Radiosensitivity to high energy iron ions is influenced by heterozygosity for Atm, Rad9 and Brca1

Loss of function of DNA repair genes has been implicated in the development of many types of cancer. In the last several years, heterozygosity leading to haploinsufficiency for proteins involved in DNA repair was shown to play a role in genomic instability and carcinogenesis after DNA damage is induced, for example by ionizing radiation. Since the effect of heterozygosity for one gene is relatively small, we hypothesize that predisposition to cancer could be a result of the additive effect of heterozygosity for two or more genes critical to pathways that control DNA damage signaling, repair or apoptosis. We investigated the role of heterozygosity for Atm, Rad9 and Brca1 on cell oncogenic transformation and cell survival induced by 1 GeV/n⁵⁶Fe ions. Our results show that cells heterozygous for both Atm and Rad9 or Atm and Brca1 have high survival rates and are more sensitive to transformation by high energy iron ions when compared with wild-type controls or cells haploinsufficient for only one of these proteins. Since mutations or polymorphisms for similar genes exist in a small percentage of the human population, we have identified a radiosensitive sub-population. This finding has several implications. First, the existence of a radiosensitive sub-population may distort the shape of the dose–response relationship. Second, it would not be ethical to put exceptionally radiosensitive individuals into a setting where they may potentially be exposed to substantial doses of radiation.     

Early effects of low dose C ion or X-ray irradiation on human peripheral blood lymphocytes

The aim of this study was to estimate the acute effects of low dose ¹²C⁶⁺ ions or X-ray radiation on human immune function. The human peripheral blood lymphocytes (HPBL) of seven healthy donors were exposed to 0.05 Gy ¹²C⁶⁺ ions or X-ray radiation and cell responses were measured at 24 h after exposure. The cytotoxic activities of HPBL were determined by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT); the percentages of T and NK cells subsets were detected by flow cytometry; mRNA expression of interleukin (IL)-2, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and interferon (IFN)-γ were examined by real time quantitative RT-PCR (qRT-PCR); and these cytokines protein levels in supernatant of cultured cells were assayed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). The results showed that the cytotoxic activity of HPBL, mRNA expression of IL-2, IFN-γ and TNF-α in HPBL and their protein levels in supernatant were significantly increased at 24 h after exposure to 0.05 Gy ¹²C⁶⁺ ions radiation and the effects were stronger than observed for X-ray exposure. However, there was no significant change in the percentage of T and NK cells subsets of HPBL. These results suggested that 0.05 Gy high linear energy transfer (LET) ¹²C⁶⁺ radiation was a more effective approach to host immune enhancement than that of low LET X-ray. We conclude that cytokines production might be used as sensitive indicators of acute response to LDI.     

Rotational constants of linear and/or bent Cn+1H and CnN(n = 1–6): A DFT study

The geometries, dipole moments, and rotational constants for the linear and/or bent cations, C_n+1H⁺ and C_nN⁺(n = 1–6), were studied by the B3LYP method with the modest basis sets. For C_nH⁺(n = odd; 3, 5, 7) and C_nN⁺(n = even; 2, 4, 6), the theoretical rotational constants (B_es) of closed-shell singlet C₃H⁺, C₅H⁺, C₇H⁺, CCN⁺, C₄N⁺, and C₆N⁺ were calculated to be about 11,244, 2420, 885.2, 11,970, 2439, and 880.8 MHz, respectively. By contrast, the triplets are stable than the corresponding singlets for C_nH⁺(n = odd; 2, 4, 6) and C_nN⁺(n = even; 3, 5) except CN⁺.     

New He neutron monitor for Chilean Cosmic-Ray Observatories from the Altiplanic zone to the Antarctic zone

We present the results of three years of continuous operations and the principal characteristics of our new ³He neutron monitors installed in the Chilean Network of Cosmic-Ray Observatories. During the years 2004 and 2005, we began the construction of this International Geophysical Year (IGY)-type ³He neutron monitor, with the intention of replacing the older proportional tubes of the BF₃. These new monitors are installed in stations at locations ranging from the near-equatorial zone to the Antarctic zone. As a reference system, we used our own BF₃ neutron monitors and previously complemented the collected data with a Monte Carlo simulation for the proton-yield function response of the Putre neutron monitor. Herein, we present for the first time the data obtained from our new high-mountain observatory located in the Altiplanic zone.     

光纤陀螺中分形噪声的参数估计和去除

光纤陀螺零漂信号中主要存在分形噪声和高斯白噪声,采用传统的时间序列分析法很难去除这类混合噪声.基于小波分析,提出一种分步估计加性白噪声强度和分形随机过程参数的新方法.先通过拟合自相关函数,估计出白噪声的强度;再在小波变换域估计分形噪声参数,并选取适当软阈值对测量值滤波.实验结果表明该估计和降噪方法有效地去除了光纤陀螺中的混合噪声,且不需要噪声的先验知识,具有很好的适应性.      

Production of high fidelity lunar agglutinate simulant

As space faring nations consider manned and unmanned missions to the Moon, there is a growing need to develop high fidelity lunar regolith simulants that can accurately reproduce the properties and behavior of lunar regolith. Such simulants will be employed to verify the performance of equipment, mechanisms, structures and processes to be used on the lunar surface. One of the significant limitations of current terrestrial-based simulants, such as the popular mare simulant, JSC-1A, is the lack of agglutinates. This paper investigates the production of a lunar mare agglutinate simulant based on JSC-1A. A modified plasma processing technique was used to expose the JSC-1A regolith simulant to high temperatures and transform it to predominantly a glassy phase. Detailed characterization results are presented to confirm that the agglutinate simulant material produced during this investigation reasonably satisfies the primary requirements of an agglutinate simulant such as amorphous/crystalline content, particle size, morphology, vesicular structure, chemistry, and presence of nanophase elemental Fe.     

Observations of non-migrating tides and ionospheric perturbations of O(D) airglow by ISUAL instrument

In this paper, we present the spatial variations of O(¹D) airglow observed by the ISUAL (Imager of Sprites and Upper Atmospheric Lightning) instrument on board the FORMOSAT-2 satellite. With a CCD camera and a 630 nm filter, ISUAL can measure global atmospheric emissions lying between the heights of 80 and 300 km. In days of 3–6 September 2008 and 25–27 February 2009, ISUAL has measured the emissions of O(¹D) airglow with results showing strong longitudinal peak-3 and peak-4 structures. The Lomb-Scargle analyses for these two cases show periods of longitudes of 120° and 90° supporting the DE2 and DE3 non-migrating tides. The 630 nm emissions are enhanced in equatorial regions and are lying along the equator. Over Africa its intensity can sometimes increase up to 80% relative to other longitudes. The perturbation is so strong that non-migrating tides are erased. A case of bimodal distribution with strong emissions at latitudes in equator and mid-latitude in geographic coordinates was observed.     

Constraints on injection parameters of cosmic rays in the Galactic center from resolved HESS observations

In this study, we investigate how restrictive the γ-ray emission from the Galactic center region, as seen by HESS and other Cherenkov air shower arrays, is against various models for cosmic ray injection. We derive diffusion coefficients which fit the observed spatial scales of diffuse γ-ray emission from the extended emission associated with the molecular clouds SgrA, B and C. Using these diffusion coefficients, we then obtain a limit for time scale of assumed recent proton acceleration near the SMBH, as the spatial size of SgrA^∗ in VHE γ-rays has to be consistent with the observed unresolved HESS point source size at this position. The signal from this hadronic component may be mixed with the expected VHE inverse Compton emission from the nearby unresolved pulsar wind nebula.     

Global electric circuit modulation of winter cyclone vorticity in the northern high latitudes

Small changes in extended winter (November–March) 500 hPa vorticity area index (VAI) values for the 60–80°N latitude band are shown to be positively correlated with changes in a proxy for the high latitude ionosphere-to-surface current density _Jz$J_z$.     

Comparing IRI and a regional model with ionosonde measurements in Pakistan

We have used the technique of expansion in Empirical Orthogonal Functions (EOFs) to develop regional models of the critical frequencies of E and F₂ layers (f_oE, f_oF₂), peak height (h_mF₂), and semi-thickness of F₂ layer (Y_mF₂) over Pakistan. In the present study levels of solar activity specified by Smoothed Sunspot Number (R) from 10 to 200 are taken into account. The magnetic dip angle for the model ranges from 30° to 60°. We have compared the regional model and the International Reference Ionosphere (IRI) with measurements of three ionosondes in Pakistan. The model parameters f_oE and f_oF₂ are found overall comparable to the observed hourly median values during daytime at Karachi (geographic latitude = 24.95°N, longitude = 67.13°E, magnetic inclination = 37°), Multan (30.18°N, 71.48°E, 45°) and Islamabad (33.75°N, 73.13°E, 51.5°) during the years 1988, 1996 and 2000. For h_mF₂ the computed values by regional and IRI model for the year 1995 are found close to each other. However, for Y_mF₂the results are better during daytime as compared to nighttime.     

Gamma ray bursts: Short vs. long

Short and long GRBs are thought to be two distinct classes based on their different duration and spectrum. Through the spectral analysis of two similarly selected samples of BATSE short and long GRBs, we show that short GRBs are harder than long events, confirming what found from the comparison of their hardness ratio. However, this spectral diversity seems to be due to a harder low energy spectral component of short GRBs, rather than a (slightly higher) peak energy. Interestingly short GRBs have a spectrum which is similar to the spectrum of the emission of the first 1–2 s of long events. We find evidence that short GRBs are inconsistent with the E_peak–E_iso correlation defined by long bursts while they follow the same E_peak–L_iso correlation of long GRBs. These results, coupled to the similar variability timescale of short events and the first seconds of long ones, suggest that a common (or similar) dissipation mechanism could operate in both classes. The difference in the duration would then be due mainly to the central engine lifetime.     

Investigating γ- and X-ray properties of GRBs using multivariate statistics

We propose to study the interrelation between the γ- (Fluence, 1sec Peakflux, duration) and X-ray (early X flux, 24 h X flux, X decay index, X spectral index, X HI column density) properties using the canonical correlation method. Computing the canonical correlations and variables we show that there is a significant interrelation between the γ- and X-ray data. Using the canonical variables from the analysis, we computed their correlations (canonical loadings) with the original ones. The canonical loadings revealed that the γ-ray fluence and the early X-ray flux give the strongest contribution to the correlation in contrast to the X-ray decay index and spectral index. An interesting new result appears to be the strong contribution of the HI column density to the correlation. Accepting the collapsar model of long GRBs this effect may be interpreted as an indication for the ejection of an HI envelope by the progenitor in the course of producing the GRB.     

Comparing ionospheric models with mid-latitude ionosonde observations

The purpose of this research work is to validate the ionospheric models (IRI and CHIU) to assess its suitability and usefulness as an operational tool. The ionospheric model is a computer model designed to predict the state of the global ionosphere for 24 h. The scope was limited to conduct comparisons between the predicted F₂ layer critical frequencies (f₀F₂) against observed ionosonde data. The ionospheric prediction model (IPM) was designed to predict by using monthly median sunspot number, while the observation data are taken from two digital ionospheric sounding stations (Okinawa, 26.28N, 127.8E and Wakkanai, 45.38N, 141.66E) which lies within the mid-latitude region of the globe. Analysis of the f₀F₂ data from stations for year (2001) with high solar activity and year (2004) with low solar activity, four months (March, June, September and December) chosen based primarily on data availability. From results it seen that the ratio between monthly median predicted and observed f₀F₂ values for each model used in this research work and for the chosen months was nonlinear with local time, so the empirical formula for applying correction factors were determined, these formula can be used to correct the error occurred in predicted f₀F₂ value.     

Precursory signature of several major earthquakes studied using 40 kHz low frequency signal

To investigate the precursory signature of earthquakes on low frequency (LF) signal propagation, six earthquakes, having magnitude greater than equal to 6.5 and depth less than equal to 30 km, are being studied. The base line level of 40 kHz signal, transmitted from JJY station, Japan, is analysed with respect to V_d statistical parameter. Results show that the V_d parameter values starts fluctuating from its ambient levels before and during the days of the earthquakes, with significant variation starting 1–3 days prior to the earthquake concerned. This present study is an approach for identifying the precursory signatures of earthquakes on LF signal propagation using a new methodology with V_d parameter.     

Contribution of satellite laser ranging to combined gravity field models

In the framework of satellite-only gravity field modeling, satellite laser ranging (SLR) data is typically exploited to recover long-wavelength features. This contribution provides a detailed discussion of the SLR component of GOCO02S, the latest release of combined models within the GOCO series. Over a period of five years (January 2006 to December 2010), observations to LAGEOS-1, LAGEOS-2, Ajisai, Stella, and Starlette were analyzed. We conducted a series of closed-loop simulations and found that estimating monthly sets of spherical harmonic coefficients beyond degree five leads to exceedingly ill-posed normal equation systems. Therefore, we adopted degree five as the spectral resolution for real data analysis. We compared our monthly coefficient estimates of degree two with SLR and Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) time series provided by the Center for Space Research (CSR) at Austin, Texas. Significant deviations in C₂₀ were noted between SLR and GRACE; the agreement is better for the non-zonal coefficients. Fitting sinusoids together with a linear trend to our C₂₀ time series yielded a rate of (−1.75 ± 0.6) × 10⁻¹¹/yr; this drift is equivalent to a geoid change from pole to equator of 0.35 ± 0.12 mm/yr or an apparent Greenland mass loss of 178.5 ± 61.2 km³/yr. The mean of all monthly solutions, averaged over the five-year period, served as input for the satellite-only model GOCO02S. The contribution of SLR to the combined gravity field model is highest for C₂₀, and hence is essential for the determination of the Earth’s oblateness.     

Ni75Al4V21合金沉淀早期微观相场法模拟

采用三元体系微观相场动力学模型,对较低铝浓度的Ni₇₅Al₄V₂₁合金中γ′相和θ相沉淀早期进行计算研究,模拟了合金的原子图像演化过程,并计算了θ(Ni₃V)相和γ′(Ni₃Al)相的相内成分序参数分布和长程序参数分布.结果表明,θ相先析出,其沉淀机制为等成分有序化+失稳分解,等成分有序化产生非化学计量比的单相θ有序畴,并被相界分开,失稳分解为一特殊的分解类型,主要发生在相界处,形成化学计量比θ有序相;此失稳分解过程同时又是γ′相在θ相界处以非经典异相形核方式析出的过程,先形成非化学计量比γ′有序相,并逐渐长成为化学计量比γ′有序相,从而形成2种有序相共存的组织形态.