The description of the dynamics of an electron in an external electromagnetic field of arbitrary intensity is one of the most fundamental outstanding problems in electrodynamics. Remarkably, to date, ...there is no unanimously accepted theoretical solution for ultrahigh intensities and little or no experimental data. The basic challenge is the inclusion of the self-interaction of the electron with the field emitted by the electron itself—the so-called radiation reaction force. We report here on the experimental evidence of strong radiation reaction, in an all-optical experiment, during the propagation of highly relativistic electrons (maximum energy exceeding 2 GeV) through the field of an ultraintense laser (peak intensity of4×1020W/cm2). In their own rest frame, the highest-energy electrons experience an electric field as high as one quarter of the critical field of quantum electrodynamics and are seen to lose up to 30% of their kinetic energy during the propagation through the laser field. The experimental data show signatures of quantum effects in the electron dynamics in the external laser field, potentially showing departures from the constant cross field approximation.
Single-shot absorption measurements have been performed using the multi-keV x rays generated by a laser-wakefield accelerator. A 200 TW laser was used to drive a laser-wakefield accelerator in a mode ...which produced broadband electron beams with a maximum energy above 1 GeV and a broad divergence of ≈15 mrad FWHM. Betatron oscillations of these electrons generated 1.2±0.2×10^{6} photons/eV in the 5 keV region, with a signal-to-noise ratio of approximately 300∶1. This was sufficient to allow high-resolution x-ray absorption near-edge structure measurements at the K edge of a titanium sample in a single shot. We demonstrate that this source is capable of single-shot, simultaneous measurements of both the electron and ion distributions in matter heated to eV temperatures by comparison with density functional theory simulations. The unique combination of a high-flux, large bandwidth, few femtosecond duration x-ray pulse synchronized to a high-power laser will enable key advances in the study of ultrafast energetic processes such as electron-ion equilibration.
This paper reports the results of a study to determine the effects of supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) on the chloride binding of portland cement pastes. The results show that SCMs with ...significant quantities of alumina increase the binding capacity of cement paste. Pastes with metakaolin (45% Al
2O
3) showed the greatest chloride binding capacity and pastes with silica fume (<
0.5% Al
2O
3) showed the least binding. The chemical binding in solutions of high chloride concentration is mainly attributed to the formation of Friedel's salt, C
3A·CaCl
2·10H
2O. When pastes originally exposed to high chloride concentrations are subsequently exposed to chloride-free solution, a portion of the bound chloride is released, but a significant portion remains irreversibly bound. There is some evidence that Friedel's salt may partially convert to Kuzel's salt, C
3A·(0.5CaCl
2)(0.5CaSO
4)·12H
2O, under these conditions. The binding relationships were best described by the Freundlich isotherm and binding coefficients are given for all the binders tested.
The dynamics of energetic particles in strong electromagnetic fields can be heavily influenced by the energy loss arising from the emission of radiation during acceleration, known as radiation ...reaction. When interacting with a high-energy electron beam, today’s lasers are sufficiently intense to explore the transition between the classical and quantum radiation reaction regimes. We present evidence of radiation reaction in the collision of an ultrarelativistic electron beam generated by laser-wakefield acceleration (ϵ>500MeV) with an intense laser pulse (a0>10). We measure an energy loss in the postcollision electron spectrum that is correlated with the detected signal of hard photons (γrays), consistent with a quantum description of radiation reaction. The generatedγrays have the highest energies yet reported from an all-optical inverse Compton scattering scheme, with critical energyϵcrit>30MeV.
B cells are important in the pathogenesis of many, and perhaps all, immune-mediated diseases. Each B cell expresses a single B cell receptor (BCR)
, and the diverse range of BCRs expressed by the ...total B cell population of an individual is termed the 'BCR repertoire'. Our understanding of the BCR repertoire in the context of immune-mediated diseases is incomplete, and defining this could provide new insights into pathogenesis and therapy. Here, we compared the BCR repertoire in systemic lupus erythematosus, anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis, Crohn's disease, Behçet's disease, eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis, and immunoglobulin A (IgA) vasculitis by analysing BCR clonality, use of immunoglobulin heavy-chain variable region (IGHV) genes and-in particular-isotype use. An increase in clonality in systemic lupus erythematosus and Crohn's disease that was dominated by the IgA isotype, together with skewed use of the IGHV genes in these and other diseases, suggested a microbial contribution to pathogenesis. Different immunosuppressive treatments had specific and distinct effects on the repertoire; B cells that persisted after treatment with rituximab were predominately isotype-switched and clonally expanded, whereas the inverse was true for B cells that persisted after treatment with mycophenolate mofetil. Our comparative analysis of the BCR repertoire in immune-mediated disease reveals a complex B cell architecture, providing a platform for understanding pathological mechanisms and designing treatment strategies.
The purpose of this study is to assess the prevalence of diabetic retinopathy (DR) world-wide from articles published since 2015 where the assessment of the presence and severity of DR was based on ...retinal images.
A total of 4 databases were searched for the MESH terms diabetic retinopathy and prevalence. Of 112 publications 32 studies were included and individual data pooled for analysis. The presence of any DR or diabetic macular edema (DME) was recorded and severity as mild, moderate or severe non-proliferative DR (NPDR), proliferative DR (PDR) and DME and/or clinically significant macular edema (CSME). The level of severity of DR reported refer to persons with diabetes and not individual eyes.
The global prevalence of DR and DME, for the period 2015 to 2019 were 27.0% for any DR comprising of 25.2%, NPDR, 1.4% PDR and 4.6% DME. The lowest prevalence was in Europe at 20.6% and South East Asia at 12.5% and highest in Africa at 33.8%, Middle East and North Africa 33.8%, and the Western Pacific region at 36.2%.
This study illustrated difficulties in deriving a meaningful global prevalence rate for DR and DME due to the lack of uniformity in defining the study populations, methodological differences, retinal image capture and grading criteria. Therefore, international consensus is required using a minimal data set for future studies.
Objective
To validate a revision of the Mini Nutritional Assessment short-form (MNA®-SF) against the full MNA, a standard tool for nutritional evaluation.
Methods
A literature search identified ...studies that used the MNA for nutritional screening in geriatric patients. The contacted authors submitted original datasets that were merged into a single database. Various combinations of the questions on the current MNA-SF were tested using this database through combination analysis and ROC based derivation of classification thresholds.
Results
Twenty-seven datasets (n=6257 participants) were initially processed from which twelve were used in the current analysis on a sample of 2032 study participants (mean age 82.3y) with complete information on all MNA items. The original MNA-SF was a combination of six questions from the full MNA. A revised MNA-SF included calf circumference (CC) substituted for BMI performed equally well. A revised three-category scoring classification for this revised MNA-SF, using BMI and/or CC, had good sensitivity compared to the full MNA.
Conclusion
The newly revised MNA-SF is a valid nutritional screening tool applicable to geriatric health care professionals with the option of using CC when BMI cannot be calculated. This revised MNA-SF increases the applicability of this rapid screening tool in clinical practice through the inclusion of a “malnourished” category.
Injectable biomimetic hydrogels have great potential for use in regenerative medicine as cellular delivery vectors. However, they can suffer from issues relating to hypoxia, including poor cell ...survival, differentiation, and functional integration owing to the lack of an established vascular network. Here we engineer a hybrid myoglobin:peptide hydrogel that can concomitantly deliver stem cells and oxygen to the brain to support engraftment until vascularisation can occur naturally. We show that this hybrid hydrogel can modulate cell fate specification within progenitor cell grafts, resulting in a significant increase in neuronal differentiation. We find that the addition of myoglobin to the hydrogel results in more extensive innervation within the host tissue from the grafted cells, which is essential for neuronal replacement strategies to ensure functional synaptic connectivity. This approach could result in greater functional integration of stem cell-derived grafts for the treatment of neural injuries and diseases affecting the central and peripheral nervous systems.
The past 30 years have seen several paradigm shifts in our understanding of how ocean ecosystems function. Now recent technological advances add to an overwhelming body of evidence for another ...paradigm shift in terms of the role of gelatinous plankton (jellyfish) in marine food webs. Traditionally viewed as trophic dead ends, stable isotope analysis of predator tissues, animal-borne cameras, and DNA analysis of fecal and gut samples (metabarcoding) are all indicating that many taxa routinely consume jellyfish. Despite their low energy density, the contribution of jellyfish to the energy budgets of predators may be much greater than assumed because of rapid digestion, low capture costs, availability, and selective feeding on the more energy-rich components. Feeding on jellyfish may make marine predators susceptible to ingestion of plastics.
Jellyfish are ubiquitous in the world’s oceans, can occur in very high densities and are increasing in abundance in some areas. Yet they have long been considered trophic dead ends that are ignored by most predators because of their low nutritional content.
New approaches are being used to examine the diet of marine predators including stable isotope analysis of predator tissues, animal-borne cameras, and DNA analysis of fecal and gut samples (metabarcoding). These new approaches have revealed that around the world’s oceans jellyfish are frequently consumed by a diverse range of marine predators including fish, birds, turtles, and various invertebrates including octopus, sea cucumbers, crabs, and amphipods.
Taken together, there is now overwhelming evidence that jellyfish are integral components of marine food webs and warrant attention for reasons far exceeding their impacts on human enterprise. Armed with an array of cutting-edge techniques we now have the capacity to drive such investigations forward like never before.
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