Measurements are presented of inclusive charm and beauty cross sections in e(+)p collisions at HERA for values of photon virtuality Q(2) > 150 GeV2 and of inelasticity 0.1 < y < 0.7. The charm and ...beauty fractions are determined using a method based on the impact parameter, in the transverse plane, of tracks to the primary vertex, as measured by the H1 vertex detector. The data are divided into four regions in Q(2) and Bjorken x, and values for the structure functions F-2(c (c) over bar) and F-2(b (b) over bar) are obtained. The results are found to be compatible with the predictions of perturbative quantum chromodynamics.
The inclusive production of D*+/-(2010) mesons in deep-inelastic scattering is studied with the HI detector at HERA. In the kinematic region 1 < Q(2) < 100 GeV2 and 0.05 < y < 0.7 an e(+) p cross ...section for inclusive D*+/- meson production of 8.50 +/- 0.42(stat.)(-100)(+1.21)(syst.) nb is measured in the visible range p(tD*) > 1.5 GeV and eta(D*) < 1.5. Single and double differential inclusive D*+/- meson cross sections are compared to perturbative QCD calculations in two different evolution schemes, The charm contribution to the proton structure, F-c(2)(x, Q(2)), is determined by extrapolating the visible charm cross section to the full phase space. This contribution is found to rise from about 10% at Q(2) = 1.5 GeV2 to more than 25% at Q(2) = 60 GeV2 corresponding to x values ranging from 5 x 10(-5) to 3 x 10(-3). (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Inclusive production cross sections are measured in deep inelastic scattering at HERA for meson states composed of a charm quark and a light antiquark or the charge conjugate. The measurements cover ...the kinematic region of photon virtuality 2 < Q^2 < 100 GeV^2, inelasticity 0.05 < y < 0.7, D meson transverse momenta p_t(D) > 2.5 GeV and pseudorapidity |eta(D)| < 1.5. The identification of the D-meson decays and the reduction of the combinatorial background profit from the reconstruction of displaced secondary vertices by means of the H1 silicon vertex detector. The production of charmed mesons containing the light quarks u, d and s is found to be compatible with a description in which the hard scattering is followed by a factorisable and universal hadronisation process.
A measurement of the derivative (∂ lnF2/∂ lnx)Q2≡−λ(x,Q2) of the proton structure function F2 is presented in the low x domain of deeply inelastic positron–proton scattering. For 5×10−5⩽x⩽0.01 and ...Q2⩾1.5GeV2, λ(x,Q2) is found to be independent of x and to increase linearly with lnQ2.
The proton structure function F-2(x, Q(2)) is measured in inelastic QED Compton scattering using data collected with the H1 detector at HERA. QED Compton events are used to access the kinematic range ...of very low virtualities of the exchanged photon, Q(2), down to 0.5 GeV2, and Bjorken x up to similar to 0.06, a region which has not been covered previously by inclusive measurements at HERA. The results are in agreement with the measurements from fixed target lepton-nucleon scattering experiments. (C) 2004 Published by Elsevier B.V.
Cross sections for the production of two isolated muons up to high di-muon masses are measured in ep collisions at HERA with the H1 detector in a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity ...of 71 pb−1 at a centre of mass energy of s=319 GeV. The results are in good agreement with Standard Model predictions, the dominant process being photon–photon interactions. Additional muons or electrons are searched for in events with two high transverse momentum muons using the full data sample corresponding to 114 pb−1, where data at s=301 GeV and s=319 GeV are combined. Both the di-lepton sample and the tri-lepton sample agree well with the predictions.
Staphylococcus aureus is both a successful human commensal and a major pathogen. The elucidation of the molecular determinants of virulence, in particular assessment of the contributions of the ...genetic background versus those of mobile genetic elements (MGEs), has proved difficult in this variable species. To address this, we simultaneously determined the genetic backgrounds (spa typing) and the distributions of all 19 known superantigens and the exfoliative toxins A and D (multiplex PCR) as markers for MGEs. Methicillin- sensitive S. aureus strains from Pomerania, 107 nasal and 88 blood culture isolates, were investigated. All superantigen-encoding MGEs were linked more or less tightly to the genetic background. Thus, each S. aureus clonal complex was characterized by a typical repertoire of superantigen and exfoliative toxin genes. However, within each S. aureus clonal complex and even within the same spa type, virulence gene profiles varied remarkably. Therefore, virulence genes of nasal and blood culture isolates were separately compared in each clonal complex. The results indicated a role in infection for the MGE harboring the exfoliative toxin D gene. In contrast, there was no association of superantigen genes with bloodstream invasion. In summary, we show here that the simultaneous assessment of virulence gene profiles and the genetic background increases the discriminatory power of genetic investigations into the mechanisms of S. aureus pathogenesis.
Deep-inelastic positron-proton interactions at low values of Bjorken-x down to x \approx 4.10^-5 which give rise to high transverse momentum pi^0 mesons are studied with the H1 experiment at HERA. ...The inclusive cross section for pi^0 mesons produced at small angles with respect to the proton remnant (the forward region) is presented as a function of the transverse momentum and energy of the pi^0 and of the four-momentum transfer Q^2 and Bjorken-x. Measurements are also presented of the transverse energy flow in events containing a forward pi^0 meson. Hadronic final state calculations based on QCD models implementing different parton evolution schemes are confronted with the data.
Background Chronic airway inflammatory diseases, such as chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps and asthma, show increased nasal Staphylococcus aureus colonization. Staphylococcus aureus –derived ...serine protease–like protein (Spl) D and other closely related proteases secreted by S aureus have recently been identified as inducers of allergic asthma in human subjects and mice, but their mechanism of action is largely unknown. Objective We investigated the role of recombinant SplD in driving TH 2-biased responses and IgE formation in a murine model of allergic asthma. Methods Allergic asthma was induced in C57BL/6 J wild-type mice, Toll-like receptor (TLR) 4 knockout (Tlr4 −/− ) mice, and recombination-activating gene (Rag2) knockout (Rag2 −/− ) mice by means of repeated intratracheal applications of SplD. Inflammatory parameters in the airways were assessed by means of flow cytometry, ELISA, Luminex, and immunohistochemistry. Serum SplD-specific IgE levels were analyzed by using ELISA. Results We observed that repeated intratracheal exposure to SplD led to IL-33 and eotaxin production, eosinophilia, bronchial hyperreactivity, and goblet cell hyperplasia in the airways. Blocking IL-33 activity with a soluble ST2 receptor significantly decreased the numbers of eosinophils, IL-13+ type 2 innate lymphoid cells and IL-13+ CD4+ T cells and IL-5 and IL-13 production by lymph node cells but had no effect on IgE production. SplD-induced airway inflammation and IgE production were largely dependent on the presence of the functional adaptive immune system and independent of TLR4 signaling. Conclusion The S aureus –derived protein SplD is a potent allergen of S aureus and induces a TH 2-biased inflammatory response in the airways in an IL-33–dependent but TRL4-independent manner. The soluble ST2 receptor could be an efficient strategy to interfere with SplD-induced TH 2 inflammation but does not prevent the allergic sensitization.
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