We present a measurement of the Hubble constant made using geometric distance measurements to megamaser-hosting galaxies. We have applied an improved approach for fitting maser data and obtained ...better distance estimates for four galaxies previously published by the Megamaser Cosmology Project: UGC 3789, NGC 6264, NGC 6323, and NGC 5765b. Combining these updated distance measurements with those for the maser galaxies CGCG 074-064 and NGC 4258, and assuming a fixed velocity uncertainty of 250 km s−1 associated with peculiar motions, we constrain the Hubble constant to be H0 = 73.9 3.0 km s−1 Mpc−1 independent of distance ladders and the cosmic microwave background. This best value relies solely on maser-based distance and velocity measurements, and it does not use any peculiar velocity corrections. Different approaches for correcting peculiar velocities do not modify H0 by more than 1 , with the full range of best-fit Hubble constant values spanning 71.8-76.9 km s−1 Mpc−1. We corroborate prior indications that the local value of H0 exceeds the early-universe value, with a confidence level varying from 95% to 99% for different treatments of the peculiar velocities.
ETHYLENE RESPONSE FACTOR1 (ERF1) is an upstream component in both jasmonate (JA) and ethylene (ET) signaling and is involved in pathogen resistance. Accumulating evidence suggests that ERF1 might be ...related to the salt stress response through ethylene signaling. However, the specific role of ERF1 in abiotic stress and the molecular mechanism underlying the signaling cross talk still need to be elucidated. Here, we report that ERF1 was highly induced by high salinity and drought stress in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). The salt stress induction required both JA and ET signaling but was inhibited by abscisic acid. ERF1-overexpressing lines (35S:ERF1) were more tolerant to drought and salt stress. They also displayed constitutively smaller stomatal aperture and less transpirational water loss. Surprisingly, 35S:ERF1 also showed enhanced heat tolerance and upregulation of heat tolerance genes compared with the wild type. Several suites of genes activated by JA, drought, salt, and heat were found in microarray analysis of 35S:ERF1. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assays found that ERF1 up-regulates specific suites of genes in response to different abiotic stresses by stress-specific binding to GCC or DRE/CRT. In response to biotic stress, ERF1 bound to GCC boxes but not DRE elements; conversely, under abiotic stress, we observed specific binding of ERF1 to DRE elements. Furthermore, ERF1 bound preferentially to only one among several GCC box or DRE/CRT elements in the promoter region of its target genes. ERF1 plays a positive role in salt, drought, and heat stress tolerance by stress-specific gene regulation, which integrates JA, ET, and abscisic acid signals.
Although the clinical features of the Isocitrate dehydrogenase 2 (IDH2) mutation in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) have been characterized, its prognostic significance remains controversial and its ...stability has not been investigated. We analyzed 446 adults with primary non-M3 AML and found IDH2 R172, R140 and IDH1 R132 mutations occurred at a frequency of 2.9, 9.2 and 6.1%, respectively. Compared with wild-type IDH2, mutation of IDH2 was associated with higher platelet counts, intermediate-risk or normal karyotype and isolated +8, but was inversely correlated with expression of HLA-DR, CD34, CD15, CD7 and CD56, and was mutually exclusive with WT1 mutation and chromosomal translocations involving core-binding factors. All these correlations became stronger when IDH1 and IDH2 mutations were considered together. Multivariate analysis revealed IDH2 mutation as an independent favorable prognostic factor. IDH2(-)/FLT3-ITD(+) genotype conferred especially negative impact on survival. Compared with IDH2 R140 mutation, IDH2 R172 mutation was associated with younger age, lower white blood cell count and lactate dehydrogenase level, and was mutually exclusive with NPM1 mutation. Serial analyses of IDH2 mutations at both diagnosis and relapse in 121 patients confirmed high stability of IDH2 mutations. In conclusion, IDH2 mutation is a stable marker during disease evolution and confers favorable prognosis.
In Papers I and II from the Megamaser Cosmology Project, we reported initial observations of H sub(2)O masers in an accretion disk of a supermassive black hole at the center of the galaxy UGC 3789, ...which gave an angular-diameter distance to the galaxy and an estimate of H sub(0) with 16% uncertainty. We have since conducted more very long baseline interferometric observations of the spatial-velocity structure of these H sub(2)O masers, as well as continued monitoring of its spectrum to better measure maser accelerations. These more extensive observations, combined with improved modeling of the masers in the accretion disk of the central supermassive black hole, confirm our previous results, but with significantly improved accuracy. We find H sub(0) = 68.9 + or - 7.1 km s super(-1) Mpc super(-1); this estimate of H sub(0) is independent of other methods and is accurate to + or -10%, including sources of systematic error. This places UGC 3789 at an angular-diameter distance of 49.6 + or -5.1 Mpc, with a central supermassive black hole of (1.16 + or - 0.12) x 10 super(7) M sub(middot in circle).
ABSTRACT As part of the Megamaser Cosmology Project, here we present a new geometric distance measurement to the megamaser galaxy NGC 5765b. Through a series of very long baseline interferometry ...observations, we have confirmed the water masers trace a thin, sub-parsec Keplerian disk around the nucleus, implying an enclosed mass of 4.55 0.40 × 107 M . Meanwhile, from single-dish monitoring of the maser spectra over two years, we measured the secular drifts of maser features near the systemic velocity of the galaxy with rates between 0.5 and 1.2 km s−1 yr−1. Fitting a warped, thin-disk model to these measurements, we determine a Hubble Constant H0 of 66.0 6.0 km s−1 Mpc−1 with an angular-diameter distance to NGC 5765b of 126.3 11.6 Mpc. Apart from the distance measurement, we also investigate some physical properties related to the maser disk in NGC 5765b. The high-velocity features are spatially distributed into several clumps, which may indicate the existence of a spiral density wave associated with the accretion disk. For the redshifted features, the envelope defined by the peak maser intensities increases with radius. The profile of the systemic masers in NGC 5765b is smooth and shows almost no structural changes over the two years of monitoring time, which differs from the more variable case of NGC 4258.
Runt-related transcription factor 1 (RUNX1) is essential for normal hematopoiesis. RUNX1 mutations have rarely been reported in chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMML). We examined RUNX1 mutations in ...81 patients with CMML at initial diagnosis. Mutational analysis was performed on bone marrow samples by direct sequencing of all reverse transcription PCR products amplified with three primer pairs that cover the entire coding sequences of RUNX1b. Thirty-two RUNX1 mutations were detected in 30 patients (37%); 23 mutants were located in the N-terminal part and 9 in the C-terminal region. The mutations consisted of 9 missense, 1 silent, 7 nonsense and 15 frameshift mutations. Two patients had biallelic heterozygous mutations. There was no difference in overall survival between patients with and without RUNX1 mutations, but a trend of higher risk of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) progression was observed in mutation-positive patients (16/30 vs 17/51, P=0.102), especially in patients with C-terminal mutations (P=0.023). The median time to AML progression was 6.8 months in patients with C-terminal mutations compared with 28.3 months in those without mutations (P=0.022). This study showed for the first time a high frequency of RUNX1 mutations in CMML. C-terminal mutations might be associated with a more frequent and rapid AML transformation.
Summary
Esophagitis is the second most common gastrointestinal manifestation of cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection after colitis. CMV esophagitis has been reported in patients who have undergone ...transplantation, are on long‐term renal dialysis, or who have the human immunodeficiency virus infection. This study aimed to investigate the clinical characteristics and manifestations of CMV esophagitis in patients who underwent diagnostic endoscopy. A total of 16 patients with histologically proven CMV infection were identified from 1539 patients with esophageal ulcers and analyzed retrospectively (January 2006 to December 2013). Patients' personal data (age, smoking, and alcohol consumption), underlying systemic diseases (diabetes mellitus, end‐stage renal disease, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), malignancy, indication for esophagogastroduodenoscopy, endoscopic characteristics, and diagnostic methods (pathological or serological findings) were collected for further analysis. Among the patients with CMV esophagitis, the mean age was 59.94 years (range, 23–84 years). The male : female ratio was 1.67:1. Odynophagia and epigastralgia were common symptoms. Of the 16 patients, 3 (18.75%) were infected with the human immunodeficiency virus and 9 (56.25%) had an underlying malignancy, including lung cancer (6 patients), esophageal cancer (2 patients), gastric cancer (1 patient), ampulla of Vater cancer (1 patient), and lymphoma (1 patient). Six of the 9 patients (66.7%) with malignancy had been administered concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT). In this study, patients with malignancy who had been administered CCRT were at increased risk for CMV esophagitis, which had not been reported before in the literature. CMV esophagitis should be considered as a potential treatment‐related complication of CCRT.
Abstract
We present the results of an Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array survey to identify 183 GHz H
2
O maser emission from active galactic nuclei (AGNs) already known to host 22 GHz ...megamaser systems. Out of 20 sources observed, we detect significant 183 GHz maser emission from 13; this survey thus increases the number of AGN known to host (sub)millimeter megamasers by a factor of 5. We find that the 183 GHz emission is systematically fainter than the 22 GHz emission from the same targets, with typical flux densities being roughly an order of magnitude lower at 183 GHz than at 22 GHz. However, the isotropic luminosities of the detected 183 GHz sources are comparable to their 22 GHz values. For two of our sources—ESO 269-G012 and the Circinus galaxy—we detect rich 183 GHz spectral structure containing multiple line complexes. The 183 GHz spectrum of ESO 269-G012 exhibits the triple-peaked structure characteristic of an edge-on AGN disk system. The Circinus galaxy contains the strongest 183 GHz emission detected in our sample, peaking at a flux density of nearly 5 Jy. The high signal-to-noise ratios achieved by these strong lines enable a coarse mapping of the 183 GHz maser system, in which the masers appear to be distributed similarly to those seen in VLBI maps of the 22 GHz system in the same galaxy and may be tracing the circumnuclear accretion disk at larger orbital radii than the 22 GHz masers. This newly identified population of AGN disk megamasers presents a motivation for developing VLBI capabilities at 183 GHz.
ABSTRACT As part of the Megamaser Cosmology Project, we present VLBI maps of nuclear water masers toward five galaxies. The masers originate in sub-parsec circumnuclear disks. For three of the ...galaxies, we fit Keplerian rotation curves to estimate their supermassive black hole (SMBH) masses, and determine (2.9 0.3) × 106 M for J0437+2456, (1.7 0.1) × 107 M for ESO 558-G009, and (1.1 0.2) × 107 M for NGC 5495. In the other two galaxies, Mrk 1029 and NGC 1320, the geometry and dynamics are more complicated and preclude robust black hole mass estimates. Including our new results, we compiled a list of 15 VLBI-confirmed disk maser galaxies with robust SMBH mass measurements. With this sample, we confirm the empirical relation of Rout ∝ 0.3MSMBH reported in Wardle & Yusef-Zadeh. We also find a tentative correlation between maser disk outer radii and Wide-Field Infrared Survey Explorer luminosity. We find no correlations of maser disk size with X-ray 2-10 keV luminosity or O iii luminosity.
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