A high resolution and large solid angle x-ray Raman spectroscopy end-station at the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource

We present a new x-ray Raman spectroscopy end-station recently developed, installed, and operated at the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource. The end-station is located at wiggler beamline 6-2 equipped with two monochromators-Si(111) and Si(311) as well as collimating and focusing optics. It consists of two multi-crystal Johann type spectrometers arranged on intersecting Rowland circles of 1 m diameter. The first one, positioned at the forward scattering angles (low-q), consists of 40 spherically bent and diced Si(110) crystals with 100 mm diameters providing about 1.9% of 4π sr solid angle of detection. When operated in the (440) order in combination with the Si (311) monochromator, an overall energy resolution of 270 meV is obtained at 6462.20 eV. The second spectrometer, consisting of 14 spherically bent Si(110) crystal analyzers (not diced), is positioned at the backward scattering angles (high-q) enabling the study of non-dipole transitions. The solid angle of this spectrometer is about 0.9% of 4π sr, with a combined energy resolution of 600 meV using the Si (311) monochromator. These features exceed the specifications of currently existing relevant instrumentation, opening new opportunities for the routine application of this photon-in/photon-out hard x-ray technique to emerging research in multidisciplinary scientific fields, such as energy-related sciences, material sciences, physical chemistry, etc.

Indian Henbane: Part I

A type of hyoscyamus growing wild in India is described. The species to which this plant should be referred has not yet been determined. This plant may be distinguished from H. niger, when unground, by the shape of the leaves, which are ovate to oblong and much less indented. The powder is distinguishable because the calcium oxalate crystals present are larger than those in H. niger; the presence of any calcium oxalate crystals exceeding 35μ long, or of more than 10 per cent. exceeding 25 μ may be taken as indicating something other than true Hyoscyamus niger. The total alkaloid contents of the specimens examined were, except in one case, less than the minimum required by the British Pharmacopæia for Hyoscyamus. The acid-soluble ash was greater than that usually found in H. niger grown in England, but about equal to that found in H. niger from India. A report of a germination test on the seeds is given. It was found that soaking the seeds for 18 to 24 hours in 2 per cent. w/v solution of hydrogen peroxide before sowing gave the best results. Our thanks are due to Professor Qazilbash, of Islamia College, Peshawar and to Mr. K. C. Chaterjee, of Boots Pure Drug Company (India), Ltd., for the provision of material; to Mr. A. W. Billitt, of Lenton Experimental Station, Nottingham, for carrying out the germination test and for growing the plants; to Dr. R. Melville, of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, for information; and to Mr. H. O. Meek, for helpful criticism. We are indebted to the Directors of Boots Pure Drug Company, for permission to publish this paper.

Late CT surveillance in nonseminoma germ cell tumors (NSGCT)

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Background: Testicular cancer is the commonest solid malignancy in 18-35 year old men. With the introduction of cisplatin, most patients with metastatic disease are cured.Over recent years a risk of late relapse (>2 years after first line therapy) has been recognised in 2- 6% of NSGCTs. Appropriate follow-up strategies have not been determined. To investigate, the utility of long term CT surveillance we initiated a study to see if late CT could detect late relapses at an early stage.

Methods: Eligible patients had been treated for Stage IM – Stage IV NSGCT diagnosed 5 years prior to entry. CT scans were at study entry and 5 years. Patients are reviewed annually with tumour markers and clinical examination. We plan to recruit 300 patients. This reports details the outcome of a planned interim analysis of the first round of screening after recruiting 100 patients

Results: 108 patients have been enrolled into the study since 2006. Full clinical data was available for 88 patients. Median age was 31 years at diagnosis. 52 patients had evidence of teratoma differentiated (TD) in the primary.Stage at treatment was IM (1), II (45), III (6) and IV (36). Treatment was BEP [bleomycin, cisplatin and etopside (3 cycles: 30), (4 cycles: 20)], CBOP/BEP (16) and other platinum schedule (8) at diagnosis. 27 patients relapsed.Overall 38 had retroperitoneal lymph node.TD noted in 28. 10 had a metastatectomy [brain (2), pelvic mass (1:TD), pulmonary (6;TD:2), neck (2), iliac node (1:TD)]. Study scan was reported normal in 71 patients. None of these have relapsed however 1 patient died of interval lung cancer. Radiological abnormalities were identified in14 patients. 4 underwent surgery (3 RPLND and 1 lung nodule excision). 2 were benign and 2 had TD.1 patient had liver lesions proven to be cysts on ultrasound. 8 had small volume nodal abnormalities which are stable on repeat imaging. 1 is on annual CT surveillance for indeterminate lung nodules.4 patients are awaiting the initial study scan

Conclusions: Late CT scan detected significant abnormalities in patients treated for NSGCT leading to surgery. Abnormalities not deemed appropriate for surgical intervention are being followed up surveillance scans.

No significant financial relationships to disclose.

Demonstration of ignition radiation temperatures in indirect-drive inertial confinement fusion hohlraums

We demonstrate the hohlraum radiation temperature and symmetry required for ignition-scale inertial confinement fusion capsule implosions. Cryogenic gas-filled hohlraums with 2.2 mm-diameter capsules are heated with unprecedented laser energies of 1.2 MJ delivered by 192 ultraviolet laser beams on the National Ignition Facility. Laser backscatter measurements show that these hohlraums absorb 87% to 91% of the incident laser power resulting in peak radiation temperatures of T(RAD)=300 eV and a symmetric implosion to a 100 μm diameter hot core.

Measurement of the positive muon lifetime and determination of the Fermi constant to part-per-million precision

We report a measurement of the positive muon lifetime to a precision of 1.0 ppm; it is the most precise particle lifetime ever measured. The experiment used a time-structured, low-energy muon beam and a segmented plastic scintillator array to record more than 2×10(12) decays. Two different stopping target configurations were employed in independent data-taking periods. The combined results give τ(μ(+)) (MuLan)=2 196 980.3(2.2)  ps, more than 15 times as precise as any previous experiment. The muon lifetime gives the most precise value for the Fermi constant: G(F) (MuLan)=1.166 378 8(7)×10(-5)  GeV(-2) (0.6 ppm). It is also used to extract the μ(-)p singlet capture rate, which determines the proton's weak induced pseudoscalar coupling g(P).

Alteration of brain functional network at rest and in response to YMCA physical stress test in concussed athletes: RsFMRI study

There is still controversy in the literature whether a single episode of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) results in short- and/or long-term functional and structural deficits in the concussed brain. With the inability of traditional brain imaging techniques to properly assess the severity of brain damage induced by a concussive blow, there is hope that more advanced applications such as resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rsFMRI) will be more specific in accurately diagnosing mTBI. In this rsFMRI study, we examined 17 subjects 10±2 days post-sports-related mTBI and 17 age-matched normal volunteers (NVs) to investigate the possibility that the integrity of the resting state brain network is disrupted following a single concussive blow. We hypothesized that advanced brain imaging techniques may reveal subtle alterations of functional brain connections in asymptomatic mTBI subjects. There are several findings of interest. All mTBI subjects were asymptomatic based upon clinical evaluation and neuropsychological (NP) assessments prior to the MRI session. The mTBI subjects revealed a disrupted functional network both at rest and in response to the YMCA physical stress test. Specifically, interhemispheric connectivity was significantly reduced in the primary visual cortex, hippocampal and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex networks (p<0.05). The YMCA physical stress induced nonspecific and similar changes in brain network connectivity patterns in both the mTBI and NV groups. These major findings are discussed in relation to underlying mechanisms, clinical assessment of mTBI, and current debate regarding functional brain connectivity in a clinical population. Overall, our major findings clearly indicate that functional brain alterations in the acute phase of injury are overlooked when conventional clinical and neuropsychological examinations are used.

Camelimonas lactis gen. nov., sp. nov., isolated from the milk of camels

Three strains of Gram-negative, rod-shaped, non-spore-forming bacteria (M 2040T, M 1973 and M 1878-SK2), isolated from milk of camels at a camel-milk production farm in the United Arab Emirates, were investigated for their taxonomic allocation. On the basis of 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities, all three strains were shown to belong to the Alphaproteobacteria and were most closely related to Chelatococcus asaccharovorans and Chelatococcus daeguensis (95.1 and 95.2 % sequence similarity to the respective type strains). meso-Diaminopimelic acid was detected as the characteristic peptidoglycan diamino acid. The predominant compound in the polyamine pattern was spermidine, and sym-homospermidine was not detectable. The quinone system was ubiquinone Q-10. The polar lipid profile included the major compounds phosphatidylcholine and diphosphatidylglycerol and moderate amounts of phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol, an unidentified glycolipid and two unidentified aminolipids. Minor lipids were also detected. The major fatty acid profile, consisting of C19 : 0 cyclo ω8c and C18 : 1 ω7c, with C18 : 0 3-OH as the major hydroxylated fatty acid, was similar to those of the genus Chelatococcus. The results of DNA–DNA hybridization experiments and physiological and biochemical tests allowed both genotypic and phenotypic differentiation of the isolates from described Chelatococcus species. Isolates M 2040T, M 1973 and M 1878-SK2 were closely related on the basis of DNA–DNA reassociation and therefore represent a single novel species. In summary, low 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities of 95 % with Chelatococcus asaccharovorans and marked differences in polar lipid profiles as well as in polyamine patterns support the description of a novel genus and species to accommodate these strains, for which the name Camelimonas lactis gen. nov., sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain of Camelimonas lactis is M 2040T (=CCUG 58638T =CCM 7696T).

Transport of Neurohormones from the Corpora Cardiaca in Insects

Evidence from electron microscope studies of aphid and cockroach nerves, and from the bioassay of extracts of the aortal nerves of cockroaches indicates that some neurohormones are distributed from the corpora cardiaca along nerve axons to their target organs.

Are functional deficits in concussed individuals consistent with white matter structural alterations: combined FMRI & DTI study

There is still controversy in the literature whether a single episode of mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI) results in short-term functional and/or structural deficits as well as any induced long-term residual effects. With the inability of traditional structural brain imaging techniques to accurately diagnosis MTBI, there is hope that more advanced applications like functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) will be more specific in diagnosing MTBI. In this study, 15 subjects who have recently suffered from sport-related MTBI and 15 age-matched normal controls underwent both fMRI and DTI to investigate the possibility of traumatic axonal injury associated with functional deficits in recently concussed but asymptomatic individuals. There are several findings of interest. First, MTBI subjects had a more disperse brain activation pattern with additional increases in activity outside of the shared regions of interest (ROIs) as revealed by FMRI blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) signals. The MTBI group had additional activation in the left dorsal-lateral prefrontal cortex during encoding phase of spatial navigation working memory task that was not observed in normal controls. Second, neither whole-brain analysis nor ROI analysis showed significant alteration of white matter (WM) integrity in MTBI subjects as evidenced by fractional anisotropy FA (DTI) data. It should be noted, however, there was a larger variability of fractional anisotropy (FA) in the genu, and body of the corpus callosum in MTB subjects. Moreover, we observed decreased diffusivity as evidenced by apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) at both left and right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DL-PFC) in MTBI subjects (P < 0.001). There was also a positive correlation (P < 0.05) between ADC and % change of fMRI BOLD signals at DL-PFC in MTBI subjects, but not in normal controls. Despite these differences we conclude that overall, no consistent findings across advanced brain imaging techniques (fMRI and DTI) were observed. Whether the lack of consistency across research techniques (fMRI & DTI) is due to time frame of scanning, unique nature of MTBI and/or technological issues involved in FA and Apparent Diffusion Coefficient (ADC) quantification is yet to be determined.