Observation of the semileptonic decays B-->D*tau-nutau and evidence for B-->Dtau-nutau

We present measurements of the semileptonic decays B--->D0tau-nutau, B--->D*0tau-nutau, B0-->D+tau-nutau, and B0-->D*+tau-nutau, which are potentially sensitive to non-standard model amplitudes. The data sample comprises 232x10(6) Upsilon(4S)-->BB decays collected with the BABAR detector. From a combined fit to B- and B0 channels, we obtain the branching fractions B(B-->Dtau-nutau)=(0.86+/-0.24+/-0.11+/-0.06)% and B(B-->D*tau-nutau)=(1.62+/-0.31+/-0.10+/-0.05)% (normalized for the B0), where the uncertainties are statistical, systematic, and normalization-mode-related.

Exclusive branching-fraction measurements of semileptonic tau decays into three charged hadrons, into phipi(-)nu tau, and into phi K(-)nu tau

Using a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 342 fb(-1) collected with the BABAR detector at the SLAC PEP-II electron-positron storage ring operating at a center-of-mass energy near 10.58 GeV, we measure B(tau(-)--> pi(-)pi(-)pi+nu(tau)(ex.K(S0))=(8.83+/-0.01+/-0.13)%, B(tau(-) -->K(-)pi(-)pi+nu tau(ex.K(S0))=(0.273+/-0.002+/-0.009)%, B(tau(-) -->K(-)pi(-)K+nu tau)=(0.1346+/-0.0010+/-0.0036)%, and B(tau(-) -->K(-)K(-)K+nu tau)=(1.58+/-0.13+/-0.12)x10;{-5}, where the uncertainties are statistical and systematic, respectively. These include significant improvements over previous measurements and a first measurement of B(tau(-) -->K(-)K(-)K+nu tau) in which no resonance structure is assumed. We also report a first measurement of B(tau(-) -->var phi(-)nu tau)=(3.42+/-0.55+/-0.25)x10(-5), a new measurement of B(tau(-) -->var phi K(-)nu tau)=(3.39+/-0.20+/-0.28)x10(-5) and a first upper limit on B(tau(-) -->K(-)K(-)K+nu tau(ex.var phi)).

Lidocaine abolishes the myocardial protective effect of sevoflurane post-conditioning

BACKGROUND

Post-ischemic administration of volatile anesthetics activates ischemia-reperfusion injury salvage process and decreases myocardial damage. However, the mechanisms underlying anesthetic post-conditioning and effects of lidocaine on it remain unclear. Here we report the cardioprotection of sevoflurane-induced post-conditioning and the effects of lidocaine on it.

METHODS

Isolated perfused rat hearts were exposed to 40 min of ischemia followed by 1 h of reperfusion. Volatile anesthetic post-conditioning was induced by 15 min of 3 vol% sevourane (1.5 minimum alveolar concentration) administered at the onset of reperfusion. In some experiments, lidocaine was coadministered with sevoflurane in different concentrations (2, 10 and 20 microg/ml). Infarct size was determined by dividing the total necrotic area of the left ventricle by the total left ventricular slice area (percent necrotic area).

RESULTS

Sevoflurane-induced post-conditioning signicantly improved post-ischemia functional recovery and decreased infarct size (47.3+/-5.6% in unprotected hearts vs. 18.6+/-3.1% in anesthetic post-conditioning, P<0.05). Sevourane-mediated cardioprotection was abolished by 20 microg/ml lidocaine.

CONCLUSIONS

Sevourane-induced post-conditioning effectively protected myocardium against reperfusion damage and its cytoprotection was reversed by 20 microg/ml lidocaine.

Evidence for charged B meson decays to a1+/-(1260)pi0 and a1(0)(1260)pi+/-

We present measurements of the branching fractions for the decays B;{+/-}-->a_{1};{+/-}(1260)pi;{0} and B;{+/-}-->a_{1};{0}(1260)pi;{+/-} from a data sample of 232x10;{6} BB[over ] pairs produced in e;{+}e;{-} annihilation through the Upsilon(4S) resonance. We measure the branching fraction B(B;{+/-}-->a_{1};{+/-}(1260)pi;{0})xB(a_{1};{+/-}(1260)-->pi;{-}pi;{+}pi;{+/-})=(13.2+/-2.7+/-2.1)x10;{-6} with a significance of 4.2sigma, and the branching fraction B(B;{+/-}-->a_{1};{0}(1260)pi;{+/-})xB(a_{1};{0}(1260)-->pi;{-}pi;{+}pi;{0})=(20.4+/-4.7+/-3.4)x10;{-6} with a significance of 3.8sigma, where the first error quoted is statistical and the second is systematic.

Improved limits on the lepton-flavor violating decays tau{-}-->l{-}l{+}l{-}

A search for the neutrinoless, lepton-flavor violating decay of the tau lepton into three charged leptons has been performed using 376 fb{-1} of data collected at an e{+}e{-} center-of-mass energy around 10.58 GeV with the BABAR detector at the SLAC PEP-II storage rings. In all six decay modes considered, the numbers of events found in data are compatible with the background expectations. Upper limits on the branching fractions are set in the range (4-8)x10{-8} at 90% confidence level.

Measurement of CP violation parameters with a Dalitz plot analysis of B{+/-}-->D{pi{+}pi{-}pi{0}}K{+/-}

We report the results of a CP violation analysis of the decay B{+/-}-->D{pi{+}pi{-}pi;{0}}K{+/-}, where D{pi{+}pi{-}pi{0}} indicates a neutral D meson detected in the final state pi{+}pi{-}pi{0}, excluding K{S}{0}pi{0}. The analysis makes use of 324 x 10{6}e{+}e{-}-->BB[over ] events recorded by the BABAR experiment at the PEP-II e;{+}e;{-} storage ring. Analyzing the pi;{+}pi;{-}pi;{0} Dalitz plot distribution and the B{+/-}-->D{pi{+}pi{-}pi{0}}K{+/-} branching fraction and decay rate asymmetry, we find the following one-standard-deviation constraints on the amplitude ratio and on the weak and strong phases: 0.06<r{B}<0.78, -30 degrees <gamma<76 degrees , -27 degrees <delta<78 degrees . We also measure the magnitudes and phases of the components of the D{0}-->pi{+}pi{-}pi{0} decay amplitude.

Improved prediction of subcellular location for apoptosis proteins by the dual-layer support vector machine

Apoptosis proteins play an important role in the development and homeostasis of an organism. The accurate prediction of subcellular location for apoptosis proteins is very helpful for understanding the mechanism of apoptosis and their biological functions. However, most of the existing predictive methods are designed by utilizing a single classifier, which would limit the further improvement of their performances. In this paper, a novel predictive method, which is essentially a multi-classifier system, has been proposed by combing a dual-layer support vector machine (SVM) with multiple compositions including amino acid composition (AAC), dipeptide composition (DPC) and amphiphilic pseudo amino acid composition (Am-Pse-AAC). As a demonstration, the predictive performance of our method was evaluated on two datasets of apoptosis proteins, involving the standard dataset ZD98 generated by Zhou and Doctor, and a larger dataset ZW225 generated by Zhang et al. With the jackknife test, the overall accuracies of our method on the two datasets reach 94.90% and 88.44%, respectively. The promising results indicate that our method can be a complementary tool for the prediction of subcellular location.

Identification of strain-specific DNA of Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans by representational difference analysis

A genomic subtraction method, the representational difference analysis (RDA), was tested for its use in identifying strain-specific DNA in Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans. Subtraction of strain D7S with strain HK1651 yielded D7S-specific 2.3-kilobase (kb) islet-A and 5.3-kb islet-B. Islet-A contains a 1.5-kb region that is homologous to a region found in the A. actinomycetemcomitans plasmid pVT745. Islet-B contains a 2.1-kb homolog of vgr, a component of a DNA repeat element rhs. The distribution of these islets among A. actinomycetemcomitans strains was further examined by polymerase chain reaction. Islet-A was found in nine serotype a and two serotype b strains but was missing from 34 strains. Islet-B was found in one serotype a strain, four serotype d strains and two serotype e strains, but was missing from 34 strains.

Observation of B Meson decays to b1pi and b1K

We present the results of searches for decays of B mesons to final states with a b1 meson and a charged pion or kaon. The data, collected with the BABAR detector at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, represent 382x10(6) BB[over ] pairs produced in e+e- annihilation. The results for the branching fractions are, in units of 10(-6), B(B+-->b1(0)pi+)=6.7+/-1.7+/-1.0, B(B+-->b1(0)K+)=9.1+/-1.7+/-1.0, B(B0-->b1(-/+)pi(+/-))=10.9+/-1.2+/-0.9, and B(B0-->b1(-)K+)=7.4+/-1.0+/-1.0, with the assumption that B(b1-->omega pi)=1. We also measure charge and flavor asymmetries A(ch)(B+-->b1(0)pi+)=0.05+/-0.16+/-0.02, Ach(B+-->b1(0)K+)=-0.46+/-0.20+/-0.02, A(ch)(B0-->b1(-/+)pi(+/-))=-0.05+/-0.10+/-0.02, C(B0-->b1(-/+)pi(+/-))=-0.22+/-0.23+/-0.05, DeltaC(B0-->b1(-/+)pi(+/-))=-1.04+/-0.23+/-0.08, and A(ch)(B0-->b1(-)K+)=-0.07+/-0.12+/-0.02. The first error quoted is statistical, and the second systematic.

Evaluation of thermal properties of food materials at high pressures using a dual-needle line-heat-source method

Thermal properties of food systems at high pressure (HP) are important in the design and operation of HP processing equipment. Available techniques for thermal property evaluation under HP conditions are still very limited. In this study, a dual-needle line-heat-source (DNL) device was installed in an HP vessel to evaluate thermal conductivity (k), diffusivity (alpha), and volumetric heat capacity (C(pV)) of foods at high pressure. The DNL probe was calibrated using glycerin (0.1 MPa) and 2% (w/w) agar gel (0.1 to 350 MPa) at 5 and 25 degrees C. Calibration results showed a good correlation with the reference data of pure water: R(2)= 0.966 for thermal conductivity and R(2)= 0.837 for diffusivity, and a small standard deviation of relative error (3.18%) for the volumetric heat capacity. Fresh potato and cheddar cheese were used as test samples at 5 degrees C at selected pressure levels (0.1 to 350 MPa). The potato samples gave thermal properties very close to those of pure water, but much higher than those of the cheese. The k and alpha values of both potato and cheese increased with pressure and a 2nd-order polynomial well fitted their pressure dependency. The volumetric heat capacity data did not show a clear pressure-dependency trend. The experimental system worked well for the evaluation of thermal properties at pressures up to 350 MPa.

Measurement of cos2beta in B;{0}-->D;{(*)}h;{0} decays with a time-dependent Dalitz plot analysis of D-->K_{s};{0}pi;{+}pi;{-}

We study the time-dependent Dalitz plot of D-->K_{S};{0}pi;{+}pi;{-} in B;{0}-->D;{(*)}h;{0} decays, where h;{0} is a pi;{0}, eta, eta;{'}, or omega meson and D;{*}-->Dpi;{0}, using a data sample of 383x10;{6} Upsilon(4S)-->BB[over ] decays collected with the BABAR detector. We determine cos2beta=0.42+/-0.49+/-0.09+/-0.13, sin2beta=0.29+/-0.34+/-0.03+/-0.05, and |lambda|=1.01+/-0.08+/-0.02, where the first error is statistical, the second is the experimental systematic uncertainty, and the third, where given, is the Dalitz model uncertainty. Assuming the world average value for sin2beta and |lambda|=1, cos2beta>0 is preferred over cos2beta<0 at 86% confidence level.

High-throughput microRNAome analysis in human germ cell tumours

Testicular germ cell tumours (GCTs) of adolescents and adults can be subdivided into seminomas (referred to as dysgerminomas of the ovary) and non-seminomas, all referred to as type II GCTs. They originate from carcinoma in situ (CIS), being the malignant counterparts of primordial germ cells (PGCs)/gonocytes. The invasive components mimic embryogenesis, including the stem cell component embryonal carcinoma (EC), the somatic lineage teratoma (TE), and the extra-embryonic tissues yolk sac tumour (YST) and choriocarcinoma (CH). The other type is the so-called spermatocytic seminomas (SS, type III GCT), composed of neoplastic primary spermatocytes. We reported previously that the miRNAs hsa-miR 371-373 cluster is involved in overruling cellular senescence induced by oncogenic stress, allowing cells to become malignant. Here we report the first high-throughput screen of 156 microRNAs in a series of type II and III GCTs (n = 69, in duplicate) using a quantitative PCR-based approach. After normalization to allow inter-sample analysis, the technical replicates clustered together, and the previous hsa-miRNA 371-373 cluster finding was confirmed. Unsupervised cluster analysis demonstrated that the cell lines are different from the in vivo samples. The in vivo samples, both normal and malignant, clustered predominantly based on their maturation status. This parallels normal embryogenesis, rather than chromosomal anomalies in the tumours. miRNAs within a single cluster showed a similar expression pattern, implying common regulatory mechanisms. Normal testicular tissue expressed most discriminating miRNAs at a higher level than SE and SS. Moreover, differentiated non-seminomas showed overexpression of discriminating miRNAs. These results support the model that miRNAs are involved in regulating differentiation of stem cells, retained in GCTs.

First Report of Waitea circinata var. circinata Causing Brown Ring Patch on Poa trivialis in California

Rough bluegrass (Poa trivialis L.) is a C3 (cool-season) turfgrass used on golf course putting greens. It is often used to overseed C4 (warm-season) turf for fall through early-summer use. In March 2007, at maximium daytime air temperatures of approximately 30 to 35°C, irregular, thin, yellow rings approximately 10 to 20 cm in diameter were reported on P. trivialis in putting greens from two golf courses in the Coachella Valley of southern California. Affected plants had a blight of the leaves and stems and a rot of the crown, with initial symptoms being a yellowing of the tissue followed by the development of a dark, water-soaked appearance of the whole plant. Plants turned reddish brown as the water-soaked tissue dessicated. A Rhizoctonia-like fungus was found to be colonizing the leaves, stems, and upper roots and thatch. Three isolates were obtained from the diseased turf samples. All were identified as Waitea circinata var. circinata based on colony morphology (2) and rDNA internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region sequences (1). The sequences of the three isolates were more than 99% similar to those of W. circinata var. circinata deposited in the NCBI database (1,2). To confirm pathogenicity, each isolate was inoculated onto 4-week-old P. trivialis (2 mg of seed per cm²) grown in 10-cm-diameter pots containing steam-sterilized UC-mix at 28°C. Five 8-mm-diameter plugs of each isolate were taken from 7-day-old cultures grown on potato dextrose agar (PDA) and placed in direct contact with the bases of the stems. The pots were then incubated in a moist chamber at 28°C. Five noncolonized PDA plugs were used as a negative control. Three pots were used for each of the three isolates and the check treatment. For all isolates, chlorosis of leaf and stems were observed 5 days after inoculation and the tissue appeared water soaked after 7 days with the production of abundant aerial mycelia being observed. All plants, except the negative controls, died after 10 days. W. circinata var. circinata was reisolated from symptomatic tissue from the inoculated plants. W. circinata var. circinata was previously reported as the causal agent of brown ring patch on creeping bentgrass (Agrostis palustris) in Japan (2) and as a pathogen of annual bluegrass (P. annua) in the United States (1). To our knowledge, this is the first report of W. circinata var. circinata infecting P. trivialis in California. References: (1) K. de la Cerda et al. Plant Dis. 91:791, 2007. (2) T. Toda et al. Plant Dis. 89:536, 2005.

Observation of the decay B+ --> K+K-pi+

We report the observation of charmless hadronic decays of charged B mesons to the final state K{+}K{-}pi{+}. Using a data sample of 347.5 fb{-1} collected at the Upsilon(4S) resonance with the BABAR detector, we observe 429+/-43 signal events with a significance of 9.6sigma. We measure the inclusive branching fraction B(B{+}-->K{+}K{-}pi{+})=[5.0+/-0.5(stat)+/-0.5(syst)]x10{-6}. Inspection of the Dalitz plot of signal candidates shows a broad structure peaking near 1.5 GeV/c{2} in the K+K- invariant mass distribution. We find the direct CP asymmetry to be consistent with zero.

Amplitude analysis of the B+/--->phiK*(892)+/- decay

We perform an amplitude analysis of B+/--->phi(1020)K*(892)+/- decay with a sample of about 384 x 10(6) BB[over ] pairs recorded with the BABAR detector. Overall, twelve parameters are measured, including the fractions of longitudinal fL and parity-odd transverse f perpendicular amplitudes, branching fraction, strong phases, and six parameters sensitive to CP violation. We use the dependence on the Kpi invariant mass of the interference between the JP=1(-) and 0+ Kpi components to resolve the discrete ambiguity in the determination of the strong and weak phases. Our measurements of fL=0.49+/-0.05+/-0.03, f perpendicular=0.21+/-0.05+/-0.02, and the strong phases point to the presence of a substantial helicity-plus amplitude from a presently unknown source.

Search for the Decay B+-->K+ tau-/+ mu+/-

We present a search for the lepton flavor violating decay B+-->K+ tau-/+ mu+/- using 383 x 10;{6} BB[over ] events collected by the BABAR experiment. The branching fraction for this decay can be substantially enhanced in new physics models. The kinematics of the tau from the signal B decay are inferred from the K+, mu, and other B in the event, which is fully reconstructed in one of a variety of hadronic decay modes, allowing the signal B candidate to be fully reconstructed. We observe no excess of events over the expected background and set a limit of B(B+-->K+ tau mu)<7.7 x 10(-5) at 90% confidence level, where the branching fraction is for the sum of the K+ tau- mu+ and K+ tau+mu- final states. We use this result to improve a model-independent bound on the energy scale of flavor-changing new physics.

Advanced glycation end products inhibit production and activity of matrix metalloproteinase-2 in human umbilical vein endothelial cells

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) on the expression and activity of matrix metalloproteinases-2 (MMP-2) in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). Cultured HUVECs were incubated with various concentrations of AGEs-modified albumin or unmodified albumin for different time periods. Protein and gene expression of MMP-2 and the receptor for AGEs (RAGE) were measured by Western blot and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, respectively. The activity of MMP-2 in the conditioned medium was measured by gelatin zymography. The AGE-modified albumin inhibited MMP-2 but increased RAGE protein and gene expression in HUVECs in a concentration- and time-dependent manner. An inhibition of MMP-2 activity was also detected in the conditioned medium of HUVECs incubated with AGEs-modified albumin. In conclusion, AGEs inhibited the expression and activity of MMP-2 in HUVECs; this may be mediated through upregulation of RAGE.