pinecone/core-2020-05-10-deduplication huggingface dataset:
Wnt/β-Catenin Stimulation and Laminins Support Cardiovascular Cell Progenitor Expansion from Human Fetal Cardiac Mesenchymal Stromal Cells

SummaryThe intrinsic regenerative capacity of human fetal cardiac mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) has not been fully characterized. Here we demonstrate that we can expand cells with characteristics of cardiovascular progenitor cells from the MSC population of human fetal hearts. Cells cultured on cardiac muscle laminin (LN)-based substrata in combination with stimulation of the canonical Wnt/β-catenin pathway showed increased gene expression of ISL1, OCT4, KDR, and NKX2.5. The majority of cells stained positive for PDGFR-α, ISL1, and NKX2.5, and subpopulations also expressed the progenitor markers TBX18, KDR, c-KIT, and SSEA-1. Upon culture of the cardiac MSCs in differentiation media and on relevant LNs, portions of the cells differentiated into spontaneously beating cardiomyocytes, and endothelial and smooth muscle-like cells. Our protocol for large-scale culture of human fetal cardiac MSCs enables future exploration of the regenerative functions of these cells in the context of myocardial injury in vitro and in vivo
Measuring effectiveness, efficiency and equity in an experimental Payments for Ecosystem Services trial

AbstractThere is currently a considerable effort to evaluate the performance of Payments for Ecosystem Services as an environmental management tool. The research presented here contributes to this work by using an experimental design to evaluate Payments for Ecosystem Services as a tool for supporting biodiversity conservation in the context of an African protected area. The trial employed a ‘before and after’ and ‘with and without’ design. We present the results of social and ecological surveys to investigate the impacts of the trial in terms of its effectiveness, efficiency and equity. We find the scheme to be effective at bringing about additional conservation outcomes. However, we also found that increased monitoring is similarly effective in the short term, at lower cost. The major difference – and arguably the significant contribution of the Payments for Ecosystem Services – was that it changed the motives for protecting the park and improved local perceptions both of the park and its authority. We discuss the implications of these results for conservation efficiency, arguing that efficiency should not be defined in terms of short-term cost-effectiveness, but also in terms of the sustainability of behavioral motives in the long term. This insight helps us to resolve the apparent trade-off between goals of equity and efficiency in Payments for Ecosystem Services
Central Cholinergic Neurons Are Rapidly Recruited by Reinforcement Feedback

SummaryBasal forebrain cholinergic neurons constitute a major neuromodulatory system implicated in normal cognition and neurodegenerative dementias. Cholinergic projections densely innervate neocortex, releasing acetylcholine to regulate arousal, attention, and learning. However, their precise behavioral function is poorly understood because identified cholinergic neurons have never been recorded during behavior. To determine which aspects of cognition their activity might support, we recorded cholinergic neurons using optogenetic identification in mice performing an auditory detection task requiring sustained attention. We found that a non-cholinergic basal forebrain population—but not cholinergic neurons—were correlated with trial-to-trial measures of attention. Surprisingly, cholinergic neurons responded to reward and punishment with unusual speed and precision (18 ± 3 ms). Cholinergic responses were scaled by the unexpectedness of reinforcement and were highly similar across neurons and two nuclei innervating distinct cortical areas. These results reveal that the cholinergic system broadcasts a rapid and precisely timed reinforcement signal, supporting fast cortical activation and plasticity
Discontinuities of BFKL amplitudes and the BDS ansatz

AbstractWe perform an examination of discontinuities of multiple production amplitudes, which are required for further development of the BFKL approach. It turns out that the discontinuities of 2→2+n amplitudes obtained in the BFKL approach contradict to the BDS ansatz for amplitudes with maximal helicity violation in N=4 supersymmetric Yang–Mills theory with large number of colors starting with n=2. Explicit expressions for the discontinuities of the 2→3 and 2→4 amplitudes in the invariant mass of pairs of produced gluons are obtained in the planar N=4 SYM in the next-to-leading logarithmic approximation. These expressions can be used for checking the conjectured duality between the light-like Wilson loops and the MHV amplitudes
Metastable Pluripotent States in NOD-Mouse-Derived ESCs

SummaryEmbryonic stem cells (ESCs) are isolated from the inner cell mass (ICM) of blastocysts, whereas epiblast stem cells (EpiSCs) are derived from the postimplantation epiblast and display a restricted developmental potential. Here we characterize pluripotent states in the nonobese diabetic (NOD) mouse strain, which prior to this study was considered “nonpermissive” for ESC derivation. We find that NOD stem cells can be stabilized by providing constitutive expression of Klf4 or c-Myc or small molecules that can replace these factors during in vitro reprogramming. The NOD ESCs and iPSCs appear to be “metastable,” as they acquire an alternative EpiSC-like identity after removal of the exogenous factors, while their reintroduction converts the cells back to ICM-like pluripotency. Our findings suggest that stem cells from different genetic backgrounds can assume distinct states of pluripotency in vitro, the stability of which is regulated by endogenous genetic determinants and can be modified by exogenous factors
Hydrophilicity of Mordenites with Different SiO2/Al2O3 Molar Ratio

AbstractHydrophicility of H-mordenites with SiO2/Al2O3 molar ratio (MR) varying in the range from 10 up to 206 was investigated by IR spectroscopy, TPD of ammonia and thermogravimetry methods. It was found that dealuminated mordenite retains affinity for water in the entire MR range, in contrast to published results for synthetic pentasil zeolites. In H-mordenites extra-framework aluminum exists in the form of dimers of aluminum hydroxide, those presumably are stabilized in the channels of mordenite. An inversely proportional correlation between the water content in pores and the concentration of channel Lewis sites was observed
Properties of a ternary calcium sulfoaluminate–calcium sulfate–fly ash cement

AbstractIn this paper, cement combinations based on calcium sulfoaluminate cement (CSAC) were developed and the effect of fly ash and the hemihydrate form of calcium sulfate on the properties of the systems was studied. Fly ash (FA), anhydrite (ANH), flue-gas desulfurization gypsum (FGDG) and plaster gypsum (PL) were used to develop appropriate CSAC/calcium sulfate and CSAC/calcium sulfate/addition systems, the hydration of which was studied. Tested properties of cements were the compressive strength and the setting times. The results suggest that the use of fly ash in the presence of anhydrite accelerates the formation of a strong ettringite-rich matrix that firmly accommodated unreacted fly ash particles, both synergistically contributing to a dense microstructure. At a given sulfate content, the use of anhydrite was shown to be favourable in terms of the setting times, heat patterns and strength development compared to the hemihydrate-based formulations
Estimate of Social and Environmental Costs for the Urban Distribution of Goods. Practical Case for the City of Barcelona

AbstractThe objective of the formulation is to allow to evaluate easily the costs of the urban distribution of goods by means of wheeled vehicles, and to formalize a methodological outline for the mentioned evaluation, which allows its updating and amplification when it was necessary. The sensitivity of the model illustrates the behaviour of the social costs in front of variations of the parameters which intervene in the model. The social costs which are analyzed in this article are the costs of the polluting emissions of the commercial vehicles, the costs of the noise emitted by the same ones, the costs which generate these vehicles in congestion and the costs of the accidents associated to their circulation. The costs of polluting emissions are considered with a matrix model based on an updating of the deliverable 22 of the project MEET. The costs of the noise are associated to the cost of using asphalt noise reducer in the streets with a high daily average intensity. The congestion costs are evaluated starting from the losses of time of the drivers of the commercial vehicles in Barcelona. The costs of accidents are quantified starting from the accident rate studies and mobility in the city of Barcelona
A principle to determine the number (3+1) of large spacetime dimensions

AbstractWe assume that our universe originated from highly excited and interacting strings with coupling constant gs=O(1). Fluctuations of spacetime geometry are large in such strings and the physics dictating the emergence of a final spacetime configuration is not known. We propose that, nevertheless, it is determined by an entropic principle that the final spacetime configuration must have maximum entropy for a given amount of energy. This principle implies, under some assumptions, that the spacetime configuration that emerges finally is a (3+1)-dimensional FRW universe filled with w=1 perfect fluid and with 6-dimensional compact space of size ls; in particular, the number of large spacetime dimensions is d=3+1. Such an universe may evolve subsequently into our universe, perhaps as in Banks–Fischler scenario
Search for squarks and gluinos using final states with jets and missing transverse momentum with the ATLAS detector in s=7 TeV proton–proton collisions

AbstractA search for squarks and gluinos in final states containing jets, missing transverse momentum and no electrons or muons is presented. The data were recorded by the ATLAS experiment in s=7 TeV proton–proton collisions at the Large Hadron Collider. No excess above the Standard Model background expectation was observed in 35 pb−1 of analysed data. Gluino masses below 500 GeV are excluded at the 95% confidence level in simplified models containing only squarks of the first two generations, a gluino octet and a massless neutralino. The exclusion increases to 870 GeV for equal mass squarks and gluinos. In MSUGRA/CMSSM models with tanβ=3, A0=0 and μ>0, squarks and gluinos of equal mass are excluded below 775 GeV. These are the most stringent limits to date
CPT violation in entangled B0–B¯0 states and the demise of flavour tagging

AbstractWe discuss the demise of flavour tagging due to the loss of the particle–antiparticle identity of neutral B-mesons in the Einstein–Podolsky–Rosen correlated states. Such a situation occurs in cases where the CPT operator is ill-defined, as happens, for example, in quantum gravity models with induced decoherence in the matter sector. The time evolution of the perturbed B0–B¯0 initial state, as produced in B-factories, is sufficient to generate new two-body states. For flavour specific decays at equal times, we discuss two definite tests of the two body entanglement: (i) search for the would-be forbidden B0B0 and B¯0B¯0 states; (ii) deviations from the indistinguishable probability between the permuted states B¯0B0 and B0B¯0
Measurements of the ϒ(1S), ϒ(2S), and ϒ(3S) differential cross sections in pp collisions at s=7TeV

AbstractDifferential cross sections as a function of transverse momentum pT are presented for the production of ϒ(nS) (n = 1, 2, 3) states decaying into a pair of muons. Data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 4.9fb−1 in pp collisions at s=7TeV were collected with the CMS detector at the LHC. The analysis selects events with dimuon rapidity |y|<1.2 and dimuon transverse momentum in the range 10<pT<100GeV. The measurements show a transition from an exponential to a power-law behavior at pT≈20GeV for the three ϒ states. Above that transition, the ϒ(3S) spectrum is significantly harder than that of the ϒ(1S). The ratios of the ϒ(3S) and ϒ(2S) differential cross sections to the ϒ(1S) cross section show a rise as pT increases at low pT, then become flatter at higher pT
Accurate nucleon–nucleon potential based upon chiral perturbation theory

AbstractWe present an accurate nucleon–nucleon (NN) potential based upon chiral effective Lagrangians. The model includes one- and two-pion exchange contributions up to chiral order three. We show that a quantitative fit of the NN D-wave phase shifts requires contact terms (which represent the short range force) of order four. Within this framework, the NN phase shifts below 300 MeV lab. energy and the properties of the deuteron are reproduced with high-precision. This chiral NN potential represents a reliable starting point for testing the chiral effective field theory approach in exact few-nucleon and microscopic nuclear many-body calculations. An important implication of the present work is that the chiral 2π exchange at order four is of crucial interest for future chiral NN potential development
On a CFT limit of planar γi-deformed N=4 SYM theory

AbstractWe show that an integrable four-dimensional non-unitary field theory that was recently proposed as a certain limit of the γi-deformed N=4 SYM theory is incomplete and not conformal – not even in the planar limit. We complete this theory by double-trace couplings and find conformal one-loop fixed points when admitting respective complex coupling constants. These couplings must not be neglected in the planar limit, as they can contribute to planar multi-point functions. Based on our results for certain two-loop planar anomalous dimensions, we propose tests of integrability
Separate and combined associations of body-mass index and abdominal adiposity with cardiovascular disease: collaborative analysis of 58 prospective studies

SummaryBackgroundGuidelines differ about the value of assessment of adiposity measures for cardiovascular disease risk prediction when information is available for other risk factors. We studied the separate and combined associations of body-mass index (BMI), waist circumference, and waist-to-hip ratio with risk of first-onset cardiovascular disease.MethodsWe used individual records from 58 cohorts to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) per 1 SD higher baseline values (4·56 kg/m2 higher BMI, 12·6 cm higher waist circumference, and 0·083 higher waist-to-hip ratio) and measures of risk discrimination and reclassification. Serial adiposity assessments were used to calculate regression dilution ratios.ResultsIndividual records were available for 221 934 people in 17 countries (14 297 incident cardiovascular disease outcomes; 1·87 million person-years at risk). Serial adiposity assessments were made in up to 63 821 people (mean interval 5·7 years [SD 3·9]). In people with BMI of 20 kg/m2 or higher, HRs for cardiovascular disease were 1·23 (95% CI 1·17–1·29) with BMI, 1·27 (1·20–1·33) with waist circumference, and 1·25 (1·19–1·31) with waist-to-hip ratio, after adjustment for age, sex, and smoking status. After further adjustment for baseline systolic blood pressure, history of diabetes, and total and HDL cholesterol, corresponding HRs were 1·07 (1·03–1·11) with BMI, 1·10 (1·05–1·14) with waist circumference, and 1·12 (1·08–1·15) with waist-to-hip ratio. Addition of information on BMI, waist circumference, or waist-to-hip ratio to a cardiovascular disease risk prediction model containing conventional risk factors did not importantly improve risk discrimination (C-index changes of −0·0001, −0·0001, and 0·0008, respectively), nor classification of participants to categories of predicted 10-year risk (net reclassification improvement −0·19%, −0·05%, and −0·05%, respectively). Findings were similar when adiposity measures were considered in combination. Reproducibility was greater for BMI (regression dilution ratio 0·95, 95% CI 0·93–0·97) than for waist circumference (0·86, 0·83–0·89) or waist-to-hip ratio (0·63, 0·57–0·70).InterpretationBMI, waist circumference, and waist-to-hip ratio, whether assessed singly or in combination, do not importantly improve cardiovascular disease risk prediction in people in developed countries when additional information is available for systolic blood pressure, history of diabetes, and lipids.FundingBritish Heart Foundation and UK Medical Research Council
Regulation of Monocyte Functional Heterogeneity by miR-146a and Relb

SummaryMonocytes serve as a central defense system against infection and injury but can also promote pathological inflammatory responses. Considering the evidence that monocytes exist in at least two subsets committed to divergent functions, we investigated whether distinct factors regulate the balance between monocyte subset responses in vivo. We identified a microRNA (miRNA), miR-146a, which is differentially regulated both in mouse (Ly-6Chi/Ly-6Clo) and human (CD14hi/CD14loCD16+) monocyte subsets. The single miRNA controlled the amplitude of the Ly-6Chi monocyte response during inflammatory challenge whereas it did not affect Ly-6Clo cells. miR-146a-mediated regulation was cell-intrinsic and depended on Relb, a member of the noncanonical NF-κB/Rel family, which we identified as a direct miR-146a target. These observations not only provide mechanistic insights into the molecular events that regulate responses mediated by committed monocyte precursor populations but also identify targets for manipulating Ly-6Chi monocyte responses while sparing Ly-6Clo monocyte activity
Cytosolic Monothiol Glutaredoxins Function in Intracellular Iron Sensing and Trafficking via Their Bound Iron-Sulfur Cluster

SummaryIron is an essential nutrient for cells. It is unknown how iron, after its import into the cytosol, is specifically delivered to iron-dependent processes in various cellular compartments. Here, we identify an essential function of the conserved cytosolic monothiol glutaredoxins Grx3 and Grx4 in intracellular iron trafficking and sensing. Depletion of Grx3/4 specifically impaired all iron-requiring reactions in the cytosol, mitochondria, and nucleus, including the synthesis of Fe/S clusters, heme, and di-iron centers. These defects were caused by impairment of iron insertion into proteins and iron transfer to mitochondria, indicating that intracellular iron is not bioavailable, despite highly elevated cytosolic levels. The crucial task of Grx3/4 is mediated by a bridging, glutathione-containing Fe/S center that functions both as an iron sensor and in intracellular iron delivery. Collectively, our study uncovers an important role of monothiol glutaredoxins in cellular iron metabolism, with a surprising connection to cellular redox and sulfur metabolisms
Effective constraint potential in lattice Weinberg–Salam model

AbstractWe investigate lattice Weinberg–Salam model without fermions for the value of the Weinberg angle θW∼30°, and bare fine structure constant around α∼1150. We consider the value of the scalar self coupling corresponding to bare Higgs mass around 150 GeV. The effective constraint potential for the zero momentum scalar field is used in order to investigate phenomena existing in the vicinity of the phase transition between the physical Higgs phase and the unphysical symmetric phase of the lattice model. This is the region of the phase diagram, where the continuum physics is to be approached. We compare the above mentioned effective potential (calculated in selected gauges) with the effective potential for the value of the scalar field at a fixed space–time point. We also calculate the renormalized fine structure constant using the correlator of Polyakov lines and compare it with the one-loop perturbative estimate
Search for a heavy Standard Model Higgs boson in the channel H→ZZ→ℓ+ℓ−qq¯ using the ATLAS detector

AbstractA search for a heavy Standard Model Higgs boson decaying via H→ZZ→ℓ+ℓ−qq¯, where ℓ=e,μ, is presented. The search is performed using a data set of pp collisions at s=7 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 1.04 fb−1 collected in 2011 by the ATLAS detector at the CERN LHC collider. No significant excess of events above the estimated background is found. Upper limits at 95% confidence level on the production cross section (relative to that expected from the Standard Model) of a Higgs boson with a mass in the range between 200 and 600 GeV are derived. Within this mass range, there is at present insufficient sensitivity to exclude a Standard Model Higgs boson. For a Higgs boson with a mass of 360 GeV, where the sensitivity is maximal, the observed and expected cross section upper limits are factors of 1.7 and 2.7, respectively, larger than the Standard Model prediction
p62 Is Required for Stem Cell/Progenitor Retention through Inhibition of IKK/NF-κB/Ccl4 Signaling at the Bone Marrow Macrophage-Osteoblast Niche

SummaryIn the bone marrow (BM), hematopoietic progenitors (HPs) reside in specific anatomical niches near osteoblasts (Obs), macrophages (MΦs), and other cells forming the BM microenvironment. A connection between immunosurveillance and traffic of HP has been demonstrated, but the regulatory signals that instruct the immune regulation of HP circulation are unknown. We discovered that the BM microenvironment deficiency of p62, an autophagy regulator and signal organizer, results in loss of autophagic repression of macrophage contact-dependent activation of Ob NF-κB signaling. Consequently, Ob p62-deficient mice lose bone, Ob Ccl4 expression, and HP chemotaxis toward Cxcl12, resulting in egress of short-term hematopoietic stem cells and myeloid progenitors. Finally, Ccl4 expression and myeloid progenitor egress are reversed by deficiency of the p62 PB1-binding partner Nbr1. A functional “MΦ-Ob niche” is required for myeloid progenitor/short-term stem cell retention, in which Ob p62 is required to maintain NF-κB signaling repression, osteogenesis, and BM progenitor retention
Concurrent parent–child relationship quality is associated with an imprinting-like effect in children's facial preferences

AbstractHumans have been shown to display phenomena resembling sexual imprinting, whereby adults are attracted to features in potential mates which resemble their opposite sex parent. In humans this may be particularly so when the parent–child relationship is positive, but there are currently limited data elucidating the causes of these patterns. Here we investigate whether such preferences can be documented in children on the cusp of puberty, for whom prospective data exist on parent–child relationships. Sixty 9-year-olds and their parents were recruited from a British longitudinal sample who have been studied since infancy. Parents were photographed, and children were then presented with stimuli in which a computer generated face was manipulated to appear more or less like the parent. Children also reported on their current relationship with each parent. Although attachment at 15months did not predict imprinting at 9years of age, children reporting a more accepting current relationship with their parents preferred parental features significantly more than those who reported a more rejecting relationship with their parents. These data support the suggestion that imprinting-like phenomena in humans may arise through associative learning