Search for scalar diphoton resonances in the mass range 65-600 GeV with the ATLAS detector in pp collision data at √s=8 TeV.

A search for scalar particles decaying via narrow resonances into two photons in the mass range 65-600 GeV is performed using 20.3  fb(-1) of √s 8 TeV pp collision data collected with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. The recently discovered Higgs boson is treated as a background.

Abnormalities of lipoprotein concentrations in obstructive sleep apnea are related to insulin resistance.

Study Objective: Prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) is increased in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), possibly related to dyslipidemia in these individuals. Insulin resistance is also common in OSA, but its contribution to dyslipidemia of OSA is unclear. The study's aim was to define the relationships among abnormalities of lipoprotein metabolism, clinical measures of OSA, and insulin resistance.

Mental illness and intensification of diabetes medications: an observational cohort study.

Background: Mental health condition (MHC) comorbidity is associated with lower intensity care in multiple clinical scenarios. However, little is known about the effect of MHC upon clinicians' decisions about intensifying antiglycemic medications in diabetic patients with poor glycemic control. We examined whether delay in intensification of antiglycemic medications in response to an elevated Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) value is longer for patients with MHC than for those without MHC, and whether any such effect varies by specific MHC type.

Distinct patterns of B-cell activation and priming by natural influenza virus infection versus inactivated influenza vaccination.

Background: The human B-cell response to natural influenza virus infection has not been extensively investigated at the polyclonal level.

Methods: The overall B-cell response of patients acutely infected with the 2009 pandemic influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 virus (A[H1N1]pdm09) was analyzed by determining the reactivity of plasmablast-derived polyclonal antibodies (PPAbs) to influenza proteins. Recipients of inactivated influenza vaccine containing the same A(H1N1)pdm09 strain were studied for comparison.

Evidence for electroweak production of W±W±jj in pp collisions at sqrt[s] = 8 TeV with the ATLAS detector.

This Letter presents the first study of W(±)W(±)jj, same-electric-charge diboson production in association with two jets, using 20.3 fb(-1) of proton-proton collision data at sqrt[s] = 8  TeV recorded by the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Events with two reconstructed same-charge leptons (e(±)e(±), e(±)μ(±), and μ(±)μ(±)) and two or more jets are analyzed.

Phosphatase-inert glucosamine 6-phosphate mimics serve as actuators of the glmS riboswitch.

The glmS riboswitch is unique among gene-regulating riboswitches and catalytic RNAs. This is because its own metabolite, glucosamine-6-phosphate (GlcN6P), binds to the riboswitch and catalytically participates in the RNA self-cleavage reaction, thereby providing a novel negative feedback mechanism. Given that a number of pathogens harbor the glmS riboswitch, artificial actuators of this potential RNA target are of great interest.

Association between success rate and citation count of studies of radiofrequency catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation: possible evidence of citation bias.

Background: The preferential citation of studies with the highest success rates could exaggerate perceived effectiveness, particularly for treatments with widely varying published success rates such as radiofrequency catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation.

Methods And Results: We systematically identified observational studies and clinical trials of radiofrequency catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation between 1990 and 2012. Generalized Poisson regression was used to estimate association between study success rate and total citation count, adjusting for sample size, journal impact factor, time since publication, study design, and whether first or last author was a consensus-defined pre-eminent expert.

Provider knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding Lyme disease in Arkansas.

Lyme disease (LD), a vector-borne disease, causes illness for many individuals in the United States. All of the conditions for the promulgation of LD are present in one Southern state in the United States; yet this state reports lower numbers of LD than adjacent states. The purpose of this study was to determine associations between this Southern state's primary care providers' knowledge and attitudes regarding the diagnosis and reporting of LD.

Bayesian immunological model development from the literature: example investigation of recent thymic emigrants.

Bayesian estimation techniques offer a systematic and quantitative approach for synthesizing data drawn from the literature to model immunological systems. As detailed here, the practitioner begins with a theoretical model and then sequentially draws information from source data sets and/or published findings to inform estimation of model parameters. Options are available to weigh these various sources of information differentially per objective measures of their corresponding scientific strengths.

Increased mortality associated with digoxin in contemporary patients with atrial fibrillation: findings from the TREAT-AF study.

Background: Despite endorsement of digoxin in clinical practice guidelines, there exist limited data on its safety in atrial fibrillation/flutter (AF).

Objectives: The goal of this study was to evaluate the association of digoxin with mortality in AF.

Methods: Using complete data of the TREAT-AF (The Retrospective Evaluation and Assessment of Therapies in AF) study from the U.

Comparison of hip geometry, strength, and estimated fracture risk in women with anorexia nervosa and overweight/obese women.

Context: Data suggest that anorexia nervosa (AN) and obesity are complicated by elevated fracture risk, but skeletal site-specific data are lacking. Traditional bone mineral density (BMD) measurements are unsatisfactory at both weight extremes. Hip structural analysis (HSA) uses dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry data to estimate hip geometry and femoral strength.

A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of quetiapine in patients with bipolar disorder, mixed or depressed phase, and alcohol dependence.

Background: Alcohol dependence is common in bipolar disorder (BPD) and associated with treatment nonadherence, violence, and hospitalization. Quetiapine is a standard treatment for BPD. We previously reported improvement in depressive symptoms, but not alcohol use, with quetiapine in BPD and alcohol dependence.

Measurements of four-lepton production at the Z resonance in pp collisions at sqrt[s] = 7 and 8 TeV with ATLAS.

Measurements of four-lepton (4ℓ, ℓ=e,μ) production cross sections at the Z resonance in pp collisions at the LHC with the ATLAS detector are presented. For dilepton and four-lepton invariant mass regions m(ℓ+ℓ(-)) > 5 GeV and 80 View Article and Find Full Text PDF

A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of pregnenolone for bipolar depression.

Depression in bipolar disorder (BPD) is challenging to treat. Therefore, additional medication options are needed. In the current report, the effect of the neurosteroid pregnenolone on depressive symptoms in BPD was examined.

Clinical impact of biopsy method on the quality of surgical management in melanoma.

Background And Objectives: Though guidelines recommend excisional biopsy for diagnosing melanoma, partial biopsy techniques are commonly performed, risking underestimation of Breslow depth and altering surgical management. Biopsy choice patterns by specialty and subsequent impact on surgical management was examined.

Methods: Retrospective review of the University of Vermont Cancer Registry.

Transcriptional regulation of Munc13-4 expression in cytotoxic lymphocytes is disrupted by an intronic mutation associated with a primary immunodeficiency.

Autosomal recessive mutations in UNC13D, the gene that encodes Munc13-4, are associated with familial hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis type 3 (FHL3). Munc13-4 expression is obligatory for exocytosis of lytic granules, facilitating cytotoxicity by T cells and natural killer (NK) cells. The mechanisms regulating Munc13-4 expression are unknown.

Distinct cross-reactive B-cell responses to live attenuated and inactivated influenza vaccines.

Background: The immunological bases for the efficacies of the 2 currently licensed influenza vaccines, live attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV) and inactivated influenza vaccine (IIV), are not fully understood. The goal of this study was to identify specific B-cell responses correlated with the known efficacies of these 2 vaccines.

Methods: We compared the B-cell and antibody responses after immunization with 2010/2011 IIV or LAIV in young adults, focusing on peripheral plasmablasts 6-8 days after vaccination.

Immune profiling of pregnant Toxoplasma-infected US and Colombia patients reveals surprising impacts of infection on peripheral blood cytokines.

In North America (NA) and Europe, the majority of toxoplasmosis cases are benign and generally asymptomatic, whereas in South America (SA) toxoplasmosis is associated with much more severe symptoms in adults and congenitally infected children. The reasons for these differences remain unknown; currently, there is little information from patients in either region on how the immune system responds to infection with Toxoplasma gondii. Here, we report the relative abundance of 51 serum cytokines from acute and chronic toxoplasmosis cohorts of pregnant women from the United States, where approximately one-half of clinical isolates are Type II, and Colombia, where clinical isolates are generally "atypical" or Type I-like strains.

Search for quantum black hole production in high-invariant-mass lepton+jet final states using pp collisions at √s=8 TeV and the ATLAS detector.

This Letter presents a search for quantum black-hole production using 20.3 fb-1 of data collected with the ATLAS detector in pp collisions at the LHC at √s = 8 TeV. The quantum black holes are assumed to decay into a final state characterized by a lepton (electron or muon) and a jet.

Quantitative diet analysis of four mesopredators from a coral reef.

The diets of four common mesopredator fishes were examined in the back-reef habitat of a subtropical fringing reef system during the summer months. Quantitative gut content analyses revealed that crustaceans, represented >60% of ingested prey (% mass) by the latticed sand-perch Parapercis clathrata, brown dottyback Pseudochromis fuscus and half-moon grouper Epinephelus rivulatus. Dietary analyses also provided insights into ontogenetic shifts.

Search for dark matter in events with a hadronically decaying W or Z boson and missing transverse momentum in pp collisions at √s=8 TeV with the ATLAS detector.

A search is presented for dark matter pair production in association with a W or Z boson in pp collisions representing 20.3  fb(-1) of integrated luminosity at √s=8  TeV using data recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Events with a hadronic jet with the jet mass consistent with a W or Z boson, and with large missing transverse momentum are analyzed.

Economic and physical determinants of the global distributions of crop pests and pathogens.

Crop pests and pathogens pose a significant and growing threat to food security, but their geographical distributions are poorly understood. We present a global analysis of pest and pathogen distributions, to determine the roles of socioeconomic and biophysical factors in determining pest diversity, controlling for variation in observational capacity among countries. Known distributions of 1901 pests and pathogens were obtained from CABI.

GSK-3β inhibition promotes early engraftment of ex vivo-expanded haematopoietic stem cells.

Objectives: Umbilical cord blood (UCB) is a source of stem cells used for allogeneic transplantation, in addition to bone marrow and peripheral blood. Limited numbers of stem cells in a single UCB unit is associated with slow haematopoietic recovery and high risk of graft failure, particularly in adult patients. UCB stem cells can be expanded ex vivo; however, rapid differentiation reduces their regenerative potential.