Elastic electron-proton scattering (e-p) and the spectroscopy of hydrogen atoms are the two methods traditionally used to determine the proton charge radius, r
. In 2010, a new method using muonic ...hydrogen atoms
found a substantial discrepancy compared with previous results
, which became known as the 'proton radius puzzle'. Despite experimental and theoretical efforts, the puzzle remains unresolved. In fact, there is a discrepancy between the two most recent spectroscopic measurements conducted on ordinary hydrogen
. Here we report on the proton charge radius experiment at Jefferson Laboratory (PRad), a high-precision e-p experiment that was established after the discrepancy was identified. We used a magnetic-spectrometer-free method along with a windowless hydrogen gas target, which overcame several limitations of previous e-p experiments and enabled measurements at very small forward-scattering angles. Our result, r
= 0.831 ± 0.007
± 0.012
femtometres, is smaller than the most recent high-precision e-p measurement
and 2.7 standard deviations smaller than the average of all e-p experimental results
. The smaller r
we have now measured supports the value found by two previous muonic hydrogen experiments
. In addition, our finding agrees with the revised value (announced in 2019) for the Rydberg constant
-one of the most accurately evaluated fundamental constants in physics.
Three types of estrogen receptors (ER) exist in the heart, Esr1, Esr2 and the G protein-coupled estrogen receptor 1, Gper1. However, their relative importance in mediating estrogen protective action ...is unknown. We found that, in the male mouse ventricle, Gper1 transcripts are three- and seventeen-fold more abundant than Esr1 and Esr2 mRNAs, respectively. Analysis of the three ER knockouts (Esr1-/-, Esr2-/- and Gper1-/-) showed that only the Gper1-/- hearts lost their ability to be protected by 40 nM estrogen as measured by heart function, infarct size and mitochondrial Ca2+ overload, an index of mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP) activity. Analysis of Akt, ERK1/2 and GSK-3β salvage kinases uncovered Akt and ERK1/2 transient activation by estrogen whose phosphorylation increased during the first 5 min of non-ischemic perfusion. All these increase in phosphorylation effects were abrogated in Gper1-/-. Inhibition of MEK1/2/ERK1/2 (1 μM U0126) and PI-3K/Akt (10 μM LY294002) signaling showed that the MEK1/2/ERK1/2 pathway via GSK-3β exclusively was responsible for cardioprotection as an addition of U0126 prevented estrogen-induced GSK-3β increased phosphorylation, resistance to mitochondrial Ca2+-overload, functional recovery and protection against infarction. Further, inhibiting PKC translocation (1 μM chelerythrin-chloride) abolished estrogen-induced cardioprotection. These data indicate that estrogen-Gper1 acute coupling plays a key role in cardioprotection against ischemia/reperfusion injury in male mouse via a cascade involving PKC translocation, ERK1/2/GSK-3β phosphorylation leading to the inhibition of the mPTP opening.
We report the first observation of the parity-violating gamma-ray asymmetry A_{γ}^{np} in neutron-proton capture using polarized cold neutrons incident on a liquid parahydrogen target at the ...Spallation Neutron Source at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. A_{γ}^{np} isolates the ΔI=1, ^{3}S_{1}→^{3}P_{1} component of the weak nucleon-nucleon interaction, which is dominated by pion exchange and can be directly related to a single coupling constant in either the DDH meson exchange model or pionless effective field theory. We measured A_{γ}^{np}=-3.0±1.4(stat)±0.2(syst)×10^{-8}, which implies a DDH weak πNN coupling of h_{π}^{1}=2.6±1.2(stat)±0.2(syst)×10^{-7} and a pionless EFT constant of C^{^{3}S_{1}→^{3}P_{1}}/C_{0}=-7.4±3.5(stat)±0.5(syst)×10^{-11} MeV^{-1}. We describe the experiment, data analysis, systematic uncertainties, and implications of the result.
Radiation measurements are critical in radioanalytical, nuclear chemistry, and biomedical physics. Continuous advancement in developing economical, sensitive, and compact devices designed to detect ...and measure radiation has increased its capability in many applications. In this work, we presented and investigated the performance of a cost-effective X-ray radiation detector based on the extended gate field effect transistors (EGFET). We examined the sensitivity of Al-doped Zinc oxide (AZO) of varying thicknesses, fabricated by chemical bath deposition (CBD), following X-ray irradiation with low and high doses. EGFETs were used to connect samples for their detection capabilities. As a function of the absorbed dose, the response was analyzed based on the threshold voltage shift, and the sensitivity of each device was also evaluated. We demonstrated that thin films are less sensitive to radiation than their disk-type EG devices. However, performance aspects of the devices, such as radiation exposure sensitivity and active dosage region, were found to be significantly reliant on the composition and thickness of the materials used. These structures may be a cost-effective alternative for real-time, room-temperature radiation detectors.
Abstract Background Chronic granulomatous disease (CGD) is characterized by recurrent life-threatening bacterial and fungal infections and aberrant inflammation. Mutations in CYBB cause X-linked CGD ...and account for 65%-70% of cases in western countries. Objective To understand the clinical manifestations associated with the X-linked CGD carrier state. Methods We undertook a comprehensive retrospective study of 162 affected females. We examined dihydrorhodamine oxidation (DHR) data for percent (%) X chromosome inactivation. We correlated lyonization (%DHR+) with clinical features. Where possible, we followed %DHR+ levels over time. Results Clinical data were available for 93 females: The %DHR+ was 46% (mean) and 47% (median)(SD=24). Using %DHR+ as the criterion for X inactivation, 78% of patients had levels of inactivation 20-80%, suggesting random inactivation that was independent of age. In contrast, carriers with CGD-type infections had median %DHR+ of 8% (n=14, range 0.06-48 %); those with only autoimmune or inflammatory manifestations (AIM) had median %DHR+ of 39% (n=31, range 7.4-74%). Those with both infections and autoimmunity had low %DHR+ (n=6, range=3-14%). A %DHR+ <10 % was strongly associated with infections (OR:99). Strong association persisted when the %DHR+ was <20% (OR=12) Autoimmunity was not associated with %DHR+. In two sets of identical twins the %DHR+ populations tracked closely over time. While the %DHR+ populations were very similar between sisters, those between mothers and daughters were unrelated. Conclusions A low %DHR+ strongly predicts infection risk in X-linked CGD carriers, while the carrier state itself is associated with autoimmunity.
The aim of this research is to focus on gaining an insight into the knowledge, attitudes, behavioural practises (KAP), and psychological impact relating to COVID-19 among the people living with ...spinal cord injury receiving in-patient rehabilitation.
A prospective, cross-sectional survey of people with SCI (
= 207), who were in active in-patient rehabilitation from two tertiary SCI Rehabilitation Centres in Bangladesh. Data were collected via face-to-face interviews, after voluntary consent, using a pretested, language validated questionnaire on Knowledge, Attitude and Behavioural practises (KAP) and the Depression, Anxiety, Stress Scale (DASS-21). Ethical approval and trial registration were obtained prospectively.
A total of 207 people with SCI responded, among which 87% were men and 13% were women, with a mean age of 34.18 ± 12.9 years. Within the sample group, people living with tetraplegia comprised 33.8%, and people living with paraplegia comprised 66.2%. Overall, 63.8% of the participants were diagnosed with an SCI categorised as ASIA-A. Overall, the "knowledge score" was 8.59 ± 2.3 out of 12, "depression" was 11.18 ± 8, "anxiety" was 7.72 ± 5.1, and "stress" was 9.32 ± 6.7 from a total of 21 scores each category. The strong correlation was between knowledge, DASS scores, and age (
< 0.05). In addition, there was a strong correlation between knowledge, gender (
< 0.05) and education (
< 0.01). Binary logistic regression found a stronger association of knowledge and DASS scores with gender, young age, illiteracy (
< 0.01), and rural residence (
< 0.05). A positive relationship was found between depression and anxiety scores (
< 0.01) and a moderate positive relationship was found between depression and stress scores (
< 0.01). A positive attitude was reported by the majority of participants (
< 0.05). In terms of behavioural practises, participants reported both self and caregiver had followed health advice with regard to consulting health professionals (65.7%), implementing isolation (63.8%), taking droplet precaution care (87.4%), and hygiene care (90.3%).
Participants in this study reported high levels of knowledge, adoption of positive attitudes, and the practise of positive health advisory behaviours related to COVID-19 prevention procedures. However, high levels of depression, anxiety, and stress were also reported. Overall, women and younger participants were more likely to have high KAP, whereas those living in rural areas and with literacy challenges were less likely to report high knowledge scores.
Herein, we investigated the applicability of thick film and bulk disk forms of aluminum-doped zinc oxide (AZO) for low-dose X-ray radiation dosimetry using the extended gate field effect transistor ...(EGFET) configuration. The samples were fabricated using the chemical bath deposition (CBD) technique. A thick film of AZO was deposited on a glass substrate, while the bulk disk form was prepared by pressing the collected powders. The prepared samples were characterized via X-ray diffraction (XRD) and field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) to determine the crystallinity and surface morphology. The analyses show that the samples are crystalline and comprise nanosheets of varying sizes. The EGFET devices were exposed to different X-ray radiation doses, then characterized by measuring the I-V characteristics pre- and post-irradiation. The measurements revealed an increase in the values of drain-source currents with radiation doses. To study the detection efficiency of the device, various bias voltages were also tested for the linear and saturation regimes. Performance parameters of the devices, such as sensitivity to X-radiation exposure and different gate bias voltage, were found to depend highly on the device geometry. The bulk disk type appears to be more radiation-sensitive than the AZO thick film. Furthermore, boosting the bias voltage increased the sensitivity of both devices.
•A comprehensive theoretical study on MGe2 (M = V, Nb, and Ta) compounds using DFT calculations.•The compounds are brittle and elastically anisotropic in nature.•The estimated hardness values of MGe2 ...(M = V, Nb and Ta) are found to be 16.95, 14.96 and 19.6 GPa, respectively.•The NbGe2 and TaGe2 compound could be categorized as a type-2 superconductor.•The compounds can be used as potential coating materials in some specific sectors.
Non-centrosymmetric germanide-based superconductors have recently attracted particular attention because of their unconventional physical properties. In the present study, we comprehensively investigated the structural and hitherto unexplored electronic, optical, mechanical, thermal, and superconducting state properties of germanide-based superconductors, MGe2 (M = V, Nb, and Ta), using the density functional theory. The obtained lattice parameters and accordingly the volume of the unit cells agree very well with the earlier reported values, indicating the high reliability of the physical properties studied. All the compounds studied herein are dynamically and mechanically stable. The compounds are brittle (ranked: NbGe2 < VGe2 < TaGe2) and elastically anisotropic in nature.The estimated hardness values of MGe2 (M = V, Nb and Ta) are found to be 16.95, 14.96 and 19.6 GPa, respectively. Different optical functions (dielectric functions, reflectivity, absorption coefficient, photoconductivity, refractive index and loss function) and thermal properties (thermal conductivity, thermal expansion coefficient, Debye temperature, specific heat and melting point) are investigated.The reflectance spectra in the visible and near UV region were found to be >50% for all these compounds, demonstrating their potential for application as coating material to reduce heating from incident electromagnetic radiation. Based on the results obtained for thermal properties and comparison with benchmark system, Y4Al12O9 and some other predicted compounds, the titled compounds could also be used as thermal barrier coating materials. Some important parameters for the understanding of the superconducting behavior, such as the Coulomb pseudopotential, London penetration depth, coherence depth, Debye temperature, electron-phonon coupling constant, and Ginzburg-Landau parameter, are also estimated, and the results obtained support that the NbGe2and TaGe2 compounds should be categorized as a type-2 superconductors.
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