Limited asymptomatic carriage of Pneumocystis jiroveci in human immunodeficiency virus-infected patients

Forty-seven bronchoalveolar lavage fluid samples from 16 human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients were used to test the latency model of Pneumocystis infection in the human host. Identification of DNA sequence polymorphisms at 4 independent loci were used to genotype Pneumocystis jiroveci from the 35 samples that contained detectable P. jiroveci DNA. Eighteen of those 35 samples came from patients who did not have Pneumocystis pneumonia (PCP) and had confirmed alternative diagnoses. Seven patients had asymptomatic carriage of P. jiroveci over periods of less than or equal to9.5 months after an episode of PCP, and in all 7 cases, a change in genotype from that in the original episode of PCP was observed. The absence of P. jiroveci DNA in one-fourth of the 47 samples and the observed changes in genotype during asymptomatic carriage do not support the latency model of infection. Asymptomatic carriage in HIV-infected patients may play a role in transmission of P. jiroveci and may even supply a reservoir for future infections

Anomalous Gauge Interactions of the Higgs Boson: Precision Constraints and Weak Boson Scatterings

Interaction of Higgs scalar (H) with weak gauge bosons (V=W,Z) is the {\it key} to understand electroweak symmetry breaking (EWSB) mechanism. New physics effects in the HVV interactions, as predicted by models of compositeness, supersymmetry and extra dimensions, can be formulated as anomalous couplings via a generic effective Lagrangian. We first show that the existing electroweak precision data already impose nontrivial indirect constraints on the anomalous HVV couplings. Then, we systematically study VV --> VV scatterings in the TeV region, via Gold-plated pure leptonic decay modes of the weak bosons. We demonstrate that, even for a light Higgs boson in the mass range 115GeV < m_H < 300GeV, this process can directly probe the anomalous HVV interactions at the LHC with an integrated luminosity of 300fb^{-1}, which further supports the ``No-Lose'' theorem for the LHC to uncover the EWSB mechanism. Comparisons with the constraints from measuring the cross section of VH associate production and the Higgs boson decay width are also given.Comment: Version in Phys. Lett. B (v3: minor typos removed, v2,v4: fix Latex top-margin

Probing the Effects of the Well-mixed Assumption on Viral Infection Dynamics

Viral kinetics have been extensively studied in the past through the use of spatially well-mixed ordinary differential equations describing the time evolution of the diseased state. However, emerging spatial structures such as localized populations of dead cells might adversely affect the spread of infection, similar to the manner in which a counter-fire can stop a forest fire from spreading. In a previous publication (Beauchemin et al., 2005), a simple 2-D cellular automaton model was introduced and shown to be accurate enough to model an uncomplicated infection with influenza A. Here, this model is used to investigate the effects of relaxing the well-mixed assumption. Particularly, the effects of the initial distribution of infected cells, the regeneration rule for dead epithelial cells, and the proliferation rule for immune cells are explored and shown to have an important impact on the development and outcome of the viral infection in our model.Comment: LaTeX, 12 pages, 22 EPS figures, uses document class REVTeX 4, and packages float, graphics, amsmath, and SIunit

Three-Dimensional Multi-Relaxation Time (MRT) Lattice-Boltzmann Models for Multiphase Flow

In this paper, three-dimensional (3D) multi-relaxation time (MRT) lattice-Boltzmann (LB) models for multiphase flow are presented. In contrast to the Bhatnagar-Gross-Krook (BGK) model, a widely employed kinetic model, in MRT models the rates of relaxation processes owing to collisions of particle populations may be independently adjusted. As a result, the MRT models offer a significant improvement in numerical stability of the LB method for simulating fluids with lower viscosities. We show through the Chapman-Enskog multiscale analysis that the continuum limit behavior of 3D MRT LB models corresponds to that of the macroscopic dynamical equations for multiphase flow. We extend the 3D MRT LB models developed to represent multiphase flow with reduced compressibility effects. The multiphase models are evaluated by verifying the Laplace-Young relation for static drops and the frequency of oscillations of drops. The results show satisfactory agreement with available data and significant gains in numerical stability.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Journal of Computational Physic

Local perspectives on weirs in the Upper Nepean

The Independent Expert Panel of the HawkesburyâNepean River Management Forum commissioned the Institute for Sustainable Futures to conduct research into the values held by river users and community members in relation to the weirs on the Upper Nepean River and concerns they would have with any change to the current situation. The weirs at the centre of this research are Bergins, Thurns, Sharpes and Brownlow Hill. The research questions guiding the project are: What is the nature of the social and economic relationship between people and weirs at a local level In what ways would people want to participate in decisions about the weirs and river management Local people were asked about how they use the weirs, what value they see the weirs having for their community, culture and industry and what concerns there may be about potential changes. The research aims to help the Expert Panel and the Forum make appropriate decisions about potential retention, modification or removal of the weirs and the fishways associated with them. A further aim is to facilitate public participation in the decision-making process. Within any community, there are different individuals and groups with diverse interests and experiences. These differences might result in multiple perspectives between and within groups. To differentiate some of these perspectives, the broader community was divided into four sectors: general public, community groups, identifiable water users such as irrigators and recreational users and Indigenous groups. The general public participants emphasised the aesthetic and leisure value of the river. They appear to identify very strongly with the river, with participants interpreting the existence of the weirs as integral to both the riverâs survival and the ongoing economic survival of the region. The findings indicate that this group view the weirs as an integral part of the river and the river as an integral part of the Camden community

Osteoprotegerin reduces osteoclast resorption activity without affecting osteogenesis on nanoparticulate mineralized collagen scaffolds.

The instructive capabilities of extracellular matrix-inspired materials for osteoprogenitor differentiation have sparked interest in understanding modulation of other cell types within the bone regenerative microenvironment. We previously demonstrated that nanoparticulate mineralized collagen glycosaminoglycan (MC-GAG) scaffolds efficiently induced osteoprogenitor differentiation and bone healing. In this work, we combined adenovirus-mediated delivery of osteoprotegerin (AdOPG), an endogenous anti-osteoclastogenic decoy receptor, in primary human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) with MC-GAG to understand the role of osteoclast inactivation in augmentation of bone regeneration. Simultaneous differentiation of osteoprogenitors on MC-GAG and osteoclast progenitors resulted in bidirectional positive regulation. AdOPG expression did not affect osteogenic differentiation alone. In the presence of both cell types, AdOPG-transduced hMSCs on MC-GAG diminished osteoclast-mediated resorption in direct contact; however, osteoclast-mediated augmentation of osteogenic differentiation was unaffected. Thus, the combination of OPG with MC-GAG may represent a method for uncoupling osteogenic and osteoclastogenic differentiation to augment bone regeneration

Comment on "Measuring the Orbital Angular Momentum of a Single Photon"

Optical modes with different orbital angular momentums (OAMs) per photon may be sorted by Mach-Zehnder interferometers incorporated with beam rotators, without resorting to OAM mode converters.Comment: 1 page, 1 figur

Temperature Dependence of the Magnetic Penetration Depth in the Vortex State of the Pyrochlore Superconductor, Cd2Re2O7

We report transverse field and zero field muon spin rotation studies of the superconducting rhenium oxide pyrochlore, Cd2Re2O7. Transverse field measurements (H=0.007 T) show line broadening below Tc, which is characteristic of a vortex state, demonstrating conclusively the type-II nature of this superconductor. The penetration depth is seen to level off below about 400 mK (T/Tc~0.4), with a rather large value of lambda (T=0)~7500A. The temperature independent behavior below ~ 400 mK is consistent with a nodeless superconducting energy gap. Zero-field measurements indicate no static magnetic fields developing below the transition temperature.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, REVTEX 4, submitted to PR

<i>Schizosaccharomyces pombe</i> Pol II transcription elongation factor ELL functions as part of a rudimentary super elongation complex

ELL family transcription factors activate the overall rate of RNA polymerase II (Pol II) transcription elongation by binding directly to Pol II and suppressing its tendency to pause. In metazoa, ELL regulates Pol II transcription elongation as part of a large multisubunit complex referred to as the Super Elongation Complex (SEC), which includes P-TEFb and EAF, AF9 or ENL, and an AFF family protein. Although orthologs of ELL and EAF have been identified in lower eukaryotes including Schizosaccharomyces pombe, it has been unclear whether SEClike complexes function in lower eukaryotes. In this report, we describe isolation from S. pombe of an ELL-containing complex with features of a rudimentary SEC. This complex includes S. pombe Ell1, Eaf1, and a previously uncharacterized protein we designate Ell1 binding protein 1 (Ebp1), which is distantly related to metazoan AFF family members. Like the metazoan SEC, this S. pombe ELL complex appears to function broadly in Pol II transcription. Interestingly, it appears to have a particularly important role in regulating genes involved in cell separation

Summation of Power Series by Self-Similar Factor Approximants

A novel method of summation for power series is developed. The method is based on the self-similar approximation theory. The trick employed is in transforming, first, a series expansion into a product expansion and in applying the self-similar renormalization to the latter rather to the former. This results in self-similar factor approximants extrapolating the sought functions from the region of asymptotically small variables to their whole domains. The method of constructing crossover formulas, interpolating between small and large values of variables is also analysed. The techniques are illustrated on different series which are typical of problems in statistical mechanics, condensed-matter physics, and, generally, in many-body theory.Comment: 30 pages + 5 ps figures, some misprints have been correcte