ALBERT

Description: New Physics contributions to Δ F =2 transitions in the simplest extensions of the Standard Model (SM), the models with constrained Minimal Flavor Violation (CMFV), are parametrized by a single variable S ( v ), the value of the real box diagram function that in CMFV is bounded from below by its SM value S 0 ( x t ). With already very precise experimental values of ε K , Δ M d , Δ M s and precise values of the CP-asymmetry $S_{\psi K_{S}}$ and of $\hat{B}_{K}$ entering the evaluation of ε K , the future of CMFV in the Δ F =2 sector depends crucially on the values of | V cb |, | V ub |, γ , $F_{B_{s}} \sqrt{\hat{B}_{B_{s}}}$ and $F_{B_{d}} \sqrt{\hat{B}_{B_{d}}}$ . The ratio ξ of the latter two non-perturbative parameters, already rather precisely determined from lattice calculations, allows then together with Δ M s /Δ M d and $S_{\psi K_{S}}$ to determine the range of the angle γ in the unitarity triangle independently of the value of S ( v ). Imposing in addition the constraints from | ε K | and Δ M d allows to determine the favorite CMFV values of | V cb |, | V ub |, $F_{B_{s}}\sqrt{\hat{B}_{B_{s}}}$ and $F_{B_{d}} \sqrt{\hat{B}_{B_{d}}}$ as functions of S ( v ) and γ . The | V cb | 4 dependence of ε K allows to determine | V cb | for a given S ( v ) and γ with a higher precision than it is presently possible using tree-level decays. The same applies to | V ub |, | V td | and | V ts | that are automatically determined as functions of S ( v ) and γ . We derive correlations between $F_{B_{s}}\sqrt{\hat{B}_{B_{s}}}$ and $F_{B_{d}} \sqrt{\hat{B}_{B_{d}}}$ , | V cb |, | V ub | and γ that should be tested in the coming years. Typically $F_{B_{s}}\sqrt{\hat{B}_{B_{s}}}$ and $F_{B_{d}} \sqrt{\hat{B}_{B_{d}}}$ have to be lower than their present lattice values, while | V cb | has to be higher than its tree-level determination, with a significance depending on the evolution of their errors. Within the SM this would imply values for $\mathcal{B}(K^{+}\rightarrow\pi^{+}\nu\bar{\nu})$ and $\mathcal{B}(K_{L}\rightarrow\pi^{0}\nu\bar{\nu})$ that are typically larger by (15–20) % than those presently quoted in the literature. The region in the space of these three parameters allowed by CMFV indicates tensions in this class of models and hints for the presence of new sources of flavor violation and/or new local operators in Δ F =2 data that are strongly suppressed in these models. As a byproduct we propose to reduce the present uncertainty in the charm contribution to ε K by using the experimental value of Δ M K .

Description: Owing to their ability to be genetically expressed in live cells, fluorescent proteins have become indispensable markers in cellular and biochemical studies. These proteins can undergo a number of covalent chemical modifications that may affect their photophysical properties. Among other mechanisms, such covalent modifications may be induced by reactive oxygen species (ROS), as generated along a variety of biological pathways or through the action of ionizing radiations. In a previous report [ 1 ], we showed that the exposure of cyan fluorescent protein (ECFP) to amounts of • OH that mimic the conditions of intracellular oxidative bursts (associated with intense ROS production) leads to observable changes in its photophysical properties in the absence of any direct oxidation of the ECFP chromophore. In the present work, we analyzed the associated structural modifications of the protein in depth. Following the quantified production of • OH, we devised a complete analytical workflow based on chromatography and mass spectrometry that allowed us to fully characterize the oxidation events. While methionine, tyrosine, and phenylalanine were the only amino acids that were found to be oxidized, semi-quantitative assessment of their oxidation levels showed that the protein is preferentially oxidized at eight residue positions. To account for the preferred oxidation of a few, poorly accessible methionine residues, we propose a multi-step reaction pathway supported by data from pulsed radiolysis experiments. The described experimental workflow is widely generalizable to other fluorescent proteins, and opens the door to the identification of crucial covalent modifications that affect their photophysics. Figure Barrel structure of ECFP: residues that were found to be oxidized by .OH radicals are highlighted

Description: A synthetic redox probe structurally related to natural pyridoacridones was designed and electrochemically characterised. These heterocycles behave as DNA intercalators due to their extended planar structure that promotes stacking in between nucleic acid base pairs. Electrochemical characterization by cyclic voltammetry revealed a quasi-reversible electrochemical behaviour occurring at a mild negative potential in aqueous solution. The study of the mechanism showed that the iminoquinone redox moiety acts similarly to quinone involving a two-electron reduction coupled with proton transfer. The easily accessible potential region with respect to aqueous electro-inactive window makes the pyridoacridone ring suitable for the indirect electrochemical detection of chemically unlabelled DNA. Its usefulness as electrochemical hybridization indicator was assessed on immobilised DNA and compared to doxorubicin. The voltamperometric response of the intercalator acts as an indicator of the presence of double-stranded DNA at the electrode surface and allows the selective transduction of immobilised oligonucleotide hybridization at both macro- and microscale electrodes.

Description: Within the framework of modified teleparallel gravity, we reconstruct a f ( T ) model corresponding to the QCD ghost dark energy scenario. For a spatially flat FRW universe containing only the pressureless matter, we obtain the time evolution of the torsion scalar T (or the Hubble parameter). Then, we calculate the effective torsion equation of state parameter of the QCD ghost f ( T )-gravity model as well as the deceleration parameter of the universe. Furthermore, we fit the model parameters by using the latest observational data including SNeIa, CMB and BAO data. We also check the viability of our model using a cosmographic analysis approach. Moreover, we investigate the validity of the generalized second law (GSL) of gravitational thermodynamics for our model. Finally, we point out the growth rate of matter density perturbation. We conclude that in QCD ghost f ( T )-gravity model, the universe begins a matter dominated phase and approaches a de Sitter regime at late times, as expected. Also this model is consistent with current data, passes the cosmographic test, satisfies the GSL and fits the data of the growth factor well as the ΛCDM model.

Description: Nitrate is a common pollutant in surface water and groundwater of agricultural areas. It is essential to monitor this pollutant in groundwater, especially when it is used for drinking purposes without treatment. The present study was carried out in an intensively irrigated area which forms a part of Nalgonda district, Andhra Pradesh, India where groundwater meets all the water needs of the rural population living in this area. The objective was to assess the spatiotemporal variation in the concentration of nitrate in groundwater and soil. Based on the analysis of 496 groundwater samples collected from 45 wells over a period of 2 years from March 2008 to January 2010 by sampling every 2 months, it was observed that groundwater in 242 km 2 of the total 724 km 2 area had nitrate above the maximum permissible limit of 45 mg/l for drinking purposes. Nitrate concentration in groundwater showed a positive relation with potassium, chloride, and sulfate, indicating their source from fertilizers. Reasons for the high concentration of nitrate in domestic areas were the dumping of animal wastes and leakage from septic tanks. The pH of the soil samples showed that most of the area had basic soil. Apart from pH, organic carbon, available phosphorous, available potassium, ammoniacal nitrogen, and nitrate nitrogen were also analyzed in the 97 soil samples.

Description: Nearly 108-km lengths of Mersin shores are composed of natural beaches. The region is located between major tourist centers. In the future, this region is thought to be built with a great number of tourist facilities. Turkey’s largest seaport, Ataş refinery (Mersin International Port) is located in Mersin. Recently, Mersin is becoming of great importance to Turkey as the latter plans to construct its second nuclear power plant in the region. Therefore, as nuclear power plants are built to withstand environmental hazards, it is very important to analyze the seismic risk of the areas where the nuclear power plant will be constructed. The region is located between the East Anatolian Fault Zone and Center Anatolian Fault Zone. Based on the Turkey Earthquake Regions Map, Mersin is divided into second-, third-, and fourth-degree earthquake regions. In this study, we sampled earthquakes of magnitude of 4.0 or greater between 01 Jan 1900 and 31 Dec 2010 in the area; seismic hazard of Mersin province was estimated with probabilistic and statistical methods. The study area was selected as the coordinates between 36.03° and 37.42° North and 32.57° and 35.16° East. On the study area, different scaled magnitude values in the last 110 years converted to a common scale (Mw) and earthquake catalog was re-compiled and also seismic sources that may affect the area was determined. In this study, the seismic hazards of the region were obtained using the methods of probability and statistics. This study used three different attenuation relationships. Using the attenuation relationships suggested by Boore et al. (Seismol Res Lett 68(1):128–153, 1997 ) and Kalkan and Gülkan (Earthquake Spectra 20:1111–1138, 2004 ), the largest ground acceleration which corresponds to a recurrence period of 475 years was found as 0.08–0.09 g and Akkar and Çağnan (Bull Seismol Soc Am 100 6:2978–2995, 2010 ), 0.04 g for bedrock at the central district. When computing for seismic hazard curves, Mut district appears to have a greater seismic hazard compared with other districts. Moreover, according to the attenuation relationships, seismic hazard curves corresponding to a recurrence period of 475 years were obtained for the Mersin Central, Mut, Erdemli, Çamlıyayla, and Tarsus districts.

Description: The knowledge of RNA’s role in biological systems and the recent recognition of its potential use as a reliable biotherapeutic tool increase the demand for development and validation of analytical methods for accurate analysis of RNA. Affinity chromatography is a unique technique because of the versatility of applications reliant on the affinity ligand used. Recently, an arginine-based matrix has been effectively applied in the purification of RNA because of the specific recognition mechanism for RNA molecules. This interaction is suggested to be due to the length of arginine side chain and its ability to produce good hydrogen bonding geometries, which promote multi-contact with RNA backbone or RNA bases, based on RNA folding. Thus, this work presents the development and validation of an analytical method with ultraviolet detection for the quantification of RNA using affinity chromatography with arginine amino acid as immobilized ligand. The method was validated according to International and European legislation for bioanalytical methods. The results revealed that the proposed method is suitable for the reliable detection, separation, and quantification of RNA, showing that the method is precise and accurate for concentrations up to 200 ng/μL of RNA. Furthermore, the versatility of the methodology was demonstrated by its applicability in the quantification of RNA from different eukaryotic cells and in crude samples of chemically synthesized RNA. Therefore, the proposed method demonstrates a potential multipurpose applicability in molecular biology RNA-based analysis and RNA therapeutics. Figure Proposed interactions occurring between arginine–agarose matrix and RNA molecules. Given the multiplicity of arginine side-chain interactions and depending upon RNA folding state, arginine will preferably bind to phosphate groups of RNA backbone or RNA bases.

Description: Functionalized magnetic nanoparticles have attracted much attention in sample preparation because of their excellent performance compared with traditional sample-preparation sorbents. In this review, we describe the application of magnetic nanoparticles functionalized with silica, octadecylsilane, carbon-based material, surfactants, and polymers as adsorbents for separation and preconcentration of analytes from a variety of matrices. Magnetic solid-phase extraction (MSPE) techniques, mainly reported in the last five years, are presented and discussed.

Description: This research work has an objective to determine the effective variables in socioeconomic category of Integrated Water Resources Management for Saf-Saf river basin characterized by fast growing demand of urban and rural populations and the demand of economic sectors including industry and agriculture. In this paper, the artificial neural network models were used to model and predict the relationship between water resources mobilization and socioeconomic variables in the Saf-Saf river basin. The study area chosen is Saf-Saf river basin and real data were collected from 30 municipalities for reference year 2010. The results indicate that the feed-forward multilayer perceptron models with back-propagation are useful tools to define and prioritize the most effective variable on water resources mobilization and use. The model evaluation shows that the correlation coefficients are more than 94 % for training, verification, and testing data. The model aims to link the water resources mobilization and driving forces variables with the objective to strengthen the Integrated Water Resources Management approach.

Description: Gazestan phosphate ore deposit (Central Iran) is an apatite deposit which is instrumental in selecting the method of excavation. The position of fault systems and the condition of rock quality also play a role in the method used for mineral resources and ore reserves estimation. Conversely, the Rock Quality Designation (RQD) is a parameter that provides a quantitative judgment of rock mass quality obtained from drill cores. This factor can be applied to detect the fractured zones which occur due to fault systems. Additionally, the faulted areas can be determined by surface geological map and a few by core drilling. Some of the faulted areas are not distinguishable in the surface and are covered by soils, especially within 3D modeling and visualization. In this study, an attempt has been made to establish a relationship between the RQD percentages which were geostatistically simulated and faulted areas through the region. In comparison, the results showed that low RQD domains (RQD 〈20 %) can be interpreted as fault zones; high RQD domains (RQD 〉50 %) correspond to less fractured areas, and the contact between high and low RQD domain is gradual. Therefore, this categorization of RQD domains can be incorporated to detect the faulted zones in 3D models for mine design. Based on the categorization, the uncertainty within the area was calculated to introduce two new core drilling points for the completion of this phase of exploratory grid from the fault structural viewpoint, in order to have a proper model of ore reserve to estimate. It was concluded that this procedure can be utilized for conceptual comprehension of fault trends in 3D modeling for the method selection of excavation and complete the estimation procedure phase.

Description: Morphometric analysis using remote sensing (RS) and geographical information system (GIS), in the recent study, has become an efficient method in the assessment of groundwater potential of a river basin. The present study focused on the morphometric analysis of Araniar river basin using RS and GIS techniques in the identification of groundwater potential zones for effective planning and management of groundwater resources of the basin. The study area was divided into six subbasins for the purpose of micro-level morphometric analysis. The main stream of the basin is of fifth order and drainage patterns of subbasins are mostly of dendritic and parallel type. Based on the linear, areal and relief parameters of subbasins, the groundwater potential zones of the basin were identified and the results substantiated with geomorphology map derived from RS data. The elongated shape, favourable drainage network, permeable geologic formation and low relief of the subbasins WS3, WS5 and WS6 make them the promising groundwater potential zones of Araniar river basin. The statistical analysis and overlay analysis of the morphometric parameters also indicated the subbasins WS3, WS5 and WS6 as high groundwater potential zones. The groundwater potential zone map when overlaid with groundwater fluctuation map indicated the suitable sites for artificial recharge structures.

Description: Soil erosion is one of the most serious land degradation problems and the primary environmental issue in Mediterranean regions. Estimation of soil erosion loss in these regions is often difficult due to the complex interplay of many factors such as climate, land uses, topography, and human activities. The purpose of this study is to apply the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model to predict surface runoff generation patterns and soil erosion hazard and to prioritize most degraded sub-catchment in order to adopt the appropriate management intervention. The study area is the Sarrath river catchment (1,491 km 2 ), north of Tunisia. Based on the estimated soil loss rates, the catchment was divided into four priority categories for conservation intervention. Results showed that a larger part of the watershed (90 %) fell under low and moderate soil erosion risk and only 10 % of the watershed was vulnerable to soil erosion with an estimated sediment loss exceeding 10 t ha −1  year −1 . Results indicated that spatial differences in erosion rates within the Sarrath catchment are mainly caused by differences in land cover type and gradient slope. Application of the SWAT model demonstrated that the model provides a useful tool to predict surface runoff and soil erosion hazard and can successfully be used for prioritization of vulnerable areas over semi-arid catchments.

Description: Loop quantum cosmology is considered in the inflation era. A slow roll scalar field solution with power law potential is presented in the neighborhood of the transition time, i.e. when the universe enters inflation phase from super-inflation. The compatibility of the model with Planck 2013 data is discussed. The domain of validity of the second and the generalized second laws of thermodynamics for this solution and some other examples is studied.

Description: Racemic mixtures of the promising anti-malarial bisindole alkoids, flinderole A–C, desmethyl flinderole C, borreverine and isoborreverine, are baseline-separated for the first time by HPLC using vancomycin-based stationary phases and partially separated by capillary electrophoresis (CE) using cyclodextrin selectors. The HPLC results compare the performance of Chirobiotic V and V2 in the polar organic and reversed phase modes and their complementary selectivity is discussed. The performance of the cyclodextrin selectors in CE, while less effective, are discussed in terms of their selectivity in normal and reversed polarity modes.

Description: In this work, we systematically investigate the one-loop corrections to $t\bar{t}$ production in the littlest Higgs model with T-parity (LHT) at the LHC for $\sqrt{s}=8,14~\mbox{TeV}$ . We focus on the effects of LHT particles on $t\bar{t}$ cross section, polarization asymmetries, spin correlation and charge asymmetry at the LHC. We also study the top quark forward–backward asymmetry at Tevatron and its correlations with the LHC observables. We found that: (1) the contributions of the LHT particles to $t\bar{t}$ production can only reach about 1 % at the 14 TeV LHC. Meanwhile, the anomalous top quark forward–backward asymmetry at Tevatron is also hardly to be explained in the LHT model. (2) The parity violating asymmetries in $t\bar{t}$ production, such as left–right asymmetry | A LR | and the polarization | P t | can, respectively, reach 1.1 % and 0.5 %, which may have the potential to provide a signal of LHT at the LHC.

Description: A multidimensional, on-line coupled liquid chromatographic/gas chromatographic system was developed for the quantification of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). A two-dimensional liquid chromatographic system (2D-liquid chromatography (LC)), with three columns having different selectivities, was connected on-line to a two-dimensional gas chromatographic system (2D-gas chromatography (GC)). Samples were cleaned up by combining normal elution and column back-flush of the LC columns to selectively remove matrix constituents and isolate well-defined, PAH enriched fractions. Using this system, the sequential removal of polar, mono/diaromatic, olefinic and alkane compounds from crude extracts was achieved. The LC/GC coupling was performed using a fused silica transfer line into a programmable temperature vaporizer (PTV) GC injector. Using the PTV in the solvent vent mode, excess solvent was removed and the enriched PAH sample extract was injected into the GC. The 2D-GC setup consisted of two capillary columns with different stationary phase selectivities. Heart-cutting of selected PAH compounds in the first GC column (first dimension) and transfer of these to the second GC column (second dimension) increased the baseline resolutions of closely eluting PAHs. The on-line system was validated using the standard reference materials SRM 1649a (urban dust) and SRM 1975 (diesel particulate extract). The PAH concentrations measured were comparable to the certified values and the fully automated LC/GC system performed the clean-up, separation and detection of PAHs in 16 extracts in less than 24 h. The multidimensional, on-line 2D-LC/2D-GC system eliminated manual handling of the sample extracts and minimised the risk of sample loss and contamination, while increasing accuracy and precision. Figure Scheme of the 2D-LC/2D-GC system

Description: Recently, an atomic force microscopy (AFM)-based approach for quantifying the number of biological molecules conjugated to a nanoparticle surface at low number densities was reported. The number of target molecules conjugated to the analyte nanoparticle can be determined with single nanoparticle fidelity using antibody-mediated self-assembly to decorate the analyte nanoparticles with probe nanoparticles (i.e., quantitative immunostaining). This work refines the statistical models used to quantitatively interpret the observations when AFM is used to image the resulting structures. The refinements add terms to the previous statistical models to account for the physical sizes of the analyte nanoparticles, conjugated molecules, antibodies, and probe nanoparticles. Thus, a more physically realistic statistical computation can be implemented for a given sample of known qualitative composition, using the software scripts provided. Example AFM data sets, using horseradish peroxidase conjugated to gold nanoparticles, are presented to illustrate how to implement this method successfully.

Description: We evaluate the massless scalar field quasi-normal frequencies of Schwarzschild black hole in the quintessence background, using the third-order WKB approximation method. Results show that quintessence decreases the oscillation frequency while increases the damping time of the scalar field. Moreover, with the increase of the quintessential state parameter ω q (the ratio of the pressure to the energy density), the imaginary parts’ absolute values of the quasi-normal frequencies increase monotonously. This indicates that the scalar field decays more rapidly in the larger ω q quintessence state, which agrees with the cases of other perturbation fields for black holes in the quintessence background. For the special case of SdS black hole ( ω q =−1), the oscillation frequency and the damping rate increase with the decrease of the normalization factor c (corresponding to the cosmological constant Λ in SdS black hole).

Description: For neutrino mixing we propose to use the parameter set X i (=| V ei | 2 ) and Ω i (= ϵ ijk | V μj | 2 | V τk | 2 ), with two constraints. These parameters are directly measurable since the neutrino oscillation probabilities are their quadratic functions. Physically, the set Ω i signifies a quantitative measure of μ – τ asymmetry. Available neutrino data indicate that all the Ω i ’s are small (〈 O (10 −1 )), but with large uncertainties. The behavior of Ω i as functions of the induced neutrino mass in matter is found to be simple, which should facilitate the analyses of long baseline experiments.

Description: There exist dark-energy models that predict the occurrence of a “little rip”. At the point of a little rip the Hubble rate and its cosmic time derivative approach infinity, which is quite similar to the big rip singularity except that the former happens at infinite future and the latter at a finite cosmic time; both events happen in the future and at high energies. In the case of the big rip, a combination of ultra-violet and infra-red effects can smooth its doomsday. We therefore wonder if the little rip can also be smoothed in a similar way. We address the ultra-violet and infra-red effects in general relativity through a brane-world model with a Gauss–Bonnet term in the bulk and an induced gravity term on the brane. We find that the little rip is transformed in this case into a sudden singularity, or a “big brake”. Even though the big brake is smoother than the little rip in that the Hubble rate is finite at the event, the trade-off is that it takes place sooner, at a finite cosmic time. In our estimate, the big brake would happen at roughly 1300 Gyr.

Description: A novel single-particle technique to measure emittance has been developed and used to characterise seventeen different muon beams for the Muon Ionisation Cooling Experiment (MICE). The muon beams, whose mean momenta vary from 171 to 281 MeV/ c , have emittances of approximately 1.2–2.3  π  mm-rad horizontally and 0.6–1.0  π  mm-rad vertically, a horizontal dispersion of 90–190 mm and momentum spreads of about 25 MeV/ c . There is reasonable agreement between the measured parameters of the beams and the results of simulations. The beams are found to meet the requirements of MICE.

Description: The effective Lagrangian with scalar and vector resonances that might result from new strong physics beyond the SM is formulated and studied. In particular, the scalar resonance representing the recently discovered 125-GeV boson is complemented with the SU (2) L + R triplet of hypothetical vector resonances. Motivated by experimental and theoretical considerations, the vector resonance is allowed to couple directly to the third quark generation only. The coupling is chiral-dependent and the interaction of the right top quark can differ from that of the right bottom quark. To estimate the applicability range of the effective Lagrangian the unitarity of the gauge boson scattering amplitudes is analyzed. The experimental fits and limits on the free parameters of the vector resonance triplet are investigated.

Description: Support for interactions of spin- $\frac{3}{2}$ particles is implemented in the FeynRules and ALOHA packages and tested with the MadGraph  5 and CalcHEP event generators in the context of three phenomenological applications. In the first, we implement a spin- $\frac{3}{2}$ Majorana gravitino field, as in local supersymmetric models, and study gravitino and gluino pair-production. In the second, a spin- $\frac{3}{2}$ Dirac top-quark excitation, inspired from compositeness models, is implemented. We then investigate both top-quark excitation and top-quark pair-production. In the third, a general effective operator for a spin- $\frac{3}{2}$ Dirac quark excitation is implemented, followed by a calculation of the angular distribution of the s -channel production mechanism.

Description: We look for possible spectral features and systematic effects in the Fermi LAT publicly available high-energy gamma-ray data by studying photons from the Galactic center, nearby galaxy clusters, nearby brightest galaxies, AGNs, unassociated sources, hydrogen clouds and from the Earth limb. Apart from the already known 130 GeV gamma-ray excesses from the first two sources, we find no statistically significant excesses from any of the cosmological sources nor from any control region. Therefore our main effort goes to the study of gamma rays appearing from the Earth limb. In the energy range of 30 to 200 GeV the Earth limb gamma-ray spectrum follows a power-law with spectral index 2.86±0.05 at 95 % CL, in a good agreement with the PAMELA measurement of the cosmic ray proton spectral index of 2.82–2.85, confirming the physical origin of the limb gamma-rays. In subsets of the Earth limb data at small photon incidence angle spectral features occur, including a feature at 130 GeV. We observe a systematic ∼2 σ -level difference in the Earth limb spectra with small and large incidence angles. The behavior of those spectral features as well as the background indicates that those may be statistical fluctuations or complicated unknown systematic effects of the Fermi LAT. In the latter case, only the Fermi LAT Collaboration can give the final answer having access to raw data and all details of the reconstruction.

Description: We consider the non-abelian self-dual two-form theory (Chu and Ko, J. High Energy Phys. 1205:028, 2012 ) and find new exact solutions. Our solutions are supported by Yang–Mills (anti)instantons in four dimensions and describe a wave moving in null directions. We argue and provide evidence that these instanton wave solutions correspond to an M-wave (MW) on the worldvolume of multiple M5-branes. When dimensionally reduced on a circle, the MW/M5 system is reduced to the D0/D4 system with the D0-branes represented by the Yang–Mills instanton of the D4-branes Yang–Mills gauge theory. We show that this picture is precisely reproduced by the dimensional reduction of our instanton wave solutions.

Description: An alternative method to account for the Gribov ambiguities in gauge theories is presented. It is shown that, to eliminate Gribov ambiguities, at infinitesimal level, it is required to break the BRST symmetry in a soft manner. This can be done by introducing a suitable extra constraint that eliminates the infinitesimal Gribov copies. It is shown that the present approach is consistent with the well established known cases in the literature, i.e., the Landau and maximal Abelian gauges. The method is valid for gauges depending exclusively on the gauge field and is restricted to classical level. However, occasionally, we deal with quantum aspects of the technique, which are used to improve the results.

Description: The Makran accretionary wedge has a much larger number of mud volcanoes then those reported earlier. Using high-resolution satellite images, over 70 active mud volcanoes were identified. These mud volcanoes occur within a well-defined zone; we call it the Makran zone of active mud volcanoes (MZAMV), which is parallel to the regional trend of the accretionary wedge. Mud volcanoes within the zone occur as clusters, which form linear belts parallel to the regional thrusts associated with anticlines. The MZAMV zone also includes the offshore mud volcanoes occurring in the shallow shelf area, including the recurrently emerging mud islands. Several occurrences of thick deposits of old mud volcanoes (Pleistocene or even older) are also present within this zone, which also display recognizable features that are characteristic of the fossil mud volcanoes. We propose that the MZAMV developed and evolved in response to the continued compression within the Makran accretionary wedge, which in turn, is a response of the subduction process. Mud diapirism has been an ongoing phenomena since Pleistocene or even earlier. The events of enhanced mud extrusion in mud volcanoes and/or emergence of island(s) have relevance with seismic phenomena and, therefore, may be closely monitored.

Description: Recently, new theories on underground geophysical and geochemical interactions which had been reported to occur during the preparation stages of earthquakes and the remotely measurable variations have been put to test and some warning factors were suggested as earthquake precursors. Data vendors are providing daily basis information from the earth's surface by combining remote sensing data and in situ observations. In this paper, we analyze atmospheric, oceanic, and surface changes in the ocean, coast, and land lying near the epicenters of two recent major earthquakes. The changes are studied in terms of the regional fault locations which have been reported by the U.S. Geological Survey as the shake triggering geological structures. Our detailed analyses showed anomalous increases of surface latent heat flux (SLHF) for both the earthquakes. Meaningfully limited to the geographical extents of the regional active faults, the SLHF variation patterns suggest pre-seismic activity 2–3 weeks before the main events. The agreement of these variations with abnormalities in other climatic and surface factors like relative humidity and temperature represents an unusual situation during the same period as well. Spatiotemporal variations of chlorophyll- a was also studied as another earthquake indicator. Abnormal rises in these factors are possibly caused by the formation of micro-cracks, heat production, evaporation, ionization, and upwelling of nutrient-rich water produced by pre-seismic activity prior to the main events.

Description: A complete and homogeneous magnitude earthquake catalogue spanning the period 1900 to 2010 was created. The catalogue covers the area 29° to 37.5° N and 39° to 48° E. Entries in the new earthquake catalogue were cross checked and additions made from various sources of earthquake records to ensure that repetitions are not included in this analysis. Events were considered duplicates if they had a time difference of 10 s or less and space origin difference of 0.5° or less. In a given set of duplicate events, an event, which had a magnitude and International Seismological Center source, was retained as the record of the event. The unified magnitude scale, the moment magnitude ( M w ), was applied throughout the catalogue. The M w for 18 events was reported. The M w for other events was estimated using empirical relations between m b , M s , M L , and M w . Magnitude of completeness, M c , was estimated using the maximum curvature. It was 4.3 M w . Finally, a list of 213 events from 1900 to 2010 with M w  ≥ 4.3 is presented. The list is considered complete for the period from 1962 to 2010.

Description: Stem cell therapy has opened up the possibility of treating numerous degenerating diseases. However, we are still merely at the stage of identifying appropriate sources of stem cells and exploring their full differentiation potential. Thus, tracking the stem cells upon in vivo engraftment and during in vitro co-culture is very important and is an area of research embracing many pitfalls. 5-Ethynyl-2′-deoxyuridine (EdU), a rather new thymidine analog incorporated into DNA, has recently been suggested to be a novel highly valid alternative to other dyes for labeling of stem cells and subsequent tracing of their proliferation and differentiation ability. However, our results herein do not at any stage support this recommendation, since EdU severely reduces the viability of stem cells. Accordingly, we found that transplanted EdU-labeled stem cells hardly survive upon in vivo transplantation into regenerating muscle, whereas stem cells labeled in parallel with another dye survived very well and also participated in myofiber formation. Similar data were obtained upon in vitro myogenic culture, and further analysis showed that EdU reduced cell numbers by up to 88 % and increased the cell volume of remaining cells by as much as 91 %. Even at low EdU concentrations, cell survival and phenotype were substantially compromised, and the myogenic differentiation potential was inhibited. Since we examined both primary derived cells and cell lines from several species with the same result, this appears to be a common trait of EdU. We therefore suggest that EdU labeling should be avoided (or used with precaution) for stem cell tracing purposes. Figure Myoblasts were marked with DiI ( red ) and EdU ( purple ), and injected into lesioned skeletal muscle. At day 9 following transplantation, only DiI positive cells were observed and had participated in myofibre formation as (indicated by arrowheads) visualized by red fluorescence signals inside laminin ( green ) positive multinucleated myofibres. EdU was toxic to the engrafted cells, suggesting that this reagent is non-applicaple for tracing of stem cells.

Description: Synthetic cathinones are novel stimulants derived from cathinone, with amphetamines or cocaine-like effects, often labeled “not for human consumption” and considered “legal highs”. Emergence of these new designer drugs complicate interpretation of forensic and clinical cases, with introduction of many new analogs designed to circumvent legislation and vary effects and potencies. We developed a method for the simultaneous quantification of 28 synthetic cathinones, including four metabolites, in urine by liquid chromatography coupled to high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS). These cathinones include cathinone, methcathinone, and synthetic cathinones position-3’-substituted, N-alkyl-substituted, ring-substituted, methylenedioxy-substituted, and pyrrolidinyl-substituted. One mL phosphate buffer pH 6 and 25 μL IStd solution were combined with 0.25 mL urine, and subjected to solid phase cation exchange extraction (SOLA SCX). The chromatographic reverse-phase separation was achieved with a gradient mobile phase of 0.1 % formic acid in water and in acetonitrile in 20 min. We employed a Q Exactive high resolution mass spectrometer, with compounds identified and quantified by target-MSMS experiments. The assay was linear from 0.5–1 to 100 μg/L, with limits of detection of 0.25–1 μg/L. Imprecision ( n  = 20) was 〈15.9 % and accuracy ( n  = 20) 85.2–118.1 %. Extraction efficiency was 78.9–116.7 % (CV 1.4–16.7 %, n  = 5), process efficiency 57.7–104.9 %, and matrix effects from −29.5 % to 1.5 % (CV 1.9–13.1 %, n  = 10). Most synthetic cathinones were stable at 4 °C for 72 h ( n  = 27) and after 3 freeze-thaw cycles ( n  = 26), but many ( n  = 19) were not stable at room temperature for 24 h (losses up to −67.6 %). The method was applied to authentic urine specimens from synthetic cathinone users. This method provides a comprehensive confirmation method for 28 synthetic cathinones in urine, with good selectivity and specificity.

Description: Dammam Dome is an oval-shaped structure that covers an area of about 500 km 2 and encompasses Al Khobar, Al Dhahran and part of Ad Dammam cities, east of Saudi Arabia. The dome characterizes by the presence of well developed fractures system that exposes at its apex and extends to its peripheries. Based on their size, trend and extent, fractures within Dammam Dome are divided into three types: regional (major) fractures, local (minor) fractures and very small size-localized fractures. This study discusses the criteria used in classifying those fractures, and the relationship of the regional (major) ones to the doming process. A model for the trends pattern of fracture is suggested for those fractures, and examined with the concentric and radial fracture pattern associated normally with dome structures. The suggested model is compatible and concordant with the dome model, which proves that the major fractures in the area are related to the dome emplacement and process. Outcomes and findings of this study are crucial for understanding the behavior and distribution of fractures associated with domes. Additionally, the suggested model of fractures and their trend pattern is important model in similar setting for hydrocarbon exploration and for any urban development and major constructions within the Dome vicinities.

Description: For studying recent crustal movements and their relation to earthquake occurrence in large scales, the National Research Institute of Astronomy and Geophysics (NRIAG), Helwan, Cairo, Egypt started in 2006 the establishment of the Egyptian Permanent GPS Network (EPGN). Beginning with 4 stations in 2007, 15 stations were operational at the end of 2011. In addition, a station in Alexandria of the French “Centre d'Études Alexandrines” (CEALX) was added as station to the EPGN. Nowadays, 16 stations are operational and an extension to 20 in the near future is expected. The collected EPGN data of the last 6 years are used in this work to throw light upon the present state of recent crustal movement of the whole of Egypt. Bernese software V. 5.0 was used for processing the collected data according to the IGS standards. In addition, selected IGS, AFREF, and EPN sites are processed for reference frame definition. In this first comprehensive analysis of the permanent network, a complete and consistent evaluation resulted in the first estimates of present day horizontal velocities and coordinate time series.

Description: The organic matter content of the Paleocene Aaliji Formation has been studied from the Qm-1 well in the Qumar Oil Field, NE Iraq. A palynofacies analysis revealed the obvious domination of amorphous organic matter (AOM) in the samples studied in addition to the different ratios of palynomorphs, phytoclasts and opaque organic material. The deposition of the various percentages of organic matter components and types of palynomorphs appear to have occurred in a proximal suboxic–anoxic basinal environment. The samples analysed showed relatively low percentages of total organic carbon, indicating a generally poor source rock. The thermal alteration index for the palynomorphs (dinoflagellates) observed and identified ranged between 2, 2+ and 3−, indicating an immature to early stage of maturity for the section studied. No clear differentiation between the stages of maturity within the section was identified. The reflectance measured for a few vitrinite particles at a depth of 2,900 m showed uncertainly of 0.46 % Ro, indicating a still thermally immature stage. The values obtained from pyrolysis analysis also supported the formation being in the early stages of maturity, i.e. an immature condition, with T max values between 416 and 435 °C. The quality of the organic matter examined and analysed appeared to be mostly type III gas-prone kerogen, as discerned from the hydrogen index, oxygen index and other pyrolysis parameters. The parameters obtained and calculated from gas chromatography analysis performed on a sample at a depth of 2,900 m found marginally mature marine source organic matter.

Description: We calculate the branching ratio of a bottom hadron decaying into a charmed hadron and a charged ρ meson within the QCD factorization approach. We consider the effect of the finite width correction of the ρ meson. Our numerical calculation shows an obvious correction because of this effect. We find that the finite width effect of the ρ meson reduces the branching ratios by about 9 % to 11 % for bottom meson decay channels: $B^{+}\to\overline{D^{0}}\rho^{+}$ , B 0 → D − ρ + , and $B^{0}_{s}\to D^{-}_{s}\rho^{+}$ , and increases the branching ratio by about 10 % for $\varLambda_{b}^{0}\to\varLambda_{c}^{+}\rho^{-}$ .

Description: In this paper, we carry out a numerical and systematic analysis of the neutrino mass textures, which contain one vanishing minor and equality between two cofactors. Among 60 logically possible textures, only eight of them are excluded for both the normal and inverted hierarchy by the current experimental data at 3 σ level. We also demonstrate that the future long-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments, especially for the measurement of the θ 23 mixing angle, will play an important role in the model selection. The phenomenological implications from neutrinoless double-beta decay and the cosmology observation are also examined. A discussion of the flavor symmetry realization of the textures is also given.

Description: Amino acid analysis (AAA) has always presented an analytical challenge in terms of sample preparation, separation, and detection. Because of the vast number of amino acids, various separation methods have been applied taking into consideration the large differences in their chemical structures, which span from nonpolar to highly polar side chains. Numerous separation methods have been developed in the past 60 years, and impressive achievements have been made in the fields of separation, derivatization, and detection of amino acids (AAs). Among the separation methods, liquid chromatography (LC) prevailed in the AAA field using either pre-column or post-column labeling techniques in order to improve either separation of AAs or selectivity and sensitivity of AAA. Of the two approaches, the post-column technique is a more rugged and reproducible method and provides excellent AAs separation relatively free from interferences. This review considers current separations combined with post-column labeling techniques for AAA, comparison with the pre-column methods, and the strategies used to develop effective post-column methodology. The focus of the article is on LC methods coupled with post-column labeling techniques and studying the reactions to achieve optimum post-column derivatization (PCD) conditions in order to increase sensitivity and selectivity using various types of detectors (UV–Vis, fluorescence, electrochemical etc.) and illustrating the versatility of the PCD methods for practical analysis. Figure Reaction‐detection scheme for the fluorescent derivative of proline with o‐pthalaldehyde reagent

Description: The analysis of the oligomeric active state of a native protein usually requires the application of at least two analytical methods such as gel filtration and analytical ultracentrifugation. Both methods require a substantial amount of protein, time and/or expensive equipment. We here describe a native electrophoretic method for the identification of the native molecular weight of the recombinant wild-type cytosolic 5′-nucleotidase (cN-II) and of its mutants in subunit interfaces Y115A, F36R, K311A and G319Q. The protein was stained both with protein dye and with an activity staining method. Our results demonstrated that purified recombinant protein preparations contained substantial amounts of nucleic acids and misfolded, inactive protein. Furthermore, cN-II mutants K311A and G319Q in subunit interface assume a quaternary dimeric active form, while the only active quaternary structure of wild-type cN-II is the tetramer.

Description: As a direct consequence of multiple periods of stress applied on areas with tectonic superposition, the multiple-periods fractures have complex abutting relationships, and the field study of fractures is usually restricted by outcrop conditions, such as section direction. Therefore, previous studies of superposed stress fields based on fractures have been generally performed in areas with proper observation conditions and clear abutting relationships. In contrast, in many other areas, the identification of fracture development period based on field observation is often infeasible. Compared to abutting relationships, fracture fabrics obtained from field measurement are not affected by the restriction of outcrops and consequently are more representative of the fractures. According to the analysis of fracture fabrics and fracture features, this paper has separated and extracted the superposed fracture sets and identified the fracture development period in the area without available abutting relationships. Taking the southern segment of the Longmen Mountain thrust belt as an example, fractures of two development periods are identified and timed in the tectonic superposition area between two adjacent fold belts. The analysis of stress direction in each period suggests that the structural boundaries, consisting of such pre-existing structures as faults and anticlines, could have induced directional rotation in the subsequent stress. An equivalent result was achieved using a finite element simulation of the stress field. Based on the stress analysis of the field sites and the stress field simulation, the stress variation in the tectonic superposition area is well modeled.

Description: Dust storm is one of the most important environmental problems in the west of Iran. To indicate the environmental impact of these phenomena, the characterization of dust storm loads is vital. The objective of this study is to identify the mineralogical and chemical composition, trace elements, and microorganisms of dust particles deposited during a springtime dust storm event over the west of Iran to obtain total suspended particulate. Dust samples were collected from four cities in the west of Iran during dust storms in two spring seasons of 2011 and 2012. In addition to determining the sources of dust samples on the dates of sampling, synthetic approaches including remote sensing technique of dust detection, physical–meteorological model called HYSPLIT, and analysis of weather map were used. XRD analyses of airborne dust samples indicate that the mineralogy of airborne dusts is dominated by calcite and quartz; additionally, gypsum, albeit, muscovite, clinochlore, and dolomite are other minerals in springtime dust storm. XRF analyses indicate that the most important chemical components of airborne dusts are SiO 2 , CaO, Al 2 O 3 , Fe 2 O 3 , and MgO. The Atomic Absorption analysis was performed to determine the concentration of heavy metals including Fe, Cr, Pb, Zn, Cd, Co, Cu, and Ni. Concentration of heavy metals was Fe 〉 Zn 〉 Cr 〉 Ni 〉 Pb 〉 Cu 〉 Co 〉 Cd, respectively, and average concentration of heavy metals on Middle East springtime dust storm (MESDS) occurrences were higher than values proposed by the World Health Organization. Microorganism analysis shows that the Bacillus species (41.25 %) is dominant, then Micrococcus (10.3 %), Staphylococcus sp. (7.61 %), Klebsiella (4 %), Escherichia coli (2.7 %), and Enterobacter sp. (1.8 %); Aspergillus sp. (21.07 %), Candida albicans (5.7 %), Rhizopus (2.24 %), Penicillium sp. (1.04 %), and Mucor (0.89 %) genera were fungal species that were isolated in the (MESDS). Basic sources for scattering of dust in the west and southwest of Iran are Iraqi desert, desert lands in the north and northeast of Arabian Peninsula, east and southeast of Syria, also occasionally Sahara desert and Khuzestan province in southwestern of Iran.

Description: The present study provides assessment of wasteland development in Bihar State based on satellite data. Wasteland covers 6.90 % (6,501 km 2 ) of the state area and exhibits dominance of waterlogged areas in North Bihar (25.28 %) and scrubland (26.61 %) in South Bihar. The waterlogged areas in the state are dominantly associated with northern Bihar plains (94 %) with minor development (6 %) in southern Bihar plains. Such unequal distribution of waterlogged land areas in northern and southern Bihar plains is largely governed by high cumulative discharge generated in the large catchment area in Himalayan mountain ranges in the upland areas of northern Bihar plains in contrast to low cumulative discharge generated within small catchments in the Chota Nagpur Plateau in the southern Bihar plains. It is evaluated that the relief and groundwater level define the primary controlling factors, whereas rainfall, watershed area, and upland/plain ratio exert secondary control. Lower relief areas with high rainfall exhibit high soil moisture thereby inducing conditions of waterlogging. The study signifies the potential of satellite image-based evaluation of waterlogging through the use of Digital Elevation Model, Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission-based rainfall measurement, and temporal waterlogging assessment together with other terrain parameters for conceptual understanding of waterlogging in northern Bihar plains.

Description: In this article, we calculate the $B_{c}^{*} \to B_{c}$ electromagnetic form-factor with the three-point QCD sum rules and then study the radiative decays $B_{c}^{*\pm} \to B_{c}^{\pm} \gamma$ . Experimentally, we can study the radiative transitions using the decay cascades $B_{c}^{*\pm}\to B_{c}^{\pm} \gamma\to J/\psi\ell^{\pm}\bar{\nu}_{\ell} \gamma\to\mu^{+} \mu^{-} \ell^{\pm}\bar{\nu}_{\ell} \gamma$ in the future at the LHCb.

Description: A consistent theory of massive gravity, where the graviton acquires mass by spontaneously breaking diffeomorphism invariance, is now well established. We supersymmetrize this construction using N =1 fields. Coupling to N =1 supergravity is done by applying the rules of tensor calculus to construct an action invariant under local N =1 supersymmetry. The supersymmetric action is shown, at the quadratic level, to be free of ghosts and have as its spectrum a massive graviton, two gravitinos (with different masses) and a massive vector.

Description: We examine the ATLAS and CMS 7 & 8 TeV multijet supersymmetry (SUSY) searches requiring the incidence of a single lepton in the framework of the supersymmetric grand unified model No-Scale Flipped SU (5) with extra vector-like flippon multiplets derived from F-Theory, or $\mathcal{F}\mbox{--} \mathit{SU}(5)$ for short. Investigated are five multijet + lepton SUSY searches: 4.7 fb −1 ATLAS 7 TeV gluino and light stop searches, as well as 13 fb −1  ATLAS and 9.7 fb −1  CMS 8 TeV light stop searches. Most significantly, all five leptonic SUSY searches represent statistically independent data samples. Findings show that all five orthogonal sets of leptonic LHC observations give a lower bound to the gaugino mass scale at M 1/2 ≥680 GeV, with all the current best fits correlating within a narrow region. Furthermore, eight statistically independent LHC SUSY search regions (leptonic + all-hadronic) accessible to the No-Scale $\mathcal{F}\mbox{--} \mathit{SU}(5)$ model space intersect with all the currently operating beyond the Standard Model experiments within the range of M 1/2 =680–850 GeV, with the upper bound established by the lower experimental limit of the anomalous magnetic moment (g μ −2)/2 of the muon. We emphasize that this region of the $\mathcal{F}\mbox{--} \mathit{SU}(5)$ model space may not be fully probed by leptonic SUSY searches at the LHC until the 13 TeV LHC energizes in 2015. Additionally, we describe an efficient technique for the effective statistical disentanglement of searches sensitive to mutually overlapping event spaces.

Description: The present work focuses on the evaluation of the groundwater quality by chemical and bacteriological analyses to ensure its suitability for drinking and irrigation. Twenty groundwater samples were collected and analyzed from Manfalut district, Assiut, Egypt. Several water quality parameters were determined; the results show higher concentration of total dissolved solids (50 %), electrical conductivity (55 %), chloride (20 %), total hardness (20 %), and bicarbonate (55 %). This indicates signs of deterioration regarding drinking and domestic uses. Salinity hazard, sodium absorption ratio, sodium (Na) percentage, and residual Na carbonate were used to evaluate groundwater quality for irrigation. The values of electrical conductivity and SAR of groundwater samples were estimated illustrating that the most dominant classes are C2S1 (45 %; medium-salinity-low SAR), C3S1 (50 %; high-salinity-low SAR), and C4S1 (5 %; very high-salinity-low SAR). Bacteriological analysis was also conducted for 20 groundwater wells from December 2011 to May 2012. Seven samples (35 %) are contaminated by bacteria (total and fecal coliforms); these wells are not suitable for drinking. The analysis exhibits that bacterial contamination was the maximum in wells located at the center of the study area; this may be due to using the residential septic tanks. It was also discovered that the quality of groundwater is suitable for irrigation in the target aquifer except in a few locations. As for drinking, about 55 % of the samples are not suitable. However, the groundwater wells which are located in the center of the study area are suitable for drinking according to the hydochemical analysis. It was found that some of these wells are not suitable based on bacteriological analysis.

Description: The purpose of this study is to investigate the performance of adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) model in the estimation of the deformation modulus of rock mass. ANFIS is a powerful processing tool which is used for the modeling of complex problems where the relationship between the model variables is unknown. For this reason, this model seems to be suited for the estimation of deformation modulus. In this paper, the ANFIS model was constructed and compared with empirical relation that was suggested for indirect estimation of this parameter. In the ANFIS model, five parameters, including depth, uniaxial compressive strength of intact rock, RQD, spacing of discontinuities, and the condition of discontinuities are considered. These parameters are the most effective parameters in the estimation of deformation modulus. Employing the ANFIS model for the estimation of rock mass deformation modulus shows a reliable performance. The values of correlation coefficient, variance accounted for, and root mean square error of the results for ANFIS model is obtained as 0.86, 85.3%, and 2.73, respectively, which indicates precise and correlate results.

Description: Satellite images from 2000 to 2010 were used to identify major dust trajectories within seven major deserts in the world. The fallen dust from these trajectories were collected and analyzed. The fallen dust rates tend to be lower downwind. The average samples of the world's fallen dust are negatively skewed trimodal with dominancy of silt size fractions (61 %). Most of the fallen dust within major dust trajectories is fining downwind. The fallen dust from the eastern zones (Taklimakan, Gobi, and Australian deserts) are characterized by higher percentages of feldspars and clay minerals, low carbonate content, and grain surface area in comparison to the Western zones (Sahara and Arabian deserts). The Western Sahara Desert dust is differentiated by the highest depositional rates and average quartz percentage (66 %). The dust samples in this zone contain low carbonates and grain surface area compared to dust from the Eastern Sahara Desert. The dust samples within Northern Arabia and Ethiopian-south Arabia zones show the highest average of carbonate amounts and grain surface area.

Description: In the present study, the two-dimensional blast model has been simulated using finite element software Abaqus/CAE. The John–Wilkins–Lee equation of state has been used to calculate the pressure caused by the release of the chemical energy of the explosive. Detonation point from center of hole has been defined for the traveling path of explosive energy. Elastoplastic dynamic failure constitutive with kinematic hardening model was adopted for rock mass responses under high explosive pressure to understand the mechanism of blast phenomena. In this model, it is assumed that failure of rock occurs under tensile failure when yield plastic stress exceeded to its static tensile strength. The hydrostatic pressure was used as a failure measure to model dynamic spall or a pressure cut off. Variation of detonation velocity has been measured in terms of simulation blast output energies index results.

Description: The presence of geological units with different grade characteristics mostly leads to problems during the grade modeling process. In special cases, if the area under study has units with small thickness and low grade with respect to the dominant unit of the area, it is difficult to reproduce different grade contents in these units in the simulated grade models because of the low thickness and lack of data in these units. In this study, the local moment constraints method, based on the definition of soft conditioning data reflecting geological knowledge, is investigated for improving simulated grade models under the mentioned conditions. This method is applied for grade simulation at the 1,750 m level of Sungun porphyry copper mine. The studied area is divided into two rock type domains: Sungun porphyry and Dyke. The Sungun porphyry unit is the dominant rock type in the considered area and has, on average, a higher copper grade, while dykes discontinue Sungun porphyry rock units sporadically and most of them are barren of mineralization. It is demonstrated that the use of soft conditioning data makes the simulated grade model closer to reality and improves the reproduction of grade contents considering the rock type units in the area. In the next step, the results obtained from conditional simulation are used for mineral resources classification. To this end, the conditional coefficient of variation is chosen as a criterion for measuring uncertainty and for defining the resources classes. Then, it is shown that uncertainty can be considerably reduced in the prepared models if soft data are considered; as a result, an increase in measured resource classification is observed.

Description: Phenol is one of the aromatic hydrocarbons. Phenol and its derivatives are highly toxic. These pollutants can be observed in the effluents of many industries. This research investigates the removal of phenol by the use of activated sludge in a batch system. The effects of influencing factors on biodegradation efficiency have been evaluated. The main factors considered in this study were the volume of acclimatized activated sludge inoculation, pH, temperature, and initial concentration of phenol. The inoculation volumes of 1, 3, and 5 mL of acclimatized activated sludge were taken into account. Different pH values of 3, 5, 7, 9, and 11 were examined. The experiments were conducted for temperatures of 25, 30, 35, and 40 °C and initial phenol concentrations of 400, 800, 1,000, and 1,500 ppm. The results show that the acclimatized activated sludge has a high capacity for the removal of phenol. From a 100-mL aqueous solution was removed 1,500 ppm of phenol after 80 h. Furthermore, maximum phenol removal was observed for an inoculation volume of 5 mL for three different phenol concentrations of 100, 400, and 800 ppm. The best pH was 7 for the biodegradation process, and the optimum temperature was 30 °C. It was further found that an increase in the phenol concentration increased its removal time. Moreover, the activated sludge could effectively remove about 99.9 % of phenol from a synthetic aqueous solution in a batch system.

Description: Representative sandstone samples were collected from the surface-type section of the Shajara Formation of the Permo-Carboniferous Unayzah Group for reservoir characterization through fractal dimension investigation. Two models based on mercury intrusion technique were employed to represent the pores characteristics of these sandstones. The results show that realistic dimensions and outstanding fractal features of porous structures in Shajara sandstones, when these materials are correlated by thermodynamic model and 3-D fractal model of mercury intrusion. On the basis of sub-Unayzah unconformity, sub-Middle Shajara local unconformity, mudstone of the Middle Shajara and sub-Khuff unconformity, the three porous and permeable sandstone units of Shajara Formation were treated separately and classified here into three fractal dimension units. The units from base to top are: Lower Shajara Fractal Dimension Unit, Middle Shajara Fractal Dimension Unit, and Upper Shajara Fractal Dimension Unit. The thermodynamic model and 3-D fractal model were effectively used to characterize the porous structures of Shajara sandstones in logical and quantitative way.

Description: The present work deals with the geologic setting and mineralogical and geochemical study of Late Precambrian magmatic rocks especially the felsic dike swarms of northeast Aqaba complex in South Jordan. The northeast Aqaba complex represents one of the most significant regions in the South Jordan basement. The basement rocks in the studied region are composed of schists, gneisses, migmatites, met gabbros, diorite, and granite. It is invaded by post-orogenic dike swarms. The post-orogenic dike swarms have been recognized as felsic dikes of dacite, rhyodacite, and rhyolite composition. They are composed of plagioclase, K-feldspar, quartz, biotite, and hornblenble with a porphyritic texture. Chemically, they are enriched in compatible elements especially in the large ion lithophile elements such as K, Rb, and Ba. The values of A/NK are more than A/CNK, indicating that dacitic dike swarms have metaluminous nature. Meanwhile, the values of A/NK are less than A/CNK in rhyodacitic and rhyolitic dike swarms of prealuminous nature. This felsic dike can be related to an intercontinental setting that was accompanied by a chemical evolution of the extensional movements and is formed by partial melting of crustal rocks, which are already known from other areas in the northeast portion of the Arabian-Nubian Shield.

Description: The research site is the whole landmass of the Federal College of Education, Zaria, seated on basement complex of north-central Nigeria. Direct current resistivity geophysical method was employed to characterise parameters such as the basement depth and topography, aquifer depth and thickness, weathered basement distribution as well as mapping of orientations of fractures and faults present in the premises using radial sounding technique. The conventional vertical electrical sounding (VES) Schlumberger array was carried out at 40 stations, and eight of which were radial stations. Radial sounding was used to establish resistivity anisotropy which gives clue for the choice of consistent VES profile direction used throughout the fieldwork. Results from the resistivity interpretation suggest three layers in most parts of the premises with some minor occurrence of two and four layers. The first layer (topsoil) has its thickness ranging between 3.5 and 14.0 m; second layer (weathered basement) thickness ranges between 9.0 and 36.5 m, while the third layer (fresh basement) is deepest (40.1 m) towards the eastern corner of the area. The aquifer depth ranges from 1.5 to 4.0 m with a thickness range of 5.0 to 14.0 m. The thickest aquifer occurs around the centre to the west in the area. Results from radial sounding show presence of resistivity anisotropy, an insight to fracturing and faulting; this is more pronounced around the west-central part of the premises.

Description: Ras Banas Peninsula is a large triangular tract of land jutting out into the Red Sea. It extends about 40 km eastward out of the general trend of the Red Sea coast of Egypt, covering an area of about 600 km 2 . Three sandy spits are jutting out from the main body of the peninsula into the Red Sea, possibly representing relics of structural trends, two of which are located at the western part and the third one is extending from the eastern edge forming a further seaward extension of the main body. A series of isometric and contour maps of the whole area under investigation are provided in digitized visual form of geomorphologic features, landforms and slope configuration. According to difference in relief, the study area can be subdivided into three topographic divisions, namely coastal plain (〈50 m), medium-height land (50–150 m) and hinterland (〉150 m). Drainage and lineament maps of the drainage networks were prepared from the topographic map and satellite images of the area. The prepared lineament map shows four main trends that control the configuration of the drainage system in the study area. These trends are Aqaba trend (NE–SW to NNE–SSW), Red Sea trend (NW–SE to NNW–SSE), Nubian trend (N–S), and Tethyan trend (E–W). It is clear that the structural trends, lithology and general slope are the main controls of developing parallel and dendritic drainage patterns in the area. Both geomorphology and drainage system configuration have great influences on the land use and natural hazards affecting the peninsula especially torrential floods and sea level fluctuations.

Description: Gluon production on two scattering centers is studied in the formalism of reggeized gluons. Different contributions to the inclusive cross section are derived with the help of the Lipatov effective action. The AGK relations between these contributions are established. The inclusive cross section found is compared to the one in the dipole picture and demonstrated to be the same.

Description: Direct analysis in real time mass spectrometry (DART-MS) has become an established technique for rapid mass spectral analysis of a large variety of samples. DART-MS is capable of analyzing the sample at atmospheric pressure, essentially in the open laboratory environment. DART-MS can be applied to compounds that have been deposited or adsorbed on to surfaces or that are being desorbed therefrom into the atmosphere. This makes DART-MS suitable and well-known for analysis of ingredients of plant materials, pesticide monitoring on vegetables, forensic and safety applications such as screening for traces of explosives, warfare agents, or illicit drugs on luggage, clothes, or bank notes, etc. DART can also be used for analysis of either solid or liquid bulk materials, as may be required in quality control, or to quickly investigate the identity of a compound from chemical synthesis. Even living organisms can be subjected to DART-MS. Driven by different needs in analytical practice, the combination of the DART ionization source and interface can be configured in multiple geometries and with various accessories to adapt the setup as required. Analysis by DART-MS relies on some sort of gas-phase ionization mechanism. In DART, initial generation of the ionizing species is by use of a corona discharge in a pure helium atmosphere which delivers excited helium atoms that, upon their release into the atmosphere, will initiate a cascade of gas-phase reactions. In the end, this results in reagent ions created from atmospheric water or (solvent) vapor in the vicinity of the surface subject to analysis where they effect a chemical ionization process. DART ionization processes may generate positive or negative ions, predominantly even-electron species, but odd-electron species do also occur. The prevailing process of analyte ion formation from a given sample is highly dependent on analyte properties.

Description: This article is a brief summary of my plenary talk at the World Biomaterials Congress in Chengdu, Sichuan, China, June 1–5, 2012. It highlights the trend to design and develop biomaterial implants and devices that are more compact and more efficient, as they “shrink” from the macro- to the micro- and down to the nano-scale.

Description: In this paper, we report a new type of chiral high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) column—a so-called dress-up chiral column—featuring a chiral stationary phase adsorbed reversibly in a commercial fluorous HPLC column through fluorous interactions. We synthesized perfluroalkylated proline derivatives as chiral stationary phase compounds and then adsorbed them reversibly in the fluorous HPLC column through the pumping of their solutions. By using this dress-up chiral column and fluorophobic elution of an aqueous copper(II) sulfate/MeOH mixture, we could enantioseparate seven racemic amino acids within 40 min. When we washed the dress-up chiral column with fluorophilic tetrahydrofuran or MeOH, the adsorbed chiral stationary phase compounds desorbed from the column, completely destroying its enantioseparation ability. The relative standard deviation of the retention times, the number of theoretical plates, and the resolution for each of four preparations of the dress-up columns were all less than or equal to 9.53 % in 20-times repeated analysis, and were all less than or equal to 18.7 % in four different preparations, respectively.

Description: A method for evaluating the interactions between metal ions and nonionic surfactants in aqueous solutions containing high-concentration HCl, using gas pressure-driven low-pressure high-performance liquid chromatography (LP-HPLC) as a highly acid-resistant HPLC system, was developed. To construct the LP-HPLC for this purpose, poly(styrene- co -divinylbenzene)-based low-flow-resistance monolithic columns tolerant to highly acidic conditions were prepared using low-conversion thermal polymerization. Thermal polymerization at 65 °C for 1.5 h (monomer conversions, 33 % for styrene and 59 % for divinylbenzene) allowed preparation of a column with both high separation efficiency (around 60,000 plates m −1 for alkylbenzenes) and a quite low back pressure of 0.14 MPa at a linear flow rate of 1 mm s −1 (2.8 × 10 −13  m 2 in permeability). The base column prepared under the above conditions was coated with a nonionic surfactant, polyoxyethylene nonylphenyl ether (PONPE, average oxyethylene unit numbers ( n ) = 3, 7.5, 15, and 20), and used for evaluation of the interactions between PONPEs and metal ions in 6 M HCl. The interactions between PONPEs and Au(III), Ga(III), Fe(III), Zn(II), and Cu(II) were successfully evaluated using both breakthrough and chromatographic methods. Furthermore, a study of the effect of the polyoxyethylene (POE) chain length revealed that the use of PONPE with the longer POE moiety enhanced the magnitude of the interaction together with the increase in the amount of oxyethylene (OE) units coated on the monolith. Moreover, the interactions of metal ions with a single OE unit were almost constant in the range of n  = 7.5–20, whereas the suppression of the interaction between Au(III) with the shortest PONPE chain ( n  = 3) was also observed. Figure Acid-resistive gas pressure-driven low-pressure high-performance liquid chromatography was developed and applied to the evaluation of interactions between metal ions and nonionic surfactants in high-concentration HCl, in particular for the effect of polyoxyethylene length on the interaction.

Description: In this study, a fast and quantitative determination method for branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), namely leucine, isoleucine, and valine, was developed using a pillar array column. A pillar array column with low-dispersion turns was fabricated on a 20 × 20-mm 2 microchip using multistep ultraviolet photolithography and deep reactive ion etching. The BCAAs were fluorescently labeled with 4-fluoro-7-nitro-2,1,3-benzoxadiazole (NBD-F), followed by reversed-phase separation on the pillar array column. The NBD derivatives of the three BCAAs and an internal standard (6-aminocaproic acid) were separated in 100 s. The calibration curves for the NBD-BCAAs had good linearity in the range of 0.4–20 μM, using an internal standard. The intra- and interday precisions were found to be in the ranges of 1.42–3.80 and 2.74–6.97 %, respectively. The accuracies for the NBD-BCAA were from 90.2 to 99.1 %. The method was used for the analysis of sports drink and human plasma samples. The concentrations of BCAAs determined by the developed method showed good agreements with those determined using a conventional high-performance liquid chromatography system. As BCAAs are important biomarkers of some diseases, these results showed that the developed method could be a potential diagnostic tool in clinical research.

Description: The discovery and implementation of the long-term metabolite of metandienone, namely 17β-hydroxymethyl-17α-methyl-18-norandrost-1,4,13-trien-3-one, to doping control resulted in hundreds of positive metandienone findings worldwide and impressively demonstrated that prolonged detection periods significantly increase the effectiveness of sports drug testing. For oxandrolone and other 17-methyl steroids, analogs of this metabolite have already been described, but comprehensive characterization and pharmacokinetic data are still missing. In this report, the synthesis of the two epimeric oxandrolone metabolites—17β-hydroxymethyl-17α-methyl-18-nor-2-oxa-5α-androsta-13-en-3-one and 17α-hydroxymethyl-17β-methyl-18-nor-2-oxa-5α-androsta-13-en-3-one—using a fungus ( Cunninghamella elegans ) based protocol is presented. The reference material was fully characterized by liquid chromatography nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and high resolution/high accuracy mass spectrometry. To ensure a specific and sensitive detection in athlete’s urine, different analytical approaches were followed, such as liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (QqQ and Q-Orbitrap) and gas chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry, in order to detect and identify the new target analytes. The applied methods have demonstrated good specificity and no significant matrix interferences. Linearity ( R 2  〉 0.99) was tested, and precise results were obtained for the detection of the analytes (coefficient of variation 〈20 %). Limits of detection (S/N) for confirmatory and screening analysis were estimated at 1 and 2 ng/mL of urine, respectively. The assay was applied to oxandrolone post-administration samples to obtain data on the excretion of the different oxandrolone metabolites. The studied specimens demonstrated significantly longer detection periods (up to 18 days) for the new oxandrolone metabolites compared to commonly targeted metabolites such as epioxandrolone or 18-nor-oxandrolone, presenting a promising approach to improve the fight against doping.

Description: The S-wave charmonium decaying to a P-wave and S-wave light hadron pairs are supposed to be suppressed by the helicity selection rule in the perturbative QCD framework. With an effective Lagrangian method, we show that the intermediate charmed meson loops can provide a possible mechanism for the evasion of the helicity selection rule, and result in sizeable decay branching ratios in some of those channels. The theoretical predictions can be examined by the forthcoming BES-III data in the near future.

Description: It is believed that choked gamma-ray bursts (CGRBs) are the potential candidates for the production of high energy neutrinos in GeV–TeV energy range. These CGRBs outnumber the successful GRBs by many orders. So it is important to observe neutrinos from these cosmological objects with the presently operating neutrino telescope IceCube. We study the three-flavor neutrino oscillation of these high energy neutrinos in the presupernova star environment which is responsible for the CGRB. For the presupernova star we consider three different models and calculate the neutrino oscillation probabilities, as well as neutrino flux on the surface of these star. The matter effect modifies the neutrino flux of different flavors on the surface of the star. We have also calculated the flux of these high energy neutrinos on the surface of the Earth. We found that for neutrino energies below ≤10 TeV the flux ratio does not amount to 1:1:1, whereas for higher energy neutrinos it does.

Description: In this work we consider the evolution of the interactive dark fluids in the background of homogeneous and isotropic FRW model of the universe. The dark fluids consist of a warm dark matter and a dark energy and both are described as perfect fluid with barotropic equation of state. The dark species interact non-gravitationally through an additional term in the energy conservation equations. An autonomous system is formed in the energy density spaces and fixed points are analyzed. A general expression for the deceleration parameter has been obtained and it is possible to have more than one zero of the deceleration parameter. Finally, vanishing of the deceleration parameter has been examined with some examples.

Description: The most appropriate method in designing the adsorption systems and assessing the performance of the adsorption systems is to have an idea on adsorption isotherms. Comparison analysis of linear least square method and nonlinear method for estimating the isotherm parameters was made using the experimental equilibrium data of Zn(II) and Cu(II) onto kaolinite. Equilibrium data were fitted to Freundlich, Langmuir, and Redlich–Peterson isotherm equations. In order to confirm the best-fit isotherms for the adsorption system, the data set using the chi-square ( χ 2 ), combined with the values of the determined coefficient ( r 2 ) was analyzed. Nonlinear method was found to be a more appropriate method for estimating the isotherm parameters. The best fitting isotherm was the Langmuir and Redlich–Peterson isotherm. The Redlich–Peterson is a special case of Langmuir when the Redlich–Peterson isotherm constant g was unity. The sorption capacity of kaolinite to uptake metal ions in the increasing order was given by Cu (4.2721 mg/g) 〈 Zn (4.6710 mg/g).

Description: We calculate partial Bayes factors to quantify how the feasibility of the constrained minimal supersymmetric standard model (CMSSM) has changed in the light of a series of observations. This is done in the Bayesian spirit where probability reflects a degree of belief in a proposition and Bayes’ theorem tells us how to update it after acquiring new information. Our experimental baseline is the approximate knowledge that was available before LEP, and our comparison model is the Standard Model with a simple dark matter candidate. To quantify the amount by which experiments have altered our relative belief in the CMSSM since the baseline data we compute the partial Bayes factors that arise from learning in sequence the LEP Higgs constraints, the XENON100 dark matter constraints, the 2011 LHC supersymmetry search results, and the early 2012 LHC Higgs search results. We find that LEP and the LHC strongly shatter our trust in the CMSSM (with M 0 and M 1/2 below 2 TeV), reducing its posterior odds by approximately two orders of magnitude. This reduction is largely due to substantial Occam factors induced by the LEP and LHC Higgs searches.

Description: Further investigation of the participant plane correlations within a Glauber model framework is presented, focusing on correlations between three or four participant planes of different order. A strong correlation is observed for $\cos(2\varPhi_{2}^{*}+3\varPhi _{3}^{*}-5\varPhi_{5}^{*})$ which is a reflection of the elliptic shape of the overlap region. The correlation between the corresponding experimental event plane angles can be easily measured. Strong correlations of similar geometric origin are also observed for $\cos(2\varPhi_{2}^{*}+4\varPhi _{4}^{*}- 6\varPhi_{6}^{*})$ , $\cos(2\varPhi_{2}^{*}-3\varPhi_{3}^{*}-4\varPhi_{4}^{*}+5\varPhi_{5}^{*})$ , $\cos(6\varPhi_{2}^{*}+3\varPhi_{3}^{*}- 4\varPhi_{4}^{*}- 5\varPhi_{5}^{*})$ , $\cos(\varPhi_{1}^{*}-2\varPhi_{2}^{*}-3\varPhi_{3}^{*}+4\varPhi _{4}^{*})$ , $\cos(\varPhi_{1}^{*}+6\varPhi_{2}^{*}-3\varPhi _{3}^{*}-4\varPhi_{4}^{*})$ , and $\cos(\varPhi_{1}^{*}+2\varPhi_{2}^{*}+3\varPhi_{3}^{*}-6\varPhi _{6}^{*})$ , which are also measurable. Experimental measurements of the corresponding event plane correlators in heavy ion collisions at RHIC and the LHC may improve our understanding of the physics underlying the measured higher order flow harmonics.

Description: Assuming the newly observed Z c (3900) to be a molecular state of $D\bar{D}^{*}(D^{*} \bar{D})$ , we calculate the partial widths of Z c (3900)→ J / ψ + π ; ψ ′+ π ; η c + ρ and $D\bar{D}^{*}$ within the light-front model (LFM). Z c (3900)→ J / ψ + π is the channel by which Z c (3900) was observed, our calculation indicates that it is indeed one of the dominant modes whose width can be in the range of a few MeV depending on the model parameters. Similar to Z b and $Z_{b}'$ , Voloshin suggested that there should be a resonance $Z_{c}'$ at 4030 MeV, which can be a molecular state of $D^{*}\bar{D}^{*}$ . Then we go on calculating its decay rates to all the aforementioned final states and the $D^{*}\bar{D}^{*}$ as well. It is found that if Z c (3900) is a molecular state of ${1\over\sqrt{2}}(D\bar{D}^{*}+D^{*}\bar{D})$ , the partial width of $Z_{c}(3900)\to D\bar{D}^{*}$ is rather small, but the rate of Z c (3900)→ ψ (2 s ) π is even larger than Z c (3900)→ J / ψπ . The implications are discussed and it is indicated that with the luminosity of BES and BELLE, the experiments may finally determine if Z c (3900) is a molecular state or a tetraquark.

Description: Coccidiostats are authorized in the European Union (EU) to be used as poultry feed additives. Maximum (residue) levels (M(R)Ls) have been set within the EU for consumer and animal protection against unintended carry-over, and monitoring is compulsory. This paper describes the single-laboratory validation of a previously developed multiplex flow cytometric immunoassay (FCIA) as screening method for coccidiostats in eggs and feed and provides and compares different approaches for the calculation of the cut-off levels which are not described in detail within Commission Decision 2002/657/EC. Comparable results were obtained between the statistical (reference) approach and the rapid approaches. With the most rapid approach, the cut-off levels for narasin/salinomycin, lasalocid, diclazuril, nicarbazin (DNC) and monensin in egg, calculated as percentages of inhibition (%B/B0), were 60, 32, 76, 80 and 84, respectively. In feed, the cut-off levels for narasin/salinomycin, lasalocid, nicarbazin (DNC) and monensin were 70, 64, 72 and 78, respectively, and could not be determined for diclazuril. For all analytes, except for diclazuril in feed, the rate of false positives (false non-compliant) in blank samples was lower than 1 %, and the rate of false negatives (false compliant) at the M(R)Ls was below 5 %. Additionally, very good correlations ( r ranging from 0.994 to 0.9994) were observed between two different analysers, a sophisticated flow cytometer (FlexMAP 3D ® ) and a more cost-efficient and transportable planar imaging detector (MAGPIX ® ), hence demonstrating adequate transferability.

Description: To develop a new composite adsorbent with high performance, fir sawdust and CaCl 2 are selected as raw materials. The mass transfer is enhanced by carbonizing and activating the sawdust and heat transfer is enhanced by adding expanded graphite into the adsorbent. The effect of the preparation temperature and the expanded graphite content on the adsorption performance is investigated. The results show that the new adsorbent exhibits a high adsorption performance due to its high porosity, uniform distribution and high content of CaCl 2 and high thermal conductivity. Also, the experimental results indicate that the rate of ammonia adsorption on the adsorbent depends on the expanded graphite content and the carbonization and activation temperature. The adsorbent prepared at 500°C and with the expanded graphite content of 30% has the best performance in terms of the adsorption refrigeration, which adsorbs ammonia as high as 0.37 g g −1 at 10 min.

Description: Highly c -axis-oriented GaN films were deposited on Ti coated glass substrates using low temperature electron cyclotron resonance plasma enhanced metal organic chemical vapor deposition system (ECR-PEMOCVD) with trimethyl gallium (TMGa) as gallium source. The influence of TMGa flux on the properties of GaN films were systematically investigated by reflection high energy electron diffraction (RHEED), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and Raman scattering. The GaN film with small surface roughness and high c -axis preferred orientation was successfully achieved at the optimized TMGa flux of 1.0 sccm. The ohmic contact characteristic between GaN and Ti layer was clearly demonstrated by the near-linear current-voltage ( I–V ) curve. The GaN/Ti/glass structure has great potential to dramatically improve the scalability and reduce the cost of solid-state lighting light emitting diodes.

Description: The effect of microstructure and surface chemistry on nicotine adsorption capacity of almond-shell-based activated carbon was studied. Almond-shell-based activated carbon was reactivated or modified with steam, ZnCl 2 and NaHSO 4 separately. The surface area and pore structure parameters of activated carbon were determined from the adsorption-desorption isotherm of nitrogen at 77 K. Boehm titration and FTIR were explored to determine the surface oxygen groups. The results revealed that nicotine adsorption from solution on carbons depend on the micropores and phenolic groups. A strong correlation between the amounts of adsorbed nicotine and the phenolic groups was observed, whereas the higher amounts of carboxylic groups decrease the nicotine adsorption capacity on activated carbons.

Description: Administration of hormonal compounds as growth promoters in livestock farming was banned by Council Directive 96/22/EC. However, this kind of substances is sometimes reported within the framework of European monitoring residue plans. Various analytical methods have been previously developed to screen for their misuse, and they are now especially efficient for monitoring the illegal administration of synthetic and semisynthetic hormones. Nevertheless, proving an exogenous administration of hormones from natural origin (i.e., estradiol-17β or progesterone) still remains a challenge for European authorities. These target compounds are indeed always present in the animal matrix, and the establishment of reference thresholds appears very difficult because of the extreme variability existing among animals. In 2011, a metabolomics study was performed on serum samples obtained from cows treated with estradiol-17β (or its ester estradiol benzoate) and from control animals using a high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-LTQ-Orbitrap system. After appropriate data processing and multivariate statistical analysis (orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis), it was possible to highlight one potential biomarker candidate of estradiol treatments in bovine animals. Now, this biomarker has been structurally elucidated as a dipeptide, and its usefulness has been tested through a targeted HPLC-MS/MS method. Its presence in the previous samples has been confirmed and also in additional samples from estradiol-treated animals.

Description: A bootstrapped fuzzy rule-building expert system (FuRES) and a bootstrapped t -statistical weight feature selection method were individually used to select informative features from gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) chemical profiles of basil plants cultivated by organic and conventional farming practices. Feature subsets were selected from two-way GC/MS data objects, total ion chromatograms, and total mass spectra, separately. Four economic classifiers based on the bootstrapped FuRES approach, i.e., fuzzy optimal associative memory (e-FOAM), e-FuRES, partial least-squares–discriminant analysis (e-PLS-DA), and soft independent modeling by class analogy (e-SIMCA), and four economic classifiers based on the bootstrapped t-weight approach, i.e., e-PLS-DA-t, e-FOAM-t, e-FuRES-t, and e-SIMCA-t, were constructed thereafter to be compared with full-size classifiers obtained from the entire GC/MS data objects (i.e., FOAM, FuRES, PLS-DA, and SIMCA). By using three features selected from two-way data objects, the average classification rates with e-FOAM, e-FuRES, e-PLS-DA, and e-SIMCA were 95.3 ± 0.5 %, 100 %, 100 %, and 91.8 ± 0.2 %, respectively. The established economic classifiers were used to classify a new validation set collected 2.5 months later with no parametric change to experimental procedure. Classification rates with e-FOAM, e-FuRES, e-PLS-DA, and e-SIMCA were 96.7 %, 100 %, 100 %, and 96.7 %, respectively. Characteristic components in basil extracts corresponding to highest-ranked useful features were putatively identified. The feature subset may prove valuable as a rapid approach for organic basil authentication.

Description: A small and very simple electromembrane extraction probe (EME-probe) was developed and coupled directly to electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS), and this system was used to monitor in real time in vitro metabolism by rat liver microsomes of drug substances from a small reaction (incubation) chamber (37 °C). The drug-related substances were continuously extracted from the 1.0 mL metabolic reaction mixture and into the EME-probe by an electrical potential of 2.5 V. The extraction probe consisted of a 1-mm long and 350-μm ID thin supported liquid membrane (SLM) of 2-nitrophenyl octyl ether. The drugs and formed metabolites where extracted through the SLM and directly into a 3 μL min −1 flow of 60 mM HCOOH inside the probe serving as the acceptor solution. The acceptor solution was directed into the ESI-MS-system, and the MS continuously monitored the drug-related substances extracted by the EME-probe. The extraction efficiency of the EME-probe was dependant on the applied electrical potential and the length of the SLM, and these parameters as well as the volume of the reaction chamber were set to the values mentioned above to avoid serious depletion from the reaction chamber (soft extraction). Soft extraction was mandatory in order not to affect the reaction kinetics by sample composition changes induced by the EME-probe. The EME-probe/MS-system was used to establish kinetic profiles for the in vitro metabolism of promethazine, amitriptyline and imipramine as model substances.

Description: We have recently developed a novel portable NIR imaging device (D-NIRs), which has a high speed and high wavelength resolution. This NIR imaging approach has been developed by utilizing D-NIRs for studying the dissolution of a model tablet containing 20 % ascorbic acid (AsA) as an active pharmaceutical ingredient and 80 % hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, where the tablet is sealed by a special cell. Diffuse reflectance NIR spectra in the 1,000 to 1,600 nm region were measured during the dissolution of the tablet. A unique band at around 1,361 nm of AsA was identified by the second derivative spectra of tablet and used for AsA distribution NIR imaging. Two-dimensional change of AsA concentration of the tablet due to water penetration is clearly shown by using the band-based image at 1,361 nm in NIR spectra obtained with high speed. Moreover, it is significantly enhanced by using the intensity ratio of two bands at 1,361 and 1,354 nm corresponding to AsA and water absorption, respectively, showing the dissolution process. The imaging results suggest that the amount of AsA in the imaged area decreases with increasing water penetration. The proposed NIR imaging approach using the intensity of a specific band or the ratio of two bands combined with the developed portable NIR imaging instrument, is a potentially useful practical way to evaluate the tablet at every moment during dissolution and to monitor the concentration distribution of each drug component in the tablet. Figure Visible photo and NIR image for tablet dissolution obtained by using a newly developed portable NIR imaging device: D-NIRs

Description: This study was based on the results of geochemical analysis of 332 core and 10 cutting rock samples from Triassic Jurassic, Cretaceous, and Triassic age, in addition to seismic sections, logs, initial drilling results, final reports of oil wells, and previous studies. Constructing models from these data are to assess new oil reservoirs, evaluation, and development of the existing oil reservoirs and hydrocarbon potential, and suggesting petroleum systems in order to reduce exploration risk and develop simple risk assessment of oil fields in the studied area. In general, Abu-Jir fault zone divides the studied area into two petroleum provinces: Mesopotamian Foredeep Basin and Widyan Basin–Interior Platform. The Mesopotamian Fordeep basin are thick stratigraphic sequences with no exploration for oil or gas source rock intervals within the Paleozoic sequence. while the Mesozoic sequence offers the best potential. The transitional sequence of the Triassic period is expected to contain occasional fair to good quantity of oil source rock intervals. The Widyan Basin–Interior Platform is an area with possible deployment of low to moderate risk of Paleozoic play and Lower Mesozoic plays with fair Triassic and Mesozoic objectives. Oil has generated and expelled into traps in the studied area during two phases; the first is during Early Palaeogene that accumulated in traps of the Cretaceous structural deformation, while the second is during Late Neogene.

Description: Many in-vitro experiments performed to study the response of thiol-containing proteins to changes in environmental redox potentials use dithiothreitol (DTT) to maintain a preset redox environment throughout the experiments. However, the gradual oxidation of DTT during the course of the experiments, and the interaction between DTT and other components in the system, can significantly alter the initial redox potential and complicate data interpretation. Having an internal reporter of the actual redox potential of the assayed sample facilitates direct correlation of biochemical findings with experimental redox status. Reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) is a widely used, well-established tool for analysis and purification of biomolecules, including proteins and peptides. Here, we describe a simple, robust, and quantitative RP-HPLC method we developed and tested for determination of the experimental redox potential of an in-vitro sample at the time of the experiment. It exploits the specific UV-absorbance of the oxidized intrinsic DTT in the samples and retains the high resolving power and high sensitivity of RP-HPLC with UV detection.

Description: The use of smart supports and bioinspired materials to confine living cells and use them for field-deployable biosensors has recently attracted much attention. In particular, bioluminescent whole-cell biosensors designed to respond to different analytes or classes of analyte have been successfully implemented in portable and cost-effective analytical devices. Significant advances in detection technology, biomaterial science, and genetic engineering of cells have recently been reported. Now the challenge is to move from benchtop traditional cell-based assays to portable biosensing devices. Improvement of the analytical performance of these biosensors depends on the availability of optimized bioluminescent reporters, and promising approaches that go beyond reporter gene technology are emerging. To enable handling of cells as ready-to-use reagents, nature-inspired strategies have been used, with the objective of keeping cells in a dormant state until use. Several issues must still be investigated, for example long-term viability of cells, the possibility of performing real-time analysis, and multiplexing capability. Figure Concept of whole-cell bioluminescent biosensor

Description: The 12 May 2008 M s 8.0 Wenchuan earthquake caused notable changes in the water levels of wells in the Three Gorges area. This work examines the relationship between these co-seismic changes in water level and the changes in aquifer parameters. Three wells in the area with good responses to earth tide were chosen for analysis. Water-level data from February to June 2008 were used to calculate the aquifer transmissivity, permeability and specific storage of the rocks, and analyze the relationship between the co-seismic responses of the wells and their aquifer parameters. The results show that the Wenchuan earthquake changed these parameters considerably, thereby controlling co- and post-seismic variations of water level. The values of these parameters prior to the earthquake are linearly related with the amplitudes of co-seismic variations in water level. The larger the aquifer transmissivity, the more remarkable the co-seismic change in water level. During the earthquake, changes in aquifer parameters were found to be associated with co-seismic variations in water level, with the larger changes occurring when the co-seismic variation in water level was larger. The tectonic setting has a certain degree of influence on the co- and post-seismic changes in water level. The permeability structures of the fault zone appear to determine the manner of co-seismic variation in water level. Moreover, it seems that the water level in wells where groundwater converges more easily can recover faster following an earthquake. Insight from this study helps to improve understanding of the characteristics of water-level changes caused by earthquakes.

Description: The P2X 7 receptor (P2X 7 R) is an important member of the P2X family of ligand-gated ion channels that respond to ATP as the endogenous agonist. Studies suggest that P2X 7 R plays a potentially pivotal role in a variety of physiological functions, including peripheral and central neuronal transmission, smooth muscle contraction, and inflammation. Thus, P2X 7 R may be a potential target for drug development. Here, we used a FlexStation to examine the function of recombinant P2X 7 R stably expressed in human embryonic kidney 293 cells and to compare three high-throughput screening assays: a membrane potential assay, an ethidium bromide uptake assay, and a calcium influx assay. We found that all three assays were suitable for the analysis of P2X 7 R, but the calcium influx assay was the most robust and is the best choice as a first high-throughput screening assay when embarking on a P2X 7 R drug discovery project.

Description: The wettability of boron nitride nanotube (BNNT) films was modified using a combination of pulsed and continuous wave (CW) mode plasma. The combined mode effectively modified the wettability of BNNT films and kept the nanostructures intact. The BNNT films changed from superhydrophobic to superhydrophilic after combined mode treatment at 600 W min. In contrast, the contact angle controllable decreased linearly in a controllable way with increasing energy input before eventually becoming superhydrophilic after 1000 W min of CW mode treatment. A high concentration of graft functional groups formed, along with point defects. More point defects formed when using combined modes and higher energy input. Mainly amine functional groups were grafted by combined mode plasma, while the CW mode plasma led to more formation of amide and imine on the BNNTs. Research into controllable wettability and selection of grafted functional groups should enable promising applications of BNNTs in composites and biology in the future.

Description: A search for a charged Higgs boson ( H + ) in $t\bar{t}$ decays is presented, where one of the top quarks decays via t → H + b , followed by H + → two jets ( $c\bar{s}$ ). The other top quark decays to Wb , where the W  boson then decays into a lepton ( e / μ ) and a neutrino. The data were recorded in pp collisions at $\sqrt{s} = 7~\mathrm {TeV}$ by the ATLAS detector at the LHC in 2011, and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 4.7 fb −1 . With no observation of a signal, 95 % confidence level (CL) upper limits are set on the decay branching ratio of top quarks to charged Higgs bosons varying between 5 % and 1 % for H + masses between 90 GeV and 150 GeV, assuming $\mathcal{B}(H^{+} \rightarrow c\bar{s})=100~\%$ .

Description: At a future linear collider very precise measurements, typically with errors of 〈1 %, are expected to be achievable. Such an accuracy gives sensitivity to the quantum corrections, which therefore must be incorporated in theoretical calculations in order to determine the underlying new physics parameters from prospective linear collider measurements. In the context of the chargino–neutralino sector of the minimal supersymmetric standard model, this involves fitting one-loop predictions to prospective measurements of the cross sections, forward–backward asymmetries and of the accessible chargino and neutralino masses. Taking recent results from LHC SUSY and Higgs searches into account we consider three phenomenological scenarios, each with characteristic features. Our analysis shows how an accurate determination of the desired parameters is possible, providing in addition access to the stop masses and mixing angle.

Description: A planar boundary introduced à la Symanzik in the 5D topological BF theory, with only the requirements of locality and power counting, allows to uniquely determine a gauge invariant, non-topological 4D Lagrangian. The boundary condition on the bulk fields is interpreted as a duality relation for the boundary fields, in analogy with the fermionization duality which holds in the 3D case. This suggests that the 4D degrees of freedom might be fermionic, although starting from a bosonic bulk theory. The method we propose to dimensionally reduce a Quantum Field Theory and to identify the resulting degrees of freedom can be applied to a generic spacetime dimension.

Description: A combined (triplex) immunoassay for the simultaneous detection of three mycotoxins in grains was developed with superparamagnetic colour-encoded microbeads, in combination with two bead-dedicated flow cytometers. Monoclonal antibodies were coupled to the beads, and the amounts of bound mycotoxins were inversely related to the amounts of bound fluorescent labelled mycotoxins (inhibition immunoassay format). The selected monoclonal antibodies were tested for their target mycotoxins and for cross-reactivity with relevant metabolites and masked mycotoxins. In the triplex format, low levels of cross-interactions between the assays occurred at irrelevant high levels only. All three assays were influenced by the sample matrix of cereal extracts to some extent, and matrix-matched calibrations are recommended for quantitative screening purposes. In a preliminary in-house validation, the triplex assay was found to be reproducible, sensitive and sufficiently accurate for the quantitative screening at ML level. The triplex assay was critically compared to liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry using reference materials and fortified blank material. Results for the quantification of ochratoxin A and zearalenone were in good agreement. However, the fumonisin assay was, due to overestimation, only suitable for qualitative judgements. Both flow cytometer platforms (Luminex 100 and FLEXMAP 3D) performed similar with respect to sensitivity with the advantages of a higher sample throughput and response range of the FLEXMAP 3D and lower cost of the Luminex 100. The priciple of the direct inhibition microbead immunoassay using fluorescent mycotoxin-reporter conjugates

Description: Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are synthetic receptors that are able to specifically bind their target molecules in complex samples, making them a versatile tool in biosensor technology. The combination of MIPs as a recognition element with quartz crystal microbalances (QCM-D with dissipation monitoring) gives a straightforward and sensitive device, which can simultaneously measure frequency and dissipation changes. In this work, bulk-polymerized l -nicotine MIPs were used to test the feasibility of l -nicotine detection in saliva and urine samples. First, l -nicotine-spiked saliva and urine were measured after dilution in demineralized water and 0.1× phosphate-buffered saline solution for proof-of-concept purposes. l -nicotine could indeed be detected specifically in the biologically relevant micromolar concentration range. After successfully testing on spiked samples, saliva was analyzed, which was collected during chewing of either nicotine tablets with different concentrations or of smokeless tobacco. The MIPs in combination with QCM-D were able to distinguish clearly between these samples: This proves the functioning of the concept with saliva, which mediates the oral uptake of nicotine as an alternative to the consumption of cigarettes. Figure Schematics of the sample-preparation procedure for l -nicotine spiked saliva- and urine samples with various concentration levels

Description: Controllable synthesis of uniform and single-crystalline CdMoO 4 nano-octahedra has been successfully realized at large-scale by a facile reverse-microemulsion route at room temperature. The structures, compositions and morphologies of the as-prepared products were characterized in detail by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), respectively. According to the thermochemical cycle, the relationship between the standard molar enthalpy of formation of nano-CdMoO 4 and bulk CdMoO 4 was proposed for the first time. In combination with micro-calorimetry, the standard molar enthalpies of formation at 298.15 K of as-ynthesized CdMoO 4 nano-octahedra were obtained.

Description: The generation of key drug metabolites for the purpose of their complete structural characterization, toxicity testing, as well as to serve as standards for quantitative studies, is a critical step in the pharmaceutical discovery and development cycle. Here, we utilized electrochemistry/mass spectrometry for the detection and subsequent generation of six phase I metabolites of simvastatin and lovastatin. Both simvastatin and lovastatin are widely used for the treatment of hypercholesterolemia. There are known drug–drug interaction issues of statin therapy, and it has been suggested that the oxidative metabolites may contribute to the cholesterol-lowering effect of both statins. Of the known phase I metabolites of simvastatin and lovastatin, none are commercially available, and chemical means for the synthesis of a very few of them have been previously reported. Here, we report that electrochemical oxidation of less than 1 mg each of simvastatin and lovastatin led to the generation of three oxidative metabolites of each parent to allow complete nuclear magnetic resonance characterization of all six metabolites. The yields obtained by the electrochemical approach were also compared with incubation of parent drug with commercially available bacterial mutant CYP102A1 enzymes, and it was found that the electrochemical approach gave higher yields than the enzymatic oxidations for the generation of most of the observed oxidative metabolites in this study. Figure Generation of statin drug metabolites by EC/MS (representative mass voltammogram shown), and recombinant CYP enzymes

Description: The binding of a natural anthocyanin to influenza neuraminidase has been studied employing mass spectrometry and molecular docking. Derived from a black elderberry extract, cyanidin-3-sambubiocide has been found to be a potent inhibitor of sialidase activity. This study reveals the molecular basis for its activity for the first time. The anthocyanin is shown by parallel experimental and computational approaches to bind in the so-called 430-cavity in the vicinity of neuraminidase residues 356–364 and 395–432. Since this antiviral compound binds remote from Asp 151 and Glu 119, two residues known to regulate neuraminidase resistance, it provides the potential for the development of a new class of antivirals against the influenza virus without this susceptibility.

Description: Endothelial cell therapy has been implicated to enhance tissue regeneration and vascularization in ischemic kidney. However, no published study has yet examined direct effects of endothelial cell treatment in kidney recovery. This study investigated the therapeutic efficacy of endothelial cells in a mouse model with acute kidney injury (AKI). Thus, human embryonic stem cells-derived endothelial cells (hESC-ECs) labeled with a reporter system encoding a double fusion reporter gene for firefly luciferase (Fluc) and green fluorescent protein (GFP) were characterized by Fluc imaging and immunofluoresence staining. Cultured hESC-ECs (1×10 6 ) were injected into ischemic kidney shortly after AKI. Survival of the transplanted hESC-ECs was monitored in vivo from day 1 to 14 after endothelial cell transplantation and potential impact of hESC-EC treatment on renal regeneration was assessed by histological analyses. We report that a substantial level of bioluminescence activity was detected 24 h after hESC-EC injection followed by a gradual decline from 1 to 14 d. Human ESC-ECs markedly accelerated kidney cell proliferation in response to ischaemia-induced damage, indicated by an elevated number of BrdU + cells. Co-expression of Sca-1, a kidney stem cell proliferation marker, and BrdU further suggested that the observed stimulation in renal cell regeneration was, at least in part, due to increased proliferation of renal resident stem cells especially within the medullary cords and arteriole. Differentiation of hESC-ECs to smooth muscle cells was also observed at an early stage of kidney recovery. In summary, our results suggest that endothelial cell therapy facilitates kidney recovery by promoting vascularization, trans-differentiation and endogenous renal stem cell proliferation in AKI.

Description: A monodisperse molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) for curcumin was first prepared by precipitation polymerization using methacrylamide (MAM) and 4-vinylpyridine as functional co-monomers, divinylbenzene as a crosslinker, and a mixture of acetonitrile and toluene as a porogen. The use of MAM as the co-monomer resulted in the formation of a monodisperse MIP and non-imprinted polymer (NIP). MIP and NIP, respectively, were monodispersed with a narrow particle size distribution (3.3 ± 0.09 and 3.5 ± 0.10 μm). In addition to shape recognition, hydrophobic and hydrogen-bonding interactions affected the retention and molecular-recognition of curcumin on the MIP. The MIP for curcumin could extract curcuminoids (curcumin, demethoxycurcumin, and bisdemethoxycurcumin) in Curcuma longa L . Figure MIPs prepared with 4-VPY ( left hand ) and 4-VPY and MAM ( right hand ) as the functional monomers were polydispersed and monodispersed, respectively

Description: For about three decades, DNA-based nanotechnology has been undergoing development as an assembly method for nanostructured materials. The DNA origami method pioneered by Rothemund paved the way for the formation of 3D structures using DNA self assembly. The origami approach uses a long scaffold strand as the input for the self assembly of a few hundred staple strands into desired shapes. Herein, we present a 3D origami “roller” (75 nm in length) designed using caDNAno software. This has the potential to be used as a template to assemble nanoparticles into different pre-defined shapes. The “roller” was characterized with agarose gel electrophoresis, atomic force microscopy (AFM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM).

Description: The newly emerged adult females of Schistocerca gregaria were separated and kept in the rearing conditions without males to examine the detailed developmental characteristic of the no mating females and carefully observed the developmental progress of non-fertilised eggs laid by virgin females. The results showed that the females kept without males survived in average 43 d, i.e. 58% of the life span of mated controls, and laid correspondingly fewer egg pods. The size of egg batches, the weight of eggs, and their content of ecdysteroids were normal but the hatch rate was reduced to 18.27%. Blocks of early embryogenesis (58.43%) and hatching failures (23.29%) were the major causes of death. Moreover, most of the hatched insects died during the postembryonic development and only a few females reached the adult stage. All insects that developed until the penultimate or last larval instar or reached the adult stage were females.

Description: In this article, we present a deletion algorithm in the duality computer that deletes a marked state from an even superposition of all basis-states with certainty. This duality computer deletion algorithm requires a single query, and this achieves exponential speedup over classical algorithm. Using a duality mode and recycling quantum computing, we provide a realization of this duality computer deletion algorithm in quantum computer.