We report that the optical polarization in the afterglow of GRB 091208B is measured at t = 149-706 s after the burst trigger, and the polarization degree is P = 10.4% + or - 2.5%. The optical light ...curve at this time shows a power-law decay with index -0.75 + or - 0.02, which is interpreted as the forward shock synchrotron emission, and thus this is the first detection of the early-time optical polarization in the forward shock (rather than that in the reverse shock reported by Steele et al.). This detection disfavors the afterglow model in which the magnetic fields in the emission region are random on the plasma skin depth scales, such as those amplified by the plasma instabilities, e.g., Weibel instability. We suggest that the fields are amplified by the magnetohydrodynamic instabilities, which would be tested by future observations of the temporal changes of the polarization degrees and angles for other bursts.
We present early phase observations in optical and near-infrared wavelengths for the extremely luminous Type Ia supernova (SN Ia) 2009dc. The decline rate of the light curve is DELTAm{sub 15}(B) = ...0.65 +- 0.03, which is one of the slowest among SNe Ia. The peak V-band absolute magnitude is estimated to be M{sub V} = -19.90 +- 0.15 mag if no host extinction is assumed. It reaches M{sub V} = -20.19 +- 0.19 mag if we assume the host extinction of A{sub V} = 0.29 mag. SN 2009dc belongs to the most luminous class of SNe Ia, like SNe 2003fg and 2006gz. Our JHK{sub s} -band photometry shows that this SN is also one of the most luminous SNe Ia in near-infrared wavelengths. We estimate the ejected {sup 56}Ni mass of 1.2 +- 0.3 M{sub sun} for the no host extinction case (and of 1.6 +- 0.4 M{sub sun} for the host extinction of A{sub V} = 0.29 mag). The C II lambda6580 absorption line remains visible until a week after the maximum brightness, in contrast to its early disappearance in SN 2006gz. The line velocity of Si II lambda6355 is about 8000 km s{sup -1} around the maximum, being considerably slower than that of SN 2006gz. The velocity of the C II line is similar to or slightly less than that of the Si II line around the maximum. The presence of the carbon line suggests that the thick unburned C+O layer remains after the explosion. Spectropolarimetric observations by Tanaka et al. indicate that the explosion is nearly spherical. These observational facts suggest that SN 2009dc is a super-Chandrasekhar mass SN Ia.
Depression is common in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Clinicoanatomic studies in focal brain injuries and functional imaging studies both in primary depression and in depression secondary to neurologic ...diseases have demonstrated involvement of the frontal lobe. Frontal involvement has not been established in the depression of AD. We studied the correlation between focal brain metabolic abnormalities and depression in AD. In 53 patients with probable AD of minimal to moderate disability, we assessed the severity of depression using the Neuropsychiatric Inventory and correlated the depression score with regional cerebral glucose metabolism determined by 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose and PET. Depression was present in 19 patients (36%). The depression score correlated significantly with normalized glucose metabolic rates in the bilateral superior frontal and left anterior cingulate cortices. These results indicated an association between depression and decreased activity in the frontal lobe in AD and support frontal involvement, especially in the left side, in depression, irrespective of disease etiology.
ABSTRACT
In 2008, AGILE and Fermi detected gamma-ray flaring activity from the unidentified EGRET source 3EG J1236+0457, recently associated with a flat spectrum radio quasar (GB6 J1239+0443) at z = ...1.762. The optical counterpart of the gamma-ray source underwent a flux enhancement of a factor of 15-30 in six years, and of ∼10 in six months. We interpret this flare-up in terms of a transition from an accretion-disc-dominated emission to a synchrotron-jet-dominated one. We analysed a Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) archival optical spectrum taken during a period of low radio and optical activity of the source. We estimated the mass of the central black hole using the width of the C iv emission line. In our work, we have also investigated SDSS archival optical photometric data and ultraviolet GALEX observations to estimate the thermal disc emission contribution of GB6 J1239+0443. Our analysis of the gamma-ray data taken during the flaring episodes indicates a flat gamma-ray spectrum, with an extension of up to 15 GeV, with no statistically relevant sign of absorption from the broad-line region, suggesting that the blazar zone is located beyond the broad-line region. This result is confirmed by the modelling of the broad-band spectral energy distribution (well constrained by the available multiwavelength data) of the flaring activity periods and by the accretion disc luminosity and black hole mass estimated by us using archival data.
OBJECTIVES Many clinical and biological factors have been reported to be associated with the presence of psychosis in patients with Alzheimer’s disease, although the associations were variable. The ...aim of this study was to clarify factors associated with the presence of psychosis in patients with Alzheimer’s disease. METHODS Psychiatric functioning was studied in 228 patients with Alzheimer’s disease based on the results of the behavioural pathology in Alzheimer’s disease rating scale or the neuropsychiatric inventory. The effects of sex, education level, age, duration of illness, cognitive function, and apolipoprotein E genotype were investigated for dichotomous psychotic status with a multiple logistic regression analysis. RESULTS Of the 228 patients with Alzheimer’s disease, 118 (51.8%) showed evidence of delusions or hallucinations. Of these, 94 had delusions only, three had hallucinations only, and 21 had both. Older age, female sex, longer duration of illness, and more severe cognitive impairment were the factors independently associated with the presence of psychosis. The presence of psychosis was not significantly related to either educational level or apolipoprotein E genotype. CONCLUSIONS Age, sex, and severity of illness were independent factors associated with the presence of psychosis in patients with Alzheimer’s disease. The reason why some patients with Alzheimer’s disease develop psychosis remains unclear. There may be distinctive subtypes of Alzheimer’s disease or the presence of individual factors which affect the development of psychosis.
It is widely accepted that strong and variable radiation detected over all accessible energy bands in a number of active galaxies arises from a relativistic, Doppler-boosted jet pointing close to our ...line of sight. The size of the emitting zone and the location of this region relative to the central supermassive black hole are, however, poorly known, with estimates ranging from light-hours to a light-year or more. Here we report the coincidence of a gamma (gamma)-ray flare with a dramatic change of optical polarization angle. This provides evidence for co-spatiality of optical and gamma-ray emission regions and indicates a highly ordered jet magnetic field. The results also require a non-axisymmetric structure of the emission zone, implying a curved trajectory for the emitting material within the jet, with the dissipation region located at a considerable distance from the black hole, at about 10(5) gravitational radii.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IJS, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
We report a 36-year-old man with MELAS in whom a 5-month course of high-dose oral idebenone, a derivative of coenzyme Q10, increased markedly cerebral metabolic ratio of oxygen and oxygen extraction ...fraction without increased cerebral blood flow with PET. The results indicate that idebenone improves mitochondrial oxidative metabolism in the brain and suggest a therapeutic potential of idebenone for MELAS.
Auditory hallucinations (AH), the perception of sounds and voices in the absence of external stimuli, remain a serious problem for a large subgroup of patients with schizophrenia. Functional imaging ...of brain activity associated with AH is difficult, since the target event is involuntary and its timing cannot be predicted. Prior efforts to image the patterns of cortical activity during AH have yielded conflicting results. In this study, MEG was used to directly image the brain electrophysiological events associated with AH in schizophrenia. We observed an increase in theta rhythm, as sporadic bursts, in the left superior temporal area during the AH states, whereas there was steady theta band activity in the resting state. The present finding suggests strong association of the left superior temporal cortex with the experience of AH in this patient. This is consistent with the hypothesis that AH arises from areas of auditory cortex subserving receptive language processing.
OBJECTIVES Three patients with callosal syndrome manifested a peculiar symptom in that they were unable to perform intended whole body actions because another intention emerged in competition with ...the original one. Attempts were made to clarify the symptomatology of this manifestation and its possible mechanism is discussed. METHODS The three patients are described and previous reports on patients with callosal damage were reviewed. Four additional patients with similar symptoms were found and the clinical features common to all seven patients were examined. RESULTS This symptom could not be attributed to unilateral movement disorders such as unilateral apraxia, intermanual conflict, or compulsive manipulation of tools. The manifestations included marked hesitation in initiating actions, interruption of actions, repetitive actions, and performance of unintended actions with difficulty in correcting them. All patients, except one, had a lesion in the posterior half of the body of the corpus callosum, and there was no significant involvement of the cerebral cortex. The symptom became manifest later than 4 weeks after callosal damage. It occurred during spontaneous actions, but not during well automated actions nor when following instructions. CONCLUSION This symptom, tentatively named “conflict of intentions”, can be regarded as a fragment of diagonistic dyspraxia originally described by Akelaitis, although it can occur independently of intermanual conflict. Normally, the right and left cerebral hemispheres may be complementarily modifying automated whole body actions in order to adapt behaviour to changes of the environment as well as to the intention. Partial callosal disconnection without significant cortical involvement would exaggerate the disparity between the role of each hemisphere through the reorganisation of neural systems after callosal damage. Such double, often contrary, behavioural tendencies may sometimes simultaneously enter the patient's awareness.
Emotional memory is a special category of memory for events arousing strong emotions. To investigate the effects of emotional involvement on memory retention in individuals with Alzheimer's disease ...we studied peoples' memories of distressing experiences during a devastating earthquake.
Fifty-one subjects with probable Alzheimer's disease who experienced the Kobe earthquake at home in the greater Kobe area were studied. Memories of the earthquake were assessed 6 and 10 weeks after the disaster in semi-structured interviews, and were compared with memories of a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examination given after the earthquake.
Forty-four (86.3%) of the subjects remembered the earthquake and 16 (31.4%) of subjects remembered the MRI experience. Factual content of the earthquake was lost in most of the subjects.
Fear reinforces memory retention of an episode in subjects with Alzheimer's disease but does not enhance retention of its context, despite repeated exposure to the information.
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