamanaka, Sanae; Kobayashi, Toshihiro; Yamaguchi, Tomoyuki; Nishimura, Ken; Ohtaka, Manami; Nakanishi, Mahito; Nakauchi, Hiromitsu

2015-09-15

Functional assay limitations are an emerging issue in characterizing human pluripotent stem cells (PSCs). With rodent PSCs, chimera formation using pre-implantation embryos is the gold-standard assay of pluripotency (competence of progeny to differentiate into all three germ layers). In human PSCs (hPSCs), however, this can only be monitored via teratoma formation or in vitro differentiation, as ethical concerns preclude generation of human-human or human-animal chimeras. To circumvent this issue, we developed a functional assay utilizing interspecific blastocyst injection and in vitro culture (interspecies in vitro chimera assay) that enables the development and observation of embryos up to headfold stage. The assay uses mouse pre-implantation embryos and rat, monkey and human PSCs to create interspecies chimeras cultured in vitro to the early egg-cylinder stage. Intra- and interspecific chimera assays with rodent PSC lines were performed to confirm the consistency of results in vitro and in vivo. The behavior of chimeras developed in vitro appeared to recapitulate that of chimeras developed in vivo; that is, PSC-derived cells survived and were integrated into the epiblast of egg-cylinder-stage embryos. This indicates that the interspecific in vitro chimera assay is useful in evaluating the chimera-forming ability of rodent PSCs. However, when human induced PSCs (both conventional and naïve-like types) were injected into mouse embryos and cultured, some human cells survived but were segregated; unlike epiblast-stage rodent PSCs, they never integrated into the epiblast of egg-cylinder-stage embryos. These data suggest that the mouse-human interspecies in vitro chimera assay does not accurately reflect the early developmental potential/process of hPSCs. The use of evolutionarily more closely related species as host embryos might be necessary to evaluate the developmental potency of hPSCs. © 2015. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

CHARACTERIZING THE YOUNGEST HERSCHEL-DETECTED PROTOSTARS. I. ENVELOPE STRUCTURE REVEALED BY CARMA DUST CONTINUUM OBSERVATIONS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tobin, John J.; Stutz, Amelia M.; Henning, Thomas; Ragan, Sarah E.; Megeath, S. Thomas; Fischer, William J.; Ali, Babar; Stanke, Thomas; Manoj, P.; Calvet, Nuria; Hartmann, Lee

2015-01-01

We present Combined Array for Research in Millimeter-wave Astronomy 2.9 mm dust continuum emission observations of a sample of 14 Herschel-detected Class 0 protostars in the Orion A and B molecular clouds, drawn from the PACS Bright Red Sources (PBRS) sample. These objects are characterized by very red 24-70 μm colors and prominent submillimeter emission, suggesting that they are very young Class 0 protostars embedded in dense envelopes. We detect all of the PBRS in 2.9 mm continuum emission and emission from four protostars and one starless core in the fields toward the PBRS; we also report one new PBRS source. The ratio of 2.9 mm luminosity to bolometric luminosity is higher by a factor of ∼5 on average, compared to other well-studied protostars in the Perseus and Ophiuchus clouds. The 2.9 mm visibility amplitudes for 6 of the 14 PBRS are very flat as a function of uv distance, with more than 50% of the source emission arising from radii <1500 AU. These flat visibility amplitudes are most consistent with spherically symmetric envelope density profiles with ρ ∝ R –2.5 . Alternatively, there could be a massive unresolved structure like a disk or a high-density inner envelope departing from a smooth power law. The large amount of mass on scales <1500 AU (implying high average central densities) leads us to suggest that that the PBRS with flat visibility amplitude profiles are the youngest PBRS and may be undergoing a brief phase of high mass infall/accretion and are possibly among the youngest Class 0 protostars. The PBRS with more rapidly declining visibility amplitudes still have large envelope masses, but could be slightly more evolved

Experimental observation of chimera and cluster states in a minimal globally coupled network

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hart, Joseph D. [Institute for Research in Electronics and Applied Physics, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742 (United States); Department of Physics, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742 (United States); Bansal, Kanika [Department of Mathematics, University at Buffalo, SUNY Buffalo, New York 14260 (United States); US Army Research Laboratory, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland 21005 (United States); Murphy, Thomas E. [Institute for Research in Electronics and Applied Physics, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742 (United States); Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742 (United States); Roy, Rajarshi [Institute for Research in Electronics and Applied Physics, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742 (United States); Department of Physics, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742 (United States); Institute for Physical Science and Technology, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742 (United States)

2016-09-15

A “chimera state” is a dynamical pattern that occurs in a network of coupled identical oscillators when the symmetry of the oscillator population is broken into synchronous and asynchronous parts. We report the experimental observation of chimera and cluster states in a network of four globally coupled chaotic opto-electronic oscillators. This is the minimal network that can support chimera states, and our study provides new insight into the fundamental mechanisms underlying their formation. We use a unified approach to determine the stability of all the observed partially synchronous patterns, highlighting the close relationship between chimera and cluster states as belonging to the broader phenomenon of partial synchronization. Our approach is general in terms of network size and connectivity. We also find that chimera states often appear in regions of multistability between global, cluster, and desynchronized states.

Mechanism of chimera formation during the Multiple Displacement Amplification reaction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stockwell Timothy B

2007-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Multiple Displacement Amplification (MDA is a method used for amplifying limiting DNA sources. The high molecular weight amplified DNA is ideal for DNA library construction. While this has enabled genomic sequencing from one or a few cells of unculturable microorganisms, the process is complicated by the tendency of MDA to generate chimeric DNA rearrangements in the amplified DNA. Determining the source of the DNA rearrangements would be an important step towards reducing or eliminating them. Results Here, we characterize the major types of chimeras formed by carrying out an MDA whole genome amplification from a single E. coli cell and sequencing by the 454 Life Sciences method. Analysis of 475 chimeras revealed the predominant reaction mechanisms that create the DNA rearrangements. The highly branched DNA synthesized in MDA can assume many alternative secondary structures. DNA strands extended on an initial template can be displaced becoming available to prime on a second template creating the chimeras. Evidence supports a model in which branch migration can displace 3'-ends freeing them to prime on the new templates. More than 85% of the resulting DNA rearrangements were inverted sequences with intervening deletions that the model predicts. Intramolecular rearrangements were favored, with displaced 3'-ends reannealing to single stranded 5'-strands contained within the same branched DNA molecule. In over 70% of the chimeric junctions, the 3' termini had initiated priming at complimentary sequences of 2–21 nucleotides (nts in the new templates. Conclusion Formation of chimeras is an important limitation to the MDA method, particularly for whole genome sequencing. Identification of the mechanism for chimera formation provides new insight into the MDA reaction and suggests methods to reduce chimeras. The 454 sequencing approach used here will provide a rapid method to assess the utility of reaction modifications.

Integration of the GET electronics for the CHIMERA and FARCOS devices

Science.gov (United States)

De Filippo, E.; Acosta, L.; Auditore, L.; Boiano, C.; Cardella, G.; Castoldi, A.; D’Andrea, M.; De Luca, S.; Favela, F.; Fichera, F.; Giudice, N.; Gnoffo, B.; Grimaldi, A.; Guazzoni, C.; Lanzalone, G.; Librizzi, F.; Litrico, P.; Maiolino, C.; Maffesanti, S.; Martorana, NS; Pagano, A.; Pagano, EV; Papa, M.; Parsani, T.; Passaro, G.; Pirrone, S.; Politi, G.; Previdi, F.; Quattrocchi, L.; Rizzo, F.; Russotto, P.; Saccà, G.; Salemi, G.; Sciliberto, D.; Trifirò, A.; Trimarchi, M.

2018-05-01

A new front-end based on digital GET electronics has been adopted for the readout of the CsI(Tl) detectors of the CHIMERA 4π multi-detector and for the new modular Femtoscopy Array for Correlation and Spectroscopy (FARCOS). It is expected that the coupling of CHIMERA with the FARCOS array, featuring high angular and energy resolution, and the adoption of the new digital electronics will be well suited for improving specific future data analysis, with the full shape storage of the signals, in the field of heavy ion reactions with stable and exotic beams around the Fermi energies domain. Integration of the GET electronics with CHIMERA and FARCOS devices and with the local analog data acquisition will be briefly discussed. We present some results from previous experimental tests and from the first in-beam experiment (Hoyle-Gamma) with the coupled GET+CHIMERA data acquisition.

Chimera-like states in a neuronal network model of the cat brain

Science.gov (United States)

Santos, M. S.; Szezech, J. D.; Borges, F. S.; Iarosz, K. C.; Caldas, I. L.; Batista, A. M.; Viana, R. L.; Kurths, J.

2017-08-01

Neuronal systems have been modeled by complex networks in different description levels. Recently, it has been verified that networks can simultaneously exhibit one coherent and other incoherent domain, known as chimera states. In this work, we study the existence of chimera states in a network considering the connectivity matrix based on the cat cerebral cortex. The cerebral cortex of the cat can be separated in 65 cortical areas organised into the four cognitive regions: visual, auditory, somatosensory-motor and frontolimbic. We consider a network where the local dynamics is given by the Hindmarsh-Rose model. The Hindmarsh-Rose equations are a well known model of neuronal activity that has been considered to simulate membrane potential in neuron. Here, we analyse under which conditions chimera states are present, as well as the affects induced by intensity of coupling on them. We observe the existence of chimera states in that incoherent structure can be composed of desynchronised spikes or desynchronised bursts. Moreover, we find that chimera states with desynchronised bursts are more robust to neuronal noise than with desynchronised spikes.

Chimera states in complex networks: interplay of fractal topology and delay

Science.gov (United States)

Sawicki, Jakub; Omelchenko, Iryna; Zakharova, Anna; Schöll, Eckehard

2017-06-01

Chimera states are an example of intriguing partial synchronization patterns emerging in networks of identical oscillators. They consist of spatially coexisting domains of coherent (synchronized) and incoherent (desynchronized) dynamics. We analyze chimera states in networks of Van der Pol oscillators with hierarchical connectivities, and elaborate the role of time delay introduced in the coupling term. In the parameter plane of coupling strength and delay time we find tongue-like regions of existence of chimera states alternating with regions of existence of coherent travelling waves. We demonstrate that by varying the time delay one can deliberately stabilize desired spatio-temporal patterns in the system.

Inhibition of Apoptosis Overcomes Stage-Related Compatibility Barriers to Chimera Formation in Mouse Embryos.

Science.gov (United States)

Masaki, Hideki; Kato-Itoh, Megumi; Takahashi, Yusuke; Umino, Ayumi; Sato, Hideyuki; Ito, Keiichi; Yanagida, Ayaka; Nishimura, Toshinobu; Yamaguchi, Tomoyuki; Hirabayashi, Masumi; Era, Takumi; Loh, Kyle M; Wu, Sean M; Weissman, Irving L; Nakauchi, Hiromitsu

2016-11-03

Cell types more advanced in development than embryonic stem cells, such as EpiSCs, fail to contribute to chimeras when injected into pre-implantation-stage blastocysts, apparently because the injected cells undergo apoptosis. Here we show that transient promotion of cell survival through expression of the anti-apoptotic gene BCL2 enables EpiSCs and Sox17 + endoderm progenitors to integrate into blastocysts and contribute to chimeric embryos. Upon injection into blastocyst, BCL2-expressing EpiSCs contributed to all bodily tissues in chimeric animals while Sox17 + endoderm progenitors specifically contributed in a region-specific fashion to endodermal tissues. In addition, BCL2 expression enabled rat EpiSCs to contribute to mouse embryonic chimeras, thereby forming interspecies chimeras that could survive to adulthood. Our system therefore provides a method to overcome cellular compatibility issues that typically restrict chimera formation. Application of this type of approach could broaden the use of embryonic chimeras, including region-specific chimeras, for basic developmental biology research and regenerative medicine. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Chimera states in a multilayer network of coupled and uncoupled neurons

Science.gov (United States)

Majhi, Soumen; Perc, Matjaž; Ghosh, Dibakar

2017-07-01

We study the emergence of chimera states in a multilayer neuronal network, where one layer is composed of coupled and the other layer of uncoupled neurons. Through the multilayer structure, the layer with coupled neurons acts as the medium by means of which neurons in the uncoupled layer share information in spite of the absence of physical connections among them. Neurons in the coupled layer are connected with electrical synapses, while across the two layers, neurons are connected through chemical synapses. In both layers, the dynamics of each neuron is described by the Hindmarsh-Rose square wave bursting dynamics. We show that the presence of two different types of connecting synapses within and between the two layers, together with the multilayer network structure, plays a key role in the emergence of between-layer synchronous chimera states and patterns of synchronous clusters. In particular, we find that these chimera states can emerge in the coupled layer regardless of the range of electrical synapses. Even in all-to-all and nearest-neighbor coupling within the coupled layer, we observe qualitatively identical between-layer chimera states. Moreover, we show that the role of information transmission delay between the two layers must not be neglected, and we obtain precise parameter bounds at which chimera states can be observed. The expansion of the chimera region and annihilation of cluster and fully coherent states in the parameter plane for increasing values of inter-layer chemical synaptic time delay are illustrated using effective range measurements. These results are discussed in the light of neuronal evolution, where the coexistence of coherent and incoherent dynamics during the developmental stage is particularly likely.

Chimeras in a network of three oscillator populations with varying network topology

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Martens, Erik Andreas

2010-01-01

this system as a model system, we discuss for the first time the influence of network topology on the existence of so-called chimera states. In this context, the network with three populations represents an interesting case because the populations may either be connected as a triangle, or as a chain, thereby......-like. By showing that chimera states only exist for a bounded set of parameter values, we demonstrate that their existence depends strongly on the underlying network structures, and conclude that chimeras exist on networks with a chain-like character....

Robust Weak Chimeras in Oscillator Networks with Delayed Linear and Quadratic Interactions

Science.gov (United States)

Bick, Christian; Sebek, Michael; Kiss, István Z.

2017-10-01

We present an approach to generate chimera dynamics (localized frequency synchrony) in oscillator networks with two populations of (at least) two elements using a general method based on a delayed interaction with linear and quadratic terms. The coupling design yields robust chimeras through a phase-model-based design of the delay and the ratio of linear and quadratic components of the interactions. We demonstrate the method in the Brusselator model and experiments with electrochemical oscillators. The technique opens the way to directly bridge chimera dynamics in phase models and real-world oscillator networks.

Lessons from Interspecies Mammalian Chimeras.

Science.gov (United States)

Suchy, Fabian; Nakauchi, Hiromitsu

2017-10-06

As chimeras transform from beasts of Greek mythology into tools of contemporary bioscience, secrets of developmental biology and evolutionary divergence are being revealed. Recent advances in stem cell biology and interspecies chimerism have generated new models with extensive basic and translational applications, including generation of transplantable, patient-specific organs.

Artificial muscle: the human chimera is the future.

Science.gov (United States)

Tozzi, P

2011-12-14

Severe heart failure and cerebral stroke are broadly associated with the impairment of muscular function that conventional treatments struggle to restore. New technologies enable the construction of "smart" materials that could be of great help in treating diseases where the main problem is muscle weakness. These materials "behave" similarly to biological systems, because the material directly converts energy, for example electrical energy into movement. The extension and contraction occur silently like in natural muscles. The real challenge is to transfer this amazing technology into devices that restore or replace the mechanical function of failing muscle. Cardiac assist devices based on artificial muscle technology could envelope a weak heart and temporarily improve its systolic function, or, if placed on top of the atrium, restore the atrial kick in chronic atrial fibrillation. Artificial sphincters could be used to treat urinary incontinence after prostatectomy or faecal incontinence associated with stomas. Artificial muscles can restore the ability of patients with facial paralysis due to stroke or nerve injury to blink. Smart materials could be used to construct an artificial oesophagus including peristaltic movement and lower oesophageal sphincter function to replace the diseased oesophagus thereby avoiding the need for laparotomy to mobilise stomach or intestine. In conclusion, in the near future, smart devices will integrate with the human body to fill functional gaps due to organ failure, and so create a human chimera.

CAPRRESI: Chimera Assembly by Plasmid Recovery and Restriction Enzyme Site Insertion.

Science.gov (United States)

Santillán, Orlando; Ramírez-Romero, Miguel A; Dávila, Guillermo

2017-06-25

Here, we present chimera assembly by plasmid recovery and restriction enzyme site insertion (CAPRRESI). CAPRRESI benefits from many strengths of the original plasmid recovery method and introduces restriction enzyme digestion to ease DNA ligation reactions (required for chimera assembly). For this protocol, users clone wildtype genes into the same plasmid (pUC18 or pUC19). After the in silico selection of amino acid sequence regions where chimeras should be assembled, users obtain all the synonym DNA sequences that encode them. Ad hoc Perl scripts enable users to determine all synonym DNA sequences. After this step, another Perl script searches for restriction enzyme sites on all synonym DNA sequences. This in silico analysis is also performed using the ampicillin resistance gene (ampR) found on pUC18/19 plasmids. Users design oligonucleotides inside synonym regions to disrupt wildtype and ampR genes by PCR. After obtaining and purifying complementary DNA fragments, restriction enzyme digestion is accomplished. Chimera assembly is achieved by ligating appropriate complementary DNA fragments. pUC18/19 vectors are selected for CAPRRESI because they offer technical advantages, such as small size (2,686 base pairs), high copy number, advantageous sequencing reaction features, and commercial availability. The usage of restriction enzymes for chimera assembly eliminates the need for DNA polymerases yielding blunt-ended products. CAPRRESI is a fast and low-cost method for fusing protein-coding genes.

Definition and means of maintaining the process vacuum liquid detection interlock systems portion of the PFP safety envelope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

LINTHO, J.E.

2003-01-01

The purpose of this document is to record the technical evaluation of the Technical Safety Requirements described in the Plutonium Finishing Plant (PFP) Safety Technical Requirements, HNF-SD-CP-OSR-010/Rev.1, Section 3.1.1, ''Criticality Prevention System.'' This document also defines the Safety Envelope (SE) for the liquid detection interlock system in the Process Vacuum System. The SE is derived FR-om information in the Plutonium Finishing Plant Final Safety Analysis Report (PFP FSAR), HNF-SD-CP-SAR-021, Rev 4, and the Criticality Safety Analysis Report (CSAR) for the 26-inch Hg Vacuum System, WHC-SD-SQA-CSA-20159, Rev 0-A. This document, with its appendices, provides the following: (1) The system functional requirements for determining system operability (Section 3). (2) Evaluations of equipment to determine the safety envelope boundary for the system (Section 4 list of SE boundary drawings). (3) A list of the safety envelope equipment (Appendix B). (4) Functional requirements for the individual safety envelope equipment, including appropriate set points and process parameters (Section 4). (5) A list of the operational and surveillance procedures necessary to operate and maintain the system equipment within the safety envelope (Sections 5 and 6 and Appendix A)

Construction of RNA-Quantum Dot Chimera for Nanoscale Resistive Biomemory Application.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Taek; Yagati, Ajay Kumar; Pi, Fengmei; Sharma, Ashwani; Choi, Jeong-Woo; Guo, Peixuan

2015-07-28

RNA nanotechnology offers advantages to construct thermally and chemically stable nanoparticles with well-defined shape and structure. Here we report the development of an RNA-QD (quantum dot) chimera for resistive biomolecular memory application. Each QD holds two copies of the pRNA three-way junction (pRNA-3WJ) of the bacteriophage phi29 DNA packaging motor. The fixed quantity of two RNAs per QD was achieved by immobilizing the pRNA-3WJ with a Sephadex aptamer for resin binding. Two thiolated pRNA-3WJ serve as two feet of the chimera that stand on the gold plate. The RNA nanostructure served as both an insulator and a mediator to provide defined distance between the QD and gold. Immobilization of the chimera nanoparticle was confirmed with scanning tunneling microscopy. As revealed by scanning tunneling spectroscopy, the conjugated pRNA-3WJ-QD chimera exhibited an excellent electrical bistability signal for biomolecular memory function, demonstrating great potential for the development of resistive biomolecular memory and a nano-bio-inspired electronic device for information processing and computing.

Diversity of chimera-like patterns from a model of 2D arrays of neurons with nonlocal coupling

Science.gov (United States)

Tian, Chang-Hai; Zhang, Xi-Yun; Wang, Zhen-Hua; Liu, Zong-Hua

2017-06-01

Chimera states have been studied in 1D arrays, and a variety of different chimera states have been found using different models. Research has recently been extended to 2D arrays but only to phase models of them. Here, we extend it to a nonphase model of 2D arrays of neurons and focus on the influence of nonlocal coupling. Using extensive numerical simulations, we find, surprisingly, that this system can show most types of previously observed chimera states, in contrast to previous models, where only one or a few types of chimera states can be observed in each model. We also find that this model can show some special chimera-like patterns such as gridding and multicolumn patterns, which were previously observed only in phase models. Further, we present an effective approach, i.e., removing some of the coupling links, to generate heterogeneous coupling, which results in diverse chimera-like patterns and even induces transformations from one chimera-like pattern to another.

A chimera embryo assay reveals a decrease in embryonic cellular proliferation induced by sperm from X-irradiated male mice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Obasaju, M.F.; Wiley, L.M.; Oudiz, D.J.; Raabe, O.; Overstreet, J.W.

1989-01-01

Male mice were divided into three experimental groups and a control group. Mice in the experimental groups received one of three doses of acute X irradiation (1.73, 0.29, and 0.05 Gy) and together with the control unirradiated mice were then mated weekly to unirradiated female mice for a 9-week experimental period. Embryos were recovered from the weekly matings at the four-cell stage and examined by the chimera assay for proliferative disadvantage. Aggregation chimeras were constructed of embryos from female mice mated to irradiated males (experimental embryos) and embryos from females mated to unexposed males (control embryos) and contained either one experimental embryo and one control embryo (heterologous chimera) or two control embryos (control chimera). The control embryo in heterologous chimeras and either embryo in control chimeras were prelabeled with the vital dye fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC), and the chimeras were cultured for 40 h and viewed under phase-contrast and epifluorescence microscopy to obtain total embryo cell number and the cellular contribution from the FITC-labeled embryo. Experimental and control embryos that were cultured singly were also examined for embryo cell number at the end of the 40-h culture period. In control chimeras, the mean ratio of the unlabeled cells:total chimera cell number (henceforth referred to as ''mean ratio'') was 0.50 with little or no weekly variation over the 9-week experimental period. During Weeks 4-7, the mean ratios of heterologous chimeras differed significantly from the mean ratio of control chimeras with the greatest differences occurring during Week 7 (0.41 for chimeras of 0.05 Gy dose group, 0.40 for chimeras of the 0.29 Gy dose group, and 0.17 for chimeras of the 1.73 Gy dose group)

Chimeras taking shape: Potential functions of proteins encoded by chimeric RNA transcripts

Science.gov (United States)

Frenkel-Morgenstern, Milana; Lacroix, Vincent; Ezkurdia, Iakes; Levin, Yishai; Gabashvili, Alexandra; Prilusky, Jaime; del Pozo, Angela; Tress, Michael; Johnson, Rory; Guigo, Roderic; Valencia, Alfonso

2012-01-01

Chimeric RNAs comprise exons from two or more different genes and have the potential to encode novel proteins that alter cellular phenotypes. To date, numerous putative chimeric transcripts have been identified among the ESTs isolated from several organisms and using high throughput RNA sequencing. The few corresponding protein products that have been characterized mostly result from chromosomal translocations and are associated with cancer. Here, we systematically establish that some of the putative chimeric transcripts are genuinely expressed in human cells. Using high throughput RNA sequencing, mass spectrometry experimental data, and functional annotation, we studied 7424 putative human chimeric RNAs. We confirmed the expression of 175 chimeric RNAs in 16 human tissues, with an abundance varying from 0.06 to 17 RPKM (Reads Per Kilobase per Million mapped reads). We show that these chimeric RNAs are significantly more tissue-specific than non-chimeric transcripts. Moreover, we present evidence that chimeras tend to incorporate highly expressed genes. Despite the low expression level of most chimeric RNAs, we show that 12 novel chimeras are translated into proteins detectable in multiple shotgun mass spectrometry experiments. Furthermore, we confirm the expression of three novel chimeric proteins using targeted mass spectrometry. Finally, based on our functional annotation of exon organization and preserved domains, we discuss the potential features of chimeric proteins with illustrative examples and suggest that chimeras significantly exploit signal peptides and transmembrane domains, which can alter the cellular localization of cognate proteins. Taken together, these findings establish that some chimeric RNAs are translated into potentially functional proteins in humans. PMID:22588898

Basins of Attraction for Chimera States

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Martens, Erik Andreas; Panaggio, Mark; Abrams, Daniel

2016-01-01

Chimera states---curious symmetry-broken states in systems of identical coupled oscillators---typically occur only for certain initial conditions. Here we analyze their basins of attraction in a simple system comprised of two populations. Using perturbative analysis and numerical simulation we...

Intermittent chaotic chimeras for coupled rotators

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Olmi, Simona; Martens, Erik Andreas; Thutupalli, Shashi

2015-01-01

Two symmetrically coupled populations of N oscillators with inertia m display chaotic solutions with broken symmetry similar to experimental observations with mechanical pendulums. In particular, we report evidence of intermittent chaotic chimeras, where one population is synchronized and the other...

Millimeter Detection of AlO (X 2Σ+): Metal Oxide Chemistry in the Envelope of VY Canis Majoris

Science.gov (United States)

Tenenbaum, E. D.; Ziurys, L. M.

2009-03-01

A new circumstellar molecule, the radical AlO (X 2Σ+), has been detected toward the envelope of the oxygen-rich supergiant star VY Canis Majoris (VY CMa) using the Arizona Radio Observatory (ARO). The N = 7 → 6 and 6 → 5 rotational transitions of AlO at 268 and 230 GHz were observed at 1 mm using the ARO Submillimeter Telescope (SMT) and the N = 4 → 3 line was detected at 2 mm using the ARO 12 m telescope. Based on the shape of the line profiles, AlO most likely arises from the dust-forming region in the spherical outflow of VY CMa, as opposed to the blue or redshifted winds, with a source size of θ s ~ 0farcs5. Given this source size, the column density of AlO was found to be N tot ~ 2 × 1015 cm-2 for T rot ~ 230 K, with a fractional abundance, relative to H2, of ~10-8. Gas-phase thermodynamic equilibrium chemistry is the likely formation mechanism for AlO in VY CMa, but either shocks disrupt the condensation process into Al2O3, or chemical "freezeout" occurs. The species therefore survives further into the circumstellar envelope to a radius of r ~ 20 R *. The detection of AlO in VY CMa is additional evidence of an active gas-phase refractory chemistry in oxygen-rich envelopes, and suggests such objects may be fruitful sources for other new oxide identifications.

Four-cluster chimera state in non-locally coupled phase oscillator systems with an external potential

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhu Yun; Zheng Zhi-Gang; Yang Jun-Zhong

2013-01-01

Dynamics of a one-dimensional array of non-locally coupled Kuramoto phase oscillators with an external potential is studied. A four-cluster chimera state is observed for the moderate strength of the external potential. Different from the clustered chimera states studied before, the instantaneous frequencies of the oscillators in a synchronized cluster are different in the presence of the external potential. As the strength of the external potential increases, a bifurcation from the two-cluster chimera state to the four-cluster chimera states can be found. These phenomena are well predicted analytically with the help of the Ott—Antonsen ansatz. (general)

Impaired perception of temporal fine structure and musical timbre in cochlear implant users.

Science.gov (United States)

Heng, Joseph; Cantarero, Gabriela; Elhilali, Mounya; Limb, Charles J

2011-10-01

Cochlear implant (CI) users demonstrate severe limitations in perceiving musical timbre, a psychoacoustic feature of sound responsible for 'tone color' and one's ability to identify a musical instrument. The reasons for this limitation remain poorly understood. In this study, we sought to examine the relative contributions of temporal envelope and fine structure for timbre judgments, in light of the fact that speech processing strategies employed by CI systems typically employ envelope extraction algorithms. We synthesized "instrumental chimeras" that systematically combined variable amounts of envelope and fine structure in 25% increments from two different source instruments with either sustained or percussive envelopes. CI users and normal hearing (NH) subjects were presented with 150 chimeras and asked to determine which instrument the chimera more closely resembled in a single-interval two-alternative forced choice task. By combining instruments with similar and dissimilar envelopes, we controlled the valence of envelope for timbre identification and compensated for envelope reconstruction from fine structure information. Our results show that NH subjects utilize envelope and fine structure interchangeably, whereas CI subjects demonstrate overwhelming reliance on temporal envelope. When chimeras were created from dissimilar envelope instrument pairs, NH subjects utilized a combination of envelope (p = 0.008) and fine structure information (p = 0.009) to make timbre judgments. In contrast, CI users utilized envelope information almost exclusively to make timbre judgments (p < 0.001) and ignored fine structure information (p = 0.908). Interestingly, when the value of envelope as a cue was reduced, both NH subjects and CI users utilized fine structure information to make timbre judgments (p < 0.001), although the effect was quite weak in CI users. Our findings confirm that impairments in fine structure processing underlie poor perception of musical timbre in CI

Infusion of donor lymphocytes into stable canine radiation chimeras: implications for mechanism of transplantation tolerance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Weiden, P.L.; Storb, R.; Tsoi, M.S.; Graham, T.C.; Lerner, K.G.; Thomas, E.D.

1976-01-01

Canine radiation chimeras were used to investigate further mechanism(s) responsible for maintaining the stable chimeric state. In an attempt to elucidate the nature of this postulated active mechanism, the cytotoxicity of donor lymphocytes for fibroblasts of the chimera and the presence or absence of serum-blocking factors were assessed in vitro by using a cellular inhibition (CI) assay. The presence of serum-blocking factors did not protect against the development of significant GVHD in two chimeras (fatal in one). GVHD did not occur in four other chimeras after infusion of cytotoxic donor lymphocytes despite the absence of serum-blocking factors. These and previous results suggest that serum-blocking factors are not the mechanism suppressing the development of GVHD in canine radiation chimeras, and raise the possibility that a suppressor cell population may be responsible for preventing GVHD

Secondary Disease in Radiation Chimeras

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Congdon, C. C. [Biology Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

1969-07-15

A review of research dealing directly or indirectly with the development of bidirectional tolerance in radiation chimeras has been made, emphasizing some of the contemporary research on this subject in Oak Ridge and Knoxville. By controlling such factors as cell dose, age of donor animal and day of cell injection, it was possible to achieve bidirectional tolerance. Attempts to reduce bidirectional tolerance in favour of increasing the graft-versus-host reaction were less successful. Hypoxic caging demonstrated a new approach to achieving bidirectional tolerance through physiological competition for growth. Graft-versus-host reactions have a lower growth priority than marrow regeneration or erythropoietic hyperplasia. Study of pathologic processes, immunologic capability and the-biochemical lesions in radiation chimeras all lead to new ideas that involve bidirectional tolerance. The investigations on dose rate in radiation suppression of the immune response and on LD{sub 50} (30- to 90-day)values after injection of different numbers of marrow cells all have a bearing on control of the host-versus-graft response and therefore are important in understanding bidirectional tolerance. (author)

Chimera Type Behavior in Nonlocal Coupling System with Two Different Inherent Frequencies

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Larry; Li, Ping-Cheng; Tseng, Hseng-Che

2014-03-01

From the research of Kuramoto and Strogatz, arrays of identical oscillators can display a remarkable pattern, named chimera state, in which phase-locked oscillators coexist with drifting ones in nonlocal coupling oscillator system. We consider further in this study, two groups of oscillators with different inherent frequencies and arrange them in a ring. When the difference of the inherent frequencies is within some specific parameter range, oscillators of nonlocal coupling system show two distinct chimera states. When the parameter value exceeds some threshold value, two chimera states disappear. They show different features. The statistical dynamic behavior of the system can be described by Kuramoto theory.

MILLIMETER DETECTION OF AlO (X 2Σ+): METAL OXIDE CHEMISTRY IN THE ENVELOPE OF VY CANIS MAJORIS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tenenbaum, E. D.; Ziurys, L. M.

2009-01-01

A new circumstellar molecule, the radical AlO (X 2 Σ + ), has been detected toward the envelope of the oxygen-rich supergiant star VY Canis Majoris (VY CMa) using the Arizona Radio Observatory (ARO). The N = 7 → 6 and 6 → 5 rotational transitions of AlO at 268 and 230 GHz were observed at 1 mm using the ARO Submillimeter Telescope (SMT) and the N = 4 → 3 line was detected at 2 mm using the ARO 12 m telescope. Based on the shape of the line profiles, AlO most likely arises from the dust-forming region in the spherical outflow of VY CMa, as opposed to the blue or redshifted winds, with a source size of θ s ∼ 0.''5. Given this source size, the column density of AlO was found to be N tot ∼ 2 x 10 15 cm -2 for T rot ∼ 230 K, with a fractional abundance, relative to H 2 , of ∼10 -8 . Gas-phase thermodynamic equilibrium chemistry is the likely formation mechanism for AlO in VY CMa, but either shocks disrupt the condensation process into Al 2 O 3 , or chemical 'freezeout' occurs. The species therefore survives further into the circumstellar envelope to a radius of r ∼ 20 R * . The detection of AlO in VY CMa is additional evidence of an active gas-phase refractory chemistry in oxygen-rich envelopes, and suggests such objects may be fruitful sources for other new oxide identifications.

Advances in Chimera Grid Tools for Multi-Body Dynamics Simulations and Script Creation

Science.gov (United States)

Chan, William M.

2004-01-01

This viewgraph presentation contains information about (1) Framework for multi-body dynamics - Geometry Manipulation Protocol (GMP), (2) Simulation procedure using Chimera Grid Tools (CGT) and OVERFLOW-2 (3) Further recent developments in Chimera Grid Tools OVERGRID, Grid modules, Script library and (4) Future work.

Growth promotion of genetically modified hematopoietic progenitors using an antibody/c-Mpl chimera.

Science.gov (United States)

Kawahara, Masahiro; Chen, Jianhong; Sogo, Takahiro; Teng, Jinying; Otsu, Makoto; Onodera, Masafumi; Nakauchi, Hiromitsu; Ueda, Hiroshi; Nagamune, Teruyuki

2011-09-01

Thrombopoietin is a potent cytokine that exerts proliferation of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) through its cognate receptor, c-Mpl. Therefore, mimicry of c-Mpl signaling by a receptor recognizing an artificial ligand would be attractive to attain specific expansion of genetically modified HSCs. Here we propose a system enabling selective expansion of genetically modified cells using an antibody/receptor chimera that can be activated by a specific antigen. We constructed an antibody/c-Mpl chimera, in which single-chain Fv (ScFv) of an anti-fluorescein antibody was tethered to the extracellular D2 domain of the erythropoietin receptor and transmembrane/cytoplasmic domains of c-Mpl. When the chimera was expressed in interleukin (IL)-3-dependent pro-B cell line Ba/F3, genetically modified cells were selectively expanded in the presence of fluorescein-conjugated BSA (BSA-FL) as a specific antigen. Furthermore, highly purified mouse HSCs transduced with the retrovirus carrying antibody/c-Mpl chimera gene proliferated in vitro in response to BSA-FL, and the cells retained in vivo long-term repopulating abilities. These results demonstrate that the antibody/c-Mpl chimera is capable of signal transduction that mimics wild-type c-Mpl signaling. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Closed-loop fault detection for full-envelope flight vehicle with measurement delays

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wang Zhaolei

2015-06-01

Full Text Available A closed-loop fault detection problem is investigated for the full-envelope flight vehicle with measurement delays, where the flight dynamics are modeled as a switched system with delayed feedback signals. The mode-dependent observer-based fault detection filters and state estimation feedback controllers are derived by considering the delays’ impact on the control system and fault detection system simultaneously. Then, considering updating lags of the controllers/filters’ switching signals which are introduced by the delayed measurement of altitude and Mach number, an asynchronous H∞ analysis method is proposed and the system model is further augmented to be an asynchronously switched time-delay system. Also, the global stability and desired performance of the augmented system are guaranteed by combining the switched delay-dependent Lyapunov–Krasovskii functional method with the average dwell time method (ADT, and the delay-dependent existing conditions for the controllers and fault detection filters are obtained in the form of the linear matrix inequalities (LMIs. Finally, numerical example based on the hypersonic vehicles and highly maneuverable technology (HiMAT vehicle is given to demonstrate the merits of the proposed method.

Phenotypic characterization of early events of thymus repopulation in radiation bone marrow chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sharrow, S.O.; Singer, A.; Hammerling, U.; Mathieson, B.J.

1983-01-01

The phenotype of murine thymocytes repopulating the thymus of radiation bone marrow chimeras shortly after irradiation and bone marrow reconstitution was analyzed by immunofluorescence and flow microfluorometry. Thymuses in these chimeras, while essentially devoid of lymphoid cells at day 7, were repopulated by days 10 to 12 after irradiation. It was found that this initial repopulation arose from a radioresistant intrathymic precursor that expanded to an almost complete complement of host-type thymocytes. However, these host-derived thymocytes were unusual in that they were relatively deficient in Lyt 1+2- and peanut agglutinin ''dull'' cells as compared with normal thymocytes. Donor bone-marrow-derived cells first appeared in the irradiated chimeric thymuses between days 12 and 15 after irradiation and bone marrow transfer. By day 19, chimeric thymuses contained more than 98% donor cells. This course was identical for three chimeric combinations, each made across different genetic barriers. In contrast to the cells that populate the fetal thymus during normal ontogeny, the first donor bone-marrow-derived cells that can be detected within the irradiated chimeric thymuses already expressed phenotypically normal adult T cell subpopulations in that they contained significant numbers both of Lyt 1+2- and of Lyt 1+2+ thymocytes. Thus, the Lyt phenotype of donor cells that initially repopulate an adult thymus after irradiation is markedly different from the Lyt phenotype of cells that initially populate the fetal thymus. The differences between adult and fetal thymic development that are observed in radiation bone marrow chimeras may be important in our understanding of T cell differentiation in these animals

Complement factor 5a receptor chimeras reveal the importance of lipid-facing residues in transport competence

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Klco, Jeffery M; Sen, Saurabh; Hansen, Jakob L

2009-01-01

. Despite relatively conservative substitutions, the lipid-facing chimeras (TM1, TM2, TM4, TM5, TM6 or TM7) were retained in the endoplasmic reticulum/cis-Golgi network. With the exception of the TM7 chimera that did not bind ligand, the lipid-facing chimeras bound ligand with low affinity, but similar...... oligomerization studies demonstrated energy transfer between the wild-type complement factor 5a receptor and the lipid-facing chimeras, suggesting that the lipid-facing residues within a single TM segment are not essential for oligomerization. These studies highlight the importance of the lipid-facing residues...

Chimera states in an ensemble of linearly locally coupled bistable oscillators

Science.gov (United States)

Shchapin, D. S.; Dmitrichev, A. S.; Nekorkin, V. I.

2017-11-01

Chimera states in a system with linear local connections have been studied. The system is a ring ensemble of analog bistable self-excited oscillators with a resistive coupling. It has been shown that the existence of chimera states is not due to the nonidentity of oscillators and noise, which is always present in real experiments, but is due to the nonlinear dynamics of the system on invariant tori with various dimensions.

Multiclustered chimeras in large semiconductor laser arrays with nonlocal interactions

Science.gov (United States)

Shena, J.; Hizanidis, J.; Hövel, P.; Tsironis, G. P.

2017-09-01

The dynamics of a large array of coupled semiconductor lasers is studied numerically for a nonlocal coupling scheme. Our focus is on chimera states, a self-organized spatiotemporal pattern of coexisting coherence and incoherence. In laser systems, such states have been previously found for global and nearest-neighbor coupling, mainly in small networks. The technological advantage of large arrays has motivated us to study a system of 200 nonlocally coupled lasers with respect to the emerging collective dynamics. Moreover, the nonlocal nature of the coupling allows us to obtain robust chimera states with multiple (in)coherent domains. The crucial parameters are the coupling strength, the coupling phase and the range of the nonlocal interaction. We find that multiclustered chimera states exist in a wide region of the parameter space and we provide quantitative characterization for the obtained spatiotemporal patterns. By proposing two different experimental setups for the realization of the nonlocal coupling scheme, we are confident that our results can be confirmed in the laboratory.

Chimera and phase-cluster states in populations of coupled chemical oscillators

Science.gov (United States)

Tinsley, Mark R.; Nkomo, Simbarashe; Showalter, Kenneth

2012-09-01

Populations of coupled oscillators may exhibit two coexisting subpopulations, one with synchronized oscillations and the other with unsynchronized oscillations, even though all of the oscillators are coupled to each other in an equivalent manner. This phenomenon, discovered about ten years ago in theoretical studies, was then further characterized and named the chimera state after the Greek mythological creature made up of different animals. The highly counterintuitive coexistence of coherent and incoherent oscillations in populations of identical oscillators, each with an equivalent coupling structure, inspired great interest and a flurry of theoretical activity. Here we report on experimental studies of chimera states and their relation to other synchronization states in populations of coupled chemical oscillators. Our experiments with coupled Belousov-Zhabotinsky oscillators and corresponding simulations reveal chimera behaviour that differs significantly from the behaviour found in theoretical studies of phase-oscillator models.

Immune responsiveness and incidence of reticulum cell sarcoma in long-term syngeneic radiation chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Adorini, L.; Gorini, G.; Covelli, V.; Ballardin, E.; di Michele, A.; Bassani, B.; Metalli, P.; Doria, G.

1976-01-01

Long-term syngeneic radiation chimeras displayed a very low incidence of reticulum cell sarcoma as compared with control mice. Immune reactivity of these animals was studied in vivo by anti-dinitrophenyl antibody titer and affinity and in vitro by mitotic responsiveness to phytohemagglutinin, concanavalin A and lipopolysaccharide. Antibody titer and affinity as well as the response to T lectins were found to be increased in chimeras. These results were attributed to increased function of mature T2 cells, which could explain the reduced incidence of reticulum cell sarcoma in chimeras

Application of a Chimera Full Potential Algorithm for Solving Aerodynamic Problems

Science.gov (United States)

Holst, Terry L.; Kwak, Dochan (Technical Monitor)

1997-01-01

A numerical scheme utilizing a chimera zonal grid approach for solving the three dimensional full potential equation is described. Special emphasis is placed on describing the spatial differencing algorithm around the chimera interface. Results from two spatial discretization variations are presented; one using a hybrid first-order/second-order-accurate scheme and the second using a fully second-order-accurate scheme. The presentation is highlighted with a number of transonic wing flow field computations.

Status of T- and B-cell cooperation in radiation chimeras: evidence for a suppressor effect

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gengozian, N.; Urso, P.

1976-01-01

Absolute tolerance may not be in operation in the allogeneic bone marrow chimera, but rather a dynamic state involving interaction not only between the donor and host but also among the donor-lymphoid cells themselves may exist. Whether this observation made in one allogeneic chimera, CD2F 1 → C3BF 1 , will be true for other chimeras (different strain combinations, species) remains to be shown. Thus, the tempo, mode, and requirement for the generation of suppressor T cells are factors that may vary for any specific allogeneic bone marrow transplant. Finally, the manner and degree to which the tolerance-inducing mechanism may affect T- and B-cell functions of the chimera with respect to third-party antigens are yet to be determined

The Chimera II Real-Time Operating System for advanced sensor-based control applications

Science.gov (United States)

Stewart, David B.; Schmitz, Donald E.; Khosla, Pradeep K.

1992-01-01

Attention is given to the Chimera II Real-Time Operating System, which has been developed for advanced sensor-based control applications. The Chimera II provides a high-performance real-time kernel and a variety of IPC features. The hardware platform required to run Chimera II consists of commercially available hardware, and allows custom hardware to be easily integrated. The design allows it to be used with almost any type of VMEbus-based processors and devices. It allows radially differing hardware to be programmed using a common system, thus providing a first and necessary step towards the standardization of reconfigurable systems that results in a reduction of development time and cost.

Chimeric 16S rRNA sequence formation and detection in Sanger and 454-pyrosequenced PCR amplicons

Science.gov (United States)

Haas, Brian J.; Gevers, Dirk; Earl, Ashlee M.; Feldgarden, Mike; Ward, Doyle V.; Giannoukos, Georgia; Ciulla, Dawn; Tabbaa, Diana; Highlander, Sarah K.; Sodergren, Erica; Methé, Barbara; DeSantis, Todd Z.; Petrosino, Joseph F.; Knight, Rob; Birren, Bruce W.

2011-01-01

Bacterial diversity among environmental samples is commonly assessed with PCR-amplified 16S rRNA gene (16S) sequences. Perceived diversity, however, can be influenced by sample preparation, primer selection, and formation of chimeric 16S amplification products. Chimeras are hybrid products between multiple parent sequences that can be falsely interpreted as novel organisms, thus inflating apparent diversity. We developed a new chimera detection tool called Chimera Slayer (CS). CS detects chimeras with greater sensitivity than previous methods, performs well on short sequences such as those produced by the 454 Life Sciences (Roche) Genome Sequencer, and can scale to large data sets. By benchmarking CS performance against sequences derived from a controlled DNA mixture of known organisms and a simulated chimera set, we provide insights into the factors that affect chimera formation such as sequence abundance, the extent of similarity between 16S genes, and PCR conditions. Chimeras were found to reproducibly form among independent amplifications and contributed to false perceptions of sample diversity and the false identification of novel taxa, with less-abundant species exhibiting chimera rates exceeding 70%. Shotgun metagenomic sequences of our mock community appear to be devoid of 16S chimeras, supporting a role for shotgun metagenomics in validating novel organisms discovered in targeted sequence surveys. PMID:21212162

Biological characterization of HIV type 1 envelope V3 regions from mothers and infants associated with perinatal transmission.

Science.gov (United States)

Matala, E; Hahn, T; Yedavalli, V R; Ahmad, N

2001-12-10

Our previous study has shown that the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) envelope V3 region minor genotypes of infected mothers were transmitted to their infants and predominated initially as a homogeneous virus population in the infants (Ahmad N, Baroudy BM, Baker RC, et al.: J Virol 1995;69:1001-1012). Here we have characterized the biological properties, including cellular tropism, replication efficiency, cytopathic effects, and coreceptor utilization, of these V3 region isolates from mothers and infants. Nineteen V3 region sequences from three mother-infant pairs, including the minor variants of mothers and the major variants of infants as characterized in our previous study, were reciprocally inserted into an HIV-1 infectious molecular clone, pNL4-3, and chimeric viruses were generated by DNA transfections into HeLa cells. Equal amounts of chimeric viruses were then used to infect T lymphocyte cell lines (A3.01 and MT-2), primary blood lymphocytes (PBLs), primary monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs), and coreceptor cell lines. We found that the V3 region chimeras failed to replicate in T lymphocyte cell lines but replicated in MDMs and PBLs, albeit at reduced levels compared with R5 laboratory HIV-1 strains. In addition, the V3 region chimeras were able to infect the HOS-CD4(+)CCR5(+) cell line, suggesting CCR5 coreceptor utilization. Moreover, the V3 region chimeras were unable to induce syncytia in MT-2 cells, indicative of non-syncytium-inducing (NSI) phenotypes. In conclusion, the HIV-1 minor genotypes of infected mothers with macrophage-tropic and NSI or R5 phenotypes are transmitted to their infants and are initially maintained with the same properties.

Anticipatory Governance: Bioethical Expertise for Human/Animal Chimeras

Science.gov (United States)

Harvey, Alison; Salter, Brian

2012-01-01

The governance demands generated by the use of human/animal chimeras in scientific research offer both a challenge and an opportunity for the development of new forms of anticipatory governance through the novel application of bioethical expertise. Anticipatory governance can be seen to have three stages of development whereby bioethical experts move from a reactive to a proactive stance at the edge of what is scientifically possible. In the process, the ethicists move upstream in their engagement with the science of human-to-animal chimeras. To what extent is the anticipatory coestablishment of the principles and operational rules of governance at this early stage in the development of the human-to-animal research field likely to result in a framework for bioethical decision making that is in support of science? The process of anticipatory governance is characterised by the entwining of the scientific and the philosophical so that judgements against science are also found to be philosophically unfounded, and conversely, those activities that are permissible are deemed so on both scientific and ethical grounds. Through what is presented as an organic process, the emerging bioethical framework for human-to-animal chimera research becomes a legitimating framework within which ‘good’ science can safely progress. Science gives bioethical expertise access to new governance territory; bioethical expertise gives science access to political acceptability. PMID:23576848

Chimera at the phase-flip transition of an ensemble of identical nonlinear oscillators

Science.gov (United States)

Gopal, R.; Chandrasekar, V. K.; Senthilkumar, D. V.; Venkatesan, A.; Lakshmanan, M.

2018-06-01

A complex collective emerging behavior characterized by coexisting coherent and incoherent domains is termed as a chimera state. We bring out the existence of a new type of chimera in a nonlocally coupled ensemble of identical oscillators driven by a common dynamic environment. The latter facilitates the onset of phase-flip bifurcation/transitions among the coupled oscillators of the ensemble, while the nonlocal coupling induces a partial asynchronization among the out-of-phase synchronized oscillators at this onset. This leads to the manifestation of coexisting out-of-phase synchronized coherent domains interspersed by asynchronous incoherent domains elucidating the existence of a different type of chimera state. In addition to this, a rich variety of other collective behaviors such as clusters with phase-flip transition, conventional chimera, solitary state and complete synchronized state which have been reported using different coupling architectures are found to be induced by the employed couplings for appropriate coupling strengths. The robustness of the resulting dynamics is demonstrated in ensembles of two paradigmatic models, namely Rössler oscillators and Stuart-Landau oscillators.

Allogeneic unresponsiveness to orthotopic cardiac transplants in DL-A-identical radiation chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boyd, A.D.; Spencer, F.C.; Hirose, H.; Engelman, R.M.; Cannon, F.D.; Ferrebee, J.W.; Rapaport, F.T.

1975-01-01

Nine Cooperstown beagles of known DL-A genotypes were exposed to supralethal total-body irradiation and received bone-marrow allografts from DL-A-identical donors. Four to 5 months later, the resulting chimeras received orthotopic cardiac allografts from their corresponding donors of marrow. Six chimeras died of operative complications in the immediate postoperative period. The other 3 chimeras survived from 173 to 547 days; 1 dog died at 173 days as a result of right-sided heart failure, secondary to stenosis at the site of the pulmonary artery anastomosis. The other two recipients continue to be active and healthy at 545 and 547 days. The results indicate that dogs can be rendered specifically tolerant to orthotopic cardiac allografts by supralethal total-body irradiation and the transplantation of marrow obtained from the prospective allograft donor

Functional interaction between the N- and C-terminal domains of murine leukemia virus surface envelope protein

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lu, C.-W.; Roth, Monica J.

2003-01-01

A series of murine leukemia viruses (MuLVs) with chimeric envelope proteins (Env) was generated to map functional interactions between the N- and the C-terminal domains of surface proteins (SU). All these chimeras have the 4070A amphotropic receptor-binding region flanked by various lengths of Moloney ecotropic N- and C-terminal Env. A charged residue, E49 (E16 on the mature protein), was identified at the N-terminals of Moloney MuLV SU that is important for the interaction with the C-terminal domain of the SU. The region that interacts with E49 was localized between junction 4 (R265 of M-MuLV Env) and junction 6 (L374 of M-MuLV Env) of SU. Sequencing the viable chimeric Env virus populations identified residues within the SU protein that improved the replication kinetics of the input chimeric Env viruses. Mutations in the C-domain of SU (G387E/R, L435I, L442P) were found to improve chimera IV4, which displayed a delayed onset of replication. The replication of AE6, containing a chimeric junction in the SU C-terminus, was improved by mutations in the N-domain (N40H, E80K), the proline-rich region (Q252R), or the transmembrane protein (L538N). Altogether, these observations provide insights into the structural elements required for Env function

Immune competence of splenic lymphocytes following graft-vs-host disease in mouse allogeneic radiation chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Urso, P.; Gengozian, N.

1977-01-01

The abnormal immune response of long-term mouse allogeneic chimeras is reflected by qualitative deficiencies in either T or B lymphocytes. The present study was undertaken to determine if a relationship existed between the severity of graft-vs-host disease (GVHD) that these animals had experienced and a functional defect in either the T or B cell population. The in vitro PFC response of chimera spleen cells to sheep red blood cells (SRBC) was evaluated in the presence of normal T or B lymphocytes 4 to 8 months after marrow transplantation and well beyond the GVHD period. In an analysis of several different allogeneic radiation chimeras, our results showed no relationship between the severity of GVHD experienced and the immunologic capacity of either T or B cells. Thus, different chimera combinations showing similar degrees of GVHD were functionally deficient in one or the other of these two cells types or both with no apparent predilection for abnormality in either population. In examining the quantitative in vitro PFC response to sheep RBC by spleen cells from individual chimeras, we found that the number of PFC formed was related to the severity of GVHD experienced by that animal. A general relationship between severity of GVHD and PFC capacity may also exist between chimeras of different genetic combinations. However, this relationship is not precise since gross exceptions occur. Our results, although documenting further the qualitative abnormalities in T and/or B lymphocytes of radiation chimeras, do not reveal the factor or mechanisms by which these cells are made unresponsive. It is suggested that the tolerance-inducing mechanism of these animals, whether it be humoral blocking factors or suppressor cells, is in some way interfering with the collaboration of T and B cells for antibody production

Envelopment filter and K-means for the detection of QRS waveforms in electrocardiogram.

Science.gov (United States)

Merino, Manuel; Gómez, Isabel María; Molina, Alberto J

2015-06-01

The electrocardiogram (ECG) is a well-established technique for determining the electrical activity of the heart and studying its diseases. One of the most common pieces of information that can be read from the ECG is the heart rate (HR) through the detection of its most prominent feature: the QRS complex. This paper describes an offline version and a real-time implementation of a new algorithm to determine QRS localization in the ECG signal based on its envelopment and K-means clustering algorithm. The envelopment is used to obtain a signal with only QRS complexes, deleting P, T, and U waves and baseline wander. Two moving average filters are applied to smooth data. The K-means algorithm classifies data into QRS and non-QRS. The technique is validated using 22 h of ECG data from five Physionet databases. These databases were arbitrarily selected to analyze different morphologies of QRS complexes: three stored data with cardiac pathologies, and two had data with normal heartbeats. The algorithm has a low computational load, with no decision thresholds. Furthermore, it does not require any additional parameter. Sensitivity, positive prediction and accuracy from results are over 99.7%. Copyright © 2015 IPEM. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Growth control of genetically modified cells using an antibody/c-Kit chimera.

Science.gov (United States)

Kaneko, Etsuji; Kawahara, Masahiro; Ueda, Hiroshi; Nagamune, Teruyuki

2012-05-01

Gene therapy has been regarded as an innovative potential treatment against serious congenital diseases. However, applications of gene therapy remain limited, partly because its clinical success depends on therapeutic gene-transduced cells acquiring a proliferative advantage. To address this problem, we have developed the antigen-mediated genetically modified cell amplification (AMEGA) system, which uses chimeric receptors to enable the selective proliferation of gene-transduced cells. In this report, we describe mimicry of c-Kit signaling and its application to the AMEGA system. We created an antibody/c-Kit chimera in which the extracellular domain of c-Kit is replaced with an anti-fluorescein single-chain Fv antibody fragment and the extracellular D2 domain of the erythropoietin receptor. A genetically modified mouse pro-B cell line carrying this chimera showed selective expansion in the presence of fluorescein-conjugated BSA (BSA-FL) as a growth inducer. By further engineering the transmembrane domain of the chimera to reduce interchain interaction we attained stricter ligand-dependency. Since c-Kit is an important molecule in the expansion of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), this antibody/c-Kit chimera could be a promising tool for gene therapy targeting HSCs. Copyright © 2011 The Society for Biotechnology, Japan. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

SAFEGUARDS ENVELOPE: PREVIOUS WORK AND EXAMPLES

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Metcalf, Richard; Bevill, Aaron; Charlton, William; Bean, Robert

2008-01-01

The future expansion of nuclear power will require not just electricity production but fuel cycle facilities such as fuel fabrication and reprocessing plants. As large reprocessing facilities are built in various states, they must be built and operated in a manner to minimize the risk of nuclear proliferation. Process monitoring has returned to the spotlight as an added measure that can increase confidence in the safeguards of special nuclear material (SNM). Process monitoring can be demonstrated to lengthen the allowable inventory period by reducing accountancy requirements, and to reduce the false positive indications. The next logical step is the creation of a Safeguards Envelope, a set of operational parameters and models to maximize anomaly detection and inventory period by process monitoring while minimizing operator impact and false positive rates. A brief example of a rudimentary Safeguards Envelope is presented, and shown to detect synthetic diversions overlaying a measured processing plant data set. This demonstration Safeguards Envelope is shown to increase the confidence that no SNM has been diverted with minimal operator impact, even though it is based on an information sparse environment. While the foundation on which a full Safeguards Envelope can be built has been presented in historical demonstrations of process monitoring, several requirements remain yet unfulfilled. Future work will require reprocessing plant transient models, inclusion of 'non-traditional' operating data, and exploration of new methods of identifying subtle events in transient processes

What's Wrong with Human/Nonhuman Chimera Research?

Science.gov (United States)

Hyun, Insoo

2016-08-01

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is poised to lift its funding moratorium on research involving chimeric human/nonhuman embryos, pending further consideration by an NIH steering committee. The kinds of ethical concerns that seem to underlie this research and chimera research more generally can be adequately addressed.

Present status of the Chimera-Isospin experiment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Politi, G.; Arena, N.; Cardella, G.; DeFilippo, E.; Lanzano, G.; Nigro, S.L.; Pagano, A.; Papa, M.; Pirrone, S.; Russotto, P. [Catania Univ., INFN (Italy); Alderighi, M.; Sechi, G.; Sperduto, M.L. [Milano Univ., INFN, CNR (Italy); Amorini, F.; Anzalone, A.; Baran, V.; Bonasera, A.; Cavallaro, S.L.; Colonna, M.; Di Toro, M.; LaGuidara, E.; Lanzalone, G.; IaconoManno, M.; Giustolisi, F.; Maiolino, C.; Porto, F.; Rizzo, F.; Trifiro, A.; Trimarchi, M. [Catania Univ., INFN, Lab. Nazionali del Sud (Italy); Auditore, L.; Barna, R.; DePasquale, D. [Messina Univ., INFN (Italy); Berceanu, I.; Petrovici, M.; Pop, A. [Inst. for Physics and Nuclear Engineering, Bucharest (Romania); Blicharska, J.; Grzeszczuk, A.; Kowalski, S.; Zipper, W. [Univ. of Silesia, Inst. of Physics, Katowice (Poland); Borderie, B.; LeNeindre, N.; Rivet, M.F. [Paris-11 Univ., IPN-IN2P3-CNRS, 91 - Orsay (France); Bougault, R. [Caen Univ., LPC-ISMRA (France); Briczycnski, J.; Gawlikowicz, W.; Majka, Z.; Planeta, R. [M. Smoluchowski Inst. of Physics, Jagellonian Univ., Cracow (Poland); Bruno, M.; D' Agostino, M.; Fuschini, E.; Geraci, E.; Vannini, G. [Bologna Univ., INFN (Italy); Chatterjee, M.B. [Saha Inst. of Nuclear Physics, NIS Div., Kolkata (India); Chbihi, A.; Wieleczko, J.P. [GANIL -CEA-IN2P3-CNRS, 14 - Caen (France); Cibor, J. [H.Niewodniczanski Inst. of Nuclear Physics, Cracow (Poland); Dayras, R. [CEA Saclay, Dept. d' Astrophysique, de Physique des Particules, de Physique Nucleaire et de l' Instrumentation Associee, SPhN, 91- Gif sur Yvette (France); Guazzoni, P.; Russo, S.; Sassi, M.; Zetta, L. [Milano Univ., INFN (Italy); Guinet, D. [Univ. Claude Bernard, IPN-IN2P3-CNRS, 69 - Lyon (France); Li, S.; Wu, H.; Xiao, Z. [Inst. of Modern Physics, Lanzhou (China); Nicolis, N.G. [Ioannina Univ., Dept. of Physics (Greece); Piasecki, E.; Swiderski, L.; Siwek-Wilczynska, K.; Skwira, I. [Warsaw Univ., Inst. for Experimental Physics (Poland); Rosato, E.; Vigilante, M.; Wilczynski, J.

2003-07-01

The CHIMERA detector was designed to significantly contribute to multifragmentation studies in the field of heavy ion collisions at intermediate energies. The device has been used at 'Laboratori Nazionali del Sud' (LNS) in Catania (Italy) to study different aspects of the relevant nuclear reaction mechanism, in two different campaigns: the first one in 2000, by using the forward part (1 - 30 degrees) of the device, and the second one in 2003, by using the 4{pi} geometry. The experimental results have confirmed the capability of the apparatus for good isotopic identification of light charged particles and light fragments (3detection range. The data analysis relative to the first 2000 campaign (REVERSE) is presently aimed to disentangle dynamical and equilibrium emission components in multifragmentation reactions and to learn more about the role of the isospin degree of freedom in asymmetric nuclear matter. Reduction of the data of the second campaign is still in progress. (authors)

Present status of the Chimera-Isospin experiment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Politi, G.; Arena, N.; Cardella, G.; DeFilippo, E.; Lanzano, G.; Nigro, S.L.; Pagano, A.; Papa, M.; Pirrone, S.; Russotto, P.; Alderighi, M.; Sechi, G.; Sperduto, M.L.; Amorini, F.; Anzalone, A.; Baran, V.; Bonasera, A.; Cavallaro, S.L.; Colonna, M.; Di Toro, M.; LaGuidara, E.; Lanzalone, G.; IaconoManno, M.; Giustolisi, F.; Maiolino, C.; Porto, F.; Rizzo, F.; Trifiro, A.; Trimarchi, M.; Auditore, L.; Barna, R.; DePasquale, D.; Berceanu, I.; Petrovici, M.; Pop, A.; Blicharska, J.; Grzeszczuk, A.; Kowalski, S.; Zipper, W.; Borderie, B.; LeNeindre, N.; Rivet, M.F.; Bougault, R.; Briczycnski, J.; Gawlikowicz, W.; Majka, Z.; Planeta, R.; Bruno, M.; D'Agostino, M.; Fuschini, E.; Geraci, E.; Vannini, G.; Chatterjee, M.B.; Chbihi, A.; Wieleczko, J.P.; Cibor, J.; Dayras, R.; Guazzoni, P.; Russo, S.; Sassi, M.; Zetta, L.; Guinet, D.; Li, S.; Wu, H.; Xiao, Z.; Nicolis, N.G.; Piasecki, E.; Swiderski, L.; Rosato, E.; Vigilante, M.; Wilczynski, J.; Siwek-Wilczynska, K.; Skwira, I.

2003-01-01

The CHIMERA detector was designed to significantly contribute to multifragmentation studies in the field of heavy ion collisions at intermediate energies. The device has been used at 'Laboratori Nazionali del Sud' (LNS) in Catania (Italy) to study different aspects of the relevant nuclear reaction mechanism, in two different campaigns: the first one in 2000, by using the forward part (1 - 30 degrees) of the device, and the second one in 2003, by using the 4π geometry. The experimental results have confirmed the capability of the apparatus for good isotopic identification of light charged particles and light fragments (3< Z<10) in a wide angular detection range. The data analysis relative to the first 2000 campaign (REVERSE) is presently aimed to disentangle dynamical and equilibrium emission components in multifragmentation reactions and to learn more about the role of the isospin degree of freedom in asymmetric nuclear matter. Reduction of the data of the second campaign is still in progress. (authors)

Antiviral T cell competence and restriction specificity of mixed allogeneic (P1 + P2----P1) irradiation chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rueedi, E.S.; Sykes, M.; Ildstad, S.T.; Chester, C.H.; Althage, A.; Hengartner, H.; Sachs, D.H.; Zinkernagel, R.M.

1989-01-01

Mixed irradiation bone marrow chimeras were prepared by reconstituting lethally irradiated C57BL/10 (B10) or B10.D2 mice with T cell-depleted bone marrow cells of B10 plus B10.D2 origin. These chimeras were healthy and survived well under conventional housing conditions and after experimental laboratory infections. Of a total of 17 chimeras tested, 2 died spontaneously or from the injected virus. Twelve of fifteen chimeras mounted a measurable cytotoxic T cell response to virus. Despite approximately equal percentages of B10 and B10.D2 lymphocytes in chimeras, cytotoxic T cell responses to vaccinia virus and lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus were mediated variably by either syngeneic or allogeneic donor lymphocytes; thus the H-2 type of effector T cells frequently did not correspond to the 50:50 distribution of spleen or peripheral blood lymphocytes. Cytotoxic responses were restricted exclusively to recipient H-2 type. All mixed chimeras examined were able to mount a good IgG response to vesicular stomatitis virus. These results confirm previous data suggesting that such mixed chimeras are healthy and immunocompetent and demonstrate strict recipient-determined restriction specificity of effector T cells; they also suggest that if T help is necessary for induction of virus-specific cytotoxic T cells, it does not require host-restricted interactions between helper T cells and precursor cytotoxic T cells

Origin of hemopoietic stromal progenitor cells in chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chertkov, J.L.; Drize, N.J.; Gurevitch, O.A.; Samoylova, R.S.

1985-01-01

Intravenously injected bone marrow cells do not participate in the regeneration of hemopoietic stromal progenitors in irradiated mice, nor in the curetted parts of the recipient's marrow. The hemopoietic stromal progenitors in allogeneic chimeras are of recipient origin. The adherent cell layer (ACL) of long-term cultures of allogeneic chimera bone marrow contains only recipient hemopoietic stromal progenitors. However, in ectopic hemopoietic foci produced by marrow implantation under the renal capsule and repopulated by the recipient hemopoietic cells after irradiation and reconstitution by syngeneic hemopoietic cells, the stromal progenitors were of implant donor origin, as were stromal progenitors of the ACL in long-term cultures of hemopoietic cells from ectopic foci. Our results confirm that the stromal and hemopoietic progenitors differ in origin and that hemopoietic stromal progenitors are not transplantable by the intravenous route in mice

Pervasive transcription read-through promotes aberrant expression of oncogenes and RNA chimeras in renal carcinoma

Science.gov (United States)

Grosso, Ana R; Leite, Ana P; Carvalho, Sílvia; Matos, Mafalda R; Martins, Filipa B; Vítor, Alexandra C; Desterro, Joana MP; Carmo-Fonseca, Maria; de Almeida, Sérgio F

2015-01-01

Aberrant expression of cancer genes and non-canonical RNA species is a hallmark of cancer. However, the mechanisms driving such atypical gene expression programs are incompletely understood. Here, our transcriptional profiling of a cohort of 50 primary clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) samples from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) reveals that transcription read-through beyond the termination site is a source of transcriptome diversity in cancer cells. Amongst the genes most frequently mutated in ccRCC, we identified SETD2 inactivation as a potent enhancer of transcription read-through. We further show that invasion of neighbouring genes and generation of RNA chimeras are functional outcomes of transcription read-through. We identified the BCL2 oncogene as one of such invaded genes and detected a novel chimera, the CTSC-RAB38, in 20% of ccRCC samples. Collectively, our data highlight a novel link between transcription read-through and aberrant expression of oncogenes and chimeric transcripts that is prevalent in cancer. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.09214.001 PMID:26575290

Three-dimensional chimera patterns in networks of spiking neuron oscillators

Science.gov (United States)

Kasimatis, T.; Hizanidis, J.; Provata, A.

2018-05-01

We study the stable spatiotemporal patterns that arise in a three-dimensional (3D) network of neuron oscillators, whose dynamics is described by the leaky integrate-and-fire (LIF) model. More specifically, we investigate the form of the chimera states induced by a 3D coupling matrix with nonlocal topology. The observed patterns are in many cases direct generalizations of the corresponding two-dimensional (2D) patterns, e.g., spheres, layers, and cylinder grids. We also find cylindrical and "cross-layered" chimeras that do not have an equivalent in 2D systems. Quantitative measures are calculated, such as the ratio of synchronized and unsynchronized neurons as a function of the coupling range, the mean phase velocities, and the distribution of neurons in mean phase velocities. Based on these measures, the chimeras are categorized in two families. The first family of patterns is observed for weaker coupling and exhibits higher mean phase velocities for the unsynchronized areas of the network. The opposite holds for the second family, where the unsynchronized areas have lower mean phase velocities. The various measures demonstrate discontinuities, indicating criticality as the parameters cross from the first family of patterns to the second.

What's Wrong with Human/Nonhuman Chimera Research?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Insoo Hyun

2016-08-01

Full Text Available The National Institutes of Health (NIH is poised to lift its funding moratorium on research involving chimeric human/nonhuman embryos, pending further consideration by an NIH steering committee. The kinds of ethical concerns that seem to underlie this research and chimera research more generally can be adequately addressed.

Improved Detection of Vowel Envelope Frequency Following Responses Using Hotelling's T2 Analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Vanheusden, Frederique J; Bell, Steven L; Chesnaye, Michael A; Simpson, David M

2018-05-11

Objective detection of brainstem responses to natural speech stimuli is an important tool for the evaluation of hearing aid fitting, especially in people who may not be able to respond reliably in behavioral tests. Of particular interest is the envelope frequency following response (eFFR), which refers to the EEG response at the stimulus' fundamental frequency (and its harmonics), and here in particular to the response to natural spoken vowel sounds. This article introduces the frequency-domain Hotelling's T (HT2) method for eFFR detection. This method was compared, in terms of sensitivity in detecting eFFRs at the fundamental frequency (HT2_F0), to two different single-channel frequency domain methods (F test on Fourier analyzer (FA) amplitude spectra [FA-F-Test] and magnitude-squared coherence [MSC]) in detecting envelope following responses to natural vowel stimuli in simulated data and EEG data from normal-hearing subjects. Sensitivity was assessed based on the number of detections and the time needed to detect a response for a false-positive rate of 5%. The study also explored whether a single-channel, multifrequency HT2 (HT2_3F) and a multichannel, multifrequency HT2 (HT2_MC) could further improve response detection. Four repeated words were presented sequentially at 70 dB SPL LAeq through ER-2 insert earphones. The stimuli consisted of a prolonged vowel in a /hVd/ structure (where V represents different vowel sounds). Each stimulus was presented over 440 sweeps (220 condensation and 220 rarefaction). EEG data were collected from 12 normal-hearing adult participants. After preprocessing and artifact removal, eFFR detection was compared between the algorithms. For the simulation study, simulated EEG signals were generated by adding random noise at multiple signal to noise ratios (SNRs; 0 to -60dB) to the auditory stimuli as well as to a single sinusoid at the fluctuating and flattened fundamental frequency (f0). For each SNR, 1000 sets of 440 simulated epochs

Application of Chimera Composite Grid Scheme to Ship Appendages

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Lin, Cheng-Wen

1995-01-01

.... The chimera scheme of grid generation uses a system of relatively simple grids. The grids each define a particular component of the overall geometry, making the initial grid generation much simpler...

Studies on the mechanism of stable graft--host tolerance in canine and human radiation chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Storb, R.; Tsoi, M.S.; Weiden, P.L.; Graham, T.C.; Thomas, E.D.

1976-01-01

In studies with dogs, marrow donors were immunized against their chimeras by repeated skin grafts which they rejected. Lymphocytes from chimeras and donors were tested for cell inhibition by exposure to skin fibroblasts from chimeras and donors. Results were not compatible with the concept that tolerance in radiation chimeras is maintained by serum-blocking factors. They provide circumstantial evidence against the possibility that the stable chimeric state is the result of the deletion of a close or inactivation of donor lymphocytes specifically responsive for host antigens. They are most consistent with the possibility that a suppressor-cell population is responsible for the maintenance of tolerance. Human recipients of marrow transplants were tested with the cell inhibition assay. Although the incidence of positive cell inhibition and blocking was somewhat higher than in the dog, results were not compatible with the concept that serum blocking is the sole mechanism for maintaining the stable chimeric state in human patients

Comparison of the convergent receptor utilization of a retargeted feline leukemia virus envelope with a naturally-occurring porcine endogenous retrovirus A.

Science.gov (United States)

Mazari, Peter M; Argaw, Takele; Valdivieso, Leonardo; Zhang, Xia; Marcucci, Katherine T; Salomon, Daniel R; Wilson, Carolyn A; Roth, Monica J

2012-06-05

In vitro screening of randomized FeLV Envelope libraries identified the CP isolate, which enters cells through HuPAR-1, one of two human receptors utilized by porcine endogenous retrovirus-A (PERV-A), a distantly related gammaretrovirus. The CP and PERV-A Envs however, share little amino acid homology. Their receptor utilization was examined to define the common receptor usage of these disparate viral Envs. We demonstrate that the receptor usage of CP extends to HuPAR-2 but not to the porcine receptor PoPAR, the cognate receptor for PERV-A. Reciprocal interference between virus expressing CP and PERV-A Envs was observed on human cells. Amino acid residues localized to within the putative second extracellular loop (ECL-2) of PAR-1 and PAR-2 are found to be critical for CP envelope function. Through a panel of receptor chimeras and point mutations, this area was also found to be responsible for the differential usage of the PoPAR receptor between CP and PERV-A. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Allogeneic radiation chimeras respond to TNP-modified donor and host targets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lattime, E.C.; Gershon, H.E.; Stutman, O.

1980-01-01

Tolerance to major histocompatibility antigens as well as the ability to mount a cytotoxic response to hapten-modified cells of bone marrow donor and host origin was studied in allogeneic radiation chimeras. Lethally irradiated (C57BL/6 x DBA/2)F1 hosts reconstituted with anti-Thy 1.2 + C-treated bone marrow from (C57BL/6 x CBA)F1 mice showed tolerance to the MHC antigens of the three parental strains as measured by MLC and CML assay. The chimeras responded normally to unrelated allogeneic cells. Chimeric animals generated a cytotoxic response to hapten-modified cells of both donor (CBA) and host (DBA/2) haplotypes, as well as to C57BL/6, demonstrating that tolerance to the hapten-presenting host haplotype is sufficient to allow a cytotoxic antihapten response, and that processing through a semiallogeneic host environment does not affect the ability to generate a response to hapten in conjunction with self-determinants. Chimeras failed to mount a cytotoxic response to hapten presented on nontolerated allogeneic spleen cells

Mechanisms of appearance of amplitude and phase chimera states in ensembles of nonlocally coupled chaotic systems

Science.gov (United States)

Bogomolov, Sergey A.; Slepnev, Andrei V.; Strelkova, Galina I.; Schöll, Eckehard; Anishchenko, Vadim S.

2017-02-01

We explore the bifurcation transition from coherence to incoherence in ensembles of nonlocally coupled chaotic systems. It is firstly shown that two types of chimera states, namely, amplitude and phase, can be found in a network of coupled logistic maps, while only amplitude chimera states can be observed in a ring of continuous-time chaotic systems. We reveal a bifurcation mechanism by analyzing the evolution of space-time profiles and the coupling function with varying coupling coefficient and formulate the necessary and sufficient conditions for realizing the chimera states in the ensembles.

Engineering human cytochrome P450 enzymes into catalytically self-sufficient chimeras using molecular Lego.

Science.gov (United States)

Dodhia, Vikash Rajnikant; Fantuzzi, Andrea; Gilardi, Gianfranco

2006-10-01

The membrane-bound human cytochrome P450s have essential roles in the metabolism of endogenous compounds and drugs. Presented here are the results on the construction and characterization of three fusion proteins containing the N-terminally modified human cytochrome P450s CYP2C9, CY2C19 and CYP3A4 fused to the soluble NADPH-dependent oxidoreductase domain of CYP102A1 from Bacillus megaterium. The constructs, CYP2C9/BMR, CYP2C19/BMR and CYP3A4/BMR are well expressed in Escherichia coli as holo proteins. The chimeras can be purified in the absence of detergent and the purified enzymes are both active and correctly folded in the absence of detergent, as demonstrated by circular dichroism and functional studies. Additionally, in comparison with the parent P450 enzyme, these chimeras have greatly improved solubility properties. The chimeras are catalytically self-sufficient and present turnover rates similar to those reported for the native enzymes in reconstituted systems, unlike previously reported mammalian cytochrome P450 fusion proteins. Furthermore the specific activities of these chimeras are not dependent on the enzyme concentration present in the reaction buffer and they do not require the addition of accessory proteins, detergents or phospholipids to be fully active. The solubility, catalytic self-sufficiency and wild-type like activities of these chimeras would greatly simplify the studies of cytochrome P450 mediated drug metabolism in solution.

Millimeter Detection Of AlO (X2Σ+) In The Oxygen-rich Envelope Of VY Canis Majoris

Science.gov (United States)

Tenenbaum, Emily D.; Ziurys, L. M.

2009-05-01

A new circumstellar molecule, the radical AlO (X 2Σ+), has been detected toward the envelope of the oxygen-rich supergiant star VY Canis Majoris (VY CMa) via three rotational emission lines. The N = 7 → 6 and 6 → 5 features of AlO were observed at 1 mm using the Arizona Radio Observatory Submillimeter Telescope (ARO SMT) and the N = 4 → 3 line was detected at 2 mm using the ARO 12 m dish. All lines exhibit noticeable hyperfine broadening due to the I = 5/2 spin of the aluminum nucleus. Based on simulations of the line profiles, AlO most likely arises from the dust-acceleration zone in the spherical outflow of VY CMa, with a source size of θs 0.5''. Given this source size, the column density of AlO was found to be Ntot 2 × 1015 cm-2 for Trot 230 K, with a fractional abundance, relative to H2, of 10-8. Gas-phase thermodynamic equilibrium chemistry is the likely formation mechanism for AlO in VY CMa, but shocks may disrupt the condensation process into Al2O3, allowing AlO to survive 20 stellar radii. The detection of AlO in VY CMa is additional evidence of an active gas-phase refractory chemistry in oxygen-rich envelopes, and suggests such objects may be fruitful sources for other new oxide identifications.

Tolerance, immunocompetence, and secondary disease in fully allogeneic radiation chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rayfield, L.S.; Brent, L.

1983-01-01

The aim of this study was to ascertain the extent to which secondary disease and mortality in fully allogeneic chimeras (C57BL leads to CBA) is caused (if at all) by a delayed graft-versus-host reaction. Adult CBA males were thymectomized, irradiated, and reconstituted with T-lymphocyte-depleted C57BL or CBA bone marrow cells (BMC), followed three weeks after irradiation by implantation under the kidney capsule of thymic lobes from C57BL or CBA fetal or adult donors. These mice were observed for the development of secondary disease for periods in excess of 250 days, and they were examined at 5 weeks or 4 months for T lymphocyte reactivity and tolerance to alloantigens, using the cell-mediated lympholysis assay (CML). The following results were obtained. First, removal of T lymphocytes with anti-Thy 1 antibody and complement from allogeneic bone marrow did not prevent wasting and eventual death, although it prolonged the lifespan of mice substantially. Second, T lymphocytes generated from bone marrow-derived precursor cells became tolerant of the histocompatibility antigens of the thymus donor strain but remained normally reactive to third-party antigens. Third, allogeneic radiation chimeras did not survive as well as animals reconstituted with syngeneic cells, even when they were demonstrably tolerant in CML. Fourth, C57BL BMC maturing in a CBA host equipped with a C57BL thymus graft did not become tolerant of host antigens, indicating that extra-thymic tolerance does not occur in fully allogeneic--as opposed to semiallogeneic--chimeras. It is argued that the function of B lymphocytes and/or accessory cells is impaired in fully allogeneic radiation chimeras, and that the mortality observed was directly related to the resulting immunodeficiency. The relevance of the results described in this paper to clinical bone marrow transplantation is discussed

La Chimera di Dino Campana e Altre Chimere

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lucia Wataghin

2008-08-01

Full Text Available O presente artigo contém considerações sobre resultados e problemáticas da reutilização de materiais da tradição literária em um dos mais celebrados poemas de Dino Campana, La Chimera.

Greengenes: Chimera-checked 16S rRNA gene database and workbenchcompatible in ARB

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

DeSantis, T.Z.; Hugenholtz, P.; Larsen, N.; Rojas, M.; Brodie,E.L; Keller, K.; Huber, T.; Dalevi, D.; Hu, P.; Andersen, G.L.

2006-02-01

A 16S rRNA gene database (http://greengenes.lbl.gov) addresses limitations of public repositories by providing chimera-screening, standard alignments and taxonomic classification using multiple published taxonomies. It was revealed that incongruent taxonomic nomenclature exists among curators even at the phylum-level. Putative chimeras were identified in 3% of environmental sequences and 0.2% of records derived from isolates. Environmental sequences were classified into 100 phylum-level lineages within the Archaea and Bacteria.

Chronic graft-versus-host disease in the rat radiation chimera: I. clinical features, hematology, histology, and immunopathology in long-term chimeras

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Beschorner, W.E.; Tutschka, P.J.; Santos, G.W.

1982-04-01

The clinical features, pathology, and immunopathology of chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) developing in the long-term rat radiation chimera are described. At 6 to 12 months post-transplant, the previously stable ACI/LEW chimeras developed patchy to diffuse severe hair loss and thickened skin folds, and had microscopic features resembling scleroderma, Sjogren's syndrome, and chronic hepatitis. Skin histology showed dermal inflammation and acanthosis with atrophy of the appendages, with progression to dermal sclerosis. The liver revealed chronic hepatitis with bile duct injury and proliferation and periportal piecemeal necrosis. The tongue had considerable submucosal inflammation, muscular necrosis, and atrophy and arteritis. The serous salivary glands, lacrimal glands, and bronchi had lymphocytic inflammation and injury to duct, acinar, and mucosal columnar epithelium. The thymus had lymphocyte depletion of the medulla with prominent epithelium. The spleen and lymph nodes had poorly developed germinal centers but increased numbers of plasma cells. IgM was observed along the basement membrane and around the basal cells of the skin and tongue and along the basement membrane of the bile ducts. IgM was present also in the arteries of the tongue. Immunoglobulins eluted from the skin, cross-reacted with the bile duct epithelium and usually with both ACI and Lewis skin. Increased titers of speckled antinuclear antibodies were present in the serum of rats with chronic (GVHD). Chronic GVHD in the long-term rat radiation chimera is very similar to human chronic GVHD and is a potentially excellent model for autoimmune disorders including scleroderma, Sjorgren's syndrome, and chronic hepatitis.

Chronic graft-versus-host disease in the rat radiation chimera: I. clinical features, hematology, histology, and immunopathology in long-term chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beschorner, W.E.; Tutschka, P.J.; Santos, G.W.

1982-01-01

The clinical features, pathology, and immunopathology of chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) developing in the long-term rat radiation chimera are described. At 6 to 12 months post-transplant, the previously stable ACI/LEW chimeras developed patchy to diffuse severe hair loss and thickened skin folds, and had microscopic features resembling scleroderma, Sjogren's syndrome, and chronic hepatitis. Skin histology showed dermal inflammation and acanthosis with atrophy of the appendages, with progression to dermal sclerosis. The liver revealed chronic hepatitis with bile duct injury and proliferation and periportal piecemeal necrosis. The tongue had considerable submucosal inflammation, muscular necrosis, and atrophy and arteritis. The serous salivary glands, lacrimal glands, and bronchi had lymphocytic inflammation and injury to duct, acinar, and mucosal columnar epithelium. The thymus had lymphocyte depletion of the medulla with prominent epithelium. The spleen and lymph nodes had poorly developed germinal centers but increased numbers of plasma cells. IgM was observed along the basement membrane and around the basal cells of the skin and tongue and along the basement membrane of the bile ducts. IgM was present also in the arteries of the tongue. Immunoglobulins eluted from the skin, cross-reacted with the bile duct epithelium and usually with both ACI and Lewis skin. Increased titers of speckled antinuclear antibodies were present in the serum of rats with chronic (GVHD). Chronic GVHD in the long-term rat radiation chimera is very similar to human chronic GVHD and is a potentially excellent model for autoimmune disorders including scleroderma, Sjorgren's syndrome, and chronic hepatitis

Navier-Stokes Computations of Sabot Discard Using Chimera Scheme

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Ferry, E

1997-01-01

.... Numerical flow field computations have been made for various orientations and locations of sabots using an unsteady, zonal Navier-Stokes code and the Chimera composite grid discretization technique at M = 4.0 and alpha = 0...

Expanded envelope concepts for aircraft control-element failure detection and identification

Science.gov (United States)

Weiss, Jerold L.; Hsu, John Y.

1988-01-01

The purpose of this effort was to develop and demonstrate concepts for expanding the envelope of failure detection and isolation (FDI) algorithms for aircraft-path failures. An algorithm which uses analytic-redundancy in the form of aerodynamic force and moment balance equations was used. Because aircraft-path FDI uses analytical models, there is a tradeoff between accuracy and the ability to detect and isolate failures. For single flight condition operation, design and analysis methods are developed to deal with this robustness problem. When the departure from the single flight condition is significant, algorithm adaptation is necessary. Adaptation requirements for the residual generation portion of the FDI algorithm are interpreted as the need for accurate, large-motion aero-models, over a broad range of velocity and altitude conditions. For the decision-making part of the algorithm, adaptation may require modifications to filtering operations, thresholds, and projection vectors that define the various hypothesis tests performed in the decision mechanism. Methods of obtaining and evaluating adequate residual generation and decision-making designs have been developed. The application of the residual generation ideas to a high-performance fighter is demonstrated by developing adaptive residuals for the AFTI-F-16 and simulating their behavior under a variety of maneuvers using the results of a NASA F-16 simulation.

Chimera states in Gaussian coupled map lattices

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Xiao-Wen; Bi, Ran; Sun, Yue-Xiang; Zhang, Shuo; Song, Qian-Qian

2018-04-01

We study chimera states in one-dimensional and two-dimensional Gaussian coupled map lattices through simulations and experiments. Similar to the case of global coupling oscillators, individual lattices can be regarded as being controlled by a common mean field. A space-dependent order parameter is derived from a self-consistency condition in order to represent the collective state.

Production of somatic chimera chicks by injection of bone marrow cells into recipient blastoderms.

Science.gov (United States)

Heo, Young Tae; Lee, Sung Ho; Kim, Teoan; Kim, Nam Hyung; Lee, Hoon Taek

2012-01-01

Several types of cells, including blastoderm cells, primordial germ cells, and embryonic germ cells were injected into early-stage recipient embryos to produce chimera avians and to gain insights into cell development. However, a limited number of studies of avian adult stem cells have also been conducted. This study is, to the best of our knowledge, the first to evaluate chicken bone marrow cells' (chBMC) ability to differentiate into multiple cell lineages and capability to generate chimera chicks. We induced random differentiation of chBMCs in vitro and injected immunologically selected pluripotent cells in chBMCs into the blastoderms of recipient eggs. The multipotency of BMCs from the barred Plymouth rock (BPR) was confirmed via AP staining, RT-PCR, immunocytochemistry, and FACS using specific markers, such as Oct-4 and SSEA-1, 3 and 4. Isolated chBMCs were found to be able to induce in vitro differentiation to multiple cell lineages. Approximately 5,000 chBMCs were injected into the blastoderms of white leghorn (WL) recipients and proved able to contribute to the generation of somatic chimera chicks with a frequency of 2.7% (2 of 73). Confirmation of chimerism in hatched chicks was achieved via PCR analysis using D-loop-specific primers of BPR and WL. Our study demonstrated the successful production of chimera chicks using chBMC. Therefore, we propose that the use of adult chBMCs may constitute a new possible approach to the production of chimera poultry, and may provide helpful studies in avian developmental biology.

Chimera: construction of chimeric sequences for phylogenetic analysis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Leunissen, J.A.M.

2003-01-01

Chimera allows the construction of chimeric protein or nucleic acid sequence files by concatenating sequences from two or more sequence files in PHYLIP formats. It allows the user to interactively select genes and species from the input files. The concatenated result is stored to one single output

A novel strategy for dual-channel detection of metallothioneins and mercury based on the conformational switching of functional chimera aptamer.

Science.gov (United States)

Tang, Xian; Wang, Yong-Sheng; Xue, Jin-Hua; Zhou, Bin; Cao, Jin-Xiu; Chen, Si-Han; Li, Ming-Hui; Wang, Xiao-Feng; Zhu, Yu-Feng; Huang, Yan-Qin

2015-03-25

A novel strategy for dual-channel detection of metallothioneins (MTs) and Hg(2+) has been proposed. In the absence of Hg(2+), the functional chimera aptamer (FCA) designed can form an intact G-quadruplex with flexibility, which was demonstrated to have peroxidase-like activities upon hemin binding. In the presence of Hg(2+), the formation of T-Hg(2+)-T complex results in the conformational switching of FCA, which lost the peroxidase-like activities and cannot catalyze the oxidation of ABTS by H2O2. Upon addition of MTs in this solution, MTs could interact with Hg(2+) to form a MTs-Hg(2+) complex, leading to the recovery of the G-quadruplex DNAzyme. The color and absorbance of the sensing system were also changed accordingly. In the optimizing condition, ΔA was directly proportional to the concentration ranging from 8.84 nM to 1.0 μM for Hg(2+), and 7.82 nM to 0.462 μM for MTs with the detection limits of 2.65 nM and 2.34 nM, respectively. The proposed dual-channel method avoids the label steps in common methods, and allows direct analysis of the samples without costly instruments, and is reliable, inexpensive and sensitive. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Chimera States in Mechanical Oscillator Networks

OpenAIRE

Martens, Erik Andreas; Thutupalli, Shashi; Fourrière, Antoine; Hallatschek, Oskar

2013-01-01

The synchronization of coupled oscillators is a fascinating manifestation of self-organization that nature uses to orchestrate essential processes of life, such as the beating of the heart. Although it was long thought that synchrony and disorder were mutually exclusive steady states for a network of identical oscillators, numerous theoretical studies in recent years have revealed the intriguing possibility of “chimera states,” in which the symmetry of the oscillator population is broken into...

Inability of keratinocytes lacking their specific transglutaminase to form cross-linked envelopes: Absence of envelopes as a simple diagnostic test for lamellar ichthyosis

OpenAIRE

Jeon, Saewha; Djian, Philippe; Green, Howard

1998-01-01

Epidermal keratinocytes, late in their terminal differentiation, form cross-linked envelopes resistant to ionic detergent and reducing agent. Because the cross-linking process is catalyzed by the keratinocyte transglutaminase, the absence of active transglutaminase should result in failure of the keratinocyte to form a cross-linked envelope. Three keratinocyte strains bearing mutations in the keratinocyte transglutaminase were examined: two contained no detectable transglutaminase mRNA and no...

Detection of Antibody to Envelope (E2 Antigen of Hepatitis C Virus

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

RK Chaudhary

1997-01-01

Full Text Available One hundred and four clinical specimens from provincial public health laboratories were tested for antibody to hepatitis C virus (HCV envelope protein (anti-E2. To evaluate the effect of hypervariability of E2 region on anti-E2 assay, 49 recombinant immunoblot assay (RIBA 3.0 positive samples were genotyped. All 49 genotyped samples were positive for anti-E2. Eight of 12 (67% indeterminate, HCV RNA positive samples were anti-E2 reactive. Nine of 30 (30% indeterminate, HCV RNA negative samples were also positive for anti-E2. Anti-E2 was detected in two of 13 (15% RIBA-negative and enzyme immunoassays-positive samples. Although small number of samples were tested, the results showed that it may be possible to resolve indeterminate samples with the anti-E2 assay.

Inhibition of enveloped viruses infectivity by curcumin.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tzu-Yen Chen

Full Text Available Curcumin, a natural compound and ingredient in curry, has antiinflammatory, antioxidant, and anticarcinogenic properties. Previously, we reported that curcumin abrogated influenza virus infectivity by inhibiting hemagglutination (HA activity. This study demonstrates a novel mechanism by which curcumin inhibits the infectivity of enveloped viruses. In all analyzed enveloped viruses, including the influenza virus, curcumin inhibited plaque formation. In contrast, the nonenveloped enterovirus 71 remained unaffected by curcumin treatment. We evaluated the effects of curcumin on the membrane structure using fluorescent dye (sulforhodamine B; SRB-containing liposomes that mimic the viral envelope. Curcumin treatment induced the leakage of SRB from these liposomes and the addition of the influenza virus reduced the leakage, indicating that curcumin disrupts the integrity of the membranes of viral envelopes and of liposomes. When testing liposomes of various diameters, we detected higher levels of SRB leakage from the smaller-sized liposomes than from the larger liposomes. Interestingly, the curcumin concentration required to reduce plaque formation was lower for the influenza virus (approximately 100 nm in diameter than for the pseudorabies virus (approximately 180 nm and the vaccinia virus (roughly 335 × 200 × 200 nm. These data provide insights on the molecular antiviral mechanisms of curcumin and its potential use as an antiviral agent for enveloped viruses.

Inhibition of Enveloped Viruses Infectivity by Curcumin

Science.gov (United States)

Wen, Hsiao-Wei; Ou, Jun-Lin; Chiou, Shyan-Song; Chen, Jo-Mei; Wong, Min-Liang; Hsu, Wei-Li

2013-01-01

Curcumin, a natural compound and ingredient in curry, has antiinflammatory, antioxidant, and anticarcinogenic properties. Previously, we reported that curcumin abrogated influenza virus infectivity by inhibiting hemagglutination (HA) activity. This study demonstrates a novel mechanism by which curcumin inhibits the infectivity of enveloped viruses. In all analyzed enveloped viruses, including the influenza virus, curcumin inhibited plaque formation. In contrast, the nonenveloped enterovirus 71 remained unaffected by curcumin treatment. We evaluated the effects of curcumin on the membrane structure using fluorescent dye (sulforhodamine B; SRB)-containing liposomes that mimic the viral envelope. Curcumin treatment induced the leakage of SRB from these liposomes and the addition of the influenza virus reduced the leakage, indicating that curcumin disrupts the integrity of the membranes of viral envelopes and of liposomes. When testing liposomes of various diameters, we detected higher levels of SRB leakage from the smaller-sized liposomes than from the larger liposomes. Interestingly, the curcumin concentration required to reduce plaque formation was lower for the influenza virus (approximately 100 nm in diameter) than for the pseudorabies virus (approximately 180 nm) and the vaccinia virus (roughly 335 × 200 × 200 nm). These data provide insights on the molecular antiviral mechanisms of curcumin and its potential use as an antiviral agent for enveloped viruses. PMID:23658730

Application of Chimera Grid Scheme to Combustor Flowfields at all Speeds

Science.gov (United States)

Yungster, Shaye; Chen, Kuo-Huey

1997-01-01

A CFD method for solving combustor flowfields at all speeds on complex configurations is presented. The approach is based on the ALLSPD-3D code which uses the compressible formulation of the flow equations including real gas effects, nonequilibrium chemistry and spray combustion. To facilitate the analysis of complex geometries, the chimera grid method is utilized. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first application of the chimera scheme to reacting flows. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of this numerical approach, several benchmark calculations of subsonic flows are presented. These include steady and unsteady flows, and bluff-body stabilized spray and premixed combustion flames.

Definition and means of maintaining the process vacuum liquid detection interlock systems portion of the PFP safety envelope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

THOMAS, R.J.

1999-01-01

The Process Vacuum Liquid Detection interlock systems prevent intrusion of process liquids into the HEPA filters downstream of demisters No.6 and No.7 during Process Vacuum System operation. This prevents liquid intrusion into the filters, which could cause a criticality. The Safety Envelope (SE) includes the equipment, which detects the presence of liquids in the vacuum headers; isolates the filters; shuts down the vacuum pumps; and alarms the condition. This report identifies the equipment in the SE operating, maintenance, and surveillance procedures needed to maintain the SE equipment; and rationale for exclusion of some equipment and testing from the SE

Targeting nanodisks via a single chain variable antibody - Apolipoprotein chimera

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iovannisci, David M.; Beckstead, Jennifer A.; Ryan, Robert O.

2009-01-01

Nanodisks (ND) are nanometer scale complexes of phospholipid and apolipoprotein that have been shown to function as drug delivery vehicles. ND harboring significant quantities of the antifungal agent, amphotericin B, or the bioactive isoprenoid, all trans retinoic acid, have been generated and characterized. As currently formulated, ND possess limited targeting capability. In this study, we constructed a single chain variable antibody (scFv).apolipoprotein chimera and assessed the ability of this fusion protein to form ND and recognize the antigen to which the scFv is directed. Data obtained revealed that α-vimentin scFv.apolipoprotein A-I is functional in ND formation and antigen recognition, opening the door to the use of such chimeras in targeting drug-enriched ND to specific tissues.

Millimeter Detection of AlO (X^2 Σ ^+): Metal Oxide Chemistry in the Envelope of VY Canis Majoris

Science.gov (United States)

Tenenbaum, E. D.; Ziurys, L. M.

2009-06-01

A new circumstellar molecule, the radical AlO (X^2 Σ ^+), has been detected toward the envelope of the oxygen-rich supergiant star VY Canis Majoris (VY CMa) using the Arizona Radio Observatory (ARO). The N = 7 → 6 and 6 → 5 rotational transitions of AlO at 268 and 230 GHz were observed at 1 mm using the ARO Submillimeter Telescope (SMT) and the N = 4 → 3 line was detected at 2 mm using the ARO 12 m. Based on the shape of the line profiles, AlO most likely arises from the dust-forming region in the spherical outflow of VY CMa, as opposed to the blue- or red-shifted winds, with a source size of θ_s ˜ 0.5^''. Given this source size, the column density of AlO was found to be N_{tot} ˜ 2 × 10^{15} cm^{-2} for T_{rot} ˜ 230 K, with a fractional abundance, relative to H_2, of ˜ 10^{-8}. Gas-phase thermodynamic equilibrium chemistry is the likely formation mechanism for AlO in VY CMa, but shocks may disrupt the condensation process into Al_2O_3, allowing AlO to survive to a radius of ˜ 20 R_*. The detection of AlO in VY CMa is additional evidence of an active gas-phase refractory chemistry in oxygen-rich envelopes, and suggests such objects may be fruitful sources for other new oxide identifications.

Test of GET Electronics for the CHIMERA and FARCOS multi-detectors

Science.gov (United States)

De Luca, S.; Acosta, L.; Auditore, L.; Boiano, C.; Cardella, G.; Castoldi, A.; D'Andrea, M.; De Filippo, E.; Dell'Aquila, D.; Fichera, F.; Gnoffo, B.; Guazzoni, C.; Lanzalone, G.; Lombardo, I.; Martorana, N. S.; Minniti, T.; Norella, S.; Pagano, A.; Pagano, E. V.; Papa, M.; Pirrone, S.; Politi, G.; Quattrocchi, L.; Rizzo, F.; Russotto, P.; Saccà, G.; Trifirò, A.; Trimarchi, M.; Verde, G.; Vigilante, M.

2017-11-01

In this paper we present the results of the tests on the new digital electronics GET (General Electronics for Tpc), which will be used for the readout of the CsI(Tl) detectors of CHIMERA (Charged Heavy Ion Mass and Energy Resolving Array) and for the new correlator FARCOS (Femtoscope ARray for COrrelations and Spectroscopy). The new electronics allows us to digitize the full waveform of the signals produced by the detector. Among its features it is worth noticing the compactness and low power consumption (5W for 256 channels). Tests have been performed with pulsers, radioactive sources and ion beams. With such electronics very good results in energy resolution and isotope separation of the detected fragments were obtained, by using both hardware and software filters.

Gap Detection in School-Age Children and Adults: Effects of Inherent Envelope Modulation and the Availability of Cues across Frequency

Science.gov (United States)

Buss, Emily; Hall, Joseph W., III; Porter, Heather; Grose, John H.

2014-01-01

Purpose: The present study evaluated the effects of inherent envelope modulation and the availability of cues across frequency on behavioral gap detection with noise-band stimuli in school-age children. Method: Listeners were 34 normal-hearing children (ages 5.2-15.6 years) and 12 normal-hearing adults (ages 18.5-28.8 years). Stimuli were…

Chimera states in multi-strain epidemic models with temporary immunity

Science.gov (United States)

Bauer, Larissa; Bassett, Jason; Hövel, Philipp; Kyrychko, Yuliya N.; Blyuss, Konstantin B.

2017-11-01

We investigate a time-delayed epidemic model for multi-strain diseases with temporary immunity. In the absence of cross-immunity between strains, dynamics of each individual strain exhibit emergence and annihilation of limit cycles due to a Hopf bifurcation of the endemic equilibrium, and a saddle-node bifurcation of limit cycles depending on the time delay associated with duration of temporary immunity. Effects of all-to-all and non-local coupling topologies are systematically investigated by means of numerical simulations, and they suggest that cross-immunity is able to induce a diverse range of complex dynamical behaviors and synchronization patterns, including discrete traveling waves, solitary states, and amplitude chimeras. Interestingly, chimera states are observed for narrower cross-immunity kernels, which can have profound implications for understanding the dynamics of multi-strain diseases.

Multi-dimensional simulations of core-collapse supernova explosions with CHIMERA

Science.gov (United States)

Messer, O. E. B.; Harris, J. A.; Hix, W. R.; Lentz, E. J.; Bruenn, S. W.; Mezzacappa, A.

2018-04-01

Unraveling the core-collapse supernova (CCSN) mechanism is a problem that remains essentially unsolved despite more than four decades of effort. Spherically symmetric models with otherwise high physical fidelity generally fail to produce explosions, and it is widely accepted that CCSNe are inherently multi-dimensional. Progress in realistic modeling has occurred recently through the availability of petascale platforms and the increasing sophistication of supernova codes. We will discuss our most recent work on understanding neutrino-driven CCSN explosions employing multi-dimensional neutrino-radiation hydrodynamics simulations with the Chimera code. We discuss the inputs and resulting outputs from these simulations, the role of neutrino radiation transport, and the importance of multi-dimensional fluid flows in shaping the explosions. We also highlight the production of 48Ca in long-running Chimera simulations.

Construction of an Aptamer-SiRNA Chimera-Modified Tissue-Engineered Blood Vessel for Cell-Type-Specific Capture and Delivery.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Wen; Zeng, Wen; Sun, Jiansen; Yang, Mingcan; Li, Li; Zhou, Jingting; Wu, Yangxiao; Sun, Jun; Liu, Ge; Tang, Rui; Tan, Ju; Zhu, Chuhong

2015-06-23

The application of tissue-engineered blood vessels (TEBVs) is the main developmental direction of vascular replacement therapy. Due to few and/or dysfunctional endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs), it is difficult to successfully construct EPC capture TEBVs in diabetes. RNA has a potential application in cell protection and diabetes treatment, but poor specificity and low efficiency of RNA transfection in vivo limit the application of RNA. On the basis of an acellular vascular matrix, we propose an aptamer-siRNA chimera-modified TEBV that can maintain a satisfactory patency in diabetes. This TEBV consists of two parts, CD133-adenosine kinase (ADK) chimeras and a TEBV scaffold. Our results showed that CD133-ADK chimeras could selectively capture the CD133-positive cells in vivo, and then captured cells can internalize the bound chimeras to achieve RNA self-transfection. Subsequently, CD133-ADK chimeras were cut into ADK siRNA by a dicer, resulting in depletion of ADK. An ADK-deficient cell may act as a bioreactor that sustainably releases adenosine. To reduce nonspecific RNA transfection, we increased the proportion of HAuCl4 during the material preparation, through which the transfection capacity of polyethylenimine (PEI)/polyethylene glycol (PEG)-capped gold nanoparticles (PEI/PEG-AuNPs) was significantly decreased and the ability of TEBV to resist tensile and liquid shear stress was greatly enhanced. PEG and 2'-O-methyl modification was used to enhance the in vivo stability of RNA chimeras. At day 30 postgrafting, the patency rate of CD133-ADK chimera-modified TEBVs reached 90% in diabetic rats and good endothelialization was observed.

Mouse immature oocytes irradiated in vivo at 14-days of age and evaluated for transmitted effects using the aggregation embryo chimera assay

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Straume, T.; Raabe, O.G.; Walsh, K.J.; Wiley, L.M.

1996-01-01

A previous study using the mouse-preimplantation-embryo-chimera assay demonstrated a reproducible transmitted effect (proliferation disadvantage observed in early embryos) from females irradiated as 49-day-old adults using 0.15 Gy of gamma rays and then mated seven weeks later, i.e., embryos were from oocytes that were immature at time of irradiation. Because mouse immature oocytes are known to be much more radiosensitive to cell killing in juveniles than in adults, a follow-on study was performed here using 14-day-old juvenile mice. In contrast to adults, the exposure of juveniles to 0.15 Gy of gamma rays did not result in a detectable transmitted proliferation disadvantage when animals were mated 7 or 12 weeks later. This observation is discussed in light of previous studies on mouse immature oocytes and embryo chimeras

Redirecting the Cyanobacterial Bicarbonate Transporters BicA and SbtA to the Chloroplast Envelope: Soluble and Membrane Cargos Need Different Chloroplast Targeting Signals in Plants.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vivien eRolland

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Most major crops used for human consumption are C3 plants, which yields are limited by photosynthetic inefficiency. To circumvent this, it has been proposed to implement the cyanobacterial CO2-concentrating mechanism (CCM, principally consisting of bicarbonate transporters and carboxysomes, into plant chloroplasts. As it is currently not possible to recover homoplasmic transplastomic monocots, foreign genes must be introduced in these plants via nuclear transformation. Consequently, it is paramount to ensure that resulting proteins reach the appropriate sub-cellular compartment, which for cyanobacterial transporters BicA and SbtA, is the chloroplast inner-envelope membrane (IEM. At present, targeting signals to redirect large transmembrane proteins from non-chloroplastic organisms to plant chloroplast envelopes are unknown. The goal of this study was to identify such signals, using agrobacteria-mediated transient expression and confocal microscopy to determine the sub-cellular localization of ~37 GFP-tagged chimeras. Initially, fragments of chloroplast proteins known to target soluble cargos to the stroma were tested for their ability to redirect BicA, but they proved ineffective. Next, different N-terminal regions from Arabidopsis IEM transporters were tested. We demonstrated that the N-terminus of AtHP59, AtPLGG1 or AtNTT1 (92-115 amino acids, containing a cleavable chloroplast transit peptide (cTP and a membrane protein leader (MPL, was sufficient to redirect BicA or SbtA to the chloroplast envelope. This constitutes the first evidence that nuclear-encoded transmembrane proteins from non-chloroplastic organisms can be targeted to the envelope of plant chloroplasts; a finding which represents an important advance in chloroplast engineering by opening up the door to further manipulation of the chloroplastic envelope.

Radiobiological researches on Dianthus caryophyllus L. carnation chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pereau-Leroy, Pierre

1975-01-01

This research thesis reports a radiobiological study of Dianthus periclinal chimeras performed by submitting plants and plant cuttings at different physiological stages to cobalt-60 gamma irradiation under different dose conditions and rates. The effects of these treatments are studied while growing the so-processed plants and by microscopic examination of sections of irradiated meristems [fr

Brucella-Salmonella lipopolysaccharide chimeras are less permeable to hydrophobic probes and more sensitive to cationic peptides and EDTA than are their native Brucella sp. counterparts.

Science.gov (United States)

Freer, E; Moreno, E; Moriyón, I; Pizarro-Cerdá, J; Weintraub, A; Gorvel, J P

1996-01-01

A rough (R) Brucella abortus 45/20 mutant was more sensitive to the bactericidal activity of polymyxin B and lactoferricin B than was its smooth (S) counterpart but considerably more resistant than Salmonella montevideo. The outer membrane (OM) and isolated lipopolysaccharide (LPS) of S. montevideo showed a higher affinity for these cationic peptides than did the corresponding B. abortus OM and LPS. We took advantage of the moderate sensitivity of R B. abortus to cationic peptides to construct live R B. abortus-S-LPS chimeras to test the activities of polymyxin B, lactoferricin B, and EDTA. Homogeneous and abundant peripheral distribution of the heterologous S-LPS was observed on the surface of the chimeras, and this coating had no effect on the viability or morphology of the cells. When the heterologous LPS corresponded to the less sensitive bacterium S B. abortus S19, the chimeras were more resistant to cationic peptides; in contrast, when the S-LPS was from the more sensitive bacterium S. montevideo, the chimeras were more susceptible to the action of peptides and EDTA. A direct correlation between the amount of heterologous S-LPS on the surface of chimeric Brucella cells and peptide sensitivity was observed. Whereas the damage produced by polymyxin B in S. montevideo and B. abortus-S. montevideo S-LPS chimeras was manifested mainly as OM blebbing and inner membrane rolling, lactoferricin B caused inner membrane detachment, vacuolization, and the formation of internal electron-dense granules in these cells. Native S and R B. abortus strains were permeable to the hydrophobic probe N-phenyl-1-naphthylamine (NPN). In contrast, only reduced amounts of NPN partitioned into the OMs of the S. montevideo and B. abortus-S. montevideo S-LPS chimeras. Following peptide exposure, accelerated NPN uptake similar to that observed for S. montevideo was detected for the B. abortus-S. montevideo LPS chimeras. The partition of NPN into native or EDTA-, polymyxin B-, or

Brucella-Salmonella lipopolysaccharide chimeras are less permeable to hydrophobic probes and more sensitive to cationic peptides and EDTA than are their native Brucella sp. counterparts.

Science.gov (United States)

Freer, E; Moreno, E; Moriyón, I; Pizarro-Cerdá, J; Weintraub, A; Gorvel, J P

1996-10-01

A rough (R) Brucella abortus 45/20 mutant was more sensitive to the bactericidal activity of polymyxin B and lactoferricin B than was its smooth (S) counterpart but considerably more resistant than Salmonella montevideo. The outer membrane (OM) and isolated lipopolysaccharide (LPS) of S. montevideo showed a higher affinity for these cationic peptides than did the corresponding B. abortus OM and LPS. We took advantage of the moderate sensitivity of R B. abortus to cationic peptides to construct live R B. abortus-S-LPS chimeras to test the activities of polymyxin B, lactoferricin B, and EDTA. Homogeneous and abundant peripheral distribution of the heterologous S-LPS was observed on the surface of the chimeras, and this coating had no effect on the viability or morphology of the cells. When the heterologous LPS corresponded to the less sensitive bacterium S B. abortus S19, the chimeras were more resistant to cationic peptides; in contrast, when the S-LPS was from the more sensitive bacterium S. montevideo, the chimeras were more susceptible to the action of peptides and EDTA. A direct correlation between the amount of heterologous S-LPS on the surface of chimeric Brucella cells and peptide sensitivity was observed. Whereas the damage produced by polymyxin B in S. montevideo and B. abortus-S. montevideo S-LPS chimeras was manifested mainly as OM blebbing and inner membrane rolling, lactoferricin B caused inner membrane detachment, vacuolization, and the formation of internal electron-dense granules in these cells. Native S and R B. abortus strains were permeable to the hydrophobic probe N-phenyl-1-naphthylamine (NPN). In contrast, only reduced amounts of NPN partitioned into the OMs of the S. montevideo and B. abortus-S. montevideo S-LPS chimeras. Following peptide exposure, accelerated NPN uptake similar to that observed for S. montevideo was detected for the B. abortus-S. montevideo LPS chimeras. The partition of NPN into native or EDTA-, polymyxin B-, or

Purification and characterization of Yersinia enterocolitica and Yersinia pestis LcrV-cholera toxin A(2)/B chimeras.

Science.gov (United States)

Tinker, Juliette K; Davis, Chadwick T; Arlian, Britni M

2010-11-01

Yersinia pestis is a virulent human pathogen and potential biological weapon. Despite a long history of research on this organism, there is no licensed vaccine to protect against pneumonic forms of Y. pestis disease. In the present study, plasmids were constructed to express cholera toxin A(2)/B chimeric molecules containing the LcrV protective antigen from Yersinia enterocolitica and Y. pestis. These chimeras were expressed and purified to high yields from the supernatant of transformed Escherichia coli. Western and GM(1) ELISA assays were used to characterize the composition, receptor-binding and relative stability of the LcrV-CTA(2)/B chimera in comparison to cholera toxin. In addition, we investigated the ability of the Y. pestis LcrV-CTA(2)/B chimera to bind to and internalize into cultured epithelial cells and macrophages by confocal microscopy. These studies indicate that the uptake and trafficking of the LcrV antigen from the chimera is comparable to the trafficking of native toxin. Together these findings report that stable, receptor-binding, non-toxic LcrV-cholera toxin A(2)/B chimeras can be expressed at high levels in E. coli and purified from the supernatant. In addition, the internalization of antigen in vitro reported here supports the development of these molecules as novel mucosal vaccine candidates. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Sequential analysis of the virus-immune responder characteristics of thymocytes from F1→parent radiation chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Korngold, R.; Doherty, P.C.

1982-01-01

The virus-immune responder characteristics of thymocytes, spleen and lymph node (LN) cells from (P 1 x P 2 )F 1 →P 1 radiation chimeras have been examined sequentially at weekly intervals. Adoptively-transferred thymocytes generate strong cytotoxic thymus-derived lymphocyte (CTL) responses from 28 to 100 days after reconstitution with bone marrow, which are almost invariably restricted to recognition of virus presented in the context of P 1 . This pattern of H-2 restriction is also maintained for spleen and LN cells from the [(H-2sup(kxd)F 1 →H-2sup(k)] and [(H-2sup(kxb)F 1 →H-2sup(k)] combinations but there is random emergence of reactivity to H-2sup(k)+virus for peripheral lymphoid cells from [(H-2sup(kxb)F 1 →H-2sup(b)] chimeras. Treatment of established [(P 1 xP 2 )]F 1 →P 1 ] chimeras with a low dose of cyclophosphamide (Cy) did not lead to the emergence of significant CTL effector function for P2 + virus. Also, administration of a large dose of Cy prior to irradiation of the chimera recipients did not modify the H-2 restriction profile of the chimera, though the level of CTL responsiveness associated with the appropriate H-2 type was apparently enhanced. (Auth.)

In vitro induction of mutation and separation of chimeras in Gerbera jamesonii

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jerzy, M.; Zalewska, M.; Garczewska, A.

1994-01-01

Using ex vitro leaves as objects to be irradiated and to induce variation in sixteen Gerbera jamesonii cultivars, reproduced from adventitious buds, resulted in obtaining the mutants which inflorescence color was uniformly changed and which newly acquired traits recurred in the second generation of plants reproduced vegetatively from the isolated shoot tips. However, chimeras appeared among the vM 1 plants exposed to various doses of gamma rays (5-25 Gy and they constituted almost half of the mutated plants. A further propagation of chimeras from leaf explants forming adventitious shoots significantly increased the number of solid mutants with uniformly changed inflorescence color in the vM 1 generation. (author)

Gravitational Waves from Accreting Neutron Stars Undergoing Common-envelope Inspiral

Science.gov (United States)

Holgado, A. Miguel; Ricker, Paul M.; Huerta, E. A.

2018-04-01

The common-envelope phase is a likely formation channel for close binary systems containing compact objects. Neutron stars in common envelopes accrete at a fraction of the Bondi–Hoyle–Lyttleton accretion rate, since the stellar envelope is inhomogeneous, but they may still be able to accrete at hypercritical rates (though not enough to become black holes). We show that common-envelope systems consisting of a neutron star with a massive primary may be gravitational-wave (GW) sources detectable in the Advanced LIGO band as far away as the Magellanic Clouds. To characterize their evolution, we perform orbital integrations using 1D models of 12 M ⊙ and 20 M ⊙ primaries, considering the effects of density gradient on the accretion onto the NS and spin evolution. From the range of possible accretion rates relevant to common-envelope evolution, we find that these systems may be louder GW sources than low-mass X-ray binaries like Sco X-1, which are currently the target of directed searches for continuous GWs. We also find that their strain amplitude signal may allow for novel constraints on the orbital separation and inspiral timescale in common envelopes when combined with pre-common-envelope electromagnetic observations.

Germline competence of mouse ES and iPS cell lines: Chimera technologies and genetic background.

Science.gov (United States)

Carstea, Ana Claudia; Pirity, Melinda K; Dinnyes, Andras

2009-12-31

In mice, gene targeting by homologous recombination continues to play an essential role in the understanding of functional genomics. This strategy allows precise location of the site of transgene integration and is most commonly used to ablate gene expression ("knock-out"), or to introduce mutant or modified alleles at the locus of interest ("knock-in"). The efficacy of producing live, transgenic mice challenges our understanding of this complex process, and of the factors which influence germline competence of embryonic stem cell lines. Increasingly, evidence indicates that culture conditions and in vitro manipulation can affect the germline-competence of Embryonic Stem cell (ES cell) lines by accumulation of chromosome abnormalities and/or epigenetic alterations of the ES cell genome. The effectiveness of ES cell derivation is greatly strain-dependent and it may also influence the germline transmission capability. Recent technical improvements in the production of germline chimeras have been focused on means of generating ES cells lines with a higher germline potential. There are a number of options for generating chimeras from ES cells (ES chimera mice); however, each method has its advantages and disadvantages. Recent developments in induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell technology have opened new avenues for generation of animals from genetically modified somatic cells by means of chimera technologies. The aim of this review is to give a brief account of how the factors mentioned above are influencing the germline transmission capacity and the developmental potential of mouse pluripotent stem cell lines. The most recent methods for generating specifically ES and iPS chimera mice, including the advantages and disadvantages of each method are also discussed.

Chaos in Dirac Electron Optics: Emergence of a Relativistic Quantum Chimera.

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Hong-Ya; Wang, Guang-Lei; Huang, Liang; Lai, Ying-Cheng

2018-03-23

We uncover a remarkable quantum scattering phenomenon in two-dimensional Dirac material systems where the manifestations of both classically integrable and chaotic dynamics emerge simultaneously and are electrically controllable. The distinct relativistic quantum fingerprints associated with different electron spin states are due to a physical mechanism analogous to a chiroptical effect in the presence of degeneracy breaking. The phenomenon mimics a chimera state in classical complex dynamical systems but here in a relativistic quantum setting-henceforth the term "Dirac quantum chimera," associated with which are physical phenomena with potentially significant applications such as enhancement of spin polarization, unusual coexisting quasibound states for distinct spin configurations, and spin selective caustics. Experimental observations of these phenomena are possible through, e.g., optical realizations of ballistic Dirac fermion systems.

Chaos in Dirac Electron Optics: Emergence of a Relativistic Quantum Chimera

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Hong-Ya; Wang, Guang-Lei; Huang, Liang; Lai, Ying-Cheng

2018-03-01

We uncover a remarkable quantum scattering phenomenon in two-dimensional Dirac material systems where the manifestations of both classically integrable and chaotic dynamics emerge simultaneously and are electrically controllable. The distinct relativistic quantum fingerprints associated with different electron spin states are due to a physical mechanism analogous to a chiroptical effect in the presence of degeneracy breaking. The phenomenon mimics a chimera state in classical complex dynamical systems but here in a relativistic quantum setting—henceforth the term "Dirac quantum chimera," associated with which are physical phenomena with potentially significant applications such as enhancement of spin polarization, unusual coexisting quasibound states for distinct spin configurations, and spin selective caustics. Experimental observations of these phenomena are possible through, e.g., optical realizations of ballistic Dirac fermion systems.

Book Review: Evolution's Chimera: Bats and the Marvel of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Abstract. Book Title: Evolution's Chimera: Bats and the Marvel of Evolutionary Adaptation. Book Author: David Jacobs. 2016, University of Cape Town Press, Juta and Company (Pty) Ltd, PO Box 14373, Lansdowne 7779, Cape Town, South Africa Softcover, 204 pages. ISBN 978-1-77582-212-7. Price R299 ...

Use of fragmentation beams at LNS with CHIMERA detector

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gianí R.

2012-07-01

Full Text Available The recent intensity upgrade of the LNS fragmentation beam is discussed. The available beams, the tagging procedures and details on the beam quality are reported. The experimental program started with the CHIMERA detector using such beams is also discussed with preliminary results and future perspectives.

Chronic graft-versus-host disease in the rat radiation chimera. III. Immunology and immunopathology in rapidly induced models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beschorner, W.E.; Tutschka, P.J.; Santos, G.W.

1983-01-01

Although chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) frequently develops in the long-term rat radiation chimera, we present three additional models in which a histologically similar disease is rapidly induced. These include adoptive transfer of spleen and bone marrow from rats with spontaneous chronic GVHD into lethally irradiated rats of the primary host strain; sublethal irradiation of stable chimeras followed by a booster transplant; and transfer of spleen cells of chimeras recovering from acute GVHD into second-party (primary recipient strain) or third-party hosts. Some immunopathologic and immune abnormalities associated with spontaneous chronic GVHD were not observed in one or more of the induced models. Thus, IgM deposition in the skin, antinuclear antibodies, and vasculitis appear to be paraphenomena. On the other hand, lymphoid hypocellularity of the thymic medulla, immaturity of splenic follicles, and nonspecific suppressor cells were consistently present in the long term chimeras, and in all models. These abnormalities therefore may be pathogenetically important, or closely related to the development of chronic GVHD

Enveloping Aerodynamic Decelerator

Science.gov (United States)

Nock, Kerry T. (Inventor); Aaron, Kim M. (Inventor); McRonald, Angus D. (Inventor); Gates, Kristin L. (Inventor)

2018-01-01

An inflatable aerodynamic deceleration method and system is provided for use with an atmospheric entry payload. The inflatable aerodynamic decelerator includes an inflatable envelope and an inflatant, wherein the inflatant is configured to fill the inflatable envelope to an inflated state such that the inflatable envelope surrounds the atmospheric entry payload, causing aerodynamic forces to decelerate the atmospheric entry payload.

Functional clonal deletion versus suppressor cell-induced transplantation tolerance in chimeras prepared with a short course of total-lymphoid irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Slavin, S.; Morecki, S.; Weigensberg, M.; Bar, S.; Weiss, L.

1986-01-01

Allogeneic bone marrow (BM) chimeras induced by infusion of BM cells into recipients conditioned with total lymphoid irradiation (TLI) were shown to develop humoral and cell-mediated tolerance to host and donor-type alloantigens by a number of in vitro and in vivo assays. Spleen cells of tolerant chimeras exhibited suppressive activity of mixed lymphocyte reaction (MLR). MLR suppression was not abrogated by depletion of Lyt-2 cells, and neither could Lyt-2-positive cells sorted from the spleens of tolerant chimeras suppress MLR or attenuate graft-versus-host reactivity in vivo. Likewise, specifically unresponsive spleen cells obtained from chimeras could not be induced to respond in MLR against tolerizing host-type cells following depletion of Lyt-2 or passage through a nylon-wool column. Tolerance of chimera spleen cells to host alloantigens, best documented by permanent survival of donor-type skin allografts, could be adoptively transferred into syngeneic recipients treated by heavy irradiation but not into untreated or mildly irradiated recipients. Adoptive transfer of tolerance seemed to be associated with experimental conditions favoring engraftment of tolerant cells rather than suppression of host reactivity. We speculate that although host and/or donor-derived suppressor cells may be operating in reducing the pool of specific alloreactive clones by blocking cell proliferation in response to allogeneic challenge, the final outcome in tolerant chimeras is actual or functional deletion of alloreactive clones

(Quasi-)Poisson enveloping algebras

OpenAIRE

Yang, Yan-Hong; Yao, Yuan; Ye, Yu

2010-01-01

We introduce the quasi-Poisson enveloping algebra and Poisson enveloping algebra for a non-commutative Poisson algebra. We prove that for a non-commutative Poisson algebra, the category of quasi-Poisson modules is equivalent to the category of left modules over its quasi-Poisson enveloping algebra, and the category of Poisson modules is equivalent to the category of left modules over its Poisson enveloping algebra.

Solvable model of spiral wave chimeras.

Science.gov (United States)

Martens, Erik A; Laing, Carlo R; Strogatz, Steven H

2010-01-29

Spiral waves are ubiquitous in two-dimensional systems of chemical or biological oscillators coupled locally by diffusion. At the center of such spirals is a phase singularity, a topological defect where the oscillator amplitude drops to zero. But if the coupling is nonlocal, a new kind of spiral can occur, with a circular core consisting of desynchronized oscillators running at full amplitude. Here, we provide the first analytical description of such a spiral wave chimera and use perturbation theory to calculate its rotation speed and the size of its incoherent core.

Solvable Model of Spiral Wave Chimeras

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Martens, Erik Andreas; Laing, Carlo R.; Strogatz, Steven H.

2010-01-01

Spiral waves are ubiquitous in two-dimensional systems of chemical or biological oscillators coupled locally by diffusion. At the center of such spirals is a phase singularity, a topological defect where the oscillator amplitude drops to zero. But if the coupling is nonlocal, a new kind of spiral...... can occur, with a circular core consisting of desynchronized oscillators running at full amplitude. Here, we provide the first analytical description of such a spiral wave chimera and use perturbation theory to calculate its rotation speed and the size of its incoherent core....

Temporal intermittency and the lifetime of chimera states in ensembles of nonlocally coupled chaotic oscillators

Science.gov (United States)

Semenova, N. I.; Strelkova, G. I.; Anishchenko, V. S.; Zakharova, A.

2017-06-01

We describe numerical results for the dynamics of networks of nonlocally coupled chaotic maps. Switchings in time between amplitude and phase chimera states have been first established and studied. It has been shown that in autonomous ensembles, a nonstationary regime of switchings has a finite lifetime and represents a transient process towards a stationary regime of phase chimera. The lifetime of the nonstationary switching regime can be increased to infinity by applying short-term noise perturbations.

Indoor Modelling from Slam-Based Laser Scanner: Door Detection to Envelope Reconstruction

Science.gov (United States)

Díaz-Vilariño, L.; Verbree, E.; Zlatanova, S.; Diakité, A.

2017-09-01

Updated and detailed indoor models are being increasingly demanded for various applications such as emergency management or navigational assistance. The consolidation of new portable and mobile acquisition systems has led to a higher availability of 3D point cloud data from indoors. In this work, we explore the combined use of point clouds and trajectories from SLAM-based laser scanner to automate the reconstruction of building indoors. The methodology starts by door detection, since doors represent transitions from one indoor space to other, which constitutes an initial approach about the global configuration of the point cloud into building rooms. For this purpose, the trajectory is used to create a vertical point cloud profile in which doors are detected as local minimum of vertical distances. As point cloud and trajectory are related by time stamp, this feature is used to subdivide the point cloud into subspaces according to the location of the doors. The correspondence between subspaces and building rooms is not unambiguous. One subspace always corresponds to one room, but one room is not necessarily depicted by just one subspace, for example, in case of a room containing several doors and in which the acquisition is performed in a discontinue way. The labelling problem is formulated as combinatorial approach solved as a minimum energy optimization. Once the point cloud is subdivided into building rooms, envelop (conformed by walls, ceilings and floors) is reconstructed for each space. The connectivity between spaces is included by adding the previously detected doors to the reconstructed model. The methodology is tested in a real case study.

H-2 restriction of the T cell response to chemically induced tumors: evidence from F1 → parent chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lannin, D.R.; Yu, S.; McKhann, C.F.

1982-01-01

It has been well established that T cells that react to tumor antigen on virus-induced tumors must share H-2D or H-2K specificities with the tumor. It has been impossible to perform similar studies with chemically induced tumors because each chemically induced tumor expresses a unique tumor antigen that cannot be studied in association with other H-2 types. This study provies evidence that H-2 recognition is also necessary for recognition of chemically induced tumors. We have found that F 1 → parent chimeras preferentially recognize chemically induced tumors of parental H-2 type. C3H/HeJ and C57BL/6 mice were lethally irradiated and restored with (C3H x C57BL/6) F 1 hybrid bone marrow. The F 1 → C3H chimera but not the F 1 → C57BL/6 chimera was able to respond to a C3H fibrosarcoma in mixed lymphocyte-tumor cell culture and also to neutralize the tumor in an in vivo tumor neutralization assay. On the other hand, the F 1 → C57BL/6 chimera but not the F 1 → C3H chimera was able to kill the C57BL/6 lymphoma EL4 in an in vitro cytotoxicity assay. Both chimeras were tolerant to C3H and C57BL/6 alloantigens but could respond normally to Con A and to BALB/c spleen cells in mixed lymphocyte cultures and cytotoxicity assay

Growth of transplantable melanoma and leukaemia and prevention of virus-induced leukaemia in long lived radiation chimeras constructed with unmanipulated bone marrow

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pierpaoli, W.

1985-01-01

Haemopoietic radiation chimeras across the H-2 barrier (BALB/c → C57B1/6; H-2sup(d) → H-2sup(b) chimeras and vice versa) have been studied for their capacity to suppress the growth, or to reject, transplantable B16 melanotic melanoma and radiation leukaemia virus-induced, transplantable leukaemia. Also, radiation leukaemia virus (RadLV) obtained from the thymus of leukaemic C57B1/6 mice was injected i.p. into established chimeras (H-2sup(d) → H-2sup(b)). As expected, long lived, graft versus host disease free allogeneic chimeras constructed with intact bone marrow were unable to reject the tumours both when recipients were BALB/c → C57B1/6 or C57B1/6 → BALB/c chimeras. However, inoculation of a large number of immunocompetent cells from normal BALB/c mice into BALB/c → C57B1/6 chimeras failed to promote a rejection of the tumours. On the contrary, the same amount of syngeneic (BALB/c) immunocompetent cells prevented growth of melanoma when transferred into athymic nude BALB/c mice, while the tumour grew unimpaired in untreated athymic nude BALB/c mice. The same type of H-2sup(d) → H-2sup(b) chimeras displayed complete resistance to inoculation of leukaemogenic H-2sup(b) restricted RadLV while all H-2sup(b) → H-2sup(b), syngeneically reconstituted mice developed disseminated leukaemia. (author)

Analysis of the hormone-binding domain of steroid receptors using chimeras generated by homologous recombination

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martinez, Elisabeth D.; Pattabiraman, Nagarajan; Danielsen, Mark

2005-01-01

The glucocorticoid receptor and the mineralocorticoid receptor are members of the steroid receptor family that exhibit ligand cross-reactivity. Specificity of steroid receptor action is investigated in the present work by the construction and characterization of chimeras between the glucocorticoid receptor and the mineralocorticoid receptor. We used an innovative approach to make novel steroid receptor proteins in vivo that in general, contrary to our expectations, show increased ligand specificity compared to the parental receptors. We describe a receptor that is specific for the potent synthetic glucocorticoid triamcinolone acetonide and does not bind aldosterone. A further set of chimeras has an increased ability to discriminate between ligands, responding potently to mineralocorticoids and only very weakly to synthetic glucocorticoids. A chimera with the fusion site in the hinge highlights the importance of the region between the DNA-binding and the hormone-binding domains since, unlike both the glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid receptors, it only responds to mineralocorticoids. One chimera has reduced specificity in that it acts as a general corticoid receptor, responding to glucocorticoids and mineralocorticoids with similar potency and efficacy. Our data suggest that regions of the glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid receptor hormone-binding domains are functionally non-reciprocal. We present transcriptional, hormone-binding, and structure-modeling evidence that suggests that receptor-specific interactions within and across domains mediate aspects of specificity in transcriptional responses to steroids

Studies on the mechanism of the self restriction of T cell responses in radiation chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fink, P.J.; Bevan, M.J.

1981-01-01

Recent experiments with murine radiation chimeras have shown that F 1 T cells that mature in an H-2 homozygous thymus, as is the case in [F 1 → Parent 1] chimeras, are restricted to recognizing foreign antigen in the context of Parent 1 H-2 antigens. Conflicting results on the stringency of self H-2 restriction of T cells from normal mice have suggested that the thymic restriction in chimeras may be due to active suppression of parent 2-restricted T cell clones. We have therefore conducted 3 sets of experiments to test for suppression of maturing T cells that could mediate thymic tutoring of H-2-restriction specificity in chimeras. In 2 sets of experiments, we found no evidence that suppressor cells could be exported from 1 thymus and act either intrathymically on thymocytes in a 2nd thymus or extrathymically on recent thymic emigrants. We believe current data support a role for the thymus in positive as well as negative selection of maturing thymocytes on the basis of self recognition, in the absence of any suppression. Our results do not support the concept that suppression is responsible for the difference in the degree of self preference in the T cells of chimeric mice relative to cell populations obtained from neonatally tolerant mice or from normal mice after acute negative selection

EXAMINATION OF THE GERM CELL CHIMERA FORMING POTENTIAL OF MOUSE EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V.B. CÂRSTEA

2007-05-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to examine the factors, which influence the chimeraforming potential of mouse embryonic stem cells (ES cells. In our work, we examinethe chimera producing ability of R1 and R1/E mouse ES cell lines. We found that thepassage number affects chimera-forming capability of the ES cells. With theincreasing of the passage number, it could be getting less chimera animal, and onlythe R1/E ES cell line derived cells could contribute to the germ cells. At first, wecompared the marker of pluripotency using immunostaining and RT PCR, but wecould not find any difference between the R1 and R1/E cell in this way. Atchromosome analysis, we found, that the number of aneuploid cells, in R1 ES cellline, dramatically increased after 10 passages. We thought that the reason is thatduring the cell division Y chromosome could not arrange correctly between the twonewly derived progeny cells. To prove our conception, we made X and YchromosomeFISH analyses. We found, that the aneuploid R1 and R1/E ES cellscontain only one X and one Y chromosome, so not the loss of Y chromosome causethe problem at the germ cell formation. At last, we made the karyotypeanalysis of R1 and R1/E ES cells at different passages. The karyotype analysisdemonstrated that in the case of R1 ES cell line, the 41 and 42-chromosomecontaining cells hold trisomy. With the increasing of the passages number, thenumber of trisomy containing aneuploid cells increased. The aneuploid ES cells cancontribute to the different tissuses of chimera animals, but cannot form viable germcells.

EXAMINATION OF THE GERM CELL CHIMERA FORMING POTENTIAL OF MOUSE EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

CÂRSTEA V. B

2007-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to examine the factors, which influence the chimeraforming potential of mouse embryonic stem cells (ES cells. In our work, we examinethe chimera producing ability of R1 and R1/E mouse ES cell lines. We found that thepassage number affects chimera-forming capability of the ES cells. With theincreasing of the passage number, it could be getting less chimera animal, and onlythe R1/E ES cell line derived cells could contribute to the germ cells. At first, wecompared the marker of pluripotency using immunostaining and RT PCR, but wecould not find any difference between the R1 and R1/E cell in this way. Atchromosome analysis, we found, that the number of aneuploid cells, in R1 ES cellline, dramatically increased after 10 passages. We thought that the reason is thatduring the cell division Y chromosome could not arrange correctly between the twonewly derived progeny cells. To prove our conception, we made X and YchromosomeFISH analyses. We found, that the aneuploid R1 and R1/E ES cellscontain only one X and one Y chromosome, so not the loss of Y chromosome causethe problem at the germ cell formation. At last, we made the karyotypeanalysis of R1 and R1/E ES cells at different passages. The karyotype analysisdemonstrated that in the case of R1 ES cell line, the 41 and 42-chromosomecontaining cells hold trisomy. With the increasing of the passages number, thenumber of trisomy containing aneuploid cells increased. The aneuploid ES cells cancontribute to the different tissuses of chimera animals, but cannot form viable germcells.

Chimera patterns in two-dimensional networks of coupled neurons

Science.gov (United States)

Schmidt, Alexander; Kasimatis, Theodoros; Hizanidis, Johanne; Provata, Astero; Hövel, Philipp

2017-03-01

We discuss synchronization patterns in networks of FitzHugh-Nagumo and leaky integrate-and-fire oscillators coupled in a two-dimensional toroidal geometry. A common feature between the two models is the presence of fast and slow dynamics, a typical characteristic of neurons. Earlier studies have demonstrated that both models when coupled nonlocally in one-dimensional ring networks produce chimera states for a large range of parameter values. In this study, we give evidence of a plethora of two-dimensional chimera patterns of various shapes, including spots, rings, stripes, and grids, observed in both models, as well as additional patterns found mainly in the FitzHugh-Nagumo system. Both systems exhibit multistability: For the same parameter values, different initial conditions give rise to different dynamical states. Transitions occur between various patterns when the parameters (coupling range, coupling strength, refractory period, and coupling phase) are varied. Many patterns observed in the two models follow similar rules. For example, the diameter of the rings grows linearly with the coupling radius.

Polariton Chimeras: Bose-Einstein Condensates with Intrinsic Chaoticity and Spontaneous Long-Range Ordering

Science.gov (United States)

Gavrilov, S. S.

2018-01-01

The system of cavity polaritons driven by a plane electromagnetic wave is found to undergo the spontaneous breaking of spatial symmetry, which results in a lifted phase locking with respect to the driving field and, consequently, in the possibility of internal ordering. In particular, periodic spin and intensity patterns arise in polariton wires; they exhibit strong long-range order and can serve as media for signal transmission. Such patterns have the properties of dynamical chimeras: they are formed spontaneously in perfectly homogeneous media and can be partially chaotic. The reported new mechanism of chimera formation requires neither time-delayed feedback loops nor nonlocal interactions.

Chimera grids in the simulation of three-dimensional flowfields in turbine-blade-coolant passages

Science.gov (United States)

Stephens, M. A.; Rimlinger, M. J.; Shih, T. I.-P.; Civinskas, K. C.

1993-01-01

When computing flows inside geometrically complex turbine-blade coolant passages, the structure of the grid system used can affect significantly the overall time and cost required to obtain solutions. This paper addresses this issue while evaluating and developing computational tools for the design and analysis of coolant-passages, and is divided into two parts. In the first part, the various types of structured and unstructured grids are compared in relation to their ability to provide solutions in a timely and cost-effective manner. This comparison shows that the overlapping structured grids, known as Chimera grids, can rival and in some instances exceed the cost-effectiveness of unstructured grids in terms of both the man hours needed to generate grids and the amount of computer memory and CPU time needed to obtain solutions. In the second part, a computational tool utilizing Chimera grids was used to compute the flow and heat transfer in two different turbine-blade coolant passages that contain baffles and numerous pin fins. These computations showed the versatility and flexibility offered by Chimera grids.

Human-animal chimera: a neuro driven discussion? Comparison of three leading European research countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Cabrera Trujillo, Laura Yenisa; Engel-Glatter, Sabrina

2015-06-01

Research with human-animal chimera raises a number of ethical concerns, especially when neural stem cells are transplanted into the brains of non-human primates (NHPs). Besides animal welfare concerns and ethical issues associated with the use of embryonic stem cells, the research is also regarded as controversial from the standpoint of NHPs developing cognitive or behavioural capabilities that are regarded as "unique" to humans. However, scientists are urging to test new therapeutic approaches for neurological diseases in primate models as they better mimic human physiology than all current animal models. As a response, various countries have issued reports on the topic. Our paper summarizes the ethical issues raised by research with human-animal brain chimeras and compares the relevant regulatory instruments and different recommendations issued in national reports from three important European research nations: Germany, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. We assess and discuss the focus and priorities set by the different reports, review various reasons for and perspectives on the importance of the brain in chimera research, and identify critical points in the reports that warrant further specification and debate.

Bioassays for TSH Receptor Autoantibodies, from FRTL-5 Cells to TSH Receptor-LH/CG Receptor Chimeras: The Contribution of Leonard D. Kohn.

Science.gov (United States)

Giuliani, Cesidio; Saji, Motoyasu; Bucci, Ines; Napolitano, Giorgio

2016-01-01

Since the discovery 60 years ago of the "long-acting thyroid stimulator" by Adams and Purves, great progress has been made in the detection of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) receptor (TSHR) autoantibodies (TRAbs) in Graves' disease. Today, commercial assays are available that can detect TRAbs with high accuracy and provide diagnostic and prognostic evaluation of patients with Graves' disease. The present review focuses on the development of TRAbs bioassays, and particularly on the role that Leonard D. Kohn had in this. Indeed, 30 years ago, the Kohn group developed a bioassay based on the use of FRTL-5 cells that was characterized by high reproducibility, feasibility, and diagnostic accuracy. Using this FRTL-5 bioassay, Kohn and his colleagues were the first to develop monoclonal antibodies (moAbs) against the TSHR. Furthermore, they demonstrated the multifaceted functional nature of TRAbs in patients with Graves' disease, with the identification of stimulating and blocking TRAbs, and even antibodies that activated pathways other than cAMP. After the cloning of the TSHR, the Kohn laboratory constructed human TSHR-rat luteinizing hormone/chorionic gonadotropin receptor chimeras. This paved the way to a new bioassay based on the use of non-thyroid cells transfected with the Mc4 chimera. The new Mc4 bioassay is characterized by high diagnostic and prognostic accuracy, greater than for other assays. The availability of a commercial kit based on the Mc4 chimera is spreading the use of this assay worldwide, indicating its benefits for these patients with Graves' disease. This review also describes the main contributions made by other researchers in TSHR molecular biology and TRAbs assay, especially with the development of highly potent moAbs. A comparison of the diagnostic accuracies of the main TRAbs assays, as both immunoassays and bioassays, is also provided.

Exotic Metal Molecules in Oxygen-rich Envelopes: Detection of AlOH (X1Σ+) in VY Canis Majoris

Science.gov (United States)

Tenenbaum, E. D.; Ziurys, L. M.

2010-03-01

A new interstellar molecule, AlOH, has been detected toward the envelope of VY Canis Majoris (VY CMa), an oxygen-rich red supergiant. Three rotational transitions of AlOH were observed using the facilities of the Arizona Radio Observatory (ARO). The J = 9 → 8 and J = 7 → 6 lines at 1 mm were measured with the ARO Submillimeter Telescope, while the J = 5 → 4 transition at 2 mm was observed with the ARO 12 m antenna on Kitt Peak. The AlOH spectra exhibit quite narrow line widths of 16-23 km s-1, as found for NaCl in this source, indicating that the emission arises from within the dust acceleration zone of the central circumstellar outflow. From a radiative transfer analysis, the abundance of AlOH relative to H2 was found to be ~1 × 10-7 for a source size of 0.26'' or 22 R* . In contrast, AlCl was not detected with f VY CMa is ~17. Therefore, AlOH appears to be the dominant gas-phase molecular carrier of aluminum in this oxygen-rich shell. Local thermodynamic equilibrium calculations predict that the monohydroxides should be the major carriers of Al, Ca, and Mg in O-rich envelopes, as opposed to the oxides or halides. The apparent predominance of aluminum-bearing molecules in VY CMa may reflect proton addition processes in H-shell burning.

Mechanism of donor to host tolerance in rat bone marrow chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tutschka, P.; Schwerdtfeger, R.; Slavin, R.; Santos, G.

1977-01-01

Lewis rats were conditioned with cyclophosphamide and grafted with AgB incompatible bone marrow. They were examined 250 days after transplantation and demonstrated to be healthy complete chimeras. Marrow cells from these chimeras were infused into lethally irradiated ACI, Lewis and BN recipients. Graft-versus-host disease occurred only in the BN rats. Other chimeric rats were given no treatment, busulfan, CY, or total body irradiation prior to the infusion of normal ACI BM. GvHD occurred only in animals given CY or TBI. Normal Lewis rats were conditioned with TBI and given ACI BM. In addition, they received whole blood, irradiated blood, or serum from chimeric rats. GvHD developed in all animals except those given unirradiated chimeric blood. These studies suggest that suppressor cell populations, sensitive to immunosuppression, are likely the fundamental mechanism of recovery from GvHD

Storage envelopes or sleeves

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Freshwater, J.R.; Wagman, P.I.

1980-01-01

A storage envelope or sleeve particularly for processed X-ray films is described. It consists of front and back panels joined together at a hinge line and connected along the intermediate sides by connecting flaps. An inner pocket is formed from a third flap which is folded to lie against the inner face of the back panel. The panels may have additional score lines parallel to the closed sides of the envelope and the inner pocket so that the envelope and the inner pocket can accommodate bulky contents. The free edge of the pocket is inset from the open side of the envelope, and finger cut-outs may be provided to facilitate access to the contents of the envelope and the pocket. (author)

Protective plasma envelope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bocharov, V.N.; Konstantinov, S.G.; Kudryavtsev, A.M.; Myskin, O.K.; Panasyuk, V.M.; Tsel'nik, F.A.

1984-06-01

A method of creating an annular plasma envelope used to protect the hot plasma from flows of impurities and gases from the walls of the vacuum chamber is described. The diameter of the envelope is 30 cm, the thickness of the wall is 1.5 cm, the length is 2.5 m, and its density is from 10 13 to 10 14 cm -3 . The envelope attenuates the incident (from outside) flow of helium 10-fold and the low of hydrogen 20-fold

Induction of chlorophyll chimeras and chlorophyll mutations in mungbean (Vigna radiata) cv. T44

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Singh, V.P.; Yadav, R.D.S.

1993-01-01

Uniform and healthy seeds of mungbean (Vigna radiata) cv. T44 were exposed to varying doses of gamma rays, ethyl methane sulphonate (EMS) and combination treatment of gamma rays with EMS. The data were recorded for seed germination, plant survival, frequency and spectrum of chlorophyll chimeras in M 1 and chlorophyll mutations in M 2 generation. Among all, the combination treatments were found most effective for inducing chlorophyll chimeras and chlorophyll mutations than the gamma rays or EMS alone. Of the mutants under reference, the albino, xantha and chlorina showed monogenic recessive while viridis exhibited digenic recessive inheritance. (author). 8 refs., 2 tabs

Bacterial membrane activity of a-peptide/b-peptoid chimeras: Influence of amino acid composition and chain length on the activity against different bacterial strains

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hein-Kristensen, Line; Knapp, Kolja M; Franzyk, Henrik

2011-01-01

and subsequent killing is usually not tested. In this report, six α-peptide/β-peptoid chimeras were examined for the effect of amino acid/peptoid substitutions and chain length on the membrane perturbation and subsequent killing of food-borne and clinical bacterial isolates. RESULTS: All six AMP analogues...... acid only had a minor effect on MIC values, whereas chain length had a profound influence on activity. All chimeras were less active against Serratia marcescens (MICs above 46 μM). The chimeras were bactericidal and induced leakage of ATP from Staphylococcus aureus and S. marcescens with similar time...... of onset and reduction in the number of viable cells. EDTA pre-treatment of S. marcescens and E. coli followed by treatment with chimeras resulted in pronounced killing indicating that disintegration of the Gram-negative outer membrane eliminated innate differences in susceptibility. Chimera chain length...

INDOOR MODELLING FROM SLAM-BASED LASER SCANNER: DOOR DETECTION TO ENVELOPE RECONSTRUCTION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

L. Díaz-Vilariño

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Updated and detailed indoor models are being increasingly demanded for various applications such as emergency management or navigational assistance. The consolidation of new portable and mobile acquisition systems has led to a higher availability of 3D point cloud data from indoors. In this work, we explore the combined use of point clouds and trajectories from SLAM-based laser scanner to automate the reconstruction of building indoors. The methodology starts by door detection, since doors represent transitions from one indoor space to other, which constitutes an initial approach about the global configuration of the point cloud into building rooms. For this purpose, the trajectory is used to create a vertical point cloud profile in which doors are detected as local minimum of vertical distances. As point cloud and trajectory are related by time stamp, this feature is used to subdivide the point cloud into subspaces according to the location of the doors. The correspondence between subspaces and building rooms is not unambiguous. One subspace always corresponds to one room, but one room is not necessarily depicted by just one subspace, for example, in case of a room containing several doors and in which the acquisition is performed in a discontinue way. The labelling problem is formulated as combinatorial approach solved as a minimum energy optimization. Once the point cloud is subdivided into building rooms, envelop (conformed by walls, ceilings and floors is reconstructed for each space. The connectivity between spaces is included by adding the previously detected doors to the reconstructed model. The methodology is tested in a real case study.

Refractive index dispersion measurement using carrier-envelope phasemeters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hansinger, Peter; Töpfer, Philipp; Adolph, Daniel; Hoff, Dominik; Rathje, Tim; Sayler, A Max; Paulus, Gerhard G; Dimitrov, Nikolay; Dreischuh, Alexander

2017-01-01

We introduce a novel method for direct and accurate measurement of refractive index dispersion based on carrier-envelope phase detection of few-cycle laser pulses, exploiting the difference between phase and group velocity in a dispersive medium. In a layout similar to an interferometer, two carrier-envelope phasemeters are capable of measuring the dispersion of a transparent or reflective sample, where one phasemeter serves as the reference and the other records the influence of the sample. Here we report on proof-of-principle measurements that already reach relative uncertainties of a few 10 −4 . Further development is expected to allow for unprecedented precision. (paper)

Serine integrase chimeras with activity in E. coli and HeLa cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alfonso P. Farruggio

2014-09-01

Full Text Available In recent years, application of serine integrases for genomic engineering has increased in popularity. The factor-independence and unidirectionality of these large serine recombinases makes them well suited for reactions such as site-directed vector integration and cassette exchange in a wide variety of organisms. In order to generate information that might be useful for altering the specificity of serine integrases and to improve their efficiency, we tested a hybridization strategy that has been successful with several small serine recombinases. We created chimeras derived from three characterized members of the serine integrase family, phiC31, phiBT1, and TG1 integrases, by joining their amino- and carboxy-terminal portions. We found that several phiBT1-phiC31 (BC and phiC31-TG1 (CT hybrid integrases are active in E. coli. BC chimeras function on native att-sites and on att-sites that are hybrids between those of the two donor enzymes, while CT chimeras only act on the latter att-sites. A BC hybrid, BC{−1}, was also active in human HeLa cells. Our work is the first to demonstrate chimeric serine integrase activity. This analysis sheds light on integrase structure and function, and establishes a potentially tractable means to probe the specificity of the thousands of putative large serine recombinases that have been revealed by bioinformatics studies.

Restricted antibody formation to sheep erythrocytes of allogeneic bone marrow chimeras histoincompatible at the K end of the H-2 complex

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Onoe, K.; Yasumizu, R.; Oh-Ishi, T.; Kakinuma, M.; Good, R.A.; Morikawa, K.

1981-01-01

Employing a new method for allogeneic bone marrow transplantation, irradiation chimeras constructed from various combinations of marrow cells from B10 H-2 recombinant mice and AKR recipients were prepared. Though these chimeras had well-developed populations of T and B cells, they showed strikingly different patterns of responses in the primary antibody formation to sheep erythrocytes (SRBC), a T dependent antigen. These are (a) AKR mice treated with C57BL/10 cells, [B10 leads to AKR] fully H-2 incompatible, and AKR mice treated with B10.A (5R) cells, [5R leads to AKR] I-J,E compatible chimeras that were almost completely unresponsive to SRBC; (b) AKR mice treated with B10.BR cells [BR leads to AKR] fully H-2 compatible, and AKR mice treated with B10 AKM cells, [AKM leads to AKR] chimeras where donor and recipient differed only at H-2D, showed the same number of plaque-forming cells (PFC) as B10 control mice; (c) AKR mice treated with B10.A cells, [B10 leads to AKR] chimeras, where donor and recipient were matched at H-2K-I-E region, showed about one-half the number of PFC as the control mice. From these results we conclude that in allogeneic bone marrow chimeras primary antibody response to T-dependent antigen, such as SRBC, is generated when at least the K end of the H-2 complex is compatible between donor and recipient

A Universal Aptamer Chimera for the Delivery of Functional microRNA-126.

Science.gov (United States)

Rohde, Jan-H; Weigand, Julia E; Suess, Beatrix; Dimmeler, Stefanie

2015-06-01

microRNAs (miRs) regulate vascular diseases such as atherosclerosis and cancer. miR-126 is important for endothelial cell signaling and promotes angiogenesis, protects against atherosclerosis, and reduces breast cancer cell growth and metastasis. The overexpression of miR-126, therefore, may be an attractive therapeutic strategy for the treatment of cardiovascular disease or cancer. Here we report a novel strategy to deliver miR-126 to endothelial and breast cancer cells. We tested three different strategies to deliver miR-126 by linking the miR to an aptamer for the ubiquitously expressed transferrin receptor (transferrin receptor aptamer, TRA). Linking the precursor of miR-126 (pre-miR-126) to the TRA by annealing of a complementary stick led to efficient uptake and processing of miR-126, resulting in the delivery of 1.6×10(6)±0.3×10(6) copies miR-126-3p per ng RNA in human endothelial cells and 7.4×10(5)±2×10(5) copies miR-126-3p per ng in MCF7 breast cancer cells. The functionality of the active TRA-miR-126 chimera was further demonstrated by showing that the chimera represses the known miR-126 target VCAM-1 and improved endothelial cell sprouting in a spheroid assay. Moreover, the TRA-miR-126 chimera reduced proliferation and paracrine endothelial cell recruitment of breast cancer cells to a similar extent as miR-126-3p mimics introduced by conventional liposome-based transfection. Together, this data demonstrates that pre-miR-126 can be delivered by a non-specific aptamer to exert biological functions in two different cell models. The use of the TRA-miR-126 chimera or the combination of the delivery strategy with other endothelial or tumor specific aptamers may provide an interesting therapeutic option to treat vascular disease or cancers.

Resistance to BN myelogenous leukemia in rat radiation chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Singer, D.E.; Haynor, D.R.; Williams, R.M

1980-01-01

Lewis → LBNFl rat radiation chimeras showed marked resistance to transplanted BN myelogenous leukemia when compared to naive LBNFl, LBNFl → LBNFl, or BN → LBNFl. This occurred in the absence of overt graft versus host disease or of anti-BN response in mixed lymphocyte culture. Bone marrow specific antigens may serve as the target of the resistance mechanism. (author)

Numerical and analytical investigation of the chimera state excitation conditions in the Kuramoto-Sakaguchi oscillator network

Science.gov (United States)

Frolov, Nikita S.; Goremyko, Mikhail V.; Makarov, Vladimir V.; Maksimenko, Vladimir A.; Hramov, Alexander E.

2017-03-01

In this paper we study the conditions of chimera states excitation in ensemble of non-locally coupled Kuramoto-Sakaguchi (KS) oscillators. In the framework of current research we analyze the dynamics of the homogeneous network containing identical oscillators. We show the chimera state formation process is sensitive to the parameters of coupling kernel and to the KS network initial state. To perform the analysis we have used the Ott-Antonsen (OA) ansatz to consider the behavior of infinitely large KS network.

The contribution of human/non-human animal chimeras to stem cell research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sonya Levine

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Chimeric animals are made up of cells from two separate zygotes. Human/non-human animal chimeras have been used for a number of research purposes, including human disease modeling. Pluripotent stem cell (PSC research has relied upon the chimera approach to examine the developmental potential of stem cells, to determine the efficacy of cell replacement therapies, and to establish a means of producing human organs. Based on ethical issues, this work has faced pushback from various sources including funding agencies. We discuss here the essential role these studies have played, from gaining a better understanding of human biology to providing a stepping stone to human disease treatments. We also consider the major ethical issues, as well as the current status of support for this work in the United States.

Circumstellar envelopes of Cepheids: a possible bias affecting the distance scale?

Science.gov (United States)

Kervella, Pierre; Gallenne, Alexandre; Mérand, Antoine

2013-02-01

Circumstellar envelopes (CSEs) have been detected around many Cepheids, first based on long-baseline interferometry, and now also using other observing techniques. These envelopes are particularly interesting for two reasons: their presence could impact the Cepheid distance scale, and they may be valuable tracers of stellar mass loss. Here we focus on their potential impact on the calibration of the Cepheid distance scale. We consider the photometric contribution of the envelopes in the visible, near-, and thermal-infrared domains. We conclude that the impact of CSEs on the apparent luminosities of Cepheids is negligible at visible wavelengths and generally weak (case. Overall, the contribution of CSEs to the usual period-luminosity relations (from the visible to the K band) is mostly negligible. They could affect calibrations at longer wavelengths, although the presence of envelopes may have been partially taken into account in the existing empirical calibrations.

Chimera states in brain networks: Empirical neural vs. modular fractal connectivity

Science.gov (United States)

Chouzouris, Teresa; Omelchenko, Iryna; Zakharova, Anna; Hlinka, Jaroslav; Jiruska, Premysl; Schöll, Eckehard

2018-04-01

Complex spatiotemporal patterns, called chimera states, consist of coexisting coherent and incoherent domains and can be observed in networks of coupled oscillators. The interplay of synchrony and asynchrony in complex brain networks is an important aspect in studies of both the brain function and disease. We analyse the collective dynamics of FitzHugh-Nagumo neurons in complex networks motivated by its potential application to epileptology and epilepsy surgery. We compare two topologies: an empirical structural neural connectivity derived from diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging and a mathematically constructed network with modular fractal connectivity. We analyse the properties of chimeras and partially synchronized states and obtain regions of their stability in the parameter planes. Furthermore, we qualitatively simulate the dynamics of epileptic seizures and study the influence of the removal of nodes on the network synchronizability, which can be useful for applications to epileptic surgery.

Generation of axolotl hematopoietic chimeras

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

David Lopez

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Wound repair is an extremely complex process that requires precise coordination between various cell types including immune cells.  Unfortunately, in mammals this usually results in scar formation instead of restoration of the original fully functional tissue, otherwise known as regeneration.  Various animal models like frogs and salamanders are currently being studied to determine the intracellular and intercellular pathways, controlled by gene expression, that elicit cell proliferation, differentiation, and migration of cells during regenerative healing.  Now, the necessary genetic tools to map regenerative pathways are becoming available for the axolotl salamander, thus allowing comparative studies between scarring and regeneration.  Here, we describe in detail three methods to produce axolotl hematopoietic cell-tagged chimeras for the study of hematopoiesis and regeneration.

Exotic Metal Molecules in Oxygen-Rich Envelopes: Detection of AlOH (X1Σ^+) in VY Canis Majoris

Science.gov (United States)

Tenenbaum, E. D.; Ziurys, L. M.

2010-06-01

A new interstellar molecule, AlOH, has been detected toward the envelope of VY Canis Majoris, an oxygen-rich red supergiant. Three rotational transitions of AlOH were observed using the facilities of the Arizona Radio Observatory (ARO). The J = 9 → 8 and J = 7 → 6 lines at 1 mm were measured with the ARO Submillimeter Telescope (SMT), while the J = 5 → 4 transition at 2 mm was observed with the ARO 12 m antenna on Kitt Peak. The AlOH spectra exhibit quite narrow line widths, indicating that the emission arises from within the dust acceleration zone of the central circumstellar outflow. From a radiative transfer analysis, the abundance of AlOH relative to H_2 was found to be 1x10-7 for a source size of 0.26'' or 22 R_*. AlOH is likely formed just beyond the photosphere via thermodynamic equilibrium chemistry, and then disappears due to dust condensation. The AlOH/AlO abundance ratio found in VY CMa is ˜17. LTE calculations predict the monohydroxides should be the major carriers of Al, Ca, and Mg in O-rich envelopes, as opposed to the oxides or halides.

Biomimetic Envelopes

OpenAIRE

Ilaria Mazzoleni

2010-01-01

How to translate the lessons learned from the analysis and observation of the animal world is the design learning experience presented in this article. Skin is a complex and incredibly sophisticated organ that performs various functions, including protection, sensation and heat and water regulation. In a similar way building envelopes serve multiple roles, as they are the interface between the building inhabitants and environmental elements. The resulting architectural building envelopes prot...

Major Histocompatibilty Complex-Restricted Adaptive Immune Responses to CT26 Colon Cancer Cell Line in Mixed Allogeneic Chimera.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, K W; Choi, B; Kim, Y M; Cho, C W; Park, H; Moon, J I; Choi, G-S; Park, J B; Kim, S J

2017-06-01

Although the induction of mixed allogeneic chimera shows promising clinical tolerance results in organ transplantation, its clinical relevance as an anti-cancer therapy is yet unknown. We introduced a mixed allogenic chimera setting with the use of a murine colon cancer cell line, CT26, by performing double bone marrow transplantation. We analyzed donor- and recipient-restricted anti-cancer T-cell responses, and phenotypes of subpopulations of T cells. The protocol involves challenging 1 × 10 5 cells of CT26 cells intra-hepatically on day 50 after bone marrow transplantation, and, by use of CT26 lysates and an H-2L d -restricted AH1 pentamer, flow cytometric analysis was performed to detect the generation of cancer-specific CD4 + and CD8 + T cells at various time points. We found that immunocompetence against tumors depends heavily on cancer-specific CD8 + T-cell responses in a major histocompatibility complex-restricted manner; the evidence was further supported by the increase of interferon-γ-secreting CD4 + T cells. Moreover, we demonstrated that during the effector immune response to CT26 cancer challenge, there was a presence of central memory cells (CD62L hi CCR7 + ) as well as effector memory cells (CD62L lo CCR7 - ). Moreover, mixed allogeneic chimeras (BALB/c to C56BL/6 or vice versa) showed similar or heightened immune responses to CT26 cells compared with that of wild-type mice. Our results suggest that the responses of primary immunocompetency and of pre-existing memory T cells against allogeneic cancer are sustained and preserved long-term in a mixed allogeneic chimeric environment. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A 3-D chimera grid embedding technique

Science.gov (United States)

Benek, J. A.; Buning, P. G.; Steger, J. L.

1985-01-01

A three-dimensional (3-D) chimera grid-embedding technique is described. The technique simplifies the construction of computational grids about complex geometries. The method subdivides the physical domain into regions which can accommodate easily generated grids. Communication among the grids is accomplished by interpolation of the dependent variables at grid boundaries. The procedures for constructing the composite mesh and the associated data structures are described. The method is demonstrated by solution of the Euler equations for the transonic flow about a wing/body, wing/body/tail, and a configuration of three ellipsoidal bodies.

Stable Chimeras and Independently Synchronizable Clusters

Science.gov (United States)

Cho, Young Sul; Nishikawa, Takashi; Motter, Adilson E.

2017-08-01

Cluster synchronization is a phenomenon in which a network self-organizes into a pattern of synchronized sets. It has been shown that diverse patterns of stable cluster synchronization can be captured by symmetries of the network. Here, we establish a theoretical basis to divide an arbitrary pattern of symmetry clusters into independently synchronizable cluster sets, in which the synchronization stability of the individual clusters in each set is decoupled from that in all the other sets. Using this framework, we suggest a new approach to find permanently stable chimera states by capturing two or more symmetry clusters—at least one stable and one unstable—that compose the entire fully symmetric network.

Icing modelling in NSMB with chimera overset grids

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pena, D. [Ècole Polytechnique de Montréal (Canada); ICUBE, Strasbourg University (France); Deloze, T.; Laurendeau, E. [Ècole Polytechnique de Montréal (Canada); Hoarau, Y. [ICUBE, Strasbourg University (France)

2015-03-10

In aerospace Engineering, the accurate simulation of ice accretion is a key element to increase flight safety and avoid accidents related to icing effects. The icing code developed in the NSMB solver is based on an Eulerian formulation for droplets tracking, an iterative Messinger model using a modified water runback scheme for ice thickness calculation and mesh deformation to track the ice/air interface through time. The whole process is parallelized with MPI and applied with chimera grids.

The contribution of human/non-human animal chimeras to stem cell research.

Science.gov (United States)

Levine, Sonya; Grabel, Laura

2017-10-01

Chimeric animals are made up of cells from two separate zygotes. Human/non-human animal chimeras have been used for a number of research purposes, including human disease modeling. Pluripotent stem cell (PSC) research has relied upon the chimera approach to examine the developmental potential of stem cells, to determine the efficacy of cell replacement therapies, and to establish a means of producing human organs. Based on ethical issues, this work has faced pushback from various sources including funding agencies. We discuss here the essential role these studies have played, from gaining a better understanding of human biology to providing a stepping stone to human disease treatments. We also consider the major ethical issues, as well as the current status of support for this work in the United States. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Numerical solution of the full potential equation using a chimera grid approach

Science.gov (United States)

Holst, Terry L.

1995-01-01

A numerical scheme utilizing a chimera zonal grid approach for solving the full potential equation in two spatial dimensions is described. Within each grid zone a fully-implicit approximate factorization scheme is used to advance the solution one interaction. This is followed by the explicit advance of all common zonal grid boundaries using a bilinear interpolation of the velocity potential. The presentation is highlighted with numerical results simulating the flow about a two-dimensional, nonlifting, circular cylinder. For this problem, the flow domain is divided into two parts: an inner portion covered by a polar grid and an outer portion covered by a Cartesian grid. Both incompressible and compressible (transonic) flow solutions are included. Comparisons made with an analytic solution as well as single grid results indicate that the chimera zonal grid approach is a viable technique for solving the full potential equation.

Building envelope

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Gibberd, Jeremy T

2009-01-01

Full Text Available for use in the building. This is done through photovoltaic and solar water heating panels and wind turbines. Ideally these are integrated in the design of the building envelope to improve the aesthetic quality of the building and minimise material... are naturally ventilated. Renewable energy The building envelope includes renewable energy generation such as photovoltaics, wind turbines and solar water heaters and 10% of the building’s energy requirements are generated from these sources. Views All...

Operating envelope to minimize probability of fractures in Zircaloy-2 pressure tubes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Azer, N.; Wong, H.

1994-01-01

The failure mode of primary concern with Candu pressure tubes is fast fracture of a through-wall axial crack, resulting from delayed hydride crack growth. The application of operating envelopes is demonstrated to minimize the probability of fracture in Zircaloy-2 pressure tubes based on Zr-2.5%Nb pressure tube experience. The technical basis for the development of the operating envelopes is also summarized. The operating envelope represents an area on the pressure versus temperature diagram within which the reactor may be operated without undue concern for pressure tube fracture. The envelopes presented address both normal operating conditions and the condition where a pressure tube leak has been detected. The examples in this paper are prepared to illustrate the methodology, and are not intended to be directly applicable to the operation of any specific reactor. The application of operating envelopes to minimized the probability of fracture in 80 mm diameter Zircaloy-2 pressure tubes has been discussed. Both normal operating and leaking pressure tube conditions have been considered. 3 refs., 4 figs

Motion-compensated optical coherence tomography using envelope-based surface detection and Kalman-based prediction

Science.gov (United States)

Irsch, Kristina; Lee, Soohyun; Bose, Sanjukta N.; Kang, Jin U.

2018-02-01

We present an optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging system that effectively compensates unwanted axial motion with micron-scale accuracy. The OCT system is based on a swept-source (SS) engine (1060-nm center wavelength, 100-nm full-width sweeping bandwidth, and 100-kHz repetition rate), with axial and lateral resolutions of about 4.5 and 8.5 microns respectively. The SS-OCT system incorporates a distance sensing method utilizing an envelope-based surface detection algorithm. The algorithm locates the target surface from the B-scans, taking into account not just the first or highest peak but the entire signature of sequential A-scans. Subsequently, a Kalman filter is applied as predictor to make up for system latencies, before sending the calculated position information to control a linear motor, adjusting and maintaining a fixed system-target distance. To test system performance, the motioncorrection algorithm was compared to earlier, more basic peak-based surface detection methods and to performing no motion compensation. Results demonstrate increased robustness and reproducibility, particularly noticeable in multilayered tissues, while utilizing the novel technique. Implementing such motion compensation into clinical OCT systems may thus improve the reliability of objective and quantitative information that can be extracted from OCT measurements.

Safeguards Envelope Progress FY10

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Metcalf, Richard

2010-01-01

The Safeguards Envelope is a strategy to determine a set of specific operating parameters within which nuclear facilities may operate to maximize safeguards effectiveness without sacrificing safety or plant efficiency. This paper details the additions to the advanced operating techniques that will be applied to real plant process monitoring (PM) data from the Idaho Chemical Processing Plant (ICPP). Research this year focused on combining disparate pieces of data together to maximize operating time with minimal downtime due to safeguards. A Chi-Square and Croiser's cumulative sum were both included as part of the new analysis. Because of a major issue with the original data, the implementation of the two new tests did not add to the existing set of tests, though limited one-variable optimization made a small increase in detection probability. Additional analysis was performed to determine if prior analysis would have caused a major security or safety operating envelope issue. It was determined that a safety issue would have resulted from the prior research, but that the security may have been increased under certain conditions.

The LHC on an envelope

CERN Multimedia

2007-01-01

The series of envelopes featuring CERN issued this summer was a huge success. The French postal services of the Pays de Gex will shortly be launching the second set of pre-paid envelopes issued in collaboration with the Laboratory this year, this time highlighting the LHC. Five thousand envelopes describing the accelerator’s capabilities will go on sale on 12 November, and some of the packs will even contain a small sample of the cables from the heart of the LHC magnets. The sets of ten pre-paid envelopes will tell you everything about CERN’s flagship accelerator, from its astounding technical capabilities to its spin-offs in the fields of technology and human resources. Each envelope will feature a different attribute or spin-off of the LHC. People will be invited to consult CERN’s public website for more detailed explanations if they want to know more. The new envelopes will be available from five post offices in the Pays ...

The ethics of killing human/great-ape chimeras for their organs: a reply to Shaw et al.

Science.gov (United States)

Palacios-González, César

2016-06-01

The aim of this paper is to critically examine David Shaw, Wybo Dondorp, and Guido de Wert's arguments in favour of the procurement of human organs from human/nonhuman-primate chimeras, specifically from great-ape/human chimeras. My main claim is that their arguments fail and are in need of substantial revision. To prove this I first introduce the topic, and then reconstruct Shaw et al.'s position and arguments. Next, I show that Shaw et al.: (1) failed to properly apply the subsidiarity and proportionality principles; (2) neglected species overlapping cases in their ethical assessment; (3) ignored the ethics literature on borderline persons; and (4) misunderstood McMahan's two-tiered moral theory. These mistakes render an important part of their conclusions either false or problematic to the point that they would no longer endorse them. Finally I will briefly mention a possible multipolar solution to the human organ shortage problem that would reduce the need for chimeras' organs.

EXOTIC METAL MOLECULES IN OXYGEN-RICH ENVELOPES: DETECTION OF AlOH (X1Σ+) IN VY CANIS MAJORIS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tenenbaum, E. D.; Ziurys, L. M.

2010-01-01

A new interstellar molecule, AlOH, has been detected toward the envelope of VY Canis Majoris (VY CMa), an oxygen-rich red supergiant. Three rotational transitions of AlOH were observed using the facilities of the Arizona Radio Observatory (ARO). The J = 9 → 8 and J = 7 → 6 lines at 1 mm were measured with the ARO Submillimeter Telescope, while the J = 5 → 4 transition at 2 mm was observed with the ARO 12 m antenna on Kitt Peak. The AlOH spectra exhibit quite narrow line widths of 16-23 km s -1 , as found for NaCl in this source, indicating that the emission arises from within the dust acceleration zone of the central circumstellar outflow. From a radiative transfer analysis, the abundance of AlOH relative to H 2 was found to be ∼1 x 10 -7 for a source size of 0.26'' or 22 R * . In contrast, AlCl was not detected with f ≤ 5 x 10 -8 . AlOH is likely formed just beyond the photosphere via thermodynamic equilibrium chemistry and then disappears due to dust condensation. The AlOH/AlO abundance ratio found in VY CMa is ∼17. Therefore, AlOH appears to be the dominant gas-phase molecular carrier of aluminum in this oxygen-rich shell. Local thermodynamic equilibrium calculations predict that the monohydroxides should be the major carriers of Al, Ca, and Mg in O-rich envelopes, as opposed to the oxides or halides. The apparent predominance of aluminum-bearing molecules in VY CMa may reflect proton addition processes in H-shell burning.

Navier-Stokes calculations on multi-element airfoils using a chimera-based solver

Science.gov (United States)

Jasper, Donald W.; Agrawal, Shreekant; Robinson, Brian A.

1993-01-01

A study of Navier-Stokes calculations of flows about multielement airfoils using a chimera grid approach is presented. The chimera approach utilizes structured, overlapped grids which allow great flexibility of grid arrangement and simplifies grid generation. Calculations are made for two-, three-, and four-element airfoils, and modeling of the effect of gap distance between elements is demonstrated for a two element case. Solutions are obtained using the thin-layer form of the Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes equations with turbulence closure provided by the Baldwin-Lomax algebraic model or the Baldwin-Barth one equation model. The Baldwin-Barth turbulence model is shown to provide better agreement with experimental data and to dramatically improve convergence rates for some cases. Recently developed, improved farfield boundary conditions are incorporated into the solver for greater efficiency. Computed results show good comparison with experimental data which include aerodynamic forces, surface pressures, and boundary layer velocity profiles.

Contribution of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells and Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells to Chimeras through Injection and Coculture of Embryos

OpenAIRE

Guo, Jitong; Wu, Baojiang; Li, Shuyu; Bao, Siqin; Zhao, Lixia; Hu, Shuxiang; Sun, Wei; Su, Jie; Dai, Yanfeng; Li, Xihe

2014-01-01

Blastocyst injection and morula aggregation are commonly used to evaluate stem cell pluripotency based on chimeric contribution of the stem cells. To assess the protocols for generating chimeras from stem cells, 8-cell mouse embryos were either injected or cocultured with mouse embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells, respectively. Although a significantly higher chimera rate resulted from blastocyst injection, the highest germline contribution resulted from injection of 8-cel...

Cold CO Gas in the Envelopes of FU Orionis-type Young Eruptive Stars

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kóspál, Á.; Ábrahám, P.; Moór, A. [Konkoly Observatory, Research Centre for Astronomy and Earth Sciences, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Konkoly-Thege Miklós út 15-17, 1121 Budapest (Hungary); Csengeri, T.; Güsten, R. [Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie, Auf dem Hügel 69, D-53121 Bonn (Germany); Henning, Th. [Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie, Königstuhl 17, D-69117 Heidelberg (Germany)

2017-02-20

FU Orionis-type objects (FUors) are young stellar objects experiencing large optical outbursts due to highly enhanced accretion from the circumstellar disk onto the star. FUors are often surrounded by massive envelopes, which play a significant role in the outburst mechanism. Conversely, the subsequent eruptions might gradually clear up the obscuring envelope material and drive the protostar on its way to become a disk-only T Tauri star. Here we present an APEX {sup 12}CO and {sup 13}CO survey of eight southern and equatorial FUors. We measure the mass of the gaseous material surrounding our targets, locate the source of the CO emission, and derive physical parameters for the envelopes and outflows, where detected. Our results support the evolutionary scenario where FUors represent a transition phase from envelope-surrounded protostars to classical T Tauri stars.

Thoughts on the chimera method of simulation of three-dimensional viscous flow

Science.gov (United States)

Steger, Joseph L.

1991-01-01

The chimera overset grid is reviewed and discussed relative to other procedures for simulating flow about complex configurations. It is argued that while more refinement of the technique is needed, current schemes are competitive to unstructured grid schemes and should ultimately prove more useful.

The LHC in an envelope

CERN Multimedia

2007-01-01

The series of envelopes featuring CERN issued this summer was a huge success. The French postal services of the Pays de Gex will shortly be launching the second set of pre-paid envelopes issued in collaboration with the Laboratory this year, this time highlighting the LHC. Five thousand envelopes describing the accelerator’s capabilities will go on sale on 12 November, and some of the packs will even contain a small sample of the cables from the heart of the LHC magnets. The sets of ten pre-paid envelopes will tell you everything about CERN’s flagship accelerator, from its astounding technical capabilities to its spin-offs in the fields of technology and human resources. Each envelope will feature a different attribute or spin-off of the LHC. People will be invited to consult CERN’s public website for more detailed explanations if they want to know more. The new envelopes will be available from five post offices in the Pays de Gex (Ferney-Voltaire, Prévessin...

Bone marrow cells from allogeneic bone marrow chimeras inhibit the generation of cytotoxic lymphocyte responses against both donor and recipient cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ogasawara, M.; Iwabuchi, K.; Good, R.A.; Onoe, K.

1988-01-01

When added to a mixed lymphocyte culture, bone marrow cells suppress the generation of CTL activity against H-2 Ag shared by the BM cells and the stimulator cells. These cells have been referred to as veto cells and are thought to play a role in maintaining self-tolerance. We analyzed the H-2 specificity of the suppression expressed by the veto cells from H-2 incompatible bone marrow chimeras, because lymphocytes of such chimeras had been shown to be tolerant to both donor and recipient Ag when tested by CTL responses. We found that the bone marrow cells of such chimeras which were featured by non-T and non-B cell characteristics inhibited the generation of CTL directed against either donor or recipient Ag, but not against third-party Ag. These observations suggest that in allogeneic chimeras the veto or veto-like cells alter the inhibitory specificity exhibited in the recipient microenvironment and indicate that these cells are directly involved in the induction and maintenance of self-tolerance

Defining the biomechanical and biological threshold of murine mild traumatic brain injury using CHIMERA (Closed Head Impact Model of Engineered Rotational Acceleration).

Science.gov (United States)

Namjoshi, Dhananjay R; Cheng, Wai Hang; Bashir, Asma; Wilkinson, Anna; Stukas, Sophie; Martens, Kris M; Whyte, Tom; Abebe, Zelalem A; McInnes, Kurt A; Cripton, Peter A; Wellington, Cheryl L

2017-06-01

CHIMERA (Closed Head Impact Model of Engineered Rotational Acceleration) is a recently described animal model of traumatic brain injury (TBI) that primarily produces diffuse axonal injury (DAI) characterized by white matter inflammation and axonal damage. CHIMERA was specifically designed to reliably generate a variety of TBI severities using precise and quantifiable biomechanical inputs in a nonsurgical user-friendly platform. The objective of this study was to define the lower limit of single impact mild TBI (mTBI) using CHIMERA by characterizing the dose-response relationship between biomechanical input and neurological, behavioral, neuropathological and biochemical outcomes. Wild-type male mice were subjected to a single CHIMERA TBI using six impact energies ranging from 0.1 to 0.7J, and post-TBI outcomes were assessed over an acute period of 14days. Here we report that single TBI using CHIMERA induces injury dose- and time-dependent changes in behavioral and neurological deficits, axonal damage, white matter tract microgliosis and astrogliosis. Impact energies of 0.4J or below produced no significant phenotype (subthreshold), 0.5J led to significant changes for one or more phenotypes (threshold), and 0.6 and 0.7J resulted in significant changes in all outcomes assessed (mTBI). We further show that linear head kinematics are the most robust predictors of duration of unconsciousness, severity of neurological deficits, white matter injury, and microgliosis following single TBI. Our data extend the validation of CHIMERA as a biofidelic animal model of DAI and establish working parameters to guide future investigations of the mechanisms underlying axonal pathology and inflammation induced by mechanical trauma. Crown Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Thymectomized, irradiated, and bone marrow-reconstituted chimeras have normal cytolytic T lymphocyte precursors but a defect in lymphokine production

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Duprez, V.; Maziarz, R.; Weinberger, O.; Burakoff, S.J.

1984-01-01

A model system has been developed to study extrathymic T cell differentiation; mice have been thymectomized, lethally irradiated, and reconstituted with bone marrow cells depleted of Thy-1 + cells. After 8 wk, the spleen cells of these athymic, bone marrow-reconstituted chimeras contain Thy-1 + precytolytic T lymphocytes (CTL) that are able to respond to antigen only if supernatant from Con A-activated T cells is added to culture. The phenotype of these pre-CTL is similar to that of thymocytes, suggesting that they may be immature T cells. Initial evaluation of the CTL repertoire of these athymic mice demonstrated that the CTL generated to trinitrophenyl-modified syngeneic cells are H-2-restricted, and that the CTL generated to alloantigens have many of the cross-reactivities observed in normal mice but not in nude mice. In this report, the authors demonstrate a helper T cell defect in these thymectomized chimeras. These chimeras lack an Ly-1 + helper cell required for thymocytes to differentiate to CTL. Further studies revealed that when spleen cells from these thymectomized chimeras were stimulated with Con A, they produced normal levels of interleukin 2. However, these splenocytes were defective in the production of another factor needed for CTL differentiation

Chimeras of Bet v 1 and Api g 1 reveal heterogeneous IgE responses in patients with birch pollen allergy.

Science.gov (United States)

Gepp, Barbara; Lengger, Nina; Bublin, Merima; Hemmer, Wolfgang; Breiteneder, Heimo; Radauer, Christian

2014-07-01

Characterization of IgE-binding epitopes of allergens and determination of their patient-specific relevance is crucial for the diagnosis and treatment of allergy. We sought to assess the contribution of specific surface areas of the major birch pollen allergen Bet v 1.0101 to binding IgE of individual patients. Four distinct areas of Bet v 1 representing in total 81% of its surface were grafted onto the scaffold of its homolog, Api g 1.0101, to yield the chimeras Api-Bet-1 to Api-Bet-4. The chimeras were expressed in Escherichia coli and purified. IgE binding of 64 sera from Bet v 1-sensitized subjects with birch pollen allergy was determined by using direct ELISA. Specificity was assessed by means of inhibition ELISA. rApi g 1.0101, Api-Bet-1, Api-Bet-2, Api-Bet-3, and Api-Bet-4 bound IgE from 44%, 89%, 80%, 78%, and 48% of the patients, respectively. By comparing the amount of IgE binding to the chimeras and to rApi g 1.0101, 81%, 70%, 75%, and 45% of the patients showed significantly enhanced IgE binding to Api-Bet-1, Api-Bet-2, Api-Bet-3, and Api-Bet-4, respectively. The minority (8%) of the sera revealed enhanced IgE binding exclusively to a single chimera, whereas 31% showed increased IgE binding to all 4 chimeras compared with rApi g 1.0101. The chimeras inhibited up to 70% of IgE binding to rBet v 1.0101, confirming the specific IgE recognition of the grafted regions. The Bet v 1-specific IgE response is polyclonal, and epitopes are spread across the entire Bet v 1 surface. Furthermore, the IgE recognition profile of Bet v 1 is highly patient specific. Copyright © 2014 The Authors. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

On the application of Chimera/unstructured hybrid grids for conjugate heat transfer

Science.gov (United States)

Kao, Kai-Hsiung; Liou, Meng-Sing

1995-01-01

A hybrid grid system that combines the Chimera overset grid scheme and an unstructured grid method is developed to study fluid flow and heat transfer problems. With the proposed method, the solid structural region, in which only the heat conduction is considered, can be easily represented using an unstructured grid method. As for the fluid flow region external to the solid material, the Chimera overset grid scheme has been shown to be very flexible and efficient in resolving complex configurations. The numerical analyses require the flow field solution and material thermal response to be obtained simultaneously. A continuous transfer of temperature and heat flux is specified at the interface, which connects the solid structure and the fluid flow as an integral system. Numerical results are compared with analytical and experimental data for a flat plate and a C3X cooled turbine cascade. A simplified drum-disk system is also simulated to show the effectiveness of this hybrid grid system.

Survival of allografts from bone marrow donors in temporary dog radiation chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vriesendorp, H.M.

Complete radiation chimeras accept indefinitely a skin or a kidney graft from the bone marrow (BM) donor. The advantages of this method of inducing graft acceptance are that it does not require the use of toxic post-operative immunosuppressive agents and that the immune reactivity against antigens other than the ones carried by the BM donor remains intact. The disadvantages of this approach are that supralethal total body irradiation (TBI) causes toxicity and that allogeneic BM cells can cause lethal Graft versus Host reactions. Attempts were made to diminish the significance of these disadvantages by using lower dose TBI and giving fewer BM cells. It is shown that, in dogs, 7.5 Gy TBI followed by 4 X 10 8 BM cells.kg -1 body weight of a DLA identical sibling leads to the development of complete radiation chimeras. The exclusive presence of donor type haemopoiesis can be demonstrated by determinations of 'informative' genetic markers, i.e., markers that show different genotypes in donor and recipient. (Auth.)

Generation of anti-idiotype scFv for pharmacokinetic measurement in lymphoma patients treated with chimera anti-CD22 antibody SM03.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Qi Zhao

Full Text Available Pre-clinical and clinical studies of therapeutic antibodies require highly specific reagents to examine their immune responses, bio-distributions, immunogenicity, and pharmacodynamics in patients. Selective antigen-mimicking anti-idiotype antibody facilitates the assessment of therapeutic antibody in the detection, quantitation and characterization of antibody immune responses. Using mouse specific degenerate primer pairs and splenocytic RNA, we generated an idiotype antibody-immunized phage-displayed scFv library in which an anti-idiotype antibody against the therapeutic chimera anti-CD22 antibody SM03 was isolated. The anti-idiotype scFv recognized the idiotype of anti-CD22 antibody and inhibited binding of SM03 to CD22 on Raji cell surface. The anti-idiotype scFv was subsequently classified as Ab2γ type. Moreover, our results also demonstrated firstly that the anti-idiotype scFv could be used for pharmacokinetic measurement of circulating residual antibody in lymphoma patients treated with chimera anti-CD22 monoclonal antibody SM03. Of important, the present approach could be easily adopted to generate anti-idiotype antibodies for therapeutic antibodies targeting membrane proteins, saving the cost and time for producing a soluble antigen.

In vivo differentiation of induced pluripotent stem cells into neural stem cells by chimera formation.

Science.gov (United States)

Choi, Hyun Woo; Hong, Yean Ju; Kim, Jong Soo; Song, Hyuk; Cho, Ssang Gu; Bae, Hojae; Kim, Changsung; Byun, Sung June; Do, Jeong Tae

2017-01-01

Like embryonic stem cells, induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) can differentiate into all three germ layers in an in vitro system. Here, we developed a new technology for obtaining neural stem cells (NSCs) from iPSCs through chimera formation, in an in vivo environment. iPSCs contributed to the neural lineage in the chimera, which could be efficiently purified and directly cultured as NSCs in vitro. The iPSC-derived, in vivo-differentiated NSCs expressed NSC markers, and their gene-expression pattern more closely resembled that of fetal brain-derived NSCs than in vitro-differentiated NSCs. This system could be applied for differentiating pluripotent stem cells into specialized cell types whose differentiation protocols are not well established.

HINTW, a W-chromosome HINT gene in chick, is expressed ubiquitously and is a robust female cell marker applicable in intraspecific chimera studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Nagai, Hiroki; Sezaki, Maiko; Bertocchini, Federica; Fukuda, Kimiko; Sheng, Guojun

2014-05-01

Grafting and transplantation experiments in embryology require proper distinction between host and donor tissues. For the avian model this has traditionally been achieved by using two closely related species (e.g., chick and quail) followed by species-specific antibody staining. Here, we show that an in situ hybridization probe against the HINTW gene is a robust and reliable marker for female-derived chicken cells. At all pre-circulation stages tested, all cells in female embryos, independently confirmed by PCR analysis, were strongly positive for HINTW, whereas all male embryos were negative. This probe is broadly applicable in intra-specific chick/chick chimera studies, and as a proof of principle, we utilized this probe to detect female cells in three experimental settings: (1) to mark female donor cells in a node transplantation assay; (2) to distinguish female cells in male/female twins generated by the Cornish pasty culture; and (3) to detect female half of the embryo in artificially generated bilateral gynandromorphs. A rapid, PCR based pre-screening step increases the efficiency of obtaining desired donor/host sex combination from 25% to 100%. For most avian chimera studies, this female-specific in situ probe is a low cost alternative to the commonly used QCPN antibody and to ubiquitous-GFP chicken strains which are not widely available to the research community. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Importance of M2-M3 loop in governing properties of genistein at the α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor inferred from α7/5-HT3A chimera.

Science.gov (United States)

Grønlien, Jens Halvard; Ween, Hilde; Thorin-Hagene, Kirsten; Cassar, Steven; Li, Jinhe; Briggs, Clark A; Gopalakrishnan, Murali; Malysz, John

2010-11-25

Genistein and 5-hydroxyindole (5-HI) potentiate the α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor current by primarily increasing peak amplitude, a property of type I α7 positive allosteric modulation. In this study, the effects of these two compounds were investigated at two different α7/5-HT(3) chimeras (chimera 1, comprising of extracellular α7 N-terminus fused to the remainder of 5-HT(3A), and chimera 2 containing an additional α7 encoded M2-M3 loop), and wild-type α7 and 5-HT(3A) receptors. Agonist-evoked responses, examined by expression of the chimeras in Xenopus laevis oocytes or HEK-293 cells, revealed that currents decayed slower and compounds {rank order: N-[(3R)-1-azabicyclo[2.2.2]oct-3-yl]-4-chlorobenzamide hydrochloride (PNU-282987)~2-(1,4-diazabicyclo[3.2.2]nonan-4-yl)-5-phenyl-1,3,4-oxadiazole (NS6784)>acetylcholine>choline} were more potent in chimera 2 than chimera 1 or α7 receptors. In chimera 2, genistein and 5-HI potentiated agonist-evoked responses (EC(50): 4-5 μM for genistein and 300-500 μM for 5-HI) and at higher concentrations evoked current directly consistent with ago-allosteric modulation. At chimera 1 and 5-HT(3A) receptors, neither compound directly evoked any current and 5-HI, only at chimera 1, was able to potentiate agonist-evoked responses. Genistein and 5-HI did not inhibit the binding of the α7 agonist [(3)H](1S,4S)-2,2-dimethyl-5-(6-phenylpyridazin-3-yl)-5-aza-2-azoniabicyclo[2.2.1] heptane ([(3)H]A-585539) to rat brain or chimera 2. In summary, this study supports the role of the M2-M3 loop being critical for the positive allosteric effect of genistein, but not 5-HI, and in agonist-evoked response fine-tuning. The identification of distinct α7 receptor modulatory sites offers unique opportunities for developing CNS therapeutics and understanding its pharmacology. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Artificial modulation of the gating behavior of a K+ channel in a KvAP-DNA chimera.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrew Wang

Full Text Available We present experiments where the gating behavior of a voltage-gated ion channel is modulated by artificial ligand binding. We construct a channel-DNA chimera with the KvAP potassium channel reconstituted in an artificial membrane. The channel is functional and the single channel ion conductivity unperturbed by the presence of the DNA. However, the channel opening probability vs. bias voltage, i.e., the gating, can be shifted considerably by the electrostatic force between the charges on the DNA and the voltage sensing domain of the protein. Different hybridization states of the chimera DNA thus lead to different response curves of the channel.

Automatic fitting of conical envelopes to free-form surfaces for flank CNC machining

OpenAIRE

Bo P.; Bartoň M.; Pottmann H.

2017-01-01

We propose a new algorithm to detect patches of free-form surfaces that can be well approximated by envelopes of a rotational cone under a rigid body motion. These conical envelopes are a preferable choice from the manufacturing point of view as they are, by-definition, manufacturable by computer numerically controlled (CNC) machining using the efficient flank (peripheral) method with standard conical tools. Our geometric approach exploits multi-valued vector fields that consist of vectors in...

Trade off study on different envelope detectors for B-mode imaging

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schlaikjer, Malene; Bagge, J. P.; Jensen, Jørgen Arendt

2003-01-01

sum of the real and imaginary signals. The four detectors were evaluated on in-vivo data acquired with a B-K Medical 2102 scanner interfaced to the sampling system RASMINE. Three data sets were acquired with three different center frequencies. Hundred images were acquired as the transducer was moved......Generation of B-mode images involves envelope detection of the RF-signals. Various detection algorithms are available. A trade off between performance, price, and complexity determines the choice of algorithm in an ultrasound system. A Hilbert Transform (HT) and a subsequent computation...... of the magnitude give the ideal envelope, but the approach (IDE) is expensive and complex. A rectifier (REC) is a simple, low-cost solution, but the performance is severely degraded (especially in dynamic imaging). This study has investigated the possibility of providing a detector with a complexity and cost close...

Cortical processing of dynamic sound envelope transitions.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Yi; Wang, Xiaoqin

2010-12-08

Slow envelope fluctuations in the range of 2-20 Hz provide important segmental cues for processing communication sounds. For a successful segmentation, a neural processor must capture envelope features associated with the rise and fall of signal energy, a process that is often challenged by the interference of background noise. This study investigated the neural representations of slowly varying envelopes in quiet and in background noise in the primary auditory cortex (A1) of awake marmoset monkeys. We characterized envelope features based on the local average and rate of change of sound level in envelope waveforms and identified envelope features to which neurons were selective by reverse correlation. Our results showed that envelope feature selectivity of A1 neurons was correlated with the degree of nonmonotonicity in their static rate-level functions. Nonmonotonic neurons exhibited greater feature selectivity than monotonic neurons in quiet and in background noise. The diverse envelope feature selectivity decreased spike-timing correlation among A1 neurons in response to the same envelope waveforms. As a result, the variability, but not the average, of the ensemble responses of A1 neurons represented more faithfully the dynamic transitions in low-frequency sound envelopes both in quiet and in background noise.

Differentiation and functional maturation of bone marrow-derived intestinal epithelial T cells expressing membrane T cell receptor in athymic radiation chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mosley, R.L.; Styre, D.; Klein, J.R.

1990-01-01

The thymus dependency of murine intestinal intraepithelial lymphocytes (IEL) was studied in an athymic F1----parent radiation chimera model. IEL, although not splenic or lymph node lymphocytes, from athymic chimeras displayed normal levels of cells bearing the class-specific T cell Ag, CD4 and CD8; the TCR-associated molecule, CD3; and the Thy-1 Ag. Moreover, two-color flow cytometric analyses of IEL from athymic mice demonstrated regulated expression of T cell Ag characteristic of IEL subset populations from thymus-bearing mice. In immunoprecipitation experiments, surface TCR-alpha beta or TCR-gamma delta were expressed on IEL, although not on splenic lymphocytes, from athymic chimeras. That IEL from athymic chimeras constituted a population of functionally mature effector cells activated in situ, similar to IEL from thymus-bearing mice, was demonstrated by the presence of CD3-mediated lytic activity of athymic lethally irradiated bone marrow reconstituted IEL. These data provide compelling evidence that intestinal T cells do not require thymic influence for maturation and development, and demonstrate that the microenvironment of the intestinal epithelium is uniquely adapted to regulate IEL differentiation

Resistance to infection with Eimeria vermiformis in mouse radiation chimeras is determined by donor bone-marrow cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Joysey, H.S.; Wakelin, D.; Rose, M.E.

1988-01-01

The course of infection with Eimeria vermiformis was determined in BALB/b, BALB/c, and C57BL/10ScSn (B10) mice and in radiation chimeras prepared from the H-2-compatible BALB/b and B10 mice. The BALB strains, irrespective of H-2 haplotype, were resistant, the B10 mice were susceptible, and in the chimeras infection was characterized by the genotype of the donated bone-marrow cells and not by the phenotype of the recipient. Thus, the genetic control of relative resistance or susceptibility to infection with this parasite is expressed through bone-marrow-derived cells

The Chimera Method of Simulation for Unsteady Three-Dimensional Viscous Flow

Science.gov (United States)

Meakin, Robert L.

1996-01-01

The Chimera overset grid method is reviewed and discussed in the context of a method of solution and analysis of unsteady three-dimensional viscous flows. The state of maturity of the various pieces of support software required to use the approach is discussed. A variety of recent applications of the method is presented. Current limitations of the approach are defined.

Suppressor cells in transplantation tolerance II. Maturation of suppressor cells in the bone marrow chimera

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tutschka, P.J.; Ki, P.F.; Beschorner, W.E.; Hess, A.D.; Santos, G.W.

1981-01-01

Histoincompatible bone marrow allografts were established in lethally irradiated rats. At various times after transplantation, the spleen cells were harvested, subjected to mixed lymphocyte cultures, and assayed for suppressor cells in vitro and in vivo by adoptive transfer studies. Alloantigen-nonspecific suppressor cells appeared in the chimera at 40 days after grafting, coinciding with the resolution of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). At 250 days the nonspecific suppressor cells were replaced by suppressor cells specifically suppressing donor-versus-host alloantigen responses. At 720 days suppressor cells could no longer be identified by in vitro methods but were identified by in vivo adoptive transfer of transplantation tolerance. After injection of host-type antigen into chimeras, the suppressor cells could be again demonstrated by in vitro methods

Suppressor cells in transplantation tolerance. II. maturation of suppressor cells in the bone marrow chimera

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tutschka, P.J.; Ki, P.F.; Beschorner, W.E.; Hess, A.D.; Santos, G.W.

1981-01-01

Histoincompatible bone marrow allografts were established in lethally irradiated rats. At various times after transplantation, the spleen cells were harvested, subjected to mixed lymphocyte cultures, and assayed for suppressor cells in vitro and in vivo by adoptive transfer studies. Alloantigen-nonspecific suppressor cells appeared in the chimera at 40 days after grafting, coinciding with the resolution of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). At 250 days the nonspecific suppressor cells were replaced by suppressor cells specifically suppressing donor-versus-host alloantigen responses. At 720 days suppressor cells could no longer be identified by in vitro methods but were identified by in vivo adoptive transfer of transplantation tolerance. After injection of host-type antigen into chimeras, the suppressor cells could be again demonstrated by in vitro methods

Relation between temporal envelope coding, pitch discrimination, and compression estimates in listeners with sensorineural hearing loss

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bianchi, Federica; Santurette, Sébastien; Fereczkowski, Michal

2015-01-01

Recent physiological studies in animals showed that noise-induced sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) increased the amplitude of envelope coding in single auditory-nerve fibers. The present study investigated whether SNHL in human listeners was associated with enhanced temporal envelope coding...... resolvability. For the unresolved conditions, all five HI listeners performed as good as or better than NH listeners with matching musical experience. Two HI listeners showed lower amplitude-modulation detection thresholds than NH listeners for low modulation rates, and one of these listeners also showed a loss......, whether this enhancement affected pitch discrimination performance, and whether loss of compression following SNHL was a potential factor in envelope coding enhancement. Envelope processing was assessed in normal-hearing (NH) and hearing-impaired (HI) listeners in a behavioral amplitude...

Radiosensitivity and chimera formation in Hibiscus syriacus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kwon, S.H.; Won, J.L.

1980-01-01

Radiosensitivity of gamma-irradiated Hibiscus syriacus and chimera formation were investigated. The lethal dose-50 percent with respect to seeding and cuttings was 15kR and 2 approximately 3 kR respectively, chlorophyll mutation rate of seeds irradiated with 15 kR being about 13 percent. The degree of chimeric leaf mutants from the buds by radiation treatment depends on the bud position of the branch. Buds of the middle part of V 1 branch seemed to be more multi-cellular condition than the upper and low part when irradiation was made. It is assumed that at least two primordia of V 2 branch were already differentiated from the V 1 branch in Hibiscus syriacus plant. (Author)

Programmable display of DNA-protein chimeras for controlling cell-hydrogel interactions via reversible intermolecular hybridization.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Zhaoyang; Li, Shihui; Chen, Niancao; Yang, Cheng; Wang, Yong

2013-04-08

Extensive studies have been recently carried out to achieve dynamic control of cell-material interactions primarily through physicochemical stimulation. The purpose of this study was to apply reversible intermolecular hybridization to program cell-hydrogel interactions in physiological conditions based on DNA-antibody chimeras and complementary oligonucleotides. The results showed that DNA oligonucleotides could be captured to and released from the immobilizing DNA-functionalized hydrogels with high specificity via DNA hybridization. Accordingly, DNA-antibody chimeras were captured to the hydrogels, successfully inducing specific cell attachment. The cell attachment to the hydrogels reached the plateau at approximately half an hour after the functionalized hydrogels and the cells were incubated together. The attached cells were rapidly released from the bound hydrogels when triggering complementary oligonucleotides were introduced to the system. However, the capability of the triggering complementary oligonucleotides in releasing cells was affected by the length of intermolecular hybridization. The length needed to be at least more than 20 base pairs in the current experimental setting. Notably, because the procedure of intermolecular hybridization did not involve any harsh condition, the released cells maintained the same viability as that of the cultured cells. The functionalized hydrogels also exhibited the potential to catch and release cells repeatedly. Therefore, this study demonstrates that it is promising to regulate cell-material interactions dynamically through the DNA-programmed display of DNA-protein chimeras.

Using a periclinal chimera to unravel layer-specific gene expression in plants.

Science.gov (United States)

Filippis, Ioannis; Lopez-Cobollo, Rosa; Abbott, James; Butcher, Sarah; Bishop, Gerard J

2013-09-01

Plant organs are made from multiple cell types, and defining the expression level of a gene in any one cell or group of cells from a complex mixture is difficult. Dicotyledonous plants normally have three distinct layers of cells, L1, L2 and L3. Layer L1 is the single layer of cells making up the epidermis, layer L2 the single cell sub-epidermal layer and layer L3 constitutes the rest of the internal cells. Here we show how it is possible to harvest an organ and characterise the level of layer-specific expression by using a periclinal chimera that has its L1 layer from Solanum pennellii and its L2 and L3 layers from Solanum lycopersicum. This is possible by measuring the level of the frequency of species-specific transcripts. RNA-seq analysis enabled the genome-wide assessment of whether a gene is expressed in the L1 or L2/L3 layers. From 13 277 genes that are expressed in both the chimera and the parental lines and with at least one polymorphism between the parental alleles, we identified 382 genes that are preferentially expressed in L1 in contrast to 1159 genes in L2/L3. Gene ontology analysis shows that many genes preferentially expressed in L1 are involved in cutin and wax biosynthesis, whereas numerous genes that are preferentially expressed in L2/L3 tissue are associated with chloroplastic processes. These data indicate the use of such chimeras and provide detailed information on the level of layer-specific expression of genes. © 2013 East Malling Research The Plant Journal © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Transfer to Intermediate Forms Following Concept Discrimination by Pigeons: Chimeras and Morphs

Science.gov (United States)

Ghosh, Natasha; Lea, S. E. G.; Noury, Malia

2004-01-01

Two experiments examined pigeons' generalization to intermediate forms following training of concept discriminations. In Experiment 1, the training stimuli were sets of images of dogs and cats, and the transfer stimuli were head/body chimeras, which humans tend to categorize more readily in terms of the head part rather than the body part. In…

Characterization of hemopoietic stem cell chimerism in antibody-facilitated bone marrow chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Francescutti, L.H.; Gambel, P.; Wegmann, T.G.

1985-01-01

The authors have previously described a model for bone marrow transplantation that involves preparation of the host with monoclonal antibody against class I or class II antigens instead of irradiation or cytotoxic drugs. This allows engraftment and subsequent repopulation of the host by donor tissue. They have previously reported on chimerism in the peripheral blood of P1----(P1 X P2)F1 animals. In this report, the authors describe the examination of the bone marrow and spleen stem cell chimerism of these antibody-facilitated (AF) chimeras, by determining, with an isozyme assay, the phenotype of methylcellulose colonies grown from stem cells. They have found a correlation between peripheral blood chimerism and the stem cell constitution of both spleen and bone marrow. The peripheral blood chimerism also correlates with the level of chimerism in macrophages derived from peritoneal exudate cells. These findings indicate that assaying the peripheral blood of such chimeras provides an excellent indication of the degree of chimerism at the stem cell level and stands in sharp contrast to the level of chimerism in certain lymphoid compartments

All the Universe in an envelope

CERN Multimedia

2007-01-01

Do you know which force is hidden in an envelope or how many billions of years old are the atoms it contains? You will find the answers to these (curious) questions in a post office in the Pays de Gex. The French postal services of the Pays de Gex are again issuing pre-paid envelopes in collaboration with CERN (see Bulletin No. 24/2006). The new series presents some of the concepts of modern physics in an amazing way by showing what you can learn about the Universe with a single envelope. Packets of ten pre-stamped envelopes, each carrying a statement on fundamental physics, will be on sale from 7 July onwards. To learn more about the physics issues presented on the envelopes, people are invited to go to the CERN Web site where they will find the explanations. Five thousand envelopes will be put on sale in July and five thousand more during the French "Fête de la science" in October. They will be available from five post offices in the Pays de Gex (F...

H-2-incompatible bone marrow chimeras produce donor-H-2-restricted Ly-2 suppressor T-cell factor(s)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Noguchi, M.; Onoe, K.; Ogasawara, M.; Iwabuchi, K.; Geng, L.; Ogasawara, K.; Good, R.A.; Morikawa, K.

1985-01-01

To study adaptive-differentiation phenomena of T lymphocytes, suppressor T-cell factors (TsF) produced by Ly-2+ splenic T cells from fully allogeneic mouse bone marrow chimeras were analyzed. AKR mice irradiated and reconstituted with B10 marrow cells (B10----AKR chimeras) produced an Ly-2+ TsF after hyperimmunization with sheep erythrocytes. The TsF suppressed primary antibody responses (to sheep erythrocytes) generated with spleen cells of mice of H-2b haplotype but not those of H-2k haplotype. Thus, this suppressor factor was donor-H-2-restricted. The immunoglobulin heavy chain variable region gene (Igh-V)-restricting element was not involved in this form of suppression. Similar results were obtained when TsF from B6----BALB/c and BALB/c----B6 chimeras were analyzed. The TsF from B10----AKR chimeras suppressed responses of B10.A(3R) and B10.A(5R) mice but not those of B10.A(4R). This finding showed that identity between the factor-producing cells and target spleen cells is required on the left-hand side of the E beta locus of the H-2 region and that the putative I-Jb locus is not involved in this form of suppression. The present results support the postulate that post-thymic differentiation in the presence of continued or repeated stimulation with antigen and donor-derived antigen-presenting cells generates donor-H-2-restricted T-cell clones that may predominate within the repertoire of the specific antigen being presented

Chaos in Dirac electron optics: Emergence of a relativistic quantum chimera

OpenAIRE

Xu, Hong-Ya; Wang, Guang-Lei; Huang, Liang; Lai, Ying-Cheng

2018-01-01

We uncover a remarkable quantum scattering phenomenon in two-dimensional Dirac material systems where the manifestations of both classically integrable and chaotic dynamics emerge simultaneously and are electrically controllable. The distinct relativistic quantum fingerprints associated with different electron spin states are due to a physical mechanism analogous to chiroptical effect in the presence of degeneracy breaking. The phenomenon mimics a chimera state in classical complex dynamical ...

[An improved algorithm for electrohysterogram envelope extraction].

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Yaosheng; Pan, Jie; Chen, Zhaoxia; Chen, Zhaoxia

2017-02-01

Extraction uterine contraction signal from abdominal uterine electromyogram(EMG) signal is considered as the most promising method to replace the traditional tocodynamometer(TOCO) for detecting uterine contractions activity. The traditional root mean square(RMS) algorithm has only some limited values in canceling the impulsive noise. In our study, an improved algorithm for uterine EMG envelope extraction was proposed to overcome the problem. Firstly, in our experiment, zero-crossing detection method was used to separate the burst of uterine electrical activity from the raw uterine EMG signal. After processing the separated signals by employing two filtering windows which have different width, we used the traditional RMS algorithm to extract uterus EMG envelope. To assess the performance of the algorithm, the improved algorithm was compared with two existing intensity of uterine electromyogram(IEMG) extraction algorithms. The results showed that the improved algorithm was better than the traditional ones in eliminating impulsive noise present in the uterine EMG signal. The measurement sensitivity and positive predictive value(PPV) of the improved algorithm were 0.952 and 0.922, respectively, which were not only significantly higher than the corresponding values(0.859 and 0.847) of the first comparison algorithm, but also higher than the values(0.928 and 0.877) of the second comparison algorithm. Thus the new method is reliable and effective.

Contrasting feature in the repopulation of host-type T cells in the spleens of F1----P and P----F1 radiation bone marrow chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hirokawa, K.; Sado, T.; Kubo, S.; Kamisaku, H.; Utsuyama, M.

1986-01-01

The regeneration and persistence of host- and donor-derived T cells were examined in the thymus as well as the spleen of mouse radiation bone marrow chimeras of two semiallogeneic combinations (F1----P, P----F1) with different Thy-1 markers on T cells of donor and host origins. An unexpectedly large number of host-type T cells were recovered from the spleens of F1----P chimeras, amounting to as high as 45 and 25% of total T cells at 6 and 14 weeks after bone marrow transplantation (BMT), respectively. To the contrary, the residual host-type T cells in the spleens of P----F1 chimeras disappeared quickly, resulting in less than 0.1% of total T cells at 6 weeks after BMT. It was also revealed that the number of host-type T cells in the spleens of F1----P chimeras decreased in proportion to increase of radiation dose given to the recipients

Anti-bacterial immunity to Listeria monocytogenes in allogeneic bone marrow chimera in mice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Onoe, K.; Good, R.A.; Yamamoto, K.

1986-01-01

Protection and delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) to the facultative intracellular bacterium Listeria monocytogenes (L.m.) were studied in allogeneic and syngeneic bone marrow chimeras. Lethally irradiated AKR (H-2k) mice were successfully reconstituted with marrow cells from C57BL/10 (B10) (H-2b), B10 H-2-recombinant strains or syngeneic mice. Irradiated AKR mice reconstituted with marrow cells from H-2-compatible B10.BR mice, [BR----AKR], as well as syngeneic marrow cells, [AKR----AKR], showed a normal level of responsiveness to the challenge stimulation with the listeria antigens when DTH was evaluated by footpad reactions. These mice also showed vigorous activities in acquired resistance to the L.m. By contrast, chimeric mice that had total or partial histoincompatibility at the H-2 determinants between donor and recipient, [B10----AKR], [B10.AQR----AKR], [B10.A(4R)----AKR], or [B10.A(5R)----AKR], were almost completely unresponsive in DTH and antibacterial immunity. However, when [B10----AKR] H-2-incompatible chimeras had been immunized with killed L.m. before challenge with live L.m., these mice manifested considerable DTH and resistance to L.m. These observations suggest that compatibility at the entire MHC between donor and recipient is required for bone marrow chimeras to be able to manifest DTH and protection against L.m. after a short-term immunization schedule. However, this requirement is overcome by a preceding or more prolonged period of immunization with L.m. antigens. These antigens, together with marrow-derived antigen-presenting cells, can then stimulate and expand cell populations that are restricted to the MHC (H-2) products of the donor type

Radiative transfer in spherical circumstellar dust envelopes. III. Dust envelope models of some well known infrared stars

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Apruzese, J.P.

1975-01-01

The radiative transfer techniques described elsewhere by the author have been employed to construct dust envelope models of several well known infrared stars. The resulting calculations indicate that the infrared emissivity of circumstellar grains generally must be higher than that which many calculations of small nonsilicate grains yield. This conclusion is dependent to some degree on the (unknown) size of the stellar envelopes considered, but is quite firm in the case of the spatially resolved envelope of IRC+10216. Further observations of the spatial distribution of the infrared radiation from stellar envelopes will be invaluable in deciphering the properties of the circumstellar grains

Genetic Interaction Maps in Escherichia coli Reveal Functional Crosstalk among Cell Envelope Biogenesis Pathways

Science.gov (United States)

Vlasblom, James; Gagarinova, Alla; Phanse, Sadhna; Graham, Chris; Yousif, Fouad; Ding, Huiming; Xiong, Xuejian; Nazarians-Armavil, Anaies; Alamgir, Md; Ali, Mehrab; Pogoutse, Oxana; Pe'er, Asaf; Arnold, Roland; Michaut, Magali; Parkinson, John; Golshani, Ashkan; Whitfield, Chris; Wodak, Shoshana J.; Moreno-Hagelsieb, Gabriel; Greenblatt, Jack F.; Emili, Andrew

2011-01-01

As the interface between a microbe and its environment, the bacterial cell envelope has broad biological and clinical significance. While numerous biosynthesis genes and pathways have been identified and studied in isolation, how these intersect functionally to ensure envelope integrity during adaptive responses to environmental challenge remains unclear. To this end, we performed high-density synthetic genetic screens to generate quantitative functional association maps encompassing virtually the entire cell envelope biosynthetic machinery of Escherichia coli under both auxotrophic (rich medium) and prototrophic (minimal medium) culture conditions. The differential patterns of genetic interactions detected among >235,000 digenic mutant combinations tested reveal unexpected condition-specific functional crosstalk and genetic backup mechanisms that ensure stress-resistant envelope assembly and maintenance. These networks also provide insights into the global systems connectivity and dynamic functional reorganization of a universal bacterial structure that is both broadly conserved among eubacteria (including pathogens) and an important target. PMID:22125496

Genetic interaction maps in Escherichia coli reveal functional crosstalk among cell envelope biogenesis pathways.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohan Babu

2011-11-01

Full Text Available As the interface between a microbe and its environment, the bacterial cell envelope has broad biological and clinical significance. While numerous biosynthesis genes and pathways have been identified and studied in isolation, how these intersect functionally to ensure envelope integrity during adaptive responses to environmental challenge remains unclear. To this end, we performed high-density synthetic genetic screens to generate quantitative functional association maps encompassing virtually the entire cell envelope biosynthetic machinery of Escherichia coli under both auxotrophic (rich medium and prototrophic (minimal medium culture conditions. The differential patterns of genetic interactions detected among > 235,000 digenic mutant combinations tested reveal unexpected condition-specific functional crosstalk and genetic backup mechanisms that ensure stress-resistant envelope assembly and maintenance. These networks also provide insights into the global systems connectivity and dynamic functional reorganization of a universal bacterial structure that is both broadly conserved among eubacteria (including pathogens and an important target.

Histopathological changes in exocrine glands of murine transplantation chimeras. II: Sjögren's syndrome-like exocrinopathy in mice without lupus nephritis. A model of primary Sjögren's syndrome

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ussing, Anne Phaff; Prause, J.U.; Sørensen, Inger

1992-01-01

Autoimmune disease, primary Sjögren's syndrome, transplantation chimeras, experimental model, exocrinopathy, inbred mouse strains......Autoimmune disease, primary Sjögren's syndrome, transplantation chimeras, experimental model, exocrinopathy, inbred mouse strains...

New type of chimera structures in a ring of bistable FitzHugh–Nagumo oscillators with nonlocal interaction

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shepelev, I.A., E-mail: igor_sar@li.ru; Vadivasova, T.E., E-mail: vadivasovate@yandex.ru; Bukh, A.V., E-mail: buh.andrey@yandex.ru; Strelkova, G.I., E-mail: strelkovagi@info.sgu.ru; Anishchenko, V.S., E-mail: wadim@info.sgu.ru

2017-04-25

We study the spatiotemporal dynamics of a ring of nonlocally coupled FitzHugh–Nagumo oscillators in the bistable regime. A new type of chimera patterns has been found in the noise-free network and when isolated elements do not oscillate. The region of existence of these structures has been explored when the coupling range and the coupling strength between the network elements are varied. - Highlights: • Dynamics of a ring of nonlocally coupled FitzHugh–Nagumo oscillators in the bistable regime is studied. • A new type of chimera patterns has been found in the noise-free network. • The region of existence of new structures has been explored when varying the coupling parameters.

Interaction of chimera states in a multilayered network of nonlocally coupled oscillators

Science.gov (United States)

Goremyko, M. V.; Maksimenko, V. A.; Makarov, V. V.; Ghosh, D.; Bera, B.; Dana, S. K.; Hramov, A. E.

2017-08-01

The processes of formation and evolution of chimera states in the model of a multilayered network of nonlinear elements with complex coupling topology are studied. A two-layered network of nonlocally intralayer-coupled Kuramoto-Sakaguchi phase oscillators is taken as the object of investigation. Different modes implemented in this system upon variation of the degree of interlayer interaction are demonstrated.

Creating a Lunar EVA Work Envelope

Science.gov (United States)

Griffin, Brand N.; Howard, Robert; Rajulu, Sudhakar; Smitherman, David

2009-01-01

A work envelope has been defined for weightless Extravehicular Activity (EVA) based on the Space Shuttle Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU), but there is no equivalent for planetary operations. The weightless work envelope is essential for planning all EVA tasks because it determines the location of removable parts, making sure they are within reach and visibility of the suited crew member. In addition, using the envelope positions the structural hard points for foot restraints that allow placing both hands on the job and provides a load path for reacting forces. EVA operations are always constrained by time. Tasks are carefully planned to ensure the crew has enough breathing oxygen, cooling water, and battery power. Planning first involves computers using a virtual work envelope to model tasks, next suited crew members in a simulated environment refine the tasks. For weightless operations, this process is well developed, but planetary EVA is different and no work envelope has been defined. The primary difference between weightless and planetary work envelopes is gravity. It influences anthropometry, horizontal and vertical mobility, and reaction load paths and introduces effort into doing "overhead" work. Additionally, the use of spacesuits other than the EMU, and their impacts on range of motion, must be taken into account. This paper presents the analysis leading to a concept for a planetary EVA work envelope with emphasis on lunar operations. There is some urgency in creating this concept because NASA has begun building and testing development hardware for the lunar surface, including rovers, habitats and cargo off-loading equipment. Just as with microgravity operations, a lunar EVA work envelope is needed to guide designers in the formative stages of the program with the objective of avoiding difficult and costly rework.

"American Chimera: The Ever-Present Domination of Whiteness, Patriarchy, and Capitalism…A Parable"

Science.gov (United States)

Montoya, Roberto; Matias, Cheryl E.; Nishi, Naomi W. M.; Sarcedo, Geneva L.

2016-01-01

In Greek mythology, the Chimera is a fire-breathing monster with three heads: one of a lion, one of a horned goat, and one of a powerful dragon. Of similar construction is the presence of three structures in US society, whiteness, patriarchy, and capitalism, which are overwhelmingly represented, valued, and espoused when examining areas of…

Prototype and Chimera-Type Galectins in Placentas with Spontaneous and Recurrent Miscarriages.

Science.gov (United States)

Unverdorben, Laura; Haufe, Thomas; Santoso, Laura; Hofmann, Simone; Jeschke, Udo; Hutter, Stefan

2016-04-28

Galectins are galactose binding proteins and, in addition, factors for a wide range of pathologies in pregnancy. We have analyzed the expression of prototype (gal-1, -2, -7, -10) and chimera-type (gal-3) galectins in the placenta in cases of spontaneous abortions (SPA) and recurrent abortions (RA) in the first trimester. Fifteen placental samples from healthy pregnancies were used as a control group. Nine placentas were examined for spontaneous abortions, and 12 placentas for recurrent abortions. For differentiation and evaluation of different cell types of galectin-expression in the decidua, immunofluorescence was used. For all investigated prototype galectins (gal-1, -2, -7, -10) in SPA and RA placenta trophoblast cells the expression is significantly decreased. In the decidua/extravillous trophoblast only gal-2 expression was significantly lowered, which could be connected to its role in angiogenesis. In trophoblasts in first-trimester placentas and in cases of SPA and RA, prototype galectins are altered in the same way. We suspect prototype galectins have a similar function in placental tissue because of their common biochemical structure. Expression of galectin 3 as a chimera type galectin was not found to be significantly altered in abortive placentas.

Recipient micro-environment does not dictate the Igh-V restriction specificity of T cell suppressor inducer factor (TsiF) from allogeneic bone marrow chimera in mice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Noguchi, M.; Ogasawara, M.; Iwabuchi, K.; Osgasawara, K.; Ishihara, T.; Good, R.A.; Morikawa, K.; Onoe, K.

1985-01-01

The authors have ascertained previously from a study of fully allogeneic irradiation chimeras in mice that the H-2 restriction of the suppressor factor (Ly-2 T suppressor factor) is determined by the post-thymic environment protected by the donor cells, rather than by the thymic environment of the recipient. In the present study, the author analyzed differentiation influences that determine the Igh restriction specificities of the suppressor inducer T cell factor(s) (TsiF) that are produced by Ly-1+ splenic T cells in fully allogeneic bone marrow chimeras in mice. AKR mice that had been lethally irradiated and reconstituted with B10 marrow cells, [B10----AKR] chimeras, produced Ly-1 TsiF after hyper-immunization with sheep erythrocytes (SRBC) which suppressed antigen--specifically the primary antibody responses to SRBC that were generated in cells of the same Igh-Vb haplotype of donor strain and not those generated in cells of the recipient Igh-Va type. Similar results were obtained when Ly-1 TsiF from [B6----BALB/c] and [BALB/c----B6] chimeras were analyzed. Furthermore, the Ly-1 TsiF from [BALB/c----B6] chimeras suppressed the primary antibody responses of both BALB/c [H-2d, Igh-Va, Igh-Ca] and BAB-14 (H-2d, Igh-Va, Igh-Cb), but not those of CAL-20 (H-2d, Igh-Vd, Igh-Cd). These results demonstrate clearly that the Ly-1 TsiF from allogeneic bone marrow chimeras are donor Igh-V-restricted and are not influenced by the recipient micro-environment, presumably that were provided by the thymuses of the recipient mice

14 CFR 29.87 - Height-velocity envelope.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... Category A engine isolation requirements, the height-velocity envelope for complete power failure must be... 14 Aeronautics and Space 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Height-velocity envelope. 29.87 Section 29... AIRWORTHINESS STANDARDS: TRANSPORT CATEGORY ROTORCRAFT Flight Performance § 29.87 Height-velocity envelope. (a...

Solitary Alfven wave envelopes and the modulational instability

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kennel, C.F.

1987-06-01

The derivative nonlinear Schroedinger equation describes the modulational instability of circularly polarized dispersive Alfven wave envelopes. It also may be used to determine the properties of finite amplitude localized stationary wave envelopes. Such envelope solitons exist only in conditions of modulational stability. This leaves open the question of whether, and if so, how, the modulational instability produces envelope solitons. 12 refs

Genetic Diversity of Koala Retroviral Envelopes

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Wenqin Xu

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Genetic diversity, attributable to the low fidelity of reverse transcription, recombination and mutation, is an important feature of infectious retroviruses. Under selective pressure, such as that imposed by superinfection interference, gammaretroviruses commonly adapt their envelope proteins to use alternative receptors to overcome this entry block. The first characterized koala retroviruses KoRV subgroup A (KoRV-A were remarkable in their absence of envelope genetic variability. Once it was determined that KoRV-A was present in all koalas in US zoos, regardless of their disease status, we sought to isolate a KoRV variant whose presence correlated with neoplastic malignancies. More than a decade after the identification of KoRV-A, we isolated a second subgroup of KoRV, KoRV-B from koalas with lymphomas. The envelope proteins of KoRV-A and KoRV-B are sufficiently divergent to confer the ability to bind and employ distinct receptors for infection. We have now obtained a number of additional KoRV envelope variants. In the present studies we report these variants, and show that they differ from KoRV-A and KoRV-B envelopes in their host range and superinfection interference properties. Thus, there appears to be considerable variation among KoRVs envelope genes suggesting genetic diversity is a factor following the KoRV-A infection process.

Infrared spectrophotometry and radiative transfer in optically thick circumstellar dust envelopes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Merrill, K.M.

1976-01-01

The Two-Micron Sky Survey of Neugebauer and Leighton and, more recently, the AFCRL Infrared Sky Survey of Walker and Price have detected numerous compact, isolated, bright infrared sources which are not identified with previously cataloged stars. Observations of many such objects suggest that extensive circumstellar dust envelopes modify the flux from a central source. The present investigations employ broad bandpass photometry at lambda lambda 1.65 μm to 12.5 μm and narrow bandpass spectrophotometry (Δ lambda/lambda approximately 0.015) at lambda lambda 2-4 μm and lambda lambda 8-13 μm to determine the properties of a large sample of such infrared sources. Infrared spectrophotometry can clearly differentiate between normal stars of spectral types M(''oxygen-rich'') and C (''carbon-rich'') on the basis of characteristic absorption bands arising in cool stellar atmospheres. Most of the 2 μ Sky Survey and many of the AFCRL Sky Survey sources appear to be stars of spectral types M and C which are differentiated from normal cool comparison stars only by the presence of extensive circumstellar dust envelopes. Due to the large optical depth of the envelopes, the flux from the star and from the dust cannot be simply separated. Hence solutions of radiative transfer through spherically symmetric envelopes of arbitrary optical depth were generated by a generalized computer code which employed opacities of real dust

14 CFR 27.87 - Height-speed envelope.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... applicable power failure condition in paragraph (b) of this section, a limiting height-speed envelope must be... 14 Aeronautics and Space 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Height-speed envelope. 27.87 Section 27.87... STANDARDS: NORMAL CATEGORY ROTORCRAFT Flight Performance § 27.87 Height-speed envelope. (a) If there is any...

Predicting speech intelligibility based on the signal-to-noise envelope power ratio after modulation-frequency selective processing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jørgensen, Søren; Dau, Torsten

2011-01-01

A model for predicting the intelligibility of processed noisy speech is proposed. The speech-based envelope power spectrum model has a similar structure as the model of Ewert and Dau [(2000). J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 108, 1181-1196], developed to account for modulation detection and masking data. The ...... process provides a key measure of speech intelligibility. © 2011 Acoustical Society of America.......A model for predicting the intelligibility of processed noisy speech is proposed. The speech-based envelope power spectrum model has a similar structure as the model of Ewert and Dau [(2000). J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 108, 1181-1196], developed to account for modulation detection and masking data....... The model estimates the speech-to-noise envelope power ratio, SNR env, at the output of a modulation filterbank and relates this metric to speech intelligibility using the concept of an ideal observer. Predictions were compared to data on the intelligibility of speech presented in stationary speech...

Approximate Waveforms for Extreme-Mass-Ratio Inspirals: The Chimera Scheme

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sopuerta, Carlos F; Yunes, Nicolás

2012-01-01

We describe a new kludge scheme to model the dynamics of generic extreme-mass-ratio inspirals (EMRIs; stellar compact objects spiraling into a spinning supermassive black hole) and their gravitational-wave emission. The Chimera scheme is a hybrid method that combines tools from different approximation techniques in General Relativity: (i) A multipolar, post-Minkowskian expansion for the far-zone metric perturbation (the gravitational waveforms) and for the local prescription of the self-force; (ii) a post-Newtonian expansion for the computation of the multipole moments in terms of the trajectories; and (iii) a BH perturbation theory expansion when treating the trajectories as a sequence of self-adjusting Kerr geodesies. The EMRI trajectory is made out of Kerr geodesic fragments joined via the method of osculating elements as dictated by the multipolar post-Minkowskian radiation-reaction prescription. We implemented the proper coordinate mapping between Boyer-Lindquist coordinates, associated with the Kerr geodesies, and harmonic coordinates, associated with the multipolar post-Minkowskian decomposition. The Chimera scheme is thus a combination of approximations that can be used to model generic inspirals of systems with extreme to intermediate mass ratios, and hence, it can provide valuable information for future space-based gravitational-wave observatories, like LISA, and even for advanced ground detectors. The local character in time of our multipolar post-Minkowskian self-force makes this scheme amenable to study the possible appearance of transient resonances in generic inspirals.

Pharmacological characterisation of α6β4* nicotinic acetylcholine receptors assembled from three different α6/α3 subunit chimeras in tsA201 cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Anne Bjørnskov; Hoestgaard-Jensen, Kirsten; Jensen, Anders A.

2014-01-01

by their inefficient functional expression in vitro. In the present study we have characterized and compared the pharmacological properties displayed by α6β4 and α6β4β3 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors assembled in tsA201 cells from the classical α6/α3 chimera (C1) and two novel α6/α3 chimeras (C6F223L and C16F223L...... should be made keeping the molecular modifications in the α6 surrogate subunits in mind, this study sheds light on the pharmacological properties of α6β4⁎ nicotinic acetylcholine receptors and demonstrates the applicability of the C6F223L and C16F223L chimeras for studies of these receptors....

Experiences when employing different alternatives for envelope upgrading

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peru Elguezabal Esnarrizaga

2015-06-01

Full Text Available The challenges of achieving the 2020 goals in terms of energy savings and improving efficiency are guiding numerous research initiatives looking for more insulated envelopes, dealing with thermal performance of insulation materials and envelope systems. Nevertheless, the envelope integrates within the building and this improvement on the insulation performance has to be properly adopted, taking into account the interrelation of main elements composing the overall system (facade, frame, slabs, openings, partitions etc., as well as side effects originated not only for new erected buildings, but specifically in renovation and retrofitting works. This paper describes real experiences when considering various options for upgrading the facade through the increase of the insulation capacity, starting from external overcladding prefabricated panels and ventilated facades, advancing to more sustainable low carbon systems and ending with even more highly insulated solutions employing aerogels. Lessons from these cases, where energy and hygrothermal assessments have being carried out, demonstrate the influence of the design and construction phases and the relevance of disregarded effects such as minor thermal bridges, uncontrolled craftsmanship on site, and moisture transfer for the different technologies considered. Finally, possible alternatives are provided to overcome some of the detected difficulties, such as combination with non-metallic structural components and building membranes, and being prepared for future challenges and new developments when these isolative elements are combined with other technologies, as for example, renewable energy harvesting devices.  

Envelope as Climate Negotiator: Evaluating adaptive building envelope's capacity to moderate indoor climate and energy

Science.gov (United States)

Erickson, James

Through manipulation of adaptable opportunities available within a given environment, individuals become active participants in managing personal comfort requirements, by exercising control over their comfort without the assistance of mechanical heating and cooling systems. Similarly, continuous manipulation of a building skin's form, insulation, porosity, and transmissivity qualities exerts control over the energy exchanged between indoor and outdoor environments. This research uses four adaptive response variables in a modified software algorithm to explore an adaptive building skin's potential in reacting to environmental stimuli with the purpose of minimizing energy use without sacrificing occupant comfort. Results illustrate that significant energy savings can be realized with adaptive envelopes over static building envelopes even under extreme summer and winter climate conditions; that the magnitude of these savings are dependent on climate and orientation; and that occupant thermal comfort can be improved consistently over comfort levels achieved by optimized static building envelopes. The resulting adaptive envelope's unique climate-specific behavior could inform designers in creating an intelligent kinetic aesthetic that helps facilitate adaptability and resiliency in architecture.

Replacement of the murine leukemia virus (MLV) envelope gene with a truncated HIV envelope gene in MLV generates a virus with impaired replication capacity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nack, Ursula; Schnierle, Barbara S.

2003-01-01

Murine leukemia virus (MLV) capsid particles can be efficiently pseudotyped with a variant of the HIV-1 envelope protein (Env) containing the surface glycoprotein gp120-SU and a carboxyl-terminally truncated transmembrane (TM) protein, with only seven cytoplasmic amino acids. MLV/HIV pseudotyped vector particles acquire the natural host tropism of HIV-1 and their entry is dependent on the presence of CD4 and an appropriate co-receptor on the surface of the target cell. We describe here the construction of chimeric MLV/HIV proviruses containing the truncated HIV envelope gene. The MLV/HIV provirus was generated by direct replacement of the MLV envelope gene with HIV Env coding sequences either with or without the additional inclusion of the woodchuck hepatitis virus posttranscriptional regulatory element (WPRE). Chimeric MLV/HIV particles could be generated from transfected 293T cells and were able to infect CD4/CXCR4-positive target cells. However, the second round of infection of target cells was severely impaired, despite the fact that the WPRE element enhanced the amount of viral mRNA detected. Viral particles released from infected cells showed reduced HIV Env incorporation, indicating that additional factors required for efficient replication of MLV/HIV pseudotyped viruses are missing

Injection envelope matching in storage rings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Minty, M.G.; Spence, W.L.

1995-05-01

The shape and size of the transverse phase space injected into a storage ring can be deduced from turn-by-turn measurements of the transient behavior of the beam envelope in the ring. Envelope oscillations at 2 x the β-tron frequency indicate the presence of a β-mismatch, while envelope oscillations at the β-tron frequency are the signature of a dispersion function mismatch. Experiments in injection optimization using synchrotron radiation imaging of the beam and a fast-gated camera at the SLC damping rings are reported

Envelope Protection for In-Flight Ice Contamination

Science.gov (United States)

Gingras, David R.; Barnhart, Billy P.; Ranaudo, Richard J.; Ratvasky, Thomas P.; Morelli, Eugene A.

2010-01-01

Fatal loss-of-control (LOC) accidents have been directly related to in-flight airframe icing. The prototype system presented in this paper directly addresses the need for real-time onboard envelope protection in icing conditions. The combinations of a-priori information and realtime aerodynamic estimations are shown to provide sufficient input for determining safe limits of the flight envelope during in-flight icing encounters. The Icing Contamination Envelope Protection (ICEPro) system has been designed and implemented to identify degradations in airplane performance and flying qualities resulting from ice contamination and provide safe flight-envelope cues to the pilot. Components of ICEPro are described and results from preliminary tests are presented.

Dominance and persistence of donor marrow in long-lived allogeneic radiation chimeras obtained with unmanipulated bone marrow

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pierpaoli, W.; Maestroni, G.J.M.

1983-01-01

Allogeneic, H-2-incompatible irradiation chimeras (H-2sup(d) → H-2sup(b)) constructed with normal, unmanipulated bone marrow and with marrow-derived factors live long and do not manifest a GvH disease. Their response to primary immunization is deficient but their alloreactivity is normal. This chimeric allotolerance cannot be passively transferred from chimeric donors to normal irradiated recipients. Passive transfer of both donor- or recipient-type immuno-competent T-cells into the chimeric mice does not lead to syngeneic reconstitution, rejection of the engrafted marrow or GvH disease, and the mice maintain permanently their chimerism. This new model demonstrates that chimerism is not eradicable in long-lived chimeras reconstituted with unmanipulated bone marrow, and that the bone marrow itself plays a dominant role in maintenance of chimerism. (Auth.)

Human iPSC Glial Mouse Chimeras Reveal Glial Contributions to Schizophrenia

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Windrem, Martha S.; Osipovitch, Mikhail; Liu, Zhengshan

2017-01-01

with childhood-onset SCZ. After neonatal implantation into myelin-deficient shiverer mice, SCZ GPCs showed premature migration into the cortex, leading to reduced white matter expansion and hypomyelination relative to controls. The SCZ glial chimeras also showed delayed astrocytic differentiation and abnormal...... astrocytic morphologies. When established in myelin wild-type hosts, SCZ glial mice showed reduced prepulse inhibition and abnormal behavior, including excessive anxiety, antisocial traits, and disturbed sleep. RNA-seq of cultured SCZ human glial progenitor cells (hGPCs) revealed disrupted glial...

Thermal Activated Envelope

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Foged, Isak Worre; Pasold, Anke

2015-01-01

The research studies the making of a responsive architectural envelope based on bi-materials. The bi-materials are organized according to a method that combines different isotropic metals and plastic into an active composite structure that reacts to temperature variations. Through an evolutionary......, environmental dynamics and occupancy dynamics. Lastly, a physical prototype is created, which illustrates the physical expression of the bi-materials and the problems related to manufacturing of these composite structures.......The research studies the making of a responsive architectural envelope based on bi-materials. The bi-materials are organized according to a method that combines different isotropic metals and plastic into an active composite structure that reacts to temperature variations. Through an evolutionary...

Periodic synchronization and chimera in conformist and contrarian oscillators

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, Hyunsuk

2014-06-01

We consider a system of phase oscillators that couple with both attractive and repulsive interaction under a pinning force and explore collective behavior of the system. The oscillators can be divided into two subpopulations of "conformist" oscillators with attractive interaction and "contrarian" ones with repulsive interaction. We find that the interplay between the pinning force and the opposite relationship of the conformist and contrarian oscillators induce peculiar dynamic states: periodic synchronization, breathing chimera, and fully pinned state depending on the fraction of the conformists. Using the Watanabe-Strogatz transformation, we reduce the dynamics into a low-dimensional one and find that the above dynamic states are generated from the reduced dynamics.

Chimeras and Mirages of the Golden Horde

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V.A. Ivanov

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The article examines the problem of so-called “imperial culture” of the Golden Horde. The author analyzes the archaeological material regarding it as a component of “imperial culture”. The author evaluates the quality of the archaeological material as well as the breadth and intensity of its distribution among the population of the Golden Horde and the neighboring tribal areas, which the author considers a priori as consumers of this “imperial culture”. Based on this analysis, the author concludes that in general, the concept of “imperial culture” of the Golden Horde is a chimera. In turn, the expected powerful effect of “imperial culture” of the Golden Horde in the culture of neighboring peoples of the Urals and the Volga region is a mirage created by the imagination of researchers.

Grid adaptation using chimera composite overlapping meshes

Science.gov (United States)

Kao, Kai-Hsiung; Liou, Meng-Sing; Chow, Chuen-Yen

1994-01-01

The objective of this paper is to perform grid adaptation using composite overlapping meshes in regions of large gradient to accurately capture the salient features during computation. The chimera grid scheme, a multiple overset mesh technique, is used in combination with a Navier-Stokes solver. The numerical solution is first converged to a steady state based on an initial coarse mesh. Solution-adaptive enhancement is then performed by using a secondary fine grid system which oversets on top of the base grid in the high-gradient region, but without requiring the mesh boundaries to join in any special way. Communications through boundary interfaces between those separated grids are carried out using trilinear interpolation. Application to the Euler equations for shock reflections and to shock wave/boundary layer interaction problem are tested. With the present method, the salient features are well-resolved.

Characteristics of macrophages in irradiation chimeras in mice reconstituted with allogeneic bone marrow cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yasumizu, R.; Onoe, K.; Iwabuchi, K.; Ogasawara, M.; Fujita, M.; Okuyama, H.; Good, R.A.; Morikawa, K.

1985-01-01

Biological and immunological characteristics of the reticuloendothelial system of irradiation bone marrow chimeric mice and macrophages collected from various tissue sources of the mice were studied. The chimeras showed comparable activities in carbon clearance to those of normal donor or recipient mice. The macrophages from spleen, lymph node, bone marrow, peripheral blood, liver, peritoneal cavity, and lung were demonstrated to be of donor marrow origin. They showed almost the same enzyme activities and phagocytic capability of sheep erythrocytes (SRBC, E), SRBC sensitized with anti-SRBC IgG (EA), and SRBC sensitized with anti-SRBC IgM and coated with complement (EAC) as those of normal mice. Proportions of Fc receptor and complement receptor-positive cells are also in normal range. In addition, the antigen-presenting capability of the chimeric macrophages for in vitro primary antibody response to SRBC was intact. These observations suggest that the reticuloendothelial system and macrophages of allogeneic bone marrow chimeras where donor and recipient differ at the major histocompatibility complex have no defect so far as could be ascertained by the present study

Analysis of Building Envelope Construction in 2003 CBECS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Winiarski, David W.; Halverson, Mark A.; Jiang, Wei

2007-06-01

The purpose of this analysis is to determine "typical" building envelope characteristics for buildings built after 1980. We address three envelope components in this paper - roofs, walls, and window area. These typical building envelope characteristics were used in the development of DOE’s Reference Buildings .

The South Carolina bridge-scour envelope curves

Science.gov (United States)

Benedict, Stephen T.; Feaster, Toby D.; Caldwell, Andral W.

2016-09-30

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the South Carolina Department of Transportation, conducted a series of three field investigations to evaluate historical, riverine bridge scour in the Piedmont and Coastal Plain regions of South Carolina. These investigations included data collected at 231 riverine bridges, which lead to the development of bridge-scour envelope curves for clear-water and live-bed components of scour. The application and limitations of the South Carolina bridge-scour envelope curves were documented in four reports, each report addressing selected components of bridge scour. The current investigation (2016) synthesizes the findings of these previous reports into a guidance manual providing an integrated procedure for applying the envelope curves. Additionally, the investigation provides limited verification for selected bridge-scour envelope curves by comparing them to field data collected outside of South Carolina from previously published sources. Although the bridge-scour envelope curves have limitations, they are useful supplementary tools for assessing the potential for scour at riverine bridges in South Carolina.

Bellerophon: a program to detect chimeric sequences in multiple sequence alignments.

Science.gov (United States)

Huber, Thomas; Faulkner, Geoffrey; Hugenholtz, Philip

2004-09-22

Bellerophon is a program for detecting chimeric sequences in multiple sequence datasets by an adaption of partial treeing analysis. Bellerophon was specifically developed to detect 16S rRNA gene chimeras in PCR-clone libraries of environmental samples but can be applied to other nucleotide sequence alignments. Bellerophon is available as an interactive web server at http://foo.maths.uq.edu.au/~huber/bellerophon.pl

Evolution of envelope solitons of ionization waves

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ohe, K.; Hashimoto, M.

1985-01-01

The time evolution of a particle-like envelope soliton of ionization waves in plasma was investigated theoretically. The hydrodynamic equations of one spatial dimension were solved and the nonlinear dispersion relation was derived. For the amplitude of the wave the nonlinear Schroedinger equation was derived. Its soliton solution was interpreted as the envelope soliton which was experimentally found. The damping rate of the envelope soliton was estimated. (D.Gy.)

Fragmentation studies with the CHIMERA detector at LNS in Catania: recent progress

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pagano, A.; Alderighi, M.; Amorini, F.; Anzalone, A.; Arena, L.; Auditore, L.; Baran, V.; Bartolucci, M.; Berceanu, I.; Blicharska, J.; Brzychczyk, J.; Bonasera, A.; Borderie, B.; Bougault, R.; Bruno, M.; Cardella, G.; Cavallaro, S.; Chatterjee, M.B.; Chbihi, A.; Cibor, J.; Colonna, M.; D' Agostino, M.; Dayras, R.; De Filippo, E.; Di Toro, M.; Gawlikowicz, W.; Geraci, E.; Giustolisi, F.; Grzeszczuk, A.; Guazzoni, P.; Guinet, D.; Iacono-Manno, M.; Kowalski, S.; La Guidara, E.; Lanzano, G.; Lanzalone, G.; Le Neindre, N.; Li, S.; Lo Nigro, S.; Maiolino, C.; Majka, Z.; Manfredi, G.; Paduszynski, T.; Papa, M.; Petrovici, M.; Piasecki, E.; Pirrone, S.; Planeta, R.; Politi, G.; Pop, A.; Porto, F.; Rivet, M.F.; Rosato, E.; Rizzo, F.; Russo, S.; Russotto, P.; Sassi, M.; Sechi, G.; Simion, V.; Siwek-Wilczynska, K.; Skwira, I.; Sperduto, M.L.; Steckmeyer, J.C.; Swiderski, L.; Trifiro, A.; Trimarchi, M.; Vannini, G.; Vigilante, M.; Wieleczko, J.P.; Wilczynski, J.; Wu, H.; Xiao, Z.; Zetta, L.; Zipper, W

2004-04-05

The new detector CHIMERA, in its final 4{pi} configuration, has been installed at Laboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS) in Catania in January 2003. Beams of different energies ranging from protons to Au ions were delivered by the Tandem and the Super Conducting Cyclotron for nuclear reaction studies, in agreement with the approval of the Scientific Advisory Committee of LNS. Recent experimental results confirm very low energy thresholds of the trigger (below 0.5 MeV/nucleon), ensured within a wide dynamical range. Good characteristics of identification of light charged particles and heavy fragments have been obtained by using three detection techniques: {delta}E-E, {delta}E-time of flight, and the Pulse-Shape discrimination method. We present results of recent analysis concerning the production of intermediate mass fragments (IMF) in semi-peripheral collisions. Our results combined with theoretical Boltzmann-Nordheim-Vlasov simulations clearly demonstrate the presence of very fast processes of IMF production in the overlapping region of the target and projectile nuclei during re-separation, i.e. in the time scale comparable with the collision time. Evidence for slower, sequential-like production of IMF's is also shown.

Fragmentation studies with the CHIMERA detector at LNS in Catania: recent progress

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pagano, A.; Alderighi, M.; Amorini, F.; Anzalone, A.; Arena, L.; Auditore, L.; Baran, V.; Bartolucci, M.; Berceanu, I.; Blicharska, J.; Brzychczyk, J.; Bonasera, A.; Borderie, B.; Bougault, R.; Bruno, M.; Cardella, G.; Cavallaro, S.; Chatterjee, M.B.; Chbihi, A.; Cibor, J.; Colonna, M.; D'Agostino, M.; Dayras, R.; De Filippo, E.; Di Toro, M.; Gawlikowicz, W.; Geraci, E.; Giustolisi, F.; Grzeszczuk, A.; Guazzoni, P.; Guinet, D.; Iacono-Manno, M.; Kowalski, S.; La Guidara, E.; Lanzano, G.; Lanzalone, G.; Le Neindre, N.; Li, S.; Lo Nigro, S.; Maiolino, C.; Majka, Z.; Manfredi, G.; Paduszynski, T.; Papa, M.; Petrovici, M.; Piasecki, E.; Pirrone, S.; Planeta, R.; Politi, G.; Pop, A.; Porto, F.; Rivet, M.F.; Rosato, E.; Rizzo, F.; Russo, S.; Russotto, P.; Sassi, M.; Sechi, G.; Simion, V.; Siwek-Wilczynska, K.; Skwira, I.; Sperduto, M.L.; Steckmeyer, J.C.; Swiderski, L.; Trifiro, A.; Trimarchi, M.; Vannini, G.; Vigilante, M.; Wieleczko, J.P.; Wilczynski, J.; Wu, H.; Xiao, Z.; Zetta, L.; Zipper, W.

2004-01-01

The new detector CHIMERA, in its final 4π configuration, has been installed at Laboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS) in Catania in January 2003. Beams of different energies ranging from protons to Au ions were delivered by the Tandem and the Super Conducting Cyclotron for nuclear reaction studies, in agreement with the approval of the Scientific Advisory Committee of LNS. Recent experimental results confirm very low energy thresholds of the trigger (below 0.5 MeV/nucleon), ensured within a wide dynamical range. Good characteristics of identification of light charged particles and heavy fragments have been obtained by using three detection techniques: ΔE-E, ΔE-time of flight, and the Pulse-Shape discrimination method. We present results of recent analysis concerning the production of intermediate mass fragments (IMF) in semi-peripheral collisions. Our results combined with theoretical Boltzmann-Nordheim-Vlasov simulations clearly demonstrate the presence of very fast processes of IMF production in the overlapping region of the target and projectile nuclei during re-separation, i.e. in the time scale comparable with the collision time. Evidence for slower, sequential-like production of IMF's is also shown

From the Outside-In: the Francisella tularensis Envelope and Virulence

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hannah M. Rowe

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Francisella tularensis is a highly-infectious bacterium that causes the rapid, and often lethal disease, tularemia. Many studies have been performed to identify and characterize the virulence factors that F. tularensis uses to infect a wide variety of hosts and host cell types, evade immune defenses, and induce severe disease and death. This review focuses on the virulence factors that are present in the F. tularensis envelope, including capsule, LPS, outer membrane, periplasm, inner membrane, secretion systems, and various molecules in each of aforementioned sub-compartments. Whereas no single bacterial molecule or molecular complex single-handedly controls F. tularensis virulence, we review here how diverse bacterial systems work in conjunction to subvert the immune system, attach to and invade host cells, alter phagosome/lysosome maturation pathways, replicate in host cells without being detected, inhibit apoptosis, and induce host cell death for bacterial release and infection of adjacent cells. Given that the F. tularensis envelope is the outermost layer of the bacterium, we highlight herein how many of these molecules directly interact with the host to promote infection and disease. These and future envelope studies are important to advance our collective understanding of F. tularensis virulence mechanisms and offer targets for future vaccine development efforts.

Bovine and human lactoferricin peptides: chimeras and new cyclic analogs.

Science.gov (United States)

Arias, Mauricio; McDonald, Lindsey J; Haney, Evan F; Nazmi, Kamran; Bolscher, Jan G M; Vogel, Hans J

2014-10-01

Lactoferrin (LF) is an important antimicrobial and immune regulatory protein present in neutrophils and most exocrine secretions of mammals. The antimicrobial activity of LF has been related to the presence of an antimicrobial peptide sequence, called lactoferricin (LFcin), located in the N-terminal region of the protein. The antimicrobial activity of bovine LFcin is considerably stronger than the human version. In this work, chimera peptides combining segments of bovine and human LFcin were generated in order to study their antimicrobial activity and mechanism of action. In addition, the relevance of the conserved disulfide bridge and the resulting cyclic structure of both LFcins were analyzed by using "click chemistry" and sortase A-catalyzed cyclization of the peptides. The N-terminal region of bovine LFcin (residues 17-25 of bovine LF) proved to be very important for the antimicrobial activity of the chimera peptides against E. coli, when combined with the C-terminal region of human LFcin. Similarly the cyclic bovine LFcin analogs generated by "click chemistry" and sortase A preserved the antimicrobial activity of the original peptide, showing the significance of these two techniques in the design of cyclic antimicrobial peptides. The mechanism of action of bovine LFcin and its active derived peptides was strongly correlated with membrane leakage in E. coli and up to some extent with the ability to induce vesicle aggregation. This mechanism was also preserved under conditions of high ionic strength (150 mM NaCl) illustrating the importance of these peptides in a more physiologically relevant system.

Formation of germline chimera Gaok chicken used circulation primordial germ cells (circulation PGCs fresh and thawed

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kostaman T

2014-03-01

Full Text Available Formation of germline chimeras by transfer of chicken primordial germ cells (PGCs is one of the effective techniques for preservation and regeneration of genetic resources in chickens. This study attempted to form germline chimeras of Gaok chicken buy purifying circulated PGCs of donor embryo before it is transferred to the recipient (White Leghorn chickens=WL and studied the ability of recipient embryo on survival in incubators, and hatchability. This study used 200 fertile eggs of Gaok and 90 fertile WL breed all of the eggs was incubated at 380C and 60% humidity in a portable incubator. PGCs-circulation of the blood collected Gaok embryos at stage 14-16 were taken from the dorsal aorta, and then purified by centrifugation method using nycodenz. PGCs-circulation results further purification frozen in liquid nitrogen before being transferred to the recipient embryo. The results showed that for the development of embryos transferred to the fresh circulation of PGCs-circulation as many as 25 cells can survive up to day 14, while one of the transferred of 50 and 100 cells into recipient embryos was hatched (10%. On the contrari recipient embryos that are transferred to the frozen PGCs-circulation the embryos development was shorter, and only survived until day 10th (treatment 25 cells, day 14th (treatment of 50 cells and day 17th (treatment of 100 cells. It is concluded that the amount of PGCs-circulation embryos transferred to the recipient is one factor that influence the success of the development germline chimeras.

Definition and means of maintaining the criticality detectors and alarms portion of the PFP safety envelope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

White, W.F.

1997-01-01

The Criticality Alarm System (CAS) provides continuous detection for high radiation (criticality) events and automatically initiates an evacuation signal to affected personnel. The Safety Envelope (SE) for PFP includes the necessary equipment and the required procedures to ensure the CAS is capable of performing its intended function. This document provides the definition and means of maintaining the SE for PFP related to the CAS. This document also identifies and provides a justification for those portions of the CAS excluded from the PFP Safety Envelope

Phytochrome regulates GTP-binding protein activity in the envelope of pea nuclei

Science.gov (United States)

Clark, G. B.; Memon, A. R.; Thompson, G. A. Jr; Roux, S. J.

1993-01-01

Three GTP-binding proteins with apparent molecular masses of 27, 28 and 30 kDa have been detected in isolated nuclei of etiolated pea plumules. After LDS-PAGE and transfer to nitrocellulose these proteins bind [32P]GTP in the presence of excess ATP, suggesting that they are monomeric G proteins. When nuclei are disrupted, three proteins co-purify with the nuclear envelope fraction and are highly enriched in this fraction. The level of [32P]GTP-binding for all three protein bands is significantly increased when harvested pea plumules are irradiated by red light, and this effect is reversed by far-red light. The results indicate that GTP-binding activity associated with the nuclear envelope of plant cells is photoreversibly regulated by the pigment phytochrome.

Characterizing Functional Domains for TIM-Mediated Enveloped Virus Entry

Science.gov (United States)

Moller-Tank, Sven; Albritton, Lorraine M.; Rennert, Paul D.

2014-01-01

ABSTRACT T-cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain 1 (TIM-1) and other TIM family members were recently identified as phosphatidylserine (PtdSer)-mediated virus entry-enhancing receptors (PVEERs). These proteins enhance entry of Ebola virus (EBOV) and other viruses by binding PtdSer on the viral envelope, concentrating virus on the cell surface, and promoting subsequent internalization. The PtdSer-binding activity of the immunoglobulin-like variable (IgV) domain is essential for both virus binding and internalization by TIM-1. However, TIM-3, whose IgV domain also binds PtdSer, does not effectively enhance virus entry, indicating that other domains of TIM proteins are functionally important. Here, we investigate the domains supporting enhancement of enveloped virus entry, thereby defining the features necessary for a functional PVEER. Using a variety of chimeras and deletion mutants, we found that in addition to a functional PtdSer-binding domain PVEERs require a stalk domain of sufficient length, containing sequences that promote an extended structure. Neither the cytoplasmic nor the transmembrane domain of TIM-1 is essential for enhancing virus entry, provided the protein is still plasma membrane bound. Based on these defined characteristics, we generated a mimic lacking TIM sequences and composed of annexin V, the mucin-like domain of α-dystroglycan, and a glycophosphatidylinositol anchor that functioned as a PVEER to enhance transduction of virions displaying Ebola, Chikungunya, Ross River, or Sindbis virus glycoproteins. This identification of the key features necessary for PtdSer-mediated enhancement of virus entry provides a basis for more effective recognition of unknown PVEERs. IMPORTANCE T-cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain 1 (TIM-1) and other TIM family members are recently identified phosphatidylserine (PtdSer)-mediated virus entry-enhancing receptors (PVEERs). These proteins enhance virus entry by binding the phospholipid, PtdSer, present on the viral

Grid adaption using Chimera composite overlapping meshes

Science.gov (United States)

Kao, Kai-Hsiung; Liou, Meng-Sing; Chow, Chuen-Yen

1993-01-01

The objective of this paper is to perform grid adaptation using composite over-lapping meshes in regions of large gradient to capture the salient features accurately during computation. The Chimera grid scheme, a multiple overset mesh technique, is used in combination with a Navier-Stokes solver. The numerical solution is first converged to a steady state based on an initial coarse mesh. Solution-adaptive enhancement is then performed by using a secondary fine grid system which oversets on top of the base grid in the high-gradient region, but without requiring the mesh boundaries to join in any special way. Communications through boundary interfaces between those separated grids are carried out using tri-linear interpolation. Applications to the Euler equations for shock reflections and to a shock wave/boundary layer interaction problem are tested. With the present method, the salient features are well resolved.

UNVEILING THE EVOLUTIONARY SEQUENCE FROM INFALLING ENVELOPES TO KEPLERIAN DISKS AROUND LOW-MASS PROTOSTARS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yen, Hsi-Wei [Institute of Astrophysics, National Taiwan University, Taipei 10617, Taiwan (China); Takakuwa, Shigehisa; Ohashi, Nagayoshi; Ho, Paul T. P., E-mail: hwyen@asiaa.sinica.edu.tw [Academia Sinica Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics, P.O. Box 23-141, Taipei 10617, Taiwan (China)

2013-07-20

We performed Submillimeter Array observations in the C{sup 18}O (2-1) emission line toward six Class 0 and I protostars to study rotational motions of their surrounding envelopes and circumstellar material on 100-1000 AU scales. C{sup 18}O (2-1) emission with intensity peaks located at the protostellar positions is detected toward all six sources. The rotational velocities of the protostellar envelopes as a function of radius were measured from the position-velocity diagrams perpendicular to the outflow directions passing through the protostellar positions. Two Class 0 sources, B335 and NGC 1333 IRAS 4B, show no detectable rotational motion, while L1527 IRS (Class 0/I) and L1448-mm (Class 0) exhibit rotational motions with radial profiles of V{sub rot}{proportional_to}r {sup -1.0{+-}0.2} and {proportional_to}r {sup -1.0{+-}0.1}, respectively. The other Class I sources, TMC-1A and L1489 IRS, exhibit the fastest rotational motions among the sample, and their rotational motions have flatter radial profiles of V{sub rot}{proportional_to}r {sup -0.6{+-}0.1} and {proportional_to}r {sup -0.5{+-}0.1}, respectively. The rotational motions with the radial dependence of {approx}r {sup -1} can be interpreted as rotation with a conserved angular momentum in a dynamically infalling envelope, while those with the radial dependence of {approx}r {sup -0.5} can be interpreted as Keplerian rotation. These observational results demonstrate categorization of rotational motions from infalling envelopes to Keplerian-disk formation. Models of the inside-out collapse where the angular momentum is conserved are discussed and compared with our observational results.

200 Area Deactivation Project Facilities Authorization Envelope Document

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

DODD, E.N.

2000-01-01

Project facilities as required by HNF-PRO-2701, Authorization Envelope and Authorization Agreement. The Authorization Agreements (AA's) do not identify the specific set of environmental safety and health requirements that are applicable to the facility. Therefore, the facility Authorization Envelopes are defined here to identify the applicable requirements. This document identifies the authorization envelopes for the 200 Area Deactivation

Does a voltage-sensitive outer envelope transport mechanism contributes to the chloroplast iron uptake?

Science.gov (United States)

Solti, Ádám; Kovács, Krisztina; Müller, Brigitta; Vázquez, Saúl; Hamar, Éva; Pham, Hong Diep; Tóth, Brigitta; Abadía, Javier; Fodor, Ferenc

2016-12-01

Based on the effects of inorganic salts on chloroplast Fe uptake, the presence of a voltage-dependent step is proposed to play a role in Fe uptake through the outer envelope. Although iron (Fe) plays a crucial role in chloroplast physiology, only few pieces of information are available on the mechanisms of chloroplast Fe acquisition. Here, the effect of inorganic salts on the Fe uptake of intact chloroplasts was tested, assessing Fe and transition metal uptake using bathophenantroline-based spectrophotometric detection and plasma emission-coupled mass spectrometry, respectively. The microenvironment of Fe was studied by Mössbauer spectroscopy. Transition metal cations (Cd 2+ , Zn 2+ , and Mn 2+ ) enhanced, whereas oxoanions (NO 3 - , SO 4 2- , and BO 3 3- ) reduced the chloroplast Fe uptake. The effect was insensitive to diuron (DCMU), an inhibitor of chloroplast inner envelope-associated Fe uptake. The inorganic salts affected neither Fe forms in the uptake assay buffer nor those incorporated into the chloroplasts. The significantly lower Zn and Mn uptake compared to that of Fe indicates that different mechanisms/transporters are involved in their acquisition. The enhancing effect of transition metals on chloroplast Fe uptake is likely related to outer envelope-associated processes, since divalent metal cations are known to inhibit Fe 2+ transport across the inner envelope. Thus, a voltage-dependent step is proposed to play a role in Fe uptake through the chloroplast outer envelope on the basis of the contrasting effects of transition metal cations and oxoaninons.

Newspaper coverage of human-pig chimera research: A qualitative study on select media coverage of scientific breakthrough.

Science.gov (United States)

Hagan-Brown, Abena; Favaretto, Maddalena; Borry, Pascal

2017-07-01

A recently published article in the journal Cell by scientists from the Salk Institute highlighted the successful integration of stem cells from humans in pig embryos. This marks the first step toward the goal of growing human organs in animals for transplantation. There has, to date, been no research performed on the presentation of this breakthrough in the media. We thus assessed early newspaper coverage of the chimera study, looking into the descriptions as well as the benefits and concerns raised by the study mentioned by newspaper sources. We looked at newspaper coverage of the human-pig chimera study in the two weeks after the publication of the article describing the breakthrough in Cell. This time period spanned from January 26 to February 9, 2017. We used the LexisNexis Academic database and identified articles using the search string "hybrid OR chimera AND pig OR human OR embryo." The relevant articles were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Two researchers openly coded the articles independently using themes that emerged from the raw texts. Our search yielded 31 unique articles, after extensive screening for relevance and duplicates. Through our analysis, we were able to identify several themes in a majority of the texts. Almost every article gave descriptive information about the chimera experiment with details about the study findings. All of the articles mentioned the benefits of the study, citing both immediate- and long-term goals, which included creating transplantable human organs, disease and drug development, and personalized medicine, among others. Some of the articles highlighted some ethical, social, and health concerns that the study and its future implications pose. Many of the articles also offered reassurances over the concerns brought up by the experiment. Our results appeared to align with similar research performed on the media representation of sensitive scientific news coverage. We also explored the inconsistency between

H-2 restriction specificity of T cells from H-2 incompatible radiation bone marrow chimeras: further evidence for the absence of crucial influence of the host/thymus environment on the generation of H-2 restricted TNP-specific T lymphocyte precursors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aizawa, S.; Sado, T.; Kubo, E.

1984-01-01

Experiments were conducted to answer the questions related to (a) the role played by the antigen-presenting cells (APCs) present within the thymus and (b) the effect of radiation dose to the recipients on the H-2 restriction profile of TNP-specific cytotoxic T lymphocyte precursors (CTLP) recovered from spleens and/or thymuses of H-2 incompatible radiation bone marrow chimeras (BMC). The H-2 restriction profile of intrathymically differentiating TNP-specific CTLPs was also analyzed in order to test an argument that donor-H-2 restricted CTLP detected in spleens of H-2 incompatible BMC were due to the extrathymically differentiated T cells under the influence of donor-derived lymphoreticular cells. The results indicated the following: (i) splenic T cells from B10(H-2b) leads to (B10(H-2b) leads to B10.BR(H-2k)) chimeras, which were constructed by irradiating primary B10 leads to B10.BR chimeras with 1100 R and reconstituting them with donor-type (B10) bone marrow cells as long as 8 months after their construction, manifested restriction specificities for both donor- and host-type H-2, (ii) splenic T cells from two types of (B10 X B10.BR)F1 leads to B10 chimeras which were reconstituted after exposure of the recipients with either 900 or 1100 R with donor-type bone marrow cells generated both donor- and host-H-2 restricted TNP-specific cytotoxic T cells, and (iii) the TNP-specific CTLPs present in the regenerating thymuses of B10.BR leads to B10 and (B10 X B10.BR)F1 leads to B10 chimeras 4 weeks after their construction were also shown to manifest both donor- and host-H-2 restriction specificities. The significance of these findings on the H-2 restriction profile of CTLP generated in BMCs is discussed

Xenogeneic chimera-Generated by blastocyst complementation-As a potential unlimited source of recipient-tailored organs.

Science.gov (United States)

Oldani, Graziano; Peloso, Andrea; Lacotte, Stéphanie; Meier, Raphael; Toso, Christian

2017-07-01

Blastocyst complementation refers to the injection of cells into a blastocyst. The technology allows for the creation of chimeric animals, which have the potential to be used as an unlimited source of organ donors. Pluripotent stem cells could be generated from a patient in need of a transplantation and injected into a large animal blastocyst (potentially of a pig), leading to the creation of organ(s) allowing immunosuppression-free transplantation. Various chimera combinations have already been generated, but one of the most recent steps leads to the creation of human-pig chimeras, which could be studied at an embryo stage. Although still far from clinical reality, the potential application is almost unlimited. The present review illustrates the historical steps of intra- and interspecific blastocyst complementation in rodents and large animals, specifically looking at its potential for generation of organ grafts. We also speculate on how it could change transplant indications, on its economic impact, and on the linked ethical concerns. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Insights into the Activity and Substrate Binding of Xylella fastidiosa Polygalacturonase by Modification of a Unique QMK Amino Acid Motif Using Protein Chimeras.

Science.gov (United States)

Warren, Jeremy G; Lincoln, James E; Kirkpatrick, Bruce C

2015-01-01

Polygalacturonases (EC 3.2.1.15) catalyze the random hydrolysis of 1, 4-alpha-D-galactosiduronic linkages in pectate and other galacturonans. Xylella fastidiosa possesses a single polygalacturonase gene, pglA (PD1485), and X. fastidiosa mutants deficient in the production of polygalacturonase are non-pathogenic and show a compromised ability to systemically infect grapevines. These results suggested that grapevines expressing sufficient amounts of an inhibitor of X. fastidiosa polygalacturonase might be protected from disease. Previous work in our laboratory and others have tried without success to produce soluble active X. fastidiosa polygalacturonase for use in inhibition assays. In this study, we created two enzymatically active X. fastidiosa / A. vitis polygalacturonase chimeras, AX1A and AX2A to explore the functionality of X. fastidiosa polygalacturonase in vitro. The AX1A chimera was constructed to specifically test if recombinant chimeric protein, produced in Escherichia coli, is soluble and if the X. fastidiosa polygalacturonase catalytic amino acids are able to hydrolyze polygalacturonic acid. The AX2A chimera was constructed to evaluate the ability of a unique QMK motif of X. fastidiosa polygalacturonase, most polygalacturonases have a R(I/L)K motif, to bind to and allow the hydrolysis of polygalacturonic acid. Furthermore, the AX2A chimera was also used to explore what effect modification of the QMK motif of X. fastidiosa polygalacturonase to a conserved RIK motif has on enzymatic activity. These experiments showed that both the AX1A and AX2A polygalacturonase chimeras were soluble and able to hydrolyze the polygalacturonic acid substrate. Additionally, the modification of the QMK motif to the conserved RIK motif eliminated hydrolytic activity, suggesting that the QMK motif is important for the activity of X. fastidiosa polygalacturonase. This result suggests X. fastidiosa polygalacturonase may preferentially hydrolyze a different pectic substrate or

Featured Image: Orbiting Stars Share an Envelope

Science.gov (United States)

Kohler, Susanna

2016-03-01

This beautiful series of snapshots from a simulation (click for a better look!) shows what happens when two stars in a binary system become enclosed in the same stellar envelope. In this binary system, one of the stars has exhausted its hydrogen fuel and become a red giant, complete with an expanding stellar envelope composed of hydrogen and helium. Eventually, the envelope expands so much that the companion star falls into it, where it releases gravitational potential energy into the common envelope. A team led by Sebastian Ohlmann (Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies and University of Wrzburg) recently performed hydrodynamic simulations of this process. Ohlmann and collaborators discovered that the energy release eventually triggers large-scale flow instabilities, which leads to turbulence within the envelope. This process has important consequences for how these systems next evolve (for instance, determining whether or not a supernova occurs!). You can check out the authors video of their simulated stellar inspiral below, or see their paper for more images and results from their study.CitationSebastian T. Ohlmann et al 2016 ApJ 816 L9. doi:10.3847/2041-8205/816/1/L9

Mechanism of protein import across the chloroplast envelope.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, K; Chen, X; Schnell, D J

2000-01-01

The development and maintenance of chloroplasts relies on the contribution of protein subunits from both plastid and nuclear genomes. Most chloroplast proteins are encoded by nuclear genes and are post-translationally imported into the organelle across the double membrane of the chloroplast envelope. Protein import into the chloroplast consists of two essential elements: the specific recognition of the targeting signals (transit sequences) of cytoplasmic preproteins by receptors at the outer envelope membrane and the subsequent translocation of preproteins simultaneously across the double membrane of the envelope. These processes are mediated via the co-ordinate action of protein translocon complexes in the outer (Toc apparatus) and inner (Tic apparatus) envelope membranes.

The performance of energy efficient residential building envelope systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Proskiw, G.

1996-08-01

The adequacy and durability of residential building envelope systems under actual field conditions were evaluated. A building envelope offers protection from cold, heat, moisture, wind and noise. However, they are exposed to thermal, structural, and moisture stresses and their performance can degrade over time. Envelope performance was evaluated at 20 energy efficient and four conventional, detached modern homes in Winnipeg, Canada. The three complementary measurement tools were wood moisture content (WMC) of framing members, thermographic examinations, and airtightness tests. As expected, energy efficient building envelope systems performed better than the conventional systems. No evidence of envelope degradation was found in any of the energy efficient houses. The building envelopes using polyethylene air barriers performed slightly better than those which used the airtight drywall approach, although both were considered satisfactory. WMC levels were a bit lower in the polyethylene-clad house. 1 ref., 1 tab.

Implementation of an Improved Safe Operating Envelope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Prime, Robyn; McIntyre, Mark; Reeves, David

2008-01-01

This paper is a continuation of the paper presented at IYNC 2004 on 'The Definition of a Safe Operating Envelope'. The current paper concentrates on the implementation process of the Safe Operating Envelope employed at the Point Lepreau Generating Station. (authors)

Application of the Chimera overlapped grid scheme to simulation of Space Shuttle ascent flows

Science.gov (United States)

Buning, Pieter G.; Parks, Steven J.; Chan, William M.; Renze, Kevin J.

1992-01-01

Several issues relating to the application of Chimera overlapped grids to complex geometries and flowfields are discussed. These include the addition of geometric components with different grid topologies, gridding for intersecting pieces of geometry, and turbulence modeling in grid overlap regions. Sample results are presented for transonic flow about the Space Shuttle launch vehicle. Comparisons with wind tunnel and flight measured pressures are shown.

Envelope enhancement increases cortical sensitivity to interaural envelope delays with acoustic and electric hearing.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Douglas E H Hartley

Full Text Available Evidence from human psychophysical and animal electrophysiological studies suggests that sensitivity to interaural time delay (ITD in the modulating envelope of a high-frequency carrier can be enhanced using half-wave rectified stimuli. Recent evidence has shown potential benefits of equivalent electrical stimuli to deaf individuals with bilateral cochlear implants (CIs. In the current study we assessed the effects of envelope shape on ITD sensitivity in the primary auditory cortex of normal-hearing ferrets, and profoundly-deaf animals with bilateral CIs. In normal-hearing animals, cortical sensitivity to ITDs (±1 ms in 0.1-ms steps was assessed in response to dichotically-presented i sinusoidal amplitude-modulated (SAM and ii half-wave rectified (HWR tones (100-ms duration; 70 dB SPL presented at the best-frequency of the unit over a range of modulation frequencies. In separate experiments, adult ferrets were deafened with neomycin administration and bilaterally-implanted with intra-cochlear electrode arrays. Electrically-evoked auditory brainstem responses (EABRs were recorded in response to bipolar electrical stimulation of the apical pair of electrodes with singe biphasic current pulses (40 µs per phase over a range of current levels to measure hearing thresholds. Subsequently, we recorded cortical sensitivity to ITDs (±800 µs in 80-µs steps within the envelope of SAM and HWR biphasic-pulse trains (40 µs per phase; 6000 pulses per second, 100-ms duration over a range of modulation frequencies. In normal-hearing animals, nearly a third of cortical neurons were sensitive to envelope-ITDs in response to SAM tones. In deaf animals with bilateral CI, the proportion of ITD-sensitive cortical neurons was approximately a fifth in response to SAM pulse trains. In normal-hearing and deaf animals with bilateral CI the proportion of ITD sensitive units and neural sensitivity to ITDs increased in response to HWR, compared with SAM stimuli

Safe operating envelope

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oliva, N [Ontario Hydro, Toronto, ON (Canada)

1997-12-01

Safe Operating Envelope is described representing: The outer bound of plant conditions within which day-to-day plant operation must be maintained in order to comply with regulatory requirements, associated safety design criteria and corporate nuclear safety goals. Figs.

Safe operating envelope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oliva, N.

1997-01-01

Safe Operating Envelope is described representing: The outer bound of plant conditions within which day-to-day plant operation must be maintained in order to comply with regulatory requirements, associated safety design criteria and corporate nuclear safety goals. Figs

Safeguards Envelope Progress FY08

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Robert Bean; Richard Metcalf; Aaron Bevill

2008-09-01

The Safeguards Envelope Project met its milestones by creating a rudimentary safeguards envelope, proving the value of the approach on a small scale, and determining the most appropriate path forward. The Idaho Chemical Processing Plant’s large cache of reprocessing process monitoring data, dubbed UBER Data, was recovered and used in the analysis. A probabilistic Z test was used on a Markov Monte Carlo simulation of expected diversion data when compared with normal operating data. The data regarding a fully transient event in a tank was used to create a simple requirement, representative of a safeguards envelope, whose impact was a decrease in operating efficiency by 1.3% but an increase in material balance period of 26%. This approach is operator, state, and international safeguards friendly and should be applied to future reprocessing plants. Future requirements include tank-to-tank correlations in reprocessing facilities, detailed operations impact studies, simulation inclusion, automated optimization, advanced statistics analysis, and multi-attribute utility analysis.

Safeguards Envelope Progress FY08

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bean, Robert; Metcalf, Richard; Bevill, Aaron

2008-01-01

The Safeguards Envelope Project met its milestones by creating a rudimentary safeguards envelope, proving the value of the approach on a small scale, and determining the most appropriate path forward. The Idaho Chemical Processing Plant's large cache of reprocessing process monitoring data, dubbed UBER Data, was recovered and used in the analysis. A probabilistic Z test was used on a Markov Monte Carlo simulation of expected diversion data when compared with normal operating data. The data regarding a fully transient event in a tank was used to create a simple requirement, representative of a safeguards envelope, whose impact was a decrease in operating efficiency by 1.3% but an increase in material balance period of 26%. This approach is operator, state, and international safeguards friendly and should be applied to future reprocessing plants. Future requirements include tank-to-tank correlations in reprocessing facilities, detailed operations impact studies, simulation inclusion, automated optimization, advanced statistics analysis, and multi-attribute utility analysis

Physical properties of the red giant envelopes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Maciel, W J [Instituto de Astronomia e Geofisico da Universidade de Sao Paulo (Brazil)

1978-12-01

In this work, several model envelopes are calculated for cool giant stars with mass loss due to the action of stellar radiation pressure on molecules and grains. Molecular profiles as well as average values of some physical parameters of the envelopes are obtained.

Implementation of an Improved Safe Operating Envelope

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Prime, Robyn; McIntyre, Mark [NB Power Nuclear, P.O. Box 600, Lepreau, NB (Canada); Reeves, David [Atlantic Nuclear Services Ltd., PO Box 1268 Fredericton, NB (Canada)

2008-07-01

This paper is a continuation of the paper presented at IYNC 2004 on 'The Definition of a Safe Operating Envelope'. The current paper concentrates on the implementation process of the Safe Operating Envelope employed at the Point Lepreau Generating Station. (authors)

An evolutionary-network model reveals stratified interactions in the V3 loop of the HIV-1 envelope.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Art F Y Poon

2007-11-01

Full Text Available The third variable loop (V3 of the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1 envelope is a principal determinant of antibody neutralization and progression to AIDS. Although it is undoubtedly an important target for vaccine research, extensive genetic variation in V3 remains an obstacle to the development of an effective vaccine. Comparative methods that exploit the abundance of sequence data can detect interactions between residues of rapidly evolving proteins such as the HIV-1 envelope, revealing biological constraints on their variability. However, previous studies have relied implicitly on two biologically unrealistic assumptions: (1 that founder effects in the evolutionary history of the sequences can be ignored, and; (2 that statistical associations between residues occur exclusively in pairs. We show that comparative methods that neglect the evolutionary history of extant sequences are susceptible to a high rate of false positives (20%-40%. Therefore, we propose a new method to detect interactions that relaxes both of these assumptions. First, we reconstruct the evolutionary history of extant sequences by maximum likelihood, shifting focus from extant sequence variation to the underlying substitution events. Second, we analyze the joint distribution of substitution events among positions in the sequence as a Bayesian graphical model, in which each branch in the phylogeny is a unit of observation. We perform extensive validation of our models using both simulations and a control case of known interactions in HIV-1 protease, and apply this method to detect interactions within V3 from a sample of 1,154 HIV-1 envelope sequences. Our method greatly reduces the number of false positives due to founder effects, while capturing several higher-order interactions among V3 residues. By mapping these interactions to a structural model of the V3 loop, we find that the loop is stratified into distinct evolutionary clusters. We extend our model to

Physical properties of the red giant envelopes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maciel, W.J.

1978-01-01

In this work, several model envelopes are calculated for cool giant stars with mass loss due to the action of stellar radiation pressure on molecules and grains. Molecular profiles as well as average values of some physical parameters of the envelopes are obtained [pt

Full waveform inversion using envelope-based global correlation norm

Science.gov (United States)

Oh, Ju-Won; Alkhalifah, Tariq

2018-05-01

To increase the feasibility of full waveform inversion on real data, we suggest a new objective function, which is defined as the global correlation of the envelopes of modelled and observed data. The envelope-based global correlation norm has the advantage of the envelope inversion that generates artificial low-frequency information, which provides the possibility to recover long-wavelength structure in an early stage. In addition, the envelope-based global correlation norm maintains the advantage of the global correlation norm, which reduces the sensitivity of the misfit to amplitude errors so that the performance of inversion on real data can be enhanced when the exact source wavelet is not available and more complex physics are ignored. Through the synthetic example for 2-D SEG/EAGE overthrust model with inaccurate source wavelet, we compare the performance of four different approaches, which are the least-squares waveform inversion, least-squares envelope inversion, global correlation norm and envelope-based global correlation norm. Finally, we apply the envelope-based global correlation norm on the 3-D Ocean Bottom Cable (OBC) data from the North Sea. The envelope-based global correlation norm captures the strong reflections from the high-velocity caprock and generates artificial low-frequency reflection energy that helps us recover long-wavelength structure of the model domain in the early stages. From this long-wavelength model, the conventional global correlation norm is sequentially applied to invert for higher-resolution features of the model.

Moisture accumulation in a building envelope

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Forest, T.W.; Checkwitch, K.

1988-09-01

In a large number of cases, the failure of a building envelope can be traced to the accumulation of moisture. In a cold winter climate, characteristic of the Canadian prairies, moisture is deposited in the structure by the movement of warm, moist air through the envelope. Tests on the moisture accumulation in a building envelope were initiated in a test house at an Alberta research facility during the 1987/88 heating season. The indoor moisture generation rate was measured and compared with the value inferred from the measured air infiltration rate. With the flue open, the moisture generation rate was approximately 5.5 kg/d of which 0.7 kg/d entered the building envelope; the remainder was exhausted through the flue. With the flue blocked, the moisture generation rate decreased to 3.4 kg/d, while the amount of moisture migrating through the envelope increased to 4.0 kg/d. The moisture accumulation in wall panels located on the north and south face of the test house was also monitored. Moisture was allowed to enter the wall cavity via a hole in the drywall. The fiberglass insulation remained dry throughout the test period. The moisture content of the exterior sheathing of the north panel increased to a maximum of 18% wt in the vicinity of the hole, but quickly dried when the ambient temperatures increased towards the end of the season. The south panel showed very little moisture accumlation due to the effects of solar radiation. 14 refs., 9 figs.

Impact of hyperbolicity on chimera states in ensembles of nonlocally coupled chaotic oscillators

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Semenova, N.; Anishchenko, V. [Department of Physics, Saratov State University, Astrakhanskaya Str. 83, 410012 Saratov (Russian Federation); Zakharova, A.; Schöll, E. [Institut für Theoretische Physik, TU Berlin, Hardenbergstraße 36, 10623 Berlin (Germany)

2016-06-08

In this work we analyse nonlocally coupled networks of identical chaotic oscillators. We study both time-discrete and time-continuous systems (Henon map, Lozi map, Lorenz system). We hypothesize that chimera states, in which spatial domains of coherent (synchronous) and incoherent (desynchronized) dynamics coexist, can be obtained only in networks of chaotic non-hyperbolic systems and cannot be found in networks of hyperbolic systems. This hypothesis is supported by numerical simulations for hyperbolic and non-hyperbolic cases.

A Spectral Algorithm for Envelope Reduction of Sparse Matrices

Science.gov (United States)

Barnard, Stephen T.; Pothen, Alex; Simon, Horst D.

1993-01-01

The problem of reordering a sparse symmetric matrix to reduce its envelope size is considered. A new spectral algorithm for computing an envelope-reducing reordering is obtained by associating a Laplacian matrix with the given matrix and then sorting the components of a specified eigenvector of the Laplacian. This Laplacian eigenvector solves a continuous relaxation of a discrete problem related to envelope minimization called the minimum 2-sum problem. The permutation vector computed by the spectral algorithm is a closest permutation vector to the specified Laplacian eigenvector. Numerical results show that the new reordering algorithm usually computes smaller envelope sizes than those obtained from the current standard algorithms such as Gibbs-Poole-Stockmeyer (GPS) or SPARSPAK reverse Cuthill-McKee (RCM), in some cases reducing the envelope by more than a factor of two.

Destructive effects of butyrate on the cell envelope of Helicobacter pylori.

Science.gov (United States)

Yonezawa, Hideo; Osaki, Takako; Hanawa, Tomoko; Kurata, Satoshi; Zaman, Cynthia; Woo, Timothy Derk Hoong; Takahashi, Motomichi; Matsubara, Sachie; Kawakami, Hayato; Ochiai, Kuniyasu; Kamiya, Shigeru

2012-04-01

Helicobacter pylori can be found in the oral cavity and is mostly detected by the use of PCR techniques. Growth of H. pylori is influenced by various factors in the mouth, such as the oral microflora, saliva and other antimicrobial substances, all of which make colonization of the oral cavity by H. pylori difficult. In the present study, we analysed the effect of the cell supernatant of a representative periodontal bacterium Porphyromonas gingivalis on H. pylori and found that the cell supernatant destroyed the H. pylori cell envelope. As P. gingivalis produces butyric acid, we focused our research on the effects of butyrate and found that it significantly inhibited the growth of H. pylori. H. pylori cytoplasmic proteins and DNA were detected in the extracellular environment after treatment with butyrate, suggesting that the integrity of the cell envelope was compromised and indicating that butyrate has a bactericidal effect on H. pylori. In addition, levels of extracellular H. pylori DNA increased following treatment with the cell supernatant of butyric acid-producing bacteria, indicating that the cell supernatant also has a bactericidal effect and that this may be due to its butyric acid content. In conclusion, butyric acid-producing bacteria may play a role in affecting H. pylori colonization of the oral cavity.

Histogenesis of mouse sarcomas induced by implantation of polyvinyl chloride film in radiation chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mojzhess, T.G.; Prigozhina, E.L.

1976-01-01

Sarcomas were induced in CBA/CBA-T6T6 mouse radiation chimeras by implantation of polyvinyl chloride film subcutaneously 13 months after irradiation and injection of donor's bone marrow. Of the 12 tumors studied 11 had the recipient's karyotype and one the donor's. The formation of connective-tissue cells from bone-marrow precursors thus, evidently does not play an essential role in the histogenesis of sarcomas induced by plastics

Moisture Dynamics in Building Envelopes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Peuhkuri, Ruut Hannele

2003-01-01

The overall scope of this Thesis "Moisture dynamics in building envelopes" has been to characterise how the various porous insulation materials investigated performed hygrothermally under conditions similar to those in a typical building envelope. As a result of the changing temperature...... part of the Thesis consists of a theory and literature review on the moisture storage and transport processes (Chapter 2), on the non-Fickian moisture transport (Chapter 3)and on the methods for determining the moisture properties (Chapter 4). In the second part, the conducted experimental work...

Moisture dynamics in building envelopes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Peuhkuri, R.

2003-07-01

The overall scope of this Thesis 'Moisture dynamics in building envelopes' has been to characterise how the various porous insulation materials investigated performed hygro thermally under conditions similar to those in a typical building envelope. As a result of the changing temperature and moisture conditions in the exterior weather and indoor climate the materials dynamically absorb and release moisture. The complexity of the impact of these conditions on the resulting moisture transport and content of the materials has been studied in this Thesis with controlled laboratory tests. (au)

Common envelope evolution

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Taam, Ronald E.; Ricker, Paul M.

2010-01-01

The common envelope phase of binary star evolution plays a central role in many evolutionary pathways leading to the formation of compact objects in short period systems. Using three dimensional hydrodynamical computations, we review the major features of this evolutionary phase, focusing on the

MHTGR thermal performance envelopes: Reliability by design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Etzel, K.T.; Howard, W.W.; Zgliczynski, J.B.

1992-05-01

This document discusses thermal performance envelopes which are used to specify steady-state design requirements for the systems of the Modular High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor to maximize plant performance reliability with optimized design. The thermal performance envelopes are constructed around the expected operating point accounting for uncertainties in actual plant as-built parameters and plant operation. The components are then designed to perform successfully at all points within the envelope. As a result, plant reliability is maximized by accounting for component thermal performance variation in the design. The design is optimized by providing a means to determine required margins in a disciplined and visible fashion

The limited role of recombination energy in common envelope removal

Science.gov (United States)

Grichener, Aldana; Sabach, Efrat; Soker, Noam

2018-05-01

We calculate the outward energy transport time by convection and photon diffusion in an inflated common envelope and find this time to be shorter than the envelope expansion time. We conclude therefore that most of the hydrogen recombination energy ends in radiation rather than in kinetic energy of the outflowing envelope. We use the stellar evolution code MESA and inject energy inside the envelope of an asymptotic giant branch star to mimic energy deposition by a spiraling-in stellar companion. During 1.7 years the envelope expands by a factor of more than 2. Along the entire evolution the convection can carry the energy very efficiently outwards, to the radius where radiative transfer becomes more efficient. The total energy transport time stays within several months, shorter than the dynamical time of the envelope. Had we included rapid mass loss, as is expected in the common envelope evolution, the energy transport time would have been even shorter. It seems that calculations that assume that most of the recombination energy ends in the outflowing gas might be inaccurate.

Quantitative analysis of the interaction between the envelope protein domains and the core protein of human hepatitis B virus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choi, Kyoung-Jae; Lim, Chun-Woo; Yoon, Moon-Young; Ahn, Byung-Yoon; Yu, Yeon Gyu

2004-01-01

Interaction between preformed nucleocapsids and viral envelope proteins is critical for the assembly of virus particles in infected cells. The pre-S1 and pre-S2 and cytosolic regions of the human hepatitis B virus envelope protein had been implicated in the interaction with the core protein of nucleocapsids. The binding affinities of specific subdomains of the envelope protein to the core protein were quantitatively measured by both ELISA and BIAcore assay. While a marginal binding was detected with the pre-S1 or pre-S2, the core protein showed high affinities to pre-S with apparent dissociation constants (K D app ) of 7.3 ± 0.9 and 8.2 ± 0.4 μM by ELISA and BIAcore assay, respectively. The circular dichroism analysis suggested that conformational change occurs in pre-S through interaction with core protein. These results substantiate the importance of specific envelope domains in virion assembly, and demonstrate that the interaction between viral proteins can be quantitatively measured in vitro

HIFISTARS Herschel/HIFI observations of VY Canis Majoris. Molecular-line inventory of the envelope around the largest known star

Science.gov (United States)

Alcolea, J.; Bujarrabal, V.; Planesas, P.; Teyssier, D.; Cernicharo, J.; De Beck, E.; Decin, L.; Dominik, C.; Justtanont, K.; de Koter, A.; Marston, A. P.; Melnick, G.; Menten, K. M.; Neufeld, D. A.; Olofsson, H.; Schmidt, M.; Schöier, F. L.; Szczerba, R.; Waters, L. B. F. M.

2013-11-01

Aims: The study of the molecular gas in the circumstellar envelopes of evolved stars is normally undertaken by observing lines of CO (and other species) in the millimetre-wave domain. In general, the excitation requirements of the observed lines are low at these wavelengths, and therefore these observations predominantly probe the cold outer envelope while studying the warm inner regions of the envelopes normally requires sub-millimetre (sub-mm) and far-infrared (FIR) observational data. Methods: To gain insight into the physical conditions and kinematics of the warm (100-1000 K) gas around the red hyper-giant VY CMa, we performed sensitive high spectral resolution observations of molecular lines in the sub-mm/FIR using the HIFI instrument of the Herschel Space Observatory. We observed CO, H2O, and other molecular species, sampling excitation energies from a few tens to a few thousand K. These observations are part of the Herschel guaranteed time key program HIFISTARS. Results: We detected the J = 6-5, J = 10-9, and J = 16-15 lines of 12CO and 13CO at ~100, 300, and 750 K above the ground state (and the 13CO J = 9-8 line). These lines are crucial for improving the modelling of the internal layers of the envelope around VY CMa. We also detected 27 lines of H2O and its isotopomers, and 96 lines of species such as NH3, SiO, SO, SO2 HCN, OH and others, some of them originating from vibrationally excited levels. Three lines were not unambiguously assigned. Conclusions: Our observations confirm that VY CMa's envelope must consist of two or more detached components. The molecular excitation in the outer layers is significantly lower than in the inner ones, resulting in strong self-absorbed profiles in molecular lines that are optically thick in this outer envelope, for instance, low-lying lines of H2O. Except for the most abundant species, CO and H2O, most of the molecular emission detected at these sub-mm/FIR wavelengths arise from the central parts of the envelope. The

Early dominance of irradiated host cells in the responder profiles of thymocytes from P → F1 radiation chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Korngold, R.; Bennink, J.R.; Doherty, P.C.

1981-01-01

The number of cells in the thymus of radiation (1000 rad) chimeras increases approximately 10-fold between 7 and 14 days after reconstitution with bone marrow. At least 50% of the cells in thymus on day 14 are of host origin and respond to virus presented in the context of both H-2/sup k/ and H-2/sup b/ when primed in irradiated, virus-infected (b x k)F 1 recipients. Strong CTL responses can be generated from thymocytes of donor origin on day 21. All evidence of a significant host thymocyte component has disappeared by day 28. The responsiveness of 14-day thymocytes is not abrogated by pretreatment of the mice used to make the chimeras with anti-thymocyte serum or by using doses of irradiation as high as 1200 rads to eliminate host components

The ChimERA project: Coupling mechanistic exposure and effect models into an integrated platform for ecological risk assessment

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Laender, de F.; Brink, van den P.J.; Janssen, C.R.; Guardo, Di A.

2014-01-01

Current techniques for the ecological risk assessment of chemical substances are often criticised for their lack of environmental realism, ecological relevance and methodological accuracy. ChimERA is a 3-year project (2013-2016), funded by Cefic's Long Range Initiative (LRI) that aims to address

Optimization of three-dimensional imaging on in vitro produced porcine blastocysts and chimeras for stem cell testing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Secher, Jan Ole Bertelsen; Freude, Kristine; Li, Rong

2015-01-01

. This is relevant for testing of presumed pluripotent stem cells. The gold standard for pluripotent stem cells is to test if the cells are capable of contributing to germline chimeras. Differential staining can be used to evaluate the possibility of chimeric contribution; if the cells are located in the area...

In vitro neoformation of grape chimeras (Vitis vinifera L.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sandrine Verdisson

1999-03-01

Full Text Available Difference in grape sensitivity to Botrytis cinerea attacks between cultivars was explained by differences in the epidermic tissue of the fruit. Therefore, this work was conducted to create a grape periclinal chimera, whose fruits would combine the skin of a Botrytis tolerant cultivar with a pulp of an another cultivar admitted its good organoleptic quality and productivity. In a first time, graftings of two cultivars (Chardonnay and Pinot noir were conducted in vitro on 5 different media supplemented with various plant growth regulators. Adventitious shoots were only observed on medium containing BAP and GA3 from a mixed callus structure after four weeks of darkness followed by a light/dark regime. In a second time, RAPD analysis, conducted on these plants, showed their chimerical characteristics.

Radiation-induced mouse chimeras: a cellular analysis of the major lymphoid compartments, factors affecting lethal graft versus host disease and host-tumor interactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Almaraz, R.

1981-01-01

The major lymphoid compartments of allogeneic bone marrow chimeras were evaluated for the extent of cell chimerism and distribution of Thy 1 and la bearing cells. These chimeras contained lymphoid cell primarily of donor origin. The bone marrow compartment was a mixture of host and donor origin cells. The distribution of Thy 1 and la bearing cells was similar as in normal mice. The effect of adult thymectomy alone or followed by whole-body irradiation and bone marrow reconstitution on the distribution of the Thy 1 positive cells was also investigated. Thymectomy with or without WBI and bone marrow reconstitution significantly lowered the number of Thy 1 bearing cells in the blood and spleen. The number of la bearing cells did not appear to be affected by thymectomy. The role of circulating lymphoid cells in the incidence of lethal graft versus host disease (GVHD) in radiation induced fully allogeneic mouse chimeras was studied. Mice reconstituted with allogeneic bone marrow from bled donors had a statistically lower incidence of GVHD than those reconstituted with bone marrow from unbled donors. Addition of mature peripheral lymphocytes from blood to the reconstituting bone marrow cells from bled donors reduplicated the high incidence of lethal GVHD. It was demonstrated that the bone marrow of mice not exsanguinated prior to harvesting of bone marrow contained significant numbers of peripheral contaminating cells in the harvested bone marrow. The role of suppressor cell elimination in resisting tumor growth was investigated using radiation induced mouse chimeras. Local effects of irradiation alone at the site of tumor inoculation could account for this lack of growth

Spectral Envelopes and Additive + Residual Analysis/Synthesis

Science.gov (United States)

Rodet, Xavier; Schwarz, Diemo

The subject of this chapter is the estimation, representation, modification, and use of spectral envelopes in the context of sinusoidal-additive-plus-residual analysis/synthesis. A spectral envelope is an amplitude-vs-frequency function, which may be obtained from the envelope of a short-time spectrum (Rodet et al., 1987; Schwarz, 1998). [Precise definitions of such an envelope and short-time spectrum (STS) are given in Section 2.] The additive-plus-residual analysis/synthesis method is based on a representation of signals in terms of a sum of time-varying sinusoids and of a non-sinusoidal residual signal [e.g., see Serra (1989), Laroche et al. (1993), McAulay and Quatieri (1995), and Ding and Qian (1997)]. Many musical sound signals may be described as a combination of a nearly periodic waveform and colored noise. The nearly periodic part of the signal can be viewed as a sum of sinusoidal components, called partials, with time-varying frequency and amplitude. Such sinusoidal components are easily observed on a spectral analysis display (Fig. 5.1) as obtained, for instance, from a discrete Fourier transform.

Preserving Envelope Efficiency in Performance Based Code Compliance

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Thornton, Brian A. [Thornton Energy Consulting (United States); Sullivan, Greg P. [Efficiency Solutions (United States); Rosenberg, Michael I. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Baechler, Michael C. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

2015-06-20

The City of Seattle 2012 Energy Code (Seattle 2014), one of the most progressive in the country, is under revision for its 2015 edition. Additionally, city personnel participate in the development of the next generation of the Washington State Energy Code and the International Energy Code. Seattle has pledged carbon neutrality by 2050 including buildings, transportation and other sectors. The United States Department of Energy (DOE), through Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) provided technical assistance to Seattle in order to understand the implications of one potential direction for its code development, limiting trade-offs of long-lived building envelope components less stringent than the prescriptive code envelope requirements by using better-than-code but shorter-lived lighting and heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) components through the total building performance modeled energy compliance path. Weaker building envelopes can permanently limit building energy performance even as lighting and HVAC components are upgraded over time, because retrofitting the envelope is less likely and more expensive. Weaker building envelopes may also increase the required size, cost and complexity of HVAC systems and may adversely affect occupant comfort. This report presents the results of this technical assistance. The use of modeled energy code compliance to trade-off envelope components with shorter-lived building components is not unique to Seattle and the lessons and possible solutions described in this report have implications for other jurisdictions and energy codes.

DATA ENVELOPMENT ANALYSIS OF BANKING SECTOR IN BANGLADESH

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Md. Rashedul Hoque

2012-05-01

Full Text Available Banking sector of Bangladesh is flourishing and contributing to its economy. In this aspect measuring efficiency is important. Data Envelopment Analysis technique is used for this purpose. The data are collected from the annual reports of twenty four different banks in Bangladesh. Data Envelopment Analysis is mainly of two types - constant returns to scale and variable returns to scale. Since this study attempts to maximize output, so the output oriented Data Envelopment Analysis is used. The most efficient bank is one that obtains the highest efficiency score.

Validating predictions from climate envelope models

Science.gov (United States)

Watling, J.; Bucklin, D.; Speroterra, C.; Brandt, L.; Cabal, C.; Romañach, Stephanie S.; Mazzotti, Frank J.

2013-01-01

Climate envelope models are a potentially important conservation tool, but their ability to accurately forecast species’ distributional shifts using independent survey data has not been fully evaluated. We created climate envelope models for 12 species of North American breeding birds previously shown to have experienced poleward range shifts. For each species, we evaluated three different approaches to climate envelope modeling that differed in the way they treated climate-induced range expansion and contraction, using random forests and maximum entropy modeling algorithms. All models were calibrated using occurrence data from 1967–1971 (t1) and evaluated using occurrence data from 1998–2002 (t2). Model sensitivity (the ability to correctly classify species presences) was greater using the maximum entropy algorithm than the random forest algorithm. Although sensitivity did not differ significantly among approaches, for many species, sensitivity was maximized using a hybrid approach that assumed range expansion, but not contraction, in t2. Species for which the hybrid approach resulted in the greatest improvement in sensitivity have been reported from more land cover types than species for which there was little difference in sensitivity between hybrid and dynamic approaches, suggesting that habitat generalists may be buffered somewhat against climate-induced range contractions. Specificity (the ability to correctly classify species absences) was maximized using the random forest algorithm and was lowest using the hybrid approach. Overall, our results suggest cautious optimism for the use of climate envelope models to forecast range shifts, but also underscore the importance of considering non-climate drivers of species range limits. The use of alternative climate envelope models that make different assumptions about range expansion and contraction is a new and potentially useful way to help inform our understanding of climate change effects on species.

Validating predictions from climate envelope models.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

James I Watling

Full Text Available Climate envelope models are a potentially important conservation tool, but their ability to accurately forecast species' distributional shifts using independent survey data has not been fully evaluated. We created climate envelope models for 12 species of North American breeding birds previously shown to have experienced poleward range shifts. For each species, we evaluated three different approaches to climate envelope modeling that differed in the way they treated climate-induced range expansion and contraction, using random forests and maximum entropy modeling algorithms. All models were calibrated using occurrence data from 1967-1971 (t1 and evaluated using occurrence data from 1998-2002 (t2. Model sensitivity (the ability to correctly classify species presences was greater using the maximum entropy algorithm than the random forest algorithm. Although sensitivity did not differ significantly among approaches, for many species, sensitivity was maximized using a hybrid approach that assumed range expansion, but not contraction, in t2. Species for which the hybrid approach resulted in the greatest improvement in sensitivity have been reported from more land cover types than species for which there was little difference in sensitivity between hybrid and dynamic approaches, suggesting that habitat generalists may be buffered somewhat against climate-induced range contractions. Specificity (the ability to correctly classify species absences was maximized using the random forest algorithm and was lowest using the hybrid approach. Overall, our results suggest cautious optimism for the use of climate envelope models to forecast range shifts, but also underscore the importance of considering non-climate drivers of species range limits. The use of alternative climate envelope models that make different assumptions about range expansion and contraction is a new and potentially useful way to help inform our understanding of climate change effects on

MAGNETIZATION OF CLOUD CORES AND ENVELOPES AND OTHER OBSERVATIONAL CONSEQUENCES OF RECONNECTION DIFFUSION

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lazarian, A.; Esquivel, A.; Crutcher, R.

2012-01-01

Recent observational results for magnetic fields in molecular clouds reviewed by Crutcher seem to be inconsistent with the predictions of the ambipolar diffusion theory of star formation. These include the measured decrease in mass to flux ratio between envelopes and cores, the failure to detect any self-gravitating magnetically subcritical clouds, the determination of the flat probability distribution function (PDF) of the total magnetic field strengths implying that there are many clouds with very weak magnetic fields, and the observed scaling B∝ρ 2/3 that implies gravitational contraction with weak magnetic fields. We consider the problem of magnetic field evolution in turbulent molecular clouds and discuss the process of magnetic field diffusion mediated by magnetic reconnection. For this process that we termed 'reconnection diffusion', we provide a simple physical model and explain that this process is inevitable in view of the present-day understanding of MHD turbulence. We address the issue of the expected magnetization of cores and envelopes in the process of star formation and show that reconnection diffusion provides an efficient removal of magnetic flux that depends only on the properties of MHD turbulence in the core and the envelope. We show that as the amplitude of turbulence as well as the scale of turbulent motions decrease from the envelope to the core of the cloud, the diffusion of the magnetic field is faster in the envelope. As a result, the magnetic flux trapped during the collapse in the envelope is being released faster than the flux trapped in the core, resulting in much weaker fields in envelopes than in cores, as observed. We provide simple semi-analytical model calculations which support this conclusion and qualitatively agree with the observational results. Magnetic reconnection is also consistent with the lack of subcritical self-gravitating clouds, with the observed flat PDF of field strengths, and with the scaling of field strength

MAGNETIZATION OF CLOUD CORES AND ENVELOPES AND OTHER OBSERVATIONAL CONSEQUENCES OF RECONNECTION DIFFUSION

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lazarian, A. [Astronomy Department, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706 (United States); Esquivel, A. [Instituto de Ciencias Nucleares, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, Apartado Postal 70-543, 04510 Mexico D.F. (Mexico); Crutcher, R. [Department of Astronomy, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1002 W. Green Street, Urbana, IL 61801 (United States)

2012-10-01

Recent observational results for magnetic fields in molecular clouds reviewed by Crutcher seem to be inconsistent with the predictions of the ambipolar diffusion theory of star formation. These include the measured decrease in mass to flux ratio between envelopes and cores, the failure to detect any self-gravitating magnetically subcritical clouds, the determination of the flat probability distribution function (PDF) of the total magnetic field strengths implying that there are many clouds with very weak magnetic fields, and the observed scaling B{proportional_to}{rho}{sup 2/3} that implies gravitational contraction with weak magnetic fields. We consider the problem of magnetic field evolution in turbulent molecular clouds and discuss the process of magnetic field diffusion mediated by magnetic reconnection. For this process that we termed 'reconnection diffusion', we provide a simple physical model and explain that this process is inevitable in view of the present-day understanding of MHD turbulence. We address the issue of the expected magnetization of cores and envelopes in the process of star formation and show that reconnection diffusion provides an efficient removal of magnetic flux that depends only on the properties of MHD turbulence in the core and the envelope. We show that as the amplitude of turbulence as well as the scale of turbulent motions decrease from the envelope to the core of the cloud, the diffusion of the magnetic field is faster in the envelope. As a result, the magnetic flux trapped during the collapse in the envelope is being released faster than the flux trapped in the core, resulting in much weaker fields in envelopes than in cores, as observed. We provide simple semi-analytical model calculations which support this conclusion and qualitatively agree with the observational results. Magnetic reconnection is also consistent with the lack of subcritical self-gravitating clouds, with the observed flat PDF of field strengths, and

Niemann-Pick C1 (NPC1/NPC1-like1 Chimeras Define Sequences Critical for NPC1’s Function as a Filovirus Entry Receptor

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Esther Ndungo

2012-10-01

Full Text Available We recently demonstrated that Niemann-Pick C1 (NPC1, a ubiquitous 13-pass cellular membrane protein involved in lysosomal cholesterol transport, is a critical entry receptor for filoviruses. Here we show that Niemann-Pick C1-like1 (NPC1L1, an NPC1 paralog and hepatitis C virus entry factor, lacks filovirus receptor activity. We exploited the structural similarity between NPC1 and NPC1L1 to construct and analyze a panel of chimeras in which NPC1L1 sequences were replaced with cognate sequences from NPC1. Only one chimera, NPC1L1 containing the second luminal domain (C of NPC1 in place of its own, bound to the viral glycoprotein, GP. This engineered protein mediated authentic filovirus infection nearly as well as wild-type NPC1, and more efficiently than did a minimal NPC1 domain C-based receptor recently described by us. A reciprocal chimera, NPC1 containing NPC1L1’s domain C, was completely inactive. Remarkably, an intra-domain NPC1L1-NPC1 chimera bearing only a ~130-amino acid N–terminal region of NPC1 domain C could confer substantial viral receptor activity on NPC1L1. Taken together, these findings account for the failure of NPC1L1 to serve as a filovirus receptor, highlight the central role of the luminal domain C of NPC1 in filovirus entry, and reveal the direct involvement of N–terminal domain C sequences in NPC1’s function as a filovirus receptor.

Transparent ceramic lamp envelope materials

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wei, G C [OSRAM SYLVANIA, 71 Cherry Hill Drive, Beverly, MA 01915 (United States)

2005-09-07

Transparent ceramic materials with optical qualities comparable to single crystals of similar compositions have been developed in recent years, as a result of the improved understanding of powder-processing-fabrication- sintering-property inter-relationships. These high-temperature materials with a range of thermal and mechanical properties are candidate envelopes for focused-beam, short-arc lamps containing various fills operating at temperatures higher than quartz. This paper reviews the composition, structure and properties of transparent ceramic lamp envelope materials including sapphire, small-grained polycrystalline alumina, aluminium oxynitride, yttrium aluminate garnet, magnesium aluminate spinel and yttria-lanthana. A satisfactory thermal shock resistance is required for the ceramic tube to withstand the rapid heating and cooling cycles encountered in lamps. Thermophysical properties, along with the geometry, size and thickness of a transparent ceramic tube, are important parameters in the assessment of its resistance to fracture arising from thermal stresses in lamps during service. The corrosive nature of lamp-fill liquid and vapour at high temperatures requires that all lamp components be carefully chosen to meet the target life. The wide range of new transparent ceramics represents flexibility in pushing the limit of envelope materials for improved beamer lamps.

Multidimensional simulations of core-collapse supernovae with CHIMERA

Science.gov (United States)

Lentz, Eric J.; Bruenn, S. W.; Yakunin, K.; Endeve, E.; Blondin, J. M.; Harris, J. A.; Hix, W. R.; Marronetti, P.; Messer, O. B.; Mezzacappa, A.

2014-01-01

Core-collapse supernovae are driven by a multidimensional neutrino radiation hydrodynamic (RHD) engine, and full simulation requires at least axisymmetric (2D) and ultimately symmetry-free 3D RHD simulation. We present recent and ongoing work with our multidimensional RHD supernova code CHIMERA to understand the nature of the core-collapse explosion mechanism and its consequences. Recently completed simulations of 12-25 solar mass progenitors(Woosley & Heger 2007) in well resolved (0.7 degrees in latitude) 2D simulations exhibit robust explosions meeting the observationally expected explosion energy. We examine the role of hydrodynamic instabilities (standing accretion shock instability, neutrino driven convection, etc.) on the explosion dynamics and the development of the explosion energy. Ongoing 3D and 2D simulations examine the role that simulation resolution and the removal of the imposed axisymmetry have in the triggering and development of an explosion from stellar core collapse. Companion posters will explore the gravitational wave signals (Yakunin et al.) and nucleosynthesis (Harris et al.) of our simulations.

The Crystal Structure of a Maxi/Mini-Ferritin Chimera Reveals Guiding Principles for the Assembly of Protein Cages

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cornell, Thomas A. [Department; Division; Srivastava, Yogesh [Genome; Jauch, Ralf [Genome Institute of Singapore, Singapore; Genome; Fan, Rongli [Division; Orner, Brendan P. [Department; Division

2017-07-19

Cage proteins assemble into nanoscale structures with large central cavities. They play roles, including those as virus capsids and chaperones, and have been applied to drug delivery and nanomaterials. Furthermore, protein cages have been used as model systems to understand and design protein quaternary structure. Ferritins are ubiquitous protein cages that manage iron homeostasis and oxidative damage. Two ferritin subfamilies have strongly similar tertiary structure yet distinct quaternary structure: maxi-ferritins normally assemble into 24-meric, octahedral cages with C-terminal E-helices centered around 4-fold symmetry axes, and mini-ferritins are 12-meric, tetrahedral cages with 3-fold axes defined by C-termini lacking E-domains. To understand the role E-domains play in ferritin quaternary structure, we previously designed a chimera of a maxi-ferritin E-domain fused to the C-terminus of a mini-ferritin. The chimera is a 12-mer cage midway in size between those of the maxi- and mini-ferritin. The research described herein sets out to understand (a) whether the increase in size over a typical mini-ferritin is due to a frozen state where the E-domain is flipped out of the cage and (b) whether the symmetrical preference of the E-domain in the maxi-ferritin (4-fold axis) overrules the C-terminal preference in the mini-ferritin (3-fold axis). With a 1.99 Å resolution crystal structure, we determined that the chimera assembles into a tetrahedral cage that can be nearly superimposed with the parent mini-ferritin, and that the E-domains are flipped external to the cage at the 3-fold symmetry axes.

The Role of Temporal Envelope and Fine Structure in Mandarin Lexical Tone Perception in Auditory Neuropathy Spectrum Disorder.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shuo Wang

Full Text Available Temporal information in a signal can be partitioned into temporal envelope (E and fine structure (FS. Fine structure is important for lexical tone perception for normal-hearing (NH listeners, and listeners with sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL have an impaired ability to use FS in lexical tone perception due to the reduced frequency resolution. The present study was aimed to assess which of the acoustic aspects (E or FS played a more important role in lexical tone perception in subjects with auditory neuropathy spectrum disorder (ANSD and to determine whether it was the deficit in temporal resolution or frequency resolution that might lead to more detrimental effects on FS processing in pitch perception. Fifty-eight native Mandarin Chinese-speaking subjects (27 with ANSD, 16 with SNHL, and 15 with NH were assessed for (1 their ability to recognize lexical tones using acoustic E or FS cues with the "auditory chimera" technique, (2 temporal resolution as measured with temporal gap detection (TGD threshold, and (3 frequency resolution as measured with the Q(10dB values of the psychophysical tuning curves. Overall, 26.5%, 60.2%, and 92.1% of lexical tone responses were consistent with FS cues for tone perception for listeners with ANSD, SNHL, and NH, respectively. The mean TGD threshold was significantly higher for listeners with ANSD (11.9 ms than for SNHL (4.0 ms; p < 0.001 and NH (3.9 ms; p < 0.001 listeners, with no significant difference between SNHL and NH listeners. In contrast, the mean Q(10dB for listeners with SNHL (1.8 ± 0.4 was significantly lower than that for ANSD (3.5 ± 1.0; p < 0.001 and NH (3.4 ± 0.9; p < 0.001 listeners, with no significant difference between ANSD and NH listeners. These results suggest that reduced temporal resolution, as opposed to reduced frequency selectivity, in ANSD subjects leads to greater degradation of FS processing for pitch perception.

On applications of chimera grid schemes to store separation

Science.gov (United States)

Cougherty, F. C.; Benek, J. A.; Steger, J. L.

1985-01-01

A finite difference scheme which uses multiple overset meshes to simulate the aerodynamics of aircraft/store interaction and store separation is described. In this chimera, or multiple mesh, scheme, a complex configuration is mapped using a major grid about the main component of the configuration, and minor overset meshes are used to map each additional component such as a store. As a first step in modeling the aerodynamics of store separation, two dimensional inviscid flow calculations were carried out in which one of the minor meshes is allowed to move with respect to the major grid. Solutions of calibrated two dimensional problems indicate that allowing one mesh to move with respect to another does not adversely affect the time accuracy of an unsteady solution. Steady, inviscid three dimensional computations demonstrate the capability to simulate complex configurations, including closely packed multiple bodies.

Novel Real-Time Flight Envelope Monitoring System, Phase II

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The proposed innovation is an aircraft flight envelope monitoring system that will provide real-time in-cockpit estimations of aircraft flight envelope boundaries....

Pre-paid envelopes commemorating the 2013 Open Days

CERN Multimedia

2013-01-01

The post office on CERN's Prévessin site is still selling pre-paid envelopes commemorating the 2013 Open Days. Hurry while stocks last!   The special envelopes, which are valid in France for non-priority letters weighing up to 20 grams, are ideal for your Christmas and New Year correspondence. A set of ten envelopes, each featuring a different image, costs € 8.70 or 10 CHF. The post office is located in Building 866 on the Prévessin site and is open Mondays to Thursdays from 9.30 a.m. to 12.30 p.m.

Efficient natural defense mechanisms against Listeria monocytogenes in T and B cell-deficient allogeneic bone marrow radiation chimeras. Preactivated macrophages are the main effector cells in an early phase after bone marrow transfer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roesler, J.; Groettrup, E.B.; Baccarini, M.; Lohmann-Mattes, M.L.

1989-01-01

Radiation chimeras in the early phase after bone marrow transplantation are a good model to study the efficiency of the body's nonspecific defense system represented by macrophages (M phi), polymorphonuclear cells (PMN), and NK cells. These cell types are present in large numbers in spleen and liver at that time, whereas the specific immune system represented by T and B cells is functionally deficient. We previously reported enhanced activities in vitro of M phi (and PMN) from recipient animals in an early phase after allogeneic bone marrow transfer. We here demonstrate that these activities result in enhanced spontaneous resistance against Listeria monocytogenes in vivo: CFU of L. monocytogenes in spleen and liver 48 h after infection were about 1 or 2 to 4 log steps less than in untreated control mice of donor or host haplotype. This enhanced resistance decreased over the 4-mo period after marrow transfer. Preactivated M phi were identified as the most important effector cells. Isolated from spleen and peritoneal cavity, they performed enhanced killing of phagocytosed Listeria. Such preactivated M phi occurred in recipient animals after transfer of allogeneic but not of syngeneic bone marrow. The precise mechanism of M phi activation in the allogeneic radiation chimera in the complete absence of any detectable T cell function is not clear at present. However, these preactivated M phi display an important protective effect against L. monocytogenes: chimeras could eliminate Listeria without acquisition of positive delayed-type sensitivity when infected with 10(3) bacteria. An inoculum of 5 . 10(3) L. monocytogenes resulted either in prolonged survival compared with normal mice of the recipient haplotype or in definitive survival accompanied by a positive delayed-type sensitivity

Proteomic Analysis Reveals the Leaf Color Regulation Mechanism in Chimera Hosta "Gold Standard" Leaves.

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Juanjuan; Zhang, Jinzheng; Zhao, Qi; Liu, Yuelu; Chen, Sixue; Guo, Hongliang; Shi, Lei; Dai, Shaojun

2016-03-08

Leaf color change of variegated leaves from chimera species is regulated by fine-tuned molecular mechanisms. Hosta "Gold Standard" is a typical chimera Hosta species with golden-green variegated leaves, which is an ideal material to investigate the molecular mechanisms of leaf variegation. In this study, the margin and center regions of young and mature leaves from Hosta "Gold Standard", as well as the leaves from plants after excess nitrogen fertilization were studied using physiological and comparative proteomic approaches. We identified 31 differentially expressed proteins in various regions and development stages of variegated leaves. Some of them may be related to the leaf color regulation in Hosta "Gold Standard". For example, cytosolic glutamine synthetase (GS1), heat shock protein 70 (Hsp70), and chloroplastic elongation factor G (cpEF-G) were involved in pigment-related nitrogen synthesis as well as protein synthesis and processing. By integrating the proteomics data with physiological results, we revealed the metabolic patterns of nitrogen metabolism, photosynthesis, energy supply, as well as chloroplast protein synthesis, import and processing in various leaf regions at different development stages. Additionally, chloroplast-localized proteoforms involved in nitrogen metabolism, photosynthesis and protein processing implied that post-translational modifications were crucial for leaf color regulation. These results provide new clues toward understanding the mechanisms of leaf color regulation in variegated leaves.

Global Envelope Tests for Spatial Processes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Myllymäki, Mari; Mrkvička, Tomáš; Grabarnik, Pavel

2017-01-01

Envelope tests are a popular tool in spatial statistics, where they are used in goodness-of-fit testing. These tests graphically compare an empirical function T(r) with its simulated counterparts from the null model. However, the type I error probability α is conventionally controlled for a fixed d......) the construction of envelopes for a deviation test. These new tests allow the a priori selection of the global α and they yield p-values. We illustrate these tests using simulated and real point pattern data....

Global envelope tests for spatial processes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Myllymäki, Mari; Mrkvička, Tomáš; Grabarnik, Pavel

Envelope tests are a popular tool in spatial statistics, where they are used in goodness-of-fit testing. These tests graphically compare an empirical function T(r) with its simulated counterparts from the null model. However, the type I error probability α is conventionally controlled for a fixed......) the construction of envelopes for a deviation test. These new tests allow the a priori selection of the global α and they yield p-values. We illustrate these tests using simulated and real point pattern data....

Fatty acids activate a chimera of the clofibric acid-activated receptor and the glucocorticoid receptor.

Science.gov (United States)

Göttlicher, M; Widmark, E; Li, Q; Gustafsson, J A

1992-01-01

Peroxisome proliferators such as clofibric acid, nafenopin, and WY-14,643 have been shown to activate PPAR (peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor), a member of the steroid nuclear receptor superfamily. We have cloned the cDNA from the rat that is homologous to that from the mouse [Issemann, I. & Green, S. (1990) Nature (London) 347, 645-650], which encodes a 97% similar protein with a particularly well-conserved putative ligand-binding domain. To search for physiologically occurring activators, we established a transcriptional transactivation assay by stably expressing in CHO cells a chimera of rat PPAR and the human glucocorticoid receptor that activates expression of the placental alkaline phosphatase reporter gene under the control of the mouse mammary tumor virus promoter. Testing of compounds related to lipid metabolism or peroxisomal proliferation revealed that 150 microM concentrations of arachidonic or linoleic acid but not of dehydroepiandrosterone, cholesterol, or 25-hydroxy-cholesterol, activate the receptor chimera. In addition, saturated fatty acids induce the reporter gene. Shortening the chain length to n = 6 or introduction of an omega-terminal carboxylic group abolished the activation potential of the fatty acid. In conclusion, the present results indicate that fatty acids can regulate gene expression mediated by a member of the steroid nuclear receptor superfamily. Images PMID:1316614

Characteristics between the meshing pairs with different envelope profile in single screw compressors

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, R.; Liu, F.; Li, T.; Feng, Q.

2017-08-01

Single screw compressors have been used in various industrial fields. However, because the star-wheel teeth are easy to wear, the market for the development of single screw compressors is limited. In order to extend the service life of the star-wheel, researchers have developed different kinds of star-wheel tooth profile, such as single line envelope profile, single column envelope profile, and multi-column envelope profile. These profiles greatly affect the lubrication characteristics between the star-wheel teeth and the screw grooves. In this article, the lubrication characteristics between the meshing pairs with different envelope profiles are analyzed. Results show that the pressure peak of the single line envelope profile, single column envelope profile, and multi-column envelope profile are 3.23×105Pa, 3.38×105Pa, and 4.31×105Pa, respectively. This means that the multi-column enveloped meshing pair can resist the biggest external impact load. The deviation angle (γ) of the single line envelope profile, single column envelope profile, and multi-column envelope profile are 0.0139°~0.0286°, 0.0225°~0.0306° and 0.0122°~0.0262°, respectively. Thus, the self-balancing ability of the multi-column enveloped meshing pair is the strongest, and the oil film thickness on both sides of the multi-column enveloped star-wheel tooth is the most reasonable, which indicates a good lubrication state during operation, that is, longer operation life of the star-wheel teeth.

Stability charts for uniform slopes in soils with nonlinear failure envelopes

OpenAIRE

Eid, Hisham T.

2014-01-01

Based on the results of an extensive parametric study, charts were developed for assessment of the stability of uniform slopes in soils with nonlinear shear strength failure envelopes. The study was conducted using envelopes formed to represent the realistic shapes of soil nonlinear drained strength envelopes and the associated different degrees of nonlinearity. The introduction of a simple methodology to describe the nonlinear envelopes and a stability parameter, the value of which depends o...

Visualization of the African swine fever virus infection in living cells by incorporation into the virus particle of green fluorescent protein-p54 membrane protein chimera

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hernaez, Bruno; Escribano, Jose M.; Alonso, Covadonga

2006-01-01

Many stages of African swine fever virus infection have not yet been studied in detail. To track the behavior of African swine fever virus (ASFV) in the infected cells in real time, we produced an infectious recombinant ASFV (B54GFP-2) that expresses and incorporates into the virus particle a chimera of the p54 envelope protein fused to the enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP). The incorporation of the fusion protein into the virus particle was confirmed immunologically and it was determined that p54-EGFP was fully functional by confirmation that the recombinant virus made normal-sized plaques and presented similar growth curves to the wild-type virus. The tagged virus was visualized as individual fluorescent particles during the first stages of infection and allowed to visualize the infection progression in living cells through the viral life cycle by confocal microscopy. In this work, diverse potential applications of B54GFP-2 to study different aspects of ASFV infection are shown. By using this recombinant virus it was possible to determine the trajectory and speed of intracellular virus movement. Additionally, we have been able to visualize for first time the ASFV factory formation dynamics and the cytophatic effect of the virus in live infected cells. Finally, we have analyzed virus progression along the infection cycle and infected cell death as time-lapse animations

Computation of Phase Equilibrium and Phase Envelopes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ritschel, Tobias Kasper Skovborg; Jørgensen, John Bagterp

formulate the involved equations in terms of the fugacity coefficients. We present expressions for the first-order derivatives. Such derivatives are necessary in computationally efficient gradient-based methods for solving the vapor-liquid equilibrium equations and for computing phase envelopes. Finally, we......In this technical report, we describe the computation of phase equilibrium and phase envelopes based on expressions for the fugacity coefficients. We derive those expressions from the residual Gibbs energy. We consider 1) ideal gases and liquids modeled with correlations from the DIPPR database...... and 2) nonideal gases and liquids modeled with cubic equations of state. Next, we derive the equilibrium conditions for an isothermal-isobaric (constant temperature, constant pressure) vapor-liquid equilibrium process (PT flash), and we present a method for the computation of phase envelopes. We...

The nuclear envelope from basic biology to therapy.

Science.gov (United States)

Worman, Howard J; Foisner, Roland

2010-02-01

The nuclear envelope has long been a focus of basic research for a highly specialized group of cell biologists. More recently, an expanding group of scientists and physicians have developed a keen interest in the nuclear envelope since mutations in the genes encoding lamins and associated proteins have been shown to cause a diverse range of human diseases often called laminopathies or nuclear envelopathies. Most of these diseases have tissue-selective phenotypes, suggesting that the nuclear envelope must function in cell-type- and developmental-stage-specific processes such as chromatin organization, regulation of gene expression, controlled nucleocytoplasmic transport and response to stress in metazoans. On 22-23 April 2009, Professor Christopher Hutchison organized the 4th British Nuclear Envelope Disease and Chromatin Organization meeting at the College of St Hild and St Bede at Durham University, sponsored by the Biochemical Society. In attendance were investigators with one common interest, the nuclear envelope, but with diverse expertise and training in animal and plant cell biology, genetics, developmental biology and medicine. We were each honoured to be keynote speakers. This issue of Biochemical Society Transactions contains papers written by some of the presenters at this scientifically exciting meeting, held in a bucolic setting where the food was tasty and the wine flowed freely. Perhaps at the end of this excellent meeting more questions were raised than answered, which will stimulate future research. However, what became clear is that the nuclear envelope is a cellular structure with critical functions in addition to its traditional role as a barrier separating the nuclear and cytoplasmic compartments in interphase eukaryotic cells.

Effects of T cell depletion in radiation bone marrow chimeras. II. Requirement for allogeneic T cells in the reconstituting bone marrow inoculum for subsequent resistance to breaking of tolerance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sykes, M.; Sheard, M.A.; Sachs, D.H.

1988-01-01

The ability of normal recipient-type lymphocytes to break tolerance in long-term allogenic radiation chimeras has been investigated. Reconstitution of lethally irradiated mice with a mixture of syngeneic and allogeneic T cell-depleted (TCD) bone marrow (BM) has previously been shown to lead to mixed chimerism and permanent, specific tolerance to donor and host alloantigen (3-5). If allogeneic T cells are not depleted from the reconstituting inoculum, complete allogeneic chimerism results; however, no clinical evidence for GVHD is observed, presumably due to the protective effect provided by syngeneic TCD BM. This model has now been used to study the effects of allogenic T cells administered in reconstituting BM inocula on stability of long-term tolerance. We have attempted to break tolerance in long-term chimeras originally reconstituted with TCD or non-TCD BM by challenging them with inocula containing normal, nontolerant recipient strain lymphocytes. tolerance was broken with remarkable ease in recipients of mixed marrow inocula in which both original BM components were TCD. In contrast, tolerance in chimeras originally reconstituted with non-TCD allogeneic BM was not affected by such inocula. Susceptibility to loss of chimerism and tolerance was not related to initial levels of chimerism per se, but rather to T cell depletion of allogeneic BM, since chimeras reconstituted with TCD allogeneic BM alone (mean level of allogeneic chimerism 98%) were as susceptible as mixed chimeras to the tolerance-breaking effects of such inocula. The possible contribution of GVH reactivity to this resistance was investigated using an F1 into parent strain combination. In these animals, the use of non-TCD F1 BM inocula for reconstitution did not lead to resistance to the tolerance-breaking effects of recipient strain splenocytes

Torsin Mediates Primary Envelopment of Large Ribonucleoprotein Granules at the Nuclear Envelope

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vahbiz Jokhi

2013-04-01

Full Text Available A previously unrecognized mechanism through which large ribonucleoprotein (megaRNP granules exit the nucleus is by budding through the nuclear envelope (NE. This mechanism is akin to the nuclear egress of herpes-type viruses and is essential for proper synapse development. However, the molecular machinery required to remodel the NE during this process is unknown. Here, we identify Torsin, an AAA-ATPase that in humans is linked to dystonia, as a major mediator of primary megaRNP envelopment during NE budding. In torsin mutants, megaRNPs accumulate within the perinuclear space, and the messenger RNAs contained within fail to reach synaptic sites, preventing normal synaptic protein synthesis and thus proper synaptic bouton development. These studies begin to establish the cellular machinery underlying the exit of megaRNPs via budding, offer an explanation for the “nuclear blebbing” phenotype found in dystonia models, and provide an important link between Torsin and the synaptic phenotypes observed in dystonia.

Inversion of Auditory Spectrograms, Traditional Spectrograms, and Other Envelope Representations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Decorsière, Remi Julien Blaise; Søndergaard, Peter Lempel; MacDonald, Ewen

2015-01-01

Envelope representations such as the auditory or traditional spectrogram can be defined by the set of envelopes from the outputs of a filterbank. Common envelope extraction methods discard information regarding the fast fluctuations, or phase, of the signal. Thus, it is difficult to invert, or re...... to the framework is proposed, which leads to a more accurate inversion of traditional spectrograms...

14 CFR 29.1517 - Limiting height-speed envelope.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Limiting height-speed envelope. 29.1517... Operating Limitations § 29.1517 Limiting height-speed envelope. For Category A rotorcraft, if a range of... following power failure, the range of heights and its variation with forward speed must be established...

A statistical test for outlier identification in data envelopment analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Morteza Khodabin

2010-09-01

Full Text Available In the use of peer group data to assess individual, typical or best practice performance, the effective detection of outliers is critical for achieving useful results. In these ‘‘deterministic’’ frontier models, statistical theory is now mostly available. This paper deals with the statistical pared sample method and its capability of detecting outliers in data envelopment analysis. In the presented method, each observation is deleted from the sample once and the resulting linear program is solved, leading to a distribution of efficiency estimates. Based on the achieved distribution, a pared test is designed to identify the potential outlier(s. We illustrate the method through a real data set. The method could be used in a first step, as an exploratory data analysis, before using any frontier estimation.

Use of whole genome deep sequencing to define emerging minority variants in virus envelope genes in herpesvirus treated with novel antimicrobial K21.

Science.gov (United States)

Tweedy, Joshua G; Prusty, Bhupesh K; Gompels, Ursula A

2017-10-01

New antivirals are required to prevent rising antimicrobial resistance from replication inhibitors. The aim of this study was to analyse the range of emerging mutations in herpesvirus by whole genome deep sequencing. We tested human herpesvirus 6 treatment with novel antiviral K21, where evidence indicated distinct effects on virus envelope proteins. We treated BACmid cloned virus in order to analyse mechanisms and candidate targets for resistance. Illumina based next generation sequencing technology enabled analyses of mutations in 85 genes to depths of 10,000 per base detecting low prevalent minority variants (<1%). After four passages in tissue culture the untreated virus accumulated mutations in infected cells giving an emerging mixed population (45-73%) of non-synonymous SNPs in six genes including two envelope glycoproteins. Strikingly, treatment with K21 did not accumulate the passage mutations; instead a high frequency mutation was selected in envelope protein gQ2, part of the gH/gL complex essential for herpesvirus infection. This introduced a stop codon encoding a truncation mutation previously observed in increased virion production. There was reduced detection of the glycoprotein complex in infected cells. This supports a novel pathway for K21 targeting virion envelopes distinct from replication inhibition. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Boundaries, injective envelopes, and reduced crossed products

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bryder, Rasmus Sylvester

In this dissertation, we study boundary actions, equivariant injective envelopes, as well as theideal structure of reduced crossed products. These topics have recently been linked to thestudy of C-simple groups, that is, groups with simple reduced group C-algebras.In joint work with Matthew Kennedy......, we consider reduced twisted crossed products overC-simple groups. For any twisted C-dynamical system over a C-simple group, we provethat there is a one-to-one correspondence between maximal invariant ideals in the underlyingC-algebra and maximal ideals in the reduced crossed product. When......*-algebras, and relate the intersection property for group actions on unital C*-algebras to the intersection property for theequivariant injective envelope. Moreover, we also prove that the equivariant injective envelopeof the centre of the injective envelope of a unital C*-algebra can be regarded as a C...

Amplitude mediated chimera states with active and inactive oscillators

Science.gov (United States)

Mukherjee, Rupak; Sen, Abhijit

2018-05-01

The emergence and nature of amplitude mediated chimera states, spatio-temporal patterns of co-existing coherent and incoherent regions, are investigated for a globally coupled system of active and inactive Ginzburg-Landau oscillators. The existence domain of such states is found to shrink and shift in parametric space with the increase in the fraction of inactive oscillators. The role of inactive oscillators is found to be twofold—they get activated to form a separate region of coherent oscillations and, in addition, decrease the common collective frequency of the coherent regions by their presence. The dynamical origin of these effects is delineated through a bifurcation analysis of a reduced model system that is based on a mean field approximation. Our results may have practical implications for the robustness of such states in biological or physical systems where age related deterioration in the functionality of components can occur.

Solar envelope concepts: moderate density building applications. Final report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Knowles, R.L.; Berry, R.D.

1980-04-01

Solar energy utilization in urban areas requires public guarantees that all property owners have direct access to the sun. The study examines the implications of this premise in relation to the need for cities to also encourage or accommodate rebuilding and future development. The public policy mechanism for guaranteeing solar access is conceptualized as a solar zoning envelope that allows the largest possible building bulk on a land parcel without shadowing neighboring properties during specified times. Step-by-step methods for generating solar envelopes are described with extensive drawings, showing a variety of urban platting and lot configurations. Development and design possibilities are examined on a selected set of Los Angeles sites with typically diverse urban characteristics. Envelope attributes suitable for encouraging moderate-density commercial and residential building are examined in the context of two hypothetical but realistic development programs: one for speculative office buildings and one for condominium housing. Numerous illustrations of envelope forms and prototypical building designs are provided. The results of development simulation studies on all test sites are tabulated to show building bulk, density, land-coverage and open space characteristics obtainable under the hypothesized envelopes.

The Arabidopsis Nuclear Pore and Nuclear Envelope

OpenAIRE

Meier, Iris; Brkljacic, Jelena

2010-01-01

The nuclear envelope is a double membrane structure that separates the eukaryotic cytoplasm from the nucleoplasm. The nuclear pores embedded in the nuclear envelope are the sole gateways for macromolecular trafficking in and out of the nucleus. The nuclear pore complexes assembled at the nuclear pores are large protein conglomerates composed of multiple units of about 30 different nucleoporins. Proteins and RNAs traffic through the nuclear pore complexes, enabled by the interacting activities...

Multitasking for flows about multiple body configurations using the chimera grid scheme

Science.gov (United States)

Dougherty, F. C.; Morgan, R. L.

1987-01-01

The multitasking of a finite-difference scheme using multiple overset meshes is described. In this chimera, or multiple overset mesh approach, a multiple body configuration is mapped using a major grid about the main component of the configuration, with minor overset meshes used to map each additional component. This type of code is well suited to multitasking. Both steady and unsteady two dimensional computations are run on parallel processors on a CRAY-X/MP 48, usually with one mesh per processor. Flow field results are compared with single processor results to demonstrate the feasibility of running multiple mesh codes on parallel processors and to show the increase in efficiency.

A new insight into opaque envelopes in a passive solar house: Properties and roles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Long, Linshuang; Ye, Hong; Liu, Minghou

2016-01-01

Highlights: • A new insight into the opaque envelopes of a passive solar house was gained. • Five parts of envelopes, i.e., roof, south/east/west/north walls, were discussed. • Each part of envelopes were analyzed separately rather than treated as a whole. • Ideal properties of materials for each envelope are diverse from one another. • Differences are related to the envelopes’ leading roles as a heater or a cooler. - Abstract: Passive solar houses are effective solutions for minimizing the operating energy of buildings. The building envelopes of passive solar houses exert a significant influence on the degree of indoor thermal comfort. The focus of this study was the construction of high-performance opaque envelopes, i.e., the roof and walls, for a passive solar house, and a new conception of the envelopes from the perspective of the relation between the properties and roles was provided. The discussion was conducted based on a comprehensive range of envelope materials that were distinguished by the thermal conductivity and volumetric heat capacity. For the first time, each part of the envelopes was analyzed separately rather than considered as an entire envelope. By analyzing each envelope individually, the optimum properties of each envelope were found to be distinct from each other. The distinctions are determined by the dominant role of each envelope, which is associated with the location and absorbed solar irradiation. For summer or hot climate applications, when the dominant role is a cooler, the envelope, e.g., the south wall, should consist of materials with high thermal conductivity and large heat capacity; if a heater is the dominant role, the envelope, e.g., the roof, should consist of materials with low thermal conductivity. For winter or cold climate applications, the envelopes with a leading role of a heater or a cooler require materials with high or low thermal conductivity, respectively. Under the guidance of the results, a discussion

Cellular basis of the immunohematologic defects observed in short-term semiallogeneic B6C3F1→C3H chimeras: evidence for host-versus-graft reaction initiated by radioresistant T cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aizawa, S.; Sado, T.; Kamisaku, H.; Kubo, E.

1980-01-01

Lethally irradiated C3Hf mice reconstituted with a relatively low dose (2 x 10 6 ) of B6C3F 1 bone marrow cells (B6C3F 1 →C3Hf chimeras) frequently manifest immunohematologic deficiencies during the first month following injection of bone marrow cells. They show slow recovery of antibody-forming potential to sheep red blood cells (SRBC) as compared to that observed in syngeneic (C3Hf→C3Hf or B6C3F 1 →B6C3F 1 ) chimeras. They also show a deficiency of B-cell activity as assessed by antibody response to SRBC following further reconstitution with B6C3F 1 -derived thymus cells 1 week after injection of bone marrow cells. A significant fraction of B6C3F 1 →C3Hf chimeras was shown to manifest a sudden loss of cellularity of spleens during the second week following injection of bone marrow cells even though cellularity was restored to the normal level within 1 week. The splenic mononuclear cells recovered from such chimeras almost invariably showed strong cytotoxicity against target cells expressing donor-type specific H-2 antigens (H-2/sup b/) when assesed by 51 Cr-release assay in vitro. The effector cells responsible for the observed anti-donor specific cytotoxicity were shown to be residual host-derived T cells. These results indicate strongly that residual host T cells could develop anti-donor specific cytotoxicity even after exposure to a supralethal dose (1050 R) of radiation and that the immunohematologic disturbances observed in shortterm F 1 to parent bone marrow chimeras (B6C3F 1 →C3Hf) were due to host-versus-graft reaction (HVGR) initiated by residual host T cells. The implication of these findings on the radiobiological nature of the residual T cells and the persistence of potentially anti-donor reactive T-cell clones in long-surviving allogeneic bone marrow chimeras was discussed

Functional analysis of Kv1.2 and paddle chimera Kv channels in planar lipid bilayers

Science.gov (United States)

Tao, Xiao; MacKinnon, Roderick

2010-01-01

Summary Voltage-dependent K+ channels play key roles in shaping electrical signaling in both excitable as well as non-excitable cells. These channels open and close in response to the voltage changes across the cell membrane. Many studies have been carried out in order to understand the voltage sensing mechanism. Our laboratory recently determined the atomic structures of a mammalian voltage-dependent K+ channel Kv1.2 and a mutant of Kv1.2 named the ‘paddle-chimera’ channel, in which the voltage sensor paddle was transferred from Kv2.1 to Kv1.2. These two structures provide atomic descriptions of voltage-dependent channels with unprecedented clarity. Until now the functional integrity of these two channels biosynthesized in yeast cells have not been assessed. Here we report the electrophysiological and pharmacological properties of Kv1.2 and the paddle chimera channels in planar lipid bilayers. We demonstrate that Pichia yeast produce ‘normally functioning’ mammalian voltage-dependent K+ channels with qualitatively similar features to the Shaker K+ channel in the absence of the N-terminal inactivation gate, and that the paddle chimera mutant channel functions as well as Kv1.2. We find, however, that in several respects the Kv1.2 channel exhibits functional properties that are distinct from Kv1.2 channels reported in the literature. PMID:18638484

Streptococcal cell wall-induced arthritis and adjuvant arthritis in F344----Lewis and in Lewis----F344 bone marrow chimeras

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

van Bruggen, M.C.; van den Broek, M.F.; van den Berg, W.B.

1991-01-01

Streptococcal cell wall (SCW)-induced arthritis and adjuvant arthritis (AA) are rat models for chronic, erosive polyarthritis. Both models can be induced in susceptible Lewis rats, whereas F344 rats are resistant. In AA as well as in SCW arthritis, antigen-specific T lymphocytes have been demonstrated to be crucial for chronic disease. In this communication the authors describe their studies to probe the cellular mechanism responsible for the difference in susceptibility of Lewis and F344, using bone marrow chimeras. By transplanting bone marrow cells from F344 into lethally irradiated Lewis recipients, Lewis rats were rendered resistant to SCW arthritis induction. F344 rats reconstituted with Lewis bone marrow, i.e., Lewis----F344 chimeras, develop an arthritis upon SCW injection. For AA comparable results were obtained. These data suggest that both resistance and susceptibility to bacterium-induced chronic arthritis are mediated by hemopoietic/immune cells and that the recipiental environment does not influence the susceptibility to chronic joint inflammation

Monsters, dreams and madness: Commentary on 'The arms of the chimeras'.

Science.gov (United States)

Reis, Bruce

2016-04-01

Considering Freudian and Post-Freudian approaches to the intersubjective Beatrice Ithier puts the work of Michel de M'Uzan and Thomas Ogden in comparison. To this comparison I add a consideration of the work of Christopher Bollas. The highly creative clinical approaches these three theorists take is shown to be informed by their elaborations of the Freudian notion of unconscious communication and by new approaches to the issue of identity. Attention is paid to differentiating traumatic from fanciful chimeras; and to the experience of the analyst undergoing the sorts of transformations requisite to entering this psychic space marked by fluid exchanges of being and becoming, wherein analyst becomes patient, new subjects are created through shared dreams, and through which monsters appear. Copyright © 2016 Institute of Psychoanalysis.

New type of chimera structures in a ring of bistable FitzHugh-Nagumo oscillators with nonlocal interaction

Science.gov (United States)

Shepelev, I. A.; Vadivasova, T. E.; Bukh, A. V.; Strelkova, G. I.; Anishchenko, V. S.

2017-04-01

We study the spatiotemporal dynamics of a ring of nonlocally coupled FitzHugh-Nagumo oscillators in the bistable regime. A new type of chimera patterns has been found in the noise-free network and when isolated elements do not oscillate. The region of existence of these structures has been explored when the coupling range and the coupling strength between the network elements are varied.

The chemical structure of the Class 0 protostellar envelope NGC 1333 IRAS 4A⋆⋆

Science.gov (United States)

Koumpia, E.; Semenov, D. A.; van der Tak, F. F. S.; Boogert, A. C. A.; Caux, E.

2017-07-01

Context. It is not well known what drives the chemistry of a protostellar envelope, in particular the role of the stellar mass and the protostellar outflows on the chemical enrichment of such environments. Aims: We study the chemical structure of the Class 0 protostellar envelope NGC 1333 IRAS 4A in order to (I) investigate the influence of the outflows on the chemistry; (II) constrain the age of our studied object; (III) compare it with a typical high-mass protostellar envelope. Methods: In our analysis we use JCMT line mapping (360-373 GHz) and HIFI pointed spectra (626.01-721.48 GHz). To study the influence of the outflow on the degree of deuteration, we compare JCMT maps of HCO+ and DCO+ with non-LTE (RADEX) models in a region that spatially covers the outflow activity of IRAS 4A. To study the envelope chemistry, we derive empirical molecular abundance profiles for the observed species using the Monte Carlo radiative transfer code (RATRAN) and adopting a 1D dust density/temperature profile from the literature. We use a combination of constant abundance profiles and abundance profiles that include jumps at two radii (T 100 K or T 30 K) to fit our observations. We compare our best-fit observed abundance profiles with the predictions from the time dependent gas grain chemical code (ALCHEMIC). Results: We detect CO, 13CO, C18O, CS, HCN, HCO+, N2H+, H2CO, CH3OH, H2O, H2S, DCO+, HDCO, D2CO, SO, SO2, SiO, HNC, CN, C2H and OCS. We divide the detected lines in three groups based on their line profiles: a) broad emission (FWHM = 4-11 km s-1), b) narrow emission (FWHMtime-dependent gas-grain chemical model for the outer envelope, with the exceptions of HCN, HNC, CN. These species along with the CO abundance require an enhanced UV field which points towards an outflow cavity. The abundances with respect to H2 are 1 to 2 orders of magnitude lower than those observed in the high mass protostellar envelope (AFGL 2591), while they are found to be similar within factors of a

Chimeric HIV-1 envelope glycoproteins with potent intrinsic granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF activity.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gözde Isik

Full Text Available HIV-1 acquisition can be prevented by broadly neutralizing antibodies (BrNAbs that target the envelope glycoprotein complex (Env. An ideal vaccine should therefore be able to induce BrNAbs that can provide immunity over a prolonged period of time, but the low intrinsic immunogenicity of HIV-1 Env makes the elicitation of such BrNAbs challenging. Co-stimulatory molecules can increase the immunogenicity of Env and we have engineered a soluble chimeric Env trimer with an embedded granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF domain. This chimeric molecule induced enhanced B and helper T cell responses in mice compared to Env without GM-CSF. We studied whether we could optimize the activity of the embedded GM-CSF as well as the antigenic structure of the Env component of the chimeric molecule. We assessed the effect of truncating GM-CSF, removing glycosylation-sites in GM-CSF, and adjusting the linker length between GM-CSF and Env. One of our designed Env(GM-CSF chimeras improved GM-CSF-dependent cell proliferation by 6-fold, reaching the same activity as soluble recombinant GM-CSF. In addition, we incorporated GM-CSF into a cleavable Env trimer and found that insertion of GM-CSF did not compromise Env cleavage, while Env cleavage did not compromise GM-CSF activity. Importantly, these optimized Env(GM-CSF proteins were able to differentiate human monocytes into cells with a macrophage-like phenotype. Chimeric Env(GM-CSF should be useful for improving humoral immunity against HIV-1 and these studies should inform the design of other chimeric proteins.

Chimeric HIV-1 Envelope Glycoproteins with Potent Intrinsic Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor (GM-CSF) Activity*

Science.gov (United States)

Boot, Maikel; Cobos Jiménez, Viviana; Kootstra, Neeltje A.; Sanders, Rogier W.

2013-01-01

HIV-1 acquisition can be prevented by broadly neutralizing antibodies (BrNAbs) that target the envelope glycoprotein complex (Env). An ideal vaccine should therefore be able to induce BrNAbs that can provide immunity over a prolonged period of time, but the low intrinsic immunogenicity of HIV-1 Env makes the elicitation of such BrNAbs challenging. Co-stimulatory molecules can increase the immunogenicity of Env and we have engineered a soluble chimeric Env trimer with an embedded granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) domain. This chimeric molecule induced enhanced B and helper T cell responses in mice compared to Env without GM-CSF. We studied whether we could optimize the activity of the embedded GM-CSF as well as the antigenic structure of the Env component of the chimeric molecule. We assessed the effect of truncating GM-CSF, removing glycosylation-sites in GM-CSF, and adjusting the linker length between GM-CSF and Env. One of our designed EnvGM-CSF chimeras improved GM-CSF-dependent cell proliferation by 6-fold, reaching the same activity as soluble recombinant GM-CSF. In addition, we incorporated GM-CSF into a cleavable Env trimer and found that insertion of GM-CSF did not compromise Env cleavage, while Env cleavage did not compromise GM-CSF activity. Importantly, these optimized EnvGM-CSF proteins were able to differentiate human monocytes into cells with a macrophage-like phenotype. Chimeric EnvGM-CSF should be useful for improving humoral immunity against HIV-1 and these studies should inform the design of other chimeric proteins. PMID:23565193

Asymmetry of the SN 1987A envelope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chugaj, N.N.

1991-01-01

The origin of the peculiar structure in the profiles of the emission lines observed in the spectrum of SN 1987A, namely, (1) redshift of maxima, and (2) fine structure of hydrogen lines, is considered. Among the three proposed hypothesis for the redshift, at least two (electron scattering in the spherically-symmetric envelope, and geometrical effects in the fragmented envelope) have serious drawbacks. More favorable is the third hypothesis which invokes asymmetric distribution of 56 Ni and of the iron-peak elements

Study on proliferative responses to host Ia antigens in allogeneic bone marrow chimera in mice: sequential analysis of the reactivity and characterization of the cells involved in the responses

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iwabuchi, K.; Ogasawara, K.; Ogasawara, M.; Yasumizu, R.; Noguchi, M.; Geng, L.; Fujita, M.; Good, R.A.; Onoe, K.

1987-01-01

Irradiation bone marrow chimeras were established by reconstitution of lethally irradiated AKR mice with C57BL/10 marrow cells to permit serial analysis of the developing reactivities of lymphocytes from such chimeras, [B10----AKR], against donor, host, or third party antigens. We found that substantial proliferative responses to Ia antigens of the recipient strain and also to third party antigens were generated by the thymocytes obtained from the irradiation chimeras at an early stage after bone marrow reconstitution. The majority of the responding thymocytes had surfaces lacking demonstrable peanut agglutinin receptors and were donor type Thy-1+, Ly-2-, and L3T4+ in both anti-recipient and anti-third party MLR. In anti-host responses, however, Ly-2+ thymocytes seemed to be at least partially involved. This capacity of thymus cells to mount a response to antigens of the recipient strain declined shortly thereafter, whereas the capacity to mount MLR against third party antigens persisted. The spleen cells of [B10----AKR] chimeras at the same time developed a more durable capability to exhibit anti-host reactivities and a permanent capability of reacting to third party allo-antigens. The stimulator antigens were Ia molecules on the stimulator cells in both anti-recipient and anti-third party MLR. The responding splenocytes were of donor origin and most of them had Thy-1+, Ly-1+2-, and L3T4+ phenotype

Identification of new genes in a cell envelope-cell division gene cluster of Escherichia coli: cell envelope gene murG.

Science.gov (United States)

Salmond, G P; Lutkenhaus, J F; Donachie, W D

1980-01-01

We report the identification, cloning, and mapping of a new cell envelope gene, murG. This lies in a group of five genes of similar phenotype (in the order murE murF murG murC ddl) all concerned with peptidoglycan biosynthesis. This group is in a larger cluster of at least 10 genes, all of which are involved in some way with cell envelope growth. Images PMID:6998962

Digital image envelope: method and evaluation

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, H. K.; Cao, Fei; Zhou, Michael Z.; Mogel, Greg T.; Liu, Brent J.; Zhou, Xiaoqiang

2003-05-01

Health data security, characterized in terms of data privacy, authenticity, and integrity, is a vital issue when digital images and other patient information are transmitted through public networks in telehealth applications such as teleradiology. Mandates for ensuring health data security have been extensively discussed (for example The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, HIPAA) and health informatics guidelines (such as the DICOM standard) are beginning to focus on issues of data continue to be published by organizing bodies in healthcare; however, there has not been a systematic method developed to ensure data security in medical imaging Because data privacy and authenticity are often managed primarily with firewall and password protection, we have focused our research and development on data integrity. We have developed a systematic method of ensuring medical image data integrity across public networks using the concept of the digital envelope. When a medical image is generated regardless of the modality, three processes are performed: the image signature is obtained, the DICOM image header is encrypted, and a digital envelope is formed by combining the signature and the encrypted header. The envelope is encrypted and embedded in the original image. This assures the security of both the image and the patient ID. The embedded image is encrypted again and transmitted across the network. The reverse process is performed at the receiving site. The result is two digital signatures, one from the original image before transmission, and second from the image after transmission. If the signatures are identical, there has been no alteration of the image. This paper concentrates in the method and evaluation of the digital image envelope.

Early Site Permit Demonstration Program: Plant parameters envelope report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-03-01

The Early Site Permit (ESP) Demonstration Program is the nuclear industry's initiative for piloting the early resolution of siting-related issues before the detailed design proceedings of the combined operating license review. The ESP Demonstration Program consists of three phases. The plant parameters envelopes task is part of Phase 1, which addresses the generic review of applicable federal regulations and develops criteria for safety and environmental assessment of potential sites. The plant parameters envelopes identify parameters that characterize the interface between an ALWR design and a potential site, and quantify the interface through values selected from the Utility Requirements Documents, vendor design information, or engineering assessments. When augmented with site-specific information, the plant parameters envelopes provide sufficient information to allow ESPs to be granted based on individual ALWR design information or enveloping design information for the evolutionary, passive, or generic ALWR plants. This document is expected to become a living document when used by future applicants

Beam envelope profile of non-centrosymmetric polygonal phase space

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen Yinbao; Xie Xi

1984-01-01

The general theory of beam envelope profile of non-centrosymmetric polygonal phase space is developed. By means of this theory the beam envelope profile of non-centrosymmetric polygonal phase space can be calculated directly. An example is carried out in detail to show the practical application of the theory

Conservation of the egg envelope digestion mechanism of hatching enzyme in euteleostean fishes.

Science.gov (United States)

Kawaguchi, Mari; Yasumasu, Shigeki; Shimizu, Akio; Sano, Kaori; Iuchi, Ichiro; Nishida, Mutsumi

2010-12-01

We purified two hatching enzymes, namely high choriolytic enzyme (HCE; EC 3.4.24.67) and low choriolytic enzyme (LCE; EC 3.4.24.66), from the hatching liquid of Fundulus heteroclitus, which were named Fundulus HCE (FHCE) and Fundulus LCE (FLCE). FHCE swelled the inner layer of egg envelope, and FLCE completely digested the FHCE-swollen envelope. In addition, we cloned three Fundulus cDNAs orthologous to cDNAs for the medaka precursors of egg envelope subunit proteins (i.e. choriogenins H, H minor and L) from the female liver. Cleavage sites of FHCE and FLCE on egg envelope subunit proteins were determined by comparing the N-terminal amino acid sequences of digests with the sequences deduced from the cDNAs for egg envelope subunit proteins. FHCE and FLCE cleaved different sites of the subunit proteins. FHCE efficiently cleaved the Pro-X-Y repeat regions into tripeptides to dodecapeptides to swell the envelope, whereas FLCE cleaved the inside of the zona pellucida domain, the core structure of egg envelope subunit protein, to completely digest the FHCE-swollen envelope. A comparison showed that the positions of hatching enzyme cleavage sites on egg envelope subunit proteins were strictly conserved between Fundulus and medaka. Finally, we extended such a comparison to three other euteleosts (i.e. three-spined stickleback, spotted halibut and rainbow trout) and found that the egg envelope digestion mechanism was well conserved among them. During evolution, the egg envelope digestion by HCE and LCE orthologs was established in the lineage of euteleosts, and the mechanism is suggested to be conserved. © 2010 The Authors Journal compilation © 2010 FEBS.

Intelligent building envelopes. Architectural concept and applications for daylighting quality

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wyckmans, Annemie

2005-11-15

How does an intelligent building envelope manage the variable and sometimes conflictive occupant requirements that arise in a day lit indoor environment. This is the research question that provides the basis for this Ph.D. work. As it touches upon several fields of application, the research question is untangled into four steps, each of which corresponds to a chapter of the thesis. 1) What characterises intelligent behaviour for a building envelope. 2) What characterises indoor day lighting quality. 3) Which functions can an intelligent building envelope be expected to perform in the context of day lighting quality. 4) How are the materials, components and composition of an intelligent building envelope designed to influence this performance. The emphasis is on design, environmental aspects, energy conservation, functional analysis and physical applications.

CHIMERA II - A real-time multiprocessing environment for sensor-based robot control

Science.gov (United States)

Stewart, David B.; Schmitz, Donald E.; Khosla, Pradeep K.

1989-01-01

A multiprocessing environment for a wide variety of sensor-based robot system, providing the flexibility, performance, and UNIX-compatible interface needed for fast development of real-time code is addressed. The requirements imposed on the design of a programming environment for sensor-based robotic control is outlined. The details of the current hardware configuration are presented, along with the details of the CHIMERA II software. Emphasis is placed on the kernel, low-level interboard communication, user interface, extended file system, user-definable and dynamically selectable real-time schedulers, remote process synchronization, and generalized interprocess communication. A possible implementation of a hierarchical control model, the NASA/NBS standard reference model for telerobot control system is demonstrated.

Chimera distribution amplitudes for the pion and the longitudinally polarized ρ-meson

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stefanis, N.G., E-mail: stefanis@tp2.ruhr-uni-bochum.de [Institut für Theoretische Physik II, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, D-44780 Bochum (Germany); Pimikov, A.V., E-mail: pimikov@theor.jinr.ru [Bogoliubov Laboratory of Theoretical Physics, JINR, 141980 Dubna (Russian Federation); Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou, 730000 (China)

2016-01-15

Using QCD sum rules with nonlocal condensates, we show that the distribution amplitude of the longitudinally polarized ρ-meson may have a shorttailed platykurtic profile in close analogy to our recently proposed platykurtic distribution amplitude for the pion. Such a chimera distribution de facto amalgamates the broad unimodal profile of the distribution amplitude, obtained with a Dyson–Schwinger equations-based computational scheme, with the suppressed tails characterizing the bimodal distribution amplitudes derived from QCD sum rules with nonlocal condensates. We argue that pattern formation, emerging from the collective synchronization of coupled oscillators, can provide a single theoretical scaffolding to study unimodal and bimodal distribution amplitudes of light mesons without recourse to particular computational schemes and the reasons for them.

MOLECULAR LINE OBSERVATIONS OF THE CARBON-RICH CIRCUMSTELLAR ENVELOPE CIT 6 AT 7 mm WAVELENGTHS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chau, Wayne; Zhang Yong; Nakashima, Jun-ichi; Kwok, Sun [Department of Physics, University of Hong Kong (Hong Kong); Deguchi, Shuji [Nobeyama Radio Observatory, National Astronomical Observatory, Minamimaki, Minamisaku, Nagano 384-1305 (Japan)

2012-11-20

We present a {lambda}7 mm spectral line survey of the carbon-rich circumstellar envelope (CSE) CIT 6 using the 45 m telescope at the Nobeyama Radio Observatory. A total of 25 spectral features belonging to five molecular species (HC{sub 3}N, HC{sub 5}N, HC{sub 7}N, SiO, and CS) are detected, enabling us to investigate the chemistry of cyanopolyyne chains. The line strengths are compared with those of the proto-typical carbon-rich CSE IRC+10216. The results show that the cyanopolyyne molecules are enhanced in CIT 6, suggesting that it is more evolved than IRC+10216. In order to investigate the structure of CIT 6, we have constructed a three-dimensional spatiokinematic model. By comparing the observed line profiles with the models, we conclude that this envelope is asymmetric and is composed of several incomplete shells.

Functional incorporation of green fluorescent protein into hepatitis B virus envelope particles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lambert, Carsten; Thome, Nicole; Kluck, Christoph J.; Prange, Reinhild

2004-01-01

The envelope of hepatitis B virus (HBV), containing the L, M, and S proteins, is essential for virus entry and maturation. For direct visualization of HBV, we determined whether envelope assembly could accommodate the green fluorescent protein (GFP). While the C-terminal addition of GFP to S trans-dominant negatively inhibited empty envelope particle secretion, the N-terminal GFP fusion to S (GFP.S) was co-integrated into the envelope, giving rise to fluorescent particles. Microscopy and topogenesis analyses demonstrated that the proper intracellular distribution and folding of GFP.S, required for particle export were rescued by interprotein interactions with wild-type S. Thereby, a dual location of GFP, inside and outside the envelope, was observed. GFP.S was also efficiently packaged into the viral envelope, and these GFP-tagged virions retained the capacity for attachment to HBV receptor-positive cells in vitro. Together, GFP-tagged virions should be suitable to monitor HBV uptake and egress in live hepatocytes

Double-chimera proteins to enhance recruitment of endothelial cells and their progenitor cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Behjati, M; Kazemi, M; Hashemi, M; Zarkesh-Esfahanai, S H; Bahrami, E; Hashemi-Beni, B; Ahmadi, R

2013-08-20

Enhanced attraction of selective vascular reparative cells is of great importance in order to increase vascular patency after endovascular treatments. We aimed to evaluate efficient attachment of endothelial cells and their progenitors on surfaces coated with mixture of specific antibodies, L-selectin and VE-cadherin, with prohibited platelet attachment. The most efficient conditions for coating of L-selectin-Fc chimera and VE-cadherin-Fc chimera proteins were first determined by protein coating on ELISA plates. The whole processes were repeated on titanium substrates, which are commonly used to coat stents. Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were isolated and characterized by flow cytometry. Cell attachment, growth, proliferation, viability and surface cytotoxicity were evaluated using nuclear staining and MTT assay. Platelet and cell attachment were evaluated using scanning electron microscopy. Optimal concentration of each protein for surface coating was 50 ng/ml. The efficacy of protein coating was both heat and pH independent. Calcium ions had significant impact on simultaneous dual-protein coating (P<0.05). Coating stability data revealed more than one year stability for these coated proteins at 4°C. L-selectin and VE-cadherin (ratio of 50:50) coated surface showed highest EPC and HUVEC attachment, viability and proliferation compared to single protein coated and non-coated titanium surfaces (P<0.05). This double coated surface did not show any cytotoxic effect. Surfaces coated with L-selectin and VE-cadherin are friendly surface for EPC and endothelial cell attachment with less platelet attachment. These desirable factors make the L-selectin and VE-cadherin coated surfaces perfect candidate endovascular device. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Location of early aftershocks of the 2004 Mid-Niigata Prefecture Earthquake (M = 6.8) in central Japan using seismogram envelopes as templates

Science.gov (United States)

Kosuga, M.

2013-12-01

The location of early aftershocks is very important to obtain information of mainshock fault, however, it is often difficult due to the long-lasting coda wave of mainshock and successive occurrence of afterrshocks. To overcome this difficulty, we developed a method of location using seismogram envelopes as templates, and applied the method to the early aftershock sequence of the 2004 Mid-Niigata Prefecture (Chuetsu) Earthquake (M = 6.8) in central Japan. The location method composes of three processes. The first process is the calculation of cross-correlation coefficients between a continuous (target) and template envelopes. We prepare envelopes by taking the logarithm of root-mean-squared amplitude of band-pass filtered seismograms. We perform the calculation by shifting the time window to obtain a set of cross-correlation values for each template. The second process is the event detection (selection of template) and magnitude estimate. We search for the events in descending order of cross-correlation in a time window excluding the dead times around the previously detected events. Magnitude is calculated by the amplitude ratio of target and template envelopes. The third process is the relative event location to the selected template. We applied this method to the Chuetsu earthquake, a large inland earthquake with extensive aftershock activity. The number of detected events depends on the number of templates, frequency range, and the threshold value of cross-correlation. We set the threshold as 0.5 by referring to the histogram of cross-correlation. During a period of one-hour from the mainshock, we could detect more events than the JMA catalog. The location of events is generally near the catalog location. Though we should improve the methods of relative location and magnitude estimate, we conclude that the proposed method works adequately even just after the mainshock of large inland earthquake. Acknowledgement: We thank JMA, NIED, and the University of Tokyo for

Calculation of CWKB envelope in boson and fermion productions

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Abstract. We present the calculation of envelope of boson and of both low- and high- mass fermion production at the end of inflation when the coherently oscillating inflatons decay into bosons and fermions. We consider three different models of inflation and use. CWKB technique to calculate the envelope to understand the ...

A smart growth evaluation model based on data envelopment analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Xiaokun; Guan, Yongyi

2018-04-01

With the rapid spread of urbanization, smart growth (SG) has attracted plenty of attention from all over the world. In this paper, by the establishment of index system for smart growth, data envelopment analysis (DEA) model was suggested to evaluate the SG level of the current growth situation in cities. In order to further improve the information of both radial direction and non-radial detection, we introduced the non-Archimedean infinitesimal to form C2GS2 control model. Finally, we evaluated the SG level in Canberra and identified a series of problems, which can verify the applicability of the model and provide us more improvement information.

Relationship between chromatin complexity and nuclear envelope circularity in hippocampal pyramidal neurons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pantic, Igor; Basailovic, Milos; Paunovic, Jovana; Pantic, Senka

2015-01-01

Highlights: •We analyzed chromatin structure and nuclear envelope of 200 hippocampal pyramidal neurons. •Fractal and GLCM mathematical parameters were calculated each chromatin structure. •Nuclear shape was quantified by calculating circularity of the nuclear envelope. •Circularity was in significant relationship with chromatin fractal dimension. •Strong correlation was detected between circularity and some GLCM parameters. -- Abstract: In this study we tested the existence and strength of the relationship between circularity of nuclear envelope and mathematical parameters of chromatin structure. Coronal sections of the brain were made in 10 male albino mice. The brain tissue was stained using a modification of Feulgen method for DNA visualization. A total of 200 hippocampal pyramidal neurons (20 per animal) were visualized using DEM 200 High-Speed Color CMOS Chip and Olympus CX21FS1 microscope. Circularity of the nuclear membrane was calculated in ImageJ (NIH, USA) after the nuclear segmentation, based on the freehand selection of the nuclear regions of interest. Circularity was determined from the values of area and perimeter. For each chromatin structure, using fractal and grey level co-occurrence matrix (GLCM) algorithms, we determined the values of fractal dimension, lacunarity, angular second moment, GLCM entropy, inverse difference moment, GLCM correlation, and GLCM contrast. It was found that circularity is in a significant correlation (p < 0.05) with fractal dimension as the main parameter of fractal complexity analysis. Also, circularity was in a very strong relationship (p < 0.001) with certain parameters of grey level co-occurrence matrix such as the angular second moment and GLCM correlation. This is the first study to indicate that nuclear shape is significantly related to mathematical parameters of higher chromatin organization. Also, it seems that circularity of the nuclear envelope is a good predictor of certain features of chromatin

High frequency vibration analysis by the complex envelope vectorization.

Science.gov (United States)

Giannini, O; Carcaterra, A; Sestieri, A

2007-06-01

The complex envelope displacement analysis (CEDA) is a procedure to solve high frequency vibration and vibro-acoustic problems, providing the envelope of the physical solution. CEDA is based on a variable transformation mapping the high frequency oscillations into signals of low frequency content and has been successfully applied to one-dimensional systems. However, the extension to plates and vibro-acoustic fields met serious difficulties so that a general revision of the theory was carried out, leading finally to a new method, the complex envelope vectorization (CEV). In this paper the CEV method is described, underlying merits and limits of the procedure, and a set of applications to vibration and vibro-acoustic problems of increasing complexity are presented.

Aspherical Dust Envelopes Around Oxygen-Rich AGB Stars

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kyung-Won Suh

2006-12-01

Full Text Available We model the aspherical dust envelopes around O-rich AGB stars. We perform the radiative transfer model calculations for axisymmetric dust distributions. We simulate what could be observed from the aspherical dust envelopes around O-rich AGB stars by presenting the model spectral energy distributions and images at various wavelengths for different optical depths and viewing angles. The model results are very different from the ones with spherically symmetric geometry.

Condensins Exert Force on Chromatin-Nuclear Envelope Tethers to Mediate Nucleoplasmic Reticulum Formation in Drosophila melanogaster

Science.gov (United States)

Bozler, Julianna; Nguyen, Huy Q.; Rogers, Gregory C.; Bosco, Giovanni

2014-01-01

Although the nuclear envelope is known primarily for its role as a boundary between the nucleus and cytoplasm in eukaryotes, it plays a vital and dynamic role in many cellular processes. Studies of nuclear structure have revealed tissue-specific changes in nuclear envelope architecture, suggesting that its three-dimensional structure contributes to its functionality. Despite the importance of the nuclear envelope, the factors that regulate and maintain nuclear envelope shape remain largely unexplored. The nuclear envelope makes extensive and dynamic interactions with the underlying chromatin. Given this inexorable link between chromatin and the nuclear envelope, it is possible that local and global chromatin organization reciprocally impact nuclear envelope form and function. In this study, we use Drosophila salivary glands to show that the three-dimensional structure of the nuclear envelope can be altered with condensin II-mediated chromatin condensation. Both naturally occurring and engineered chromatin-envelope interactions are sufficient to allow chromatin compaction forces to drive distortions of the nuclear envelope. Weakening of the nuclear lamina further enhanced envelope remodeling, suggesting that envelope structure is capable of counterbalancing chromatin compaction forces. Our experiments reveal that the nucleoplasmic reticulum is born of the nuclear envelope and remains dynamic in that they can be reabsorbed into the nuclear envelope. We propose a model where inner nuclear envelope-chromatin tethers allow interphase chromosome movements to change nuclear envelope morphology. Therefore, interphase chromatin compaction may be a normal mechanism that reorganizes nuclear architecture, while under pathological conditions, such as laminopathies, compaction forces may contribute to defects in nuclear morphology. PMID:25552604

Condensins exert force on chromatin-nuclear envelope tethers to mediate nucleoplasmic reticulum formation in Drosophila melanogaster.

Science.gov (United States)

Bozler, Julianna; Nguyen, Huy Q; Rogers, Gregory C; Bosco, Giovanni

2014-12-30

Although the nuclear envelope is known primarily for its role as a boundary between the nucleus and cytoplasm in eukaryotes, it plays a vital and dynamic role in many cellular processes. Studies of nuclear structure have revealed tissue-specific changes in nuclear envelope architecture, suggesting that its three-dimensional structure contributes to its functionality. Despite the importance of the nuclear envelope, the factors that regulate and maintain nuclear envelope shape remain largely unexplored. The nuclear envelope makes extensive and dynamic interactions with the underlying chromatin. Given this inexorable link between chromatin and the nuclear envelope, it is possible that local and global chromatin organization reciprocally impact nuclear envelope form and function. In this study, we use Drosophila salivary glands to show that the three-dimensional structure of the nuclear envelope can be altered with condensin II-mediated chromatin condensation. Both naturally occurring and engineered chromatin-envelope interactions are sufficient to allow chromatin compaction forces to drive distortions of the nuclear envelope. Weakening of the nuclear lamina further enhanced envelope remodeling, suggesting that envelope structure is capable of counterbalancing chromatin compaction forces. Our experiments reveal that the nucleoplasmic reticulum is born of the nuclear envelope and remains dynamic in that they can be reabsorbed into the nuclear envelope. We propose a model where inner nuclear envelope-chromatin tethers allow interphase chromosome movements to change nuclear envelope morphology. Therefore, interphase chromatin compaction may be a normal mechanism that reorganizes nuclear architecture, while under pathological conditions, such as laminopathies, compaction forces may contribute to defects in nuclear morphology. Copyright © 2015 Bozler et al.

Spectral envelope sensitivity of musical instrument sounds.

Science.gov (United States)

Gunawan, David; Sen, D

2008-01-01

It is well known that the spectral envelope is a perceptually salient attribute in musical instrument timbre perception. While a number of studies have explored discrimination thresholds for changes to the spectral envelope, the question of how sensitivity varies as a function of center frequency and bandwidth for musical instruments has yet to be addressed. In this paper a two-alternative forced-choice experiment was conducted to observe perceptual sensitivity to modifications made on trumpet, clarinet and viola sounds. The experiment involved attenuating 14 frequency bands for each instrument in order to determine discrimination thresholds as a function of center frequency and bandwidth. The results indicate that perceptual sensitivity is governed by the first few harmonics and sensitivity does not improve when extending the bandwidth any higher. However, sensitivity was found to decrease if changes were made only to the higher frequencies and continued to decrease as the distorted bandwidth was widened. The results are analyzed and discussed with respect to two other spectral envelope discrimination studies in the literature as well as what is predicted from a psychoacoustic model.

The cell envelope glycoconjugates of Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Science.gov (United States)

Angala, Shiva Kumar; Belardinelli, Juan Manuel; Huc-Claustre, Emilie; Wheat, William H.; Jackson, Mary

2015-01-01

Tuberculosis (TB) remains the second most common cause of death due to a single infectious agent. The cell envelope of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), the causative agent of the disease in humans, is a source of unique glycoconjugates and the most distinctive feature of the biology of this organism. It is the basis of much of Mtb pathogenesis and one of the major causes of its intrinsic resistance to chemotherapeutic agents. At the same time, the unique structures of Mtb cell envelope glycoconjugates, their antigenicity and essentiality for mycobacterial growth provide opportunities for drug, vaccine, diagnostic and biomarker development, as clearly illustrated by recent advances in all of these translational aspects. This review focuses on our current understanding of the structure and biogenesis of Mtb glycoconjugates with particular emphasis on one of most intriguing and least understood aspect of the physiology of mycobacteria: the translocation of these complex macromolecules across the different layers of the cell envelope. It further reviews the rather impressive progress made in the last ten years in the discovery and development of novel inhibitors targeting their biogenesis. PMID:24915502

Mass-radius relations and core-envelope decompositions of super-Earths and sub-Neptunes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Howe, Alex R.; Burrows, Adam [Department of Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University, Peyton Hall, Princeton, NJ 08544 (United States); Verne, Wesley, E-mail: arhowe@astro.princeton.edu, E-mail: burrows@astro.princeton.edu [Department of Computer Science, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544 (United States)

2014-06-01

Many exoplanets have been discovered with radii of 1-4 R {sub ⊕}, between that of Earth and Neptune. A number of these are known to have densities consistent with solid compositions, while others are 'sub-Neptunes' likely to have significant H{sub 2}-He envelopes. Future surveys will no doubt significantly expand these populations. In order to understand how the measured masses and radii of such planets can inform their structures and compositions, we construct models both for solid layered planets and for planets with solid cores and gaseous envelopes, exploring a range of core masses, H{sub 2}-He envelope masses, and associated envelope entropies. For planets in the super-Earth/sub-Neptune regime for which both radius and mass are measured, we estimate how each is partitioned into a solid core and gaseous envelope, associating a specific core mass and envelope mass with a given exoplanet. We perform this decomposition for both ''Earth-like'' rock-iron cores and pure ice cores, and find that the necessary gaseous envelope masses for this important sub-class of exoplanets must range very widely from zero to many Earth masses, even for a given core mass. This result bears importantly on exoplanet formation and envelope evaporation processes.

Mass-radius relations and core-envelope decompositions of super-Earths and sub-Neptunes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Howe, Alex R.; Burrows, Adam; Verne, Wesley

2014-01-01

Many exoplanets have been discovered with radii of 1-4 R ⊕ , between that of Earth and Neptune. A number of these are known to have densities consistent with solid compositions, while others are 'sub-Neptunes' likely to have significant H 2 -He envelopes. Future surveys will no doubt significantly expand these populations. In order to understand how the measured masses and radii of such planets can inform their structures and compositions, we construct models both for solid layered planets and for planets with solid cores and gaseous envelopes, exploring a range of core masses, H 2 -He envelope masses, and associated envelope entropies. For planets in the super-Earth/sub-Neptune regime for which both radius and mass are measured, we estimate how each is partitioned into a solid core and gaseous envelope, associating a specific core mass and envelope mass with a given exoplanet. We perform this decomposition for both ''Earth-like'' rock-iron cores and pure ice cores, and find that the necessary gaseous envelope masses for this important sub-class of exoplanets must range very widely from zero to many Earth masses, even for a given core mass. This result bears importantly on exoplanet formation and envelope evaporation processes.

Solar envelope zoning: application to the city planning process. Los Angeles case study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1980-06-01

Solar envelope zoning represents a promising approach to solar access protection. A solar envelope defines the volume within which a building will not shade adjacent lots or buildings. Other solar access protection techniques, such as privately negotiated easements, continue to be tested and implemented but none offer the degree of comprehensiveness evident in this approach. Here, the City of Los Angeles, through the Mayor's Energy Office, the City Planning Department, and the City Attorney's Office, examine the feasibility of translating the concept of solar envelopes into zoning techniques. They concluded that envelope zoning is a fair and consistent method of guaranteeing solar access, but problems of complexity and uncertainty may limit its usefulness. Envelope zoning may be inappropriate for the development of high density centers and for more restrictive community plans. Aids or tools to administer envelope zoning need to be developed. Finally, some combination of approaches, including publicly recorded easements, subdivision approval and envelope zoning, need to be adopted to encourage solar use in cities. (MHR)

Experimental effects of dynamics and thermodynamics in nuclear reactions on the symmetry energy as seen by the CHIMERA 4 π detector

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

De Filippo, E.; Pagano, A. [INFN, Catania (Italy)

2014-02-15

Heavy-ion collisions have been widely used in the last decade to constrain the parameterizations of the symmetry energy term of the nuclear equation of state (EOS) for asymmetric nuclear matter as a function of baryonic density. In the Fermi energy domain one is faced with variations of the density within a narrow range of values around the saturation density ρ{sub 0}=0.16 fm{sup -3} down towards sub-saturation densities. The experimental observables which are sensitive to the symmetry energy are constructed starting from the detected light particles, clusters and heavy fragments that, in heavy-ion collisions, are generally produced by different emission mechanisms at different stages and time scales of the reaction. In this review the effects of dynamics and thermodynamics on the symmetry energy in nuclear reactions are discussed and characterized using an overview of the data taken so far with the CHIMERA multi detector array. (orig.)

Identifying the source of a strong fullerene envelope arising from laser desorption mass spectrometric analysis of meteoritic insoluble organic matter

Science.gov (United States)

Hammond, Matthew R.; Zare, Richard N.

2008-11-01

Insoluble organic matter (IOM) has been obtained from two carbonaceous chondrite meteorites and subjected to analysis by laser desorption mass spectrometry (LDMS) using standard operating conditions that were optimized for fullerene detection (3-6 μJ pulses at 337 nm focused to a spot size of approximately 100 μm in diameter). The preparation process yields no free C 60 in the IOM, and other experiments suggest that this material does not contain appreciable amounts of fullerenes. Nevertheless, a pronounced high-mass envelope is observed in LDMS, extending from 720 amu to about 4000 amu, with peaks spaced apart every 24 amu (corresponding to the gain or loss of C 2 units). We attribute this high-mass envelope to the existence of various fullerene molecules. The present work demonstrates that these fullerene molecules are created by the laser desorption laser ionization process under typical laser conditions used for studying free fullerenes in organic solvent extracts of natural samples (toluene and 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene). The implications of this false positive detection of fullerene molecules on the reports of fullerenes in other meteoritic samples have been investigated by introducing IOM into typical fullerene extraction procedures and examining the LDMS results. We found that IOM is capable of producing false positive signals in these experiments. The effect of ambient laboratory contamination producing fullerene signals is also described. It is found that extensive centrifugation of the meteoritic extracts is able to reduce the observed fullerene envelope, which points to an association of this envelope with IOM particulates that have passed through the filtering steps. We suggest the exercise of extreme caution in interpreting fullerene data from LDMS experiments.

T lymphocytes from irradiation chimeras repopulated with 13-day fetal liver cells recognize antigens only in association with self-MHC products

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nisbet-Brown, E.; Diener, E.

1986-01-01

The restriction specificities of maturing thymocytes are determined by the Class II MHC antigens expressed by non-lymphoid thymic tissues. The proliferative response of mature T lymphocytes to antigen-presenting cells (APC) and antigen requires that the APC express the same MHC antigens as the thymus in which the T cells differentiated. Thus, in the two-way bone marrow chimera [A + B----(A x B)F1], T lymphocyte populations of A and B haplotypes have each acquired the potential to recognize antigens associated with either parental haplotype. In spite of the large body of work on MHC restriction, we still do not have a clear understanding of the mechanisms which impose self restriction. The chimeric model systems used previously to study MHC restriction have used adult bone marrow cells as the source of lymphoid precursors. During normal ontogeny, T cells are derived from precursors in the fetal liver and we felt that a direct comparison of T cells from fetal liver and bone marrow-repopulated animals would shed light on the development of MHC restriction specificities during T cell ontogeny in the thymus or prethymically. We found that parental T lymphocyte populations isolated from two-way fetal liver chimeras cooperated only with syngeneic APC, while those from bone marrow chimeras cooperated with APC of either parental haplotype. This suggests that fetal liver and bone marrow may not be equivalent sources of stem cells. Our results may be due to fundamental differences between thymocyte precursors in fetal liver and bone marrow, including the time course of their expression of T cell receptor gene products

Self-organized emergence of multilayer structure and chimera states in dynamical networks with adaptive couplings

Science.gov (United States)

Kasatkin, D. V.; Yanchuk, S.; Schöll, E.; Nekorkin, V. I.

2017-12-01

We report the phenomenon of self-organized emergence of hierarchical multilayered structures and chimera states in dynamical networks with adaptive couplings. This process is characterized by a sequential formation of subnetworks (layers) of densely coupled elements, the size of which is ordered in a hierarchical way, and which are weakly coupled between each other. We show that the hierarchical structure causes the decoupling of the subnetworks. Each layer can exhibit either a two-cluster state, a periodic traveling wave, or an incoherent state, and these states can coexist on different scales of subnetwork sizes.

Magnified Neural Envelope Coding Predicts Deficits in Speech Perception in Noise.

Science.gov (United States)

Millman, Rebecca E; Mattys, Sven L; Gouws, André D; Prendergast, Garreth

2017-08-09

Verbal communication in noisy backgrounds is challenging. Understanding speech in background noise that fluctuates in intensity over time is particularly difficult for hearing-impaired listeners with a sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL). The reduction in fast-acting cochlear compression associated with SNHL exaggerates the perceived fluctuations in intensity in amplitude-modulated sounds. SNHL-induced changes in the coding of amplitude-modulated sounds may have a detrimental effect on the ability of SNHL listeners to understand speech in the presence of modulated background noise. To date, direct evidence for a link between magnified envelope coding and deficits in speech identification in modulated noise has been absent. Here, magnetoencephalography was used to quantify the effects of SNHL on phase locking to the temporal envelope of modulated noise (envelope coding) in human auditory cortex. Our results show that SNHL enhances the amplitude of envelope coding in posteromedial auditory cortex, whereas it enhances the fidelity of envelope coding in posteromedial and posterolateral auditory cortex. This dissociation was more evident in the right hemisphere, demonstrating functional lateralization in enhanced envelope coding in SNHL listeners. However, enhanced envelope coding was not perceptually beneficial. Our results also show that both hearing thresholds and, to a lesser extent, magnified cortical envelope coding in left posteromedial auditory cortex predict speech identification in modulated background noise. We propose a framework in which magnified envelope coding in posteromedial auditory cortex disrupts the segregation of speech from background noise, leading to deficits in speech perception in modulated background noise. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT People with hearing loss struggle to follow conversations in noisy environments. Background noise that fluctuates in intensity over time poses a particular challenge. Using magnetoencephalography, we demonstrate

High pressure treatment under subfreezing temperature results in drastic inactivation of enveloped and non-enveloped viruses.

Science.gov (United States)

Kishida, T; Cui, F-D; Ohgitani, E; Gao, F; Hayakawa, K; Mazda, O

2013-08-01

Some viruses are sensitive to high pressure. The freeze-pressure generation method (FPGM) applies pressure as high as 250 MPa on a substance, simply by freezing a pressure-resistant reservoir in which the substance is immersed in water. Here we examined whether the FPGM successfully inactivates herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1), an enveloped DNA virus belonging to the human Herpesviridae, and encephalomyocarditis virus (EMCV), an envelope-free RNA virus belonging to the Picornaviridae. After the treatment, HSV-1 drastically reduced the ability to form plaque in Vero cells in vitro as well as to kill mice in vivo. EMCV that had been pressurized failed to proliferate in HeLa cells and induce interferon response. The results suggest that the FPGM provides a feasible procedure to inactivate a broad spectrum of viruses.

A study of some Be star envelopes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kitchen, C.R.

1976-01-01

The envelope model and emission region radius of six Be stars have been determined from 36 lines on 15 spectra taken with the Isaac Newton telescope. The results have been compared with earlier determinations to search for changes with the time. No definite evidence for such changes has been found, although there may be an indication of a change in phi Per. A re-determination of the errors involved in the method of analysis shows that these are smaller than previously estimated and range from about 9% to 35% for both envelope model and emission region radius. (Auth.)

A controlled trial of envelope colour for increasing response rates in older women.

Science.gov (United States)

Mitchell, Natasha; Hewitt, Catherine E; Torgerson, David J

2011-06-01

Postal questionnaires are widely used in health research to provide measurable outcomes in areas such as quality of life. Participants who fail to return postal questionnaires can introduce non-response bias. Previous studies within populations over the age of 65 years have shown that response rates amongst older people can be 60% or less. The current study sought to investigate whether envelope colour affected response rates in a study about the effectiveness of screening older women for osteoporosis. A total of 2803 eligible female participants aged between 70 and 85 were sent an invitation pack from their GP practice. The invitation was either in a brown or white envelope and contained a matching pre-paid reply envelope. A study questionnaire was also sent out in brown or white envelopes 1 week after consenting to participate in the trial. The overall response rate was 78%. There was little evidence of an effect of envelope colour on response to the invitation to participate in the trial (OR 1.04, 95% CI 0.87-1.24). Similarly, there was no influence of envelope colour on the number of participants returning their questionnaires (OR 0.99, 95% CI 0.60-1.63). There was weak evidence of an effect of envelope colour on the response rates of the consent process (OR 0.86, 95% CI 0.74-1.00). When we updated a recent meta-analysis with the results of this study, there was a non-statistically- significant trend for greater response rates with brown envelopes compared with white envelopes (OR 1.19, 95% CI 0.86-1.64, I2=92%). However, the results where influenced by one study and when this study was excluded the pooled estimate was 0.98 (95% CI 0.89-1.08, I2=0%). This study found no evidence to suggest envelope colour has an effect on response to participate in a trial or questionnaire returns. There is weak evidence to suggest envelope colour may affect consent into a trial.

The psychic envelopes in psychoanalytic theories of infancy.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Denis eMellier

2014-07-01

Full Text Available This paper aims to review the topic of psychic envelopes and to sketch the main outlines of this concept in infancy. We first explore the origins of the concept in Freud's 'protective shield' and then its development in adult psychoanalysis before going on to see how this fits in infancy with post-Bionian psychoanalysis and development. Four central notions guide this review:1 Freud's protective shield describes a barrier to protect the psychic apparatus against potentially overflowing trauma. It is a core notion which highlights a serious clinical challenge for patients for whom the shield is damaged or faulty: the risk of confusion of borders between the internal/external world, conscious/unconscious, mind/body, or self-conservation/sexuality.2 Anzieu's Skin-Ego is defined by the different senses of the body. The different layers of experienced sensation, of this body-ego, go on to form the psychic envelope. This theory contributes to our understanding of how early trauma, due to the failures of maternal care, can continue to have an impact in adult life. 3 Bick's psychic skin establishes the concept in relation to infancy. The mother’s containing functions allow a first psychic skin to develop, which then defines an infant’s psychic space and affords the infant a degree of self-containment. Houzel then conceptualized this process as a stabilization of drive forces.4 Stern's narrative envelope derives from the intersection between psychoanalysis and neuroscience. It gives us another way to conceptualise the development of pre-verbal communication. It may also pave the way for a finer distinction of different types of envelopes.Ultimately, in this review we find that psychic envelopes in infancy can be viewed from four different perspectives (economic, topographical, dynamic and genetic and recommend further investigation.

Detecting Fan Faults in refrigerated Cabinets

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thybo, C.; Rasmussen, B.D.; Izadi-Zamanabadi, Roozbeh

2002-01-01

Fault detection in supermarket refrigeration systems is an important topic due to both economic and food safety reasons. If faults can be detected and diagnosed before the system drifts outside the specified operational envelope, service costs can be reduced and in extreme cases the costly discar...

HIV-1 envelope glycoprotein

Science.gov (United States)

Caulfield, Michael; Cupo, Albert; Dean, Hansi; Hoffenberg, Simon; King, C. Richter; Klasse, P. J.; Marozsan, Andre; Moore, John P.; Sanders, Rogier W.; Ward, Andrew; Wilson, Ian; Julien, Jean-Philippe

2017-08-22

The present application relates to novel HIV-1 envelope glycoproteins, which may be utilized as HIV-1 vaccine immunogens, and antigens for crystallization, electron microscopy and other biophysical, biochemical and immunological studies for the identification of broad neutralizing antibodies. The present invention encompasses the preparation and purification of immunogenic compositions, which are formulated into the vaccines of the present invention.

Handbook on data envelopment analysis

CERN Document Server

Cooper, William W; Zhu, Joe

2011-01-01

Focusing on extensively used Data Envelopment Analysis topics, this volume aims to both describe the state of the field and extend the frontier of DEA research. New chapters include DEA models for DMUs, network DEA, models for supply chain operations and applications, and new developments.

Monte Carlo investigation of the low-dose envelope from scanned proton pencil beams

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sawakuchi, Gabriel O; Titt, Uwe; Mirkovic, Dragan; Ciangaru, George; Zhu, X Ronald; Sahoo, Narayan; Gillin, Michael T; Mohan, Radhe

2010-01-01

Scanned proton pencil beams carry a low-dose envelope that extends several centimeters from the individual beam's central axis. Thus, the total delivered dose depends on the size of the target volume and the corresponding number and intensity of beams necessary to cover the target volume uniformly. This dependence must be considered in dose calculation algorithms used by treatment planning systems. In this work, we investigated the sources of particles contributing to the low-dose envelope using the Monte Carlo technique. We used a validated model of our institution's scanning beam line to determine the contributions to the low-dose envelope from secondary particles created in a water phantom and particles scattered in beam line components. Our results suggested that, for high-energy beams, secondary particles produced by nuclear interactions in the water phantom are the major contributors to the low-dose envelope. For low-energy beams, the low-dose envelope is dominated by particles undergoing multiple Coulomb scattering in the beam line components and water phantom. Clearly, in the latter situation, the low-dose envelope depends directly on beam line design features. Finally, we investigated the dosimetric consequences of the low-dose envelope. Our results showed that if not modeled properly the low-dose envelope may cause clinically relevant dose disturbance in the target volume. This work suggested that this low-dose envelope is beam line specific for low-energy beams, should be thoroughly experimentally characterized and validated during commissioning of the treatment planning system, and therefore is of great concern for accurate delivery of proton scanning beam doses.

Membrane and envelope virus proteins co-expressed as lysosome associated membrane protein (LAMP fused antigens: a potential tool to develop DNA vaccines against flaviviruses

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rafael Dhalia

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Vaccination is the most practical and cost-effective strategy to prevent the majority of the flavivirus infection to which there is an available vaccine. However, vaccines based on attenuated virus can potentially promote collateral side effects and even rare fatal reactions. Given this scenario, the developent of alternative vaccination strategies such as DNA-based vaccines encoding specific flavivirus sequences are being considered. Endogenous cytoplasmic antigens, characteristically plasmid DNA-vaccine encoded, are mainly presented to the immune system through Major Histocompatibility Complex class I - MHC I molecules. The MHC I presentation via is mostly associated with a cellular cytotoxic response and often do not elicit a satisfactory humoral response. One of the main strategies to target DNA-encoded antigens to the MHC II compartment is expressing the antigen within the Lysosome-Associated Membrane Protein (LAMP. The flavivirus envelope protein is recognized as the major virus surface protein and the main target for neutralizing antibodies. Different groups have demonstrated that co-expression of flavivirus membrane and envelope proteins in mammalian cells, fused with the carboxyl-terminal of LAMP, is able to induce satisfactory levels of neutralizing antibodies. Here we reviewed the use of the envelope flavivirus protein co-expression strategy as LAMP chimeras with the aim of developing DNA vaccines for dengue, West Nile and yellow fever viruses.A vacinação é a estratégia mais prática e o melhor custo-benefício para prevenir a maioria das infecções dos flavivirus, para os quais existe vacina disponível. Entretanto, as vacinas baseadas em vírus atenuados podem potencialmente promover efeitos colaterais e, mais raramente, reações fatais. Diante deste cenário, o desenvolvimento de estratégias alternativas de vacinação, como vacinas baseadas em DNA codificando seqüências específicas dos flavivirus, está sendo considerado

Searching for the Expelled Hydrogen Envelope in Type I Supernovae via Late-Time H α Emission

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vinko, J.; Silverman, J. M.; Wheeler, J. C.; MacQueen, P.; Marion, G. H. [Department of Astronomy, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712 (United States); Pooley, D. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Trinity University, One Trinity Place, San Antonio, TX 78212 (United States); Szalai, T. [Department of Optics and Quantum Electronics, University of Szeged, Dom ter 9, Szeged, 6720 (Hungary); Kelly, P. [Department of Astronomy, University of California at Berkeley, 501 Campbell Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720-3411 (United States); Sárneczky, K. [Konkoly Observatory, Research Centre for Astronomy and Earth Sciences, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Konkoly Thege ut 15-17, Budapest, 1121 (Hungary)

2017-03-01

We report the first results from our long-term observational survey aimed at discovering late-time interaction between the ejecta of hydrogen-poor Type I supernovae (SNe I) and the hydrogen-rich envelope expelled from the progenitor star several decades/centuries before explosion. The expelled envelope, moving with a velocity of ∼10–100 km s{sup −1}, is expected to be caught up by the fast-moving SN ejecta several years/decades after explosion, depending on the history of the mass-loss process acting in the progenitor star prior to explosion. The collision between the SN ejecta and the circumstellar envelope results in net emission in the Balmer lines, especially H α . We look for signs of late-time H α emission in older SNe Ia/Ibc/IIb with hydrogen-poor ejecta via narrowband imaging. Continuum-subtracted H α emission has been detected for 13 point sources: 9 SN Ibc, 1 SN IIb, and 3 SN Ia events. Thirty-eight SN sites were observed on at least two epochs, from which three objects (SN 1985F, SN 2005kl, and SN 2012fh) showed significant temporal variation in the strength of their H α emission in our Direct Imaging Auxiliary Functions Instrument (DIAFI) data. This suggests that the variable emission is probably not due to nearby H ii regions unassociated with the SN and hence is an important additional hint that ejecta–circumstellar medium interaction may take place in these systems. Moreover, we successfully detected the late-time H α emission from the Type Ib SN 2014C, which was recently discovered as a strongly interacting SN in various (radio, infrared, optical, and X-ray) bands.

Dynamical model for the dusty envelope around the symbiotic nova PU Vulpeculae

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Men'shchikov, A.B.; Tutukov, A.V.; Shustov, B.M.; Ergma, E.V.

1985-01-01

An evolutionary model for PU Vul, Object Kuwano--Honda, indicates that the deep 1980--1981 minimum may have resulted from detachment of a dust envelope. The envelope ejection process and the changes in the infrared spectrum are studied numerically; evidently the envelope departs strongly from spherical symmetry. The bluing observed at minimum light might have been due to dissipation of shock energy

Semiparametric Power Envelopes for Tests of the Unit Root Hypothesis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jansson, Michael

This paper derives asymptotic power envelopes for tests of the unit root hypothesis in a zero-mean AR(1) model. The power envelopes are derived using the limits of experiments approach and are semiparametric in the sense that the underlying error distribution is treated as an unknown...

Incomplete development of the spleen and the deformity in the chimeras between asplenic mutant (Dominant hemimelia) and normal mice.

Science.gov (United States)

Suto, J; Wakayama, T; Imamura, K; Goto, S; Fukuta, K

1995-08-01

The semidominant gene Dh (Dominant hemimelia) induces skeletal and visceral abnormalities of various degrees and failure of the spleen in mice. The homozygous individual (Dh/Dh) seems to be lethal. The present experiment was designed to investigate the ability Dh cells to form a spleen and the genesis of the hind limb malformations by Dh/Dh and Dh/+ cells in chimeric mice. The Dh/Dh and Dh/+ embryos were produced in the F2 progeny of a cross between inbred strains of Dh/+ and DDD mice. They were aggregated with C3H/He or C57BL/6 embryos to make chimeras. Identification of Dh/Dh or Dh/+ embryos was carried out by Pep-3, and chimerism was analyzed by Gpi-1. Of 25 chimeras carrying the Dh gene, four mice formed a small spleen, two mice had a vestigial spleen, and the others no spleen. The tissues of the incompletely developed spleens were normal histologically and Dh cells were involved in the tissues of the spleen. In the chimeric mice, hindlimb malformation by the Dh gene was reduced in severity and the lethality of the homozygote (Dh/Dh) was rescued.

Synthesis and transfer of galactolipids in the chloroplast envelope membranes of Arabidopsis thaliana.

Science.gov (United States)

Kelly, Amélie A; Kalisch, Barbara; Hölzl, Georg; Schulze, Sandra; Thiele, Juliane; Melzer, Michael; Roston, Rebecca L; Benning, Christoph; Dörmann, Peter

2016-09-20

Galactolipids [monogalactosyldiacylglycerol (MGDG) and digalactosyldiacylglycerol (DGDG)] are the hallmark lipids of photosynthetic membranes. The galactolipid synthases MGD1 and DGD1 catalyze consecutive galactosyltransfer reactions but localize to the inner and outer chloroplast envelopes, respectively, necessitating intermembrane lipid transfer. Here we show that the N-terminal sequence of DGD1 (NDGD1) is required for galactolipid transfer between the envelopes. Different diglycosyllipid synthases (DGD1, DGD2, and Chloroflexus glucosyltransferase) were introduced into the dgd1-1 mutant of Arabidopsis in fusion with N-terminal extensions (NDGD1 and NDGD2) targeting to the outer envelope. Reconstruction of DGDG synthesis in the outer envelope membrane was observed only with diglycosyllipid synthase fusion proteins carrying NDGD1, indicating that NDGD1 enables galactolipid translocation between envelopes. NDGD1 binds to phosphatidic acid (PA) in membranes and mediates PA-dependent membrane fusion in vitro. These findings provide a mechanism for the sorting and selective channeling of lipid precursors between the galactolipid pools of the two envelope membranes.

THE INCIDENCE OF NON-SPHERICAL CIRCUMSTELLAR ENVELOPES IN ASYMPTOTIC GIANT BRANCH STARS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Politano, Michael; Taam, Ronald E.

2011-01-01

The relative occurrence of asymmetric structures in the circumstellar envelopes (CSEs) of asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars in detached binary star systems is studied based on a population synthesis method. The effects of envelope shaping by the gravitational interaction of the companion on an outflowing stellar wind are incorporated using previously derived empirical fits to numerical simulations. It is shown that significant asymmetries in the CSE, characterized by a ratio of the density in the equatorial direction relative to the polar direction, can exceed 10 for AGB stars characterized by luminosities in the range of 1000-10, 000 L sun in systems with orbital separations of 3-30 AU and mass ratios of 0.25-1. The incidence of such systems relative to a present-day field population of AGB stars (single + binary) is estimated to be 1%-6%, depending upon input parameter choices. For more modest density contrasts exceeding a factor of two, the incidence increases to 4%-15%. With the advent of future high-resolution molecular line studies of CSEs with the Atacama Large Millimeter Array, it is anticipated that the number of AGB stars exhibiting detectable asymmetries will significantly increase.

Envelope proteins of bovine herpesvirus 1: immunological and biochemical studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rodriguez Roque, L.L.

1986-01-01

The authors studied immunological and biochemical properties of the bovid herpesvirus 1 (BHV-1) envelope proteins in order to understand the pathogenesis of BHV-1 infection and to provide basic information for the production of effective subunit vaccines against BHV-1. Ten glycoproteins MW 180, 150, 130, 115, 97, 77, 74, 64, 55, and 45 kilodaltons (K), and a single non-glycosylated 108 K protein were quantitatively removed from purified BHV-1 virions by detergent treatment. These glycoproteins were present on the virion envelope and on the surface of BHV-1 infected cells. The quantitative removal from virions by treatment with nonionic detergents and their presence on the surface of infected cells indicate that 180/97, 150/77, and 130/74/55 K are major components of the BHV-1 envelope and are also the targets of virus neutralizing humoral immune response. Envelope glycoproteins of herpes simplex type 1 (HSV-1) bind immunoglobulin by the Fc end and it is suggested this may increase pathogenicity of this virus. They searched for a similar function in BVH-1 by measuring the ability of BHV-1 infected cells and viral envelope proteins to bind radiolabelled rabbit and bovine IgG. Binding activity for rabbit IgG or bovine IgG-Fc could not be demonstrated by BHV-1 infected MDBK cells, whereas, MDBK cells infected with HSV-1 bound rabbit IgG and bovine IgG-Fc. None of the three major envelope proteins of BHV-1 bound to rabbit or bovine IgG. The results of this study indicate that BHV-1, unlike some other herpesviruses, lack Fc binding activity

Carrier-envelope offset frequency stabilization of an ultrafast semiconductor laser

Science.gov (United States)

Jornod, Nayara; Gürel, Kutan; Wittwer, Valentin J.; Brochard, Pierre; Hakobyan, Sargis; Schilt, Stéphane; Waldburger, Dominik; Keller, Ursula; Südmeyer, Thomas

2018-02-01

We present the self-referenced stabilization of the carrier-envelope offset (CEO) frequency of a semiconductor disk laser. The laser is a SESAM-modelocked VECSEL emitting at a wavelength of 1034 nm with a repetition frequency of 1.8 GHz. The 270-fs pulses are amplified to 3 W and compressed to 120 fs for the generation of a coherent octavespanning supercontinuum spectrum. A quasi-common-path f-to-2f interferometer enables the detection of the CEO beat with a signal-to-noise ratio of 30 dB sufficient for its frequency stabilization. The CEO frequency is phase-locked to an external reference with a feedback signal applied to the pump current.

Thermal performance envelopes for MHTGRs - Reliability by design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Etzel, K.T.; Howard, W.W.; Zgliczynski, J.

1992-01-01

Thermal performance envelopes are used to specify steady-state design requirements for the systems of the modular high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (MHTGR) to maximize plant performance reliability with optimized design. The thermal performance envelopes are constructed around the expected operating point to account for uncertainties in actual plant as-built parameters and plant operation. The components are then designed to perform successfully at all points within the envelope. As a result, plant reliability is maximized by accounting for component thermal performance variation in the design. The design is optimized by providing a means to determine required margins in a disciplined and visible fashion. This is accomplished by coordinating these requirements with the various system and component designers in the early stages of the design, applying the principles of total quality management. The design is challenged by the more complex requirements associated with a range of operating conditions, but in return, high probability of delivering reliable performance throughout the plant life is ensured

Radio Imaging of Envelopes of Evolved Stars

Science.gov (United States)

Cotton, Bill

2018-04-01

This talk will cover imaging of stellar envelopes using radio VLBI techniques; special attention will be paid to the technical differences between radio and optical/IR interferomery. Radio heterodyne receivers allow a straightforward way to derive spectral cubes and full polarization observations. Milliarcsecond resolution of very bright, i.e. non thermal, emission of molecular masers in the envelopes of evolved stars can be achieved using VLBI techniques with baselines of thousands of km. Emission from SiO, H2O and OH masers are commonly seen at increasing distance from the photosphere. The very narrow maser lines allow accurate measurements of the velocity field within the emitting region.

Enveloping algebras of Lie groups with descrete series

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nguyen huu Anh; Vuong manh Son

1990-09-01

In this article we shall prove that the enveloping algebra of the Lie algebra of some unimodular Lie group having discrete series, when localized at some element of the center, is isomorphic to the tensor product of a Weyl algebra over the ring of Laurent polynomials of one variable and the enveloping algebra of some reductive Lie algebra. In particular, it will be proved that the Lie algebra of a unimodular solvable Lie group having discrete series satisfies the Gelfand-Kirillov conjecture. (author). 6 refs

DNAzyme-mediated recovery of small recombinant RNAs from a 5S rRNA-derived chimera expressed in Escherichia coli

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Willson Richard C

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Manufacturing large quantities of recombinant RNAs by overexpression in a bacterial host is hampered by their instability in intracellular environment. To overcome this problem, an RNA of interest can be fused into a stable bacterial RNA for the resulting chimeric construct to accumulate in the cytoplasm to a sufficiently high level. Being supplemented with cost-effective procedures for isolation of the chimera from cells and recovery of the recombinant RNA from stabilizing scaffold, this strategy might become a viable alternative to the existing methods of chemical or enzymatic RNA synthesis. Results Sequence encoding a 71-nucleotide recombinant RNA was inserted into a plasmid-borne deletion mutant of the Vibrio proteolyticus 5S rRNA gene in place of helix III - loop C segment of the original 5S rRNA. After transformation into Escherichia coli, the chimeric RNA (3×pen aRNA was expressed constitutively from E. coli rrnB P1 and P2 promoters. The RNA chimera accumulated to levels that exceeded those of the host's 5S rRNA. A novel method relying on liquid-solid partitioning of cellular constituents was developed for isolation of total RNA from bacterial cells. This protocol avoids toxic chemicals, and is therefore more suitable for large scale RNA purification than traditional methods. A pair of biotinylated 8-17 DNAzymes was used to bring about the quantitative excision of the 71-nt recombinant RNA from the chimera. The recombinant RNA was isolated by sequence-specific capture on beads with immobilized complementary deoxyoligonucleotide, while DNAzymes were recovered by biotin affinity chromatography for reuse. Conclusions The feasibility of a fermentation-based approach for manufacturing large quantities of small RNAs in vivo using a "5S rRNA scaffold" strategy is demonstrated. The approach provides a route towards an economical method for the large-scale production of small RNAs including shRNAs, siRNAs and aptamers for use

Neural encoding of the speech envelope by children with developmental dyslexia.

Science.gov (United States)

Power, Alan J; Colling, Lincoln J; Mead, Natasha; Barnes, Lisa; Goswami, Usha

2016-09-01

Developmental dyslexia is consistently associated with difficulties in processing phonology (linguistic sound structure) across languages. One view is that dyslexia is characterised by a cognitive impairment in the "phonological representation" of word forms, which arises long before the child presents with a reading problem. Here we investigate a possible neural basis for developmental phonological impairments. We assess the neural quality of speech encoding in children with dyslexia by measuring the accuracy of low-frequency speech envelope encoding using EEG. We tested children with dyslexia and chronological age-matched (CA) and reading-level matched (RL) younger children. Participants listened to semantically-unpredictable sentences in a word report task. The sentences were noise-vocoded to increase reliance on envelope cues. Envelope reconstruction for envelopes between 0 and 10Hz showed that the children with dyslexia had significantly poorer speech encoding in the 0-2Hz band compared to both CA and RL controls. These data suggest that impaired neural encoding of low frequency speech envelopes, related to speech prosody, may underpin the phonological deficit that causes dyslexia across languages. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Development of a biosensor protein bullet as a fluorescent method for fast detection of Escherichia coli in drinking water.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ignacio Gutiérrez-Del-Río

Full Text Available Drinking water can be exposed to different biological contaminants from the source, through the pipelines, until reaching the final consumer or industry. Some of these are pathogenic bacteria and viruses which may cause important gastrointestinal or systemic diseases. The microbiological quality of drinking water relies mainly in monitoring three indicator bacteria of faecal origin, Escherichia coli, Enterococcus faecalis and Clostridium perfringens, which serve as early sentinels of potential health hazards for the population. Here we describe the analysis of three chimeric fluorescent protein bullets as biosensor candidates for fast detection of E. coli in drinking water. Two of the chimeric proteins (based on GFP-hadrurin and GFP-pb5 chimera proteins failed with respect to specificity and/or sensitivity, but the GFP-colS4 chimera protein was able to carry out specific detection of E. coli in drinking water samples in a procedure encompassing about 8 min for final result and this biosensor protein was able to detect in a linear way between 20 and 103 CFU of this bacterium. Below 20 CFU, the system cannot differentiate presence or absence of the target bacterium. The fluorescence in this biosensor system is provided by the GFP subunit of the chimeric protein, which, in the case of the better performing sensor bullet, GFP-colS4 chimera, is covalently bound to a flexible peptide bridge and to a bacteriocin binding specifically to E. coli cells. Once bound to the target bacteria, the excitation step with 395 nm LED light causes emission of fluorescence from the GFP domain, which is amplified in a photomultiplier tube, and finally this signal is converted into an output voltage which can be associated with a CFU value and these data distributed along mobile phone networks, for example. This method, and the portable fluorimeter which has been developed for it, may contribute to reduce the analysis time for detecting E. coli presence in drinking

Development of a biosensor protein bullet as a fluorescent method for fast detection of Escherichia coli in drinking water.

Science.gov (United States)

Gutiérrez-Del-Río, Ignacio; Marín, Laura; Fernández, Javier; Álvarez San Millán, María; Ferrero, Francisco Javier; Valledor, Marta; Campo, Juan Carlos; Cobián, Natalia; Méndez, Ignacio; Lombó, Felipe

2018-01-01

Drinking water can be exposed to different biological contaminants from the source, through the pipelines, until reaching the final consumer or industry. Some of these are pathogenic bacteria and viruses which may cause important gastrointestinal or systemic diseases. The microbiological quality of drinking water relies mainly in monitoring three indicator bacteria of faecal origin, Escherichia coli, Enterococcus faecalis and Clostridium perfringens, which serve as early sentinels of potential health hazards for the population. Here we describe the analysis of three chimeric fluorescent protein bullets as biosensor candidates for fast detection of E. coli in drinking water. Two of the chimeric proteins (based on GFP-hadrurin and GFP-pb5 chimera proteins) failed with respect to specificity and/or sensitivity, but the GFP-colS4 chimera protein was able to carry out specific detection of E. coli in drinking water samples in a procedure encompassing about 8 min for final result and this biosensor protein was able to detect in a linear way between 20 and 103 CFU of this bacterium. Below 20 CFU, the system cannot differentiate presence or absence of the target bacterium. The fluorescence in this biosensor system is provided by the GFP subunit of the chimeric protein, which, in the case of the better performing sensor bullet, GFP-colS4 chimera, is covalently bound to a flexible peptide bridge and to a bacteriocin binding specifically to E. coli cells. Once bound to the target bacteria, the excitation step with 395 nm LED light causes emission of fluorescence from the GFP domain, which is amplified in a photomultiplier tube, and finally this signal is converted into an output voltage which can be associated with a CFU value and these data distributed along mobile phone networks, for example. This method, and the portable fluorimeter which has been developed for it, may contribute to reduce the analysis time for detecting E. coli presence in drinking water.

The excitation of solar-like oscillations in a δ Sct star by efficient envelope convection

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Antoci, V.; Handler, G.; Kallinger, T.

2011-01-01

Delta Scuti (δSct) stars are opacity-driven pulsators with masses of 1.5-2.5Msolar, their pulsations resulting from the varying ionization of helium. In less massive stars such as the Sun, convection transports mass and energy through the outer 30per cent of the star and excites a rich spectrum...... of resonant acoustic modes. Based on the solar example, with no firm theoretical basis, models predict that the convective envelope in δSct stars extends only about 1per cent of the radius, but with sufficient energy to excite solar-like oscillations. This was not observed before the Kepler mission, so...... the presence of a convective envelope in the models has been questioned. Here we report the detection of solar-like oscillations in the δSct star HD187547, implying that surface convection operates efficiently in stars about twice as massive as the Sun, as the ad hoc models predicted....

Envelope correlation in (N, N) MIMO antenna array from scattering parameters

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thaysen, Jesper; Jakobsen, Kaj Bjarne

2006-01-01

the envelope correlation coefficient. This approach has the advantage that it does not require knowledge of the antenna radiation pattern. Numerical data that include conductor and permittivity loss are shown to validate the approach. Using the scattering parameters for calculating the envelope correlation......A simple closed-form equation to calculate the envelope correlation between any two receiver or transmitter antennas in a multi-input multi-output (MIMO) system of an arbitrary number of elements is derived. The equation uses the scattering parameters obtained at the antenna feed point to calculate...

Enveloped virus flocculation and removal in osmolyte solutions.

Science.gov (United States)

Gencoglu, Maria F; Heldt, Caryn L

2015-07-20

Our ability to reduce infectious disease burden throughout the world has been greatly improved by the creation of vaccines. However, worldwide immunization rates are low. The two most likely reasons are the lack of sufficient distribution in underdeveloped countries and the high cost of vaccine products. The high costs are due to the difficulties of manufacturing individual vaccine products with specialized purification trains. In this study, we propose to use virus flocculation in osmolytes, followed by microfiltration, as an alternative vaccine purification operation. In our previous work, we demonstrated that osmolytes preferentially flocculate a non-enveloped virus, porcine parvovirus (PPV). In this work we show that osmolytes flocculate the enveloped virus, Sindbis virus heat resistant strain (SVHR), and demonstrate a >80% removal with a 0.2 μm microfilter membrane while leaving proteins in solution. The best osmolytes were tested for their ability to flocculate SVHR at different concentrations, pH and ionic strengths. Our best removal was 98% of SVHR in 0.3M mannitol at a pH of 5. We propose that osmolytes are able to flocculate hydrophobic non-enveloped and enveloped virus particles by the reduction of the hydration layer around the particles, which stimulates virus aggregation. Now that we have demonstrated that protecting osmolytes flocculate viruses, this method has the potential to be a future platform purification process for vaccines. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Multi-layered breathing architectural envelope

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lund Larsen, Andreas; Foged, Isak Worre; Jensen, Rasmus Lund

2014-01-01

A multi layered breathing envelope is developed as a method of natural ventilation. The two main layers consist of mineral wool and air permeable concrete. The mineral wool works as a dynamic insulation and the permeable concrete as a heat recovery system with a high thermal mass for heat storage...

Evaluation of eco-friendly zwitterionic detergents for enveloped virus inactivation.

Science.gov (United States)

Conley, Lynn; Tao, Yinying; Henry, Alexis; Koepf, Edward; Cecchini, Douglas; Pieracci, John; Ghose, Sanchayita

2017-04-01

Inclusion of a detergent in protein biotherapeutic purification processes is a simple and very robust method for inactivating enveloped viruses. The detergent Triton X-100 has been used for many years and is part of the production process of several commercial therapeutic proteins. However, recent ecological studies have suggested that Triton X-100 and its break-down products can potentially behave as endocrine disrupters in aquatic organisms, raising concerns from an environmental impact perspective. As such, discharge of Triton X-100 into the waste water treatment plants is regulated in some jurisdictions, and alternative detergents for viral inactivation are required. In this work, we report on the identification and evaluation of more eco-friendly detergents as viable replacements for Triton X-100. Five detergent candidates with low to moderate environmental impact were initially identified and evaluated with respect to protein stability, followed by proof-of-concept virus inactivation studies using a model enveloped virus. From the set of candidates lauryldimethylamine N-oxide (LDAO) was identified as the most promising detergent due to its low ecotoxicity, robust anti-viral activity (LRV >4 at validation set-point conditions with X-MuLX), and absence of any negative impact on protein function. This detergent exhibited effective and robust virus inactivation in a broad range of protein concentrations, solution conductivities, pHs, and in several different cell culture fluid matrices. The only process parameter which correlated with reduced virus inactivation potency was LDAO concentration, and then only when the concentration was reduced to below the detergent's critical micelle concentration (CMC). Additionally, this work also demonstrated that LDAO was cleared to below detectable levels after Protein A affinity chromatography, making it suitable for use in a platform process that utilizes this chromatographic mode for protein capture. All these findings

Transfer of experimental allergic encephalomyelitis to bone marrow chimeras. Endothelial cells are not a restricting element

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hinrichs, D.J.; Wegmann, K.W.; Dietsch, G.N.

1987-01-01

The adoptive transfer of clinical and histopathologic signs of experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE) requires MHC compatibility between cell donor and cell recipient. The results of adoptive transfer studies using F1 to parent bone marrow chimeras as recipients of parental-derived BP-sensitive spleen cells indicate that this restriction is not expressed at the level of the endothelial cell but is confined to the cells of bone marrow derivation. Furthermore, these results indicate that the development of EAE is not dependent on the activity of MHC-restricted cytotoxic cells

[Design of High Frequency Signal Detecting Circuit of Human Body Impedance Used for Ultrashort Wave Diathermy Apparatus].

Science.gov (United States)

Fan, Xu; Wang, Yunguang; Cheng, Haiping; Chong, Xiaochen

2016-02-01

The present circuit was designed to apply to human tissue impedance tuning and matching device in ultra-short wave treatment equipment. In order to judge if the optimum status of circuit parameter between energy emitter circuit and accepter circuit is in well syntony, we designed a high frequency envelope detect circuit to coordinate with automatic adjust device of accepter circuit, which would achieve the function of human tissue impedance matching and tuning. Using the sampling coil to receive the signal of amplitude-modulated wave, we compared the voltage signal of envelope detect circuit with electric current of energy emitter circuit. The result of experimental study was that the signal, which was transformed by the envelope detect circuit, was stable and could be recognized by low speed Analog to Digital Converter (ADC) and was proportional to the electric current signal of energy emitter circuit. It could be concluded that the voltage, transformed by envelope detect circuit can mirror the real circuit state of syntony and realize the function of human tissue impedance collecting.

Stability of an expanding cylindrical plasma envelope: Rayleigh--Taylor instability

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Han, S.J.

1982-01-01

The stability of a cylindrically symmetric plasma envelope driven outward by blast waves is considered. The plasma fluid is assumed to be a compressible, isentropic gas describable as an ideal gas ( p = arho/sup γ/, γ>1). The stability problem of such an envelope undergoing self-similar motion is solved by considering the initial-value problem. It is shown that in the early phase of an expansion, the envelope is unstable to Rayleigh--Taylor modes which develop at the inner surface. In the later phase of the expansion, the Rayleigh--Taylor modes are weakened due to the geometrical divergence effect. The implications of the time-dependent behavior of the Rayleigh--Taylor instability for plasma switches are discussed

Envelope method for background elimination from X-ray fluorescence spectra