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bstract
In view of the current status of measured Higgs boson properties, we consider a question whether only the Higgs self-interactions can deviate significantly from the Standard-Model (SM) ...predictions. This may be possible if the Higgs effective potential is irregular at the origin. As an example we investigate an extended Higgs sector with singlet scalar(s) and classical scale invariance. We develop a perturbative formulation necessary to analyze this model in detail. The behavior of a phenomenologically valid potential in the perturbative regime is studied around the electroweak scale. We reproduce known results: the Higgs self-interactions are substantially stronger than the SM predictions, while the Higgs interactions with other SM particles are barely changed. We further predict that the interactions of singlet scalar(s), which is a few to several times heavier than the Higgs boson, tend to be fairly strong. If probed, these features will provide vivid clues to the structure of the vacuum. We also examine Veltman’s condition for the Higgs boson mass.
Abstract
Observation of dynamic processes by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) is an attractive technique to experimentally analyze materials’ nanoscale phenomena and understand the ...microstructure-properties relationships in nanoscale. Even if spatial and temporal resolutions of real-time TEM increase significantly, it is still difficult to say that the researchers quantitatively evaluate the dynamic behavior of defects. Images in TEM video are a two-dimensional projection of three-dimensional space phenomena, thus missing information must be existed that makes image’s uniquely accurate interpretation challenging. Therefore, even though they are still a clustering high-dimensional data and can be compressed to two-dimensional, conventional statistical methods for analyzing images may not be powerful enough to track nanoscale behavior by removing various artifacts associated with experiment; and automated and unbiased processing tools for such big-data are becoming mission-critical to discover knowledge about unforeseen behavior. We have developed a method to quantitative image analysis framework to resolve these problems, in which machine learning and particle filter estimation are uniquely combined. The quantitative and automated measurement of the dislocation velocity in an Fe-31Mn-3Al-3Si autunitic steel subjected to the tensile deformation was performed to validate the framework, and an intermittent motion of the dislocations was quantitatively analyzed. The framework is successfully classifying, identifying and tracking nanoscale objects; these are not able to be accurately implemented by the conventional mean-path based analysis.
The study of the pearl oyster Pinctada fucata is key to increasing our understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in pearl biosynthesis and biology of bivalve molluscs. We sequenced ∼1150-Mb ...genome at ∼40-fold coverage using the Roche 454 GS-FLX and Illumina GAIIx sequencers. The sequences were assembled into contigs with N50 = 1.6 kb (total contig assembly reached to 1024 Mb) and scaffolds with N50 = 14.5 kb. The pearl oyster genome is AT-rich, with a GC content of 34%. DNA transposons, retrotransposons, and tandem repeat elements occupied 0.4, 1.5, and 7.9% of the genome, respectively (a total of 9.8%). Version 1.0 of the P. fucata draft genome contains 23 257 complete gene models, 70% of which are supported by the corresponding expressed sequence tags. The genes include those reported to have an association with bio-mineralization. Genes encoding transcription factors and signal transduction molecules are present in numbers comparable with genomes of other metazoans. Genome-wide molecular phylogeny suggests that the lophotrochozoan represents a distinct clade from ecdysozoans. Our draft genome of the pearl oyster thus provides a platform for the identification of selection markers and genes for calcification, knowledge of which will be important in the pearl industry.
The epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a crucial morphological event that occurs during the progression of epithelial tumors. EMT can be induced by transforming growth factor β (TGF-β) in ...certain kinds of cancer cells through the induction of Snail, a key regulator of EMT. We have previously found that TGF-β remarkably induces Snail expression in cooperation with Ras signals; however, the underlying mechanism of this synergism has not yet been determined. Here, we demonstrate that signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) acts as a mediator that synergizes TGF-β and Ras signals. The overexpression of STAT3 enhanced Snail induction, whereas siRNA-mediated knockdown of STAT3 inhibited it. The STAT3-YF mutant, which has Tyr 705 substituted with Phe, did not enhance Snail induction. Several STAT3 mutants lacking transcriptional activity also failed to enhance it; however, the putative STAT3-binding elements in the Snail promoter regions were not required for STAT3-mediated Snail induction. Protein inhibitor of activated STAT3 (PIAS3) inhibited the enhanced Snail promoter activity induced by TGF-β and Ras. The interaction between PIAS3 and STAT3 was reduced by TGF-β in cells harboring oncogenic Ras, whereas TGF-β promoted the binding of PIAS3 to Smad3, a crucial mediator of TGF-β signaling. Therefore, these findings suggest that STAT3 enhances Snail induction when it is dissociated from PIAS3 by TGF-β in cooperation with Ras signals.
Plasma-assisted polishing (PAP), which combines plasma modification and soft abrasive polishing, was used to flatten GaN. After the irradiation of CF4 plasma, GaN was modified to GaF3, greatly ...decreasing its surface hardness. The modified layer was removed by polishing using a CeO2 grindstone for surface flattening. It was revealed that while many pits were generated in conventional CMP using SiO2 or CeO2 slurry, which deteriorated the surface integrity and roughness of GaN, a pit-free and atomically flat GaN surface with a Sq roughness of 0.1nm order was obtained by the application of PAP, which is a dry polishing process.
IntroductionAdolescence is the period when many mental disorders have their peaks of onsets. Investigation into adolescent mental health problems and their risk factors is required, but there has ...been few prospective cohort studies on adolescent mental health.ObjectivesThis study aimed to prospectively reveal the developmental trajectory of physical and mental health in adolescence, and to investigate factors associated with the trajectory.MethodsWe launched a prospective cohort study (Tokyo Teen Cohort: TTC) on general population of adolescents at three municipalities in metropolitan area in Tokyo, Japan. Using the resident register, we recruited 10-year-old children from the community between 2012 and 2015. The second, third, and fourth wave of data collection were conducted at 12, 14, 16 years of age, respectively. We collected multidisciplinary data including mental health by self-report questionnaire and home-visit interview. Further, we have launched two subsample studies which focus on biological measures such as brain MRI, EEG, and sex hormones. TTC is based at three research institutes, and ethics approval has been granted by all of the three institutions.ResultsA total of 3171 children participated the TTC. Of those, 3007 children participated in the second wave of data collection (follow-up rate: 94.8). The third and fourth wave of data collection were completed and more than 80% of children continued to participate in TTC. More than 300 children participated in the two subsample studies. More than 30 papers were already published, and many national/international research collaborations have started.ConclusionsThe fifth wave of data collection at 20 years of age is being currently conducted. Further national/international collaborations are expected to examine cultural effects on mental health of adolescents.Disclosure of InterestNone Declared
The efficacy of thiopurines, including azathioprine (AZA) and 6-mercaptopurine (6MP), has been demonstrated for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The most common and serious adverse ...event of treatment with thiopurines altered by doctors is leukopenia. Hair loss is also a serious event that could be a critical reason for patients to decline thiopurine treatment. Thiopurine-induced severe hair loss causes cosmetic problems, and it takes a long time to recover. In a recent study, NUDT15 R139C was strongly associated with thiopurine-induced leukopenia in Korean and Caucasian populations. In this study, we performed an association study to investigate and replicate the association of R139C with adverse events of thiopurines in Japanese patients. A total of 142 Japanese patients with IBD, with histories of thiopurine treatment, were examined. NUDT15 R139C was genotyped using a custom TaqMan genotyping assay. Adverse events including leukopenia were reviewed from medical records. The 6MP dose was adjusted to AZA equivalents by multiplying with 2 as a thiopurine dose. Five patients developed severe hair loss and all of them were risk homozygous (T/T) for R139C. No early severe hair loss was observed in patients with the C/T or C/C genotype (P=3.82 × 10(-16), odds ratio=212). The association of R139C with early (<8 weeks) leukopenia (white blood cells<3000 mm(-3)), which was previously reported in Korean patients, was replicated in our Japanese IBD cohort (P=1.92 × 10(-16), odds ratio=28.4). However, we could not confirm the association with late leukopenia in the Japanese subjects. Patients with the C/T genotype discontinued treatment or required thiopurine dose reduction significantly earlier than patients with the C/C genotype (P=1.45 × 10(-4)); however, on manipulating the doses, there was no significant difference in the thiopurine continuation rates between the groups. In the maintenance period, the frequencies of 6MP usage were higher, and the doses of thiopurines were significantly lower in patients with the C/T genotype than in those with the C/C genotype (0.574±0.316 mg kg(-1) per day vs 1.03±0.425 mg kg(-1) per day, P=6.21 × 10(-4)). NUDT R139C was significantly associated with early severe hair loss in Japanese patients with IBD. We also verified the previously reported association of R139C with early leukopenia in a different East Asian population. It is recommended that treatment with thiopurines should be avoided for patients with the T/T genotype. Low-dose 6MP (0.2-0.3 mg kg(-1) per day) could be used rather than AZA for the patients with C/T genotype to continue thiopurine treatments. However, late leukopenia and other several adverse events could not be completely predicted by R139C genotypes.
Little is known about how fishes and other non-calcifying marine organisms will respond to the increased levels of dissolved CO2 and reduced sea water pH that are predicted to occur over the coming ...century. We reared eggs and larvae of the orange clownfish, Amphiprion percula, in sea water simulating a range of ocean acidification scenarios for the next 50-100 years (current day, 550, 750 and 1030 ppm atmospheric CO2). CO2 acidification had no detectable effect on embryonic duration, egg survival and size at hatching. In contrast, CO2 acidification tended to increase the growth rate of larvae. By the time of settlement (11 days post-hatching), larvae from some parental pairs were 15 to 18 per cent longer and 47 to 52 per cent heavier in acidified water compared with controls. Larvae from other parents were unaffected by CO2 acidification. Elevated CO2 and reduced pH had no effect on the maximum swimming speed of settlement-stage larvae. There was, however, a weak positive relationship between length and swimming speed. Large size is usually considered to be advantageous for larvae and newly settled juveniles. Consequently, these results suggest that levels of ocean acidification likely to be experienced in the near future might not, in isolation, significantly disadvantage the growth and performance of larvae from benthic-spawning marine fishes.
Single-crystal diamond (SCD) is considered to be an ideal material for next-generation power devices. Plasma-assisted polishing (PAP) without using an abrasive was applied to polish SCD fabricated by ...chemical vapor deposition. Argon-based plasma containing water vapour was used in the PAP to modify the surface of polishing plate and SCD (100), and SCD was polished under a polishing pressure ranging from 10 to 52.6kPa. Raman spectroscopy measurement showed that there was no residual stress on the polished SCD surface, and a polishing rate of 2.1μm/h and a surface roughness of 0.13nm Sq were obtained.
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