Electrochemical communication with the inside of cells using micro-patterned vertical carbon nanofibre electrodes

With the rapidly increasing demands for ultrasensitive biodetection, the design and applications of new nano-scale materials for development of sensors based on optical and electrochemical transducers have attracted substantial interest. In particular, given the comparable sizes of nanomaterials and biomolecules, there exist plenty of opportunities to develop functional nanoprobes with biomolecules for highly sensitive and selective biosensing, shedding new light on cellular behaviour. Towards this aim, herein we interface cells with patterned nano-arrays of carbon nanofibers forming a nanosensor-cell construct. We show that such a construct is capable of electrochemically communicating with the intracellular environment.This work was supported by the Leverhulme Trust [grant numbers F/00 094/BD, ECF/2013-603]; the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council [grant number BB/L017059/1]; the European Research Council [Consolidator Grant, number 614787], the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council [EP/K027263/1]; and the NC3Rs [grant number NC/L00058X/1]

Spin transport and spin torque in antiferromagnetic devices

Ferromagnets are key materials for sensing and memory applications. In contrast, antiferromagnets which represent the more common form of magnetically ordered materials, have found less practical application beyond their use for establishing reference magnetic orientations via exchange bias. This might change in the future due to the recent progress in materials research and discoveries of antiferromagnetic spintronic phenomena suitable for device applications. Experimental demonstration of the electrical switching and detection of the Néel order open a route towards memory devices based on antiferromagnets. Apart from the radiation and magnetic-field hardness, memory cells fabricated from antiferromagnets can be inherently multilevel, which could be used for neuromorphic computing. Switching speeds attainable in antiferromagnets far exceed those of ferromagnetic and semiconductor memory technologies. Here we review the recent progress in electronic spin-transport and spin-torque phenomena in antiferromagnets that are dominantly of the relativistic quantum mechanical origin. We discuss their utility in pure antiferromagnetic or hybrid ferromagnetic/antiferromagnetic memory devices

Potential impact of invasive alien species on ecosystem services provided by a tropical forested ecosystem: a case study from Montserrat

Local stakeholders at the important but vulnerable Centre Hills on Montserrat consider that the continued presence of feral livestock (particularly goats and pigs) may lead to widespread replacement of the reserve’s native vegetation by invasive alien trees (Java plum and guava), and consequent negative impacts on native animal species. Since 2009, a hunting programme to control the feral livestock has been in operation. However long-term funding is not assured. Here, we estimate the effect of feral livestock control on ecosystem services provided by the forest to evaluate whether the biodiversity conservation rationale for continuation of the control programme is supported by an economic case. A new practical tool (Toolkit for Ecosystem Service Site-based Assessment) was employed to measure and compare ecosystem service provision between two states of the reserve (i.e. presence and absence of feral livestock control) to estimate the net consequences of the hunting programme on ecosystem services provided by the forest. Based on this we estimate that cessation of feral livestock management would substantially reduce the net benefits provided by the site, including a 46 % reduction in nature-based tourism (from $419,000 to$228,000) and 36 % reduction in harvested wild meat (from $205,000 to$132,000). The overall net benefit generated from annual ecosystem service flows associated with livestock control in thereserve, minus the management cost, was $214,000 per year. We conclude that continued feral livestock control is important for maintaining the current level of ecosystem services provided by the reserve

Planck 2015 results: XV. gravitational lensing

We present the most significant measurement of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) lensing potential to date (at a level of 40 sigma), using temperature and polarization data from the Planck 2015 full-mission release. Using a polarization-only estimator we detect lensing at a significance of 5 sigma. We cross-check the accuracy of our measurement using the wide frequency coverage and complementarity of the temperature and polarization measurements. Public products based on this measurement include an estimate of the lensing potential over approximately 70% of the sky, an estimate of the lensing potential power spectrum in bandpowers for the multipole range 40<L<400 and an associated likelihood for cosmological parameter constraints. We find good agreement between our measurement of the lensing potential power spectrum and that found in the best-fitting LCDM model based on the Planck temperature and polarization power spectra. Using the lensing likelihood alone we obtain a percent-level measurement of the parameter combination σ 8 Ω 0.25 m =0.591±0.021 . We combine our determination of the lensing potential with the E-mode polarization also measured by Planck to generate an estimate of the lensing B-mode. We show that this lensing B-mode estimate is correlated with the B-modes observed directly by Planck at the expected level and with a statistical significance of 10 sigma, confirming Planck's sensitivity to this known sky signal. We also correlate our lensing potential estimate with the large-scale temperature anisotropies, detecting a cross-correlation at the 3 sigma level, as expected due to dark energy in the concordance LCDM model

Performance of missing transverse momentum reconstruction with the ATLAS detector using proton–proton collisions at √s = 13 TeV

The performance of the missing transverse momentum (EmissT) reconstruction with the ATLAS detector is evaluated using data collected in proton–proton collisions at the LHC at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV in 2015. To reconstruct EmissT, fully calibrated electrons, muons, photons, hadronically decaying τ -leptons, and jets reconstructed from calorimeter energy deposits and charged-particle tracks are used. These are combined with the soft hadronic activity measured by reconstructed charged-particle tracks not associated with the hard objects. Possible double counting of contributions from reconstructed charged-particle tracks from the inner detector, energy deposits in the calorimeter, and reconstructed muons from the muon spectrometer is avoided by applying a signal ambiguity resolution procedure which rejects already used signals when combining the various EmissT contributions. The individual terms as well as the overall reconstructed EmissT are evaluated with various performance metrics for scale (linearity), resolution, and sensitivity to the data-taking conditions. The method developed to determine the systematic uncertainties of the EmissT scale and resolution is discussed. Results are shown based on the full 2015 data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 3.2 fb−1

A922 Sequential measurement of 1 hour creatinine clearance (1-CRCL) in critically ill patients at risk of acute kidney injury (AKI)

Meeting abstrac

Measurement of the t¯tZ and t¯tW cross sections in proton-proton collisions at √s=13 TeV with the ATLAS detector

A measurement of the associated production of a top-quark pair (t¯t) with a vector boson (W, Z) in proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV is presented, using 36.1  fb−1 of integrated luminosity collected by the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Events are selected in channels with two same- or opposite-sign leptons (electrons or muons), three leptons or four leptons, and each channel is further divided into multiple regions to maximize the sensitivity of the measurement. The t¯tZ and t¯tW production cross sections are simultaneously measured using a combined fit to all regions. The best-fit values of the production cross sections are σt¯tZ=0.95±0.08stat±0.10syst pb and σt¯tW=0.87±0.13stat±0.14syst pb in agreement with the Standard Model predictions. The measurement of the t¯tZ cross section is used to set constraints on effective field theory operators which modify the t¯tZ vertex

Multi-messenger observations of a binary neutron star merger

On 2017 August 17 a binary neutron star coalescence candidate (later designated GW170817) with merger time 12:41:04 UTC was observed through gravitational waves by the Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo detectors. The Fermi Gamma-ray Burst Monitor independently detected a gamma-ray burst (GRB 170817A) with a time delay of ~1.7 s with respect to the merger time. From the gravitational-wave signal, the source was initially localized to a sky region of 31 deg2 at a luminosity distance of 40+8-8 Mpc and with component masses consistent with neutron stars. The component masses were later measured to be in the range 0.86 to 2.26 Mo. An extensive observing campaign was launched across the electromagnetic spectrum leading to the discovery of a bright optical transient (SSS17a, now with the IAU identification of AT 2017gfo) in NGC 4993 (at ~40 Mpc) less than 11 hours after the merger by the One- Meter, Two Hemisphere (1M2H) team using the 1 m Swope Telescope. The optical transient was independently detected by multiple teams within an hour. Subsequent observations targeted the object and its environment. Early ultraviolet observations revealed a blue transient that faded within 48 hours. Optical and infrared observations showed a redward evolution over ~10 days. Following early non-detections, X-ray and radio emission were discovered at the transient’s position ~9 and ~16 days, respectively, after the merger. Both the X-ray and radio emission likely arise from a physical process that is distinct from the one that generates the UV/optical/near-infrared emission. No ultra-high-energy gamma-rays and no neutrino candidates consistent with the source were found in follow-up searches. These observations support the hypothesis that GW170817 was produced by the merger of two neutron stars in NGC4993 followed by a short gamma-ray burst (GRB 170817A) and a kilonova/macronova powered by the radioactive decay of r-process nuclei synthesized in the ejecta

Systematic mapping review of statistical methods applied to the relationships between cancer diagnosis and geographical level factors in UK

Objectives We examined studies that analysed the spatial association of cancers with demographic, environmental, behavioural and/or socioeconomic factors and the statistical methods applied. Design Systematic mapping review. Data sources Web of Science (SSCI) (search on 28 July 2022), MEDLINE, SocINDEX and CINAHL (search on 4 August 2022), additional searches included grey literature. Eligibility criteria for selecting studies (1) Focused on the constituent countries of the UK (England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland) and its major regions (eg, the North West); (2) compared cancer(s) outcomes with demographic, environmental, behavioural and socioeconomic characteristics by applying methods to identify their spatial association; (3) reported cancer prevalence, incidence rates, relative risk or ORs for a risk factor or to an average level of cancer. Data extraction and synthesis A standardised data extraction form was developed and for all studies, core data were extracted including bibliographic information, study design, geographical factors analysed, data aggregation level, methods applied and main findings. We described and synthesised the characteristics of the studies using summary tables, charts and graphs. Results 52 studies were included covering a variety of objectives and geographical scales. These studies considered different types of cancer, with the most common cancer types analysed being blood and lymphoid cell cancers. The most common methods used to assess the association between cancers and geographical level factors were regression analyses, with the majority being Poisson regression, then logistic and linear regression. Studies were usually conducted at ward and local authority level, or by exact point location when distances from putative risk sources were considered. The results were usually presented in plots or as tables, instead of maps. Conclusion Our results highlight the lack of consideration of spatially explicit models in the analysed studies, with the risk of having failed the assumption of independence in the data. PROSPERO registration number CRD42022349165