Multi-strange baryon measurements at LHC energies, with the ALICE experiment

The status of the charged multi-strange baryon analysis (Xi-, anti-Xi+, Omega-, anti-Omega+) at LHC energies is presented. This report is based on the results obtained with ALICE (A Large Ion Collider Experiment), profiting from the characteristic cascade-decay topology. A special attention is drawn to the early pp data-taking period (2009-2010) and subsequently, on the uncorrected pT-spectra extracted at mid-rapidity for centre of mass energies of 0.9 TeV and 7 TeV.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures, Hot Quarks 2010 proceedings, La Londe Les Maures, France, June 2010 (to be published in Journal of Physics: Conference Series

Physics of the Muon Spectrometer of the ALICE Experiment

The main goal of the Muon spectrometer of the ALICE experiment at LHC is the measurement of heavy quark production in p+p, p+A and A+A collisions at LHC energies, via the muonic channel. Physics motivations and expected performances have been presented in this talk.Comment: 10 pages and 4 figures. Talk presented in the ICPAQGP Conference, February 8-12, 2005, Salt Lake City, Kolkata, India. Web page of the conference : http://www.veccal.ernet.in/~icpaqgp

Genomweite Meta-Analyse liefert neue Erkenntnisse über die polygene Architektur der Myasthenia Gravis

Background: Myasthenia gravis (MG) is a rare autoantibody-mediated disease of the neuromuscular junction that is characterized by muscle weakness and fatigue. Understanding the underlying genetic biology can provide crucial insights into pathogenesis. This, in turn, may aid in identifying individuals at risk and facilitate drug development efforts. Within the scope of the presented publication, we aimed to identify common genetic variants associated with MG. Methods: We conducted genome-wide association meta-analyses in a case-control setting, wherein we assessed the association of individual single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with MG and its onset-specific subgroups using single-variant logistic regression models. We further carried out gene prioritization, association analyses of imputed human leukocyte antigen (HLA) and complement component 4 (C4) alleles, a transcriptome-wide association study, polygenic risk scoring, and genetic correlation analyses with other medical conditions. This study was a collaborative effort involving clinical samples from multiple medical institutions and international biobanks. The discovery meta-analysis included 5,708 clinically diagnosed MG patients and 432,028 control subjects. The results were replicated and meta-analyzed with a sample of 3,989 self-reported MG cases and 226,643 controls shared by 23andMe, Inc. Results: The meta-analysis of discovery and replication genome-wide association studies identified 12 genome-wide significant (p < 5e-8) index SNPs associated with MG. Subgroup analyses revealed that two of these were associated with early-onset (at age < 50) and four with late-onset MG (at age ≥ 50). Association analyses of HLA and C4 alleles identified inverse effect sizes for late and early disease onset. Polygenic scores significantly predicted MG in an independent cohort, explaining 4.21% (p = 5.12e-9) of the phenotypic variation. We identified five significant genetic correlations with MG, with the strongest observed for type 1 diabetes (rg = 0.523, p = 1.42e-6, SE = 0.109) and rheumatoid arthritis (rg = 0.508, p = 1.11e-6, SE = 0.104) based on previous GWAS of neurological and autoimmune diseases. A less restrictive genetic correlation analysis of 835 medical endpoints in a population-based biobank identified 17 significant traits, with the strongest correlations observed for autoimmune hyperthyroidism (rg = 0.586, p = 6.27e-7, SE = 0.118) and seropositive rheumatoid arthritis (rg = 0.50, p = 1.09e-5, SE = 0.114). Conclusion: The combined meta-analysis identified six novel associations and validated six known loci, most of which have been implicated to be involved in immune function. The inverse effects of specific HLA and C4 alleles suggest a potentially modulating influence on the timing of disease onset. These findings expand our understanding of the biological basis of MG and suggest that polygenic scores could be a promising addition to diagnostic and prognostic tools for MG.Hintergrund: MG ist eine seltene, antikörpervermittelte Erkrankung der neuromuskulären Endplatte, die sich durch Muskelschwäche und Fatigue auszeichnet. Ein besseres Verständnis der genetischen Grundlagen kann wichtige Erkenntnisse zur Pathogenese liefern. Dies kann wiederum dazu beitragen, gefährdete Personen zu identifizieren und Therapeutika zu entwickeln. Die hier vorgelegte Studie hatte zum Ziel, häufige genetische Varianten, welche mit MG assoziiert sind, zu identifizieren. Methoden: Wir führten genomweite Metaanalysen in einem Fall-Kontroll-Design durch. Dabei haben wir die Assoziation des Auftretens von SNPs mit MG und dessen altersspezifischen Untergruppen anhand von logistischen Regressionsmodellen untersucht. Des Weiteren wurden Gen-Priorisierung, Assoziationsanalysen mit imputierten HLA-Allelen und Varianten der Komplementkomponente C4 durchgeführt. Darüber hinaus führten wir eine transkriptomweite Assoziationsstudie, polygenes Scoring und genetische Korrelationsanalysen durch. Im Rahmen der Studie wurden genetische Daten aus medizinischen Einrichtungen und internationalen Biobanken analysiert. Die initiale Metaanalyse umfasste 5.708 klinisch diagnostizierte MG-Patienten:innen und 432.028 Kontrollproband:innen. Die Ergebnisse wurden in einer Stichprobe von 3.989 MG-Fällen und 226.643 Kontrollproband:innen repliziert und metaanalysiert, die von 23andMe, Inc. rekrutiert wurden. Ergebnisse: Die Metaanalyse identifizierte 12 genomweit signifikante (p < 5e-8) Index SNPs, welche mit MG assoziiert sind. Erkrankungsalter-spezifische Analysen ergaben, dass zwei der Index-SNPs mit frühem Erkrankungsalter (< 50 Jahre) und vier mit einem späteren Erkrankungsbeginn von MG (≥ 50 Jahre) in Verbindung stehen. Die Assoziationsanalysen mit HLA- und C4-Allelen ergaben inverse Effektstärken für die Erkrankungsalter-Subtypen. Polygene Scores prädizierten MG in einer unabhängigen Kohorte signifikant und erklärten 4,21% (p = 5,12e-9) der phänotypischen Variation. Wir identifizierten fünf signifikante genetische Korrelationen mit MG, wobei die stärksten mit publizierten GWAS von Typ-1-Diabetes (rg = 0,523; p = 1,42e-6; SE = 0,109) und rheumatoider Arthritis (rg = 0,508; p = 1,11e-6; SE = 0,104) beobachtet wurde. Eine weniger restriktive Analyse mit 835 medizinischen Endpunkten in einer populationsbasierten Biobank identifizierte 17 signifikante Korrelationen, wobei die stärksten Korrelationen für Autoimmunhyperthyreose (rg = 0,586; p = 6,27e-7; SE = 0,118) und seropositive rheumatoide Arthritis (rg = 0,50; p = 1,09e-5; SE = 0,114) beobachtet wurden. Fazit: Die präsentierte Metaanalyse identifizierte sechs neue Assoziationen und validierte sechs bekannte Loci. Viele dieser genetischen Loci stehen im Zusammenhang mit Funktionen des Immunsystems. Die inversen Effektstärken bestimmter HLA- und C4-Allele weisen auf einen potenziell modulierenden Einfluss auf den Zeitpunkt des Krankheitsausbruchs hin. Diese Erkenntnisse vertiefen unser Verständnis der Entstehung von MG und legen nahe, dass polygene Scores eine Ergänzung der MG Diagnostik darstellen könnte

Mesoscale eddies influence the movements of mature female white sharks in the Gulf Stream and Sargasso Sea

© The Author(s), 2018. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Scientific Reports 8 (2018): 7363, doi:10.1038/s41598-018-25565-8.Satellite-tracking of mature white sharks (Carcharodon carcharias) has revealed open-ocean movements spanning months and covering tens of thousands of kilometers. But how are the energetic demands of these active apex predators met as they leave coastal areas with relatively high prey abundance to swim across the open ocean through waters often characterized as biological deserts? Here we investigate mesoscale oceanographic variability encountered by two white sharks as they moved through the Gulf Stream region and Sargasso Sea in the North Atlantic Ocean. In the vicinity of the Gulf Stream, the two mature female white sharks exhibited extensive use of the interiors of clockwise-rotating anticyclonic eddies, characterized by positive (warm) temperature anomalies. One tagged white shark was also equipped with an archival tag that indicated this individual made frequent dives to nearly 1,000 m in anticyclones, where it was presumably foraging on mesopelagic prey. We propose that warm temperature anomalies in anticyclones make prey more accessible and energetically profitable to adult white sharks in the Gulf Stream region by reducing the physiological costs of thermoregulation in cold water. The results presented here provide valuable new insight into open ocean habitat use by mature, female white sharks that may be applicable to other large pelagic predators.This work was supported by the WHOI Ocean Life Institute and awards from NASA and NSF

Study protocol of the Berlin Research Initiative for Diagnostics, Genetics and Environmental Factors in Schizophrenia (BRIDGE-S)

Background Large-scale collaborative efforts in the field of psychiatric genetics have made substantial progress in unraveling the biological architecture of schizophrenia (SCZ). Although both genetic and environmental factors are known to play a role in schizophrenia etiology our mechanistic understanding of how they shape risk, resilience and disease trajectories remains limited. Methods Here, we present the study protocol of the Berlin Research Initiative for Diagnostics, Genetic and Environmental Factors of Schizophrenia (BRIDGE-S), which aims to collect a densely phenotyped genetic cohort of 1,000 schizophrenia cases and 1,000 controls. The study’s main objectives are to build a resource for i) promoting genetic discoveries and ii) genotype–phenotype associations to infer specific disease subtypes, and iii) exploring gene-environment interactions using polyrisk models. All subjects provide a biological sample for genotyping and complete a core questionnaire capturing a variety of environmental exposures, demographic, psychological and health data. Approximately 50% of individuals in the sample will further undergo a comprehensive clinical and neurocognitive assessment. Discussion With BRIDGE-S we created a valuable database to study genomic and environmental contributions to schizophrenia risk, onset, and outcomes. Results of the BRIDGE-S study could yield insights into the etiological mechanisms of schizophrenia that could ultimately inform risk prediction, and early intervention and treatment strategies

How journal rankings can suppress interdisciplinary research. A comparison between Innovation Studies and Business & Management

This study provides quantitative evidence on how the use of journal rankings can disadvantage interdisciplinary research in research evaluations. Using publication and citation data, it compares the degree of interdisciplinarity and the research performance of a number of Innovation Studies units with that of leading Business & Management schools in the UK. On the basis of various mappings and metrics, this study shows that: (i) Innovation Studies units are consistently more interdisciplinary in their research than Business & Management schools; (ii) the top journals in the Association of Business Schools' rankings span a less diverse set of disciplines than lower-ranked journals; (iii) this results in a more favourable assessment of the performance of Business & Management schools, which are more disciplinary-focused. This citation-based analysis challenges the journal ranking-based assessment. In short, the investigation illustrates how ostensibly 'excellence-based' journal rankings exhibit a systematic bias in favour of mono-disciplinary research. The paper concludes with a discussion of implications of these phenomena, in particular how the bias is likely to affect negatively the evaluation and associated financial resourcing of interdisciplinary research organisations, and may result in researchers becoming more compliant with disciplinary authority over time.Comment: 41 pages, 10 figure

Os reflexos afetivos do acolhimento institucional e familiar de crianças e adolescentes

A presente monografia objetiva realizar uma análise dos reflexos jurídicos e afetivos do acolhimento institucional e familiar de crianças e adolescentes, observando a sociedade contemporânea e as diversas formas de famílias existentes na atualidade. O método utilizado no presente estudo é o dedutivo, com referências bibliográfica e documental. A pesquisa é qualitativa. O iniciará pelos aspectos físicos e emocionais das crianças e adolescentes, descrevendo noções gerais, conceituais e históricas, passando pela sociedade contemporânea e família atual, descrevendo os aspectos relevantes sobre a doutrina da proteção integral, princípios e direitos relativos à criança e ao adolescente, até chegar ao acolhimento institucional e familiar de crianças e adolescentes analisando os reflexos afetivos. Nesse sentido, conclui-se que embora existam legislações e normativas pertinente à área infanto-juvenil capazes de proteger a criança e o adolescente de qualquer forma de violência, ainda se fazem necessários as suas aplicações de forma mais eficaz. Importante mencionar, que a tudo isso, corroborasse a questão cultural em que os mesmos estão inseridos refletindo na sua história de vida

The Author at Work – Two Short Stories by Janet Frame

This paper deals with two short stories written by the New Zealand born writer Janet Frame both of which represent the figure of the author, grappling with her own failure. The author figure takes us behind the scenes of the writing process, into the workshop of her fiction, therefore transforming us readers into voyeurs, and possibly intruders into her very own home, that of fiction – a home within/behind the home

Effective Rheology of Bubbles Moving in a Capillary Tube

We calculate the average volumetric flux versus pressure drop of bubbles moving in a single capillary tube with varying diameter, finding a square-root relation from mapping the flow equations onto that of a driven overdamped pendulum. The calculation is based on a derivation of the equation of motion of a bubble train from considering the capillary forces and the entropy production associated with the viscous flow. We also calculate the configurational probability of the positions of the bubbles.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figur