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X-ray flares in early GRB afterglows.
Burrows, D N; Falcone, A; Chincarini, G; Morris, D; Romano, P; Hill, J E; Godet, O; Moretti, A; Krimm, H; Osborne, J P; Racusin, J; Mangano, V; Page, K; Perri, M; Stroh, M
The Swift X-ray Telescope (XRT) has discovered that flares are quite common in early X-ray afterglows of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), being observed in roughly 50% of afterglows with prompt follow-up observations. The flares range in fluence from a few per cent to approximately 100% of the fluence of the prompt emission (the GRB). Repetitive flares are seen, with more than four successive flares detected by the XRT in some afterglows. The rise and fall times of the flares are typically considerably smaller than the time since the burst. These characteristics suggest that the flares are related to the prompt emission mechanism, but at lower photon energies. We conclude that the most likely cause of these flares is late-time activity of the GRB central engine.
Andic, A.; McAteer, R. T. J.
The processes governing energy storage and release in the Sun are both related to the solar magnetic field. We demonstrate the existence of a magnetic connection between the energy released by a flare and increased oscillatory power in the lower solar atmosphere. The oscillatory power in active regions tends to increase in response to explosive events at other locations, but not in the active region itself. We carry out timing studies and show that this effect is probably caused by a large-scale magnetic connection between the regions, instead of a globally-propagating wave. We show that oscillations tend to exist in longer-lived wave trains with short periods (P < 200 s) at the time of a flare. These wave trains may be mechanisms by which flare energy can be redistributed throughout the solar atmosphere.
Predicting the Response of the Mars Ionosphere to Solar Flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Fallows, K.; Withers, P.; Gonzalez, G.
The increased soft X-ray irradiance during solar flares generates increased electron densities in the lower ionosphere of Mars. The relative changes in electron density during a flare are greater for larger flares and also at lower altitudes and larger flares, due to the wavelength dependence of both the flux increase during the flare and the absorption of flux by the neutral atmosphere. These relationships have been explored [Bougher et al. 2001, Fox et al. 2004, Mendillo et al. 2006, Mahajan et al. 2011, Lollo et al. 2012] but not quantified, which has impeded the validation of simulations of the ionospheric effects of solar flares. Such simulations are necessary for developing accurate descriptions of the physical processes governing ionospheric behavior under extreme conditions. We present a response function, a mathematical expression for the change in electron density during a solar flare as a function of the change in solar flux and an optical depth proxy. This response function is based on analysis of 20 Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) radio occultation electron density profiles measured during solar flares. Characterizing the response as a function of optical depth, rather than altitude, provides the best description of ionospheric variability during a flare; otherwise non-negligible solar zenith angle effects are present. We demonstrate that the response function can be used to predict ionospheric electron densities during a specified solar flare by reproducing profiles known to be disturbed by a solar flare. We also demonstrate that the response function can be used to infer the strength of solar flares not visible at Earth by finding the flux enhancement required to reproduce an apparently flare affected profile given an undisturbed profile on the same date.
Flare Ribbons In The Early Phase Of An SDO Flare: Emission Measure And Energetics
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Fletcher, Lyndsay; Hannah, I. G.; Hudson, H. S.; Innes, D. E.
We report on the M1.0 flare of 7th August 2010, which displayed extended early phase chromospheric ribbons, well observed by SDO/AIA and RHESSI. Most large flares saturate rapidly in the high-temperature AIA channels, however this event could be followed in unsaturated AIA images for ten minutes in the build-up to and first few minutes of the impulsive phase. Analysis of GOES, RHESSI and SDO/AIA demonstrates the presence of high temperature ( 10MK), compact plasma volumes in the chromospheric flare ribbons, with a column emission measure of on average 3-7 x 1028 cm-5. We construct a time-resolved energy budget for the ribbon plasma, including also SDO/EVE data, and discuss the implications of the observed ribbon properties for flare energisation. This work was supported by the UK's Science and Technology Facilities Council (ST/1001801), and by the European Commission through the FP7 HESPE project (FP7-2010-SPACE-263086).
Fletcher, L.; Hannah, I. G.; Hudson, H. S.; Innes, D. E.
The sites of chromospheric excitation during solar flares are marked by extended extreme ultraviolet ribbons and hard X-ray (HXR) footpoints. The standard interpretation is that these are the result of heating and bremsstrahlung emission from non-thermal electrons precipitating from the corona. We examine this picture using multi-wavelength observations of the early phase of an M-class flare SOL2010-08-07T18:24. We aim to determine the properties of the heated plasma in the flare ribbons, and to understand the partition of the power input into radiative and conductive losses. Using GOES, SDO/EVE, SDO/AIA, and RHESSI, we measure the temperature, emission measure (EM), and differential emission measure of the flare ribbons, and deduce approximate density values. The non-thermal EM, and the collisional thick target energy input to the ribbons are obtained from RHESSI using standard methods. We deduce the existence of a substantial amount of plasma at 10 MK in the flare ribbons, during the pre-impulsive and early-impulsive phase of the flare. The average column EM of this hot component is a few times 10{sup 28} cm{sup -5}, and we can calculate that its predicted conductive losses dominate its measured radiative losses. If the power input to the hot ribbon plasma is due to collisional energy deposition by an electron beam from the corona then a low-energy cutoff of {approx}5 keV is necessary to balance the conductive losses, implying a very large electron energy content. Independent of the standard collisional thick-target electron beam interpretation, the observed non-thermal X-rays can be provided if one electron in 10{sup 3}-10{sup 4} in the 10 MK (1 keV) ribbon plasma has an energy above 10 keV. We speculate that this could arise if a non-thermal tail is generated in the ribbon plasma which is being heated by other means, for example, by waves or turbulence.
Models of the Solar Atmospheric Response to Flare Heating
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Allred, Joel
I will present models of the solar atmospheric response to flare heating. The models solve the equations of non-LTE radiation hydrodynamics with an electron beam added as a flare energy source term. Radiative transfer is solved in detail for many important optically thick hydrogen and helium transitions and numerous optically thin EUV lines making the models ideally suited to study the emission that is produced during flares. I will pay special attention to understanding key EUV lines as well the mechanism for white light production. I will also present preliminary results of how the model solar atmosphere responds to Fletcher & Hudson type flare heating. I will compare this with the results from flare simulations using the standard thick target model.
Olopatadine hydrochloride inhibits capsaicin-induced flare response in humans.
Shindo, Masahisa; Yoshida, Yuichi; Yamamoto, Osamu
Capsaicin, a vanilloid, has the potential for releasing substance P (SP) from sensory nerves. Topical application of capsaicin induces a flare response in the skin. However, it has not been clarified whether the release of SP is involved in the process of flare response or not. A potent antihistamine drug, olopatadine hydrochloride, is known to have inhibitory action against the release of SP. We examined the effects of olopatadine (at a dose of 5 mg) on skin reaction induced by topical application of capsaicin in 10 healthy subjects. The scores of capsaicin-induced flare responses after olopatadine administration were significantly lower at 30 min than at baseline. Our findings suggest that olopatadine hydrochloride could inhibit capsaicin-induced flare responses.
Variability of Thermosphere and Ionosphere Responses to Solar Flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Qian, Liying; Burns, Alan G.; Chamberlin, Philip C.; Solomon, Stanley C.
We investigated how the rise rate and decay rate of solar flares affect the thermosphere and ionosphere responses to them. Model simulations and data analysis were conducted for two flares of similar magnitude (X6.2 and X5.4) that had the same location on the solar limb, but the X6.2 flare had longer rise and decay times. Simulated total electron content (TEC) enhancements from the X6.2 and X5.4 flares were 6 total electron content units (TECU) and approximately 2 TECU, and the simulated neutral density enhancements were approximately 15% -20% and approximately 5%, respectively, in reasonable agreement with observations. Additional model simulations showed that for idealized flares with the same magnitude and location, the thermosphere and ionosphere responses changed significantly as a function of rise and decay rates. The Neupert Effect, which predicts that a faster flare rise rate leads to a larger EUV enhancement during the impulsive phase, caused a larger maximum ion production enhancement. In addition, model simulations showed that increased E x B plasma transport due to conductivity increases during the flares caused a significant equatorial anomaly feature in the electron density enhancement in the F region but a relatively weaker equatorial anomaly feature in TEC enhancement, owing to dominant contributions by photochemical production and loss processes. The latitude dependence of the thermosphere response correlated well with the solar zenith angle effect, whereas the latitude dependence of the ionosphere response was more complex, owing to plasma transport and the winter anomaly.
Nonthermal X-ray Spectral Flattening toward Low Energies in Early Impulsive Flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Holman, Gordon D.
The determination of the low-energy cutoff to nonthermal electron distributions is critical to the calculation of the nonthermal energy in solar flares. The most direct evidence for low-energy cutoffs is flattening of the power-law, nontherma1 X-ray spectra at low energies. However, because of the plasma preheating often seen in flares, the thermal emissions at low energies may hide such spectral flattening of the nonthermal component. We select a category of flares, which we call "early impulsive flares", in which the > 25 keV hard X-ray (HXR) flux increase is delayed by less than 30 s after the flux increase at lower energies. Thus, the plasma preheating in these flares is minimal, so the nonthermal spectrum can be determined to lower energies than in flares with significant preheating. Out of a sample of 33 early impulsive flares observed by the Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopy Imager (RHESSI), 9 showed spectral flattening toward low energies. In these events, the break energy of the double power-law fit to the HXR spectra lies in the range of 10-50 keV, significantly lower than the value we have seen for other flares that do not show such early impulsive emissions. In particular, it correlates with the HXR flux. After correcting the spatially-integrated spectra for albedo from isotropically emitted X-rays and using RHESSI imaging spectroscopy to exclude the extended albedo halo, we find that albedo associated with isotropic or nearly isotropic electrons can only account for the spectral flattening in 3 flares near Sun center. The spectral flattening in the remaining 6 flares is found to be consistent with the existence of a low-energy cutoff in the electron spectrum, falling in the range of 15-50 keV, which also correlates with the HXR flux.
Spectral response of the solar atmosphere to an X-class flare event
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Lacatus, Daniela Adriana; Donea, Alina
The only X-class flare of 2015 observed by IRIS occurred at 16:22 UT on 11 March 2015, in AR 12297. This flare generated significant seismic transients in the photosphere at the eastern location of the flare. IRIS observations of the chromosphere and transition region help us understand the physics of the sunquake. In this work we will analyse this event using data from IRIS, SDO, and RHESSI. The IRIS rasters scanned the area between the main footpoints of the solar flare, and a wealth of chromospheric information has been inferred about the dynamics of the event. The main X-ray emission dominates the eastern flare footpoint, being missed by the IRIS slit. Significant enhancements in the chromospheric and TR lines intensities were identified. The forbidden line of Fe XXI 1354.1 Å is detected after the flare peak revealing the coronal responses to the flare. Plasma downflows of up to 300 km/s were identified in the majority of the observed lines, consistent with magnetic field local reconfiguration. We have also analysed an erupting filament developing at an earlier time, which moved rapidly towards the eastern part of the active region. We discuss the possibility that this filament might have pre-conditioned the chromosphere for the flare process.
Where is the chromospheric response to conductive energy input from a hot pre-flare coronal loop?
Battaglia, Marina; Fletcher, Lyndsay; Simões, Paulo J. A.
Before the onset of a flare is observed in hard X-rays, there is often a prolonged pre-flare or pre-heating phase with no detectable hard X-ray emission but pronounced soft X-ray emission, which suggests that energy is already being released and deposited into the corona and chromosphere at this stage. This work analyzes the temporal evolution of coronal source heating and the chromospheric response during this pre-heating phase to investigate the origin and nature of early energy release and transport during a solar flare. Simultaneous X-ray, EUV, and microwave observations of a well-observed flare with a prolonged pre-heating phase are analyzed to study the time evolution of the thermal emission and to determine the onset of particle acceleration. During the 20 minute duration of the pre-heating phase we find no hint of accelerated electrons in either hard X-rays or microwave emission. However, the total energy budget during the pre-heating phase suggests that energy must be supplied to the flaring loop to sustain the observed temperature and emission measure. Under the assumption of this energy being transported toward the chromosphere via thermal conduction, significant energy deposition at the chromosphere is expected. However, no detectable increase of the emission in the AIA wavelength channels sensitive to chromospheric temperatures is observed. The observations suggest energy release and deposition in the flaring loop before the onset of particle acceleration, yet a model in which energy is conducted to the chromosphere and subsequent heating of the chromosphere is not supported by the observations.
Li Liang; Liang Enwei; Tang Qingwen; Chen Jiemin; Xi Shaoqiang; Zhang Bing; Lu Ruijing; Lue Lianzhong; Lue Houjun; Gao He; Zhang Jin; Wei Jianyan; Yi Shuangxi E-mail: email@example.com
Well-sampled optical light curves of 146 gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are compiled from the literature. By empirical fitting, we identify eight possible emission components and summarize the results in a 'synthetic' light curve. Both optical flare and early shallow-decay components are likely related to long-term central engine activities. We focus on their statistical properties in this paper. Twenty-four optical flares are obtained from 19 GRBs. The isotropic R-band energy is smaller than 1% of E{sub {gamma},iso}. The relation between the isotropic luminosities of the flares and gamma rays follows L{sup F}{sub R,iso}{proportional_to}L {sup 1.11{+-}0.27}{sub {gamma},iso}. Later flares tend to be wider and dimmer, i.e., w{sup F} {approx} t{sup F}{sub p}/2 and L{sup F}{sub R,iso}{proportional_to}[t{sup F}{sub p}/(1 + z)]{sup -1.15{+-}0.15}. The detection probability of the optical flares is much smaller than that of X-ray flares. An optical shallow-decay segment is observed in 39 GRBs. The relation between the break time and break luminosity is a power law, with an index of -0.78 {+-} 0.08, similar to that derived from X-ray flares. The X-ray and optical breaks are usually chromatic, but a tentative correlation is found. We suggest that similar to the prompt optical emission that tracks {gamma}-rays, the optical flares are also related to the erratic behavior of the central engine. The shallow-decay component is likely related to a long-lasting spinning-down central engine or piling up of flare materials onto the blast wave. Mixing of different emission components may be the reason for the diverse chromatic afterglow behaviors.
The Atmospheric Response to High Nonthermal Electron Beam Fluxes in Solar Flares. I. Modeling the Brightest NUV Footpoints in the X1 Solar Flare of 2014 March 29
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kowalski, Adam F.; Allred, Joel C.; Daw, Adrian; Cauzzi, Gianna; Carlsson, Mats
The 2014 March 29 X1 solar flare (SOL20140329T17:48) produced bright continuum emission in the far- and near-ultraviolet (NUV) and highly asymmetric chromospheric emission lines, providing long-sought constraints on the heating mechanisms of the lower atmosphere in solar flares. We analyze the continuum and emission line data from the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS) of the brightest flaring magnetic footpoints in this flare. We compare the NUV spectra of the brightest pixels to new radiative-hydrodynamic predictions calculated with the RADYN code using constraints on a nonthermal electron beam inferred from the collisional thick-target modeling of hard X-ray data from Reuven Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager. We show that the atmospheric response to a high beam flux density satisfactorily achieves the observed continuum brightness in the NUV. The NUV continuum emission in this flare is consistent with hydrogen (Balmer) recombination radiation that originates from low optical depth in a dense chromospheric condensation and from the stationary beam-heated layers just below the condensation. A model producing two flaring regions (a condensation and stationary layers) in the lower atmosphere is also consistent with the asymmetric Fe ii chromospheric emission line profiles observed in the impulsive phase.
Observations of X-ray and EUV fluxes during X-class solar flares and response of upper ionosphere
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Mahajan, K. K.; Lodhi, Neelesh K.; Upadhayaya, Arun K.
Most studies dealing with solar flare effects in the upper ionosphere, where ionization is caused by EUV photons, have been based upon X-ray fluxes measured by the SOLRAD and GOES series of satellites. To check the validity of such studies, we compare simultaneous observations of GOES X-ray fluxes and SOHO EUV fluxes for 10 X-class solar flares which occurred during the maximum phase of sunspot cycle 23. These include the greatest flare of 4 November 2003, the fourth greatest flare of 28 October 2003 and the 14 July 2000 Bastille Day flare. We find that the peak intensities of the X-ray and EUV fluxes for these flares are poorly correlated, and this poor correlation is again seen when larger data containing 70 X-class flares, which occurred during the period January 1996 to December 2006, are examined. However, this correlation improves vastly when the central meridian distance (CMD) of the flare location is taken into account. We also study the response of the upper ionosphere to these fluxes by using the midday total electron content (TEC), observed for these flares by Liu et al. (2006). We find that peak enhancement in TEC is highly correlated with peak enhancement in EUV flux. The correlation, though poor with the X-ray flux, improves greatly when the CMD of flare location is considered.
Study of the Influences of the Ionospheric Responses to the Solar Flares by the Solar Flare Characteristics
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Zhu, J.; Ridley, A. J.
Electron densities in the ionosphere increase during solar flares due to the sudden increase in the solar irradiance at soft X-ray and extreme ultraviolet wavelengths. In this study, we perform simulations for a list of solar flares with different classes and locations on the solar disk (center-to-limb variations) using the Global Ionosphere and Thermosphere Model (GITM). First, we make an analysis of magnitudes and distribution of the TEC perturbations due to different solar flares. Solar flares occurring in different seasons are chosen from the list in order to examine how perturbations of electron densities depend on altitudes (E and F regions), latitudes (seasonal variations) and longitudes (sunrise, dayside and sunset), as well as the time dependences of the increasing and decaying of the electron densities around the flares. Also, we investigate the TEC data by the global GPS network from the Madrigal database for the solar flares on the list, determining the characteristics of solar flare that would allow them to be detected by the ground-based GPS observations. The TEC data by GPS and by GITM are compared to determine how well the modeling and observations match each other during different solar flares.
Terrestrial Response to Eruptive Solar Flares: Geomagnetic Storms
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Tsurutani, Bruce T.
During the interval of August 1979 - December 1979, 56 unambiguous fast forward shocks were identified using magnetic field and plasma data collected by the ISEE-3 spacecraft. Because this interval is a solar maximum we assume the streams causing these shocks are associated with coronal mass ejections and eruptive solar flares. For these shocks we shall describe the shock-storm relationship for the level of intense storms (Dst < -100 nT). Then, we will discuss the interplanetary structures that are associated with the large-amplitude and long-duration negative Bz fields, which are found in the sheath field and/or driver gas regions of the shock and are thought to be the main cause of the intense storms.
The Discovery of an X-Ray/UV Stellar Flare from the Late-K/Early-M Dwarf LMC 335
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Tsang, B. T. H.; Pun, C. S. J.; Di Stefano, R.; Li, K. L.; Kong, A. K. H.
We report the discovery of an X-ray/UV stellar flare from the source LMC 335, captured by XMM-Newton in the field of the Large Magellanic Cloud. The flare event was recorded continuously in X-ray for its first 10 hr from the precursor to the late decay phases. The observed fluxes increased by more than two orders of magnitude at its peak in X-ray and at least one in the UV as compared to quiescence. The peak 0.1-7.0 keV X-ray flux is derived from the two-temperature APEC model to be ~(8.4 ± 0.6) × 10-12 erg cm-2 s-1. Combining astrometric information from multiple X-ray observations in the quiescent and flare states, we identify the NIR counterpart of LMC 335 as the Two Micron All Sky Survey source J05414534-6921512. The NIR color relations and spectroscopic parallax characterize the source as a Galactic K7-M4 dwarf at a foreground distance of (100-264) pc, implying a total energy output of the entire event of ~(0.4-2.9) × 1035 erg. This report comprises detailed analyses of this late-K/early-M dwarf flare event that has the longest time coverage yet reported in the literature. The flare decay can be modeled with two exponential components with timescales of ~28 minutes and ~4 hr, with a single-component decay firmly ruled out. The X-ray spectra during flare can be described by two components, a dominant high-temperature component of ~40-60 MK and a low-temperature component of ~10 MK, with a flare loop length of about 1.1-1.3 stellar radius.
Benz, Arnold O
Solar flares are observed at all wavelengths from decameter radio waves to gamma-rays at 100 MeV. This review focuses on recent observations in EUV, soft and hard X-rays, white light, and radio waves. Space missions such as RHESSI, Yohkoh, TRACE, and SOHO have enlarged widely the observational base. They have revealed a number of surprises: Coronal sources appear before the hard X-ray emission in chromospheric footpoints, major flare acceleration sites appear to be independent of coronal mass ejections (CMEs), electrons, and ions may be accelerated at different sites, there are at least 3 different magnetic topologies, and basic characteristics vary from small to large flares. Recent progress also includes improved insights into the flare energy partition, on the location(s) of energy release, tests of energy release scenarios and particle acceleration. The interplay of observations with theory is important to deduce the geometry and to disentangle the various processes involved. There is increasing evidence supporting reconnection of magnetic field lines as the basic cause. While this process has become generally accepted as the trigger, it is still controversial how it converts a considerable fraction of the energy into non-thermal particles. Flare-like processes may be responsible for large-scale restructuring of the magnetic field in the corona as well as for its heating. Large flares influence interplanetary space and substantially affect the Earth's lower ionosphere. While flare scenarios have slowly converged over the past decades, every new observation still reveals major unexpected results, demonstrating that solar flares, after 150 years since their discovery, remain a complex problem of astrophysics including major unsolved questions.
Early stages of solar flares - Current status of our understanding and opportunities for future observations
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Dennis, B. R.
Current models of the energy release and transport mechanisms occurring in solar flares are updated to include the input from data collected with the SMM satellite. The new data cover numerous solar flares observed in X-ray and gamma ray bands over a 6 yr period, combined with data from the Japanese Hinori satellite in 1981-82 and ground-based radio observations. The 300 keV gamma ray data have been instrumental in revealing a 152-158 day period in the frequency of solar flares. Recent analysis has indicated that the periodicity is connected to the rotational spectrum of g-modes in the sun. Other data have shown that hard X-rays are emitted from the footpoints and interactions among coronal magnetic loops, where electron acceleration processes occur that are not well understood. The footpoint emission appear in impulsive events, while the interaction emissions are connected with gradual flares.
Effect of early coronal flaring on working length change in curved canals using rotary nickel-titanium versus stainless steel instruments.
Davis, R Dean; Marshall, J Gordon; Baumgartner, J Craig
This in vitro investigation examined pre- and postinstrumentation working length (WL) measurements in curved root canals. The conditions compared were combinations of (a) stainless steel hand files + Gates Glidden drills (SS) versus nickel-titanium rotary files (Ni-Ti); and (b) early coronal flaring (flaring completed before WL determination) versus late coronal flaring (flaring completed after WL determination). Coronal flaring was accomplished for the SS group using Gates Glidden drills and for the Ni-Ti group using rotary Ni-Ti files (n = 15/group). WL was determined before coronal flaring, immediately after coronal flaring, and again after canal preparation. Results indicated that WL decreased for all canals as a result of canal preparation. The mean decrease in WL was significantly greater for the SS group (-0.48 mm +/- 0.32) than for the Ni-Ti group (-0.22 mm +/- 0.26). Less change in WL occurred in both groups when initial WL was determined after coronal flaring (SS: -0.12 mm +/- 0.13, Ni-Ti: -0.14 mm +/- 0.25).
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Schmahl, Edward J.; Kundu, Mukul R.
During the past year we have been working with the HESSI (High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager) team in preparation for launch in early 2001. HESSI has as its primary scientific goal photometric imaging and spectroscopy of solar flares in hard X-rays and gamma-rays with an approx. 2 sec angular resolution, approx. keV energy resolution and approx. 2 s time resolution over the 6 keV to 15 MeV energy range. We have performed tests of the imager using a specially designed experiment which exploits the second-harmonic response of HESSI's sub-collimators to an artificial X-ray source at a distance of 1550 cm from its front grids. Figures show the response to X-rays at energies in the range where HESSI is expected to image solar flares. To prepare the team and the solar user community for imaging flares with HESSI, we have written a description of the major imaging concepts. This paper will be submitted for publication in a referred journal.
Observation of Sudden Ionospheric Disturbances over Istanbul in Response to X-Ray Flare Events
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Ceren Kalafatoglu Eyiguler, Emine; Kaymaz, Zerefsan; Ceren Moral, Aysegul
Sudden ionospheric disturbances (SID) are the enhanced electron density structures in the D region ionosphere which occur in response to the increase in X-ray flares and EUV flux. SIDs can be monitored using Very Low Frequency (VLF) radio signals (3-30 kHz) which travel between the D-region and the surface of the Earth. In this study, we use SID monitors obtained from the Stanford University Solar Center and two antennas which were built at the Istanbul Technical University to track the ionospheric disturbances in the VLF range. Our antennas are capable of capturing signals from several VLF transmitting stations. In this work, we focus on the variations in the signal strength of the closest VLF transmitting station 'TBB' which is operating at 26.7 kHz frequency at BAFA, Turkey (37.43N, 27.15E). We present ITU SID observations from both antennas; show the daily variation, general structure and the typical patterns we observe as well as case studies of significant events. Our initial analysis shows close relationship between observed X-ray flares from geosynchronous GOES 13 and GOES 15 satellites and VLF station signal strength received by the monitors.
Harra, Louise K.; Matthews, Sarah; Culhane, J. L.; Cheung, Mark C. M.; Hara, Hirohisa
Non-thermal velocity measurements of the solar atmosphere, particularly from UV and X-ray emission lines have demonstrated over the decades that this parameter is important in understanding the triggering of solar flares. Enhancements have often been observed before intensity enhancements are seen. However, until the launch of Hinode, it has been difficult to determine the spatial location of the enhancements to better understand the source region. The Hinode EUV Imaging Spectrometer has the spectral and spatial resolution to allow us to probe the early stages of flares in detail. We analyze four events, all of which are GOES M- or X-classification flares, and all are located toward the limb for ease of flare geometry interpretation. Three of the flares were eruptive and one was confined. In all events, pre-flare enhancement in non-thermal velocity at the base of the active region and its surroundings has been found. These enhancements seem to be consistent with the footpoints of the dimming regions, and hence may be highlighting the activation of a coronal flux rope for the three eruptive events. In addition, pre-flare enhancements in non-thermal velocity were found above the looptops for the three eruptive events.
Martian upper atmosphere response to solar EUV flux and soft X-ray flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Jain, Sonal; Stewart, Ian; Schneider, Nicholas M.; Deighan, Justin; Stiepen, Arnaud; Evans, J. Scott; Stevens, Michael H.; Chaffin, Michael S.; Crismani, Matteo; McClintock, William; Montmessin, Franck; Thiemann, E. M.; Eparvier, Frank; Chamberlin, Phillip C.; Jacosky, Bruce
Planetary upper atmosphere energetics is mainly governed by absorption of solar extreme ultraviolet (EUV) radiation. Understanding the response of planetary upper atmosphere to the daily, long and short term variation in solar flux is very important to quantify energy budget of upper atmosphere. We report a comprehensive study of Mars dayglow observations made by the IUVS instrument aboard the MAVEN spacecraft, focusing on upper atmospheric response to solar EUV flux. Our analysis shows both short and long term effect of solar EUV flux on Martian thermospheric temperature. We find a significant drop (> 100 K) in thermospheric temperature between Ls = 218° and Ls = 140°, attributed primarily to the decrease in solar activity and increase in heliocentric distance. IUVS has observed response of Martian thermosphere to the 27-day solar flux variation due to solar rotation.We also report effect of two solar flare events (19 Oct. 2014 and 24 March 2015) on Martian dayglow observations. IUVS observed about ~25% increase in observed brightness of major ultraviolet dayglow emissions below 120 km, where most of the high energy photons (< 10 nm) deposit their energy. The results presented in this talk will help us better understand the role of EUV flux in total heat budget of Martian thermosphere.
Forecasting the Ionosphere Response to Solar Flares from Satellite Measurements of X-ray and EUV Flux
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Fallen, C. T.; Bristow, W. A.; Nicolls, M. J.; Viereck, R. A.
An X4.9-class solar flare occurred at approximately 01:00 hours UTC on 25 February 2014 causing widespread dayside blackouts of HF communication and radar, including SuperDARN. Nearly complete disruption persisted for about 10 minutes. The UHF Poker Flat Incoherent Scatter Radar (PFISR) measured significant plasma density enhancements in the D, E, and lower F regions during the flare event which occurred during PFISR Ion Neutral Observations of the Thermosphere (PINOT) campaign measurements. In this case study, X-ray flux measurements from the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES-15) were used with the Self Consistent Ionosphere Model (SCIM) to calculate the ionosphere plasma density, temperature, and composition response over Poker Flat, Alaska. Under the assumption that the flare X-ray flux enhancement was confined to GOES-measured X-ray wavelengths between 0.05 and 0.8 nm, the calculated ionosphere plasma density perturbation above Poker Flat was restricted to the D region, contrary to the ISR measurements which in addition showed significant E- and lower F-region electron density enhancements. Incorporating measurements into the model from the GOES-15 and Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) extreme ultraviolet (EUV) sensors covering spectral bands between 5 and 36 nm improves the agreement between the modeled electron densities and its measurements but is not entirely sufficient, particularly in upper E and lower F regions. Increasing the model soft X-ray energy flux in the 0.8 to 2.3 nm wavelength band by two orders of magnitude, consistent with TIMED-SEE measurement surveys of previous X-class flares, brings the calculated ionosphere response to good agreement with PFISR measurements. Finally, PFISR measurements made during the 7 January 2014 X1-class solar flare are shown that demonstrate some X-class flares produce only moderate electron density enhancements in the D and lower E regions, but not the upper E and lower F regions. This
Solar Flares: Magnetohydrodynamic Processes
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Shibata, Kazunari; Magara, Tetsuya
This paper outlines the current understanding of solar flares, mainly focused on magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) processes responsible for producing a flare. Observations show that flares are one of the most explosive phenomena in the atmosphere of the Sun, releasing a huge amount of energy up to about 1032 erg on the timescale of hours. Flares involve the heating of plasma, mass ejection, and particle acceleration that generates high-energy particles. The key physical processes for producing a flare are: the emergence of magnetic field from the solar interior to the solar atmosphere (flux emergence), local enhancement of electric current in the corona (formation of a current sheet), and rapid dissipation of electric current (magnetic reconnection) that causes shock heating, mass ejection, and particle acceleration. The evolution toward the onset of a flare is rather quasi-static when free energy is accumulated in the form of coronal electric current (field-aligned current, more precisely), while the dissipation of coronal current proceeds rapidly, producing various dynamic events that affect lower atmospheres such as the chromosphere and photosphere. Flares manifest such rapid dissipation of coronal current, and their theoretical modeling has been developed in accordance with observations, in which numerical simulations proved to be a strong tool reproducing the time-dependent, nonlinear evolution of a flare. We review the models proposed to explain the physical mechanism of flares, giving an comprehensive explanation of the key processes mentioned above. We start with basic properties of flares, then go into the details of energy build-up, release and transport in flares where magnetic reconnection works as the central engine to produce a flare.
Modeling High Resolution Flare Spectra Using Hydrodynamic Simulations
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Warren, Harry; Doschek, G.
Understanding the hydrodynamic response of the solar atmosphere to the release of energy during a flare has been a long standing problem in solar physics. Early time-dependent hydrodynamic simulations were able to reproduce the high temperatures and densities observed in solar flares, but were not able to model the observations in any detail. For example, these simulations could not account for the relatively slow decay of the observed emission or the absence of blueshifts in high spectral resolution line profiles at flare onset. We have found that by representing the flare as a succession of independently heated filaments it is possible to reproduce both the evolution of line intensity and the shape of the line profile using hydrodynamic simulations. Here we present detailed comparisons between our simulation results and several flares observed with the Yohkoh Bragg Crystal Spectrometer (BCS). Comparisons with 3D MHD simulations will also be discussed.
Early Results from a Multi-Thermal Model for the Cooling of Post-Flare Loops
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Reeves, K. K.; Warren, H. P.
We have developed a multi-thermal model for the cooling of post-flare loops. The model consists of an arcade of many nested loops that reconnect and begin cooling at slightly different times, and have different cooling profiles because of the different loop lengths across the arcade. Cooling due to both conductive and radiative processes is taken into account. The free parameters in the model include initial temperature and density in the loop, loop width and the initial loop length. The results from the model are then compared to TRACE and SXT observations. Our many-loop model does a much better job of predicting the SXT and TRACE light curves than a similar model with only one loop.
Sharykin, I. N.; Kosovichev, A. G.
The solar flare on 2011 July 30 was of a modest X-ray class (M9.3), but it made a strong photospheric impact and produced a "sunquake," which was observed with the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager on board NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory. In addition to the helioseismic waves, the flare caused a large expanding area of white-light emission and was accompanied by the rapid formation of a sunspot structure in the flare region. The flare produced hard X-ray (HXR) emission less then 300 keV and no coronal mass ejection (CME). The absence of CME rules out magnetic rope eruption as a mechanism of helioseismic waves. The sunquake impact does not coincide with the strongest HXR source, which contradicts the standard beam-driven mechanism of sunquake generation. We discuss the connectivity of the flare energy release with the electric currents dynamics and show the potential importance of high-speed plasma flows in the lower solar atmosphere during the flare energy release.
Dynamics of Electric Currents, Magnetic Field Topology, and Helioseismic Response of a Solar Flare
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Sharykin, I. N.; Kosovichev, A. G.
The solar flare on 2011 July 30 was of a modest X-ray class (M9.3), but it made a strong photospheric impact and produced a "sunquake," which was observed with the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager on board NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory. In addition to the helioseismic waves, the flare caused a large expanding area of white-light emission and was accompanied by the rapid formation of a sunspot structure in the flare region. The flare produced hard X-ray (HXR) emission less then 300 keV and no coronal mass ejection (CME). The absence of CME rules out magnetic rope eruption as a mechanism of helioseismic waves. The sunquake impact does not coincide with the strongest HXR source, which contradicts the standard beam-driven mechanism of sunquake generation. We discuss the connectivity of the flare energy release with the electric currents dynamics and show the potential importance of high-speed plasma flows in the lower solar atmosphere during the flare energy release.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Zirin, H.
A review of the knowledge about solar flares which has been obtained through observations from the earth and from space by various methods. High-resolution cinematography is best carried out at H-alpha wavelengths to reveal the structure, time history, and location of flares. The classification flares in H alpha according to either physical or morphological criteria is discussed. The study of flare morphology, which shows where, when, and how flares occur, is important for evaluating theories of flares. Consideration is given to studies of flares by optical spectroscopy, radio emissions, and at X-ray and XUV wavelengths. Research has shown where and possibly why flares occur, but the physics of the instability involved, of the particle acceleration, and of the heating are still not understood.
Early detection and rapid response
Westbrooks, Randy G.; Eplee, Robert E.; Simberloff, Daniel; Rejmánek, Marcel
Prevention is the first line of defense against introduced invasive species - it is always preferable to prevent the introduction of new invaders into a region or country. However, it is not always possible to detect all alien hitchhikers imported in cargo, or to predict with any degree of certainty which introduced species will become invasive over time. Fortunately, the majority of introduced plants and animals don't become invasive. But, according to scientists at Cornell University, costs and losses due to species that do become invasive are now estimated to be over $137 billion/year in the United States. Early detection and rapid response (EDRR) is the second line of defense against introduced invasive species - EDRR is the preferred management strategy for preventing the establishment and spread of invasive species. Over the past 50 years, there has been a gradual shift away from large and medium scale federal/state single-agency-led weed eradication programs in the United States, to smaller interagency-led projects involving impacted and potential stakeholders. The importance of volunteer weed spotters in detecting and reporting suspected new invasive species has also been recognized in recent years.
The FLARE mission: deep and wide-field 1-5um imaging and spectroscopy for the early universe: a proposal for M5 cosmic vision call
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Burgarella, D.; Levacher, P.; Vives, S.; Dohlen, K.; Pascal, S.
FLARE (First Light And Reionization Explorer) is a space mission that will be submitted to ESA (M5 call). Its primary goal (~80% of lifetime) is to identify and study the universe before the end of the reionization at z > 6. A secondary objective (~20% of lifetime) is to survey star formation in the Milky Way. FLARE's strategy optimizes the science return: imaging and spectroscopic integral-field observations will be carried out simultaneously on two parallel focal planes and over very wide instantaneous fields of view. FLARE will help addressing two of ESA's Cosmic Vision themes: a) << How did the universe originate and what is it made of? » and b) « What are the conditions for planet formation and the emergence of life? >> and more specifically, << From gas and dust to stars and planets >>. FLARE will provide to the ESA community a leading position to statistically study the early universe after JWST's deep but pin-hole surveys. Moreover, the instrumental development of wide-field imaging and wide-field integral-field spectroscopy in space will be a major breakthrough after making them available on ground-based telescopes.
The 26 December 2001 Solar Event Responsible for GLE63. I. Observations of a Major Long-Duration Flare with the Siberian Solar Radio Telescope
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Grechnev, V. V.; Kochanov, A. A.
Ground level enhancements (GLEs) of cosmic-ray intensity occur, on average, once a year. Because they are rare, studying the solar sources of GLEs is especially important to approach understanding their origin. The SOL2001-12-26 eruptive-flare event responsible for GLE63 seems to be challenging in some aspects. Deficient observations limited our understanding of it. Analysis of additional observations found for this event provided new results that shed light on the flare configuration and evolution. This article addresses the observations of this flare with the Siberian Solar Radio Telescope (SSRT). Taking advantage of its instrumental characteristics, we analyze the detailed SSRT observations of a major long-duration flare at 5.7 GHz without cleaning the images. The analysis confirms that the source of GLE63 was associated with an event in active region 9742 that comprised two flares. The first flare (04:30 - 05:03 UT) reached a GOES importance of about M1.6. Two microwave sources were observed, whose brightness temperatures at 5.7 GHz exceeded 10 MK. The main flare, up to an importance of M7.1, started at 05:04 UT and occurred in strong magnetic fields. The observed microwave sources reached a brightness temperature of about 250 MK. They were not static. After appearing on the weaker-field periphery of the active region, the microwave sources moved toward each other nearly along the magnetic neutral line, approaching the stronger-field core of the active region, and then moved away from the neutral line like expanding ribbons. These motions rule out an association of the non-thermal microwave sources with a single flaring loop.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Wu, S. T.; Dejager, C.; Dennis, B. R.; Hudson, H. S.; Simnett, G. M.; Strong, K. T.; Bentley, R. D.; Bornmann, P. L.; Bruner, M. E.; Cargill, P. J.
In this investigation of flare energetics, researchers sought to establish a comprehensive and self-consistent picture of the sources and transport of energy within a flare. To achieve this goal, they chose five flares in 1980 that were well observed with instruments on the Solar Maximum Mission, and with other space-borne and ground-based instruments. The events were chosen to represent various types of flares. Details of the observations available for them and the corresponding physical parameters derived from these data are presented. The flares were studied from two perspectives, the impulsive and gradual phases, and then the results were compared to obtain the overall picture of the energics of these flares. The role that modeling can play in estimating the total energy of a flare when the observationally determined parameters are used as the input to a numerical model is discussed. Finally, a critique of the current understanding of flare energetics and the methods used to determine various energetics terms is outlined, and possible future directions of research in this area are suggested.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Savage, Sabrina
Because the Earth resides in the atmosphere of our nearest stellar neighbor, events occurring on the Sun's surface directly affect us by interfering with satellite operations and communications, astronaut safety, and, in extreme circumstances, power grid stability. Solar flares, the most energetic events in our solar system, are a substantial source of hazardous space weather affecting our increasingly technology-dependent society. While flares have been observed using ground-based telescopes for over 150 years, modern space-bourne observatories have provided nearly continuous multi-wavelength flare coverage that cannot be obtained from the ground. We can now probe the origins and evolution of flares by tracking particle acceleration, changes in ionized plasma, and the reorganization of magnetic fields. I will walk through our current understanding of why flares occur and how they affect the Earth and also show several examples of these fantastic explosions.
Early and Late Responses to Ion Irradiation
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Schulte, Reinhard; Ling, Ted
Early and late responses to ion beam therapy (IBT) are the result of complex interactions between host, dose volume, and radiobiological factors. Our understanding of these early and late tissue responses has improved greatly with the accumulation of laboratory and clinical experience with proton and heavy ion irradiation. With photon therapy becoming increasingly conformal, many concepts developed for 3D conformal radiotherapy and intensity modulated radiation therapy with photons are also applicable to IBT. This chapter reviews basic concepts and experimental data of early and late tissue responses to protons and ions.
Global response of the low-latitude to midlatitude ionosphere due to the Bastille Day flare
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Huba, J. D.; Warren, H. P.; Joyce, G.; Pi, X.; Iijima, B.; Coker, C.
The first global simulation study and comparison to data of the ionospheric effects associated with the enhanced EUV irradiance of the Bastille Day flare are presented. This is done by incorporating a time-dependent EUV spectrum, based on data and hydrodynamic modeling, into the NRL ionosphere model SAMI3. The simulation results indicate that the total electron content (TEC) increases to over 7 TEC units in the daytime, low-latitude ionosphere. In addition, it is predicted that the maximum density in the F-layer (NmF2) increases by $\\lesssim$20% and that the height of the maximum electron density (HmF2) decreases by $\\lesssim$20%. These results are explained by the increased ionization at altitudes <400 km which increases TEC and NmF2 while decreasing HmF2. The results are in reasonably good agreement with data obtained from GPS satellites and the TOPEX satellite.
Combined Modeling of Acceleration, Transport, and Hydrodynamic Response in Solar Flares. 1; The Numerical Model
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Liu, Wei; Petrosian, Vahe; Mariska, John T.
Acceleration and transport of high-energy particles and fluid dynamics of atmospheric plasma are interrelated aspects of solar flares, but for convenience and simplicity they were artificially separated in the past. We present here self consistently combined Fokker-Planck modeling of particles and hydrodynamic simulation of flare plasma. Energetic electrons are modeled with the Stanford unified code of acceleration, transport, and radiation, while plasma is modeled with the Naval Research Laboratory flux tube code. We calculated the collisional heating rate directly from the particle transport code, which is more accurate than those in previous studies based on approximate analytical solutions. We repeated the simulation of Mariska et al. with an injection of power law, downward-beamed electrons using the new heating rate. For this case, a -10% difference was found from their old result. We also used a more realistic spectrum of injected electrons provided by the stochastic acceleration model, which has a smooth transition from a quasi-thermal background at low energies to a non thermal tail at high energies. The inclusion of low-energy electrons results in relatively more heating in the corona (versus chromosphere) and thus a larger downward heat conduction flux. The interplay of electron heating, conduction, and radiative loss leads to stronger chromospheric evaporation than obtained in previous studies, which had a deficit in low-energy electrons due to an arbitrarily assumed low-energy cutoff. The energy and spatial distributions of energetic electrons and bremsstrahlung photons bear signatures of the changing density distribution caused by chromospheric evaporation. In particular, the density jump at the evaporation front gives rise to enhanced emission, which, in principle, can be imaged by X-ray telescopes. This model can be applied to investigate a variety of high-energy processes in solar, space, and astrophysical plasmas.
Ambient ultrafine particles provide a strong adjuvant effect in the secondary immune response: implication for traffic-related asthma flares.
Li, Ning; Harkema, Jack R; Lewandowski, Ryan P; Wang, Meiying; Bramble, Lori A; Gookin, Glenn R; Ning, Zhi; Kleinman, Michael T; Sioutas, Constantinos; Nel, Andre E
We have previously demonstrated that intranasal administration of ambient ultrafine particles (UFP) acts as an adjuvant for primary allergic sensitization to ovalbumin (OVA) in Balb/c mice. It is important to find out whether inhaled UFP exert the same effect on the secondary immune response as a way of explaining asthma flares in already-sensitized individuals due to traffic exposure near a freeway. The objective of this study is to determine whether inhalation exposure to ambient UFP near an urban freeway could enhance the secondary immune response to OVA in already-sensitized mice. Prior OVA-sensitized animals were exposed to concentrated ambient UFP at the time of secondary OVA challenge in our mobile animal laboratory in Los Angeles. OVA-specific antibody production, airway morphometry, allergic airway inflammation, cytokine gene expression, and oxidative stress marker were assessed. As few as five ambient UFP exposures were sufficient to promote the OVA recall immune response, including generating allergic airway inflammation in smaller and more distal airways compared with the adjuvant effect of intranasally instilled UFP on the primary immune response. The secondary immune response was characterized by the T helper 2 and IL-17 cytokine gene expression in the lung. In summary, our results demonstrated that inhalation of prooxidative ambient UFP could effectively boost the secondary immune response to an experimental allergen, indicating that vehicular traffic exposure could exacerbate allergic inflammation in already-sensitized subjects.
Combined Modeling of Acceleration, Transport, and Hydrodynamic Response in Solar Flares. II. Inclusion of Radiative Transfer with RADYN
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Rubio da Costa, Fatima; Liu, Wei; Petrosian, Vahé; Carlsson, Mats
Solar flares involve complex processes that are coupled and span a wide range of temporal, spatial, and energy scales. Modeling such processes self-consistently has been a challenge in the past. Here we present results from simulations that couple particle kinetics with hydrodynamics (HD) of the atmospheric plasma. We combine the Stanford unified Fokker-Planck code that models particle acceleration and transport with the RADYN HD code that models the atmospheric response to collisional heating by accelerated electrons through detailed radiative transfer calculations. We perform simulations using two different electron spectra, one an ad hoc power law and the other predicted by the model of stochastic acceleration by turbulence or plasma waves. Surprisingly, the later model, even with energy flux \\ll {10}10 {erg} {{{s}}}-1 {{cm}}-2, can cause "explosive" chromospheric evaporation and drive stronger up- and downflows (and HD shocks). This is partly because our acceleration model, like many others, produces a spectrum consisting of a quasi-thermal component plus a power-law tail. We synthesize emission-line profiles covering different heights in the lower atmosphere, including Hα 6563 Å, He ii 304 Å, Ca ii K 3934 Å, and Si iv 1393 Å. One interesting result is the unusual high temperature (up to a few times 105 K) of the formation site of He ii 304 Å, which is expected owing to photoionization-recombination under flare conditions, compared to those in the quiet Sun dominated by collisional excitation. When compared with observations, our results can constrain the properties of nonthermal electrons and thus the poorly understood particle acceleration mechanism.
Davenport, James R. A.; Hawley, Suzanne L.; Johnson, Emily C.; Peraza, Jesus; Jansen, Tiffany C.; Larsen, Daniel M.; Hebb, Leslie; Wisniewski, John P.; Malatesta, Michael; Keil, Marcus; Silverberg, Steven M.; Scheffler, Matthew S.; Berdis, Jodi R.; Kowalski, Adam F.; Hilton, Eric J.
We present the largest sample of flares ever compiled for a single M dwarf, the active M4 star GJ 1243. Over 6100 individual flare events, with energies ranging from 10{sup 29} to 10{sup 33} erg, are found in 11 months of 1 minute cadence data from Kepler. This sample is unique for its completeness and dynamic range. We have developed automated tools for finding flares in short-cadence Kepler light curves, and performed extensive validation and classification of the sample by eye. From this pristine sample of flares we generate a median flare template. This template shows that two exponential cooling phases are present during the white-light flare decay, providing fundamental constraints for models of flare physics. The template is also used as a basis function to decompose complex multi-peaked flares, allowing us to study the energy distribution of these events. Only a small number of flare events are not well fit by our template. We find that complex, multi-peaked flares occur in over 80% of flares with a duration of 50 minutes or greater. The underlying distribution of flare durations for events 10 minutes and longer appears to follow a broken power law. Our results support the idea that sympathetic flaring may be responsible for some complex flare events.
Fine Structure in Solar Flares.
We present observations of several large two-ribbon flares observed with both the Transition Region and Coronal Explorer (TRACE) and the soft X-ray telescope on Yohkoh. The high spatial resolution TRACE observations show that solar flare plasma is generally not confined to a single loop or even a few isolated loops but to a multitude of fine coronal structures. These observations also suggest that the high-temperature flare plasma generally appears diffuse while the cooler ( less, similar2 MK) postflare plasma is looplike. We conjecture that the diffuse appearance of the high-temperature flare emission seen with TRACE is due to a combination of the emission measure structure of these flares and the instrumental temperature response and does not reflect fundamental differences in plasma morphology at the different temperatures.
Implications of X-Ray Observations for Electron Acceleration and Propagation in Solar Flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Holman, G. D.; Aschwanden, M. J.; Aurass, H.; Battaglia, M.; Grigis, P. C.; Kontar, E. P.; Liu, W.; Saint-Hilaire, P.; Zharkova, V. V.
High-energy X-rays and gamma-rays from solar flares were discovered just over fifty years ago. Since that time, the standard for the interpretation of spatially integrated flare X-ray spectra at energies above several tens of keV has been the collisional thick-target model. After the launch of the Reuven Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) in early 2002, X-ray spectra and images have been of sufficient quality to allow a greater focus on the energetic electrons responsible for the X-ray emission, including their origin and their interactions with the flare plasma and magnetic field. The result has been new insights into the flaring process, as well as more quantitative models for both electron acceleration and propagation, and for the flare environment with which the electrons interact. In this article we review our current understanding of electron acceleration, energy loss, and propagation in flares. Implications of these new results for the collisional thick-target model, for general flare models, and for future flare studies are discussed.
The inhibition by levocetirizine and fexofenadine of the histamine-induced wheal and flare response in healthy Caucasian and Japanese volunteers.
Schoepke, Nicole; Church, Martin K; Maurer, Marcus
This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study compared inhibition by one 5 mg dose of levocetirizine with two 60 mg doses of fexofenadine separated by 12 h of histamine-induced wheal and flare responses in 9 Caucasian and 9 Japanese healthy male volunteers. Levocetirizine was more inhibitory than fexofenadine on wheal, flare and pruritus (p < 0.005). Variability, evaluated from the standard deviation of inhibition, ranged from 14% to 23.2% for levocetirizine and 65.4% to 112.4% for fexofenadine. Levocetirizine had a faster onset of action (30-90 min versus 2 h), shorter time to maximum effect (3-4 versus 3-6 h) and longer duration of action (at least 24 h versus ~12 h) than fexofenadine. The plasma levels of levocetirizine rose more quickly, reached higher levels, were more consistent and decreased slower than those of fexofenadine. There were no clinically significant ethnic differences in responsiveness to the drugs.
Early cytokine responses during intestinal parasitic infections.
Ishikawa, N; Goyal, P K; Mahida, Y R; Li, K F; Wakelin, D
Infections with gastro-intestinal nematodes elicit immune and inflammatory responses mediated by cytokines released from T-helper type-2 (Th2) cells. In vitro assays of cells from the mesenteric lymph nodes (MLN) of experimentally infected rodents confirm that, after about 1 week, the dominant cytokine responses to mitogens and antigens are those associated with this Th-cell subset. Polarization of the Th response in this way implies an initial local cytokine environment that favours Th2 development. However, experimental infections with Trichinella spiralis and Nippostrongylus brasiliensis show that, within 2 days of worms reaching the intestine, MLN cells (MLNC) respond with a Th1 rather than a Th2 response [i.e. there is an increase in mRNA for the type 1 cytokine interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma), and mitogen-stimulated MLNC release IFN-gamma rather than interleukin-5 (IL-5)]. Antigen stimulation at this time does not elicit IFN-gamma release and the MLNC cannot adoptively transfer immunity. Within a few days the MLNC phenotype changes. There is a Th2 response (IL-5 release) to both mitogen and antigen stimulation and MLNC can adoptively transfer immunity. Early release of IFN-gamma is T-cell dependent, with CD4+ T cells playing the major role. The data are discussed in relation to factors regulating the mucosal response to invasion by parasites. PMID:9616376
Rapid fluctuations in solar flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Sturrock, Peter A.
Study of rapid fluctuations in the emission of radiation from solar flares provides a promising approach for probing the magneto-plasma structure and plasma processes that are responsible for a flare. It is proposed that elementary flare bursts in X-ray and microwave emission may be attributed to fine structure of the coronal magnetic field, related to the aggregation of photospheric magnetic field into magnetic knots. Fluctuations that occur on a subsecond time-scale may be due to magnetic islands that develop in current sheets during magnetic reconnection. The impulsive phase may sometimes represent the superposition of a large number of the elementary energy-release processes responsible for elementary flare bursts. If so, the challenge of trying to explain the properties of the impulsive phase in terms of the properties of the elementary processes must be faced. Magnetic field configurations that might produce solar flares are divided into a number of categories, depending on: whether or not there is a filament; whether there is no current sheet, a closed current sheet, or an open current sheet; and whether the filament erupts into the corona, or is ejected completely from the Sun's atmosphere. Analysis of the properties of these possible configurations is compared with different types of flares, and to Bai's subdivision of gamma-ray/proton events.
Identifying flares in rheumatoid arthritis: reliability and construct validation of the OMERACT RA Flare Core Domain Set
Bykerk, Vivian P; Bingham, Clifton O; Choy, Ernest H; Lin, Daming; Alten, Rieke; Christensen, Robin; Furst, Daniel E; Hewlett, Sarah; Leong, Amye; March, Lyn; Woodworth, Thasia; Boire, Gilles; Haraoui, Boulos; Hitchon, Carol; Jamal, Shahin; Keystone, Edward C; Pope, Janet; Tin, Diane; Thorne, J Carter
Objective To evaluate the reliability of concurrent flare identification using 3 methods (patient, rheumatologist and Disease Activity Score (DAS)28 criteria), and construct validity of candidate items representing the Outcome Measures in Rheumatology Clinical Trials (OMERACT) RA Flare Core Domain Set. Methods Candidate flare questions and legacy measures were administered at consecutive visits to Canadian Early Arthritis Cohort (CATCH) patients between November 2011 and November 2014. The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) core set indicators were recorded. Concordance to identify flares was assessed using the agreement coefficient. Construct validity of flare questions was examined: convergent (Spearman's r); discriminant (mean differences between flaring/non-flaring patients); and consequential (proportions with prior treatment reductions and intended therapeutic change postflare). Results The 849 patients were 75% female, 81% white, 42% were in remission/low disease activity (R/LDA), and 16–32% were flaring at the second visit. Agreement of flare status was low–strong (κ's 0.17–0.88) and inversely related to RA disease activity level. Flare domains correlated highly (r's≥0.70) with each other, patient global (r's≥0.66) and corresponding measures (r's 0.49–0.92); and moderately highly with MD and patient-reported joint counts (r's 0.29–0.62). When MD/patients agreed the patient was flaring, mean flare domain between-group differences were 2.1–3.0; 36% had treatment reductions prior to flare, with escalation planned in 61%. Conclusions Flares are common in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and are often preceded by treatment reductions. Patient/MD/DAS agreement of flare status is highest in patients worsening from R/LDA. OMERACT RA flare questions can discriminate between patients with/without flare and have strong evidence of construct and consequential validity. Ongoing work will identify optimal scoring and cut points to identify RA flares. PMID
MWA targeted campaign of nearby, flaring M dwarf stars
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Lynch, C.; Murphy, T.; Kaplan, D. L.
Flaring activity is a common characteristic of magnetically active stellar systems. Flare events produce emission throughout the electromagnetic spectrum, implying a range of physical processes. Early 100 - 200 MHz observations of M dwarf flare stars detected bright (>100 mJy) flares with occurrence rates between 0.06 - 0.8 flares per hour. These rates imply that observing 100 - 200 MHz flares from M dwarf stars is fairly easy with many detections expected for modern low-frequency telescopes. However, long observational campaigns using these modern telescopes have not reproduced these early detections. This could be because the rates are over estimated and contaminated by radio frequency interference. Recently Lynch et al. (submitted) detected four flares from UV Ceti at 154 MHz using the Murchison Widefield Array. The flares have flux densities between 10-65 mJy -- a factor of 100 fainter than most flares in the literature at these frequencies -- and are only detected in circular polarization. The flare rates for these newly detected flares are roughly consistent with earlier rates however the uncertainties are large. Building off this result we propose a 102 hour survey of the closet six M dwarf stars with observed magnetic activity traced in X-rays and 100 - 200 MHz emission. The rates measured from this survey would inform the duration required for future blind surveys for flares from M dwarf stars.
SWUSV: a microsatellite mission for space weather early forecasting of major flares and CMEs and the complete monitoring of the ultraviolet solar variability influence on climate
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Damé, Luc
The SWUSV (Space Weather & Ultraviolet Solar Variability) proposed microsatellite mission encompasses three major scientific objectives: (1) Space Weather including the prediction and detection of major eruptions and coronal mass ejections (using Lyman-Alpha and Herzberg continuum imaging and H-Alpha ground support); (2) solar forcing on the climate through radiation and their interactions with the local stratosphere (UV spectral irradiance from 180 to 400 nm by bands of 10 to 20 nm, including ozone, plus Lyman-Alpha and the CN bandhead); (3) simultaneous local radiative budget of the Earth, UV to IR, with an accuracy better than 1% in differential. The mission is on a sun-synchronous polar orbit and proposes 5 instruments to the model payload: SUAVE (Solar Ultraviolet Advanced Variability Experiment), an optimized telescope for FUV (Lyman-Alpha) and MUV (200-220 nm Herzberg continuum) imaging (sources of variability); UPR (Ultraviolet Passband Radiometers), with 64 UV filter radiometers; a vector magnetometer; thermal plasma measurements and Langmuir probes; and a total and spectral solar irradiance and Earth radiative budget ensemble (SERB, Solar irradiance & Earth Radiative Budget). SWUSV is proposed as a small mission to CNES and to ESA for a possible flight as early as 2020-2021. With opening to Chinese collaboration (ESA-CAS Small Mission) a further instrument could be added (HEBS, High Energy Burst Spectrometers) to reinforced Space Weather flares prediction objectives.
Ionospheric response to magnetar flare: signature of SGR J1550-5418 on coherent ionospheric Doppler radar
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Mahrous, Ayman
This paper presents observational evidence of frequent ionospheric perturbations caused by the magnetar flare of the source SGR J1550-5418, which took place on 22 January 2009. These ionospheric perturbations are observed in the relative change of the total electron content (ΔTEC/Δt) measurements from the coherent ionospheric Doppler radar (CIDR). The CIDR system makes high-precision measurements of the total electron content (TEC) change along ray-paths from ground receivers to low Earth-orbiting (LEO) beacon spacecraft. These measurements can be integrated along the orbital track of the beacon satellite to construct the relative spatial, not temporal, TEC profiles that are useful for determining the large-scale plasma distribution. The observed spatial TEC changes reveal many interesting features of the magnetar signatures in the ionosphere. The onset phase of the magnetar flare was during the CIDR's nighttime satellite passage. The nighttime small-scale perturbations detected by CIDR, with ΔTEC/Δt ≥ 0.05 TECU s-1, over the eastern Mediterranean on 22 January 2009 were synchronized with the onset phase of the magnetar flare and consistent with the emission of hundreds of bursts detected from the source. The maximum daytime large-scale perturbation measured by CIDR over northern Africa and the eastern Mediterranean was detected after ˜ 6 h from the main phase of the magnetar flare, with ΔTEC/Δt ≤ 0.10 TECU s-1. These ionospheric perturbations resembled an unusual poleward traveling ionospheric disturbance (TID) caused by the extraterrestrial source. The TID's estimated virtual velocity is 385.8 m s-1, with ΔTEC/Δt ≤ 0.10 TECU s-1.
Energy input and response from prompt and early optical afterglow emission in gamma-ray bursts.
Vestrand, W T; Wren, J A; Wozniak, P R; Aptekar, R; Golentskii, S; Pal'shin, V; Sakamoto, T; White, R R; Evans, S; Casperson, D; Fenimore, E
The taxonomy of optical emission detected during the critical first few minutes after the onset of a gamma-ray burst (GRB) defines two broad classes: prompt optical emission correlated with prompt gamma-ray emission, and early optical afterglow emission uncorrelated with the gamma-ray emission. The standard theoretical interpretation attributes prompt emission to internal shocks in the ultra-relativistic outflow generated by the internal engine; early afterglow emission is attributed to shocks generated by interaction with the surrounding medium. Here we report on observations of a bright GRB that, for the first time, clearly show the temporal relationship and relative strength of the two optical components. The observations indicate that early afterglow emission can be understood as reverberation of the energy input measured by prompt emission. Measurements of the early afterglow reverberations therefore probe the structure of the environment around the burst, whereas the subsequent response to late-time impulsive energy releases reveals how earlier flaring episodes have altered the jet and environment parameters. Many GRBs are generated by the death of massive stars that were born and died before the Universe was ten per cent of its current age, so GRB afterglow reverberations provide clues about the environments around some of the first stars.
Simulation Training in Early Emergency Response (STEER).
Generoso, Jose Roberto; Latoures, Renee Elizabeth; Acar, Yahya; Miller, Dean Scott; Ciano, Mark; Sandrei, Renan; Vieira, Marlon; Luong, Sean; Hirsch, Jan; Fidler, Richard Lee
HOW TO OBTAIN CONTACT HOURS BY READING THIS ISSUE Instructions: 1.3 contact hours will be awarded by Villanova University College of Nursing upon successful completion of this activity. A contact hour is a unit of measurement that denotes 60 minutes of an organized learning activity. This is a learner-based activity. Villanova University College of Nursing does not require submission of your answers to the quiz. A contact hour certificate will be awarded after you register, pay the registration fee, and complete the evaluation form online at http://goo.gl/gMfXaf. In order to obtain contact hours you must: 1. Read the article, "Simulation Training in Early Emergency Response (STEER)," found on pages 255-263, carefully noting any tables and other illustrative materials that are included to enhance your knowledge and understanding of the content. Be sure to keep track of the amount of time (number of minutes) you spend reading the article and completing the quiz. 2. Read and answer each question on the quiz. After completing all of the questions, compare your answers to those provided within this issue. If you have incorrect answers, return to the article for further study. 3. Go to the Villanova website to register for contact hour credit. You will be asked to provide your name, contact information, and a VISA, MasterCard, or Discover card number for payment of the $20.00 fee. Once you complete the online evaluation, a certificate will be automatically generated. This activity is valid for continuing education credit until May 31, 2019. CONTACT HOURS This activity is co-provided by Villanova University College of Nursing and SLACK Incorporated. Villanova University College of Nursing is accredited as a provider of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation. OBJECTIVES Define the purpose of the Simulation Training in Early Emergency Response (STEER) study. Review the outcome of the STEER study. DISCLOSURE
Hawley, Suzanne L.; Davenport, James R. A.; Kowalski, Adam F.; Wisniewski, John P.; Deitrick, Russell; Hilton, Eric J.; Hebb, Leslie
We analyzed Kepler short-cadence M dwarf observations. Spectra from the Astrophysical Research Consortium 3.5 m telescope identify magnetically active (Hα in emission) stars. The active stars are of mid-M spectral type, have numerous flares, and have well-defined rotational modulation due to starspots. The inactive stars are of early M type, exhibit less starspot signature, and have fewer flares. A Kepler to U-band energy scaling allows comparison of the Kepler flare frequency distributions with previous ground-based data. M dwarfs span a large range of flare frequency and energy, blurring the distinction between active and inactive stars designated solely by the presence of Hα. We analyzed classical and complex (multiple peak) flares on GJ 1243, finding strong correlations between flare energy, amplitude, duration, and decay time, with only a weak dependence on rise time. Complex flares last longer and have higher energy at the same amplitude, and higher energy flares are more likely to be complex. A power law fits the energy distribution for flares with log E{sub K{sub p}}> 31 erg, but the predicted number of low-energy flares far exceeds the number observed, at energies where flares are still easily detectable, indicating that the power-law distribution may flatten at low energy. There is no correlation of flare occurrence or energy with starspot phase, the flare waiting time distribution is consistent with flares occurring randomly in time, and the energies of consecutive flares are uncorrelated. These observations support a scenario where many independent active regions on the stellar surface are contributing to the observed flare rate.
Understanding Solar Flare Statistics
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Wheatland, M. S.
A review is presented of work aimed at understanding solar flare statistics, with emphasis on the well known flare power-law size distribution. Although avalanche models are perhaps the favoured model to describe flare statistics, their physical basis is unclear, and they are divorced from developing ideas in large-scale reconnection theory. An alternative model, aimed at reconciling large-scale reconnection models with solar flare statistics, is revisited. The solar flare waiting-time distribution has also attracted recent attention. Observed waiting-time distributions are described, together with what they might tell us about the flare phenomenon. Finally, a practical application of flare statistics to flare prediction is described in detail, including the results of a year of automated (web-based) predictions from the method.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Sturrock, P. A.
Mass motions in solar flares are here considered in terms of a previously proposed model. Particle acceleration occurs during reconnection of a current sheet located at coronal heights. The downward component of the particle flux produces an impulsive hard X-ray burst and heats the upper layers of the chromosphere sufficiently to lead to explosive evaporation. Some of the evaporated gas remains trapped in newly closed magnetic field lines and is responsible for the soft thermal component of X-ray emission. Gas which flows along open magnetic field lines subsequently forms a plasmoid which is ejected by magnetic stresses into interplanetary space and may subsequently cause a geomagnetic storm. Analysis of a highly simplified model leads to formulas for the density, temperature, and other parameters of the flare-produced plasma in terms of a length scale and mean magnetic field strength for the flare.
Sunspot waves and flare energy release
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Sych, R.; Karlický, M.; Altyntsev, A.; Dudík, J.; Kashapova, L.
Context. We study the possibility of flare process triggering by waves propagating from the sunspot along a magnetic loop (channel) to a nearby flare site. Aims: We present a relationship between the dynamics of ~3-min slow magnetoacoustic waves in the sunspot and flare emergence process. Waves propagating in the magnetic channel whose one foot is anchored in the umbra represent the disturbing agent responsible for triggering the flare energy release. Methods: We applied time-distance plots and pixel wavelet filtration methods to obtain spatio-temporal distribution of wave power variations in radio and SDO/AIA data. To find the magnetic channel, we used potential magnetic field extrapolation of SDO/HMI magnetograms. The propagation velocity of wave fronts was measured from wave locations at specific times. Results: In the correlation curves of the 17 GHz (NoRH) radio emission, we found a monotonous energy amplification of the 3-min waves in the sunspot umbra before the 2012 June 7 flare. This amplification was associated with an increase in the length of the oscillatory wakes in coronal loops (SDO/AIA, 171 Å) prior to the flare onset. A peculiarity of the flare is the constant level of the flare emission in soft X-rays (RHESSI, 3-25 keV) for ~10 min after the short impulsive phase, which indicates continuing energy release. Throughout this time, we found transverse oscillations of the flare loop with a 30 s period in the radio-frequency range (NoRH, 17 GHz). This period appears to be related to the 3-min waves from the sunspot. The magnetic field extrapolation based on SDO/HMI magnetograms shows the existence of the magnetic channel (waveguide) connecting the sunspot with the energy release region. Conclusions: We analysed the sunspot 3-min wave dynamics and found a correlation between the oscillation power amplification and flare triggering in the region connected to the sunspot through the magnetic channel. We propose that this amplified wave flux triggered the
X-Ray Source Motions and Their Implications for Flare Models
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Holman, Gordon D.
RHESSI observations have revealed a downward contraction of solar flare loops followed by upward expansion. In some flares a pair of above-the-looptop sources is observed, one just above the top of the cooler flare loops and the other a discrete source well above the looptops characterized by an effective temperature gradient increasing toward lower altitudes. In one flare the higher, temperature-inverted coronal source sped outward at a speed consistent with that of a coronal mass ejection associated with the flare. In some flares with minimal preheating (early impulsive flares), nonthermal X-ray sources have been observed to propagate downward and then upward along the legs of the flare loop. I will discuss the implications of all of these X-ray source motions for flare models, and their use as diagnostics of the evolution of the physical conditions in flares.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Qiu, Jiong; Longcope, Dana W.; Cassak, Paul A.; Priest, Eric R.
We present an analysis of the apparent elongation motion of flare ribbons along the polarity inversion line (PIL), as well as the shear of flare loops in several two-ribbon flares. Flare ribbons and loops spread along the PIL at a speed ranging from a few to a hundred km s‑1. The shear measured from conjugate footpoints is consistent with the measurement from flare loops, and both show the decrease of shear toward a potential field as a flare evolves and ribbons and loops spread along the PIL. Flares exhibiting fast bidirectional elongation appear to have a strong shear, which may indicate a large magnetic guide field relative to the reconnection field in the coronal current sheet. We discuss how the analysis of ribbon motion could help infer properties in the corona where reconnection takes place.
Solar Flares and their Effects on Planets
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Guinan, Edward Francis; Engle, Scott G.
The effects of flares from the Sun on Earth and other solar-system planets are discussed. The strong X-ray - UV radiation and high plasma fluxes from flares can strongly effect solar system planets even as far out as the Jovian planets and their moons. Data from our "Sun in Time" program are used to study the flare properties of the Sun and solar-type stars from youth to old age. These data imply that the young Sun had numerous, very powerful flares that may have played major roles in the development and evolution of the early atmospheres of Earth and other terrestiral planets. These strong X-UV fluxes from flares can greatly effect the photochemistry of planetary atmospheres as well as ionizing and possibly eroding their atmospheres. Some examples are given. Also briefly discussed are effects of large flares from the present Sun on the Earth. Even though strong solar flares are rarer and less powerful than from the youthful Sun, they can cause significant damage to our communication and satellite systems, electrical networks, and threaten the lives of astronauts in space.This research is supported by grants from NASA (HST and Chandra) and NSF. We gratefully acknowledge this support
Predictions of active region flaring probability using subsurface helicity measurements
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Reinard, A. A.; Komm, R.; Hill, F.
Solar flares are responsible for a number of hazardous effects on the earth such as disabling high-frequency radio communications, interfering with GPS measurements, and disrupting satellites. However, forecasting flare occurrence is currently very difficult. One possible means for predicting flare occurrence lies in helioseismology, i.e. analysis of the region below the active region for signs of an impending flare. Time series helioseismic data collected by the Global Oscillation Network Group (GONG) has been analyzed for a subset of active regions that produce large flares and a subset with very high magnetic field strength that produce no flares. A predictive parameter has been developed and analyzed using discriminant analysis as well as traditional forecasting tools such as the Heidke skill score. Preliminary results show that this parameter predicts the flaring probability of an active region 2-3 days in advance with a relatively high degree of success.
Using subsurface helicity measurements to predict flare occurrence
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Reinard, A. A.; Henthorn, J.; Komm, R.; Hill, F.
Solar flares are responsible for a number of hazardous effects including disabling high-frequency radio communications, interfering with GPS measurements, and disrupting satellites. Forecasting flare occurrence is very difficult, giving little advanced notice of these events. One possible means for predicting flare occurrence lies in helioseismology, i.e. analysis of the region below the active region for signs of an impending flare. Time series helioseismic data collected by the Global Oscillation Network Group (GONG) have been analyzed for a subset of active regions that produce large flares and a subset with very high magnetic field strength that produce no flares. A predictive parameter has been developed and analyzed using discriminant analysis as well as traditional forecasting tools such as the Heidke skill score. Preliminary results indicate this parameter predicts flare occurrence with a high success rate.
A Statistical Analysis of Loop-Top Motion in Solar Limb Flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Holman, Gordon D.; Sui, Linhui; Brosius, D. G.; Dennis, Brian R.
Previous studies of hot, thermal solar flare loops imaged with the Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) have identified several flares for which the loop top shrinks downward early in the impulsive phase and then expands upward later in the impulsive phase (Sui & Holman 2003; Sui, Holman & Dennis 2004; Veronig et al. 2005). This early downward motion is not predicted by flare models. We study a statistical sample of RHESSI flares to assess how common this evolution is and to better characterize it. In a sample of 88 flares near the solar lin$ that show identifiable loop structure in RHESSI images, 66% (58 flares) showed downward loop-top motion followed by upward motion. We therefore conclude that the early downward motion is a frequent characteristic of flare loops. We obtain the distribution of the timing of the change from downward to upward motion relative to flare start and peak times. We also obtain the distributions of downward and upward speeds.
New Data on mid-Miocene Rhyolite Volcanism in Eastern Oregon Extend Early, co-CRBG Rhyolite Flare up and Constrain Storage Sites of Grande Ronde Flood Basalts
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Streck, M. J.; Ferns, M. L.; McIntosh, W. C.
The classical view of relating mid-Miocene rhyolites of the tri-state area of Oregon, Nevada, and Idaho to the flood basalts of the Columbia River Basalt was that a mantle plume impinging along the Oregon-Idaho border first causes eruption of the flood basalts but shortly thereafter causes generation of rhyolites at the McDermitt volcanic field from which then hot-spot track rhyolites developed progressively younging towards Yellowstone. More recent work reveals rhyolites as old as found at McDermitt (~16.5 Ma) to occur along a wide E-W tangent along the Oregon-Nevada-Idaho border. And now, our data extend such early rhyolites (>16 Ma) to several locations further north within and in the periphery of the Lake Owyhee Volcanic Field (LOVF) adding to the geographically orphaned old age of 16.7 Ma of the Silver City Rhyolite, Idaho. Hence, the rhyolite flare-up associated with flood basalt magmatism occurred within a circular area of ~400 km centered 100 km NNE of McDermitt. Consequently, no south-to-north progression exists in the onset of rhyolite volcanism; instead, rhyolites started up at the same time over this large area. Province-wide rhyolite volcanism was strongest between ~16.4 and 15.4 Ma coincident with eruptions of the most voluminous member of the CRBG - the Grande Ronde Basalt (GRB). Field evidence for such bimodal volcanism consists of intercalated local GRB units with the Dinner Creek Tuff and Littlefield Rhyolite in the Malheur River Gorge corridor. GRB eruption sites exist and were likely fed from reservoirs residing below or near rhyolitic chambers. Presently, we have petrological evidence for pinning down GRB storages sites to areas from where rhyolites of the Dinner Creek Tuff and lava flows of the Littlefield Rhyolite erupted. In summary, input of GRG and other CRBG magmas were driving co-CRBG rhyolite volcanism which in turn may have influenced whether flood basalt magmas erupted locally or travelled in dikes to more distally located areas.
Flare Data in High Temporal Resolution
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kaparová, J.
Analysis of the September 23, 1998 flare H? spectra and filtergrams is presented. Spectra were obtained using multichannel flare spectrograph (MFS) at the Astronomical Institute in Ond?ejov, Czech Republic, having a temporal resolution of 25 frames/s and a spatial resolution of ?1? decreased by seeing to 3? - 5?. High temporal resolution was firstly used for detecting of the chromosphere response to the pulse beam heating.
terms of basic solar flare mechanisms. It was shown that Che basic process by which the X-ray radiation of flares is created is by heating the flare...plasma to temperatures of about ten million degrees, through evaporation of the chromosphere. This process is driven both by beams of accelerated electrons...transfer of energy and momentum from the primary energy.release site in the corona. it is important to understand the basic physical processes that carry
Particle acceleration in flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Benz, Arnold O.; Kosugi, Takeo; Aschwanden, Markus J.; Benka, Steve G.; Chupp, Edward L.; Enome, Shinzo; Garcia, Howard; Holman, Gordon D.; Kurt, Victoria G.; Sakao, Taro
Particle acceleration is intrinsic to the primary energy release in the impulsive phase of solar flares, and we cannot understand flares without understanding acceleration. New observations in soft and hard X-rays, gamma-rays and coherent radio emissions are presented, suggesting flare fragmentation in time and space. X-ray and radio measurements exhibit at least five different time scales in flares. In addition, some new observations of delayed acceleration signatures are also presented. The theory of acceleration by parallel electric fields is used to model the spectral shape and evolution of hard X-rays. The possibility of the appearance of double layers is further investigated.
Hot-Wiring Flare Stars: Optical Flare Rates and Properties from Time-Domain Surveys
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kowalski, A.
Flares are thought to result from the reconnection of magnetic fields in the upper layers (coronae) of stellar atmospheres. The highly dynamic atmospheric response produces radiation across the electromagnetic spectrum, from the radio to X-rays, on a range of timescales, from seconds to days. Due to their high flare rates and energies combined with a large contrast against the background quiescent emission, the low-mass M dwarfs are the primary target for studying flare rates in the Galaxy. However, high-precision monitoring campaigns using Kepler and the Hubble Space Telescope have recently revealed important information on the flare rates of earlier- type, more massive stars. In this talk, I will focus on the properties of flares and flare stars in the optical and near-ultraviolet wavelength regimes as revealed from time-domain surveys, such as the repeat observations of the Sloan Digital Sky Surveys Stripe 82. I will discuss the importance of spectroscopic follow-up characterization of the quiescent and flare emission, and I will highlight new radiative-hydrodynamic modeling results that have enhanced our understanding of impulsive phase U-band flare emission.
Advances In Understanding Solar And Stellar Flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kowalski, Adam F.
Flares result from the sudden reconnection and relaxation of magnetic fields in the coronae of stellar atmospheres. The highly dynamic atmospheric response produces radiation across the electromagnetic spectrum, from the radio to X-rays, on a range of timescales, from seconds to days. New high resolution data of solar flares have revealed the intrinsic spatial properties of the flaring chromosphere, which is thought to be where the majority of the flare energy is released as radiation in the optical and near-UV continua and emission lines. New data of stellar flares have revealed the detailed properties of the broadband (white-light) continuum emission, which provides straightforward constraints for models of the transformation of stored magnetic energy in the corona into thermal energy of the lower atmosphere. In this talk, we discuss the physical processes that produce several important spectral phenomena in the near-ultraviolet and optical as revealed from new radiative-hydrodynamic models of flares on the Sun and low mass stars. We present recent progress with high-flux nonthermal electron beams in reproducing the observed optical continuum color temperature of T 10,000 K and the Balmer jump properties in the near-ultraviolet. These beams produce dense, heated chromospheric condensations, which can explain the shape and strength of the continuum emission in M dwarf flares and the red-wing asymmetries in the chromospheric emission lines in recent observations of solar flares from the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph. Current theoretical challenges and future modeling directions will be discussed, as well as observational synergies between solar and stellar flares.
GeV flares observations with GLAST LAT
Galli, A.; Omodei, N.; Piro, L.
Early X-ray afterglow observations show that X-ray flares are very common features in GRB light curves. X-ray flares may reflect long duration central engine activity. The delayed flare photons are expected to interact with relativistic electrons by Inverse Compton giving delayed high energy counterparts that potentially will be detected by GLAST LAT, which could observe GRB from 20 MeV to more than 300 GeV. The nature oh high energy spectral components from GRB detected by EGRET is still debated. Observations with GLAST LAT will give useful information to constrain the origin of X-ray flares. In this work we simulate a set of possible GeV emitting flares in the context of External Shock model to study the capability of GLAST LAT to detect GeV flares at different intensities and durations.
Properties of the 15 February 2011 Flare Seismic Sources
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Zharkov, S.; Green, L. M.; Matthews, S. A.; Zharkova, V. V.
The first near-side X-class flare of Solar Cycle 24 occurred in February 2011 (SOL2011-02-05T01:55) and produced a very strong seismic response in the photosphere. One sunquake was reported by Kosovichev ( Astrophys. J. Lett. 734, L15, 2011), followed by the discovery of a second sunquake by Zharkov, Green, Matthews et al. ( Astrophys. J. Lett. 741, L35, 2011). The flare had a two-ribbon structure and was associated with a flux-rope eruption and a halo coronal mass ejection (CME) as reported in the CACTus catalogue. Following the discovery of the second sunquake and the spatial association of both sources with the locations of the feet of the erupting flux rope (Zharkov, Green, Matthews et al., Astrophys. J. Lett. 741, L35, 2011), we present here a more detailed analysis of the observed photospheric changes in and around the seismic sources. These sunquakes are quite unusual, taking place early in the impulsive stage of the flare, with the seismic sources showing little hard X-ray (HXR) emission, and strongest X-ray emission sources located in the flare ribbons. We present a directional time-distance diagram computed for the second source, which clearly shows a ridge corresponding to the travelling acoustic-wave packet and find that the sunquake at the second source happened about 45 seconds to one minute earlier than the first source. Using acoustic holography we report different frequency responses of the two sources. We find strong downflows at both seismic locations and a supersonic horizontal motion at the second site of acoustic-wave excitation.
Exploring early public responses to geoengineering.
Pidgeon, Nick; Corner, Adam; Parkhill, Karen; Spence, Alexa; Butler, Catherine; Poortinga, Wouter
Proposals for geoengineering the Earth's climate are prime examples of emerging or 'upstream' technologies, because many aspects of their effectiveness, cost and risks are yet to be researched, and in many cases are highly uncertain. This paper contributes to the emerging debate about the social acceptability of geoengineering technologies by presenting preliminary evidence on public responses to geoengineering from two of the very first UK studies of public perceptions and responses. The discussion draws upon two datasets: qualitative data (from an interview study conducted in 42 households in 2009), and quantitative data (from a subsequent nationwide survey (n=1822) of British public opinion). Unsurprisingly, baseline awareness of geoengineering was extremely low in both cases. The data from the survey indicate that, when briefly explained to people, carbon dioxide removal approaches were preferred to solar radiation management, while significant positive correlations were also found between concern about climate change and support for different geoengineering approaches. We discuss some of the wider considerations that are likely to shape public perceptions of geoengineering as it enters the media and public sphere, and conclude that, aside from technical considerations, public perceptions are likely to prove a key element influencing the debate over questions of the acceptability of geoengineering proposals.
Magnetic Variations Associated With Solar Flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Petrosian, Vahe
A report summarizes an investigation of helioseismic waves and magnetic variations associated with solar flares, involving analysis of data acquired by the Michelson Doppler Imager (MDI) aboard the Solar and Heliocentric Observatory (SOHO) spacecraft, the Yohkoh spacecraft, and the Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) spacecraft. Reconstruction of x-ray flare images from RHESSI data and comparison of them with MDI magnetic maps were performed in an attempt to infer the changes in the geometry of the magnetic field. It was established that in most flares observed with MDI, downward propagating shocks were much weaker than was one observed in the July 9, 1996 flare, which caused a strong helioseismic response. It was concluded that most of the observed impulsive variations result from direct impact of high-energy particles. Computer codes were developed for further study of these phenomena.
Langan, S M
Eczema is a major public health problem affecting children worldwide. Few studies have directly assessed triggers for disease flares. This paper presents evidence from a published systematic review and a prospective cohort study looking at flare factors in eczema. This systematic review suggested that foodstuffs in selected groups, dust exposure, unfamiliar pets, seasonal variation, stress, and irritants may be important in eczema flares. We performed a prospective cohort study that focused on environmental factors and identified associations between exposure to nylon clothing, dust, unfamiliar pets, sweating, shampoo, and eczema flares. Results from this study also demonstrated some new key findings. First, the effect of shampoo was found to increase in cold weather, and second, combinations of environmental factors were associated with disease exacerbation, supporting a multiple component disease model. This information is likely to be useful to families and may lead to the ability to reduce disease flares in the future.
Does pre-treatment with micronized progesterone affect the ovarian response to a gonadotropin releasing hormone agonist flare-up protocol?
Loutradis, D; Stefanidis, K; Drakakis, P; Kallianidis, K; El Sheikh, A; Milingos, S; Siskos, K; Michalas, S
The purpose of this study was to investigate the ovarian response and the receptivity of the endometrium in women pre-treated with micronized progesterone. Eighty-two normogonodotropic women undergoing in vitro fertilization were studied. Thirty received micronized progesterone 1500 mg/day from day 21 of the cycle for a minimum of 2 weeks, and 52 did not receive micronized progesterone (control group). A gonadotropin releasing hormone agonist (GnRH-a) was administered to all the patients in the follicular phase (flare-up). Twenty-five cycles were cancelled for fertilization failure due to male factor, 12 (40%) in the progesterone group and 13 (25%) in the control group (p = 0.271). There was no difference in the number of oocytes retrieved (7.3 +/- 5 vs. 8.2 +/- 4), fertilization rate (50.8% vs. 65%), clinical pregnancy rate (16.6% vs. 25%) or implantation rate (8% vs. 14%). In the progesterone group cases without fertilization, we performed two biopsies to evaluate the receptivity of the endometrium. Pinopode expression was noted 7 days after oocyte retrieval. It seems that the administration of micronized progesterone in the previous cycle does not affect the ovarian response to the combination of follicular phase GnRH-a and gonadotropins, nor the receptivity of the endometrium.
B cells enhance early innate immune responses during bacterial sepsis
Kelly-Scumpia, Kindra M.; Scumpia, Philip O.; Weinstein, Jason S.; Delano, Matthew J.; Cuenca, Alex G.; Nacionales, Dina C.; Wynn, James L.; Lee, Pui Y.; Kumagai, Yutaro; Efron, Philip A.; Akira, Shizuo; Wasserfall, Clive; Atkinson, Mark A.
Microbes activate pattern recognition receptors to initiate adaptive immunity. T cells affect early innate inflammatory responses to viral infection, but both activation and suppression have been demonstrated. We identify a novel role for B cells in the early innate immune response during bacterial sepsis. We demonstrate that Rag1−/− mice display deficient early inflammatory responses and reduced survival during sepsis. Interestingly, B cell–deficient or anti-CD20 B cell–depleted mice, but not α/β T cell–deficient mice, display decreased inflammatory cytokine and chemokine production and reduced survival after sepsis. Both treatment of B cell–deficient mice with serum from wild-type (WT) mice and repletion of Rag1−/− mice with B cells improves sepsis survival, suggesting antibody-independent and antibody-dependent roles for B cells in the outcome to sepsis. During sepsis, marginal zone and follicular B cells are activated through type I interferon (IFN-I) receptor (IFN-α/β receptor [IFNAR]), and repleting Rag1−/− mice with WT, but not IFNAR−/−, B cells improves IFN-I–dependent and –independent early cytokine responses. Repleting B cell–deficient mice with the IFN-I–dependent chemokine, CXCL10 was also sufficient to improve sepsis survival. This study identifies a novel role for IFN-I–activated B cells in protective early innate immune responses during bacterial sepsis. PMID:21746813
Imaging Observations of Magnetic Reconnection in a Solar Eruptive Flare
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Li, Y.; Sun, X.; Ding, M. D.; Qiu, J.; Priest, E. R.
Solar flares are among the most energetic events in the solar atmosphere. It is widely accepted that flares are powered by magnetic reconnection in the corona. An eruptive flare is usually accompanied by a coronal mass ejection, both of which are probably driven by the eruption of a magnetic flux rope (MFR). Here we report an eruptive flare on 2016 March 23 observed by the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly on board the Solar Dynamics Observatory. The extreme-ultraviolet imaging observations exhibit the clear rise and eruption of an MFR. In particular, the observations reveal solid evidence of magnetic reconnection from both the corona and chromosphere during the flare. Moreover, weak reconnection is observed before the start of the flare. We find that the preflare weak reconnection is of tether-cutting type and helps the MFR to rise slowly. Induced by a further rise of the MFR, strong reconnection occurs in the rise phases of the flare, which is temporally related to the MFR eruption. We also find that the magnetic reconnection is more of 3D-type in the early phase, as manifested in a strong-to-weak shear transition in flare loops, and becomes more 2D-like in the later phase, as shown by the apparent rising motion of an arcade of flare loops.
Comment on 'The solar flare myth' by J. T. Gosling
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Hudson, Hugh; Haisch, Bernhard; Strong, Keith T.
In a recent paper Gosling (1993) claims that solar flares are relatively unimportant for understanding the terrestrial consequences of solar activity, and argues that coronal mass ejections (CMEs) produce the most powerful terrestrial disturbances. This opinion conflicts with observation, as it is well known that CMEs and flares are closely associated, and we disagree with Gosling's insistence on a simplistic cause-and-effect description of the interrelated phenomena of a solar flare. In this brief response we present new Yohkoh data and review older results that demonstrate the close relationships among CMEs, flares, filament eruptions, and other forms of energy release such as particle acceleration.
COMPTEL solar flare observations
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Ryan, J. M.; Aarts, H.; Bennett, K.; Debrunner, H.; Devries, C.; Denherder, J. W.; Eymann, G.; Forrest, D. J.; Diehl, R.; Hermsen, W.
COMPTEL as part of a solar target of opportunity campaign observed the sun during the period of high solar activity from 7-15 Jun. 1991. Major flares were observed on 9 and 11 Jun. Although both flares were large GOES events (greater than or = X10), they were not extraordinary in terms of gamma-ray emission. Only the decay phase of the 15 Jun. flare was observed by COMPTEL. We report the preliminary analysis of data from these flares, including the first spectroscopic measurement of solar flare neutrons. The deuterium formation line at 2.223 MeV was present in both events and for at least the 9 Jun. event, was comparable to the flux in the nuclear line region of 4-8 MeV, consistent with Solar-Maximum Mission (SSM) Observations. A clear neutron signal was present in the flare of 9 Jun. with the spectrum extending up to 80 MeV and consistent in time with the emission of gamma-rays, confirming the utility of COMPTEL in measuring the solar neutron flux at low energies. The neutron flux below 100 MeV appears to be lower than that of the 3 Jun. 1982 flare by more than an order of magnitude. The neutron signal of the 11 Jun. event is under study. Severe dead time effects resulting from the intense thermal x-rays require significant corrections to the measured flux which increase the magnitude of the associated systematic uncertainties.
A Framework for Providing Culturally Responsive Early Intervention Services
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Bradshaw, Wendy
The purpose of this article is to provide a framework that offers a way for early intervention (EI) service providers to better meet the needs of the culturally diverse children and families they serve. This framework was created to organize existing research and literature on cultural responsiveness in a way that fit the unique context of EI. The…
Early Twentieth Century Responses to the Drug Problem.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Pfennig, Dennis Joseph
Describes early twentieth-century responses to the drug problem in the United States. Discusses pressure from the media and reformers to control the availability of drugs such as opium and cocaine that were widely available in over-the-counter medications. Focuses on New York State, which took the lead in enacting drug control legislation. (DK)
A Comparison of Responsive Interventions on Kindergarteners' Early Reading Achievement
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Little, Mary E.; Rawlinson, D'Ann; Simmons, Deborah C.; Kim, Minjung; Kwok, Oi-man; Hagan-Burke, Shanna; Simmons, Leslie E.; Fogarty, Melissa; Oslund, Eric; Coyne, Michael D.
This study compared the effects of Tier 2 reading interventions that operated in response-to-intervention contexts. Kindergarten children (N = 90) who were identified as at risk for reading difficulties were stratified by school and randomly assigned to receive (a) Early Reading Intervention (ERI; Pearson/Scott Foresman, 2004) modified in response…
Fernandez, David; Kirou, Kyriakos A
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), the prototypic systemic autoimmune disease, follows a chronic disease course, punctuated by flares. Disease flares often occur without apparent cause, perhaps from progressive inherent buildup of autoimmunity. However, there is evidence that certain environmental factors may trigger the disease. These include exposure to UV light, infections, certain hormones, and drugs which may activate the innate and adaptive immune system, resulting in inflammation, cytotoxic effects, and clinical symptoms. Uncontrolled disease flares, as well as their treatment, especially with glucocorticoids, can cause significant organ damage. Tight surveillance and timely control of lupus flares with judicial use of effective treatments to adequately suppress the excessive immune system activation are required to bring about long term remission of the disease. We hope that new clinical trials will soon offer additional effective and target-specific biologic treatments for SLE.
Solar flare particle radiation
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Lanzerotti, L. J.
The characteristics of the solar particles accelerated by solar flares and subsequently observed near the orbit of the earth are studied. Considered are solar particle intensity-time profiles, the composition and spectra of solar flare events, and the propagation of solar particles in interplanetary space. The effects of solar particles at the earth, riometer observations of polar cap cosmic noise absorption events, and the production of solar cell damage at synchronous altitudes by solar protons are also discussed.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Gosling, J. T.
Many years of research have demonstrated that large, nonrecurrent geomagnetic storms, shock wave disturbances in the solar wind, and energetic particle events in interplanetary space often occur in close association with large solar flares. This result has led to a pradigm of cause and effect - that large solar flares are the fundamental cause of these events in the near-Earth space environmemt. This paradigm, which I call 'the solar flare myth,' dominates the popular perception of the relationship between solar activity and interplanetary and geomagnetic events and has provided much of the pragmatic rationale for the study of the solar flare phenomenon. Yet there is good evidence that this paradigm is wrong and that flares do not generally play a central role in producing major transient disturbances in the near-Earth space environment. In this paper I outline a different paradigm of cause and effect that removes solar flares from their central position in the chain of events leading from the Sun to near-Earth space. Instead, this central role is given to events known as coronal mass ejections.
The dependence of solar flare energetics on flare volumes
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Kahler, S. W.
The sizes of 45 X-ray flares observed on Skylab have been measured and compared to flare rise times, energies, and energy release rates as determined from Solard and XREA X-ray data. The X-ray rise time is correlated with the length and volume of the flare. The energy of the flare and the rate of increase of that energy are correlated with flare length and volume. Both the energy per unit volume and the rate of energy increase per unit volume are inversely correlated with flare length and volume. There is no correlation between the emission measure and the volume.
Determinants of early life immune responses to RSV infection.
Ruckwardt, Tracy J; Morabito, Kaitlyn M; Graham, Barney S
Respiratory syncytial virus causes significant morbidity and mortality in both developed and developing countries, and a vaccine that adequately protects from severe disease remains an important unmet need. RSV disease has an inordinate impact on the very young, and the physical and immunological immaturity of early life complicates vaccine design. Defining and targeting the functional capacities of early life immune responses and controlling responses during primary antigen exposure with selected vaccine delivery approaches will be important for protecting infants by active immunization. Alternatively, vaccination of older children and pregnant mothers may ameliorate disease burden indirectly until infants reach about six months of age, when they can generate more effective anti-RSV immune responses.
Modelling the impulsive phase of solar flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Rubio da Costa, F.; Petrosian, V.; Liu, W.; Carlsson, M.
Solar flares are the most energetic events in the solar system. In order to study this sudden release of energy and evaluate the response of the solar chromosphere to the deposition of thermal energy, we simulate the conditions of the solar atmosphere by creating a 1D plane-parallel atmospheric model and analyze the energy transport of a beam of non-thermal electrons that is injected at the top of the coronal loop. This is done using a numerical model which combines the radiative hydrodynamic equations (RADYN code - Carlsson & Stein, 1992) with the calculation of particle acceleration and transport (Flare code - Petrosian & Liu, 2004). With this model, it is for example possible to compare the emission of solar flares in several lines with available observations. The assemblage of high resolution chromospheric flare observations from the IRIS imaging spectrograph makes it an excellent time for this work. We discuss how accelerated particle heating and energy deposition rate are affected by the variation of cut-off energy and flux of non-thermal electrons as well as spectral index and investigate the response of the atmosphere to the acceleration of particles. Our flare simulation treats each atom in non-LTE condition and calculates in detail the transitions between its energy levels. It also assumes an optically thick atmosphere, which is crucial for understanding how energy is transported from the chromosphere deep into the photosphere.
Implications of RHESSI Flare Observations for Magnetic Reconnection Models
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Holman, Gordon D.; Sui, Linhui; Dennis, Brian R.
The Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) observations of the 2002 April 15 solar flare and related flares provide compelling evidence for the formation of a large-scale, reconnecting current sheet in at least some flares. We describe the observed evolution of the April 15 flare in terms of magnetic reconnection models. We argue that the flare most likely evolved through magnetic geometries associated with super-slow reconnection (early rise phase), fast reconnection (impulsive phase), and slow reconnection (gradual phase). We also provide evidence for X-ray brightenings within the evolving current sheet, possibly induced by the tearing mode instability. This work was supported in part by the RHESSI Program and NASA's Sun-Earth Connection Program. This work would not have been possible without the dedicated efforts of the entire RHESSI team.
Urologic Chronic Pelvic Pain Syndrome Symptom Flares: Characterization of the Full Spectrum of Flares at Two Sites of the Mapp Research Network
Sutcliffe, Siobhan; Colditz, Graham A.; Goodman, Melody S.; Pakpahan, Ratna; Vetter, Joel; Ness, Timothy J.; Andriole, Gerald L.; Lai, H. Henry
Objectives To describe the full spectrum of symptom exacerbations defined by interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome and chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome patients as flares, and to investigate their associated health-care utilization and bother at two sites of the Trans-Multidisciplinary Approaches to the Study of Chronic Pelvic Pain (Trans-MAPP) Epidemiology and Phenotyping study. Patients and methods Participants completed a flare survey that asked them: 1) whether they had ever had flares ("symptoms that are much worse than usual") that lasted <1 hr, >1 hr and <1 day, and >1 day; and 2) for each duration of flare, to report their: a) average length and frequency; b) typical levels of urologic and pelvic pain symptoms; and c) levels of health-care utilization and bother. We compared participants' responses to their non-flare Trans-MAPP values and across flares using generalized linear mixed models. Results Seventy six of 85 participants (89.4%) completed the flare survey, 72 of whom reported having flares (94.7%). Flares varied widely in terms of their duration (seconds to months), frequency (several times per day to once per year or less), and intensity and type of symptoms (e.g., pelvic pain versus urologic symptoms). Flares of all duration were associated with greater pelvic pain, urologic symptoms, disruption to participants' activities, and bother, with increasing severity of each of these factors as the duration of flares increased. Days-long flares were also associated with greater health-care utilization. In addition to duration, symptoms (pelvic pain, in particular) were also significant determinants of flare-related bother. Conclusions Our findings suggest that flares are common and associated with greater symptoms, health-care utilization, disruption, and bother. Our findings also inform the characteristics of flares most bothersome to patients (i.e., increased pelvic pain and duration), and thus of greatest importance to
Replicated evolution of integrated plastic responses during early adaptive divergence.
Parsons, Kevin J; Robinson, Beren W
Colonization of a novel environment is expected to result in adaptive divergence from the ancestral population when selection favors a new phenotypic optimum. Local adaptation in the new environment occurs through the accumulation and integration of character states that positively affect fitness. The role played by plastic traits in adaptation to a novel environment has generally been ignored, except for variable environments. We propose that if conditions in a relatively stable but novel environment induce phenotypically plastic responses in many traits, and if genetic variation exists in the form of those responses, then selection may initially favor the accumulation and integration of functionally useful plastic responses. Early divergence between ancestral and colonist forms will then occur with respect to their plastic responses across the gradient bounded by ancestral and novel environmental conditions. To test this, we compared the magnitude, integration, and pattern of plastic character responses in external body form induced by shallow versus open water conditions between two sunfish ecomorphs that coexist in four postglacial lakes. The novel sunfish ecomorph is present in the deeper open water habitat, whereas the ancestral ecomorph inhabits the shallow waters along the lake margin. Plastic responses by open water ecomorphs were more correlated than those of their local shallow water ecomorph in two of the populations, whereas equal levels of correlated plastic character responses occurred between ecomorphs in the other two populations. Small but persistent differences occurred between ecomorph pairs in the pattern of their character responses, suggesting a recent divergence. Open water ecomorphs shared some similarities in the covariance among plastic responses to rearing environment. Replication in the form of correlated plastic responses among populations of open water ecomorphs suggests that plastic character states may evolve under selection
Implementation of responsiveness to intervention in early education settings.
Justice, Laura M; McGinty, Anita; Guo, Ying; Moore, Douglas
This article provides an overview of how response to intervention (RTI) may be used effectively within early childhood settings. Discussion is organized to address such issues regarding RTI implementation as (1) how to design and implement a high-quality Tier 1 learning environment that systematically improves children's language and literacy outcomes, (2) how to design and implement a high-quality Tier 2 supplemental learning intervention that systematically improves the language and literacy outcomes of children who are unresponsive to Tier 1, and (3) how to design and implement a comprehensive and cohesive assessment system that appropriately identifies children who show inadequate response to the Tier 1 and Tier 2 learning opportunities. A model for implementing RTI using the supplemental curriculum by Justice and McGinty, READ IT AGAIN-PREK! (2008), is presented. This tool was developed to meet the needs of early childhood programs as they seek to implement RIA in a cost-effective and scalable manner.
Comparative study of x ray and microwave emissions during solar flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Winglee, Robert M.
The work supported by the grant consisted of two projects. The first project involved making detailed case studies of two flares using SMM data in conjunction with ground based observations. The first flare occurred at 1454 UT on June 20, 1989 and involved the eruption of a prominence near the limb. In the study we used data from many wavelength regimes including the radio, H-alpha, hard X-rays, and soft X-rays. We used a full gyrosynchrotron code to model the apparent presence of a 1.4 GHz source early in the flare that was in the form of a large coronal loop. The model results lead us to conclude that the initial acceleration occurs in small, dense loops which also produced the flare's hard X-ray emission. We also found evidence that a source at 1.4 GHz later in the event was due to second harmonic plasma emission. This source was adjacent to a leg of the prominence and comes from a dense column of material in the magnetic structure supporting the prominence. Finally, we investigated a source of microwaves and soft X-rays, occurring approximately 10 min after the hard X-ray peak, and calculate a lower limit for the density of the source. The second flare that was studied occurred at 2156 UT on June 20, 1989 and was observed with the VLA and the Owens Valley Radio Observatory (OVRO) Frequency Agile Array. We have developed a gyrosynchrotron model of the sources at flare peak using a new gyrosynchrotron approximation which is valid at very low harmonics of the gyrofrequency. We found that the accelerated particle densities of the sources decreased much more with radius from the source center than had been supposed in previous work, while the magnetic field varied less. We also used the available data to analyze a highly polarized source which appeared late in the flare. The second project involved compiling a statistical base for the relative timing of the hard X-ray peak, the turbulent and blue-shift velocities inferred from soft X-ray line emissions observed by
Observations and Modelling of the Pre-flare Period of the 29 March 2014 X1 Flare
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Woods, M. M.; Harra, L. K.; Matthews, S. A.; Mackay, D. H.; Dacie, S.; Long, D. M.
On 29 March 2014, NOAA Active Region (AR) 12017 produced an X1 flare that was simultaneously observed by an unprecedented number of observatories. We have investigated the pre-flare period of this flare from 14:00 UT until 19:00 UT using joint observations made by the Interface Region Imaging Spectrometer (IRIS) and the Hinode Extreme Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrometer (EIS). Spectral lines providing coverage of the solar atmosphere from the chromosphere to the corona were analysed to investigate pre-flare activity within the AR. The results of the investigation have revealed evidence of strongly blue-shifted plasma flows, with velocities up to 200 km s^{-1}, being observed 40 minutes prior to flaring. These flows are located along the filament present in the active region and are both spatially discrete and transient. In order to constrain the possible explanations for this activity, we undertake non-potential magnetic field modelling of the active region. This modelling indicates the existence of a weakly twisted flux rope along the polarity inversion line in the region where a filament and the strong pre-flare flows are observed. We then discuss how these observations relate to the current models of flare triggering. We conclude that the most likely drivers of the observed activity are internal reconnection in the flux rope, early onset of the flare reconnection, or tether-cutting reconnection along the filament.
Flare model sensitivity of the Balmer spectrum
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Falchi, A.; Falciani, R.; Smaldone, L. A.; Tozzi, G. P.
Careful studies of various chromospheric spectral signatures are very important in order to explore their possible sensitivity to the modifications of the thermodynamic quantities produced by the flare occurrence. Pioneer work of Canfield and co-workers have shown how the H alpha behavior is able to indicate different changes in the atmospheric parameters structure associated to the flare event. It was decided to study the behavior of the highest Balmer lines and of the Balmer continuum in different solar flare model atmospheres. These spectral features, originating in the deep photosphere in a quiet area, may have a sensitivity different from H alpha to the modification of a flare atmosphere. The details of the method used to compute the Stark profile of the higher Balmer line (n is greater than or equal to 6) and their merging were extensively given elsewhere (Donati-Falchi et al., 1985; Falchi et al., 1989). The models used were developed by Ricchiazzi in his thesis (1982) evaluating the chromospheric response to both the nonthermal electron flux, for energy greater than 20 kev, (F sub 20) and to the thermal conduction, (F sub c). The effect of the coronal pressure values (P sub O) at the apex of the flare loop is also included.
Solar Flare Impacts on Ionospheric Electrodynamics
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Qian, Liying; Burns, Alan G.; Solomon, Stanley C.; Chamberlin, Phillip C.
The sudden increase of X-ray and extreme ultra-violet irradiance during flares increases the density of the ionosphere through enhanced photoionization. In this paper, we use model simulations to investigate possible additional contributions from electrodynamics, finding that the vertical E X B drift in the magnetic equatorial region plays a significant role in the ionosphere response to solar flares. During the initial stage of flares, upward E X B drifts weaken in the magnetic equatorial region, causing a weakened equatorial fountain effect, which in turn causes lowering of the peak height of the F2 region and depletion of the peak electron density of the F2 region. In this initial stage, total electron content (TEC) enhancement is predominantly determined by solar zenith angle control of photoionization. As flares decay, upward E X B drifts are enhanced in the magnetic equatorial region, causing increases of the peak height and density of the F2 region. This process lasts for several hours, causing a prolonged F2-region disturbance and TEC enhancement in the magnetic equator region in the aftermath of flares. During this stage, the global morphology of the TEC enhancement becomes predominantly determined by these perturbations to the electrodynamics of the ionosphere.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Antiochos, Spiro K.; Karpen, J. T.; DeVore, C. R.
Solar flares and their associated coronal mass ejections are the most energetic explosions in the solar system. The largest events pose the greatest space weather dangers to life and civilization, and are of extreme importance to human space exploration. They also provide the best opportunity to study the universal processes of magnetic reconnection and particle acceleration that underlie most solar activity. The two great mysteries of solar flares are: how can so much energy be released so quickly, and how can such a large fraction (50% or more) end up in energetic particles. We present results from recent numerical modeling that sheds new light on these mysteries. These calculations use the highest spatial resolution yet achieved in order to resolve the flare dynamics as clearly as possible. We conclude from this work that magnetic island formation is the defining property of magnetic reconnection in the solar corona, at least, in the large-scale current sheet required for a solar flare. Furthermore, we discuss the types of future observations and modeling that will be required to solve definitively the solar flare mysteries. This work was supported, in part, by the NASA TR&T and SR&T Programs.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Dennis, Brian R.; Dan, Chau; Jain, Rajmal; Schwartz, Richard A.; Tolbert, Anne K.
The equivalent width of the iron-line complex at 6.7 keV seen in flare X-ray spectra suggests that the iron abundance of the hottest plasma at temperatures >approx.10 MK may sometimes be significantly lower than the nominal coronal abundance of four times the photospheric value that is commonly assumed. This conclusion is based on X-ray spectral observations of several flares seen in common with the Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) and the Solar X-ray Spectrometer (SOXS) on the second Indian geostationary satellite, GSAT-2. The implications of this will be discussed as it relates to the origin of the hot flare plasma - either plasma already in the corona that is directly heated during the flare energy release process or chromospheric plasma that is heated by flare-accelerated particles and driven up into the corona. Other possible explanations of lower-than-expected equivalent widths of the iron-line complex will also be discussed.
Early responses of vascular endothelial cells to topographic cues.
Dreier, Britta; Gasiorowski, Joshua Z; Morgan, Joshua T; Nealey, Paul F; Russell, Paul; Murphy, Christopher J
Vascular endothelial cells in vivo are exposed to multiple biophysical cues provided by the basement membrane, a specialized extracellular matrix through which vascular endothelial cells are attached to the underlying stroma. The importance of biophysical cues has been widely reported, but the signaling pathways that mediate cellular recognition and response to these cues remain poorly understood. Anisotropic topographically patterned substrates with nano- through microscale feature dimensions were fabricated to investigate cellular responses to topographic cues. The present study focuses on early events following exposure of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) to these patterned substrates. In serum-free medium and on substrates without protein coating, HUVECs oriented parallel to the long axis of underlying ridges in as little as 30 min. Immunocytochemistry showed clear differences in the localization of the focal adhesion proteins Src, p130Cas, and focal adhesion kinase (FAK) in HUVECs cultured on topographically patterned surfaces and on planar surfaces, suggesting involvement of these proteins in mediating the response to topographic features. Knockdown experiments demonstrated that FAK was not necessary for HUVEC alignment in response to topographic cues, although FAK knockdown did modulate HUVEC migration. These data identify key events early in the cellular response to biophysical stimuli.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Hawley, Suzanne L.; Fisher, George H.
Solar flare model atmospheres computed under the assumption of energetic equilibrium in the chromosphere are presented. The models use a static, one-dimensional plane parallel geometry and are designed within a physically self-consistent coronal loop. Assumed flare heating mechanisms include collisions from a flux of non-thermal electrons and x-ray heating of the chromosphere by the corona. The heating by energetic electrons accounts explicitly for variations of the ionized fraction with depth in the atmosphere. X-ray heating of the chromosphere by the corona incorporates a flare loop geometry by approximating distant portions of the loop with a series of point sources, while treating the loop leg closest to the chromospheric footpoint in the plane-parallel approximation. Coronal flare heating leads to increased heat conduction, chromospheric evaporation and subsequent changes in coronal pressure; these effects are included self-consistently in the models. Cooling in the chromosphere is computed in detail for the important optically thick HI, CaII and MgII transitions using the non-LTE prescription in the program MULTI. Hydrogen ionization rates from x-ray photo-ionization and collisional ionization by non-thermal electrons are included explicitly in the rate equations. The models are computed in the 'impulsive' and 'equilibrium' limits, and in a set of intermediate 'evolving' states. The impulsive atmospheres have the density distribution frozen in pre-flare configuration, while the equilibrium models assume the entire atmosphere is in hydrostatic and energetic equilibrium. The evolving atmospheres represent intermediate stages where hydrostatic equilibrium has been established in the chromosphere and corona, but the corona is not yet in energetic equilibrium with the flare heating source. Thus, for example, chromospheric evaporation is still in the process of occurring.
The Early Endocrine Stress Response in Experimental Subarachnoid Hemorrhage
Nyberg, Christoffer; Karlsson, Torbjörn; Hillered, Lars; Stridsberg, Mats; Ronne Engström, Elisabeth
Introduction In patients with severe illness, such as aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), a physiologic stress response is triggered. This includes activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and the sympathetic nervous system. The aim of this study was to investigate the very early responses of these systems. Methods A porcine animal model of aneurysmal SAH was used. In this model, blood is injected slowly to the basal cisterns above the anterior skull base until the cerebral perfusion pressure is 0 mm Hg. Sampling was done from blood and urine at -10, +15, +75 and +135 minutes from time of induction of SAH. Analyses of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), cortisol, aldosterone, catecholamines and chromogranin-A were performed. Results Plasma ACTH, serum cortisol and plasma aldosterone increased in the samples following induction of SAH, and started to decline after 75 minutes. Urine cortisol also increased after SAH. Urine catecholamines and their metabolites were found to increase after SAH. Many samples were however below detection level, not allowing for statistical analysis. Plasma chromogranin-A peaked at 15 minutes after SAH, and thereafter decreased. Conclusions The endocrine stress response after aneurysmal SAH was found to start within 15 minutes in the HPA axis with early peak values of ACTH, cortisol and aldosterone. The fact that the concentrations of the HPA axis hormones decreased 135 minutes after SAH may suggest that a similar pattern exists in SAH patients, thus making it difficult to catch these early peak values. There were also indications of early activation of the sympathetic nervous system, but the small number of valid samples made interpretation difficult. PMID:27007694
Karlický, Marian
We studied the formation of a thermal front during the expansion of hot plasma into colder plasma. We used a three-dimensional electromagnetic particle-in-cell model that includes inductive effects. In early phases, in the area of the expanding hot plasma, we found several thermal fronts, which are defined as a sudden decrease of the local electron kinetic energy. The fronts formed a cascade. Thermal fronts with higher temperature contrast were located near plasma density depressions, generated during the hot plasma expansion. The formation of the main thermal front was associated with the return-current process induced by hot electron expansion and electrons backscattered at the front. A part of the hot plasma was trapped by the thermal front while another part, mainly with the most energetic electrons, escaped and generated Langmuir and electromagnetic waves in front of the thermal front, as shown by the dispersion diagrams. Considering all of these processes and those described in the literature, we show that anomalous electric resistivity is produced at the location of the thermal front. Thus, the thermal front can contribute to energy dissipation in the current-carrying loops of solar flares. We estimated the values of such anomalous resistivity in the solar atmosphere together with collisional resistivity and electric fields. We propose that the slowly drifting reverse drift bursts, observed at the beginning of some solar flares, could be signatures of the thermal front.
Active region 1158 let loose with an X2.2 flare at 0153 UT or 8:50 pm ET on February 15, 2011, the largest flare since Dec. 2006 and the biggest flare so far in Solar Cycle 24. This video was taken...
Stomatal Blue Light Response Is Present in Early Vascular Plants.
Doi, Michio; Kitagawa, Yuki; Shimazaki, Ken-ichiro
Light is a major environmental factor required for stomatal opening. Blue light (BL) induces stomatal opening in higher plants as a signal under the photosynthetic active radiation. The stomatal BL response is not present in the fern species of Polypodiopsida. The acquisition of a stomatal BL response might provide competitive advantages in both the uptake of CO2 and prevention of water loss with the ability to rapidly open and close stomata. We surveyed the stomatal opening in response to strong red light (RL) and weak BL under the RL with gas exchange technique in a diverse selection of plant species from euphyllophytes, including spermatophytes and monilophytes, to lycophytes. We showed the presence of RL-induced stomatal opening in most of these species and found that the BL responses operated in all euphyllophytes except Polypodiopsida. We also confirmed that the stomatal opening in lycophytes, the early vascular plants, is driven by plasma membrane proton-translocating adenosine triphosphatase and K(+) accumulation in guard cells, which is the same mechanism operating in stomata of angiosperms. These results suggest that the early vascular plants respond to both RL and BL and actively regulate stomatal aperture. We also found three plant species that absolutely require BL for both stomatal opening and photosynthetic CO2 fixation, including a gymnosperm, C. revoluta, and the ferns Equisetum hyemale and Psilotum nudum.
Cargill, P.J.; Migliuolo, S.; Hood, A.W.
The physics of the activation of two-ribbon solar flares via the MHD instability of coronal arcades is presented. The destabilization of a preflare magnetic field is necessary for a rapid energy release, characteristic of the impulsive phase of the flare, to occur. The stability of a number of configurations are examined, and the physical consequences and relative importance of varying pressure profiles and different sets of boundary conditions (involving field-line tying) are discussed. Instability modes, driven unstable by pressure gradients, are candidates for instability. Shearless vs. sheared equilibria are also discussed. (ESA)
A Chromospheric Flare Model Consisting of Two Dynamical Layers: Critical Tests from IRIS Data of Solar Flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kowalski, Adam; Allred, Joel C.; Daw, Adrian N.; Cauzzi, Gianna; Carlsson, Mats; Inglis, Andrew; O'Neill, Aaron; Mathioudakis, Mihalis; Uitenbroek, Han
Recent 1D radiative-hydrodynamic simulations of flares have shown that a heated, chromospheric compression layer and a stationary layer, just below the compression, are produced in response to high flux electron beam heating. The hot blackbody-like continuum and redshifted intensity in singly ionized chromospheric lines in these model predictions are generally consistent with broad wavelength coverage spectra of M dwarf flares and with high spectral resolution observations of solar flares, respectively. We critically test this two-component chromospheric flare model against the Fe II profiles and NUV continuum brightness for several X-class solar flares observed with the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS). We present several new predictions for the Daniel K. Inoue Solar Telescope (DKIST).
Statistical aspects of solar flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Wilson, Robert M.
A survey of the statistical properties of 850 H alpha solar flares during 1975 is presented. Comparison of the results found here with those reported elsewhere for different epochs is accomplished. Distributions of rise time, decay time, and duration are given, as are the mean, mode, median, and 90th percentile values. Proportions by selected groupings are also determined. For flares in general, mean values for rise time, decay time, and duration are 5.2 + or - 0.4 min, and 18.1 + or 1.1 min, respectively. Subflares, accounting for nearly 90 percent of the flares, had mean values lower than those found for flares of H alpha importance greater than 1, and the differences are statistically significant. Likewise, flares of bright and normal relative brightness have mean values of decay time and duration that are significantly longer than those computed for faint flares, and mass-motion related flares are significantly longer than non-mass-motion related flares. Seventy-three percent of the mass-motion related flares are categorized as being a two-ribbon flare and/or being accompanied by a high-speed dark filament. Slow rise time flares (rise time greater than 5 min) have a mean value for duration that is significantly longer than that computed for fast rise time flares, and long-lived duration flares (duration greater than 18 min) have a mean value for rise time that is significantly longer than that computed for short-lived duration flares, suggesting a positive linear relationship between rise time and duration for flares. Monthly occurrence rates for flares in general and by group are found to be linearly related in a positive sense to monthly sunspot number. Statistical testing reveals the association between sunspot number and numbers of flares to be significant at the 95 percent level of confidence, and the t statistic for slope is significant at greater than 99 percent level of confidence. Dependent upon the specific fit, between 58 percent and 94 percent of
Rust, D M
This is a survey of solar phenomena and physical models that may be useful for improving forecasts of solar flares and proton storms in interplanetary space. Knowledge of the physical processes that accelerate protons has advanced because of gamma-ray and X-ray observations from the Solar Maximum Mission telescopes. Protons are accelerated at the onset of flares, but the duration of any subsequent proton storm at 1 AU depends on the structure of the interplanetary fields. X-ray images of the solar corona show possible fast proton escape paths. Magnetographs and high-resolution visible-band images show the magnetic field structure near the acceleration region and the heating effects of sunward-directed protons. Preflare magnetic field growth and shear may be the most important clues to the physical processes that generate high energy solar particles. Any dramatic improvement in flare forecasts will require high resolution solar telescopes in space. Several possibilities for improvements in the art of flare forecasting are presented, among them: the use of acoustic tomography to probe for subsurface magnetic fields; a satellite-borne solar magnetograph; and an X-ray telescope to monitor the corona for eruptions.
Smokeless, efficient, nontoxic flaring
Leite, O.C. )
The primary function of a flare is to dispose of toxic, corrosive or flammable vapors safely, under relief conditions, by converting them into less objectional products by combustion. Toxic limits are the greatest concentration of a poisonous substance that can be tolerated in the air for a length of time without danger. Most emergencies causing overpressure on safety relief valves can be controlled within 5 to 10 minutes, for example, by shutting down a pump or compressor. A period of 10 to 30 minutes should be sufficient to control any emergency situation short of a catastrophe. Atmospheric discharge of hydrocarbons or other flammables should be designed to avoid the formation of flammable mixtures and exposure of personnel to toxic or corrosive vapors at grade level or on elevated structures. Either elevated flares or ground flares can accomplish efficiently the discharges to atmosphere when properly designed. Proper design is based on the characteristics of waste gas, heat radiation, noise levels, smoke and atmospheric dispersion. Smokeless flares use smoke suppression systems, like stream injection, forced draft air fans, high pressure gas injection and other devices to reduce the smoking tendency of certain fuels, improving air entrainment and mixing.
Cytokine response after severe RSV bronchiolitis in early life
Castro, Mario; Schweiger, Toni; Yin-DeClue, Huiquing; Ramkumar, Thiruvamoor P; Christie, Chandrika; Zheng, Jie; Cohen, Rebecca; Schechtman, Kenneth B; Strunk, Robert; Bacharier, Leonard B.
Background Immune response following viral infection usually involves Th1-mediated response; however, severe respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection appears to be associated with the development of asthma, a Th2-predominant phenotype. Objective To understand the early and subsequent immunologic response to a serious RSV infection in children over time. Methods 206 previously healthy infants hospitalized with severe RSV bronchiolitis were enrolled in a prospective cohort called the RSV Bronchiolitis in Early Life (RBEL) study. Peripheral blood T cells were obtained immediately following RSV infection and at 2, 4 and 6 years of age, stimulated with PMA and ionomycin, and analyzed for interleukin (IL)-2, -4, and - 13 and interferon-γ (IFN-γ) by flow cytometry and real time PCR. Results 48% (n=97) of the children developed asthma (physician-diagnosed) and 48% (n=97) had eczema by age 6. 32% (n=48 of 150) developed allergic sensitization by 3 yrs of age. Children with asthma had lower IL-13 expression at 6 yrs of age than those without (p=0.001). IFN-γ, IL-2 and -4 levels did not differ by asthma or eczema status during follow-up (all p>0.05). Allergic sensitization was not associated with differences in cytokine levels during follow-up (all p>0.05). Conclusion Severe RSV infection early in life is associated with a high incidence of asthma and eczema. Contrary to expectations, subsequent immunologic development in those who developed asthma, eczema or allergic sensitization was not associated with a Th2 phenotype in the peripheral blood. PMID:18760461
Predictions and observations of HF radio propagation in the northerly ionosphere: The effect of the solar flares and a weak CME in early January 2014.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Hallam, Jonathan; Stocker, Alan J.; Warrington, Mike; Siddle, Dave; Zaalov, Nikolay; Honary, Farideh; Rogers, Neil; Boteler, David; Danskin, Donald
We have previously reported on a significant new multi-national project to provide improved predictions and forecasts of HF radio propagation for commercial aircraft operating on trans-polar routes. In these regions, there are limited or no VHF air-traffic control facilities and geostationary satellites are below the horizon. Therefore HF radio remains important in maintaining communications with the aircraft at all times. Space weather disturbances can have a range of effects on the ionosphere and hence HF radio propagation - particularly in the polar cap. While severe space weather effects can lead to a total loss of communications (i.e. radio blackout), less intense events can still cause significant disruption. In this paper we will present the effect of a series of M and X class solar flares and a relatively weak CME on HF radio performance from 6 to 13 January 2014. This is an interesting interval from the point of view of HF radio propagation because while the solar effects on the ionosphere are significant, except for an interval of approximately 12 hours duration, they are not so intense as to produce a complete radio blackout on all paths. Observations of the signal-to-noise ratio, direction of arrival, and time of flight of HF radio signals on six paths (one entirely within the polar cap, three trans-auroral, and two sub-auroral) will be presented together with riometer measurements of the ionospheric absorption. Global maps of D-region absorption (D-region absorption prediction, DRAP) inferred from satellite measurements of the solar wind parameters will be compared with the HF and riometer observations. In addition, a ray-tracing model using a realistic background ionosphere and including localised features found in the ionospheric polar cap (e.g. polar patches and arcs) will be used to model the expected and observed HF radio propagation characteristics.
Energetics of impulsive solar flares: Correlating BATSE hard x-ray bursts and the solar atmosphere's soft x-ray response
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Newton, Elizabeth
This investigation has involved the correlation of BATSE-observed solar hard X-ray emission with the characteristics of soft X-ray emitting plasma observed by the Yohkoh Bragg Crystal Spectrometers. The goal was to test the hypothesis that localized electron beam heating is the dominant energy transport mechanism in impulsive flares, as formulated in the thick-target electron-heated model of Brown.
Gamma-ray burst flares: X-ray flaring. II
Swenson, C. A.; Roming, P. W. A.
We present a catalog of 498 flaring periods found in gamma-ray burst (GRB) light curves taken from the online Swift X-Ray Telescope GRB Catalogue. We analyzed 680 individual light curves using a flare detection method developed and used on our UV/optical GRB Flare Catalog. This method makes use of the Bayesian Information Criterion to analyze the residuals of fitted GRB light curves and statistically determines the optimal fit to the light curve residuals in an attempt to identify any additional features. These features, which we classify as flares, are identified by iteratively adding additional 'breaks' to the light curve. We find evidence of flaring in 326 of the analyzed light curves. For those light curves with flares, we find an average number of ∼1.5 flares per GRB. As with the UV/optical, flaring in our sample is generally confined to the first 1000 s of the afterglow, but can be detected to beyond 10{sup 5} s. Only ∼50% of the detected flares follow the 'classical' definition of Δt/t ≤ 0.5, with many of the largest flares exceeding this value.
Responsiveness of the core set, response criteria, and utilities in early rheumatoid arthritis
Verhoeven, A; Boers, M; van der Linden, S
OBJECTIVE—Validation of responsiveness and discriminative power of the World Health Organisation/International League of Associations for Rheumatology (WHO/ILAR) core set, the American College of Rheumatology (ACR), and European League for Rheumatology (EULAR) criteria for improvement/response, and other single and combined measures (indices) in a trial in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis (RA). METHODS—Ranking of measures by response (standardised response means and effect sizes) and between-group discrimination (unpaired t test and χ2 values) at two time points in the COBRA study. This study included 155 patients with early RA randomly allocated to two treatment groups with distinct levels of expected response: combined treatment, high response; sulfasalazine treatment, moderate response. RESULTS—At week 16, standardised response means of core set measures ranged between 0.8 and 3.5 for combined treatment and between 0.4 and 1.2 for sulfasalazine treatment (95% confidence interval ±0.25). Performance of patient oriented measures (for example, pain, global assessment) was best when the questions were focused on the disease. The most responsive single measure was the patient's assessment of change in disease activity, at 3.5. Patient utility, a generic health status measure, was moderately (rating scale) to poorly (standard gamble) responsive. Response means of most indices (combined measures) exceeded 2.0, the simple count of core set measures improved by 20% was most responsive at 4.1. Discrimination performance yielded similar but not identical results: best discrimination between treatment groups was achieved by the EULAR response and ACR improvement criteria (at 20% and other percentage levels), the pooled index, and the disease activity score (DAS), but also by the Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ) and grip strength. CONCLUSIONS—Responsiveness and discrimination between levels of response are not identical concepts, and
X-ray studies of flaring magnetic structures
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Goff, Christopher Philip
This thesis studies non-thermal emission from flaring magnetic structures by looking at HXR emission from flare footpoints at a faint X-ray source above a flare loop and finally at radio emission generated by eruptions. By complementing high quality data from recent missions with data from older instrumentation, studies were performed to compare with accepted models. The relation between Hard X-ray footpoint emission and magnetic field strength in a sample of 32 flares was studied in order to investigate the effects of the magnetic field on the transport of accelerated electrons. It was found that one third of compact flares studied had stronger footpoints in stronger magnetic regions whereas the reverse is anticipated from magnetic trapping arguments. On 16th April 2002, a limb flare was studied in many wavelengths. This provided an opportunity to study an erupting filament from the low corona and into interplanetary space. RHESSI identified a moving X-ray source associated with a rising filament, confirming the plasmoid definition of Tsuneta (1997). The velocity profile of the filament was determined along with its exponential acceleration. This suggested that an instability was responsible for eruption, possibly the kink instability. Doppler shifts were observed on either side of the filament as it crossed the slit field of view, suggesting helical flows and thus a flux rope. A succession of quadrupolar flares, followed by an LDE were then studied. An associated CME was seen and appeared linked to the quadrupolar flares which should re main confined. The flaring region triggered loop expansion, which interacted with a neighbouring large-scale streamer. This led to a fast CME front, which weakened the restraining field above the active region filaments allowing a partial filament eruption. Although at first glance the observations appeared contradictory it was demonstrated that the quadrupolar flares remained confined while triggering a large-scale eruption.
Relativistic-Electron-Dominated Solar Flares Observed by Fermi/GBM
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Shih, A. Y.; Schwartz, R. A.; Dennis, B. R.
Up to tens of percent of the energy released in solar flares goes into accelerating electrons above ~10 keV and ions above ~1 MeV, and the impulsive heating of the ambient solar atmosphere by these particles is partially or wholly responsible for the production of hot flare plasmas (up to ~50 MK). Although flares can accelerate electrons to relativistic energies, in even large flares the typical falling power-law energy spectrum means that the plasma is primarily heated by the much larger number of low-energy electrons. However, there have been flares observed where the electron energy spectra have high low-energy cutoffs (well above ~100 keV), which significantly changes the electron energies responsible for heating and modifies the usual conception of energy transport in a flare. A systematic study of a range of relativistic-electron-dominated flares can improve our understanding of the relevant acceleration processes and how they may differ from those in "typical" flares. We search the Fermi/GBM data set for such flares based on the electron-associated X-ray/gamma-ray bremsstrahlung emission, making use of an improved background-subtraction approach to improve the ability to detect weaker flares. We present the fitted parameters for the relativistic-electron spectrum and their evolution over time, and compare against RHESSI observations and other instruments when available. We also discuss these events in the context of previously observed correlations between relativistic-electron acceleration and ion acceleration in flares.
Evasion of early antiviral responses by herpes simplex viruses.
Suazo, Paula A; Ibañez, Francisco J; Retamal-Díaz, Angello R; Paz-Fiblas, Marysol V; Bueno, Susan M; Kalergis, Alexis M; González, Pablo A
Besides overcoming physical constraints, such as extreme temperatures, reduced humidity, elevated pressure, and natural predators, human pathogens further need to overcome an arsenal of antimicrobial components evolved by the host to limit infection, replication and optimally, reinfection. Herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV-1) and herpes simplex virus-2 (HSV-2) infect humans at a high frequency and persist within the host for life by establishing latency in neurons. To gain access to these cells, herpes simplex viruses (HSVs) must replicate and block immediate host antiviral responses elicited by epithelial cells and innate immune components early after infection. During these processes, infected and noninfected neighboring cells, as well as tissue-resident and patrolling immune cells, will sense viral components and cell-associated danger signals and secrete soluble mediators. While type-I interferons aim at limiting virus spread, cytokines and chemokines will modulate resident and incoming immune cells. In this paper, we discuss recent findings relative to the early steps taking place during HSV infection and replication. Further, we discuss how HSVs evade detection by host cells and the molecular mechanisms evolved by these viruses to circumvent early antiviral mechanisms, ultimately leading to neuron infection and the establishment of latency.
Detection of early plant stress responses in hyperspectral images
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Behmann, Jan; Steinrücken, Jörg; Plümer, Lutz
Early stress detection in crop plants is highly relevant, but hard to achieve. We hypothesize that close range hyperspectral imaging is able to uncover stress related processes non-destructively in the early stages which are invisible to the human eye. We propose an approach which combines unsupervised and supervised methods in order to identify several stages of progressive stress development from series of hyperspectral images. Stress of an entire plant is detected by stress response levels at pixel scale. The focus is on drought stress in barley (Hordeum vulgare). Unsupervised learning is used to separate hyperspectral signatures into clusters related to different stages of stress response and progressive senescence. Whereas all such signatures may be found in both, well watered and drought stressed plants, their respective distributions differ. Ordinal classification with Support Vector Machines (SVM) is used to quantify and visualize the distribution of progressive stages of senescence and to separate well watered from drought stressed plants. For each senescence stage a distinctive set of most relevant Vegetation Indices (VIs) is identified. The method has been applied on two experiments involving potted barley plants under well watered and drought stress conditions in a greenhouse. Drought stress is detected up to ten days earlier than using NDVI. Furthermore, it is shown that some VIs have overall relevance, while others are specific to particular senescence stages. The transferability of the method to the field is illustrated by an experiment on maize (Zea mays).
Plasma-Sprayed Titanium Patterns for Enhancing Early Cell Responses
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Shi, Yunqi; Xie, Youtao; Pan, Houhua; Zheng, Xuebin; Huang, Liping; Ji, Fang; Li, Kai
Titanium coating has been widely used as a biocompatible metal in biomedical applications. However, the early cell responses and long-term fixation of titanium implants are not satisfied. To obviate these defects, in this paper, micro-post arrays with various widths (150-1000 μm) and intervals (100-300 μm) were fabricated on the titanium substrate by template-assisted plasma spraying technology. In vitro cell culture experiments showed that MC3T3-E1 cells exhibited significantly higher osteogenic differentiation as well as slightly improved adhesion and proliferation on the micro-patterned coatings compared with the traditional one. The cell number on the pattern with 1000 µm width reached 130% after 6 days of incubation, and the expressions of osteopontin (OPN) as well as osteocalcin (OC) were doubled. No obvious difference was found in cell adhesion on various size patterns. The present micro-patterned coatings proposed a new modification method for the traditional plasma spraying technology to enhance the early cell responses and convenience for the bone in-growth.
Selection for early response to photostimulation in broiler breeders.
Tyler, N C; Gous, R M
1. To determine if selection for early response to photostimulation could be successful, 150 male broiler breeders were photostimulated at 8 weeks of age. The first 20 to produce a semen sample and have a reddened comb with an area > 10 cm2 were selected as responders (R) and 20 birds that did not show these signs of sexual development were chosen as non-responders (NR). Once sexually mature, 8 birds from each group that consistently produced a semen sample were mated with both egg-type hybrids and broiler breeder females to observe the response to 8-week photostimulation in the as-hatched offspring. 2. The AFE of the F1 females with NR or R paternity and egg-type hybrid layer maternity (F1L) were similar, but AFE was advanced in birds from R relative to NR paternity when they had broiler breeder maternity (F1B). 3. Date following a normal distribution of AFE were extracted from the overall data set. This group included offspring from both NR and R paternity, but AFE in F1L and F1B females with R paternity was advanced compared to those with NR paternity. 4. Mean testis weights, or age at most rapid testis growth predicted using parameters from Tyler and Gous (2009), of F1 males were not significantly different in birds with NR or R paternity. A strong correlation was found between predicted age at most rapid growth and AFE of full sibs and so it is likely that an advance in AFE in female offspring would also result in an advance in age of testis development of males. 5. There was no significant difference in 21-d body weight of F1B females of NR or R paternity, but the 21-d body weights of F1L females were higher from R than from NR sires, suggesting that although fertility and meat-type traits are often negatively correlated, there was no adverse effect of selection for responsiveness to early photostimulation and broiler growth rates to 21 d. 6. These findings showed that the response to early stimulation is heritable, and should be useful to the broiler breeder
The Solar Flare Myth in solar-terrestrial physics
Gosling, J.T.
Early observations of associations between solar flares and large non- recurrent geomagnetic storms, large {open_quote}solar{close_quote} energetic particle events, and transient shock wave disturbances in the solar wind led to a paradigm of cause and effect that gave flares a central position in the chain of events leading from solar activity to major transient disturbances in the near-earth space environment. However, research in the last two decades shows that this emphasis on flares is misplaced. In this paper the author outlines briefly the rationale for a different paradigm of cause and effect in solar- terrestrial physics that removes solar flares from their central position as the {open_quote}cause{close_quote} of major disturbances in the near-earth space environment. Instead, this central role of {open_quote}cause{close_quote} is played by events now known as coronal mass ejections, or CMEs.
Enhancing early child care quality and learning for toddlers at risk: the responsive early childhood program.
Landry, Susan H; Zucker, Tricia A; Taylor, Heather B; Swank, Paul R; Williams, Jeffrey M; Assel, Michael; Crawford, April; Huang, Weihua; Clancy-Menchetti, Jeanine; Lonigan, Christopher J; Phillips, Beth M; Eisenberg, Nancy; Spinrad, Tracy L; de Villiers, Jill; de Villiers, Peter; Barnes, Marcia; Starkey, Prentice; Klein, Alice
Despite reports of positive effects of high-quality child care, few experimental studies have examined the process of improving low-quality center-based care for toddler-age children. In this article, we report intervention effects on child care teachers' behaviors and children's social, emotional, behavioral, early literacy, language, and math outcomes as well as the teacher-child relationship. The intervention targeted the use of a set of responsive teacher practices, derived from attachment and sociocultural theories, and a comprehensive curriculum. Sixty-five childcare classrooms serving low-income 2- and 3-year-old children were randomized into 3 conditions: business-as-usual control, Responsive Early Childhood Curriculum (RECC), and RECC plus explicit social-emotional classroom activities (RECC+). Classroom observations showed greater gains for RECC and RECC+ teachers' responsive practices including helping children manage their behavior, establishing a predictable schedule, and use of cognitively stimulating activities (e.g., shared book reading) compared with controls; however, teacher behaviors did not differ for focal areas such as sensitivity and positive discipline supports. Child assessments demonstrated that children in the interventions outperformed controls in areas of social and emotional development, although children's performance in control and intervention groups was similar for cognitive skills (language, literacy, and math). Results support the positive impact of responsive teachers and environments providing appropriate support for toddlers' social and emotional development. Possible explanations for the absence of systematic differences in children's cognitive skills are considered, including implications for practice and future research targeting low-income toddlers.
Early Biventricular Molecular Responses to an Acute Myocardial Infarction
Erdal, Cenk; Karakülah, Gökhan; Fermancı, Emel; Kunter, İmge; Silistreli, Erdem; Canda, Tülay; Erdal, Esra; Hepaguslar, Hasan
Background: Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) remains as one of the most common lethal diseases in the world and therefore it is necessary to understand its effect on molecular basis. Genome-wide microarray analysis provides us to predict potential biomarkers and signaling pathways for this purpose. Objectives: The aim of this study is to understand the molecular basis of the immediate right ventricular cellular response to left ventricular AMI. Material and Methods: A rat model of left anterior descending coronary artery ligation was used to assess the effect of left ventricular AMI on both the right ventricle as a remote zone and the left ventricle as an ischemic/infarct zone. Microarray technology was applied to detect the gene expression. Gene Ontology and KEGG pathways analysis were done to identify effected pathways and related genes. Results: We found that immune response, cell chemotaxis, inflammation, cytoskeleton organization are significantly deregulated in ischemic zone as early response within 30 min. Unexpectedly, there were several affected signaling pathways such as cell chemotaxis, regulation of endothelial cell proliferation, and regulation of caveolea regulation of anti-apoptosis, regulation of cytoskeleton organization and cell adhesion on the remote zone in the right ventricle. Conclusion: This data demonstrates that there is an immediate molecular response in both ventricles after an AMI. Although the ischemia did not histologically involve the right ventricle; there is a clear molecular response to the infarct in the left ventricle. This provides us new insights to understand molecular mechanisms behind AMI and to find more effective drug targets. PMID:22211093
EGRET High Energy Capability and Multiwavelength Flare Studies and Solar Flare Proton Spectra
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Chupp, Edward L.
UNH was assigned the responsibility to use their accelerator neutron measurements to verify the TASC response function and to modify the TASC fitting program to include a high energy neutron contribution. Direct accelerator-based measurements by UNH of the energy-dependent efficiencies for detecting neutrons with energies from 36 to 720 MeV in NaI were compared with Monte Carlo TASC calculations. The calculated TASC efficiencies are somewhat lower (by about 20%) than the accelerator results in the energy range 70-300 MeV. The measured energy-loss spectrum for 207 MeV neutron interactions in NaI were compared with the Monte Carlo response for 200 MeV neutrons in the TASC indicating good agreement. Based on this agreement, the simulation was considered to be sufficiently accurate to generate a neutron response library to be used by UNH in modifying the TASC fitting program to include a neutron component in the flare spectrum modeling. TASC energy-loss data on the 1991 June 11 flare was transferred to UNH. Also included appendix: Gamma-rays and neutrons as a probe of flare proton spectra: the solar flare of 11 June 1991.
Temperature Dependence of the Flare Fluence Scaling Exponent
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kretzschmar, M.
Solar flares result in an increase of the solar irradiance at all wavelengths. While the distribution of the flare fluence observed in coronal emission has been widely studied and found to scale as f(E)˜ E^{-α}, with α slightly below 2, the distribution of the flare fluence in chromospheric lines is poorly known. We used the solar irradiance measurements observed by the SDO/EVE instrument at a 10 s cadence to investigate the dependency of the scaling exponent on the formation region of the lines (or temperature). We analyzed all flares above the C1 level since the start of the EVE observations (May 2010) to determine the flare fluence distribution in 16 lines covering a wide range of temperatures, several of which were not studied before. Our results show a weak downward trend with temperature of the scaling exponent of the PDF that reaches from above 2 at lower temperature (a few 104 K) to {˜ }1.8 for hot coronal emission (several 106 K). However, because colder lines also have fainter contrast, we cannot exclude that this behavior is caused by including more noise for smaller flares for these lines. We discuss the method and its limitations and tentatively associate this possible trend with the different mechanisms responsible for the heating of the chromosphere and corona during flares.
Exploring Solar Flares with Gamma Rays and Neutrons
the next- generation high- energy gamma- ray observatory covering the photon energy range from 10 keV to more than 100 GeV. NRL was responsible for...model. We describe these dependences and construct a self-consistent approach to the analysis of high- energy flare data that provides an optimum set...electromagnetic spec- trum: radio, visible, UV, X-rays, and gamma rays. The energy released in a solar flare can be greater than 1032 ergs, enough
Energy release in solar flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Brown, John C.; Correia, Emilia; Farnik, Frantisek; Garcia, Howard; Henoux, Jean-Claude; La Rosa, Ted N.; Machado, Marcos E. (Compiler); Nakajima, Hiroshi; Priest, Eric R.
Team 2 of the Ottawa Flares 22 Workshop dealt with observational and theoretical aspects of the characteristics and processes of energy release in flares. Main results summarized in this article stress the global character of the flaring phenomenon in active regions, the importance of discontinuities in magnetic connectivity, the role of field-aligned currents in free energy storage, and the fragmentation of energy release in time and space.
Explosive evaporation in solar flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Fisher, George H.
This paper develops a simple analytical model for the phenomenon of 'explosive evaporation' driven by nonthermal electron heating in solar flares. The model relates the electron energy flux and spectrum, plus details of the preflare atmosphere, to the time scale for explosive evaporation to occur, the maximum pressure and temperature to be reached, rough estimates for the UV pulse emission flux and duration, and the evolution of the blueshifted component of the soft X-ray lines. An expression is given for the time scale for buildup to maximum pressures and the onset of rapid motion of the explosively evaporating plasma. This evaporation can excite a rapid response of UV line and continuum emission. The emission lines formed in the plasma approach a given emissivity-weighted blueshift speed.
Human Macrophage Response to L. (Viannia) panamensis: Microarray Evidence for an Early Inflammatory Response
Rojas, Ricardo; Ettinger, Nicholas A.; Tikhonova, Irina; Alexander, Neal D.; Valderrama, Liliana; Hager, Janet; Wilson, Mary E.; Lin, Aiping; Zhao, Hongyu; Saravia, Nancy G.; McMahon-Pratt, Diane
Background Previous findings indicate that susceptibility to Leishmania (Viannia) panamensis infection of monocyte-derived macrophages from patients and asymptomatically infected individuals were associated with the adaptive immune response and clinical outcome. Methodology/Principal Findings To understand the basis for this difference we examined differential gene expression of human monocyte-derived macrophages following exposure to L. (V.) panamensis. Gene activation profiles were determined using macrophages from healthy volunteers cultured with or without stationary phase promastigotes of L. (V.) panamensis. Significant changes in expression (>1.5-fold change; p<0.05; up- or down-regulated) were identified at 0.5, 4 and 24 hours. mRNA abundance profiles varied over time, with the highest level of activation occurring at earlier time points (0.5 and 4 hrs). In contrast to observations for other Leishmania species, most significantly changed mRNAs were up- rather than down-regulated, especially at early time points. Up-regulated transcripts over the first 24 hours belonged to pathways involving eicosanoid metabolism, oxidative stress, activation of PKC through G protein coupled receptors, or mechanism of gene regulation by peroxisome proliferators via PPARα. Additionally, a marked activation of Toll-receptor mediated pathways was observed. Comparison with published microarray data from macrophages infected with L. (Leishmania) chagasi indicate differences in the regulation of genes involved in signaling, motility and the immune response. Conclusions Results show that the early (0.5 to 24 hours) human monocyte-derived macrophage response to L. (Viannia) panamensis is not quiescent, in contrast to published reports examining later response times (48–96 hours). Early macrophage responses are important for the developing cellular response at the site of infection. The kinetics and the mRNA abundance profiles induced by L. (Viannia) panamensis illustrate the
The 26 December 2001 Solar Eruptive Event Responsible for GLE63. II. Multi-Loop Structure of Microwave Sources in a Major Long-Duration Flare
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Grechnev, V.; Uralov, A. M.; Kiselev, V. I.; Kochanov, A. A.
Our analysis of the observations of the SOL2001-12-26 event, which was related to ground-level enhancement of cosmic-ray intensity GLE63, including microwave spectra and images from the Nobeyama Radioheliograph at 17 and 34 GHz, from the Siberian Solar Radio Telescope at 5.7 GHz, and from the Transition Region and Coronal Explorer in 1600 Å, has led to the following results: A flare ribbon overlapped with the sunspot umbra, which is typical of large particle events. Atypical were i) the long duration of the flare, which lasted more than one hour; ii) the moderate intensity of the microwave burst, which was about 104 sfu; iii) the low peak frequency of the gyrosynchrotron spectrum, which was about 6 GHz; and its insensitivity to the flux increase by more than one order of magnitude. This was accompanied by a nearly constant ratio of the flux emitted by the volume in the high-frequency part of the spectrum to its elevated low-frequency part determined by the area of the source. With the self-similarity of the spectrum, a similarity was observed between the moving microwave sources and the brightest parts of the flare ribbons in 1600 Å images. We compared the 17 GHz and 1600 Å images and confirm that the microwave sources were associated with multiple flare loops, whose footpoints appeared in the ultraviolet as intermittent bright kernels. To understand the properties of the event, we simulated its microwave emission using a system of several homogeneous gyrosynchrotron sources above the ribbons. The scatter between the spectra and the sizes of the individual sources is determined by the inhomogeneity of the magnetic field within the ribbons. The microwave flux is mainly governed by the magnetic flux passing through the ribbons and the sources. The apparent simplicity of the microwave structures is caused by a poorer spatial resolution and dynamic range of the microwave imaging. The results indicate that microwave manifestations of accelerated electrons correspond
Workshop on Impulsive Solar Flares, 2nd, University of New Hampshire, Durham, Sept. 26-28, 1988, Proceedings
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Papers on impulsive solar flares are presented, covering topics such as the optical properties of impulsive flares, soft X-ray spectroscopy of solar flares, the energy release process in impulsive bursts, high-velocity evaporation and a high-speed shock wave during the impulsive phase of the April 24, 1984 flare, nonpotential magnetic fields at sites of gamma-ray flares, and meter-decimeter and microwave radio observations of solar flares. Other topics include rise times in solar radio bursts, removal of the gradual component in analyses of solar impulsive bursts, ion and relativistic electron transport in solar flares, neutrons and gamma-ray emission on June 3, 1982, emission characteristics of three intense solar flares in cycle 21, and solar flare gamma-ray observations with the Hinotori satellite. Additional topics include spectra of relativistic solar proton ground-level events recorded in Antarctica, a 153-d periodicity in the occurrence of solar flares producing energetic interplanetary electrons, a search for solar neutron response in neutron monitor data, neutral beams in two-ribbon flares and in the geomagnetic tail, beam heating in solar flares, and solar flare gamma-ray line shapes.
Temporal Evolution of Chromospheric Oscillations in Flaring Regions: A Pilot Study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Monsue, T.; Hill, F.; Stassun, K. G.
We have analyzed Hα intensity images obtained at a 1 minute cadence with the Global Oscillation Network Group (GONG) system to investigate the properties of oscillations in the 0-8 mHz frequency band at the location and time of strong M- and X-class flares. For each of three subregions within two flaring active regions, we extracted time series from multiple distinct positions, including the flare core and quieter surrounding areas. The time series were analyzed with a moving power-map analysis to examine power as a function of frequency and time. We find that, in the flare core of all three subregions, the low-frequency power (˜1-2 mHz) is substantially enhanced immediately prior to and after the flare, and that power at all frequencies up to 8 mHz is depleted at flare maximum. This depletion is both frequency- and time-dependent, which probably reflects the changing depths visible during the flare in the bandpass of the filter. These variations are not observed outside the flare cores. The depletion may indicate that acoustic energy is being converted into thermal energy at flare maximum, while the low-frequency enhancement may arise from an instability in the chromosphere and provide an early warning of the flare onset. Dark lanes of reduced wave power are also visible in the power maps, which may arise from the interaction of the acoustic waves and the magnetic field.
Risk of tumor flare after nivolumab treatment in patients with irradiated field recurrence.
Yoshida, Tatsuya; Furuta, Hiromi; Hida, Toyoaki
Nivolumab offers a statistically superior survival benefit over docetaxel in patients with advanced, previously treated squamous and non-squamous non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, we unexpectedly encountered "tumor flare" that was associated with initially increased tumor lesion size and subsequently decreased tumor burden in patients with NSCLC treated with nivolumab, which is known as pseudoprogression. Tumor flare with rapid progression related to accelerated progression after nivolumab treatment has also been observed. Here we report two patients having early irradiated field recurrence who experienced "tumor flare" that showed pseudoprogression and rapid progression. In addition, we present a brief literature review on "tumor flare" after nivolumab treatment.
Characteristics of Gamma-Ray Line Flares,
Sauna -ray line flares now identified, can yield valuable insight that is not obtainable from studying the few Sana-ray line flares observed before...Spectrometer (HUBS; cf., Orwig, Dennis, and Frost 1980) and found that the Sauna -ray line flares are very intense hard X-ray flares. For comparison, we...found that all the Sauna -ray line flares produced hard X-ray emissions with RXRBS peak count rates > 7500 counts s"- (all but two flares were > 104
The early epigenetic response to ozone: impacts on DNA ...
Epigenetics have been increasingly recognized as a mechanism linking environment and gene expression. Despite awareness of the role of DNA methylation and hydroxymethylation as potential drivers of the response to air pollutants, very little work has been performed investigating the direct epigenetic effects following exposure to ambient air pollution. Thus the purpose of this study was to investigate the early epigenetic response to ozone in comparison to the epigenetic modifier 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine (5-Aza) in rats. 12 week old, male Long-Evans rats (n=16) were exposed to 4 hours of whole-body 1.0 ppm ozone or air and immediately euthanized. A subset of animals were additionally treated with 5-Aza (n=16) to serve as an epigenetic control to ozone exposure. Neither 5-Aza nor ozone by itself induced changes to the global methylome or hydroxmethylome of the lung measured by ELISA. Despite this finding, ozone exposure induced a significant increase in the activity of the DNA methyltransferase enzymes in the lung which was reversed with 5-Aza treatment. Interestingly, a significant interaction between 5-Aza treatment and ozone exposure was found in a large array of data. The interaction between 5-Aza and ozone produced indicators of pulmonary edema and elevated lung damage. Along with these adverse changes, expression of major epigenetic enzymes (Tet 1-3, Dnmt3 a-b) were found to be perturbed in both the lung and hepatic tissues. While ozone exposure appears to in
The early antibody-forming response to Salmonella antigens
Russell, Pamela J.; Diener, E.
This paper describes a new method for the morphological study of individual antibody-forming cells (AFC) on cell smears of the quality of normal haematological preparations. The early AFC response to polymerized flagellin of S. adelaide was studied in vivo using C57BL mice, which have very low background levels of AFC and in vitro using dispersed spleen cell cultures from CBA mice. AFC, arising as a result of in vivo or in vitro stimulation were found to comprise a heterogeneous population, including basophilic mononuclear cells, lymphocytes of most sizes, immature blast cells and occasional plasma cells. The earliest AFC detected comprised a high percentage (28 per cent in vivo, 31 per cent in vitro) of small lymphocyte-like cells. Studies of the incorporation of [3H]thymidine showed that most AFC arose by proliferation but that a proportion of AFC, the small lymphocyte-like cells, arose by differentiation of precursor cells not involving cell division. The effects of antigen concentration on the kinetics of AFC were investigated in vitro. Subtolerogenic antigen doses caused a delayed and decreased AFC response. ImagesFIG. 1FIG. 4 PMID:5529118
Thermodynamic Spectrum of Solar Flares Based on SDO/EVE Observations: Techniques and First Results
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Wang, Yuming; Zhou, Zhenjun; Zhang, Jie; Liu, Kai; Liu, Rui; Shen, Chenglong; Chamberlin, Phillip C.
The Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO)/EUV Variability Experiment (EVE) provides rich information on the thermodynamic processes of solar activities, particularly on solar flares. Here, we develop a method to construct thermodynamic spectrum (TDS) charts based on the EVE spectral lines. This tool could potentially be useful for extreme ultraviolet (EUV) astronomy to learn about the eruptive activities on distant astronomical objects. Through several cases, we illustrate what we can learn from the TDS charts. Furthermore, we apply the TDS method to 74 flares equal to or greater than the M5.0 class, and reach the following statistical results. First, EUV peaks are always behind the soft X-ray (SXR) peaks and stronger flares tend to have faster cooling rates. There is a power-law correlation between the peak delay times and the cooling rates, suggesting a coherent cooling process of flares from SXR to EUV emissions. Second, there are two distinct temperature drift patterns, called Type I and Type II. For Type I flares, the enhanced emission drifts from high to low temperature like a quadrilateral, whereas for Type II flares the drift pattern looks like a triangle. Statistical analysis suggests that Type II flares are more impulsive than Type I flares. Third, for late-phase flares, the peak intensity ratio of the late phase to the main phase is roughly correlated with the flare class, and the flares with a strong late phase are all confined. We believe that the re-deposition of the energy carried by a flux rope, which unsuccessfully erupts out, into thermal emissions is responsible for the strong late phase found in a confined flare. Furthermore, we show the signatures of the flare thermodynamic process in the chromosphere and transition region in the TDS charts. These results provide new clues to advance our understanding of the thermodynamic processes of solar flares and associated solar eruptions, e.g., coronal mass ejections.
The flares of August 1972. [solar flare characteristics and spectra
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Zirin, H.; Tanaka, K.
Observations of the August, 1972 flares at Big Bear and Tel Aviv, involving monochromatic movies, magnetograms, and spectra, are analyzed. The region (McMath 11976) showed inverted polarity from its inception on July 11; the great activity was due to extremely high shear and gradients in the magnetic field, as well as a constant invasion of one polarity into the opposite; observations in lambda 3835 show remarkable fast flashes in the impulsive flare of 18:38 UT on Aug. 2 with lifetimes of 5 sec, which may be due to dumping of particles in the lower chromosphere. Flare loops show evolutionary increases of their tilts to the neutral line in the flares of Aug. 4 and 7. Spectroscopic observations show red asymmetry and red shift of the H alpha emission in the flash phase of the Aug. 7 flare, as well as substantial velocity shear in the photosphere during the flare, somewhat like earthquake movement along a fault. Finally the total H alpha emission of the Aug. 7 flare could be measured accurately as about 2.5 x 10 to the 30th power erg, considerably less than coarser previous estimates for great flares.
Properties of Solar Flare Clustering
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Title, Alan; DeRosa, Marc
The continuous full disk observations provided by the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) on the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) give an observer the impression that flare and filament eruptions are related. However, both detailed analysis of a number of events as well as a number of statistical studies have provided only rare examples of clear causal behavior. But the mechanisms of flare triggering are not well understood, so the lack of hard evidence is not surprising. Here we have examined the waiting-time statistics of GOES X-ray flares of magnitude C5 or greater during the last sunspot cycle with the aim of assessing the degree to which flares are clustered in time. Clusters are groups of flares in which all successive flares occur within a fixed separation time - the linking window. While many of the flares in a cluster may come from the same active region, the clusters that last more than a disk passage must result from flares in multiple active regions. The longest cluster of the last cycle lasted more than 42 days. None of the flares were separated by more than 36 hours. Since that cluster lasted more than three disk passages, it could not have been caused by a single region. We find that during the last maximum, eight clusters contributed 44% of all flares. All of these clusters spanned multiple disk passages, but occupied only 16.5% of the cycle duration. Two of the clusters provided 34% of the flares. We suggest that this behavior implies that a component of the observed coordinated behavior has its origin in the solar dynamo.
Capabilities of GRO/OSSE for observing solar flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Kurfess, J. D.; Johnson, W. N.; Share, G. H.; Hulburt, E. O.; Matz, S. M.; Murphy, R. J.
The launch of the Gamma Ray Observatory (GRO) near solar maximum makes solar flare studies early in the mission particularly advantageous. The Oriented Scintillation Spectrometer Experiment (OSSE) on GRO, covering the energy range 0.05 to 150 MeV, has some significant advantages over the previous generation of satellite-borne gamma-ray detectors for solar observations. The OSSE detectors will have about 10 times the effective area of the Gamma-Ray Spectrometer (GRS) on Solar Maximum Mission (SMM) for both photons and high-energy neutrons. The OSSE also has the added capability of distinguishing between high-energy neutrons and photons directly. The OSSE spectral accumulation time (approx. 4s) is four times faster than that of the SMM/GRS; much better time resolution is available in selected energy ranges. These characteristics will allow the investigation of particle acceleration in flares based on the evolution of the continuum and nuclear line components of flare spectra, nuclear emission in small flares, the anisotropy of continuum emission in small flares, and the relative intensities of different nuclear lines. The OSSE observational program will be devoted primarily to non-solar sources. Therefore, solar observations require planning and special configurations. The instrumental and operational characteristics of OSSE are discussed in the context of undertaking solar observations. The opportunities for guest investigators to participate in solar flare studies with OSSE is also presented.
Particle acceleration by a solar flare termination shock.
Chen, Bin; Bastian, Timothy S; Shen, Chengcai; Gary, Dale E; Krucker, Säm; Glesener, Lindsay
Solar flares--the most powerful explosions in the solar system--are also efficient particle accelerators, capable of energizing a large number of charged particles to relativistic speeds. A termination shock is often invoked in the standard model of solar flares as a possible driver for particle acceleration, yet its existence and role have remained controversial. We present observations of a solar flare termination shock and trace its morphology and dynamics using high-cadence radio imaging spectroscopy. We show that a disruption of the shock coincides with an abrupt reduction of the energetic electron population. The observed properties of the shock are well reproduced by simulations. These results strongly suggest that a termination shock is responsible, at least in part, for accelerating energetic electrons in solar flares.
An Investigation of Flare Footpoint DEMs using AIA Diffraction Patterns
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Raftery, Claire; Bain, Hazel; Schwartz, Richard; Torre, Gabriele; Krucker, Sam
The heating of flare footpoints by accelerated electrons is a well-established component of the standard flare model. However, limitations of current instruments make it challenging to obtain high cadence, high resolution observations of the brightest footpoint regions, predominantly due to low cadence, or pixel saturation.In moderate and large flares observed by the Solar Dynamics Observatory's Atmospheric Imaging Assembly, CCD pixels in the footpoint regions are frequently saturated despite the automatic exposure control. Using the method of Schwartz et al. (2014), we reconstruct saturated footpoint kernels in the brightest flaring regions and investigate the evolving footpoint differential emission measure at the full 12 second AIA cadence. This is compared to the changing electron fluxes observed with the Reuven Ramaty Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) to investigate the relationship between the non-thermal electron energy flux and the footpoint thermal response.(Schwartz, R. A., Torre, G., & Piana, M. (2014), Astrophysical Journal Letters, 793, LL23 )
Cardenas receives, 2011 Early Career Hydrologic Sciences Award: Response
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Cardenas, M. Bayani
Meinhard Bayani Cardenas received the 2011 Early Career Hydrologic Sciences Award at the 2011 AGU Fall Meeting, held 5-9 December in San Francisco, Calif. The award is for significant early career contributions to hydrologic science.
Classification of Solar Flares
Svestka, Z . 1985. Sol. Phys. 100: 435-63 45. Decker, R. B., Viahos, L. 1986. Ap. J. 306: 710-29 46. Dennis, B. R. 1985. Sol. Phys. 100: 465-90 47...169-224 51. Dungey, J. W. 1953. Phil. Mag. Ser. 7,44: 725-38 53 52. Dwivedi, B. N., Hudson, H. S., Kane, S. R., Svestka, Z . 1984. Sol. Phys. 90: 331...57 95. Kiepenheuer, K. 0. 1964. in The Physics of Solar Flares, ed. W. N. Hess (NASA SP-50), 323-31 96. Kippehahn, R., Schluter, A. 1957. Z . Astrophys
Responses to Developmental and Family Changes in Early Adolescence.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Petersen, Anne C.; And Others
Research has identified several factors which may be stressful in early adolescence, including school change, puberty, and family changes. This study used a longitudinal cohort sequential design to examine whether stressful changes in early adolescence have impact beyond early adolescence. Of the 335 sixth graders initially sampled, 169 were…
Is the Ultimate Treatment Response Predictable with Early Response in Major Depressive Episode?
ÇİFTÇİ, Aslı; ULAŞ, Halis; TOPUZOĞLU, Ahmet; TUNCA, Zeliha
Introduction New evidence suggests that the efficacy of antidepressants occurs within the first weeks of treatment and this early response predicts the later response. The purpose of the present study was to investigate if the partial response in the first week predicts the response at the end of treatment in patients with major depressive disorder who are treated with either antidepressant medication or electroconvulsive therapy. Methods Inpatients from Dokuz Eylül University Hospital with a major depressive episode, treated with antidepressant medication (n=52) or electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) (n=48), were recruited for the study. The data were retrospectively collected to decide whether a 25% decrease in the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS) score at the first week of treatment predicts a 50% decrease at the third week using validity analysis. In addition, the effects of socio-demographic and clinical variables on the treatment response were assessed. Results A 25% decrease in the HDRS score in the first week of treatment predicted a 50% decrease in the HDRS score in the third week with a 78.3% positive predictive value, 62.1% negative predictive value, 62.1% sensitivity, and 78.3% specificity for antidepressant medications and an 88% positive predictive value, 52.2% negative predictive value, 66.7% sensitivity, and 80% specificity for ECT. The number of previous hospitalizations, comorbid medical illnesses, number of depressive episodes, duration of illness, and duration of the current episode were related to the treatment response. Conclusion Treatment response in the first week predicted the response in the third week with a high specificity and a high positive predictive value. Close monitoring of the response from the first week of treatment may thus help the clinician to predict the subsequent response. PMID:28373802
Parameterization of solar flare dose
Lamarche, A.H.; Poston, J.W.
A critical aspect of missions to the moon or Mars will be the safety and health of the crew. Radiation in space is a hazard for astronauts, especially high-energy radiation following certain types of solar flares. A solar flare event can be very dangerous if astronauts are not adequately shielded because flares can deliver a very high dose in a short period of time. The goal of this research was to parameterize solar flare dose as a function of time to see if it was possible to predict solar flare occurrence, thus providing a warning time. This would allow astronauts to take corrective action and avoid receiving a dose greater than the recommended limit set by the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP).
Signatures of Accelerated Electrons in Solar and Stellar Flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Benz, Arnold O.
Flares energize electrons (and ions) to supra-thermal energies. In most cases the final distribution in momentum or energy space is non-Maxwellian. The non-thermal part of the energy can be the source for various emissions, including hard X-rays, synchrotron radiation and coherent radio emission. Such non-thermal emissions may contain information on the acceleration process. Several acceleration scenarios have been proposed: electric DC field, stochastic, and shock acceleration. There is observational evidence for all three scenarios. The new data come from SDO, X-ray (RHESSI), radio observations (Nobeyama, VLA and e-Callisto). Solar energetic particles are an additional channel of information.Tiny solar microflares and huge stellar flares in binary systems (RS CVns) and dMe dwarfs differ by more than 10 orders of magnitude in released energy. Yet the relation between peak luminosity in thermal (soft) X-ray and non-thermal synchrotron (radio) emission is surprisingly constant. This observational fact indicates that flare acceleration scales with energy release over a large range. Electron acceleration in flares seems to be a universal process. The constraint on simultaneous thermal X-rays and non-thermal (radio) synchrotron emission seems to select on particular kind of flare. In this subset, there seems to be only one type of acceleration.Yet, small deviations are noted: Small solar flares are softer in hard X-rays. Solar nanoflares are relatively weak in synchrotron emission. The recently noted case of radio-poor preflares will also be presented. The deviations suggest that the acceleration is less efficient in small flares and in the early phase of flares. Larger deviations are reported occasionally for solar flares and more often from stellar flares, where either thermal or non-thermal emission seems to be missing completely.The location of the acceleration in solar flares remains disputed. Observations suggesting acceleration in the soft X-ray top-tops, above
Early Transcriptional Response of Soybean Contrasting Accessions to Root Dehydration
Ferreira Neto, José Ribamar Costa; Pandolfi, Valesca; Guimaraes, Francismar Corrêa Marcelino; Benko-Iseppon, Ana Maria; Romero, Cynara; Silva, Roberta Lane de Oliveira; Rodrigues, Fabiana Aparecida; Abdelnoor, Ricardo Vilela; Nepomuceno, Alexandre Lima; Kido, Ederson Akio
Drought is a significant constraint to yield increase in soybean. The early perception of water deprivation is critical for recruitment of genes that promote plant tolerance. DeepSuperSAGE libraries, including one control and a bulk of six stress times imposed (from 25 to 150 min of root dehydration) for drought-tolerant and sensitive soybean accessions, allowed to identify new molecular targets for drought tolerance. The survey uncovered 120,770 unique transcripts expressed by the contrasting accessions. Of these, 57,610 aligned with known cDNA sequences, allowing the annotation of 32,373 unitags. A total of 1,127 unitags were up-regulated only in the tolerant accession, whereas 1,557 were up-regulated in both as compared to their controls. An expression profile concerning the most representative Gene Ontology (GO) categories for the tolerant accession revealed the expression "protein binding" as the most represented for "Molecular Function", whereas CDPK and CBL were the most up-regulated protein families in this category. Furthermore, particular genes expressed different isoforms according to the accession, showing the potential to operate in the distinction of physiological behaviors. Besides, heat maps comprising GO categories related to abiotic stress response and the unitags regulation observed in the expression contrasts covering tolerant and sensitive accessions, revealed the unitags potential for plant breeding. Candidate genes related to "hormone response" (LOX, ERF1b, XET), "water response" (PUB, BMY), "salt stress response" (WRKY, MYB) and "oxidative stress response" (PER) figured among the most promising molecular targets. Additionally, nine transcripts (HMGR, XET, WRKY20, RAP2-4, EREBP, NAC3, PER, GPX5 and BMY) validated by RT-qPCR (four different time points) confirmed their differential expression and pointed that already after 25 minutes a transcriptional reorganization started in response to the new condition, with
A Statistical Analysis of Loop-Top Motion in Solar Limb Flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Holman, G. D.; Sui, L.; Brosius, D. G.; Dennis, B. R.
Previous studies of hot, thermal solar flare loops imaged with the Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) have identified several flares for which the loop top shrinks downward early in the impulsive phase and then expands upward later in the impulsive phase (Sui & Holman 2003; Sui, Holman & Dennis 2004; Veronig et al. 2005). This early downward motion is not predicted by flare models. We study a statistical sample of RHESSI flares to assess how common this evolution is and to better characterize it. In a sample of 88 flares near the solar limb that show identifiable loop structure in RHESSI images, 66% (58 flares) showed downward loop-top motion followed by upward motion. We therefore conclude that the early downward motion is a frequent characteristic of flare loops. We obtain the distribution of the timing of the change from downward to upward motion relative to flare start and peak times. We also obtain the distributions of downward and upward speeds. This work was supported in part by NASA SEC Guest Investigator Grant 370-16-20-16 and by the RHESSI project.
Language experience enhances early cortical pitch-dependent responses
Krishnan, Ananthanarayan; Gandour, Jackson T.; Ananthakrishnan, Saradha; Vijayaraghavan, Venkatakrishnan
Pitch processing at cortical and subcortical stages of processing is shaped by language experience. We recently demonstrated that specific components of the cortical pitch response (CPR) index the more rapidly-changing portions of the high rising Tone 2 of Mandarin Chinese, in addition to marking pitch onset and sound offset. In this study, we examine how language experience (Mandarin vs. English) shapes the processing of different temporal attributes of pitch reflected in the CPR components using stimuli representative of within-category variants of Tone 2. Results showed that the magnitude of CPR components (Na-Pb and Pb-Nb) and the correlation between these two components and pitch acceleration were stronger for the Chinese listeners compared to English listeners for stimuli that fell within the range of Tone 2 citation forms. Discriminant function analysis revealed that the Na-Pb component was more than twice as important as Pb-Nb in grouping listeners by language affiliation. In addition, a stronger stimulus-dependent, rightward asymmetry was observed for the Chinese group at the temporal, but not frontal, electrode sites. This finding may reflect selective recruitment of experience-dependent, pitch-specific mechanisms in right auditory cortex to extract more complex, time-varying pitch patterns. Taken together, these findings suggest that long-term language experience shapes early sensory level processing of pitch in the auditory cortex, and that the sensitivity of the CPR may vary depending on the relative linguistic importance of specific temporal attributes of dynamic pitch. PMID:25506127
Temporal Evolution and Spatial Distribution of White-light Flare Kernels in a Solar Flare
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kawate, T.; Ishii, T. T.; Nakatani, Y.; Ichimoto, K.; Asai, A.; Morita, S.; Masuda, S.
On 2011 September 6, we observed an X2.1-class flare in continuum and Hα with a frame rate of about 30 Hz. After processing images of the event by using a speckle-masking image reconstruction, we identified white-light (WL) flare ribbons on opposite sides of the magnetic neutral line. We derive the light curve decay times of the WL flare kernels at each resolution element by assuming that the kernels consist of one or two components that decay exponentially, starting from the peak time. As a result, 42% of the pixels have two decay-time components with average decay times of 15.6 and 587 s, whereas the average decay time is 254 s for WL kernels with only one decay-time component. The peak intensities of the shorter decay-time component exhibit good spatial correlation with the WL intensity, whereas the peak intensities of the long decay-time components tend to be larger in the early phase of the flare at the inner part of the flare ribbons, close to the magnetic neutral line. The average intensity of the longer decay-time components is 1.78 times higher than that of the shorter decay-time components. If the shorter decay time is determined by either the chromospheric cooling time or the nonthermal ionization timescale and the longer decay time is attributed to the coronal cooling time, this result suggests that WL sources from both regions appear in 42% of the WL kernels and that WL emission of the coronal origin is sometimes stronger than that of chromospheric origin.
... dientes Video: Getting an X-ray Handling an Asthma Flare-Up KidsHealth > For Kids > Handling an Asthma Flare-Up Print A A A What's in ... asmáticas What's a Flare-Up? If you have asthma, you probably know about flare-ups . That's when ...
Sharykin, I. N.; Kosovichev, A. G.
Emission of solar flares across the electromagnetic spectrum is often observed in the form of two expanding ribbons. The standard flare model explains flare ribbons as footpoints of magnetic arcades, emitting due to interaction of energetic particles with the chromospheric plasma. However, the physics of this interaction and properties of the accelerated particles are still unknown. We present results of multiwavelength observations of the C2.1 flare of 2013 August 15, observed with the New Solar Telescope of the Big Bear Solar Observatory, and the Solar Dynamics Observatory, GOES, and Fermi spacecraft. The observations reveal previously unresolved sub-arcsecond structure of flare ribbons in regions of strong magnetic field consisting from numerous small-scale bright knots. We observe a red-blue asymmetry of H{sub α} flare ribbons with a width as small as ∼100 km. We discuss the relationship between the ribbons and vertical electric currents estimated from vector magnetograms, and show that Joule heating can be responsible for energization of H{sub α} knots in the ribbons.
Observations and modeling of plasma flows driven by solar flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Brannon, Sean Robert
One of the fundamental statements that can be made about the solar atmosphere is that it is structured. This structuring is generally believed to be the result of both the arrangement of the magnetic field in the corona and the distribution of plasma along magnetic loops. The standard model of solar flares involves plasma transported into coronal loops via a process known as chromospheric evaporation, and the resulting evolution of the flare loops is believed to be sensitive to the physical mechanism of energy input into the chromosphere by the flare. We present here the results of three investigations into chromospheric plasma flows driven by solar flare energy release and transport. First, we develop a 1-D hydrodynamic code to simulate the response of a simplified model chromosphere to energy input via thermal conduction from reconnection-driven shocks. We use the results from a set of simulations spanning a parameter space in both shock speed and chromospheric-to-coronal temperature ratio to infer power-law relationships between these quantities and observable evaporation properties. Second, we use imaging and spectral observations of a quasi-periodic oscillation of a flare ribbon to determine the phase relationship between Doppler shifts of the ribbon plasma and the oscillation. The phase difference we find leads us to suggest an origin in a current sheet instability. Finally, we use imaging and spectral data of an on-disk flare event and resulting flare loop plasma flows to generally validate the standard picture of flare loop evolution, including evaporation, cooling time, and draining downflows, and we use a simple free-fall model to produce the first direct comparison between observed and synthetic downflow spectra.
Chromospheric Evolution and the Flare Activity of Super-Active Region NOAA 6555
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
PrasadC, Debi; Ambastha, Ashok; Srivastava, Nandita; Tripathy, Sushanta C.; Hagyard, Mona J.
Super-active region NOAA 6555 was highly flare productive during the period March 21st - 27th, 1991 of its disk passage. We have studied its chromospheric activity using high spatial resolution H alpha filtergrams taken at Udaipur along with MSFC vector magnetograms. A possible relationship of flare productivity and the variation in shear has been explored. Flares were generally seen in those subareas of the active region which possessed closed magnetic field configuration, whereas only minor flares and/or surges occurred in subareas showing open magnetic field configuration. Physical mechanisms responsible for the observed surges are also discussed.
Štěpán, Jiří; Heinzel, Petr
There is ongoing debate about the origin and even the very existence of a high degree of linear polarization of some chromospheric spectral lines observed in solar flares. The standard explanation of these measurements is in terms of the impact polarization caused by non-thermal proton and/or electron beams. In this work, we study the possible role of resonance line polarization due to radiation anisotropy in the inhomogeneous medium of the flare ribbons. We consider a simple two-dimensional model of the flaring chromosphere and we self-consistently solve the non-LTE problem taking into account the role of resonant scattering polarization and of the Hanle effect. Our calculations show that the horizontal plasma inhomogeneities at the boundary of the flare ribbons can lead to a significant radiation anisotropy in the line formation region and, consequently, to a fractional linear polarization of the emergent radiation of the order of several percent. Neglecting the effects of impact polarization, our model can provide a clue for resolving some of the common observational findings, namely: (1) why a high degree of polarization appears mainly at the edges of the flare ribbons; (2) why polarization can also be observed during the gradual phase of a flare; and (3) why polarization is mostly radial or tangential. We conclude that radiation transfer in realistic multi-dimensional models of solar flares needs to be considered as an essential ingredient for understanding the observed spectral line polarization.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Linsky, Jeffrey L.
A summary of X-ray observations of flares on dMe, active spectroscopic binaries and young stars is presented. Consideration is given to the energy associated with the X-ray emission and its relation to other components of the flare energy budget, the time behavior of the flaring plasma as seen by the X-ray emission, and comparisons of stellar flare parameters with solar compact and two ribbon flares. Flares are easily detected when the contrast in the emission from the flaring plasma relative to the stellar photosphere is large as in the X-ray, microwave, and UV regions of the spectrum.
EGRET High Energy Capability and Multiwavelength Flare Studies and Solar Flare Proton Spectra
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Chupp, Edward L.
The accomplishments of the participation in the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory Guest investigator program is summarized in this report. The work involved the study of Energetic Gamma Ray Experiment Telescope (EGRET)/Total Absorption Shower Counter(TASC) flare data. The specific accomplishments were the use of the accelerator neutron measurements obtained at the University of New Hampshire to verify the TASC response function and to modify the TASC fitting program to include a high energy neutron contribution, and to determine a high energy neutron contribution to the emissions from the 1991 June 11, solar flare. The next step in the analysis of this event was doing fits to the TASC energy-loss spectra as a function of time. A significant hardening of the solar proton spectrum over time was found for the flare. Further data was obtained from the Yohkoh HXT time histories and images for the 1991 October 27 flare. The results to date demonstrate that the TASC spectral analysis contributes crucial information on the particle spectrum interacting at the Sun. The report includes a paper accepted for publication, a draft of a paper to be delivered at the 26th International Cosmic Ray Conference and an abstract of a paper to be presented at the Meeting of the American Physical Society.
Early skin toxicity predicts better outcomes, and early tumor shrinkage predicts better response after cetuximab treatment in advanced colorectal cancer.
Kogawa, T; Doi, A; Shimokawa, M; Fouad, T M; Osuga, T; Tamura, F; Mizushima, T; Kimura, T; Abe, S; Ihara, H; Kukitsu, T; Sumiyoshi, T; Yoshizaki, N; Hirayama, M; Sasaki, T; Kawarada, Y; Kitashiro, S; Okushiba, S; Kondo, H; Tsuji, Y
Cetuximab-containing treatments for metastatic colorectal cancer have been shown to have higher overall response rates and longer progression-free and overall survival than other systemic therapies. Cetuximab-related manifestations, including severe skin toxicity and early tumor shrinkage, have been shown to be predictors of response to cetuximab. We hypothesized that early skin toxicity is a predictor of response and better outcomes in patients with advanced colorectal carcinoma. We retrospectively evaluated 62 patients with colorectal adenocarcinoma who had unresectable tumors and were treated with cetuximab in our institution. Skin toxicity grade was evaluated on each treatment day. Tumor size was evaluated using computed tomography prior to treatment and 4-8 weeks after the start of treatment with cetuximab.Patients with early tumor shrinkage after starting treatment with cetuximab had a significantly higher overall response rate (P = 0.0001). Patients with early skin toxicity showed significantly longer overall survival (P = 0.0305), and patients with higher skin toxicity grades had longer progression-free survival (P = 0.0168).We have shown that early tumor shrinkage, early onset of skin toxicity, and high skin toxicity grade are predictors of treatment efficacy and/or outcome in patients with advanced colorectal carcinoma treated with cetuximab.
Slipping magnetic reconnection during an X-class solar flare observed by SDO/AIA
Dudík, J.; Del Zanna, G.; Mason, H. E.; Janvier, M.; Aulanier, G.; Schmieder, B.; Karlický, M. E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
We present SDO/AIA observations of an eruptive X-class flare of 2012 July 12, and compare its evolution with the predictions of a three-dimensional (3D) numerical simulation. We focus on the dynamics of flare loops that are seen to undergo slipping reconnection during the flare. In the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) 131 Å observations, lower parts of 10 MK flare loops exhibit an apparent motion with velocities of several tens of km s{sup –1} along the developing flare ribbons. In the early stages of the flare, flare ribbons consist of compact, localized bright transition-region emission from the footpoints of the flare loops. A differential emission measure analysis shows that the flare loops have temperatures up to the formation of Fe XXIV. A series of very long, S-shaped loops erupt, leading to a coronal mass ejection observed by STEREO. The observed dynamics are compared with the evolution of magnetic structures in the 'standard solar flare model in 3D.' This model matches the observations well, reproducing the apparently slipping flare loops, S-shaped erupting loops, and the evolution of flare ribbons. All of these processes are explained via 3D reconnection mechanisms resulting from the expansion of a torus-unstable flux rope. The AIA observations and the numerical model are complemented by radio observations showing a noise storm in the metric range. Dm-drifting pulsation structures occurring during the eruption indicate plasmoid ejection and enhancement of the reconnection rate. The bursty nature of radio emission shows that the slipping reconnection is still intermittent, although it is observed to persist for more than an hour.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Zhang, Q. M.; Su, Y. N.; Ji, H. S.
Context. Coronal dimmings are regions of decreased extreme-ultravoilet (EUV) and/or X-ray (originally Skylab, then Yohkoh/SXT) intensities, which are often associated with flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs). The large-scale impulsive dimmings have been thoroughly observed and investigated. The pre-flare dimmings before the flare impulsive phase, however, have rarely been studied in detail. Aims: We focus on the pre-flare coronal dimmings. We report our multiwavelength observations of the GOES X1.6 solar flare and the accompanying halo CME that was produced by the eruption of a sigmoidal magnetic flux rope (MFR) in NOAA active region (AR) 12158 on 2014 September 10. Methods: The eruption was observed by the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) on board the Solar Dynamic Observatory (SDO). The photospheric line-of-sight magnetograms were observed by the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) on board SDO. The soft X-ray (SXR) fluxes were recorded by the GOES spacecraft. The halo CME was observed by the white-light coronagraphs of the Large Angle Spectroscopic Coronagraph (LASCO) on board SOHO. Results: About 96 min before the onset of the flare/CME, narrow pre-flare coronal dimmings appeared at the two ends of the twisted MFR. They extended very slowly, with their intensities decreasing with time, while their apparent widths (8-9 Mm) continued to be nearly constant. During the impulsive and decay phases of flare, typical fan-like twin dimmings appeared and expanded, with a much larger extent and lower intensities than the pre-flare dimmings. The percentage of the 171 Å intensity decrease reaches 40%. The pre-flare dimmings are most striking in 171, 193, and 211 Å with formation temperatures of 0.6-2.5 MK. The northern part of the pre-flare dimmings could also be recognized in 131 and 335 Å. Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first detailed study of pre-flare coronal dimmings; they can be explained by density depletion as a result of the gradual
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Schmahl, Edward J.; Kundu, Mukul R.
We have continued our previous efforts in studies of fourier imaging methods applied to hard X-ray flares. We have performed physical and theoretical analysis of rotating collimator grids submitted to GSFC(Goddard Space Flight Center) for the High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (HESSI). We have produced simulation algorithms which are currently being used to test imaging software and hardware for HESSI. We have developed Maximum-Entropy, Maximum-Likelihood, and "CLEAN" methods for reconstructing HESSI images from count-rate profiles. This work is expected to continue through the launch of HESSI in July, 2000. Section 1 shows a poster presentation "Image Reconstruction from HESSI Photon Lists" at the Solar Physics Division Meeting, June 1998; Section 2 shows the text and viewgraphs prepared for "Imaging Simulations" at HESSI's Preliminary Design Review on July 30, 1998.
Building Big Flares: Constraining Generating Processes of Solar Flare Distributions
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Wyse Jackson, T.; Kashyap, V.; McKillop, S.
We address mechanisms which seek to explain the observed solar flare distribution, dN/dE ~ E1.8. We have compiled a comprehensive database, from GOES, NOAA, XRT, and AIA data, of solar flares and their characteristics, covering the year 2013. These datasets allow us to probe how stored magnetic energy is released over the course of an active region's evolution. We fit power-laws to flare distributions over various attribute groupings. For instance, we compare flares that occur before and after an active region reaches its maximum area, and show that the corresponding flare distributions are indistinguishable; thus, the processes that lead to magnetic reconnection are similar in both cases. A turnover in the distribution is not detectable at the energies accessible to our study, suggesting that a self-organized critical (SOC) process is a valid mechanism. However, we find changes in the distributions that suggest that the simple picture of an SOC where flares draw energy from an inexhaustible reservoir of stored magnetic energy is incomplete. Following the evolution of the flare distribution over the lifetimes of active regions, we find that the distribution flattens with time, and for larger active regions, and that a single power-law model is insufficient. This implies that flares that occur later in the lifetime of the active region tend towards higher energies. We conclude that the SOC process must have an upper bound. Increasing the scope of the study to include data from other years and more instruments will increase the robustness of these results. This work was supported by the NSF-REU Solar Physics Program at SAO, grant number AGS 1263241, NASA Contract NAS8-03060 to the Chandra X-ray Center and by NASA Hinode/XRT contract NNM07AB07C to SAO
The role of eruption in solar flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Sturrock, Peter A.
This article focuses on two problems involved in the development of models of solar flares. The first concerns the mechanism responsible for eruptions, such as erupting filaments or coronal mass ejections, that are sometimes involved in the flare process. The concept of 'loss of equilibrium' is considered and it is argued that the concept typically arises in thought-experiments that do not represent acceptable physical behavior of the solar atmosphere. It is proposed instead that such eruptions are probably caused by an instability of a plasma configuration. The instability may be purely MHD, or it may combine both MHD and resistive processes. The second problem concerns the mechanism of energy release of the impulsive (or gradual) phase. It is proposed that this phase of flares may be due to current interruption, as was originally proposed by Alfven and Carlqvist. However, in order for this process to be viable, it seems necessary to change one's ideas about the heating and structure of the corona in ways that are outlined briefly.
Effects of single therapeutic doses of promethazine, fexofenadine and olopatadine on psychomotor function and histamine-induced wheal- and flare-responses: a randomized double-blind, placebo-controlled study in healthy volunteers.
Kamei, Hiroyuki; Isaji, Ami; Noda, Yukihiro; Ishikawa, Kazuhiro; Senzaki, Koji; Yamada, Kiyofumi; Sugiura, Kazumitsu; Tomita, Yasushi; Nabeshima, Toshitaka
Since most first-generation antihistamines have undesirable sedative effects on the central nervous systems (CNS), newer (second-generation) antihistamines have been developed to improve patients' quality of life. However, there are few reports that directly compare the antihistaminic efficacy and impairment of psychomotor functions. We designed a double-blind, placebo controlled, crossover study to concurrently compare the clinical effectiveness of promethazine, a first-generation antihistamine, and fexofenadine and olopatadine, second-generation antihistamines, by measuring their potency as peripheral inhibitors of histamine-induced wheal and flare. Further, we investigated their sedative effects on the CNS using a battery of psychomotor tests. When single therapeutic doses of fexofenadine (60 mg), olopatadine (5 mg) and promethazine (25 mg) were given in a double-blind manner to 24 healthy volunteers, all antihistamines produced a significant reduction in the wheal and flare responses induced by histamine. In the comparison among antihistamines, olopatadine showed a rapid inhibitory effect compared with fexofenadine and promethazine, and had a potent effect compared with promethazine. In a battery of psychomotor assessments using critical flicker fusion, choice reaction time, compensatory tracking, rapid visual information processing and a line analogue rating scale as a subjective assessment of sedation, promethazine significantly impaired psychomotor function. Fexofenadine and olopatadine had no significant effect in any of the psychomotor tests. Promethazine, fexofenadine and olopatadine did not affect behavioral activity, as measured by wrist actigraphy. These results suggest that olopatadine at a therapeutic dose has greater antihistaminergic activity than promethazine, and olopatadine and fexofenadine did not cause cognitive or psychomotor impairment.
A Cold Flare with Delayed Heating
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Fleishman, Gregory D.; Pal'shin, Valentin D.; Meshalkina, Natalia; Lysenko, Alexandra L.; Kashapova, Larisa K.; Altyntsev, Alexander T.
Recently, a number of peculiar flares have been reported that demonstrate significant nonthermal particle signatures with low, if any, thermal emission, which implies a close association of the observed emission with the primary energy release/electron acceleration region. This paper presents a flare that appears "cold" at the impulsive phase, while displaying delayed heating later on. Using hard X-ray data from Konus-Wind, microwave observations by SSRT, RSTN, NoRH, and NoRP, context observations, and three-dimensional modeling, we study the energy release, particle acceleration, and transport, and the relationships between the nonthermal and thermal signatures. The flaring process is found to involve the interaction between a small loop and a big loop with the accelerated particles divided roughly equally between them. Precipitation of the electrons from the small loop produced only a weak thermal response because the loop volume was small, while the electrons trapped in the big loop lost most of their energy in the coronal part of the loop, which resulted in coronal plasma heating but no or only weak chromospheric evaporation, and thus unusually weak soft X-ray emission. The energy losses of the fast electrons in the big tenuous loop were slow, which resulted in the observed delay of the plasma heating. We determined that the impulsively accelerated electron population had a beamed angular distribution in the direction of the electric force along the magnetic field of the small loop. The accelerated particle transport in the big loop was primarily mediated by turbulent waves, which is similar to other reported cold flares.
LAMOST Observations of Flaring M Dwarfs in the Kepler Field
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Chang, H.-Y.; Song, Y.-H.; Luo, A.-L.; Huang, L.-C.; Ip, W.-H.; Fu, J.-N.; Zhang, Y.; Hou, Y.-H.; Cao, Z.-H.; Wang, Y.-F.
A sample of the Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fibre Spectroscopic Telescope spectra of early-type M0–M3 dwarfs is compared with Kepler observations. It is found that M dwarfs with strong chromospheric emission in {{{H}}}α have large flare activity in general. The rotational periods derived from the Kepler measurements have close correlations with the sizes of the flares, the power-law distribution index, and the equivalent widths of the {{{H}}}α emission. A clear trend exists for higher magnetic activities being detected in faster-rotating M dwarfs (rotation periods < 20 days).
Early growth response 1 mediates the systemic and hepatic inflammatory response initiated by hemorrhagic shock.
Prince, Jose M; Ming, Mei Jian; Levy, Ryan M; Liu, Shubing; Pinsky, David J; Vodovotz, Yoram; Billiar, Timothy R
Hemorrhagic shock (HS) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in trauma patients. The early growth response 1 (Egr-1) transcription factor is induced by a variety of cellular stresses, including hypoxia, and may function as a master switch to trigger the expression of numerous key inflammatory mediators. We hypothesized that HS would induce hepatic expression of Egr-1 and that Egr-1 upregulates the inflammatory response after HS. The Egr-1 mice and wild-type (WT) controls (n>or=5 for all groups) were subjected to HS alone or HS followed by resuscitation (HS/R). Other mice were subjected to a sham procedure which included general anesthesia and vessel cannulation but no shock (sham). After the HS, HS/R, or sham procedures, mice were euthanized for determination of serum concentrations of interleukin (IL) 6, IL-10, and alanine aminotransferase. Northern blot analysis was performed to evaluate Egr-1 messenger RNA (mRNA) expression. Liver whole cell lysates were evaluated for Egr-1 protein expression by Western blot analysis. Hepatic expression of IL-6, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor, and intracellular adhesion molecule 1 mRNA was determined by semiquantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction. The Egr-1 DNA binding was assessed using the electrophoretic mobility shift assay. Hemorrhagic shock results in a rapid and transient hepatic expression of Egr-1 mRNA in WT mice by 1 h, whereas protein and DNA binding activity was evident by 2.5 h. The Egr-1 mRNA expression diminished after 4 h of resuscitation, whereas Egr-1 protein expression and DNA binding activity persisted through resuscitation. The Egr-1 mice exhibited decreased levels of hepatic inflammatory mediators compared with WT controls with a decrease in hepatic mRNA levels of IL-6 by 42%, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor by 39%, and intracellular adhesion molecule 1 by 43%. Similarly, Egr-1 mice demonstrated a decreased systemic inflammatory response and hepatic injury after HS
Spatio-temporal Dynamics of Sources of Hard X-Ray Pulsations in Solar Flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kuznetsov, S. A.; Zimovets, I. V.; Morgachev, A. S.; Struminsky, A. B.
flares we studied are eruptive events. This gives a strong indication that eruptive processes play an important role in the generation of HXR pulsations in flares. We suggest that an erupting flux rope can act as a trigger of the flare energy release. Its successive interaction with different loops of a parent active region can lead to apparent motion of HXR sources and to a series of HXR pulsations. However, the exact mechanism responsible for generating the pulsations remains unclear and requires a more detailed investigation.
Altered Evoked Gamma-Band Responses Reveal Impaired Early Visual Processing in ADHD Children
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Lenz, Daniel; Krauel, Kerstin; Flechtner, Hans-Henning; Schadow, Jeanette; Hinrichs, Hermann; Herrmann, Christoph S.
Neurophysiological studies yield contrary results whether attentional problems of patients with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are related to early visual processing deficits or not. Evoked gamma-band responses (GBRs), being among the first cortical responses occurring as early as 90 ms after visual stimulation in human EEG, have…
Mass ejections. [during solar flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Rust, D. M.; Hildner, E.; Hansen, R. T.; Dryer, M.; Mcclymont, A. N.; Mckenna-Lawlor, S. M. P.; Mclean, D. J.; Schmahl, E. J.; Steinolfson, R. S.; Tandberg-Hanssen, E.
Observations and model simulations of solar mass ejection phenomena are examined in an investigation of flare processes. Consideration is given to Skylab and other observations of flare-associated sprays, eruptive prominences, surges and coronal transients, and to MHD, gas dynamic and magnetic loop models developed to account for them. Magnetic forces are found to confine spray material, which originates in preexisting active-region filaments, within steadily expanding loops, while surges follow unmoving, preexisting magnetic field lines. Simulations of effects of a sudden pressure pulse at the bottom of the corona are found to exhibit many characteristics of coronal transients associated with flares, and impulsive heating low in the chromosphere is found to be able to account for surges. The importance of the magnetic field as the ultimate source of energy which drives eruptive phenomena as well as flares is pointed out.
Spectrum of solar flare protons
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Podgorny, I. M.; Balabin, Yu. V.; Podgorny, A. I.; Vashenyuk, E. V.
Most of big solar flares are accompanied by relativistic protons. The prompt component of relativistic protons moves along the interplanetary magnetic field lines and arrives at the Earth's orbit when the flare favorably located in the western solar hemisphere. The neutron monitor measurements reveal an exponential law energy spectrum. Calculations of relativistic proton acceleration in the flare current sheet with magnetic and electric fields found from 3D MHD simulations also demonstrate an exponential law spectrum. A comparison of the measured and calculated spectra permits to estimate the rate of reconnection in the Bastille flare (14 July 2000) as ˜107cm/s. The delay component of relativistic protons exhibits a power law energy spectrum.
Chandra Monitors the Flaring Crab
Scientists hoped that NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory would locate X-ray sources correlated to the gamma-ray flares seen by Fermi and Italy's AGILE satellites. Two observations were made during th...
Simulating VIIRS Observed Gas Flare
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Hsu, F. C.
VIIRS Nightfire (VNF) had been proved being able to effectively detect gas flares at night, and characterize their temperature and source size. [1] However, limited access to generally confidential gas flare operation measurements made it difficult to verify the output. Although flared gas volume is occasionally available, it is not common to log the temperature and flames size which directly links to VNF output. To understand the mechanism of gas flare and how VIIRS perceives the event, a platform is proposed to simulate the gas flare being observed by VIIRS. The methodology can be described in three steps. (1) Use CFD simulation software ISIS-3D to simulate a simple gas flare. [2] Scalar fields of temperature and species concentration related to combustion are extracted from the simulation. The instantaneous scalar can be determined from time-averaging or guess by stochastic time and space series (TASS) from single-point statistics [3]. (2) Model spectral radiance intensity of simulated gas flare using RADCAL. [4] RADCAL developed by NIST can accurately model the spectral radiance emitted on the direction of lineof-sight given the spatial profile of temperature and concentration of species. (3) Use radiative transfer modeling to calculate the energy propagated to VIIRS. The modeled radiation will then be weighted by the MODTRAN [5] modeled transmissivity over predefined atmosphere to the satellite, with geometrical effects considered. Such platform can help understanding how exactly VNF is measuring gas flares, and thus lead to more precise characterization of combustion events. [1] C. D. Elvidge et al, Remote Sensing, 2013[2] IRSN ISIS-3D[3] M. E. Kounalakis et al, ASME J. Heat Transfer, 1991 [4] W. L. Grosshandler, NIST Technical Note 1402, 1993 [5] A. Berk et al, MODTRAN 126.96.36.199 User's Manual
Conduction-driven chromospheric evaporation in a solar flare
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Zarro, Dominic M.; Lemen, James R.
Observations of gentle chromospheric evaporation during the cooling phase of a solar flare are presented. Line profiles of the low-temperature (T of about 6 x 10 to the 6th K) coronal Mg XI line, observed with the X-Ray Polychromator on the Solar Maximum Mission, show a blueshift that persisted for several minutes after the impulsive heating phase. This result represents the first detection of an evaporation signature in a soft X-ray line formed at this low temperature. By combining the Mg XI blueshift velocity data with simultaneous measurements of the flare temperature derived from Ca XIX observations, it is demonstrated that the upward flux of enthalpy transported by this gently evaporating plasma varies linearly with the downward flux of thermal energy conducted from the corona. This relationship is consistent with models of solar flares in which thermal conduction drives chromospheric evaporation during the early part of the cooling phase.
A Maltese cross-shaped flare of June 15, 2001
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kotrč, P.; Kupryakov, Yu. A.
The solar flare in NOAA 9502 began on June 15, 2001 at 10:01 UT (S26E41). Its importance was 1N in optical band, M6.3 in X-rays and in radio band it was accompanied by a burst of 5800 units at 245 MHz and 130 units at 300 MHz. Spectra in D3 of He, Hα and Ca II 8542 Å lines including the slit-jaw images were detected at the Multichannel Flare spectrograph (MFS) from the early beginning of the flare with temporal resolutions 25 images per second. In addition, in Hα line the series of Stokes U/I parameter were observed. To the most spectacular features of the flare belongs the symmetric shape of emission ribbons configured into a Maltese cross. While at the cross arms one could detect standard emission line profiles, there appeared a compact feature with a very broad emission line profile in the center of the cross. It gives us an evidence about a certain type of singularity of this particular point. The very broad emission profile can be explained as by means of a high microturbulence. We describe and discuss another characteristics and particularities of this flare including the result of spectropolarimetric measurements that can be an evidence for the accelerated particle beams interaction with dense chromospheric layers.
Flare stars at radio wavelengths
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Lang, Kenneth R.
The radio emission from dMe flare stars is discussed using Very Large Array and Arecibo observations as examples. Active flare stars emit weak, unpolarized, quiescent radio radiation that may be always present. Although thermal bremsstrahlung and/or thermal gyroresonance radiation account for the slowly-varying, quiescent radio radiation of solar active regions, these processes cannot account for the long-wavelength quiescent radiation observed from nearby dMe flare stars. It has been attributed to nonthermal gyrosynchrotron radiation, but some as yet unexplained mechanism must be continually producing the energetic electrons. Long duration, narrow-band radiation is also emitted from some nearby dMe stars at 20 cm wavelength. Such radiation may be attributed to coherent plasma radiation or to coherent electron-cyclotron masers. Impulsive stellar flares exhibit rapid variations that require radio sources that are smaller than the star in size, and high brightness temperatures greater than 10(exp 15) K that are also explained by coherent radiation processes. Quasi-periodic temporal fluctuations suggest pulsations during some radio flares. Evidence for frequency structure and positive or negative frequency drifts during radio flares from dMe stars is also presented.
Flare stars at radio wavelengths
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Lang, Kenneth R.
The radio emission from dMe flare stars is discussed using Very Large Array and Arecibo observations as examples. Active flare stars emit weak, unpolarized, quiescent radio radiation that may be always present. Although thermal bremsstrahlung and/or thermal gyroresonance radiation account for the slowly-varying, quiescent radio radiation of solar active regions, these processes cannot account for the long-wavelength quiescent radiation observed from nearby dMe flare stars. It has been attributed to nonthermal gyrosynchrotron radiation, but some as yet unexplained mechanism must be continually producing the energetic electrons. Long duration, narrow-band radiation is also emitted from some nearby dMe stars at 20 cm wavelength. Such radiation may be attributed to coherent plasma radiation or to coherent electron-cyclotron masers. Impulsive stellar flares exhibit rapid variations that require radio sources that are smaller than the star in size, and high brightness temperatures greater than 10(exp 15) K that are also explained by coherent radiation processes. Quasi-periodic temporal fluctuations suggest pulsations during some radio flares. Evidence for frequency structure and positive or negative frequency drifts during radio flares from dMe stars is also presented.
Preliminary Criteria for Global Flares in Childhood-Onset Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
Brunner, Hermine I.; Mina, Rina; Pilkington, Clarissa; Beresford, Michael W.; Reiff, Andreas; Levy, Deborah M.; Tucker, Lori B.; Eberhard, B. Anne; Ravelli, Angelo; Schanberg, Laura E.; Saad-Magalhaes, Claudia; Higgins, Gloria C.; Onel, Karen; Singer, Nora G.; von Scheven, Emily; Itert, Lukasz; Klein-Gitelman, Marisa S.; Punaro, Marilynn; Ying, Jun; Giannini, Edward H.
Objectives To develop widely acceptable preliminary criteria of global flare for childhood-onset SLE (cSLE). Methods Pediatric rheumatologists (n=138) rated a total of 358 unique patient profiles (PP) with information about the cSLE flare descriptors (cSLE-FD) from two consecutive visits: patient global assessment of well-being, physician global assessment of disease activity (MD-global), health-related quality of life, anti-dsDNA antibodies, disease activity index score, protein/creatinine (P/C) ratio, complement levels and ESR. Based on 2996 rater responses about the course of cSLE (baseline vs. follow-up) the accuracy (sensitivity, specificity, area under the receiver operating characteristic curve) of candidate flare criteria was assessed. An international consensus conference was held to rank these candidate flare criteria as per the ACR-recommendations for the development and validation of criteria sets. Results The highest ranked candidate criteria considered absolute changes (Δ) of the SLEDAI or BILAG, MD-global, P/C ratio, and ESR; Flare scores can be calculated [0.5 × ΔSLEDAI + 0.45 × ΔP/C ratio + 0.5 × ΔMD-global + 0.02 × ΔESR], where values ≥ 1.04 are reflective of a flare. Similarly, BILAG-based flare scores [0.4 × ΔBILAG + 0.65 × ΔP/C ratio + 0.5 × ΔMD-global + 0.02 × ΔESR] of ≥ 1.15 were diagnostic of a flare. Flare scores increase with flare severity. Conclusions Consensus has been reached on preliminary criteria for global flares in cSLE. Further validation studies are needed to confirm the usefulness of the cSLE flare criteria in research and for clinical care. PMID:21618452
X-Ray Flare Candidates in Short Gamma-Ray Bursts
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Margutti, R.; Chincarini, G.; Granot, J.; Guidorzi, C.; Berger, E.; Bernardini, M. G.; Geherls, N.; Soderberg, A. M.; Stamatikos, M.; Zaninoni, E.
We present the first systematic study of X-ray flare candidates in short gamma-ray bursts (SGRBs) exploiting the large 6-year Swift database with the aim to constrain the physical nature of such fluctuations. We find that flare candidates appear in different types of SGRB host galaxy environments and show no clear correlation with the X-ray afterglow lifetime; flare candidates are detected both in SGRBs with a bright extended emission in the soft gamma-rays and in SGRBs which do not show such component. We furthermore show that SGRB X-ray flare candidates only partially share the set of observational properties of long GRB (LGRB) flares. In particular, the main parameter driving the duration evolution of X-ray variability episodes in both classes is found to be the elapsed time from the explosion, with very limited dependence on the different progenitors, environments, central engine life-times, prompt variability time-scales and energy budgets. On the contrary, SGRB flare candidates significantly differ from LGRB flares in terms of peak luminosity, isotropic energy, flare-to-prompt luminosity ratio and relative variability flux. However, these differences disappear when the central engine time-scales and energy budget are accounted for, suggesting that (i) flare candidates and prompt pulses in SGRBs likely have a common origin; (ii) similar dissipation and/or emission mechanisms are responsible for the prompt and flare emission in long and short GRBs, with SGRBs being less energetic albeit faster evolving versions of the long class. Finally, we show that in strict analogy to the SGRB prompt emission, flares candidates fall off the lag-luminosity relation defined by LGRBs, thus strengthening the SGRB flare-prompt pulse connection.
Modeling the Emission from the 15 February 2011 Solar Flare using Multi-Filamented Simulations
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Allred, J. C.
The 15 February 2011 X-class solar flare was observed by numerous instruments in many spectral regimes making it an ideal case for studying the origins of flare emission. We have developed detailed 1D models describing the transport of flare-accelerated electrons and ions through magnetic flux loops in the solar atmosphere, how these particles heat the ambient plasma, and the emission produced from the flaring loops. However, because of their 1D geometry these models do not include important spatial information. For example, the flare impulsive phase may last several hundred seconds, but it is unlikely that flare-accelerated particles precipitate down a single flux loop for the duration of the entire impulsive phase. In fact, from high-resolution spatial observations we know that many filaments are successively heated in the impulsive phase. We will describe a novel approach which uses the timing of pulses in hard and soft X-ray fluxes observed during the 15 February 2011 flare as a proxy for the lifetime of the impulsive phase on individual loops. We will combine many loops simulated with our 1D flare loop model to construct a multi-filamented model of the Sun's atmospheric response and emission produced during this flare. We will compare this predicted emission to observations of obtained by the EVE, AIA and RHESSI instruments.
Chen, Huadong; Zhang, Jun; Yang, Shuhong; Li, Leping; Huang, Xin; Xiao, Junmin; Ma, Suli
Using the observations from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly and Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) on board the Solar Dynamics Observatory, we investigate 6 X-class and 29 M-class flares occurring in solar active region (AR) 12192 from October 18 to 29. Among them, 30 (including 6 X- and 24 M-class) flares originated from the AR core, and the other 5 M-flares appeared at the AR periphery. Four of the X-flares exhibited similar flaring structures, indicating they were homologous flares with an analogous triggering mechanism. The possible scenario is that photospheric motions of emerged magnetic fluxes lead to shearing of the associated coronal magnetic field, which then yields a tether-cutting favorable configuration. Among the five periphery M-flares, four were associated with jet activities. The HMI vertical magnetic field data show that the photospheric fluxes of opposite magnetic polarities emerged, converged, and canceled with each other at the footpoints of the jets before the flares. Only one M-flare from the AR periphery was followed by a coronal mass ejection (CME). From October 20 to 26, the mean decay index of the horizontal background field within the height range of 40–105 Mm is below the typical threshold for torus instability onset. This suggests that a strong confinement from the overlying magnetic field might be responsible for the poor CME production of AR 12192.
A comparative study between clinical grading of anterior chamber flare and flare reading using the Kowa laser flare meter.
Konstantopoulou, Kallirroi; Del'Omo, Roberto; Morley, Anne M; Karagiannis, Dimitris; Bunce, Catey; Pavesio, Carlos
To assess the accuracy of standard clinical grading of aqueous flare in uveitis according to the Standardization of Uveitis Nomenclature consensus, and compare the results with the readings of the laser flare meter, Kowa 500. Two examiners clinically graded the flare in 110 eyes. The flare was then measured using the Kowa laser flare meter. Twenty-nine eyes were graded as anterior chamber flare +2; for 18 of these, the clinicians were in agreement, the rest differed by the order of one grade. The range of the laser flare meter for these eyes was 5.2-899.1 photons/ms. The median value was 41.4. Seventy-four eyes were graded with flare +1. Agreement was established in 51 of these eyes. Disagreement for the rest was again by the order of 1, and the flare meter range was 1.1-169.9 photons/ms, median value 18.4. For the clinical measure of flare 0, the clinicians disagreed on three out of five eyes. The flare meter readings ranged from 2.5 to 14.1 photons/ms, median value 9.9. Only two eyes were graded with flare +3 and there was one step disagreement on both of them. We found little evidence of association between the flare readings and intraocular pressure or age. Our findings suggest that clinical evaluation of aqueous flare is subjective. Compared with the Kowa laser flare meter's numeric readings, the discrepancies observed indicate that clinical grading is an approximate science. The laser flare meter provides an accurate, reproducible, non-invasive assessment of aqueous flare that can prove valuable in research and clinical decisions.
Elevated Amygdala Response to Faces following Early Deprivation
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Tottenham, N.; Hare, T. A.; Millner, A.; Gilhooly, T.; Zevin, J. D.; Casey, B. J.
A functional neuroimaging study examined the long-term neural correlates of early adverse rearing conditions in humans as they relate to socio-emotional development. Previously institutionalized (PI) children and a same-aged comparison group were scanned using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while performing an Emotional Face Go/Nogo…
Singaporean Early Childhood Teachers' Responses to Myths about Child Abuse
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Briggs, Freda; Potter, Gillian K.
Prior to attending seminars on child abuse and domestic violence, 86 kindergarten and 64 special education (early childhood) teachers completed a questionnaire seeking views relating to the accuracy of statements relating to all forms of child abuse. This was designed to identify the accuracy of teachers' knowledge of child abuse and neglect…
Investigating Early Years Teachers' Understanding and Response to Children's Preconceptions
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Kambouri, Maria
This paper focuses on young children's scientific preconceptions and discusses teachers' identification of these preconceptions when teaching science in the early years, on which research is still limited. This paper is based on the theoretical framework of constructivism and it defines preconceptions as children's erroneous concepts prior to…
An Exceptional Radio Flare in Markarian 421
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Richards, Joseph; Hovatta, T.; Savolainen, T.; Lister, M. L.; Readhead, A. C.; Aller, M. F.; Aller, H. D.; Fuhrmann, L.; Angelakis, E.; Giroletti, M.
In September 2012, the high-spectral-peaked (HSP) blazar Mkn 421 underwent a rapid wideband radio flare, reaching nearly twice its brightest level in over three decades of monitoring by the University of Michigan Radio Astronomy Observatory (UMRAO). Rapid radio variations are unprecedented in this object and are surprising in an HSP BL Lac object. In this flare, the 15 GHz flux density measured by the Owens Valley Radio Observatory (OVRO) blazar monitoring program increased by about a factor of two with an exponential doubling time of about 9 days, comparable with the fastest large-amplitude cm-band radio variability observed in any blazar. Similar increases were detected at radio frequencies up to mm-band by the F-GAMMA program. This radio flare followed about two months after a similarly unprecedented GeV gamma-ray flare (reaching a daily E>100 MeV flux of (1.2+/-0.7)x10^-6 ph cm^-2 s^-1) reported by the Fermi collaboration, which was accompanied by a tentative near-simultaneous TeV detection by ARGO-YBJ. In response to this radio flare, we carried out a five epoch cm- to mm-band multifrequency Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) monitoring campaign to investigate possible changes in parsec-scale kinematics, structural variations, and polarization behavior in the aftermath of this emission event. Preliminary results show significant brightening in the compact core region. The OVRO 40-m monitoring program is supported in part by NSF grants AST-0808050 and AST-1109911, and NASA grants NNX08AW31G and NNX11A043G. UMRAO was supported in part by NSF grant AST-0607523, and NASA Fermi GI grants NNX09AU16G, NNX10AP16G, and NNX11AO13G. Funds for operation of the UMRAO were provided by the University of Michigan. The National Radio Astronomy Observatory is a facility of the National Science Foundation operated under cooperative agreement by Associated Universities, Inc.
NuSTAR Observations of Bright X-ray Flares from Young Stellar Objects
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Vievering, Juliana; Glesener, Lindsay; Grefenstette, Brian; Smith, David
Bright x-ray flares are observed to occur on young stellar objects (YSOs) and are presumed to be driven by similar processes as those seen on our sun. Observations of the flaring activity of YSOs can add to our understanding of the early lives of stars and the development of planetary systems. In particular, x-ray observations of these stellar flares are essential for probing the youngest stars, as these stars are most obscured by dense molecular clouds. One such cloud complex of YSOs, rho Ophiuchi, has been a past target for soft x-ray (SXR) missions, including Chandra and XMM-Newton. However, the energy ranges covered by these missions drop off prior to the hard x-ray (HXR) regime, where the crossover to a dominant nonthermal component could be observed. Whether or not this nonthermal emission is strong enough to be observed could then be an indicator of how large an influence these flares have on the surrounding protoplanetary disk. To begin investigating this HXR emission, two 50ks observations of rho Ophiuchi have been taken with the Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR), which is optimized over the energy range of 3-79 keV. Multiple stellar flares have been identified in the observations; here we present the preliminary analysis, including light curves and spectra, of the brightest of these flaring events. We explore the implications of the data for flaring activity of YSOs and compare the results to typical flaring activity of the sun.
Magnetic Flux Transients during Solar Flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Balasubramaniam, K. S.; Delgado, F.; Hock, R. A.
Solar flares result from the sudden release of energy stored in the magnetic field of the solar atmosphere, attributed to magnetic reconnection. In this work, we use line-of-sight magnetograms to study the changes in photospheric magnetic field during large solar flares. The magnetograms are derived from observations using NASA's Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager onboard the Solar Dynamics Observatory, and have a cadence of 3 minutes at a 0.5 arcsecond spatial resolution. We studied the inferred magnetic flux changes in 11 X-class flares from (2011-2012) and 26 M-class flares (2011). Of the 37 flares, 32 exhibited short-lived (less than 30 minutes) magnetic flux transients (MFTs) during the progress of the flare, similar to those by Maurya et al. (2012). We note that MFTs were co-temporal with GOES X-ray peaks. Flares with rapid rises (impulsive flares) had stronger transients while those with slower rises (gradual flares) had weak or no MFTs. Finally, flares with stronger GOES X-ray peaks (flare class) showed stronger MFTs. We believe that these changes are non-physical because the changes in the magnetic field are transient (the magnetic field returns to the pre-flare state) and coincide with the impulsive phase of the flare. This work supported by the US Airforce Office of Scientific Research and the AFRL/RV Space Scholar Program.
Ultraviolet Spectral Comparison of "Quiescent" M-dwarf Flares with Solar and "Active" M-dwarf Flares and the Implications for an Earth-like Atmosphere
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Parke Loyd, R. O.; France, Kevin; Youngblood, Allison
All flares are not created equal. In particular, flares on low-mass stars are notable for their diversity, even between events on the same star. To better characterize these differences and the range of flare morphologies possible on low-mass stars, we analyzed a sample of such flares in detail using temporally resolved UV spectroscopy from the growing body of MUSCLES Treasury Survey data. Specifically, we used the data to analyze the response of several UV emission lines (e.g. C II, Si III, Si IV) and the UV continuum following each impulsive event. From this analysis, we present a qualitative picture of energy deposition and propagation in the stellar atmosphere during a few representative events. These data also permitted a spectral comparison with flares typical of the Sun, and we describe the most prominent differences that emerged from this comparison. Additionally, by including flares from all the observed MUSCLES stars, we create an energy-frequency plot for flares on "quiescent" M-dwarfs and compare it to that of the Sun and of well-studied "active" M-dwarfs such as AD Leo. Flares like those we detected and analyzed can strip some atmosphere from closely orbiting planets, adversely affecting the long-term habitability of planets that might have initially supported liquid surface water. To gauge the amplitude of this effect, we used the flare data to make an empirically driven estimate of how much mass each representative flare might remove from the atmosphere of an Earth-like planet.
Early and late mammalian responses to heavy charged particles
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Ainsworth, E. J.
This overview summarizes murine results on acute lethality responses, inactivation of marrow CFU-S and intestinal microcolonies, testes weight loss, life span shortening, and posterior lens opacification in mice irradiated with heavy charged particles. RBE-LET relationships for these mammalian responses are compared with results from in vitro studies. The trend is that the maximum RBE for in vivo responses tends to be lower and occurs at a lower LET than for inactivation of V79 and T-1 cells in culture. Based on inactivation cross sections, the response of CFU-S in vivo conforms to expectations from earlier studies with prokaryotic systems and mammalian cells in culture. Effects of heavy ions are compared with fission spectrum neutrons, and the results are consistent with the interpretation that RBEs are lower than for fission neutrons at about the same LET, probably due to differences in track structure.
A Unified Computational Model for Solar and Stellar Flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Allred, Joel; Kowalski, Adam; Carlsson, Mats
We describe a unified computational framework which can be used to model impulsive flares on the Sun and on dMe stars. The models are constructed assuming that the flare impulsive phase is caused by a beam of charged particles (primarily electrons and protons) that is accelerated in the corona and propagates downward depositing energy and momentum along the way. This rapidly heats the lower stellar atmosphere causing it to explosively expand and emission to dramatically brighten. Our models consist of flux tubes that extend from the sub-photosphere into the corona. We simulate how these flare-accelerated particles propagate down one dimensional flux tubes and heat the stellar atmosphere using Fokker-Planck kinetic theory. Detailed radiative transfer is included so that model predictions can be directly compared with observations. The flux of flare-accelerated particles drives return currents which additionally heat the stellar atmosphere, and these effects are also included in our models. We examine the impact of the flare-accelerated particle beams on model solar and dMe stellar atmospheres and perform parameter studies varying the injected particle energy spectra. We find the atmospheric response is strongly dependent on the accelerated particle cutoff energy and spectral index.
A Unified Computational Model for Solar and Stellar Flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Allred, Joel C.; Kowalski, Adam F.; Carlsson, Mats
We present a unified computational framework that can be used to describe impulsive flares on the Sun and on dMe stars. The models assume that the flare impulsive phase is caused by a beam of charged particles that is accelerated in the corona and propagates downward depositing energy and momentum along the way. This rapidly heats the lower stellar atmosphere causing it to explosively expand and dramatically brighten. Our models consist of flux tubes that extend from the sub-photosphere into the corona. We simulate how flare-accelerated charged particles propagate down one-dimensional flux tubes and heat the stellar atmosphere using the Fokker-Planck kinetic theory. Detailed radiative transfer is included so that model predictions can be directly compared with observations. The flux of flare-accelerated particles drives return currents which additionally heat the stellar atmosphere. These effects are also included in our models. We examine the impact of the flare-accelerated particle beams on model solar and dMe stellar atmospheres and perform parameter studies varying the injected particle energy spectra. We find the atmospheric response is strongly dependent on the accelerated particle cutoff energy and spectral index.
A Unified Computational Model for Solar and Stellar Flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Allred, Joel C.; Kowalski, Adam F.; Carlsson, Mats
We present a unified computational framework that can be used to describe impulsive flares on the Sun and on dMe stars. The models assume that the flare impulsive phase is caused by a beam of charged particles that is accelerated in the corona and propagates downward depositing energy and momentum along the way. This rapidly heats the lower stellar atmosphere causing it to explosively expand and dramatically brighten. Our models consist of flux tubes that extend from the sub-photosphere into the corona. We simulate how flare-accelerated charged particles propagate down one-dimensional flux tubes and heat the stellar atmosphere using the Fokker-Planck kinetic theory. Detailed radiative transfer is included so that model predictions can be directly compared with observations. The flux of flare-accelerated particles drives return currents which additionally heat the stellar atmosphere. These effects are also included in our models. We examine the impact of the flare-accelerated particle beams on model solar and dMe stellar atmospheres and perform parameter studies varying the injected particle energy spectra. We find the atmospheric response is strongly dependent on the accelerated particle cutoff energy and spectral index.
Allred, Joel C.; Carlsson, Mats
We present a unified computational framework that can be used to describe impulsive flares on the Sun and on dMe stars. The models assume that the flare impulsive phase is caused by a beam of charged particles that is accelerated in the corona and propagates downward depositing energy and momentum along the way. This rapidly heats the lower stellar atmosphere causing it to explosively expand and dramatically brighten. Our models consist of flux tubes that extend from the sub-photosphere into the corona. We simulate how flare-accelerated charged particles propagate down one-dimensional flux tubes and heat the stellar atmosphere using the Fokker–Planck kinetic theory. Detailed radiative transfer is included so that model predictions can be directly compared with observations. The flux of flare-accelerated particles drives return currents which additionally heat the stellar atmosphere. These effects are also included in our models. We examine the impact of the flare-accelerated particle beams on model solar and dMe stellar atmospheres and perform parameter studies varying the injected particle energy spectra. We find the atmospheric response is strongly dependent on the accelerated particle cutoff energy and spectral index.
Fajardo-Mendieta, W. G.; Alvarado-Gómez, J. D.; Calvo-Mozo, B.; Martinez-Oliveros, J. C. E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com E-mail: email@example.com
Three phases are typically observed during solar flares: the preflare, impulsive, and decay phases. During the impulsive phase, it is believed that the electrons and other particles are accelerated after the stored energy in the magnetic field is released by reconnection. The impulsivity of a solar flare is a quantifiable property that shows how quickly this initial energy release occurs. It is measured via the impulsivity parameter, which we define as the inverse of the overall duration of the impulsive phase. We take the latter as the raw width of the most prominent nonthermal emission of the flare. We computed this observable over a work sample of 48 M-class events that occurred during the current Solar Cycle 24 by using three different methods. The first method takes into account all of the nonthermal flare emission and gives very accurate results, while the other two just cover fixed energy intervals (30–40 keV and 25–50 keV) and are useful for fast calculations. We propose an alternative way to classify solar flares according to their impulsivity parameter values, defining three different types of impulsivity, namely, high, medium, and low. This system of classification is independent of the manner used to calculated the impulsivity parameter. Lastly, we show the relevance of this tool as a discriminator of different HXR generation processes.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
The largest solar flare ever recorded occurred at 4:51 p.m. EDT, on Monday, April 2, 2001. as Observed by the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) satellite. Solar flares, among the solar systems mightiest eruptions, are tremendous explosions in the atmosphere of the Sun capable of releasing as much energy as a billion megatons of TNT. Caused by the sudden release of magnetic energy, in just a few seconds, solar flares can accelerate solar particles to very high velocities, almost to the speed of light, and heat solar material to tens of millions of degrees. The recent explosion from the active region near the sun's northwest limb hurled a coronal mass ejection into space at a whopping speed of roughly 7.2 million kilometers per hour. Luckily, the flare was not aimed directly towards Earth. Second to the most severe R5 classification of radio blackout, this flare produced an R4 blackout as rated by the NOAA SEC. This classification measures the disruption in radio communications. Launched December 2, 1995 atop an ATLAS-IIAS expendable launch vehicle, the SOHO is a cooperative effort involving NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA). (Image courtesy NASA Goddard SOHO Project office)
Phillips, K. J. H.; Dennis, B. R. E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
The abundance of iron is measured from emission line complexes at 6.65 keV (Fe line) and 8 keV (Fe/Ni line) in RHESSI X-ray spectra during solar flares. Spectra during long-duration flares with steady declines were selected, with an isothermal assumption and improved data analysis methods over previous work. Two spectral fitting models give comparable results, viz., an iron abundance that is lower than previous coronal values but higher than photospheric values. In the preferred method, the estimated Fe abundance is A(Fe) = 7.91 {+-} 0.10 (on a logarithmic scale, with A(H) = 12) or 2.6 {+-} 0.6 times the photospheric Fe abundance. Our estimate is based on a detailed analysis of 1898 spectra taken during 20 flares. No variation from flare to flare is indicated. This argues for a fractionation mechanism similar to quiet-Sun plasma. The new value of A(Fe) has important implications for radiation loss curves, which are estimated.
... Your 1- to 2-Year-Old What's an Asthma Flare-Up? KidsHealth > For Parents > What's an Asthma ... of a straw that's being pinched. Causes of Asthma Flare-Ups People with asthma have airways that ...
Evidence for Magnetic Reconnection in Three Homologous Solar Flares Observed by RHESSI
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Sui, Lin-Hui; Holman, Gordon D.; Dennis, Brian R.
We present RHESSI observF5oss of three homologous flares, which occurred between April 14 and 16, 2002. We find that the RHESSI images of all three flares at energies between 6 and 25 keV had some common features: (1) A. separate coronal source up to approx. 30 deg. above the flare loop appeared in the early impulsive phase and stayed stationary for several minutes. (2) Before the flare loop moved upward; previously reported by others, the flare loop-top centroid moved downward for 2-4 minutes during the early impulsive phase of the Ears: falling by 13 - 30% of its initial height with a speed between 8 and 23 km/s. We conclude that these features are associated with the formation and development of a current sheet between the loop-top and the coronal source. In the April 14-15 flare, we find that the hard X-ray flux (greater than 25 keV) is correlated with the rate at which the flare loop moves upward, indicating that the faster the loop grows, the faster the reconnection rate, and therefore, the greater the flux of accelerated electrons. Subject headings: Sun: L'iaies-Sun: X-1-ay-s -
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Rust, D. M.
Using the Flare Genesis Experiment (FGE), a balloon-borne observatory with an 80-cm solar telescope we observed the active region NOAA 8844 on January 25, 2000 for several hours. FGE was equipped with a vector polarimeter and a tunable Fabry-Perot narrow-band filter. It recorded time series of filtergrams, vector magnetograms, and Dopplergrams at the Ca(I) 6122.2 angstrom line, and H-alpha filtergrams with a cadence between 2.5 and 7.5 minutes. At the time of the observations, NOAA 8844 was located at approximately 5 N 30 W. The region was rapidly growing during the observations; new magnetic flux was constantly emerging in three supergranules near its center. We describe in detail how the FGE data were analyzed and report on the structure and behavior of peculiar moving dipolar features (MDFs) observed in the active region. In longitudinal magnetograms, the MDFs appeared to be small dipoles in the emerging fields. The east-west orientation of their polarities was opposite that of the sunspots. The dipoles were oriented parallel to their direction of motion, which was in most cases towards the sunspots. Previously, dipolar moving magnetic features have only been observed flowing out from sunspots. Vector magnetograms show that the magnetic field of each MDF negative part was less inclined to the local horizontal than the ones of the positive part. We identify the MDFs as undulations, or stitches, where the emerging flux ropes are still tied to the photosphere. We present a U-loop model that can account for their unusual structure and behavior, and it shows how emerging flux can shed its entrained mass.
Are All Flare Ribbons Simply Connected to the Corona?
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Judge, Philip G.; Paraschiv, Alin; Lacatus, Daniela; Donea, Alina; Lindsey, Charlie
We consider the observational basis for the belief that flare ribbons in the chromosphere result from energy transport from the overlying corona. We study ribbons of small flares using magnetic and intensity data from the Hinode, Solar Dynamics Observatory, and IRIS missions. While most ribbons appear connected to the corona and overlie regions of significant vertical magnetic field, we examine one ribbon with no clear evidence for such connections. Evolving horizontal magnetic fields seen with Hinode suggest that reconnection with preexisting fields below the corona can explain the data. The identification of just one, albeit small, ribbon, with no apparent connection to the corona, leads us to conclude that at least two mechanisms are responsible for the heating that leads to flare ribbon emission. The National Center for Atmospheric Research is sponsored by the National Science Foundation.
Thompson Receives 2013 Early Career Hydrologic Science Award: Response
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Thompson, Sally
My most sincere thanks to AGU; the Hydrology section and its chair, Eric Wood; those who were kind enough to nominate me for this award; and, of course, the inimitable Gaby Katul for their support and for this recognition. Receiving the Early Career Hydrologic Science Award is an unexpected and humbling pleasure. After seven schizophrenic years of physical scientists accusing me of being an ecologist and ecologists telling me firmly that I'm an engineer, it's wonderful to be able to come to rest where I have always self-identified—as a hydrologist!
Well-observed dynamics of flaring and peripheral coronal magnetic loops during an M-class limb flare
Shen, Jinhua; Zhou, Tuanhui; Ji, Haisheng; Feng, Li; Wiegelmann, Thomas; Inhester, Bernd
In this paper, we present a variety of well-observed dynamic behaviors for the flaring and peripheral magnetic loops of the M6.6 class extreme limb flare that occurred on 2011 February 24 (SOL2011-02-24T07:20) from EUV observations by the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly on the Solar Dynamics Observatory and X-ray observations by RHESSI. The flaring loop motion confirms the earlier contraction-expansion picture. We find that the U-shaped trajectory delineated by the X-ray corona source of the flare roughly follows the direction of a filament eruption associated with the flare. Different temperature structures of the coronal source during the contraction and expansion phases strongly suggest different kinds of magnetic reconnection processes. For some peripheral loops, we discover that their dynamics are closely correlated with the filament eruption. During the slow rising to abrupt, fast rising of the filament, overlying peripheral magnetic loops display different responses. Two magnetic loops on the elbow of the active region had a slow descending motion followed by an abrupt successive fast contraction, while magnetic loops on the top of the filament were pushed outward, slowly being inflated for a while and then erupting as a moving front. We show that the filament activation and eruption play a dominant role in determining the dynamics of the overlying peripheral coronal magnetic loops.
Ramaty; Tatischeff; Thibaud; Kozlovsky; Mandzhavidze
By introducing a hitherto ignored 6Li producing process, due to accelerated 3He reactions with 4He, we show that accelerated particle interactions in solar flares produce much more 6Li than 7Li. By normalizing our calculations to gamma-ray data, we demonstrate that the 6Li produced in solar flares, combined with photospheric 7Li, can account for the recently determined solar wind lithium isotopic ratio, obtained from measurements in lunar soil, provided that the bulk of the flare-produced lithium is evacuated by the solar wind. Further research in this area could provide unique information on a variety of problems, including solar atmospheric transport and mixing, solar convection and the lithium depletion issue, and solar wind and solar particle acceleration.
Solar flare predictions and warnings
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
White, K. P., III; Mayfield, E. B.
The real-time solar monitoring information supplied to support SPARCS-equipped rocket launches, the routine collection and analysis of 3.3-mm solar radio maps, short-term flare forecasts based on these maps, longer-term forecasts based on the recurrence of active regions, and results of the synoptic study of solar active regions at 3.3-mm wavelength are presented. Forecasted flares in the 24-hour forecasts were 81% accurate, and those in the 28-day forecasts were 97% accurate. Synoptic radio maps at 3.3-mm wavelength are presented for twenty-three solar rotations in 1967 and 1968, as well as synoptic flare charts for the same period.
Frameworks for Response to Intervention in Early Childhood: Description and Implications
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Communication Disorders Quarterly, 2014
In February, 2013, the Division of Early Childhood, the National Association for the Education of Young Children, and the National Head Start Association released a collaborative paper to provide clarification and assistance regarding the relationship of response to intervention (RTI) with the field of early childhood (EC). In addition to…
Response to therapy following retreatment of serofast early syphilis patients with benzathine penicillin.
Seña, Arlene C; Wolff, Mark; Behets, Frieda; Van Damme, Kathleen; Martin, David H; Leone, Peter; McNeil, Linda; Hook, Edward W
Persistent nontreponemal titers after treatment are common among patients with early syphilis. We retreated 82 human immunodeficiency virus-negative early syphilis participants who were serofast at 6 months using benzathine penicillin. Only 27% exhibited serological response after retreatment and after an additional 6 months of follow-up.
Measuring Early Childhood Teacher Candidates' Conceptualizations of a Culturally Responsive Classroom Ecology
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Flores, Belinda Bustos; Riojas-Cortez, Mari
With the increase of Latino preschoolers, it is pressing that early childhood teachers are prepared to create a high quality environment in which all children can succeed. Using the frameworks of cultural responsiveness and classroom management, we developed the Early Childhood Ecology Scale (ECES) as an observational and reflective tool to…
Rapid Fluctuations in Solar Flares. Proceedings of a Workshop Held in Lanham, Maryland on September 30-October 4, 1985
work in solar flare X-ray polarimetry was done in a series of satellite experiments by Tindo and his collaborators in the Soviet Union; initial results...that a satellite instrument with the necessary sen- sitivity and high energy response to sake meaningful and important measure- ments is well within...flare without recourse to any data from a different flare. The pioneering observational work in solar X-ray polarisetry was done in a series of satellite
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
... FEDERAL AIR RULE Closed Vent Systems, Control Devices, and Routing to a Fuel Gas System or a Process § 65..., as applicable, shall be operated during any flare compliance determination. (c) Flare monitoring requirements. Where a flare is used, a device (including but not limited to a thermocouple, ultraviolet...
Flare angles measured with ball gage
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Cleghorn, D.; Wall, W. A.
Precision tungsten carbide balls measure the internal angle of flared joints. Measurements from small and large balls in the flare throat to an external reference point are made. The difference in distances and diameters determine the average slope of the flare between the points of ball contact.
Effect of an X-Class Solar Flare on the OI 630 nm Dayglow Emissions
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Das, Uma; Pallamraju, Duggirala; Chakrabarti, Supriya
We present a striking event that shows a prompt effect of an X-class solar flare (X6.2/3B) in the neutral optical dayglow emissions. This flare occurred on 13 December 2001 at 1424 UT and peaked at 1430 UT. The peak-to pre-flare X-ray intensity ratio as observed by GOES-10 was greater than 300 and the EUV flux observed by SEM/SOHO was greater by around 60%. As a response to this flare, the daytime redline (OI 630 nm) column integrated emission intensity measured from Carmen Alto (23.16degS, 70.66degW), in Chile, showed a prompt increase of around 50%. Our results show that this prompt enhancement in the thermospheric dayglow seems to be caused mainly due to an increase in photoelectrons due to a sudden increase in the solar EUV flux associated with this flare.
DNA Microarray Analysis of Human Monocytes Early Response Genes upon Infection with Rickettsia rickettsii
DNA Microarray Analysis of Human Monocytes Early Response Genes upon Infection with Rickettsia rickettsii Chien-Chung Chao Rickettsiae Diseases...TITLE AND SUBTITLE DNA Microarray Analysis of Human Monocytes Early Response Genes upon Infection with Rickettsia rickettsii 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b...ANSI Std Z39-18 Rickettsiae • Gram negative coccobacillary bacteria • Obligate intracellular organisms • Arthropod-borne • Cause febrile diseases (mild
Defining Clinical Response Criteria and Early Response Criteria for Precision Oncology: Current State-of-the-Art and Future Perspectives
Subbiah, Vivek; Chuang, Hubert H.; Gambhire, Dhiraj; Kairemo, Kalevi
In this era of precision oncology, there has been an exponential growth in the armamentarium of genomically targeted therapies and immunotherapies. Evaluating early responses to precision therapy is essential for "go" versus "no go" decisions for these molecularly targeted drugs and agents that arm the immune system. Many different response assessment criteria exist for use in solid tumors and lymphomas. We reviewed the literature using the Medline/PubMed database for keywords "response assessment" and various known response assessment criteria published up to 2016. In this article we review the commonly used response assessment criteria. We present a decision tree to facilitate selection of appropriate criteria. We also suggest methods for standardization of various response assessment criteria. The relevant response assessment criteria were further studied for rational of development, key features, proposed use and acceptance by various entities. We also discuss early response evaluation and provide specific case studies of early response to targeted therapy. With high-throughput, advanced computing programs and digital data-mining it is now possible to acquire vast amount of high quality imaging data opening up a new field of "omics in radiology"—radiomics that complements genomics for personalized medicine. Radiomics is rapidly evolving and is still in the research arena. This cutting-edge technology is poised to move soon to the mainstream clinical arena. Novel agents with new mechanisms of action require advanced molecular imaging as imaging biomarkers. There is an urgent need for development of standardized early response assessment criteria for evaluation of response to precision therapy. PMID:28212290
Defining Clinical Response Criteria and Early Response Criteria for Precision Oncology: Current State-of-the-Art and Future Perspectives.
Subbiah, Vivek; Chuang, Hubert H; Gambhire, Dhiraj; Kairemo, Kalevi
In this era of precision oncology, there has been an exponential growth in the armamentarium of genomically targeted therapies and immunotherapies. Evaluating early responses to precision therapy is essential for "go" versus "no go" decisions for these molecularly targeted drugs and agents that arm the immune system. Many different response assessment criteria exist for use in solid tumors and lymphomas. We reviewed the literature using the Medline/PubMed database for keywords "response assessment" and various known response assessment criteria published up to 2016. In this article we review the commonly used response assessment criteria. We present a decision tree to facilitate selection of appropriate criteria. We also suggest methods for standardization of various response assessment criteria. The relevant response assessment criteria were further studied for rational of development, key features, proposed use and acceptance by various entities. We also discuss early response evaluation and provide specific case studies of early response to targeted therapy. With high-throughput, advanced computing programs and digital data-mining it is now possible to acquire vast amount of high quality imaging data opening up a new field of "omics in radiology"-radiomics that complements genomics for personalized medicine. Radiomics is rapidly evolving and is still in the research arena. This cutting-edge technology is poised to move soon to the mainstream clinical arena. Novel agents with new mechanisms of action require advanced molecular imaging as imaging biomarkers. There is an urgent need for development of standardized early response assessment criteria for evaluation of response to precision therapy.
Characterization of total flare energy
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Hudson, H. S.
It is concluded that the estimates of total energy in the prime flares lie well below the Active Cavity Radiometer Irradiance Monitor upper limits. This is consistent with our knowledge of the energy distribution in solar flares. Insufficient data exist for us to be very firm about this conclusion, however, and major energetic components could exist undetected, especially in the EUV-XUV and optical bands. In addition, the radiant energy cannot quantitatively be compared at this time with non-radiant terms because of even larger uncertainties in the latter.
Characteristics of the photospheric magnetic field associated with solar flare initiation
Yang, Ya-Hui; Chen, P. F.; Hsieh, Min-Shiu; Wu, S. T.; He, Han; Tsai, Tsung-Che E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com E-mail: email@example.com
The physical environment governing the solar flare initiation is not fully understood, although there are significant efforts to address the relationship between magnetic non-potential parameters and early flare signatures. In this study, we attempt to characterize the flare initiation based on the processed Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager vector magnetograms, Atmospheric Imaging Assembly 1600 Å, and RHESSI hard X-ray observations. Three flare events, the M6.6 flare on 2011 February 13, the X2.2 flare on 2011 February 15, and the X2.1 flare on 2011 September 6, in two active regions AR 11158 and AR 11283 are investigated. We analyze the source field strength in the photosphere, which is defined as the magnitude of the observed magnetic field deviation from the potential field. It is found that one of the strong source field regions above the magnetic polarity inversion line well connects the initial bright kernels of two conjugate ribbons. The results imply that the distribution of the photospheric source field strength can be used to locate the initiation site of flaring loops regardless of the configuration of pre-flare magnetic fields or the evolution of active regions. Moreover, the field configuration in the strong source field regions tends to become more inclined after flares, which is consistent with the coronal implosion scenario. We also employ a fast method to derive the total current density from the photospheric vector magnetogram in the framework of force-free field. This method can provide fast estimation of photospheric current density within a reasonable accuracy without appealing for the more accurate calculation from a model extrapolation.
Unprecedented Fine Structure of a Solar Flare Revealed by the 1.6 m New Solar Telescope.
Jing, Ju; Xu, Yan; Cao, Wenda; Liu, Chang; Gary, Dale; Wang, Haimin
Solar flares signify the sudden release of magnetic energy and are sources of so called space weather. The fine structures (below 500 km) of flares are rarely observed and are accessible to only a few instruments world-wide. Here we present observation of a solar flare using exceptionally high resolution images from the 1.6 m New Solar Telescope (NST) equipped with high order adaptive optics at Big Bear Solar Observatory (BBSO). The observation reveals the process of the flare in unprecedented detail, including the flare ribbon propagating across the sunspots, coronal rain (made of condensing plasma) streaming down along the post-flare loops, and the chromosphere's response to the impact of coronal rain, showing fine-scale brightenings at the footpoints of the falling plasma. Taking advantage of the resolving power of the NST, we measure the cross-sectional widths of flare ribbons, post-flare loops and footpoint brighenings, which generally lie in the range of 80-200 km, well below the resolution of most current instruments used for flare studies. Confining the scale of such fine structure provides an essential piece of information in modeling the energy transport mechanism of flares, which is an important issue in solar and plasma physics.
Unprecedented Fine Structure of a Solar Flare Revealed by the 1.6~m New Solar Telescope
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Jing, Ju; Xu, Yan; Cao, Wenda; Liu, Chang; Gary, Dale E.; Wang, Haimin
Solar flares signify the sudden release of magnetic energy and are sources of so called space weather. The fine structures (below 500 km) of flares are rarely observed and are accessible to only a few instruments world-wide. Here we present observation of a solar flare using exceptionally high resolution images from the 1.6~m New Solar Telescope (NST) equipped with high order adaptive optics at Big Bear Solar Observatory (BBSO). The observation reveals the process of the flare in unprecedented detail, including the flare ribbon propagating across the sunspots, coronal rain (made of condensing plasma) streaming down along the post-flare loops, and the chromosphere's response to the impact of coronal rain, showing fine-scale brightenings at the footpoints of the falling plasma. Taking advantage of the resolving power of the NST, we measure the cross-sectional widths of flare ribbons, post-flare loops and footpoint brighenings, which generally lie in the range of 80-200 km, well below the resolution of most current instruments used for flare studies. Confining the scale of such fine structure provides an essential piece of information in modeling the energy transport mechanism of flares, which is an important issue in solar and plasma physics.
Unprecedented Fine Structure of a Solar Flare Revealed by the 1.6 m New Solar Telescope
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Jing, Ju; Xu, Yan; Cao, Wenda; Liu, Chang; Gary, Dale; Wang, Haimin
Solar flares signify the sudden release of magnetic energy and are sources of so called space weather. The fine structures (below 500 km) of flares are rarely observed and are accessible to only a few instruments world-wide. Here we present observation of a solar flare using exceptionally high resolution images from the 1.6 m New Solar Telescope (NST) equipped with high order adaptive optics at Big Bear Solar Observatory (BBSO). The observation reveals the process of the flare in unprecedented detail, including the flare ribbon propagating across the sunspots, coronal rain (made of condensing plasma) streaming down along the post-flare loops, and the chromosphere's response to the impact of coronal rain, showing fine-scale brightenings at the footpoints of the falling plasma. Taking advantage of the resolving power of the NST, we measure the cross-sectional widths of flare ribbons, post-flare loops and footpoint brighenings, which generally lie in the range of 80–200 km, well below the resolution of most current instruments used for flare studies. Confining the scale of such fine structure provides an essential piece of information in modeling the energy transport mechanism of flares, which is an important issue in solar and plasma physics.
Unprecedented Fine Structure of a Solar Flare Revealed by the 1.6 m New Solar Telescope
Jing, Ju; Xu, Yan; Cao, Wenda; Liu, Chang; Gary, Dale; Wang, Haimin
Solar flares signify the sudden release of magnetic energy and are sources of so called space weather. The fine structures (below 500 km) of flares are rarely observed and are accessible to only a few instruments world-wide. Here we present observation of a solar flare using exceptionally high resolution images from the 1.6 m New Solar Telescope (NST) equipped with high order adaptive optics at Big Bear Solar Observatory (BBSO). The observation reveals the process of the flare in unprecedented detail, including the flare ribbon propagating across the sunspots, coronal rain (made of condensing plasma) streaming down along the post-flare loops, and the chromosphere's response to the impact of coronal rain, showing fine-scale brightenings at the footpoints of the falling plasma. Taking advantage of the resolving power of the NST, we measure the cross-sectional widths of flare ribbons, post-flare loops and footpoint brighenings, which generally lie in the range of 80–200 km, well below the resolution of most current instruments used for flare studies. Confining the scale of such fine structure provides an essential piece of information in modeling the energy transport mechanism of flares, which is an important issue in solar and plasma physics. PMID:27071459
A dynamic flare with anomalously dense flare loops
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Svestka, Z.; Fontenla, J. M.; Machado, M. E.; Martin, S. F.; Neidig, D. F.
The dynamic flare of November 6, 1980 developed a rich system of growing loops which could be followed in H-alpha for 1.5 hours. Throughout the flare, these loops, near the limb, were seen in emission against the disk. Theoretical computations of b-values for a hydrogen atom reveal that this requires electron densities in the loops to be close to 10 to the 12th per cu cm. From measured widths of higher Balmer lines the density at the tops of the loops was found to be 4 x 10 to the 12th per cu cm if no nonthermal motions were present. It is now general knowledge that flare loops are initially observed in X-rays and become visible in H-alpha only after cooling. For such a high density a loop would cool through radiation from 10 to the 7th K to 10 to the 4th K within a few minutes so that the dense H-alpha loops should have heights very close to the heights of the X-ray loops. This, however, contradicts the observations obtained by the HXIS and FCS instruments on board SMM which show the X-ray loops at much higher altitudes than the loops in H-alpha. Therefore, the density must have been significantly smaller when the loops were formed and the flare loops were apparently both shrinking and becoming denser while cooling.
The influence of the energy emitted by solar flare soft X-ray bursts on the propagation of their associated interplanetary shock waves
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Pinter, S.; Dryer, M.
The relationship between the thermal energy released from 29 solar flares and the propagation features of their associated interplanetary shock waves that were detected at 1 AU is investigated. The 29 interplanetary shock waves were identified unambiguously and their tracking from each solar flare was deduced by tracking their associated interplanetary type-II radio emission. The thermal energy released in the solar flares was estimated from the time-intensity profiles of 1-8 A soft X-ray bursts from each flare. A good relationship is found between the flares' thermal energy with the IP shock-waves' transient velocity and arrival time at the earth - that is, the largest flare energy released is associated with the faster shock waves. Finally, a possible scenario of formation of a shock wave during the early phase of the flare and its propagation features is discussed.
Wavelength Dependence of Solar Flare Irradiation and its Influence on the Thermosphere
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Huang, Yanshi; Richmond, Arthur D.; Deng, Yue; Qian, L.; Solomon, S.; Chamberlin, P.
The wavelength dependence of solar flare enhancement is one of the important factors determining how the Thermosphere-Ionosphere (T-I) system response to flares. To investigate the wavelength dependence of solar flare, the Flare Irradiance Spectral Model (FISM) has been run for 34 X-class flares. The results show that the percentage increases of solar irradiance at flare peak comparing to pre-flare condition have a clear wavelength dependence. In the wavelength range between 0 - 195 nm, it can vary from 1% to 10000%. The solar irradiance enhancement is largest ( 1000%) in the XUV range (0 - 25 nm), and is about 100% in EUV range (25 - 120 nm). The influence of different wavebands on the T-I system during the October 28th, 2003 flare (X17.2-class) has also been examined using the latest version of National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) Thermosphere- Ionosphere-Electrodynamics General Circulation Model (TIE-GCM). While the globally integrated solar energy deposition is largest in the 0 - 14 nm waveband, the impact of solar irradiance enhancement on the thermosphere at 400 km is largest for 25 - 105 nm waveband. The effect of 122 - 195 nm is small in magnitude, but it decays slowly.
Central Engine of Late-time X-Ray Flares with Internal Origin
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Mu, Hui-Jun; Gu, Wei-Min; Hou, Shu-Jin; Liu, Tong; Lin, Da-Bin; Yi, Tuan; Liang, En-Wei; Lu, Ju-Fu
This work focuses on a sample of seven extremely late-time X-ray flares with peak time {t}{{p}}\\gt {10}4 {{s}}, among which two flares can be confirmed as the late-time activity of central engine. The main purpose is to investigate the mechanism of such late-time flares based on the internal origin assumption. In the hyper-accreting black hole (BH) scenario, we study the possibility of two well-known mechanisms acting as the central engine to power such X-ray flares, i.e., the neutrino-antineutrino annihilation and the Blandford-Znajek (BZ) process. Our results show that the annihilation luminosity is far below the observational data. Thus, the annihilation mechanism cannot account for such late-time flares. For the BZ process, if the role of outflows is taken into consideration, the inflow mass rate near the horizon will be quite low such that the magnetic field will probably be too weak to power the observed X-ray flares. We therefore argue that, for the late-time flares with internal origin, the central engine is unlikely to be associated with BHs. On the contrary, a fast rotating neutron star with strong bipolar magnetic fields may be responsible for such flares.
Boucheron, Laura E.; Al-Ghraibah, Amani; McAteer, R. T. James
We study the prediction of solar flare size and time-to-flare using 38 features describing magnetic complexity of the photospheric magnetic field. This work uses support vector regression to formulate a mapping from the 38-dimensional feature space to a continuous-valued label vector representing flare size or time-to-flare. When we consider flaring regions only, we find an average error in estimating flare size of approximately half a geostationary operational environmental satellite (GOES) class. When we additionally consider non-flaring regions, we find an increased average error of approximately three-fourths a GOES class. We also consider thresholding the regressed flare size for the experiment containing both flaring and non-flaring regions and find a true positive rate of 0.69 and a true negative rate of 0.86 for flare prediction. The results for both of these size regression experiments are consistent across a wide range of predictive time windows, indicating that the magnetic complexity features may be persistent in appearance long before flare activity. This is supported by our larger error rates of some 40 hr in the time-to-flare regression problem. The 38 magnetic complexity features considered here appear to have discriminative potential for flare size, but their persistence in time makes them less discriminative for the time-to-flare problem.
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
View an animation from the Extreme ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (EIT). At 4:51 p.m. EDT, on Monday, April 2, 2001, the sun unleashed the biggest solar flare ever recorded, as observed by the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) satellite. The flare was definitely more powerful than the famous solar flare on March 6, 1989, which was related to the disruption of power grids in Canada. This recent explosion from the active region near the sun's northwest limb hurled a coronal mass ejection into space at a whopping speed of roughly 7.2 million kilometers per hour. Luckily, the flare was not aimed directly towards Earth. Solar flares, among the solar system's mightiest eruptions, are tremendous explosions in the atmosphere of the Sun capable of releasing as much energy as a billion megatons of TNT. Caused by the sudden release of magnetic energy, in just a few seconds flares can accelerate solar particles to very high velocities, almost to the speed of light, and heat solar material to tens of millions of degrees. Solar ejections are often associated with flares and sometimes occur shortly after the flare explosion. Coronal mass ejections are clouds of electrified, magnetic gas weighing billions of tons ejected from the Sun and hurled into space with speeds ranging from 12 to 1,250 miles per second. Depending on the orientation of the magnetic fields carried by the ejection cloud, Earth-directed coronal mass ejections cause magnetic storms by interacting with the Earth's magnetic field, distorting its shape, and accelerating electrically charged particles (electrons and atomic nuclei) trapped within. Severe solar weather is often heralded by dramatic auroral displays, northern and southern lights, and magnetic storms that occasionally affect satellites, radio communications and power systems. The flare and solar ejection has also generated a storm of high-velocity particles, and the number of particles with ten million electron-volts of energy in the space near
Early tissue response to transscleral neodymium: YAG cyclophotocoagulation.
Blasini, M; Simmons, R; Shields, M B
Transscleral cyclophotocoagulation was performed with a neodymium: YAG laser on five patients 24-72 hr before enucleation for a blind, painful eye. The thermal mode at 20 ms and a maximum offset between aiming and therapeutic beams were kept constant. Variable parameters evaluated were energy levels between 2 and 8 J and distance from the limbus of 0.5-3.0 mm. Because of the underlying distortion in three of the eyes, meaningful interpretation by light microscopic evaluation was possible only in the other two. This suggested that the early histologic hallmark of the procedure is similar to that previously observed in human autopsy eyes with ciliary epithelial damage and elevation from underlying tissue. In addition, fibrin and scant inflammatory cells were seen in the space between ciliary epithelium and stroma. Minimal damage was observed in the ciliary muscle. These findings suggest that direct damage to the ciliary epithelium is the most likely mechanism of reduced aqueous production by this cyclodestructive procedure. The findings also support the concept that an anterior placement of approximately 1.0-1.5 mm posterior to the limbus is most likely to damage the ciliary epithelium of the pars plicata.
Sunspot 1504 is Spitting Flares
This movie from the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) shows the M class flare on June 14, 2012 from 9:15 AM to 2:00 PM EDT. The sun is shown here in teal as this is the color typically used to repre...
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
At the height of the solar cycle, the Sun is finally displaying some fireworks. This image from the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) shows a large solar flare from June 6, 2000 at 1424 Universal Time (10:24 AM Eastern Daylight Savings Time). Associated with the flare was a coronal mass ejection that sent a wave of fast moving charged particles straight towards Earth. (The image was acquired by the Extreme ultaviolet Imaging Telescope (EIT), one of 12 instruments aboard SOHO) Solar activity affects the Earth in several ways. The particles generated by flares can disrupt satellite communications and interfere with power transmission on the Earth's surface. Earth's climate is tied to the total energy emitted by the sun, cooling when the sun radiates less energy and warming when solar output increases. Solar radiation also produces ozone in the stratosphere, so total ozone levels tend to increase during the solar maximum. For more information about these solar flares and the SOHO mission, see NASA Science News or the SOHO home page. For more about the links between the sun and climate change, see Sunspots and the Solar Max. Image courtesy SOHO Extreme ultaviolet Imaging Telescope, ESA/NASA
Magnetic Reconnection in Solar Flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Forbes, Terry G.
Reconnection has at least three possible roles in solar flares: First, it may contribute to the build-up of magnetic energy in the solar corona prior to flare onset; second, it may directly trigger the onset of the flare; and third, it may allow the release of magnetic energy by relaxing the magnetic field configuration to a lower energy state. Although observational support for the first two roles is somewhat limited, there is now ample support for the third. Within the last few years EUV and X-ray instruments have directly observed the kind of plasma flows and heating indicative of reconnection. Continued improvements in instrumentation will greatly help to determine the detailed physics of the reconnection process in the solar atmosphere. Careful measurement of the reconnection outflows will be especially helpful in this regard. Current observations suggest that in some flares the jet outflows are accelerated within a short diffusion region that is more characteristic of Petschek-type reconnection than Sweet-Parker reconnection. Recent resistive MHD theoretical and numerical analyses predict that the length of the diffusion region should be just within the resolution range of current X-ray and EUV telescopes if the resistivity is uniform. On the other hand, if the resistivity is not uniform, the length of the diffusion region could be too short for the outflow acceleration region to be observable.
Storey building early monitoring based on rapid seismic response analysis
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Julius, Musa, Admiral; Sunardi, Bambang; Rudyanto, Ariska
Within the last decade, advances in the acquisition, processing and transmission of data from seismic monitoring has contributed to the growth in the number structures instrumented with such systems. An equally important factor for such growth can be attributed to the demands by stakeholders to find rapid answers to important questions related to the functionality or state of "health" of structures during and immediately of a seismic events. Consequently, this study aims to monitor the storey building based on seismic response i. e. earthquake and tremor analysis at short time lapse using accelerographs data. This study used one of storey building (X) in Jakarta city that suffered the effects of Kebumen earthquake January 25th 2014, Pandeglang earthquake July 9th 2014, and Lebak earthquake November 8th 2014. Tremors used in this study are tremors after the three following earthquakes. Data processing used to determine peak ground acceleration (PGA), peak ground velocity (PGV), peak ground displacement (PGD), spectral acceleration (SA), spectral velocity (SV), spectral displacement (SD), A/V ratio, acceleration amplification and effective duration (te). Then determine the natural frequency (f0) and peak of H/V ratio using H/V ratio method.The earthquakes data processing result shows the value of peak ground motion, spectrum response, A/V ratio and acceleration amplification increases with height, while the value of the effective duration give a different viewpoint of building dynamic because duration of Kebumen earthquake shows the highest energy in the highest floor but Pandeglang and Lebak earthquake in the lowest floor. Then, tremors data processing result one month after each earthquakes shows the natural frequency of building in constant value. Increasing of peak ground motion, spectrum response, A/V ratio, acceleration amplification, then decrease of effective duration following the increase of building floors shows that the building construction supports the
Ion Acceleration in Solar Flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Miller, James A.; Weir, Sue B.
Solar flares are among the most energetic and interesting phenomena in the Solar system, releasing up to 1032 ergs of energy on timescales of several tens of seconds to several tens of minutes. Much of this energy is in the form of suprathermal electrons and ions, which remain trapped at the Sun and produce a wide variety of radiations, as well as escape into interplanetary space, where they can be directly observed. The radiation from trapped particles consists in general of (1) continuum emission; (2) narrow gamma-ray nuclear deexcitation lines; and (3) high-energy neutrons observed in space or by ground-based neutron monitors. The particles that escape into space consist of both electrons and ions, which often have compositions quite different than that of the ambient solar atmosphere. Flares thus present many diagnostics of the particle acceleration mechanism(s), the identification of which is the ultimate goal of flare research. Moreover, flares in fact offer the only opportunity in astrophysics to study the simultaneous energization of both electrons and ions. Hopefully, an understanding of flares with their wealth of diagnostic data will lead to a better understanding of particle acceleration at other sites in the Universe. It is now generally accepted that flares are roughly divided into two classes: impulsive and gradual. Gradual events are large, occur high in the corona, have long-duration soft and hard X-rays and gamma rays, are electron poor, are associated with Type II radio emission and coronal mass ejections (CMEs), and produce energetic ions with coronal abundance ratios. Impulsive events are more compact, occur lower in the corona, produce short-duration radiation, and exhibit dramatic abundance enhancements in the energetic ions. Their He-3/He-4 ratio is - 1, which is a huge increase over the coronal value of about 5 x 10(exp -4), and they also posses smaller but still significant enhancements of Ne, Mg, Si, and Fe relative to He-4, C, N, and O
Predictors of Responsiveness to Early Literacy Intervention: A 10-Year Update
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Lam, Elizabeth A.; McMaster, Kristen L.
The purpose of this review was to update previous reviews on factors related to students' responsiveness to early literacy intervention. The 14 studies in this synthesis used experimental designs, provided small-group or one-on-one reading interventions, and analyzed factors related to responsiveness to those interventions. Participants were…
Effect of the Responsive Environment Early Education Program for Low Birth Weight Children of Preschool Age.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Askins, Billy E.; And Others
This paper describes an external evaluation study of the Responsive Environment Early Education Program (formerly known as the Responsive Environment Program for Spanish American Children), an educational intervention program for "high risk" (low birth weight) 3-, 4-, and 5-year-old children in Clovis, New Mexico. Major goals of the…
Response of Cross-biome Productivity to the Early 21st Century Drought
Technology Transfer Automated Retrieval System (TEKTRAN)
The response of ecosystem productivity to contemporary drought coupled with record warming presents important challenges to predictive ecological modeling. In this study, we investigated the response of annual above-ground net primary production (ANPP) to precipitation variability during the early ...
The Role Played by the Family in Shaping Early and Middle Adolescent Civic Responsibility
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Lenzi, Michela; Vieno, Alessio; Santinello, Massimo; Nation, Maury; Voight, Adam
Adopting a multi-informant methodology, the current study examines the relative influence of multiple parental characteristics (civic responsibility, encouragement of civic action, parent-youth closeness) on adolescents' civic responsibility (local and global). The participants were 384 early and middle adolescents (47.9% male), randomly selected…
The Nature of CME-flare-Associated Coronal Dimming
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Cheng, J. X.; Qiu, J.
Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) are often accompanied by coronal dimming that is evident in extreme ultraviolet (EUV) and soft X-ray observations. The locations of dimming are sometimes considered to map footpoints of the erupting flux rope. As the emitting material expands in the corona, the decreased plasma density leads to reduced emission observed in spectral and irradiance measurements. Therefore, signatures of dimming may reflect the properties of CMEs in the early phase of their eruption. In this study, we analyze the event of flare, CME, and coronal dimming on 2011 December 26. We use the data from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly on the Solar Dynamics Observatory for disk observations of the dimming, and analyze images taken by EUVI, COR1, and COR2 on board the Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory to obtain the height and velocity of the associated CMEs observed at the limb. We also measure the magnetic reconnection rate from flare observations. Dimming occurs in a few locations next to the flare ribbons, and it is observed in multiple EUV passbands. Rapid dimming starts after the onset of fast reconnection and CME acceleration, and its evolution tracks the CME height and flare reconnection. The spatial distribution of dimming exhibits cores of deep dimming with a rapid growth, and their light curves are approximately linearly scaled with the CME height profile. From the dimming analysis we infer the process of the CME expansion, and estimate properties of the CME.
Nature of CME-flare Associated Coronal Dimming
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Cheng, Jianxia; Qiu, Jiong
Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) are often accompanied by coronal dimming evident in extreme ultraviolet (EUV) and soft X-ray observations. The locations of dimming are sometimes considered to map footpoints of the erupting flux rope. As emitting material expands in the corona, the decreased plasma density leads to reduced emission observed in spectral and irradiance measurements. Therefore, signatures of dimming may reflect properties of CMEs in the early phase of eruption. We analyze the event of flare, CME, and coronal dimming on December 26, 2011. Data from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) on Solar Dynamics Observatories (SDO) are used for disk observations of the dimming, and images taken by EUVI, COR1, and COR2 onboard the Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatories are used to obtain height and velocity of the associated CMEs observed at the limb. We also calculate magnetic reconnection rate from flare observations. Dimming occurs in a few locations next to flare ribbons, and is observed in multiple EUV passbands. Rapid dimming starts after onset of fast reconnection and CME acceleration, and its evolution well tracks the CME height and flare reconnection. Spatial distribution of dimming exhibits cores of deep dimming with rapid growth, and their light curves are approximately linearly scaled with the CME height profile. From dimming analysis, we infer the process of CME expansion, and estimate properties of the CME.
Towards the circuit theory of solar flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Zaitsev, V. V.; Stepanov, A. V.
The coalescence of a flare loop and a filament is presently used to illustrate magnetic-loop reemergence and the correct application of the generalized form of Ohm's law for solar flares. Flare energy release entails large current values, a nonsteady-state process, and the existence of a neutral component in a flare plasma. Current dissipation furnishes effective Joule heating of the plasma and particle acceleration in a solar flare. Due to the decisive role played in the energy release process by ion-atom collisions, flare loop resistance can grow by 8-10 orders of magnitude. The energy release from the upper part of a flare loop stimulates powerful energy release from the chromospheric level.
The dynamo theory of solar flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Zaitsev, V. V.; Stepanov, A. V.
It is shown that the main problems of the dynamo theory of solar flares; namely, the unrealistically great current growth time and the current interruption mechanism, can be solved by assuming the emergence of magnetic loops with current and by the correct application of Ohm's law. A generalized Ohm's law for solar flares is obtained, and prerequisites for flare energy release are proposed. Coalescence of a flare loop and of a filament is considered as an example, and it is shown that the current dissipation increases dramatically as compared with that in completely ionized plasma, providing effective Joule heating of the plasma and particle acceleration in a solar flare. The ion-atom collisions play the decisive role in the energy release process, leading to an 8-10-order-of-magnitude increase in the flare loop resistance. The energy release emerging from the upper part of a flare loop stimulates a powerful energy release in the chromosphere.
GONG Inter-site Hα Flare Comparison
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Giersch, Owen
A challenge of the past few decades for the Solar Observing Optical Network (SOON), operated by the United States Air Force Weather Agency (AFWA), has been to obtain consistent flare brightness reporting for the same flare from different sites. Flare area is usually considered to be a more reliable measure, but significant variation of values between sites still occurs. The Global Oscillation Network Group (GONG) deployed a Hα patrol system in 2010. This provides a modern system with near identical equipment to compare flares from six different sites. The classification of flares and techniques of flare measurement will be briefly discussed. The results presented here suggest that even though different GONG sites report different flare areas and brightnesses, for some sites they vary in a consistent way allowing correction factors to be applied.
Early genetic responses in rat vascular tissue after simulated diving.
Eftedal, Ingrid; Jørgensen, Arve; Røsbjørgen, Ragnhild; Flatberg, Arnar; Brubakk, Alf O
Diving causes a transient reduction of vascular function, but the mechanisms behind this are largely unknown. The aim of this study was therefore to analyze genetic reactions that may be involved in acute changes of vascular function in divers. Rats were exposed to 709 kPa of hyperbaric air (149 kPa Po(2)) for 50 min followed by postdive monitoring of vascular bubble formation and full genome microarray analysis of the aorta from diving rats (n = 8) and unexposed controls (n = 9). Upregulation of 23 genes was observed 1 h after simulated diving. The differential gene expression was characteristic of cellular responses to oxidative stress, with functions of upregulated genes including activation and fine-tuning of stress-responsive transcription, cytokine/cytokine receptor signaling, molecular chaperoning, and coagulation. By qRT-PCR, we verified increased transcription of neuron-derived orphan receptor-1 (Nr4a3), plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (Serpine1), cytokine TWEAK receptor FN14 (Tnfrsf12a), transcription factor class E basic helix-loop-helix protein 40 (Bhlhe40), and adrenomedullin (Adm). Hypoxia-inducible transcription factor HIF1 subunit HIF1-α was stabilized in the aorta 1 h after diving, and after 4 h there was a fivefold increase in total protein levels of the procoagulant plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI1) in blood plasma from diving rats. The study did not have sufficient power for individual assessment of effects of hyperoxia and decompression-induced bubbles on postdive gene expression. However, differential gene expression in rats without venous bubbles was similar to that of all the diving rats, indicating that elevated Po(2) instigated the observed genetic reactions.
Prediction and set-dependent scaling of early postural responses in cerebellar patients.
Timmann, D; Horak, F B
We reported previously that patients with cerebellar deficits were unable to scale the magnitude of their early automatic postural responses to the predicted amplitudes of surface translations based on central set from prior experience. The present study investigated whether this deficit in set-dependent amplitude scaling was based predominantly on the cerebellar patient's disability (i) to predict perturbation amplitudes on the basis of prior experience, (ii) to scale the gain or magnitude of upcoming postural responses or (iii) to habituate postural responses. The increase in size of the early postural response when a larger than actual platform amplitude was expected and decrease when a smaller one was expected was defined as a measure of set-dependent amplitude prediction. The suppression of the postural response when the same platform velocity was repeated was used as a measure of habituation. The correlation between the size of early postural responses and platform amplitudes when presented serially, but not randomly, tested the ability to scale the gain of postural responses based on prior experience. Results show that although cerebellar patients could predict perturbation amplitudes based on prior experience, they could not use this prediction to modify precisely the gain of responses. The ability to habituate the magnitude of postural responses was not affected by cerebellar lesions. Thus, the cerebellum might not be critical for predicting upcoming events or for habituating to repeated postural stimuli, although it is important for accurate tuning of response gain based on prediction.
Early immune response and regulation of IL-2 receptor subunits
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Hughes-Fulford, Millie; Sugano, Eiko; Schopper, Thomas; Li, Chai-Fei; Boonyaratanakornkit, J. B.; Cogoli, Augusto
MAPK pathways plays a role in early T-cell activation and induction of IL-2, IL-2R(alpha) and IFN(gamma) gene expression.
Wang, Yuming; Zhou, Zhenjun; Liu, Kai; Liu, Rui; Shen, Chenglong; Zhang, Jie; Chamberlin, Phillip C.
The Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO)/EUV Variability Experiment (EVE) provides rich information on the thermodynamic processes of solar activities, particularly on solar flares. Here, we develop a method to construct thermodynamic spectrum (TDS) charts based on the EVE spectral lines. This tool could potentially be useful for extreme ultraviolet (EUV) astronomy to learn about the eruptive activities on distant astronomical objects. Through several cases, we illustrate what we can learn from the TDS charts. Furthermore, we apply the TDS method to 74 flares equal to or greater than the M5.0 class, and reach the following statistical results. First, EUV peaks are always behind the soft X-ray (SXR) peaks and stronger flares tend to have faster cooling rates. There is a power-law correlation between the peak delay times and the cooling rates, suggesting a coherent cooling process of flares from SXR to EUV emissions. Second, there are two distinct temperature drift patterns, called Type I and Type II. For Type I flares, the enhanced emission drifts from high to low temperature like a quadrilateral, whereas for Type II flares the drift pattern looks like a triangle. Statistical analysis suggests that Type II flares are more impulsive than Type I flares. Third, for late-phase flares, the peak intensity ratio of the late phase to the main phase is roughly correlated with the flare class, and the flares with a strong late phase are all confined. We believe that the re-deposition of the energy carried by a flux rope, which unsuccessfully erupts out, into thermal emissions is responsible for the strong late phase found in a confined flare. Furthermore, we show the signatures of the flare thermodynamic process in the chromosphere and transition region in the TDS charts. These results provide new clues to advance our understanding of the thermodynamic processes of solar flares and associated solar eruptions, e.g., coronal mass ejections.
Statistical Analyses of White-Light Flares: Two Main Results about Flare Behaviour
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Dal, Hasan Ali
We present two main results, based on models and the statistical analyses of 1672 U-band flares. We also discuss the behaviour of white-light flares. In addition, the parameters of the flares detected from two years of observations on CR Dra are presented. By comparing with flare parameters obtained from other UV Ceti-type stars, we examine the behaviour of the optical flare processes along with the spectral types. Moreover, we aimed, using large white-light flare data, to analyse the flare time-scales with respect to some results obtained from X-ray observations. Using SPSS V17.0 and GraphPad Prism V5.02 software, the flares detected from CR Dra were modelled with the OPEA function, and analysed with the t-Test method to compare similar flare events in other stars. In addition, using some regression calculations in order to derive the best histograms, the time-scales of white-light flares were analysed. Firstly, CR Dra flares have revealed that white-light flares behave in a similar way as their counterparts observed in X-rays. As can be seen in X-ray observations, the electron density seems to be a dominant parameter in white-light flare process, too. Secondly, the distributions of the flare time-scales demonstrate that the number of observed flares reaches a maximum value in some particular ratios, which are 0.5, or its multiples, and especially positive integers. The thermal processes might be dominant for these white-light flares, while non-thermal processes might be dominant in the others. To obtain better results for the behaviour of the white-light flare process along with the spectral types, much more stars in a wide spectral range, from spectral type dK5e to dM6e, must be observed in white-light flare patrols.
Modeling Innate Immune Response to Early Mycobacterium Infection
Carvalho, Rafael V.; Kleijn, Jetty; Meijer, Annemarie H.
In the study of complex patterns in biology, mathematical and computational models are emerging as important tools. In addition to experimental approaches, these modeling tools have recently been applied to address open questions regarding host-pathogen interaction dynamics, including the immune response to mycobacterial infection and tuberculous granuloma formation. We present an approach in which a computational model represents the interaction of the Mycobacterium infection with the innate immune system in zebrafish at a high level of abstraction. We use the Petri Net formalism to model the interaction between the key host elements involved in granuloma formation and infection dissemination. We define a qualitative model for the understanding and description of causal relations in this dynamic process. Complex processes involving cell-cell or cell-bacteria communication can be modeled at smaller scales and incorporated hierarchically into this main model; these are to be included in later elaborations. With the infection mechanism being defined on a higher level, lower-level processes influencing the host-pathogen interaction can be identified, modeled, and tested both quantitatively and qualitatively. This systems biology framework incorporates modeling to generate and test hypotheses, to perform virtual experiments, and to make experimentally verifiable predictions. Thereby it supports the unraveling of the mechanisms of tuberculosis infection. PMID:23365620
Early IFN type I response: Learning from microbial evasion strategies.
Coccia, Eliana M; Battistini, Angela
Type I interferon (IFN) comprises a class of cytokines first discovered more than 50 years ago and initially characterized for their ability to interfere with viral replication and restrict locally viral propagation. As such, their induction downstream of germ-line encoded pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) upon recognition of pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) is a hallmark of the host antiviral response. The acknowledgment that several PAMPs, not just of viral origin, may induce IFN, pinpoints at these molecules as a first line of host defense against a number of invading pathogens. Acting in both autocrine and paracrine manner, IFN interferes with viral replication by inducing hundreds of different IFN-stimulated genes with both direct anti-pathogenic as well as immunomodulatory activities, therefore functioning as a bridge between innate and adaptive immunity. On the other hand an inverse interference to escape the IFN system is largely exploited by pathogens through a number of tactics and tricks aimed at evading, inhibiting or manipulating the IFN pathway, that result in progression of infection or establishment of chronic disease. In this review we discuss the interplay between the IFN system and some selected clinically important and challenging viruses and bacteria, highlighting the wide array of pathogen-triggered molecular mechanisms involved in evasion strategies.
Truncated disc surface brightness profiles produced by flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Borlaff, Alejandro; Eliche-Moral, M. Carmen; Beckman, John; Font, Joan
Previous studies have discarded that flares in galactic discs may explain the truncation that are frequently observed in highly-inclined galaxies (Kregel et al. 2002). However, no study has systematically analysed this hypothesis using realistic models for the disc, the flare and the bulge. We derive edge-on and face-on surface brightness profiles for a series of realistic galaxy models with flared discs that sample a wide range of structural and photometric parameters across the Hubble Sequence, accordingly to observations. The surface brightness profile for each galaxy model has been simulated for edge-on and face-on views to find out whether the flared disc produces a significant truncation in the disc in the edge-on view compared to the face-on view or not. In order to simulate realistic images of disc galaxies, we have considered the observational distribution of the photometric parameters as a function of the morphological type for three mass bins (10 < log10(M/M ⊙) < 10.7, 10.7 < log10(M/M ⊙) < 11 and log10(M/M ⊙) > 11), and four morphological type bins (S0-Sa, Sb-Sbc, Sc-Scd and Sd-Sdm). For each mass bin, we have restricted the photometric and structural parameters of each modelled galaxy to their characteristic observational ranges (μ0, disc, μeff, bulge, B/T, M abs, r eff, n bulge, h R, disc) and the flare in the disc (h z, disc/h R, disc, ∂h z, disc/∂R, see de Grijs & Peletier 1997, Graham 2001, López-Corredoira et al. 2002, Yoachim & Dalcanton 2006, Bizyaev et al. 2014, Mosenkov et al. 2015). Contrary to previous claims, the simulations show that realistic flared disks can be responsible for the truncations observed in many edge-on systems, preserving the profile of the non-flared analogous model in face-on view. These breaks reproduce the properties of the weak-to-intermediate breaks observed in many real Type-II galaxies in the diagram relating the radial location of the break (R brkII) in units of the inner disk scale-length with the
Modeling Solar Flare Hard X-ray Images and Spectra Observed with RHESSI
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Sui, Linhui
predictions of the standard flare models: the downward motion of flare loops in the early impulsive phase of each flare, and an initially stationary coronal source above the loops. These features me believed to be related to the formation and development of a current sheet. In particular, the downward loop motion seem to be a common phenomenon in flares, suggesting the necessity for modifications to the existing standard flare. models. Finally, thanks to the broad energy coverage of the RHESSI spectra, a low-energy cutoff of 28 (plus or minus 2) keV in the nonthermal electron distribution was determined for the April 15, 2002, flare. As a result, the energy carried by the nonthermal electrons is found to be comparable to the thermal energy of the flare, but one order of magnitude larger than the kinetic energy of the associated coronal mass ejection. The method used to deduce the electron low-energy cutoff will be useful in the analyses of similar events.
The Kepler Catalog of Stellar Flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Davenport, James R. A.
A homogeneous search for stellar flares has been performed using every available Kepler light curve. An iterative light curve de-trending approach was used to filter out both astrophysical and systematic variability to detect flares. The flare recovery completeness has also been computed throughout each light curve using artificial flare injection tests, and the tools for this work have been made publicly available. The final sample contains 851,168 candidate flare events recovered above the 68% completeness threshold, which were detected from 4041 stars, or 1.9% of the stars in the Kepler database. The average flare energy detected is ˜1035 erg. The net fraction of flare stars increases with g - i color, or decreasing stellar mass. For stars in this sample with previously measured rotation periods, the total relative flare luminosity is compared to the Rossby number. A tentative detection of flare activity saturation for low-mass stars with rapid rotation below a Rossby number of ˜0.03 is found. A power-law decay in flare activity with Rossby number is found with a slope of -1, shallower than typical measurements for X-ray activity decay with Rossby number.
Molecular Mechanisms of Sulfur Mustard Vesicant-Induced Cell Death: Early and Late Cell Responses
Mechanisms of Sulfur Mustard Vesicant-Induced Cell Death : Early and late cell responses 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b. GRANT NUMBER 5c. PROGRAM ELEMENT NUMBER 6...It possess mutagenic, carcinogenic, cytotoxic, vesicating effects, and results in cell death . However, the biomedical mechanism of cell death induced... cell death via apoptosis: • In early stage, It induces JNK activity and then triggers apoptosis pathway. • In late stage, sulphur mustard attacks the
The Effects of Flare Definitions on the Statistics of Derived Flare Distrubtions
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Ryan, Daniel; Dominique, Marie; Seaton, Daniel B.; Stegen, Koen; White, Arthur
The statistical examination of solar flares is crucial to revealing their global characteristics and behaviour. However, statistical flare studies are often performed using standard but basic flare detection algorithms relying on arbitrary thresholds which may affect the derived flare distributions. We explore the effect of the arbitrary thresholds used in the GOES event list and LYRA Flare Finder algorithms. We find that there is a small but significant relationship between the power law exponent of the GOES flare peak flux frequency distribution and the algorithms' flare start thresholds. We also find that the power law exponents of these distributions are not stable but appear to steepen with increasing peak flux. This implies that the observed flare size distribution may not be a power law at all. We show that depending on the true value of the exponent of the flare size distribution, this deviation from a power law may be due to flares missed by the flare detection algorithms. However, it is not possible determine the true exponent from GOES/XRS observations. Additionally we find that the PROBA2/LYRA flare size distributions are clearly non-power law. We show that this is consistent with an insufficient degradation correction which causes LYRA absolute irradiance values to be unreliable. This means that they should not be used for flare statistics or energetics unless degradation is adequately accounted for. However they can be used to study time variations over shorter timescales and for space weather monitoring.
Electron impact polarization expected in solar EUV lines from flaring chromospheres/transition regions
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Fineschi, S.; Fontenla, Juan M.; Macneice, P.; Ljepojevic, N. N.
We have evaluated lower bounds on the degree of impact Extreme Ultraviolet/Ultraviolet (EUV/UV) line polarization expected during solar flares. This polarization arises from collisional excitation by energetic electrons with non-Maxwellian velocity distributions. Linear polarization was observed in the S I 1437 A line by the Ultraviolet Spectrometer and Polarimeter/Solar Maximum Mission (UVSP/SMM) during a flare on 15 July 1980. An early interpretation suggested that impact excitation by electrons propagating through the steep temperature gradient of the flaring transition region/high chromosphere produced this polarization. Our calculations show that the observed polarization in this UV line cannot be due to this effect. We find instead that, in some flare models, the energetic electrons can produce an impact polarization of a few percent in EUV neutral helium lines (i.e., lambda lambda 522, 537, and 584 A).
Exposure to dim light at night during early development increases adult anxiety-like responses.
Borniger, Jeremy C; McHenry, Zachary D; Abi Salloum, Bachir A; Nelson, Randy J
Early experiences produce effects that may persist throughout life. Therefore, to understand adult phenotype, it is important to investigate the role of early environmental stimuli in adult behavior and health. Artificial light at night (LAN) is an increasingly common phenomenon throughout the world. However, animals, including humans, evolved under dark night conditions. Many studies have revealed affective, immune, and metabolic alterations provoked by aberrant light exposure and subsequent circadian disruption. Pups are receptive to entraining cues from the mother and then light early during development, raising the possibility that the early life light environment may influence subsequent behavior. Thus, to investigate potential influences of early life exposure to LAN on adult phenotype, we exposed mice to dim (~5 lux; full spectrum white light) or dark (~0 lux) nights pre- and/or postnatally. After weaning at 3 weeks of age, all mice were maintained in dark nights until adulthood (9 weeks of age) when behavior was assessed. Mice exposed to dim light in early life increased anxiety-like behavior and fearful responses on the elevated plus maze and passive avoidance tests. These mice also displayed reduced growth rates, which ultimately normalized during adolescence. mRNA expression of brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a neurotrophin previously linked to early life environment and adult phenotype, was not altered in the prefrontal cortex or hippocampus by early life LAN exposure. Serum corticosterone concentrations were similar between groups at weaning, suggesting that early life LAN does not elicit a long-term physiologic stress response. Dim light exposure did not influence behavior on the open field, novel object, sucrose anhedonia, or forced swim tests. Our data highlight the potential deleterious consequences of low levels of light during early life to development and subsequent behavior. Whether these changes are due to altered maternal behavior
Cost effectiveness of responsive stimulation and nutrition interventions on early child development outcomes in Pakistan.
Gowani, Saima; Yousafzai, Aisha K; Armstrong, Robert; Bhutta, Zulfiqar A
Early childhood programs are heralded as a way to improve children's health and educational outcomes. However, few studies in developing countries calculate the effectiveness of quality early childhood interventions. Even fewer estimate the associated costs of such interventions. The study here looks at the costs and effectiveness of a cluster-randomized effectiveness trial on children from birth to 24 months in rural Sindh, Pakistan. Responsive stimulation and/or enhanced nutrition interventions were integrated in the Lady Health Worker program in Pakistan. Outcomes suggest that children who receive responsive stimulation had significantly better development outcomes at 24 months than those who only received enhanced nutrition intervention. A cost-effectiveness analysis of the results verifies that early childhood interventions that include responsive stimulation are more cost effective than a nutrition intervention alone in promoting children's early development. Costs of a responsive stimulation intervention integrated in an existing community-based service providing basic health and nutrition care is approximately US$4 per month per child. We discuss these findings and make recommendations about scaling up and costs for future early child development programs.
DOE R&D Accomplishments Database
Colgate, S. A.; Audouze, J.; Fowler, W. A.
The extreme enrichment of {sup 3} He {sup 4} He greater than or equal to 1 in some solar flares as due to spallation and the subsequent confinement of the products in a high temperature, kT approx. = 200 keV, high density, n{sub e} approx. = 3 x 10{sup 15} cm {sup -3} plasma associated with the magnetic instability producing the flare is interpreted. The pinch or filament is a current of high energy protons that creates the spallation and maintains the temperature that produces the high energy x-ray spectrum and depletes other isotopes D, Li, Be, and B as observed. Finally the high temperature plasma is a uniquely efficient spallation target that is powered by the interaction of stellar convection and self generated magnetic field.
The challenges of the models of solar flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Stepanov, A. V.; Zaitsev, V. V.
The challenges of `standard' model of solar flares motivated by new observations with the spacecrafts and ground-based telescopes are presented. The most important problems are in situ heating of photospheric and chromospheric loop footpoints up to the coronal temperatures without precipitating particle beams accelerated in the corona, and the sunquakes which are unlikely to be explained by the impact of highenergy particles producing hard X-ray emission. There is also the long-standing `number problem' in the physics of solar flares. It is shown that modern observations favored an important role of the electric currents in the energy release processes in the low solar atmosphere. Particle acceleration mechanism in the electric fields driven by the magnetic Rayleigh-Taylor instability in the chromosphere is proposed. The electric current value I ≥ 1010 A, needed for the excitation of super-Dreicer electric fields in the chromosphere is determined. It is shown that both Joule dissipation of the electric currents and the particles accelerated in the chromosphere can be responsible for in situ heating of the low solar atmosphere. Alternative model of the solar flare based on the analogy between the flaring loop and an equivalent electric circuit which is good tool for the electric current diagnostics is presented. Interaction of a current-carrying loop with the partially-ionized plasma of prominence in the context of particle acceleration is considered. The role of plasma radiation mechanism in the sub-THz emission from the chromosphere is discussed.
3D flare particle model for ShipIR/NTCS
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Ramaswamy, Srinivasan; Vaitekunas, David A.
A key component in any soft-kill response to an incoming guided missile is the flare /chaff decoy used to distract or seduce the seeker homing system away from the naval platform. This paper describes a new 3D flare particle model in the naval threat countermeasure simulator (NTCS) of the NATO-standard ship signature model (ShipIR), which provides independent control over the size and radial distribution of its signature. The 3D particles of each flare sub-munition are modelled stochastically and rendered using OpenGL z-buffering, 2D projection, and alpha-blending to produce a unique and time varying signature. A sensitivity analysis on each input parameter provides the data and methods needed to synthesize a model from an IR measurement of a decoy. The new model also eliminated artifacts and deficiencies in our previous model which prevented reliable tracks from the adaptive track gate algorithm already presented by Ramaswamy and Vaitekunas (2015). A sequence of scenarios are used to test and demonstrate the new flare model during a missile engagement.
Qiu, Jiong; Longcope, Dana W.
Flare emissions in X-ray and EUV wavelengths have previously been modeled as the plasma response to impulsive heating from magnetic reconnection. Some flares exhibit gradually evolving X-ray and EUV light curves, which are believed to result from superposition of an extended sequence of impulsive heating events occurring in different adjacent loops or even unresolved threads within each loop. In this paper, we apply this approach to a long duration two-ribbon flare SOL2011-09-13T22 observed by the Atmosphere Imaging Assembly (AIA). We find that to reconcile with observed signatures of flare emission in multiple EUV wavelengths, each thread should be heated in two phases, an intense impulsive heating followed by a gradual, low-rate heating tail that is attenuated over 20–30 minutes. Each AIA resolved single loop may be composed of several such threads. The two-phase heating scenario is supported by modeling with both a zero-dimensional and a 1D hydrodynamic code. We discuss viable physical mechanisms for the two-phase heating in a post-reconnection thread.
Using Sdo's AIA to Investigate Energy Transport from a Flare's Energy Release Site to the Chromosphere
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Brosius, Jeffrey W.; Holman, Gordon D.
Coordinated observations of a GOES B4.8 microflare with SDOs Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) and the RamatyHigh Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) on 2010 July 31 show that emission in all seven of AIAs EUV channels brightened simultaneously nearly 6 min before RHESSI or GOES detected emission from plasma at temperatures around 10 MK. Aims. To help interpret these and AIA flare observations in general, we characterized the expected temporal responses of AIAs 94, 131, 171, 193, 211, and 335 channels to solar flare brightenings by combining (1) AIAs nominal temperature response functions available through SSWIDL with (2) EUV spectral line data observed in a flare loop Coordinated observations of a GOES B4.8 microflare with SDOs Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) and the RamatyHigh Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) on 2010 July 31 show that emission in all seven of AIAs EUV channels brightenedsimultaneously nearly 6 min before RHESSI or GOES detected emission from plasma at temperatures around 10 MK.Aims. To help interpret these and AIA flare observations in general, we characterized the expected temporal responses of AIAs 94,131, 171, 193, 211, and 335 channels to solar flare brightenings by combining (1) AIAs nominal temperature response functionsavailable through SSWIDL with (2) EUV spectral line data observed in a flare loop
Multispectral observations of chromospheric evaporation in the 1991 November 15 X-class solar flare
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Wulser, Jean-Pierre; Canfield, Richard C.; Acton, Loren W.; Culhane, J. Leonard; Phillips, Andrew; Fludra, Andrzej; Sakao, Taro; Masuda, Satoshi; Kosugi, Takeo; Tsuneta, Saku
We analyze simultaneous H(alpha) images and spectra (from Mees Solar Observatory), and soft and hard X-ray images and spectra (from YOHKOH) during the early phase of an X1.5/3B flare. We investigate the morphological relationship between chromospheric downflows, coronal upflows, and particle precipitation sites, and the energetic relationship between conductive heating, nonthermal particle heating, and the chromospheric response. We find that the observations consistently fit the chromospheric evaporation model. In particular, we demonstrate that the observed upflowing coronal and downflowing chromospheric plasma components originate in the same locations, and we show that our unique set of optical and X-ray observations can clearly distinguish between conductively driven and electron beam driven evaporation.
Transcriptional dynamics reveal critical roles for non-coding RNAs in the immediate-early response.
Aitken, Stuart; Magi, Shigeyuki; Alhendi, Ahmad M N; Itoh, Masayoshi; Kawaji, Hideya; Lassmann, Timo; Daub, Carsten O; Arner, Erik; Carninci, Piero; Forrest, Alistair R R; Hayashizaki, Yoshihide; Khachigian, Levon M; Okada-Hatakeyama, Mariko; Semple, Colin A
The immediate-early response mediates cell fate in response to a variety of extracellular stimuli and is dysregulated in many cancers. However, the specificity of the response across stimuli and cell types, and the roles of non-coding RNAs are not well understood. Using a large collection of densely-sampled time series expression data we have examined the induction of the immediate-early response in unparalleled detail, across cell types and stimuli. We exploit cap analysis of gene expression (CAGE) time series datasets to directly measure promoter activities over time. Using a novel analysis method for time series data we identify transcripts with expression patterns that closely resemble the dynamics of known immediate-early genes (IEGs) and this enables a comprehensive comparative study of these genes and their chromatin state. Surprisingly, these data suggest that the earliest transcriptional responses often involve promoters generating non-coding RNAs, many of which are produced in advance of canonical protein-coding IEGs. IEGs are known to be capable of induction without de novo protein synthesis. Consistent with this, we find that the response of both protein-coding and non-coding RNA IEGs can be explained by their transcriptionally poised, permissive chromatin state prior to stimulation. We also explore the function of non-coding RNAs in the attenuation of the immediate early response in a small RNA sequencing dataset matched to the CAGE data: We identify a novel set of microRNAs responsible for the attenuation of the IEG response in an estrogen receptor positive cancer cell line. Our computational statistical method is well suited to meta-analyses as there is no requirement for transcripts to pass thresholds for significant differential expression between time points, and it is agnostic to the number of time points per dataset.
Primary energy release. [during solar flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Kahler, S.; Spicer, D.; Uchida, Y.; Zirin, H.
The physical processes by which the magnetic energy of a solar active region is converted to other forms of energy in the appearance of a solar flare are discussed. Observations of the secondary manifestations of flare energy release, such as thermal plasmas and energetic particle emissions, are presented, with particular attention given to the temporal variations of flare radiation, the various forms of energy release, flare energy density, flare locations and sizes, energy distributions and H alpha, hard X-ray and microwave burst events. Current models of the primary energy release process are surveyed, and the models of Spicer (1976, 1977), which explains rapid flare energy release in terms of multiple tearing modes causing reconnection in sheared magnetic fields, and Uchida and Sakurai (1976, 1978), which attributes primary energy release to dynamic collapse caused by the interchange instability of the neutral sheet, are examined in detail.
Pre-flare dynamics of sunspot groups
Korsós, M. B.; Baranyi, T.; Ludmány, A. E-mail: email@example.com
Several papers provide evidence that the most probable sites of flare onset are the regions of high horizontal magnetic field gradients in solar active regions. Besides the localization of flare-producing areas, this work intends to reveal the characteristic temporal variations in these regions prior to flares. This study uses sunspot data instead of magnetograms and follows the behavior of a suitable defined proxy measure representing the horizontal magnetic field gradient. The source of the data is the SDD (SOHO/MDI-Debrecen Data) sunspot catalog. The most promising pre-flare signatures are the following properties of gradient variation: (1) steep increase, (2) high maximum, (3) significant fluctuation, and (4) a gradual decrease between the maximum and the flare onset that can be related to the 'pull mode' of the current layer. These properties may yield a tool for the assessment of flare probability and intensity within the following 8-10 hr.
Solar flares controlled by helicity conservation
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Gliner, Erast B.; Osherovich, Vladimir A.
The energy release in a class of solar flares is studied on the assumption that during burst events in highly conducting plasma the magnetic helicity of plasma is approximately conserved. The available energy release under a solar flare controlled by the helicity conservation is shown to be defined by the magnetic structure of the associated prominence. The approach throws light on some solar flare enigmas: the role of the associated prominence. The approach throws light on some solar flare enigmas: the role of the associated prominences; the discontinuation of the reconnection of magnetic lines long before the complete reconnection of participated fields occurs; the existence of quiet prominences which, in spite of their usual optical appearance, do not initiate any flare events; the small energy release under a solar flare in comparison with the stockpile of magnetic energy in surrounding fields. The predicted scale of the energy release is in a fair agreement with observations.
Modeling Repeatedly Flaring δ Sunspots
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Chatterjee, Piyali; Hansteen, Viggo; Carlsson, Mats
Active regions (ARs) appearing on the surface of the Sun are classified into α , β , γ , and δ by the rules of the Mount Wilson Observatory, California on the basis of their topological complexity. Amongst these, the δ sunspots are known to be superactive and produce the most x-ray flares. Here, we present results from a simulation of the Sun by mimicking the upper layers and the corona, but starting at a more primitive stage than any earlier treatment. We find that this initial state consisting of only a thin subphotospheric magnetic sheet breaks into multiple flux tubes which evolve into a colliding-merging system of spots of opposite polarity upon surface emergence, similar to those often seen on the Sun. The simulation goes on to produce many exotic δ sunspot associated phenomena: repeated flaring in the range of typical solar flare energy release and ejective helical flux ropes with embedded cool-dense plasma filaments resembling solar coronal mass ejections.
Modeling Repeatedly Flaring δ Sunspots.
Chatterjee, Piyali; Hansteen, Viggo; Carlsson, Mats
Active regions (ARs) appearing on the surface of the Sun are classified into α, β, γ, and δ by the rules of the Mount Wilson Observatory, California on the basis of their topological complexity. Amongst these, the δ sunspots are known to be superactive and produce the most x-ray flares. Here, we present results from a simulation of the Sun by mimicking the upper layers and the corona, but starting at a more primitive stage than any earlier treatment. We find that this initial state consisting of only a thin subphotospheric magnetic sheet breaks into multiple flux tubes which evolve into a colliding-merging system of spots of opposite polarity upon surface emergence, similar to those often seen on the Sun. The simulation goes on to produce many exotic δ sunspot associated phenomena: repeated flaring in the range of typical solar flare energy release and ejective helical flux ropes with embedded cool-dense plasma filaments resembling solar coronal mass ejections.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Haisch, B.; Uchida, Y.; Kosugi, T.; Hudson, H. S.
What is the importance of stellar X-ray flares to astrophysics, or even more, to the world at large? In the case of the Sun, changes in solar activity at the two temporal extremes can have quite significant consequences. Longterm changes in solar activity, such as the Maunder Minimum, can apparently lead to non-negligible alterations of the earth's climate. The extreme short term changes are solar flares, the most energetic of which can cause communications disruptions, power outages and ionizing radiation levels amounting to medical X-ray dosages on long commercial flights and even potentially lethal exposures for unshielded astronauts. Why does the Sun exhibit such behaviour? Even if we had a detailed knowledge of the relevant physical processes on the Sun - which we may be on the way to having in hand as evidenced by these Proceedings- our understanding would remain incomplete in regard to fundamental causation so long as we could not say whether the Sun is, in this respect, unique among the stars. This current paper discusses the stellar x-ray flare detections and astronomical models (quasi-static cooling model and two-ribbon model) that are used to observe the x-ray emission.
Solar flares and energetic particles.
Vilmer, Nicole
Solar flares are now observed at all wavelengths from γ-rays to decametre radio waves. They are commonly associated with efficient production of energetic particles at all energies. These particles play a major role in the active Sun because they contain a large amount of the energy released during flares. Energetic electrons and ions interact with the solar atmosphere and produce high-energy X-rays and γ-rays. Energetic particles can also escape to the corona and interplanetary medium, produce radio emissions (electrons) and may eventually reach the Earth's orbit. I shall review here the available information on energetic particles provided by X-ray/γ-ray observations, with particular emphasis on the results obtained recently by the mission Reuven Ramaty High-Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager. I shall also illustrate how radio observations contribute to our understanding of the electron acceleration sites and to our knowledge on the origin and propagation of energetic particles in the interplanetary medium. I shall finally briefly review some recent progress in the theories of particle acceleration in solar flares and comment on the still challenging issue of connecting particle acceleration processes to the topology of the complex magnetic structures present in the corona.
Early Response of Prostate Carcinoma Xenografts to Docetaxel Chemotherapy Monitored With Diffusion MRI
Jennings, Dominique; Hatton, B Nicholas; Guo, Jingyu; Galons, Jean-Philippe; Trouard, Theodore P; Raghunand, Natarajan; Marshall, James; Gillies, Robert J
Abstract For many anticancer therapies, it would be desirable to accurately monitor and quantify tumor response early in the treatment regimen. This would allow oncologists to continue effective therapies or discontinue ineffective therapies early in the course of treatment, and hence, reduce morbidity. This is especially true for second-line therapies, which have reduced response rates and increased toxicities. Previous works by others and ourselves have shown that water mobility, measured by diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DW-MRI), increases early in tumors destined to respond to therapies. In the current communication, we further characterize the utility of DW-MRI to predict response of prostate cancer xenografts to docetaxel in SCID mice in a preclinical setting. The current data illustrate that tumor volumes and secreted prostate-specific antigen both respond strongly to docetaxel in a dose-responsive manner, and the apparent diffusion coefficient of water (ADCw) increases significantly by 2 days even at the lowest doses (10 mg/kg). The ADCw data were parsed by histogram analyses. Our results indicate that DW-MRI can be used for early detection of prostate carcinoma xenograft response to docetaxel chemotherapy. PMID:11988845
Toll-like receptor 7 mediates early innate immune responses to malaria.
Baccarella, Alyssa; Fontana, Mary F; Chen, Eunice C; Kim, Charles C
Innate immune recognition of malaria parasites is the critical first step in the development of the host response. At present, Toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9) is thought to play a central role in sensing malaria infection. However, we and others have observed that Tlr9(-/-) mice, in contrast to mice deficient in the downstream adaptor, Myeloid differentiation primary response gene 88 (MYD88), exhibit few deficiencies in immune function during early infection with the malaria parasite Plasmodium chabaudi, implying that another MYD88-dependent receptor also contributes to the antimalarial response. Here we use candidate-based screening to identify TLR7 as a key sensor of early P. chabaudi infection. We show that TLR7 mediates a rapid systemic response to infection through induction of cytokines such as type I interferons (IFN-I), interleukin 12, and gamma interferon. TLR7 is also required for induction of IFN-I by other species and strains of Plasmodium, including an etiological agent of human disease, P. falciparum, suggesting that malaria parasites harbor a common pathogen-associated molecular pattern (PAMP) recognized by TLR7. In contrast to the nonredundant requirement for TLR7 in early immune activation, sensing through both TLR7 and TLR9 was required for proinflammatory cytokine production and immune cell activation during the peak of parasitemia. Our findings indicate that TLR7 plays a central role in early immune activation during malaria infection, whereas TLR7 and TLR9 contribute combinatorially to immune responses as infection progresses.
Diagnostics of electron-heated solar flare models. III - Effects of tapered loop geometry and preheating
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Emslie, A. G.; Li, Peng; Mariska, John T.
A series of hydrodynamic numerical simulations of nonthermal electron-heated solar flare atmospheres and their corresponding soft X-ray Ca XIX emission-line profiles, under the conditions of tapered flare loop geometry and/or a preheated atmosphere, is presented. The degree of tapering is parameterized by the magnetic mirror ratio, while the preheated atmosphere is parameterized by the initial upper chromospheric pressure. In a tapered flare loop, it is found that the upward motion of evaporated material is faster compared with the case where the flare loop is uniform. This is due to the diverging nozzle seen by the upflowing material. In the case where the flare atmosphere is preheated and the flare geometry is uniform, the response of the atmosphere to the electron collisional heating is slow. The upward velocity of the hydrodynamic gas is reduced due not only to the large coronal column depth, but also to the increased inertia of the overlying material. It is concluded that the only possible electron-heated scenario in which the predicted Ca XIX line profiles agree with the BCS observations is when the impulsive flare starts in a preheated dense corona.
Ultraviolet spectrophotometry of flares on ``quiescent'' M and K dwarf exoplanet hosts
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Loyd, R. O. Parke; France, Kevin; Youngblood, Allison
We present an analysis of a sample of flares on ``quiescent'' (i.e. non-flare) M and K stars using temporally resolved UV spectroscopy from the growing body of MUSCLES Treasury Survey data. Specifically, our analysis quantified the response of the far-UV C II, Si III, Si IV, and N V emission lines and the far-UV continuum during the flares. Using these tracers, we examined one representative event on GJ 832. In concordance with flares recorded on the Sun and AD Leo, the MUSCLES flares are well fit by a power law relationship of similar slope in frequency versus energy. Flares can strip atmospheric mass from orbiting planets, adversely affecting their long-term habitability. To gauge the amplitude of this effect, we computed an energy-balance upper-limit on the amount of atmosphere a large flare might remove from an orbiting Earth due purely to elevated EUV flux and found this limit to be modest relative to Earth's atmospheric mass.
Auditory-neurophysiological responses to speech during early childhood: Effects of background noise.
White-Schwoch, Travis; Davies, Evan C; Thompson, Elaine C; Woodruff Carr, Kali; Nicol, Trent; Bradlow, Ann R; Kraus, Nina
Early childhood is a critical period of auditory learning, during which children are constantly mapping sounds to meaning. But this auditory learning rarely occurs in ideal listening conditions-children are forced to listen against a relentless din. This background noise degrades the neural coding of these critical sounds, in turn interfering with auditory learning. Despite the importance of robust and reliable auditory processing during early childhood, little is known about the neurophysiology underlying speech processing in children so young. To better understand the physiological constraints these adverse listening scenarios impose on speech sound coding during early childhood, auditory-neurophysiological responses were elicited to a consonant-vowel syllable in quiet and background noise in a cohort of typically-developing preschoolers (ages 3-5 yr). Overall, responses were degraded in noise: they were smaller, less stable across trials, slower, and there was poorer coding of spectral content and the temporal envelope. These effects were exacerbated in response to the consonant transition relative to the vowel, suggesting that the neural coding of spectrotemporally-dynamic speech features is more tenuous in noise than the coding of static features-even in children this young. Neural coding of speech temporal fine structure, however, was more resilient to the addition of background noise than coding of temporal envelope information. Taken together, these results demonstrate that noise places a neurophysiological constraint on speech processing during early childhood by causing a breakdown in neural processing of speech acoustics. These results may explain why some listeners have inordinate difficulties understanding speech in noise. Speech-elicited auditory-neurophysiological responses offer objective insight into listening skills during early childhood by reflecting the integrity of neural coding in quiet and noise; this paper documents typical response
Viral evasion mechanisms of early antiviral responses involving regulation of ubiquitin pathways.
Rajsbaum, Ricardo; García-Sastre, Adolfo
Early innate and cell-intrinsic responses are essential to protect host cells against pathogens. In turn, viruses have developed sophisticated mechanisms to establish productive infections by counteracting host innate immune responses. Increasing evidence indicates that these antiviral factors may have a dual role by directly inhibiting viral replication as well as by sensing and transmitting signals to induce antiviral cytokines. Recent studies have pointed at new, unappreciated mechanisms of viral evasion of host innate protective responses including manipulating the host ubiquitin (Ub) system. Virus-mediated inhibition of antiviral factors by Ub-dependent degradation is emerging as a crucial mechanism for evading the antiviral response. In addition, recent studies have uncovered new mechanisms by which virus-encoded proteins inhibit Ub and Ub-like (Ubl) modification of host proteins involved in innate immune signaling pathways. Here we discuss recent findings and novel strategies that viruses have developed to counteract these early innate antiviral defenses.
Miklenic, C. H.; Veronig, A. M.; Vrsnak, B.; Barta, M.
We investigate an active region that produced three C-class flares and one M-class flare within 2.5 hr. The morphology and location of the C-flares indicate that these events constitute a set of homologous flares. Radio observations indicate the occurrence of a downward-moving plasmoid during the impulsive phase of the M flare. We use TRACE 1700 A filtergrams and SOHO Michelson Doppler Imager magnetograms to examine the character of the UV brightenings; i.e., we search for re-brightenings of former flare areas both across the series of events and within one and the same event. We find that essentially the same footpoints re-brighten in each C flare. Based on the progression of both the derived magnetic flux change rate and the observed Radio Solar Telescope Network microwave emission, we speculate about a further re-brightening during the decay phase of the M flare as a further member of the series of homologous flares. We conclude that the 'postflare' field is driven to repeated eruption by continuous, shear-increasing, horizontal, photospheric flows, as one end of the involved magnetic arcade is anchored in the penumbra of a large sunspot. The observed motion pattern of the UV kernels indicates that the arcade evolves during the series of events from a both highly sheared and heavily entangled state to a still sheared but more organized state.
Population Response Profiles in Early Visual Cortex Are Biased in Favor of More Valuable Stimuli
Saproo, Sameer
Voluntary and stimulus-driven shifts of attention can modulate the representation of behaviorally relevant stimuli in early areas of visual cortex. In turn, attended items are processed faster and more accurately, facilitating the selection of appropriate behavioral responses. Information processing is also strongly influenced by past experience and recent studies indicate that the learned value of a stimulus can influence relatively late stages of decision making such as the process of selecting a motor response. However, the learned value of a stimulus can also influence the magnitude of cortical responses in early sensory areas such as V1 and S1. These early effects of stimulus value are presumed to improve the quality of sensory representations; however, the nature of these modulations is not clear. They could reflect nonspecific changes in response amplitude associated with changes in general arousal or they could reflect a bias in population responses so that high-value features are represented more robustly. To examine this issue, subjects performed a two-alternative forced choice paradigm with a variable-interval payoff schedule to dynamically manipulate the relative value of two stimuli defined by their orientation (one was rotated clockwise from vertical, the other counterclockwise). Activation levels in visual cortex were monitored using functional MRI and feature-selective voxel tuning functions while subjects performed the behavioral task. The results suggest that value not only modulates the relative amplitude of responses in early areas of human visual cortex, but also sharpens the response profile across the populations of feature-selective neurons that encode the critical stimulus feature (orientation). Moreover, changes in space- or feature-based attention cannot easily explain the results because representations of both the selected and the unselected stimuli underwent a similar feature-selective modulation. This sharpening in the population
Evidence for an Early Origin of Vernalization Responsiveness in Temperate Pooideae Grasses.
McKeown, Meghan; Schubert, Marian; Marcussen, Thomas; Fjellheim, Siri; Preston, Jill C
The ability of plants to match their reproductive output with favorable environmental conditions has major consequences both for lifetime fitness and geographic patterns of diversity. In temperate ecosystems, some plant species have evolved the ability to use winter nonfreezing cold (vernalization) as a cue to ready them for spring flowering. However, it is unknown how important the evolution of vernalization responsiveness has been for the colonization and subsequent diversification of taxa within the northern and southern temperate zones. Grasses of subfamily Pooideae, including several important crops, such as wheat (Triticum aestivum), barley (Hordeum vulgare), and oats (Avena sativa), predominate in the northern temperate zone, and it is hypothesized that their radiation was facilitated by the early evolution of vernalization responsiveness. Predictions of this early origin hypothesis are that a response to vernalization is widespread within the subfamily and that the genetic basis of this trait is conserved. To test these predictions, we determined and reconstructed vernalization responsiveness across Pooideae and compared expression of wheat vernalization gene orthologs VERNALIZATION1 (VRN1) and VRN3 in phylogenetically representative taxa under cold and control conditions. Our results demonstrate that vernalization responsive Pooideae species are widespread, suggesting that this trait evolved early in the lineage and that at least part of the vernalization gene network is conserved throughout the subfamily. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that the evolution of vernalization responsiveness was important for the initial transition of Pooideae out of the tropics and into the temperate zone.
Evidence for an Early Origin of Vernalization Responsiveness in Temperate Pooideae Grasses1[OPEN
McKeown, Meghan; Fjellheim, Siri
The ability of plants to match their reproductive output with favorable environmental conditions has major consequences both for lifetime fitness and geographic patterns of diversity. In temperate ecosystems, some plant species have evolved the ability to use winter nonfreezing cold (vernalization) as a cue to ready them for spring flowering. However, it is unknown how important the evolution of vernalization responsiveness has been for the colonization and subsequent diversification of taxa within the northern and southern temperate zones. Grasses of subfamily Pooideae, including several important crops, such as wheat (Triticum aestivum), barley (Hordeum vulgare), and oats (Avena sativa), predominate in the northern temperate zone, and it is hypothesized that their radiation was facilitated by the early evolution of vernalization responsiveness. Predictions of this early origin hypothesis are that a response to vernalization is widespread within the subfamily and that the genetic basis of this trait is conserved. To test these predictions, we determined and reconstructed vernalization responsiveness across Pooideae and compared expression of wheat vernalization gene orthologs VERNALIZATION1 (VRN1) and VRN3 in phylogenetically representative taxa under cold and control conditions. Our results demonstrate that vernalization responsive Pooideae species are widespread, suggesting that this trait evolved early in the lineage and that at least part of the vernalization gene network is conserved throughout the subfamily. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that the evolution of vernalization responsiveness was important for the initial transition of Pooideae out of the tropics and into the temperate zone. PMID:27474116
Gram-positive pathogenic bacteria induce a common early response in human monocytes
Background We infected freshly isolated human peripheral monocytes with live bacteria of three clinically important gram-positive bacterial species, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumoniae and Listeria monocytogenes and studied the ensuing early transcriptional response using expression microarrays. Thus the observed response was unbiased by signals originating from other helper and effector cells of the host and was not limited to induction by solitary bacterial constituents. Results Activation of monocytes was demonstrated by the upregulation of chemokine rather than interleukin genes except for the prominent expression of interleukin 23, marking it as the early lead cytokine. This activation was accompanied by cytoskeleton rearrangement signals and a general anti-oxidative stress and anti-apoptotic reaction. Remarkably, the expression profiles also provide evidence that monocytes participate in the regulation of angiogenesis and endothelial function in response to these pathogens. Conclusion Regardless of the invasion properties and survival mechanisms of the pathogens used, we found that the early response comprised of a consistent and common response. The common response was hallmarked by the upregulation of interleukin 23, a rather unexpected finding regarding Listeria infection, as this cytokine has been linked primarily to the control of extracellular bacterial dissemination. PMID:21044323
Efficacy of fexofenadine versus desloratadine in suppressing histamine-induced wheal and flare.
Meltzer, Eli O; Gillman, Sherwin A
To date, no published articles exist comparing the H1-receptor antagonist activities of fexofenadine and desloratadine using the histamine-induced skin wheal-and-flare model. The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy of fexofenadine versus desloratadine in suppressing histamine-induced skin flares and wheals in adults and adolescents. This was a two-center, randomized, placebo-controlled, complete-crossover study. Subjects were administered either single-dose fexofenadine HCl, 180 mg; desloratadine, 5 mg; or placebo and their response to skin-prick testing with histamine and diluent was recorded at predetermined time intervals. The primary end point was change in size of histamine-induced summation skin flares. Secondary end points included change in skin wheal summation measurements, onset, duration, maximum percent suppression, and time to maximum suppression of flares and wheals. Fexofenadine suppressed skin flares significantly more than desloratadine from 2 to 6 hours, and wheals from 2 to 4 hours, 6 to 9 hours, and 12 hours posttreatment. In addition, fexofenadine suppressed flares more than placebo at all time points from 2 to 24 hours and wheals more than placebo at all time points from 2 to 12 hours posttreatment. Desloratadine suppressed flares significantly more than placebo from 6 to 10 hours and at 12 and 24 hours but suppressed wheals significantly versus placebo only at 10 hours. Fexofenadine had a faster onset of flare suppression than desloratadine (1 hour versus 5 hours) and an equally rapid onset of wheal suppression. Fexofenadine HCl, 180 mg, was superior to desloratadine, 5 mg, in histamine-induced wheal-and-flare suppression, suggesting increased in vivo H1-receptor antagonist potency of fexofenadine versus desloratadine.
Responsive Parenting: Establishing Early Foundations for Social, Communication, and Independent Problem-Solving Skills
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Landry, Susan H.; Smith, Karen E.; Swank, Paul R.
Mothers whose infants varied in early biological characteristics (born at term, n = 120; born at very low birth weight [VLBW], n = 144) were randomized to a target group (n = 133) or developmental feedback comparison group (n = 131) to determine whether learning responsive behaviors would facilitate infant development. The target condition…
Pre-Service Teacher Disposition Development: Cultural Reciprocity and Responsivity in Early Childhood Special Education Practica
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Van Steenberg, Vicki
This qualitative Case Study explored the integrative process of pre-service teachers' disposition development for cultural reciprocity and responsiveness. Over the course of ten months, pre-service teachers completed two Early Childhood Special Education practica in diverse urban communities. The pre-service teachers were placed in public…
Early Detection Rapid Response Program Targets New Noxious Weed Species in Washington State
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Andreas, Jennifer E.; Halpern, Alison D.; DesCamp, Wendy C.; Miller, Timothy W.
Early detection, rapid response is a critical component of invasive plant management. It can be challenging, however, to detect new invaders before they become established if landowners cannot identify species of concern. In order to increase awareness, eye-catching postcards were developed in Washington State as part of a noxious weed educational…
Designing a Measurement Framework for Response to Intervention in Early Childhood Programs
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
McConnell, Scott R.; Wackerle-Hollman, Alisha K.; Roloff, Tracy A.; Rodriguez, Michael
The overall architecture and major components of a measurement system designed and evaluated to support Response to Intervention (RTI) in the areas of language and literacy in early childhood programs are described. Efficient and reliable measurement is essential for implementing any viable RTI system, and implementing such a system in early…
Unresectable Extraskeletal Myxoid Chondrosarcoma of the Neck: Early Tumor Response to Chemoradiotherapy
Laszewski, Pam; Robinette, Natasha; Saleh, Husain; Raza, Naweed; Sukari, Ammar; Kim, Harold
Extraskeletal myxoid chondrosarcoma (EMC) rarely occurs in the head and neck and is generally managed with primary surgery. To our knowledge, no cases of unresectable EMC of the neck have been reported. We present a case of an unresectable EMC treated with chemotherapy and radiation, and highlight the exceptional early response to therapy. PMID:26848421
Unresectable Extraskeletal Myxoid Chondrosarcoma of the Neck: Early Tumor Response to Chemoradiotherapy.
Zaki, Mark; Laszewski, Pam; Robinette, Natasha; Saleh, Husain; Raza, Naweed; Sukari, Ammar; Kim, Harold
Extraskeletal myxoid chondrosarcoma (EMC) rarely occurs in the head and neck and is generally managed with primary surgery. To our knowledge, no cases of unresectable EMC of the neck have been reported. We present a case of an unresectable EMC treated with chemotherapy and radiation, and highlight the exceptional early response to therapy.
Caregiver Responsiveness during Preschool Supports Cooperation in Kindergarten: Moderation by Children's Early Compliance
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Pratt, Megan E.; Lipscomb, Shannon T.; McClelland, Megan M.
Research Findings: The current study examined how children's parent-reported compliance at age 3 (36 months) moderated the effects of 2 dimensions of directly observed early care and education (ECE) process quality (positivity/responsivity and cognitive stimulation) during the prekindergarten year (54 months) on teacher reports of children's…
Effectiveness of Community-Based Early Intervention Based on Pivotal Response Treatment
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Smith, Isabel M.; Flanagan, Helen E.; Garon, Nancy; Bryson, Susan E.
Preschoolers (n = 118) with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) participated in this prospective effectiveness study of an early intervention program. Treatment entailed parent training and therapist-implemented components, incorporating Pivotal Response Treatment and Positive Behaviour Support. Standardized ability and behavioural measures were…
An interaction between a neuropeptide Y gene polymorphism and early adversity modulates endocrine stress responses.
Witt, Stephanie H; Buchmann, Arlette F; Blomeyer, Dorothea; Nieratschker, Vanessa; Treutlein, Jens; Esser, Günter; Schmidt, Martin H; Bidlingmaier, Martin; Wiedemann, Klaus; Rietschel, Marcella; Laucht, Manfred; Wüst, Stefan; Zimmermann, Ulrich S
Interindividual variability in the regulation of the human stress system accounts for a part of the individual's liability to stress-related diseases. These differences are influenced by environmental and genetic factors. Early childhood adversity is a well-studied environmental factor affecting an individual's stress response which has been shown to be modulated by gene-environment interaction (GxE). Neuropeptide Y (NPY) plays a role in stress regulation and genetic variation in NPY may influence stress responses. In this study, we analyzed the association of a common variant in the NPY gene promoter, rs16147, with cortisol and ACTH responses to acute psychosocial stress in young adults from the Mannheim Study of Children at Risk (MARS), an ongoing epidemiological cohort study following the outcome of early adversity from birth into adulthood. We found evidence of a GxE interaction between rs16147 and early adversity significantly affecting HPA axis responses to acute psychosocial stress. These findings suggest that the neurobiological mechanisms linking early adverse experience and later neuroendocrine stress regulation are modulated by a gene variant whose functional relevance is documented by increasing convergent evidence from in vitro, animal and human studies.
The Confluence of Adverse Early Experience and Puberty on the Cortisol Awakening Response
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Quevedo, Karina; Johnson, Anna E.; Loman, Michelle L.; LaFavor, Theresa L.; Gunnar, Megan
Associations between early deprivation/neglect in the form of institutional care with the cortisol awakening response (CAR) were examined as a function of pubertal status among 12- and 13-year-old postinstitutionalized youth. CARs indexed hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical reactivity. Postinstitutionalized youth were compared to youth adopted…
The effects of different solar flare characteristics on the global thermosphere
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Pawlowski, David J.; Ridley, Aaron J.
Given the ability of global models of the upper atmosphere to utilize high-resolution solar spectra to specify the solar soft X-ray and EUV irradiance, researchers now have the ability to perform detailed theoretical analysis of the response of the upper atmosphere to dynamic solar forcing more completely than ever before. Therefore, it is possible to develop a more quantitative understanding of the response of the thermosphere to solar flares. In this study, the effect of different characteristics of solar flares on the thermosphere is investigated. This is done in a theoretical manner, using synthetic solar irradiance data that is based on observations as input to the global ionosphere-thermosphere model (GITM). Specifically, the neutral response to the total incident energy, peak flare magnitude, background irradiance magnitude, duration of the impulsive phase, and decay time is investigated. It is found that the density response at 400 km altitude is linearly dependent on the total integrated energy above the background level being deposited into the atmosphere, and that the day-side response is strongly dependent on both the total incident energy into the system and the peak flare magnitude. Also, the decay time of the flare is important in determining the time at which the maximum global response occurs. Finally, the duration of the impulsive phase is found to have little effect on the global response of the system.
[Health threats and health system crises. An approach to early warning and response. 2008 SESPAS Report].
Simón Soria, Fernando; Guillén Enríquez, Francisco Javier
The world is changing more and faster than ever before. New diseases are coming to light each year, controlled diseases are reemerging as potential threats, and natural or man-made disasters are increasingly affecting human health. The "International Health Regulations (2005)" reflect the changes in the response of public health to this new situation. Surveillance of specific diseases and predefined control measures have been replaced by surveillance of public health events of international concern and control measures adapted to each situation. The public health events of international interest are characterized by their seriousness, predictability, the risk of international spread and potential for travel or trade restrictions. The development of the European Early Warning and Response System in 1998 and the creation of the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control in 2005 demonstrate political commitment in Europe, with early detection of and response to public health threats. However, timely risk evaluation and response at a national level requires improved data digitalization and accessibility, automatic notification processes, data analysis and dissemination of information, the combination of information from multiple sources and adaptation of public health services. The autonomous regions in Spain are initiating this adaptation process, but interoperability between systems and the development of guidelines for a coordinated response should be steered by the National Interregional Health Council and coordinated by the Ministry of Health. Efficient early warning systems of health threats that allow for a timely response and reduce uncertainty about information would help to minimize the risk of public health crises. The profile of public health threats is nonspecific. Early detection of threats requires access to information from multiple sources and efficient risk assessment. Key factors for improving the response to public health threats are the
Early HLA-B*57-Restricted CD8+ T Lymphocyte Responses Predict HIV-1 Disease Progression
Ibarrondo, F. Javier; Sugar, Catherine A.; Hausner, Mary Ann; Shih, Roger; Ng, Hwee L.; Detels, Roger; Margolick, Joseph B.; Rinaldo, Charles R.; Phair, John; Jacobson, Lisa P.; Yang, Otto O.
Although HLA-B*57 (B57) is associated with slow progression to disease following HIV-1 infection, B57 heterozygotes display a wide spectrum of outcomes, including rapid progression, viremic slow progression, and elite control. Efforts to identify differences between B57-positive (B57+) slow progressors and B57+ rapid progressors have largely focused on cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) phenotypes and specificities during chronic stages of infection. Although CTL responses in the early months of infection are likely to be the most important for the long-term rate of HIV-1 disease progression, few data on the early CTL responses of eventual slow progressors have been available. Utilizing the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study (MACS), we retrospectively examined the early HIV-1-specific CTL responses of 14 B57+ individuals whose time to development of disease ranged from 3.5 years to longer than 25 years after infection. In general, a greater breadth of targeting of epitopes from structural proteins, especially Gag, as well as of highly conserved epitopes from any HIV-1 protein, correlated with longer times until disease. The single elite controller in the cohort was an outlier on several correlations of CTL targeting and time until disease, consistent with reports that elite control is typically not achieved solely by protective HLA-mediated CTLs. When targeting of individual epitopes was analyzed, we found that early CTL responses to the IW9 (ISPRTLNAW) epitope of Gag, while generally subdominant, correlated with delayed progression to disease. This is the first study to identify early CTL responses to IW9 as a correlate of protection in persons with HLA-B*57. PMID:22811521
Wang Haimin; Liu Chang
Solar flare emissions in the chromosphere often appear as elongated ribbons on both sides of the magnetic polarity inversion line (PIL), which has been regarded as evidence of a typical configuration of magnetic reconnection. However, flares having a circular ribbon have rarely been reported, although it is expected in the fan-spine magnetic topology involving reconnection at a three-dimensional (3D) coronal null point. We present five circular ribbon flares with associated surges, using high-resolution and high-cadence H{alpha} blue wing observations obtained from the recently digitized films of Big Bear Solar Observatory. In all the events, a central parasitic magnetic field is encompassed by the opposite polarity, forming a circular PIL traced by filament material. Consequently, a flare kernel at the center is surrounded by a circular flare ribbon. The four homologous jet-related flares on 1991 March 17 and 18 are of particular interest, as (1) the circular ribbons brighten sequentially, with cospatial surges, rather than simultaneously, (2) the central flare kernels show an intriguing 'round-trip' motion and become elongated, and (3) remote brightenings occur at a region with the same magnetic polarity as the central parasitic field and are co-temporal with a separate phase of flare emissions. In another flare on 1991 February 25, the circular flare emission and surge activity occur successively, and the event could be associated with magnetic flux cancellation across the circular PIL. We discuss the implications of these observations combining circular flare ribbons, homologous jets, and remote brightenings for understanding the dynamics of 3D magnetic restructuring.
Motion of 3-6 keV Nonthermal Sources Along the Legs of a Flare Loop
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Sui, Linhui; Holman, Gordon D.; Dennis, Brian R.
Observations of nonthermal X-ray sources me critical to studying electron acceleration and transport in solar flares. Strong thermal emission radiated from the preheated plasma before the flare impulsive phase often makes it difficult to detect low-energy X-ray sources that are produced by relatively low-energy nonthermal electrons. Knowledge of the distribution of these low-energy nonthermal electrons is particularly important in determining the total nonthermal electron energy in solar flares. We report on an 'early impulsive flare' in which impulsive hard X-ray emission was seen early in the flare before the soft X-ray emission had risen significantly, indicating limited plasma pre-heating. Early in the flare, RHESSI < 25 keV images show coronal sources that moved first downward and then upwards along the legs of a flare loop. In particular, the 3-6 keV source appeared as a single coronal source at the start of the flare, and then it involved into two coronal sources moving down along the two legs of the loop. After nearly reaching the two footpoints at the hard X-ray peak, the two sources moved back up to the looptop again. RHESSI images and light curves all indicate that nonthermal emission dominated at energies as low as 3-6 keV. We suggest that the evolution of both the spectral index and the low-energy cutoff of the injected electron distribution could result in the accelerated electrons reaching a lower altitude along the legs of the dense flare loop and hence result in the observed downward and upward motions of the nonthermal sources.
Cell-Type Specific Responses to DNA Replication Stress in Early C. elegans Embryos
Stevens, Holly; Williams, Ashley B.
To better understand how the cellular response to DNA replication stress is regulated during embryonic development, we and others have established the early C. elegans embryo as a model system to study this important problem. As is the case in most eukaryotic cell types, the replication stress response is controlled by the ATR kinase in early worm embryos. In this report we use RNAi to systematically characterize ATR pathway components for roles in promoting cell cycle delay during a replication stress response, and we find that these genetic requirements vary, depending on the source of stress. We also examine how individual cell types within the embryo respond to replication stress, and we find that the strength of the response, as defined by duration of cell cycle delay, varies dramatically within blastomeres of the early embryo. Our studies shed light on how the replication stress response is managed in the context of embryonic development and show that this pathway is subject to developmental regulation. PMID:27727303
Early redox, Src family kinase, and calcium signaling integrate wound responses and tissue regeneration in zebrafish.
Yoo, Sa Kan; Freisinger, Christina M; LeBert, Danny C; Huttenlocher, Anna
Tissue injury can lead to scar formation or tissue regeneration. How regenerative animals sense initial tissue injury and transform wound signals into regenerative growth is an unresolved question. Previously, we found that the Src family kinase (SFK) Lyn functions as a redox sensor in leukocytes that detects H(2)O(2) at wounds in zebrafish larvae. In this paper, using zebrafish larval tail fins as a model, we find that wounding rapidly activated SFK and calcium signaling in epithelia. The immediate SFK and calcium signaling in epithelia was important for late epimorphic regeneration of amputated fins. Wound-induced activation of SFKs in epithelia was dependent on injury-generated H(2)O(2). A SFK member, Fynb, was responsible for fin regeneration. This work provides a new link between early wound responses and late regeneration and suggests that redox, SFK, and calcium signaling are immediate "wound signals" that integrate early wound responses and late epimorphic regeneration.
Effect of Dietary Conjugated Linoleic Acid Supplementation on Early Inflammatory Responses during Cutaneous Wound Healing
Park, Na-Young; Valacchi, Giuseppe; Lim, Yunsook
Inflammatory response is considered the most important period that regulates the entire healing process. Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), a class of linoleic acid positional and geometric isomers, is well known for its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. We hypothesized that dietary CLA supplementation accelerates cutaneous wound healing by regulating antioxidant and anti-inflammatory functions. To investigate wound closure rates and inflammatory responses, we used a full-thickness excisional wound model after 2-week treatments with control, 0.5%, or 1% CLA-supplemented diet. Mice fed dietary CLA supplementation had reduced levels of oxidative stress and inflammatory markers. Moreover, the wound closure rate was improved significantly in mice fed a 1% CLA-supplemented diet during early stage of wound healing (inflammatory stage). We conclude that dietary CLA supplementation enhances the early stage of cutaneous wound healing as a result of modulating oxidative stress and inflammatory responses. PMID:20871865
Steroid therapy in clinically stable but serologically active systemic lupus erythematosus prevents severe disease flares.
Cardiel, Mario H; Almagro, Raúl Menor
Evaluation of: Tseng CE, Buyon JP, Kim M et al. The effect of moderate-dose corticosteroids in preventing severe flares in patients with serologically active, but clinically stable, systemic lupus erythematosus: findings of a prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Arthritis Rheum. 54, 3623-3632 (2006). Systemic lupus erythematosus is an autoimmune disease of unknown origin. Flares and remissions are commonly seen in clinical settings. These clinical flares can have several degrees of severity, some of which require intensive immunosuppressive treatment and/or hospitalization. Clinicians treating these patients have looked at different strategies for prevention, early detection and prompt treatment of a lupus flare. Clinical information and laboratory findings have been proposed to reach these goals and preventive steroid adjustment has even been used in some cases without convincing results. This paper presents results from a controlled, multicenter, double-blind clinical trial evaluating the effectiveness of short-term corticosteroid treatment for preventing severe flares in which elevations of C3a by 50% were accompanied by a 25% increase in the anti-double-stranded DNA titer in patients with inactive or stable/active systemic lupus erythematosus. Results suggest that this strategy can prevent severe lupus flares.
High Energy Flares Of FSRQs: The Connection Of Flaring States With The Accretion Disk Luminosity
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Pacciani, Luigi; Tavecchio, F.; Donnarumma, I.; Stamerra, A.
High-Energy gamma-ray flares (E>10 GeV) of Flat Spectrum Radio Quasars (FSRQ) give us strong constraints on jet-physics, and on the surrounding-mediumWe performed the first study of these flares, examining FERMI-LAT archival-data, and triggering 40 ToO-observations from near-ir to TeV (e.g., for PKS 1441+25), at the occurrence of new flaresWe identified about 270 gamma-ray HE flares, and we already investigated peculiar and short-flares of 3C 454.3, CTA 102 and other 10 HE-flares, showing remarkably hard gamma-ray spectra. We argued that these flares originate at parsec distance from the Supermassive Black-Hole (distant scenario), possibly powered by magnetic-reconnections or turbulence in the flowFor the whole sample of 270 flares, we will show here spectral and temporal propertiesFurthermore, we compared the sub-sample of HE-flares with the whole sample of gamma-ray flares. We will show and discuss that jet luminosities and disks correlate not only on years averaged time-scales, but also during High-Energy gamma-ray flares (time-resolved within this investigation with time-scale of the order of 10 days or less).
Early COPD patients with lung hyperinflation associated with poorer lung function but better bronchodilator responsiveness
Chen, Chunlan; Jian, Wenhua; Gao, Yi; Xie, Yanqing; Song, Yan; Zheng, Jinping
Background It is unknown whether aggressive medication strategies should be used for early COPD with or without lung hyperinflation. We aimed to explore the characteristics and bronchodilator responsiveness of early COPD patients (stages I and II) with/without lung hyperinflation. Methods Four hundred and six patients with COPD who performed both lung volume and bronchodilation tests were retrospectively analyzed. Residual volume to total lung capacity >120% of predicted values indicated lung hyperinflation. The characteristics and bronchodilator responsiveness were compared between the patients with and without lung hyperinflation across all stages of COPD. Results The percentages of patients with lung hyperinflation were 72.7% in the entire cohort, 19.4% in stage I, 68.5% in stage II, 95.3% in stage III, and 100.0% in stage IV. The patients with lung hyperinflation exhibited poorer lung function but better bronchodilator responsiveness of both forced expiratory volume in 1 second and forced vital capacity than those without lung hyperinflation during early COPD (t=2.21–5.70, P=0.000–0.029), especially in stage I, while age, body mass index, smoking status, smoking history, and disease duration were similar between the two subgroups in the same stages. From stages I to IV of subgroups with lung hyperinflation, stage I patients had the best bronchodilator responsiveness. Use of bronchodilator responsiveness of forced vital capacity to detect the presence of lung hyperinflation in COPD patients showed relatively high sensitivities (69.5%–75.3%) and specificities (70.3%–75.7%). Conclusion We demonstrated the novel finding that early COPD patients with lung hyperinflation are associated with poorer lung function but better bronchodilator responsiveness and established a simple method for detecting lung hyperinflation. PMID:27785008
Early changes in emotional processing as a marker of clinical response to SSRI treatment in depression.
Godlewska, B R; Browning, M; Norbury, R; Cowen, P J; Harmer, C J
Antidepressant treatment reduces behavioural and neural markers of negative emotional bias early in treatment and has been proposed as a mechanism of antidepressant drug action. Here, we provide a critical test of this hypothesis by assessing whether neural markers of early emotional processing changes predict later clinical response in depression. Thirty-five unmedicated patients with major depression took the selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitor (SSRI), escitalopram (10 mg), over 6 weeks, and were classified as responders (22 patients) versus non-responders (13 patients), based on at least a 50% reduction in symptoms by the end of treatment. The neural response to fearful and happy emotional facial expressions was assessed before and after 7 days of treatment using functional magnetic resonance imaging. Changes in the neural response to these facial cues after 7 days of escitalopram were compared in patients as a function of later clinical response. A sample of healthy controls was also assessed. At baseline, depressed patients showed greater activation to fear versus happy faces than controls in the insula and dorsal anterior cingulate. Depressed patients who went on to respond to the SSRI had a greater reduction in neural activity to fearful versus happy facial expressions after just 7 days of escitalopram across a network of regions including the anterior cingulate, insula, amygdala and thalamus. Mediation analysis confirmed that the direct effect of neural change on symptom response was not mediated by initial changes in depressive symptoms. These results support the hypothesis that early changes in emotional processing with antidepressant treatment are the basis of later clinical improvement. As such, early correction of negative bias may be a key mechanism of antidepressant drug action and a potentially useful predictor of therapeutic response.
Early changes in emotional processing as a marker of clinical response to SSRI treatment in depression
Godlewska, B R; Browning, M; Norbury, R; Cowen, P J; Harmer, C J
Antidepressant treatment reduces behavioural and neural markers of negative emotional bias early in treatment and has been proposed as a mechanism of antidepressant drug action. Here, we provide a critical test of this hypothesis by assessing whether neural markers of early emotional processing changes predict later clinical response in depression. Thirty-five unmedicated patients with major depression took the selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitor (SSRI), escitalopram (10 mg), over 6 weeks, and were classified as responders (22 patients) versus non-responders (13 patients), based on at least a 50% reduction in symptoms by the end of treatment. The neural response to fearful and happy emotional facial expressions was assessed before and after 7 days of treatment using functional magnetic resonance imaging. Changes in the neural response to these facial cues after 7 days of escitalopram were compared in patients as a function of later clinical response. A sample of healthy controls was also assessed. At baseline, depressed patients showed greater activation to fear versus happy faces than controls in the insula and dorsal anterior cingulate. Depressed patients who went on to respond to the SSRI had a greater reduction in neural activity to fearful versus happy facial expressions after just 7 days of escitalopram across a network of regions including the anterior cingulate, insula, amygdala and thalamus. Mediation analysis confirmed that the direct effect of neural change on symptom response was not mediated by initial changes in depressive symptoms. These results support the hypothesis that early changes in emotional processing with antidepressant treatment are the basis of later clinical improvement. As such, early correction of negative bias may be a key mechanism of antidepressant drug action and a potentially useful predictor of therapeutic response. PMID:27874847
Quantitative airborne assessment of gas flaring combustion efficiency in the Bakken Shale
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Gvakharia, A.; Kort, E. A.; Sweeney, C.; Peischl, J.; Ryerson, T. B.; Brandt, A. R.; Smith, M. L.
The Bakken shale formation in North Dakota is a prolific source of oil and natural gas, producing 361 million barrels of oil in 2014. Drilling activities in the Bakken largely focus on oil, though co-production of natural gas is abundant. Up to 1/3 of the natural gas produced in this play is not captured, but is instead flared. The US EPA considers flare combustion efficiency to be 98%, indicating fugitive emissions of 2% of flared natural gas due to incomplete combustion. Studies of flaring combustion efficiency have been primarily laboratory-based, with minimal real-world analysis in the field. A recent study [Caulton et al., 2014] analyzed ten flares in the Bakken and found extremely high combustion efficiency of over 99.8%.Differences between this field study and the EPA standard have potentially significant implications for methane emissions from flaring, but given the small sample size, further in-field sampling is needed to quantify combustion efficiency in real conditions and assess why it may be different from laboratory studies.Here we will present a study on flaring combustion efficiency of methane and ethane in the Bakken field using continuous in-situ airborne observations of methane, ethane, and carbon dioxide. Over thirty flare plumes were observed during a three-week period in the Bakken formation in May 2014 in a range of wind conditions. For each flare we calculate the destruction efficiency and emission factors for methane and ethane. Preliminary results suggest combustion efficiency comparable with the EPA value of 98%, notably lower than the previous study. In addition, we calculate the corresponding mass flux of methane from incomplete flare combustion for the entire field using gas flare volume information and compare to the total emissions from the field calculated using our flight data and a mass-balance approach. Using the combustion efficiency from our study suggests methane emissions from incomplete combustion during flaring could be
Mechanisms for fast flare reconnection
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Vanhoven, G.; Deeds, D.; Tachi, T.
Normal collisional-resistivity mechanisms of magnetic reconnection have the drawback that they are too slow to explain the fast rise of solar flares. Two methods are examined which are proposed for the speed-up of the magnetic tearing instability: the anomalous enhancement of resistivity by the injection of MHD turbulence and the increase of Coulomb resistivity by radiative cooling. The results are described for nonlinear numerical simulations of these processes which show that the first does not provide the claimed effects, while the second yields impressive rates of reconnection, but low saturated energy outputs.
Current sheets in solar flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Priest, E. R.
Numerical simulations of current sheets in solar flares are described, including new features such as the presence of a shock in Petschek's mechanism and impulsive burst-like reconnection due to secondary tearing and coalescence. The general properties of magnetic reconnection are discussed in connection with the basic requirements of numerical current sheet models. Emphasis is given to the need for realistic criteria for energy balance, the Lundquist number, and line tying in calculations of tearing and reconnection modes. The need for analytical models of current sheet processes to compare with the numerical simulations is also stressed.
Flares and MHD Jets in Protostar
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Hayashi, M.; Shibata, K.; Matsumoto, R.
We present a magnetic reconnection model for hard X-ray emission and flare-like hard X-ray variabilities associated with protostars detected by ASCA. The energy released by protostellar flares is 102 - 105 times larger than solar flares. Moreover, the spectrum is harder. A new ingredient in protostellar flare is the existence of a protostellar disk which can twist the magnetic fields threading the protostellar disk. We carried out magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations of the disk-star interaction. The closed magnetic loops connecting the central star and the disk are twisted by the rotation of the disk. In the presence of resistivity, magnetic reconnection takes place in the current sheet formed inside the expanding loops. Hot, outgoing plasmoid and post flare loops are formed as a result of the reconnection. Numerical results are consistent with the observed plasma temperature (107 - 108K), the length of the flaring loop (1011-1012cm), the total energy of X-ray flares (~1035-36erg). Furthermore, along the opening magnetic loops, hot jet is ejected in bipolar directions with speed 200-400 km/s. The speed and mass flow rate of the jet is consistent with those of optical jets. Our model can explain both the X-ray flare-like variability and mass outflow in star forming region.
Sun Releases X-class Solar Flare
This movie shows the July 6, 2012 X1.1 flare in the 171 Angstrom wavelength as captured by NASAâs Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). AR1515 was the source for this flare. AR1515 has been active ...
Increasingly active sunspot 1121 has unleashed one of the brightest x-ray solar flares in years, an M5.4-class eruption at 15:36 UT on Nov. 6th. This close-up video shows the detail of the flare an...
... dientes Video: Getting an X-ray What's an Asthma Flare-Up? KidsHealth > For Kids > What's an Asthma Flare-Up? Print A A A What's in ... of the lungs through airways . But people with asthma have a problem with those airways, which are ...
Coronal mass ejections and associated X-ray flare durations
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Kahler, S. W.; Sheeley, N. R., Jr.; Liggett, M.
It is found that 22 percent of a sample of M1 or greater impulsive soft X-ray flares were associated with coronal mass ejections (CMEs) observed in the Solwind coronagraph. These flares were more energetic than similar impulsive flares without CMEs, and the associated CMEs were narrow (5-40 deg) in angular width. A survey of all CMEs associated with M1 or greater X-ray flares reveals a good correlation between flare duration CME angular width. The H-alpha characteristics of impulsive, CME-associated flares suggest that they are not the dynamic or eruptive flares presumed to be associated with CMEs, but rather, are confined flares. The H-alpha flare locations are neither centered under the CME legs. The disparity in size scales between the CMEs and their associated flares leaves the basis of the correlation between CME width and X-ray flare duration unresolved.
Immune adjuvants in early life: targeting the innate immune system to overcome impaired adaptive response.
de Brito, Cyro Alves; Goldoni, Adriana Letícia; Sato, Maria Notomi
The neonatal phase is a transitory period characterized by an absence of memory cells, favoring a slow adaptive response prone to tolerance effects and the development of Th2-type responses. However, when appropriately stimulated, neonates may achieve an immune response comparable with adult counterparts. One strategy to stimulate the immunological response of neonates or children in early infancy has been to explore natural or synthetic ligands of cell receptors to stimulate innate immunity. The use of adjuvants for activating different cell receptors may be the key to enhancing neonatal adaptive immunity. This review highlights recent advances in the emerging field of molecular adjuvants of innate immune response and their implications for the development of immunotherapies, with particular focus on the neonatal period.
The development of X-ray flare onsets near active region filaments
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Kahler, S. W.
Skylab X-ray images of the early phases of six active region transient brightenings were compared with simultaneous H-alpha images to study the spatial relationships between filaments and the X-ray brightenings. When the X-ray loops were roughly perpendicular to the axes of the H-alpha filaments, the filaments did not disappear. X-ray loops which appeared nearly parallel to the filaments were generally associated with the disappearances of those filaments. It is suggested that the perpendicular loops correspond to the class I X-ray flares of Pallavicinic et al. (1977) while the parallel loops are the early phases of their class II flares characterized in the decay phases by arcades of large loops with low energy densities. Both kinds of X-ray flares can be associated with impulsive phases.
Girls' Challenging Social Experiences in Early Adolescence Predict Neural Response to Rewards and Depressive Symptoms1
Casement, Melynda D.; Guyer, Amanda E.; Hipwell, Alison; McAloon, Rose L.; Hoffmann, Amy M.; Keenan, Kathryn; Forbes, Erika E.
Developmental models of psychopathology posit that exposure to social stressors may confer risk for depression in adolescent girls by disrupting neural reward circuitry. The current study tested this hypothesis by examining the relationship between early adolescent social stressors and later neural reward processing and depressive symptoms. Participants were 120 girls from an ongoing longitudinal study of precursors to depression across adolescent development. Low parental warmth, peer victimization, and depressive symptoms were assessed when the girls were 11 and 12 years old, and participants completed a monetary reward guessing fMRI task and assessment of depressive symptoms at age 16. Results indicate that low parental warmth was associated with increased response to potential rewards in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), striatum, and amygdala, whereas peer victimization was associated with decreased response to potential rewards in the mPFC. Furthermore, concurrent depressive symptoms were associated with increased reward anticipation response in mPFC and striatal regions that were also associated with early adolescent psychosocial stressors, with mPFC and striatal response mediating the association between social stressors and depressive symptoms. These findings are consistent with developmental models that emphasize the adverse impact of early psychosocial stressors on neural reward processing and risk for depression in adolescence. PMID:24397999
Apparent Motion Suppresses Responses in Early Visual Cortex: A Population Code Model
Van Humbeeck, Nathalie; Putzeys, Tom; Wagemans, Johan
Two stimuli alternately presented at different locations can evoke a percept of a stimulus continuously moving between the two locations. The neural mechanism underlying this apparent motion (AM) is thought to be increased activation of primary visual cortex (V1) neurons tuned to locations along the AM path, although evidence remains inconclusive. AM masking, which refers to the reduced detectability of stimuli along the AM path, has been taken as evidence for AM-related V1 activation. AM-induced neural responses are thought to interfere with responses to physical stimuli along the path and as such impair the perception of these stimuli. However, AM masking can also be explained by predictive coding models, predicting that responses to stimuli presented on the AM path are suppressed when they match the spatio-temporal prediction of a stimulus moving along the path. In the present study, we find that AM has a distinct effect on the detection of target gratings, limiting the maximum performance at high contrast levels. This masking is strongest when the target orientation is identical to the orientation of the inducers. We developed a V1-like population code model of early visual processing, based on a standard contrast normalization model. We find that AM-related activation in early visual cortex is too small to either cause masking or to be perceived as motion. Our model instead predicts strong suppression of early sensory responses during AM, consistent with the theoretical framework of predictive coding. PMID:27783622
Quantitative Proteomic Profiling of Early and Late Responses to Salicylic Acid in Cucumber Leaves
Li, Liang; Shang, Qing-Mao
Salicylic acid (SA) is an important phytohormone that plays vital regulatory roles in plant growth, development, and stress responses. However, studies on the molecular mechanism of SA, especially during the early SA responses, are lagging behind. In this study, we initiated a comprehensive isobaric tag for relative and absolute quantitation (iTRAQ)-based proteomic analysis to explore the early and late SA-responsive proteins in leaves of cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) seedlings. Upon SA application through the roots, endogenous SA accumulated in cucumber leaves. By assaying the changes in marker gene expression and photosynthetic rate, we collected samples at 12 h and 72 h post treatment (hpt) to profile the early and late SA responsiveness, respectively. The iTRAQ assay followed by tandem mass spectrometry revealed 135 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) at 12 hpt and 301 DEPs at 72 hpt. The functional categories for these SA-responsive proteins included in a variety of biochemical processes, including photosynthesis, redox homeostasis, carbohydrate and energy metabolism, lipid metabolism, transport, protein folding and modification, proteolysis, cell wall organization, and the secondary phenylpropanoid pathway. Conclusively, based on the abundant changes of these DEPs, together with their putative functions, we proposed a possible SA-responsive protein network. It appears that SA could elicit reactive oxygen species (ROS) production via enhancing the photosynthetic electron transferring, and then confer some growth-promoting and stress-priming effects on cells during the late phase, including enhanced photosynthesis and ROS scavenging, altered carbon metabolic flux for the biosynthesis of amino acids and nucleotides, and cell wall reorganization. Overall, the present iTRAQ assay provides higher proteome coverage and deepened our understanding of the molecular basis of SA-responses. PMID:27551830
Incomplete immune response to coxsackie B viruses associates with early autoimmunity against insulin
Ashton, Michelle P.; Eugster, Anne; Walther, Denise; Daehling, Natalie; Riethausen, Stephanie; Kuehn, Denise; Klingel, Karin; Beyerlein, Andreas; Zillmer, Stephanie; Ziegler, Anette-Gabriele; Bonifacio, Ezio
Viral infections are associated with autoimmunity in type 1 diabetes. Here, we asked whether this association could be explained by variations in host immune response to a putative type 1 etiological factor, namely coxsackie B viruses (CVB). Heterogeneous antibody responses were observed against CVB capsid proteins. Heterogeneity was largely defined by different binding to VP1 or VP2. Antibody responses that were anti-VP2 competent but anti-VP1 deficient were unable to neutralize CVB, and were characteristic of children who developed early insulin-targeting autoimmunity, suggesting an impaired ability to clear CVB in early childhood. In contrast, children who developed a GAD-targeting autoimmunity had robust VP1 and VP2 antibody responses to CVB. We further found that 20% of memory CD4+ T cells responding to the GAD65247-266 peptide share identical T cell receptors to T cells responding to the CVB4 p2C30-51 peptide, thereby providing direct evidence for the potential of molecular mimicry as a mechanism for GAD autoimmunity. Here, we highlight functional immune response differences between children who develop insulin-targeting and GAD-targeting autoimmunity, and suggest that children who lose B cell tolerance to insulin within the first years of life have a paradoxical impaired ability to mount humoral immune responses to coxsackie viruses. PMID:27604323
Early immune responses and development of pathogenesis of avian infectious bronchitis viruses with different virulence profiles
Mores, Marcos Antônio Zanella; Trevisol, Iara Maria; Coldebella, Arlei; Montassier, Hélio José; Brentano, Liana
Avian infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) primarily replicates in epithelial cells of the upper respiratory tract of chickens, inducing both morphological and immune modulatory changes. However, the association between the local immune responses induced by IBV and the mechanisms of pathogenesis has not yet been completely elucidated. This study compared the expression profile of genes related to immune responses in tracheal samples after challenge with two Brazilian field isolates (A and B) of IBV from the same genotype, associating these responses with viral replication and with pathological changes in trachea and kidney. We detected a suppressive effect on the early activation of TLR7 pathway, followed by lower expression levels of inflammatory related genes induced by challenge with the IBV B isolate when compared to the challenge with to the IBV A isolate. Cell-mediated immune (CMI) related genes presented also lower levels of expression in tracheal samples from birds challenged with B isolate at 1dpi. Increased viral load and a higher percentage of birds with relevant lesions were observed in both tracheal and renal samples from chickens exposed to challenge with IBV B isolate. This differential pattern of early immune responses developed after challenge with IBV B isolate, related to the downregulation of TLR7, leading to insufficient pro-inflammatory response and lower CMI responses, seem to have an association with a most severe renal lesion and an enhanced capability of replication of this isolate in chicken. PMID:28199419
Early response mechanisms of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) to phosphorus deficiency
Byrne, Stephen L.; Foito, Alexandre; Hedley, Pete E.; Morris, Jenny A.; Stewart, Derek; Barth, Susanne
Background and Aims Improving phosphorus (P) nutrient efficiency in Lolium perenne (perennial ryegrass) is likely to result in considerable economic and ecological benefits. To date, research into the molecular and biochemical response of perennial ryegrass to P deficiency has been limited, particularly in relation to the early response mechanisms. This study aimed to identify molecular mechanisms activated in response to the initial stages of P deficiency. Methods A barley microarray was successfully used to study gene expression in perennial ryegrass and this was complemented with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry metabolic profiling to obtain an overview of the plant response to early stages of P deficiency. Key Results After 24 h of P deficiency, internal phosphate concentrations were reduced and significant alterations were detected in the metabolome and transcriptome of two perennial ryegrass genotypes. Results indicated a replacement of phospholipids with sulfolipids and the utilization of glycolytic bypasses in response to P deficiency in perennial ryegrass. Conclusions The transcriptome and metabolome of perennial ryegrass undergo changes in response to reductions in P supply after 24 h. PMID:21148585
Implementation of an alert and response system in Haiti during the early stage of the response to the cholera epidemic.
Santa-Olalla, Patricia; Gayer, Michelle; Magloire, Roc; Barrais, Robert; Valenciano, Marta; Aramburu, Carmen; Poncelet, Jean Luc; Gustavo Alonso, Juan Carlos; Van Alphen, Dana; Heuschen, Florence; Andraghetti, Roberta; Lee, Robert; Drury, Patrick; Aldighieri, Sylvain
The start of the cholera epidemic in Haiti quickly highlighted the necessity of the implementation of an Alert and Response (A&R) System to complement the existing national surveillance system. The national system had been able to detect and confirm the outbreak etiology but required external support to monitor the spread of cholera and coordinate response, because much of the information produced was insufficiently timely for real-time monitoring and directing of a rapid, targeted response. The A&R System was designed by the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization in collaboration with the Haiti Ministry of Health, and it was based on a network of partners, including any institution, structure, or individual that could identify, verify, and respond to alerts. The defined objectives were to (1) save lives through early detection and treatment of cases and (2) control the spread through early intervention at the community level. The operational structure could be broken down into three principle categories: (1) alert (early warning), (2) verification and assessment of the information, and (3) efficient and timely response in coordination with partners to avoid duplication. Information generated by the A&R System was analyzed and interpreted, and the qualitative information was critical in qualifying the epidemic and defining vulnerable areas, particularly because the national surveillance system reported incomplete data for more than one department. The A&R System detected a number of alerts unrelated to cholera and facilitated rapid access to that information. The sensitivity of the system and its ability to react quickly was shown in May of 2011, when an abnormal increase in alerts coming from several communes in the Sud-Est Department in epidemiological weeks (EWs) 17 and 18 were noted and disseminated network-wide and response activities were implemented. The national cholera surveillance system did not register the increase until EWs 21 and
Implementation of an Alert and Response System in Haiti during the Early Stage of the Response to the Cholera Epidemic
Santa-Olalla, Patricia; Gayer, Michelle; Magloire, Roc; Barrais, Robert; Valenciano, Marta; Aramburu, Carmen; Poncelet, Jean Luc; Gustavo Alonso, Juan Carlos; Van Alphen, Dana; Heuschen, Florence; Andraghetti, Roberta; Lee, Robert; Drury, Patrick; Aldighieri, Sylvain
The start of the cholera epidemic in Haiti quickly highlighted the necessity of the implementation of an Alert and Response (A&R) System to complement the existing national surveillance system. The national system had been able to detect and confirm the outbreak etiology but required external support to monitor the spread of cholera and coordinate response, because much of the information produced was insufficiently timely for real-time monitoring and directing of a rapid, targeted response. The A&R System was designed by the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization in collaboration with the Haiti Ministry of Health, and it was based on a network of partners, including any institution, structure, or individual that could identify, verify, and respond to alerts. The defined objectives were to (1) save lives through early detection and treatment of cases and (2) control the spread through early intervention at the community level. The operational structure could be broken down into three principle categories: (1) alert (early warning), (2) verification and assessment of the information, and (3) efficient and timely response in coordination with partners to avoid duplication. Information generated by the A&R System was analyzed and interpreted, and the qualitative information was critical in qualifying the epidemic and defining vulnerable areas, particularly because the national surveillance system reported incomplete data for more than one department. The A&R System detected a number of alerts unrelated to cholera and facilitated rapid access to that information. The sensitivity of the system and its ability to react quickly was shown in May of 2011, when an abnormal increase in alerts coming from several communes in the Sud-Est Department in epidemiological weeks (EWs) 17 and 18 were noted and disseminated network-wide and response activities were implemented. The national cholera surveillance system did not register the increase until EWs 21 and
Over-and-Out Coronal Mass Ejections: Blowouts of Magnetic Arches by Ejective Flares in One Foot
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Moore, Ronald L.; Sterling, Alphonse C.
Streamer puffs from compact ejective flares in the foot of an outer loop of the magnetic arcade under a streamer were recently identified as a new variety of coronal mass ejection (CME) (Bemporad, Sterling, Moore, & Poletto 2006, ApJ Letters, in press). In the reported examples, the compact flares produced only weak to moderate soft X-ray bursts having peak intensities no stronger than GOES class C3. Here, we present two examples of this type of CME in which the compact flare in the flank of the steamer base is much stronger (one M-class, the other X-class in GOES X-rays) and the resulting streamer puff is wider and brighter than in the discovery examples. Coronal dimming observed in SOHOBIT Fe XII images in the launching of each of these two CMEs M e r supports the view that these CMEs are produced by a high loop of the steamer arcade being blown out by magnetoplasma ejecta exploding up the leg of the loop from the flare. In addition, we present evidence that this same type of CME occurs on larger scales than in the above examples. We examine a sequence of flare eruptions seated on the north side of AR 8210 as it rotated across the southern hemisphere in late April and early May 1998. Each flare occurs in synchrony with the launching of a large CME centered on the equator. Coronal dimming in EIT Fe XII images shows the trans-equatorial footprints of these CMEs extending north from the flare site. The set of flare-with-CME events includes the trans-equatorial loop eruptions reported by Khan & Hudson (1998, GRL, 27, 1083). Our observations indicate that these CMEs were not driven by the self-eruption of the transequatorial loops, but that these loops were part of a trans-equatorial magnetic arch that was blown open by ejecta from the flares on the north side of AR 8210. Thus, a relatively compact ejective flare can be the driver of a CME that is much larger in lateral extent than the flare and is laterally far offset from the flare. It has previously been thought
Innate immune gene expression differentiates the early avian intestinal response between Salmonella and Campylobacter.
Shaughnessy, Ronan G; Meade, Kieran G; Cahalane, Sarah; Allan, Brenda; Reiman, Carla; Callanan, John J; O'Farrelly, Cliona
Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium and Campylobacter jejuni are major human pathogens, yet colonise chickens without causing pathology. The aim of this study was to compare intestinal innate immune responses to both bacterial species, in a 4-week-old broiler chicken model. Challenged and control birds were sacrificed and tissue samples taken for histopathology and RNA extraction. No significant clinical or pathological changes were observed in response to infection with either bacterial species. Expression of selected genes involved in pathogen detection and the innate immune response were profiled in caecal tissues by quantitative real-time PCR. TLR4 and TLR21 gene expression was transiently increased in response to both bacterial species (P<0.05). Significant increases in TLR5 and TLR15 gene expression were detected in response to S. Typhimurium but not to C. jejuni. Transient increases of proinflammatory cytokine (IL6 and IFNG) and chemokine (IL8 and K60) genes increased as early as 6h in response to S. Typhimurium. Minimal cytokine gene expression was detected in response to C. jejuni after 20h. IL8 gene expression however, was significantly increased by 24-fold (P<0.01). The differential expression profiles of innate immune genes in both infection models shed light on the tailored responses of the host immune system to specific microbes. It is further evidence that innate regulation of these responses is an important prerequisite to preventing development of disease.
Immune response profiling in early rheumatoid arthritis: discovery of a novel interaction of treatment response with viral immunity
Introduction It remains challenging to predict the outcomes of therapy in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The objective of this study was to identify immune response signatures that correlate with clinical treatment outcomes in patients with RA. Methods A cohort of 71 consecutive patients with early RA starting treatment with disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) was recruited. Disease activity at baseline and after 21 to 24 weeks of follow-up was measured using the Disease Activity Score in 28 joints (DAS28). Immune response profiling was performed by analyzing multi-cytokine production from peripheral blood cells following incubation with a panel of stimuli, including a mixture of human cytomegalovirus (CMV) and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) lysates. Profiles identified via principal components analysis (PCA) for each stimulus were then correlated with the ΔDAS28 from baseline to follow-up. A clinically meaningful improvement in the DAS28 was defined as a decrease of ≥1.2. Results A profile of T-cell cytokines (IL-13, IL-4, IL-5, IL-2, IL-12, and IFN-γ) produced in response to CMV/EBV was found to correlate with the ΔDAS28 from baseline to follow-up. At baseline, a higher magnitude of the CMV/EBV immune response profile predicted inadequate DAS28 improvement (mean PCA-1 scores: 65.6 versus 50.2; P = 0.029). The baseline CMV/EBV response was particularly driven by IFN-γ (P = 0.039) and IL-4 (P = 0.027). Among patients who attained clinically meaningful DAS28 improvement, the CMV/EBV PCA-1 score increased from baseline to follow-up (mean +11.6, SD 25.5), whereas among patients who responded inadequately to DMARD therapy, the CMV/EBV PCA-1 score decreased (mean -12.8, SD 25.4; P = 0.002). Irrespective of the ΔDAS28, methotrexate use was associated with up-regulation of the CMV/EBV response. The CMV/EBV profile was associated with positive CMV IgG (P <0.001), but not EBV IgG (P = 0.32), suggesting this response was related to
High-Energy Aspects of Solar Flares: Observations and Models
Liu, Wei; Guo, Fan
The paper begins by describing the structure of the Sun, with emphasis on the corona. The Sun is a unique plasma laboratory, which can be probed by Sun-grazing comets, and is the driver of space weather. Energization and particle acceleration mechanisms in solar flares is presented; magnetic reconnection is key is understanding stochastic acceleration mechanisms. Then coupling between kinetic and fluid aspects is taken up; the next step is feedback of atmospheric response to the acceleration process – rapid quenching of acceleration. Future challenges include applications of stochastic acceleration to solar energetic particles (SEPs), Fermi γ-rays observations, fast-mode magnetosonic wave trains in a funnel-shaped wave guide associated with flare pulsations, and the new SMEX mission IRIS (Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph),
Cortisol Stress Response Variability in Early Adolescence: Attachment, Affect and Sex.
Cameron, Catherine Ann; McKay, Stacey; Susman, Elizabeth J; Wynne-Edwards, Katherine; Wright, Joan M; Weinberg, Joanne
Attachment, affect, and sex shape responsivity to psychosocial stress. Concurrent social contexts influence cortisol secretion, a stress hormone and biological marker of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity. Patterns of attachment, emotion status, and sex were hypothesized to relate to bifurcated, that is, accentuated and attenuated, cortisol reactivity. The theoretical framework for this study posits that multiple individual differences mediate a cortisol stress response. The effects of two psychosocial stress interventions, a modified Trier Social Stress Test for Teens and the Frustration Social Stressor for Adolescents were developed and investigated with early adolescents. Both of these protocols induced a significant stress reaction and evoked predicted bifurcation in cortisol responses; an increase or decrease from baseline to reactivity. In Study I, 120 predominantly middle-class, Euro-Canadian early adolescents with a mean age of 13.43 years were studied. The girls' attenuated cortisol reactivity to the public performance stressor related significantly to their self-reported lower maternal-attachment and higher trait-anger. In Study II, a community sample of 146 predominantly Euro-Canadian middle-class youth, with an average age of 14.5 years participated. Their self-reports of higher trait-anger and trait-anxiety, and lower parental attachment by both sexes related differentially to accentuated and attenuated cortisol reactivity to the frustration stressor. Thus, attachment, affect, sex, and the stressor contextual factors were associated with the adrenal-cortical responses of these adolescents through complex interactions. Further studies of individual differences in physiological responses to stress are called for in order to clarify the identities of concurrent protective and risk factors in the psychosocial stress and physiological stress responses of early adolescents.
Differential Host Response, Rather Than Early Viral Replication Efficiency, Correlates with Pathogenicity Caused by Influenza Viruses
Askovich, Peter S.; Sanders, Catherine J.; Rosenberger, Carrie M.; Diercks, Alan H.; Dash, Pradyot; Navarro, Garnet; Vogel, Peter; Doherty, Peter C.; Thomas, Paul G.; Aderem, Alan
Influenza viruses exhibit large, strain-dependent differences in pathogenicity in mammalian hosts. Although the characteristics of severe disease, including uncontrolled viral replication, infection of the lower airway, and highly inflammatory cytokine responses have been extensively documented, the specific virulence mechanisms that distinguish highly pathogenic strains remain elusive. In this study, we focused on the early events in influenza infection, measuring the growth rate of three strains of varying pathogenicity in the mouse airway epithelium and simultaneously examining the global host transcriptional response over the first 24 hours. Although all strains replicated equally rapidly over the first viral life-cycle, their growth rates in both lung and tracheal tissue strongly diverged at later times, resulting in nearly 10-fold differences in viral load by 24 hours following infection. We identified separate networks of genes in both the lung and tracheal tissues whose rapid up-regulation at early time points by specific strains correlated with a reduced viral replication rate of those strains. The set of early-induced genes in the lung that led to viral growth restriction is enriched for both NF-κB binding site motifs and members of the TREM1 and IL-17 signaling pathways, suggesting that rapid, NF-κB –mediated activation of these pathways may contribute to control of viral replication. Because influenza infection extending into the lung generally results in severe disease, early activation of these pathways may be one factor distinguishing high- and low-pathogenicity strains. PMID:24073225
Bcl-2 Inhibits the Innate Immune Response during Early Pathogenesis of Murine Congenital Muscular Dystrophy
Jeudy, Sheila; Wardrop, Katherine E.; Alessi, Amy; Dominov, Janice A.
Laminin α2 (LAMA2)-deficient congenital muscular dystrophy is a severe, early-onset disease caused by abnormal levels of laminin 211 in the basal lamina leading to muscle weakness, transient inflammation, muscle degeneration and impaired mobility. In a Lama2-deficient mouse model for this disease, animal survival is improved by muscle-specific expression of the apoptosis inhibitor Bcl-2, conferred by a MyoD-hBcl-2 transgene. Here we investigated early disease stages in this model to determine initial pathological events and effects of Bcl-2 on their progression. Using quantitative immunohistological and mRNA analyses we show that inflammation occurs very early in Lama2-deficient muscle, some aspects of which are reduced or delayed by the MyoD-hBcl-2 transgene. mRNAs for innate immune response regulators, including multiple Toll-like receptors (TLRs) and the inflammasome component NLRP3, are elevated in diseased muscle compared with age-matched controls expressing Lama2. MyoD-hBcl-2 inhibits induction of TLR4, TLR6, TLR7, TLR8 and TLR9 in Lama2-deficient muscle compared with non-transgenic controls, and leads to reduced infiltration of eosinophils, which are key death effector cells. This congenital disease model provides a new paradigm for investigating cell death mechanisms during early stages of pathogenesis, demonstrating that interactions exist between Bcl-2, a multifunctional regulator of cell survival, and the innate immune response. PMID:21850221
Heating and Cooling of Flare Loops in a C5.7 Two-ribbon Flare
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Pearce, Sarah; Qiu, Jiong
Heating and cooling of flare plasmas can be studied using models constrained by observations. In this work, we analyze and model thermal evolution of a C5.7 two-ribbon flare that occurred on December 26, 2011. The flare was observed by AIA. Two hundred flare loops are identified, which formed sequentially during one hour. Light curves of these flare loops in multiple EUV bands are analyzed to derive the duration and timing of flare emission in each bandpass. These timescales usually reflect cooling of flare plasmas from 10~MK to successively lower temperatures. We then use a zero-dimensional enthalpy-based thermal evolution of loops (EBTEL) model to study flare heating and cooling. Several variations on the EBTEL model are assessed. The first model uses an impulsive heating function inferred from the rapid rise of the foot-point UV emission. Synthetic emission from this model evolves and decays more quickly than the observations, as many models do. Two other variations on the model are analyzed, in an attempt to counter this. In one variation the heating function is a combination of an impulsive pulse followed by an extended tail (i.e., continuous heating). The other model uses reduced thermal conduction to slow the flares evolution. These models are compared with one another and the observations, to evaluate effects of different mechanisms governing the thermal evolution of flare plasmas.
In vivo chemical exchange saturation transfer imaging allows early detection of a therapeutic response in glioblastoma.
Sagiyama, Koji; Mashimo, Tomoyuki; Togao, Osamu; Vemireddy, Vamsidhara; Hatanpaa, Kimmo J; Maher, Elizabeth A; Mickey, Bruce E; Pan, Edward; Sherry, A Dean; Bachoo, Robert M; Takahashi, Masaya
Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), which account for more than 50% of all gliomas, is among the deadliest of all human cancers. Given the dismal prognosis of GBM, it would be advantageous to identify early biomarkers of a response to therapy to avoid continuing ineffective treatments and to initiate other therapeutic strategies. The present in vivo longitudinal study in an orthotopic mouse model demonstrates quantitative assessment of early treatment response during short-term chemotherapy with temozolomide (TMZ) by amide proton transfer (APT) imaging. In a GBM line, only one course of TMZ (3 d exposure and 4 d rest) at a dose of 80 mg/kg resulted in substantial reduction in APT signal compared with untreated control animals, in which the APT signal continued to increase. Although there were no detectable differences in tumor volume, cell density, or apoptosis rate between groups, levels of Ki67 (index of cell proliferation) were substantially reduced in treated tumors. In another TMZ-resistant GBM line, the APT signal and levels of Ki67 increased despite the same course of TMZ treatment. As metabolite changes are known to occur early in the time course of chemotherapy and precede morphologic changes, these results suggest that the APT signal in glioma may be a useful functional biomarker of treatment response or degree of tumor progression. Thus, APT imaging may serve as a sensitive biomarker of early treatment response and could potentially replace invasive biopsies to provide a definitive diagnosis. This would have a major impact on the clinical management of patients with glioma.
The effects of early weaning on innate immune responses of Holstein calves
Technology Transfer Automated Retrieval System (TEKTRAN)
The objectives of this study were to compare innate immune responses of calves weaned early (EW; n = 23; weaned at 23.7 ± 2.3 d of age) to conventionally-weaned calves (CW; n = 22; weaned at 44.7 ± 2.3 d of age). All calves were fed 3.8 L of colostrum within 12 h of birth and were subsequently fed m...
Early Student Support for a Process Study of Oceanic Responses to Typhoons
responses to tropical cyclone forcing are surface waves, wind -driven currents, shear and turbulence, and inertial currents. Quantifying the effect...uncertainties in air–sea flux parameterizations in extreme wind regimes. A graduate student, Andy Hsu, is supported by the ONR Early Student Support...on the estimates of surface wind stress and drag coefficients under tropical cyclones in the western Pacific and Atlantic oceans using direct
Early developmental gene regulation in Strongylocentrotus purpuratus embryos in response to elevated CO₂ seawater conditions.
Hammond, LaTisha M; Hofmann, Gretchen E
Ocean acidification, or the increased uptake of CO(2) by the ocean due to elevated atmospheric CO(2) concentrations, may variably impact marine early life history stages, as they may be especially susceptible to changes in ocean chemistry. Investigating the regulatory mechanisms of early development in an environmental context, or ecological development, will contribute to increased understanding of potential organismal responses to such rapid, large-scale environmental changes. We examined transcript-level responses to elevated seawater CO(2) during gastrulation and the initiation of spiculogenesis, two crucial developmental processes in the purple sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus purpuratus. Embryos were reared at the current, accepted oceanic CO(2) concentration of 380 microatmospheres (μatm), and at the elevated levels of 1000 and 1350 μatm, simulating predictions for oceans and upwelling regions, respectively. The seven genes of interest comprised a subset of pathways in the primary mesenchyme cell gene regulatory network (PMC GRN) shown to be necessary for the regulation and execution of gastrulation and spiculogenesis. Of the seven genes, qPCR analysis indicated that elevated CO(2) concentrations only had a significant but subtle effect on two genes, one important for early embryo patterning, Wnt8, and the other an integral component in spiculogenesis and biomineralization, SM30b. Protein levels of another spicule matrix component, SM50, demonstrated significant variable responses to elevated CO(2). These data link the regulation of crucial early developmental processes with the environment that these embryos would be developing within, situating the study of organismal responses to ocean acidification in a developmental context.
The Early Humoral Immune Response to Bacillus anthracis Toxins in Patients Infected with Cutaneous Anthrax
RESEARCH ARTICLE The early humoral immune response to Bacillus anthracis toxins in patients infected with cutaneous anthrax Karen E. Brenneman 1•2...Editor: Patrick Brennan Keywords anthrax; lethal factor; edema factor; protective antigen. Introduction Abstract Bacillus anthracis, the...Anthrax is a zoonotic disease caused by Bacillus anthracis, a Gram-positive spore-forming microorganism whose mani- festations in humans depend on the
Depressive symptoms and immune response to meningococcal conjugate vaccine in early adolescence.
O'Connor, Thomas G; Moynihan, Jan A; Wyman, Peter A; Carnahan, Jennifer; Lofthus, Gerry; Quataert, Sally A; Bowman, Melissa; Caserta, Mary T
Research findings in psychoneuroimmunology document reliable, bidirectional linkages among psychological processes, the nervous system, and the immune system. However, available data are based almost entirely on animal and adult human studies; the application to children and adolescents is uncertain. We capitalized on the experimental leverage provided by a routine vaccination to examine the link between mood symptoms and the immune response to a vaccine challenge in early adolescence. One hundred twenty-six 11-year-olds for whom vaccine response data were available were assessed at prevaccination and 4 weeks, 3 months, and 6 months following vaccination; self-report ratings of depression and anxiety as well as measures of psychosocial and somatic risk were assessed prior to vaccine response. Analyses indicated that children's internalizing mood symptoms were associated with elevated and persistently higher antibody responses, with evidence extending to two of the four serogroups. The associations remained after controlling for multiple possible confounders (social class, body mass index, sleep, psychosocial risk, and pubertal status). The observed enhanced vaccine response associated with depressive and anxious symptoms in early adolescence may reflect an important developmental difference in immune system-brain interplay between adults and children, and it underscores the need for further developmental studies of psychoneuroimmunology.
Early response predicts subsequent response to olanzapine long-acting injection in a randomized, double-blind clinical trial of treatment for schizophrenia
Background In patients with schizophrenia, early non-response to oral antipsychotic therapy robustly predicts subsequent non-response to continued treatment with the same medication. This study assessed whether early response predicted later response when using a long-acting injection (LAI) antipsychotic. Methods Data were taken from an 8-week, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of olanzapine LAI in acutely ill patients with schizophrenia (n = 233). Early response was defined as ≥30% improvement from baseline to Week 4 in Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS0-6) Total score. Subsequent response was defined as ≥40% baseline-to-endpoint improvement in PANSS0-6 Total score. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), and predictive accuracy were calculated. Clinical and functional outcomes were compared between Early Responders and Early Non-responders. Results Early response/non-response to olanzapine LAI predicted later response/non-response with high sensitivity (85%), specificity (72%), PPV (78%), NPV (80%), and overall accuracy (79%). Compared to Early Non-responders, Early Responders had significantly greater improvement in PANSS0-6 Total scores at all time points and greater baseline-to-endpoint improvement in PANSS subscale scores, Quality of Life Scale scores, and Short Form-36 Health Survey scores (all p ≤ .01). Among Early Non-responders, 20% demonstrated response by Week 8. Patients who lacked early improvement (at Week 4) in Negative Symptoms and Disorganized Thoughts were more likely to continue being non-responders at Week 8. Conclusions Among acutely ill patients with schizophrenia, early response predicted subsequent response to olanzapine LAI. Early Responders experienced significantly better clinical and functional outcomes than Early Non-responders. Findings are consistent with previous research on oral antipsychotics. Clinical Trials Registry F1D-MC-HGJZ: Comparison of
Sexually Dimorphic Responses to Early Adversity: Implications for Affective Problems and Autism Spectrum Disorder
Davis, Elysia Poggi; Pfaff, Donald
During gestation, development proceeds at a pace that is unmatched by any other stage of the lifecycle. For these reason the human fetus is particularly susceptible not only to organizing influences, but also to pathogenic disorganizing influences. Growing evidence suggests that exposure to prenatal adversity leads to neurological changes that underlie lifetime risks for mental illness. Beginning early in gestation, males and females show differential developmental trajectories and responses to stress. It is likely that sex-dependent organization of neural circuits during the fetal period influences differential vulnerability to mental health problems. We consider in this review evidence that sexually dimorphic responses to early life stress are linked to two developmental disorders: affective problems (greater female prevalence) and autism spectrum disorder (greater male prevalence). Recent prospective studies illustrating the neurodevelopmental consequences of fetal exposure to stress and stress hormones for males and females are considered here. Plausible biological mechanisms including the role of the sexually differentiated placenta are discussed. We consider in this review evidence that sexually dimorphic responses to early life stress are linked to two sets of developmental disorders: affective problems (greater female prevalence) and autism spectrum disorders (greater male prevalence). PMID:25038479
Investigations of turbulent motions and particle acceleration in solar flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Jakimiec, J.; Fludra, A.; Lemen, J. R.; Dennis, B. R.; Sylwester, J.
Investigations of X-raya spectra of solar flares show that intense random (turbulent) motions are present in hot flare plasma. Here it is argued that the turbulent motions are of great importance for flare development. They can efficiently enhance flare energy release and accelerate particles to high energies.
A Study of Sympathetic Flaring Using a Full-Sun Event Catalog
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Higgins, P. A.; Schrijver, C. J.; Title, A. M.; Bloomfield, D.; Gallagher, P.
There has been a trove of papers published on the statistics of flare occurrence. These studies are trying to answer the question of whether or not subsequent solar flares are related. The majority of these works have not included both flare location information and the physical properties of the regions responsible for the eruptions, and none have taken advantage of full-Sun event coverage. Now that SDO/AIA is available and the STEREO spacecraft have progressed past 90 degrees from Earth's heliographic longitude, this new information is available to us. This work aims to quantify how common sympathetic events are, and how important they are in the forecasting of solar flares. A 3D plot of detected and clustered flare events for a full solar rotation, including the Valentine's Day Event of 2011. A full-Sun image in the EUV (304A) including both STEREO view points and AIA. The GOES X-ray light curves during the February period of 2011 are shown in the bottom panel. Detected flare events are indicated by the green dashed lines and the time stamp of this image is denoted by the red line.
Wavelet analysis of CME, X-ray flare, and sunspot series
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Guedes, M. R. G.; Pereira, E. S.; Cecatto, J. R.
Context. Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) and solar flares are the most energetic transient phenomena taking place at the Sun. Together they are principally responsible for disturbances in outer geospace. Coronal mass ejections and solar flares are believed to be correlated with the solar cycle, which is mainly characterized by sunspot numbers. Aims: Here, we search for pattern identification in CMEs, X-ray solar flares, and sunspot number time series using a new data mining process and a quantitative procedure to correlate these series. Methods: This new process consists of the combination of a decomposition method with the wavelet transform technique applied to the series ranging from 2000 until 2012. A simple moving average is used for the time-series decomposition as a high-pass filter. A continuous wavelet transform is applied to the series in sequence, which permits us to uncover signals previously masked by the original time series. We made use of the wavelet coherence to find some correlation between the data. Results: The results have shown the existence of periodic and intermittent signals in the CMEs, flares, and sunspot time series. For the CME and flare series, few and relatively short time intervals without any signal were observed. Signals with an intermittent character take place during some epochs of the maximum and descending phases of the solar cycle 23 and rising phase of solar cycle 24. A comparison among X-ray flares, sunspots, and CME time series shows a stronger relation between flare and CMEs, although during some short intervals (four-eight months) and in a relatively narrow band. Yet, in contrast we have obtained a fainter or even absent relation between the X-ray flares and sunspot number series as well as between the CMEs and sunspot number series.
The Effect of Magnetic Topology on the Escape of Flare Particles
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Antiochos, S. K.; Masson, S.; DeVore, C. R.
Magnetic reconnection in the solar atmosphere is believed to be the driver of most solar explosive phenomena. Therefore, the topology of the coronal magnetic field is central to understanding the solar drivers of space weather. Of particular importance to space weather are the impulsive Solar Energetic particles that are associated with some CME/eruptive flare events. Observationally, the magnetic configuration of active regions where solar eruptions originate appears to agree with the standard eruptive flare model. According to this model, particles accelerated at the flare reconnection site should remain trapped in the corona and the ejected plasmoid. However, flare-accelerated particles frequently reach the Earth long before the CME does. We present a model that may account for the injection of energetic particles onto open magnetic flux tubes connecting to the Earth. Our model is based on the well-known 2.5D breakout topology, which has a coronal null point (null line) and a four-flux system. A key new addition, however, is that we include an isothermal solar wind with open-flux regions. Depending on the location of the open flux with respect to the null point, we find that the flare reconnection can consist of two distinct phases. At first, the flare reconnection involves only closed field, but if the eruption occurs close to the open field, we find a second phase involving interchange reconnection between open and closed. We argue that this second reconnection episode is responsible for the injection of flare-accelerated particles into the interplanetary medium. We will report on our recent work toward understanding how flare particles escape to the heliosphere. This work uses high-resolution 2.5D MHD numerical simulations performed with the Adaptively Refined MHD Solver (ARMS).
Solar flare leaves sun quaking
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Dr. Alexander G. Kosovichev, a senior research scientist from Stanford University, and Dr. Valentina V. Zharkova from Glasgow (United Kingdom) University found the tell-tale seismic signature in data on the Sun's surface collected by the Michelson Doppler Imager onboard the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) spacecraft immediately following a moderate-sized flare on July 9, 1996. "Although the flare was a moderate one, it still released an immense amount of energy," said Dr. Craig Deforest, a researcher with the SOHO project. "The energy released is equal to completely covering the Earth's continents with a yard of dynamite and detonating it all at once." SOHO is a joint project of the European Space Agency and NASA. The finding is reported in the May 28 issue of the journal Nature, and is the subject of a press conference at the spring meeting of the American Geophysical Union in Boston, Mass., May 27. The solar quake that the science team recorded looks much like ripples spreading from a rock dropped into a pool of water. But over the course of an hour, the solar waves traveled for a distance equal to 10 Earth diameters before fading into the fiery background of the Sun's photosphere. Unlike water ripples that travel outward at a constant velocity, the solar waves accelerated from an initial speed of 22,000 miles per hour to a maximum of 250,000 miles per hour before disappearing. "People have looked for evidence of seismic waves from flares before, but they didn't have a theory so they didn't know where to look," says Kosovichev. Several years ago Kosovichev and Zharkova developed a theory that can explain how a flare, which explodes in space above the Sun's surface, can generate a major seismic wave in the Sun's interior. According to the currently accepted model of solar flares, the primary explosion creates high-energy electrons (electrically charged subatomic particles). These are funneled down into a magnetic flux tube, an invisible tube of magnetic
Avalanches and the distribution of solar flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Lu, Edward T.; Hamilton, Russell J.
The solar coronal magnetic field is proposed to be in a self-organized critical state, thus explaining the observed power-law dependence of solar-flare-occurrence rate on flare size which extends over more than five orders of magnitude in peak flux. The physical picture that arises is that solar flares are avalanches of many small reconnection events, analogous to avalanches of sand in the models published by Bak and colleagues in 1987 and 1988. Flares of all sizes are manifestations of the same physical processes, where the size of a given flare is determined by the number of elementary reconnection events. The relation between small-scale processes and the statistics of global-flare properties which follows from the self-organized magnetic-field configuration provides a way to learn about the physics of the unobservable small-scale reconnection processes. A simple lattice-reconnection model is presented which is consistent with the observed flare statistics. The implications for coronal heating are discussed and some observational tests of this picture are given.
Tofflemire, Benjamin M.; Wisniewski, John P.; Kowalski, Adam F.; Schmidt, Sarah J.; Kundurthy, Praveen; Hilton, Eric J.; Hawley, Suzanne L.; Holtzman, Jon A. E-mail: email@example.com
We present the results of an observational campaign which obtained high-cadence, high-precision, simultaneous optical and IR photometric observations of three M dwarf flare stars for 47 hr. The campaign was designed to characterize the behavior of energetic flare events, which routinely occur on M dwarfs, at IR wavelengths to millimagnitude precision, and quantify to what extent such events might influence current and future efforts to detect and characterize extrasolar planets surrounding these stars. We detected and characterized four highly energetic optical flares having U-band total energies of {approx}7.8 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 30} to {approx}1.3 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 32} erg, and found no corresponding response in the J, H, or Ks bandpasses at the precision of our data. For active dM3e stars, we find that a {approx}1.3 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 32} erg U-band flare ({Delta}U{sub max} {approx} 1.5 mag) will induce <8.3 (J), <8.5 (H), and <11.7 (Ks) mmag of a response. A flare of this energy or greater should occur less than once per 18 hr. For active dM4.5e stars, we find that a {approx}5.1 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 31} erg U-band flare ({Delta}U{sub max} {approx} 1.6 mag) will induce <7.8 (J), <8.8 (H), and <5.1 (Ks) mmag of a response. A flare of this energy or greater should occur less than once per 10 hr. No evidence of stellar variability not associated with discrete flare events was observed at the level of {approx}3.9 mmag over 1 hr timescales and at the level of {approx}5.6 mmag over 7.5 hr timescales. We therefore demonstrate that most M dwarf stellar activity and flares will not influence IR detection and characterization studies of M dwarf exoplanets above the level of {approx}5-11 mmag, depending on the filter and spectral type. We speculate that the most energetic megaflares on M dwarfs, which occur at rates of once per month, are likely to be easily detected in IR observations with sensitivity of tens of millimagnitudes. We also
The flare kernel in the impulsive phase
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Dejager, C.
The impulsive phase of a flare is characterized by impulsive bursts of X-ray and microwave radiation, related to impulsive footpoint heating up to 50 or 60 MK, by upward gas velocities (150 to 400 km/sec) and by a gradual increase of the flare's thermal energy content. These phenomena, as well as non-thermal effects, are all related to the impulsive energy injection into the flare. The available observations are also quantitatively consistent with a model in which energy is injected into the flare by beams of energetic electrons, causing ablation of chromospheric gas, followed by convective rise of gas. Thus, a hole is burned into the chromosphere; at the end of impulsive phase of an average flare the lower part of that hole is situated about 1800 km above the photosphere. H alpha and other optical and UV line emission is radiated by a thin layer (approx. 20 km) at the bottom of the flare kernel. The upward rising and outward streaming gas cools down by conduction in about 45 s. The non-thermal effects in the initial phase are due to curtailing of the energy distribution function by escape of energetic electrons. The single flux tube model of a flare does not fit with these observations; instead we propose the spaghetti-bundle model. Microwave and gamma-ray observations suggest the occurrence of dense flare knots of approx. 800 km diameter, and of high temperature. Future observations should concentrate on locating the microwave/gamma-ray sources, and on determining the kernel's fine structure and the related multi-loop structure of the flaring area.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Pedersen, M. G.; Antoci, V.; Korhonen, H.; White, T. R.; Jessen-Hansen, J.; Lehtinen, J.; Nikbakhsh, S.; Viuho, J.
For flares to be generated, stars have to have a sufficiently deep outer convection zone (F5 and later), strong large-scale magnetic fields (Ap/Bp-type stars) or strong, radiatively driven winds (B5 and earlier). Normal A-type stars possess none of these and therefore should not flare. Nevertheless, flares have previously been detected in the Kepler light curves of 33 A-type stars and interpreted to be intrinsic to the stars. Here, we present new and detailed analyses of these 33 stars, imposing very strict criteria for the flare detection. We confirm the presence of flare-like features in 27 of the 33 A-type stars. A study of the pixel data and the surrounding field of view reveals that 14 of these 27 flaring objects have overlapping neighbouring stars and five stars show clear contamination in the pixel data. We have obtained high-resolution spectra for 2/3 of the entire sample and confirm that our targets are indeed A-type stars. Detailed analyses revealed that 11 out of 19 stars with multiple epochs of observations are spectroscopic binaries. Furthermore, and contrary to previous studies, we find that the flares can originate from a cooler, unresolved companion. We note the presence of Hα emission in eight stars. Whether this emission is circumstellar or magnetic in origin is unknown. In summary, we find possible alternative explanations for the observed flares for at least 19 of the 33 A-type stars, but find no truly convincing target to support the hypothesis of flaring A-type stars.
Characterization of X-ray flare properties of AB Dor
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Lalitha, S.
The strong similarities between the flares observed on the Sun and in low mass stars has raised question regarding dynamo in these stars. Using the Sun as a prototype, one may be able to address this. In this paper, we present an analysis of 30 intense X-ray flares observed from AB Dor. These flares detected in XMM-Newton data show a rapid rise (500-3000 s) and a slow decay (1000-6000 s). Our studies suggest that the scaling law between the flare peak emission measure and the flare peak temperature for all the flares observed on AB Dor is very similar to the relationship followed by solar flares. Furthermore, we obtain the frequency distribution of flare energies which is a crucial diagnostic to calculate the overall energy residing in a flare. Our results of this study indicate that the large flare (1033 <= E <= 1034 erg) may not contribute to the heating of the corona.
Flare diagnostics from loop modeling of a stellar flare observed with XMM-Newton
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Reale, Fabio
XMM-Newton data of an X-ray flare observed on Proxima Centauri provide detailed and challenging constraints for flare modeling. The comparison of the data with the results of time-dependent hydrodynamic loop modeling of this flare allows us to constrain not only the loop morphology, but also the details of the heating function. The results show that even a complex flare event like this can be described with a relatively few though constrained components: two loop systems, i.e., a single loop and an arcade, and two heat components, an intense pulse probably located at the loop footpoints followed by a low gradual decay distributed in the coronal part of the loop. The similarity to at least one solar event (the Bastille Day flare in 2000) indicates that this pattern may be common to solar and stellar flares.
Sleep Moderates the Association Between Response Inhibition and Self-Regulation in Early Childhood
Schumacher, Allyson M.; Miller, Alison L.; Watamura, Sarah E.; Kurth, Salome; Lassonde, Jonathan M.; LeBourgeois, Monique K.
Early childhood is a time of rapid developmental changes in sleep, cognitive control processes, and the regulation of emotion and behavior. This experimental study examined sleep-dependent effects on response inhibition and self-regulation, as well as whether acute sleep restriction moderated the association between these processes. Preschool children (N = 19; 45.6 ± 2.2 months; 11 female) followed a strict sleep schedule for at least 3 days before each of 2 morning behavior assessments: baseline (habitual nap/night sleep) and sleep restriction (missed nap/delayed bedtime). Response inhibition was evaluated via a go/no-go task. Twelve self-regulation strategies were coded from videotapes of children while attempting an unsolvable puzzle. We then created composite variables representing adaptive and maladaptive self-regulation strategies. Although we found no sleep-dependent effects on response inhibition or self-regulation measures, linear mixed-effects regression showed that acute sleep restriction moderated the relationship between these processes. At baseline, children with better response inhibition were more likely to use adaptive self-regulation strategies (e.g., self-talk, alternate strategies), and those with poorer response inhibition showed increased use of maladaptive self-regulation strategies (e.g., perseveration, fidgeting); however, response inhibition was not related to self-regulation strategies following sleep restriction. Our results showing a sleep-dependent effect on the associations between response inhibition and self-regulation strategies indicate that adequate sleep facilitates synergy between processes supporting optimal social-emotional functioning in early childhood. Although replication studies are needed, findings suggest that sleep may alter connections between maturing emotional and cognitive systems, which have important implications for understanding risk for or resilience to developmental psychopathology. PMID:27652491
The immune response in the CNS in Theiler's virus induced demyelinating disease switches from an early adaptive response to a chronic innate-like response.
Gilli, Francesca; Li, Libin; Pachner, Andrew R
Theiler's murine encephalomyelitis virus-induced demyelinating disease (TMEV-IDD) is an important model of the progressive disability caused by irreversible CNS tissue injury, and provides an example of how a CNS pathogen can cause inflammation, demyelination, and neuronal damage. We were interested in which molecules, especially inflammatory mediators, might be upregulated in the CNS throughout TMEV-IDD. We quantitated by a real-time RT-PCR multi-gene system the expression of a pathway-focused panel of genes at 30 and 165 days post infection, characterizing both the early inflammatory and the late neurodegenerative stages of TMEV-IDD. Also, we measured 32 cytokines/chemokines by multiplex Luminex analysis in CSF specimens from early and late TMEV-IDD as well as sham-treated mice. Results indicate that, in the later stage of TMEV-IDD, activation of the innate immune response is most prominent: TLRs, type I IFN response genes, and innate immunity-associated cytokines were highly expressed in late TMEV-IDD compared to sham (p ≤ 0.0001) and early TMEV-IDD (p < 0.05). Conversely, several molecular mediators of adaptive immune response were highly expressed in early TMEV-IDD (all p ≤ 0.001). Protein detection in the CSF was broadly concordant with mRNA abundance of the corresponding gene measured by real-time RT-PCR in the spinal cord, since several cytokines/chemokines were increased in the CSF of TMEV-IDD mice. Results show a clear shift from adaptive to innate immunity from early to late TMEV-IDD, indicating that adaptive and innate immune pathways are likely involved in the development and progression of the disease to different extents. CSF provides an optimal source of biomarkers of CNS neuroinflammation.
He-3-rich flares - A possible explanation
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Fisk, L. A.
A plasma mechanism is proposed to explain the dramatic enhancements in He-3 observed in He-3-rich flares. It is shown that a common current instability in the corona may heat ambient He-3(2+) over any other ion and thus may preferentially inject He-3 into the flare acceleration process. This mechanism operates when the abundance of He-4 and heavier elements is larger than normal in the coronal plasma. It may also preferentially heat and thus inject certain ions of iron. The mechanism thus provides a possible explanation for the observed correlation between He-3 and heavy enhancements in He-3-rich flares.
Determining the Altitude of Iridium Flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Foster, James; Owe, Manfred
Iridium flares have nothing to do with the element iridium. Iridium is also the name of a telecommunications company that has been launching satellites into low orbits around the Earth. These satellites are being used for a new type of wireless phone and paging service. Flares have been observed coming from these satellites. These flares have the potential, especially when the full fleet of satellites is in orbit, to disrupt astronomical observations. The paper reviews using simple trigonometry how to calculate the altitude of one of these satellites.
Dwarf Star Erupts in Giant Flare
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
2005-01-01This movie taken by NASA'S Galaxy Evolution Explorer shows one of the largest flares, or star eruptions, ever recorded at ultraviolet wavelengths. The star, called GJ 3685A, just happened to be in the Galaxy Evolution Explorer's field of view while the telescope was busy observing galaxies. As the movie demonstrates, the seemingly serene star suddenly exploded once, then even more intensely a second time, pouring out in total about one million times more energy than a typical flare from our Sun. The second blast of light constituted an increase in brightness by a factor of at least 10,000. Flares are huge explosions of energy stemming from a single location on a star's surface. They are caused by the brief destruction of a star's magnetic fields. Many types of stars experience them, though old, small, rapidly rotating 'red dwarfs' like GJ 3685A tend to flare more frequently and dramatically. These stars, called flare stars, can experience powerful eruptions as often as every few hours. Younger stars, in general, also erupt more often. One of the reasons astronomers study flare stars is to gain a better picture and history of flare events taking place on the Sun. A preliminary analysis of the GJ 3685A flare shows that the mechanisms underlying stellar eruptions may be more complex than previously believed. Evidence for the two most popular flare theories was found. Though this movie has been sped up (the actual flare lasted about 20 minutes), time-resolved data exist for each one-hundredth of a second. These observations were taken at 2 p.m. Pacific time, April 24, 2004. In the still image, the time sequence starts in the upper left panel, continues in the upper right, then moves to the lower left and ends in the lower right. The circular and linear features that appear below and to the right of GJ 3685A during the flare event are detector artifacts caused by the extreme brightness of the flare.
Ancestry trumps experience: Transgenerational but not early life stress affects the adult physiological stress response.
McCormick, Gail L; Robbins, Travis R; Cavigelli, Sonia A; Langkilde, Tracy
Exposure to stressors can affect an organism's physiology and behavior as well as that of its descendants (e.g. through maternal effects, epigenetics, and/or selection). We examined the relative influence of early life vs. transgenerational stress exposure on adult stress physiology in a species that has populations with and without ancestral exposure to an invasive predator. We raised offspring of eastern fence lizards (Sceloporus undulatus) from sites historically invaded (high stress) or uninvaded (low stress) by predatory fire ants (Solenopsis invicta) and determined how this different transgenerational exposure to stress interacted with the effects of early life stress exposure to influence the physiological stress response in adulthood. Offspring from these high- and low-stress populations were exposed weekly to either sub-lethal attack by fire ants (an ecologically relevant stressor), topical treatment with a physiologically-appropriate dose of the stress-relevant hormone, corticosterone (CORT), or a control treatment from 2 to 43weeks of age. Several months after treatments ended, we quantified plasma CORT concentrations at baseline and following restraint, exposure to fire ants, and adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) injection. Exposure to fire ants or CORT during early life did not affect lizard stress physiology in adulthood. However, offspring of lizards from populations that had experienced multiple generations of fire ant-invasion exhibited more robust adult CORT responses to restraint and ACTH-injection compared to offspring from uninvaded populations. Together, these results indicate that transgenerational stress history may be at least as important, if not more important, than early life stress in affecting adult physiological stress responses.
Early responses to deep brain stimulation in depression are modulated by anti-inflammatory drugs.
Perez-Caballero, L; Pérez-Egea, R; Romero-Grimaldi, C; Puigdemont, D; Molet, J; Caso, J-R; Mico, J-A; Pérez, V; Leza, J-C; Berrocoso, E
Deep brain stimulation (DBS) in the subgenual cingulated gyrus (SCG) is a promising new technique that may provide sustained remission in resistant major depressive disorder (MDD). Initial studies reported a significant early improvement in patients, followed by a decline within the first month of treatment, an unexpected phenomenon attributed to potential placebo effects or a physiological response to probe insertion that remains poorly understood. Here we characterized the behavioural antidepressant-like effect of DBS in the rat medial prefrontal cortex, focusing on modifications to rodent SCG correlate (prelimbic and infralimbic (IL) cortex). In addition, we evaluated the early outcome of DBS in the SCG of eight patients with resistant MDD involved in a clinical trial. We found similar antidepressant-like effects in rats implanted with electrodes, irrespective of whether they received electrical brain stimulation or not. This effect was due to regional inflammation, as it was temporally correlated with an increase of glial-fibrillary-acidic-protein immunoreactivity, and it was blocked by anti-inflammatory drugs. Indeed, inflammatory mediators and neuronal p11 expression also changed. Furthermore, a retrospective study indicated that the early response of MDD patients subjected to DBS was poorer when they received anti-inflammatory drugs. Our study demonstrates that electrode implantation up to the IL cortex is sufficient to produce an antidepressant-like effect of a similar magnitude to that observed in rats receiving brain stimulation. Moreover, both preclinical and clinical findings suggest that the use of anti-inflammatory drugs after electrode implantation may attenuate the early anti-depressive response in patients who are subjected to DBS.
Prediction and Early Evaluation of Anticancer Therapy Response: From Imaging of Drug Efflux Pumps to Targeted Therapy Response.
Meng, Qingqing; Li, Zheng; Li, Shaoshun
Multidrug resistance (MDR) describes the resistance of tumor cells to chemotherapy and has been ascribed to the overexpression of drug efflux pumps. Molecular imaging of drug efflux pumps is helpful to identify the patients who may be resistant to the chemotherapy and thus will avoid the unnecessary treatment and increase the therapeutic effectiveness. Imaging probes targeting drug efflux pumps can non-invasively evaluate the Pgp function and play an important role in identification of MDR, prediction of response, and monitoring MDR modulation. On the other hand, new anticancer agents based on molecular targets such as epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and angiogenic factor receptor may potentially be combined with chemotherapeutic drugs to overcome the MDR. Imaging of molecular targets visualize treatment response of patients at molecular level vividly and help to select right patients for certain targeted anticancer therapy. Among all the imaging modalities, nuclear imaging including positron emission tomography (PET) and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) imaging has the greatest promise for rapid translation to the clinic and can realize quantitative visualization of biochemical processes in vivo. In this review, we will summarize the nuclear imaging probes utilized for predicting and evaluating the early anticancer therapy response.99mTc labeled agents and PET based radiopharmaceuticals like 18F-Paclitaxel, 11C-Verapamil for drug efflux pumps imaging will be discussed here. Moreover, molecular imaging probes used for targeted therapy response evaluation like 18F-Tamoxifen,89Zr-Trastuzumab will also be introduced in this review.
Temperament and Parenting Styles in Early Childhood Differentially Influence Neural Response to Peer Evaluation in Adolescence
Guyer, Amanda E.; Jarcho, Johanna M.; Pérez-Edgar, Koraly; Degnan, Kathryn A.; Pine, Daniel S.; Fox, Nathan A.; Nelson, Eric E.
Behavioral inhibition (BI) is a temperament characterized by social reticence and withdrawal from unfamiliar or novel contexts and conveys risk for social anxiety disorder. Developmental outcomes associated with this temperament can be influenced by children's caregiving context. The convergence of a child's temperamental disposition and rearing environment is ultimately expressed at both the behavioral and neural levels in emotional and cognitive response patterns to social challenges. The present study used functional neuroimaging to assess the moderating effects of different parenting styles on neural response to peer rejection in two groups of adolescents characterized by their early childhood temperament (Mage = 17.89 years, N= 39, 17 males, 22 females; 18 with BI; 21 without BI). The moderating effects of authoritarian and authoritative parenting styles were examined in three brain regions linked with social anxiety: ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (vlPFC), striatum, and amygdala. In youth characterized with BI in childhood, but not in those without BI, diminished responses to peer rejection in vlPFC were associated with higher levels of authoritarian parenting. In contrast, all youth showed decreased caudate response to peer rejection at higher levels of authoritative parenting. These findings indicate that BI in early life relates to greater neurobiological sensitivity to variance in parenting styles, particularly harsh parenting, in late adolescence. These results are discussed in relation to biopsychosocial models of development. PMID:25588884
Early neuronal responses in right limbic structures mediate harmony incongruity processing in musical experts.
James, Clara E; Britz, Juliane; Vuilleumier, Patrik; Hauert, Claude-Alain; Michel, Christoph M
In western tonal music, musical phrases end with an explicit harmonic consequent which is highly expected. As such expectation is a consequence of musical background, cerebral processing of incongruities of musical grammar might be a function of expertise. We hypothesized that a subtle incongruity of standard closure should evoke a profound and rapid reaction in an expert's brain. If such a reaction is due to neuroplasticity as a consequence of musical training, it should be correlated with distinctive activations in sensory, motor and/or cognitive function related brain areas in response to the incongruent closure. Using event related potential (ERP) source imaging, we determined the temporal dynamics of neuronal activity in highly trained pianists and musical laymen in response to syntactic harmonic incongruities in expressive music, which were easily detected by the experts but not by the laymen. Our results revealed that closure incongruity evokes a selective early response in musical experts, characterized by a strong, right lateralized negative ERP component. Statistical source analysis could demonstrate putative contribution to the generation of this component in right temporal-limbic areas, encompassing hippocampal complex and amygdala, and in right insula. Its early onset (approximately 200 ms) preceded responses in frontal areas that may reflect more conscious processing. These results go beyond previous work demonstrating that musical training can change activity of sensory and motor areas during musical or audio-motor tasks, and suggest that functional plasticity in right medial-temporal structures and insula also modulates processing of subtle harmonic incongruities.
Stomatal Blue Light Response Is Present in Early Vascular Plants1[OPEN
Doi, Michio; Kitagawa, Yuki; Shimazaki, Ken-ichiro
Light is a major environmental factor required for stomatal opening. Blue light (BL) induces stomatal opening in higher plants as a signal under the photosynthetic active radiation. The stomatal BL response is not present in the fern species of Polypodiopsida. The acquisition of a stomatal BL response might provide competitive advantages in both the uptake of CO2 and prevention of water loss with the ability to rapidly open and close stomata. We surveyed the stomatal opening in response to strong red light (RL) and weak BL under the RL with gas exchange technique in a diverse selection of plant species from euphyllophytes, including spermatophytes and monilophytes, to lycophytes. We showed the presence of RL-induced stomatal opening in most of these species and found that the BL responses operated in all euphyllophytes except Polypodiopsida. We also confirmed that the stomatal opening in lycophytes, the early vascular plants, is driven by plasma membrane proton-translocating adenosine triphosphatase and K+ accumulation in guard cells, which is the same mechanism operating in stomata of angiosperms. These results suggest that the early vascular plants respond to both RL and BL and actively regulate stomatal aperture. We also found three plant species that absolutely require BL for both stomatal opening and photosynthetic CO2 fixation, including a gymnosperm, C. revoluta, and the ferns Equisetum hyemale and Psilotum nudum. PMID:26307440
Temperament and Parenting Styles in Early Childhood Differentially Influence Neural Response to Peer Evaluation in Adolescence.
Guyer, Amanda E; Jarcho, Johanna M; Pérez-Edgar, Koraly; Degnan, Kathryn A; Pine, Daniel S; Fox, Nathan A; Nelson, Eric E
Behavioral inhibition (BI) is a temperament characterized by social reticence and withdrawal from unfamiliar or novel contexts and conveys risk for social anxiety disorder. Developmental outcomes associated with this temperament can be influenced by children's caregiving context. The convergence of a child's temperamental disposition and rearing environment is ultimately expressed at both the behavioral and neural levels in emotional and cognitive response patterns to social challenges. The present study used functional neuroimaging to assess the moderating effects of different parenting styles on neural response to peer rejection in two groups of adolescents characterized by their early childhood temperament (M(age) = 17.89 years, N = 39, 17 males, 22 females; 18 with BI; 21 without BI). The moderating effects of authoritarian and authoritative parenting styles were examined in three brain regions linked with social anxiety: ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (vlPFC), striatum, and amygdala. In youth characterized with BI in childhood, but not in those without BI, diminished responses to peer rejection in vlPFC were associated with higher levels of authoritarian parenting. In contrast, all youth showed decreased caudate response to peer rejection at higher levels of authoritative parenting. These findings indicate that BI in early life relates to greater neurobiological sensitivity to variance in parenting styles, particularly harsh parenting, in late adolescence. These results are discussed in relation to biopsychosocial models of development.
Planetary Protection: X-ray Super-Flares Aid Formation of "Solar Systems"
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
New results from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory imply that X-ray super-flares torched the young Solar System. Such flares likely affected the planet-forming disk around the early Sun, and may have enhanced the survival chances of Earth. By focusing on the Orion Nebula almost continuously for 13 days, a team of scientists used Chandra to obtain the deepest X-ray observation ever taken of this or any star cluster. The Orion Nebula is the nearest rich stellar nursery, located just 1,500 light years away. These data provide an unparalleled view of 1400 young stars, 30 of which are prototypes of the early Sun. The scientists discovered that these young suns erupt in enormous flares that dwarf - in energy, size, and frequency -- anything seen from the Sun today. Illustration of Large Flares Illustration of Large Flares "We don't have a time machine to see how the young Sun behaved, but the next best thing is to observe Sun-like stars in Orion," said Scott Wolk of Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Mass. "We are getting a unique look at stars between one and 10 million years old - a time when planets form." A key result is that the more violent stars produce flares that are a hundred times as energetic as the more docile ones. This difference may specifically affect the fate of planets that are relatively small and rocky, like the Earth. "Big X-ray flares could lead to planetary systems like ours where Earth is a safe distance from the Sun," said Eric Feigelson of Penn State University in University Park, and principal investigator for the international Chandra Orion Ultradeep Project. "Stars with smaller flares, on the other hand, might end up with Earth-like planets plummeting into the star." Animation of X-ray Flares from a Young Sun Animation of X-ray Flares from a "Young Sun" According to recent theoretical work, X-ray flares can create turbulence when they strike planet-forming disks, and this affects the position of rocky planets as they
Very rapid virologic response and early HCV response kinetics, as quick measures to compare efficacy and guide a personalized response-guided therapy
Yakoot, Mostafa; Abdo, Alaa M; Yousry, Ahmed; Helmy, Sherine
Background This is the second and final report for our study designed to compare two generic sofosbuvir products for the degree and speed of virologic response to a dual anti-hepatitis C virus (HCV) treatment protocol. We aimed to test the applicability of the early virus response kinetics and the very rapid virologic response (vRVR) rate as quick outcome measures for accelerated comparative efficacy studies and as a foundation for a personalized response-guided therapy. Methods Fifty eligible chronic HCV patients were randomized to either one of two generic sofosbuvir products (Gratisovir or Grateziano) at a daily dose of one 400 mg tablet plus a weight-based ribavirin dose. Data were compared between the groups for early virus response kinetics and vRVR rates in relation to the rates of final sustained virologic response at week 12 posttreatment (SVR12). Results The Log10 transformed virus load (Log polymerase chain reaction) curves showed fairly similar rapid decline during the first 2 weeks, with no significant difference between the groups at four analysis points throughout the study by repeated-measures factorial analysis of variance test (P=0.48). The SVR12 rates were 96% (95% confidence interval, 79.6%–99.9%) in Gratisovir group (24/25) and 95.7% (95% confidence interval, 78%–99.9%) in Grateziano group (22/23). There was no statistically significant difference found by exact test (P>0.999). There was a significant association between the vRVR and the SVR12, with 100% positive predictive value (38/38 of those who had vRVR, achieved a final SVR12) and 82.6% sensitivity (among the total 46 with SVR12, 38 were having vRVR). Conclusion We can conclude from our study that the early HCV response kinetics and the vRVR rates could be used as sensitive quick markers for efficacy (with a very high positive predictive value for SVR12), based on our accelerated comparative efficacy research model. This might open the way for new models of accelerated equivalence
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Rhoads, James E.; Malhotra, Sangeeta; Zheng, Zhenya; Monson, Andrew; Persson, S. Eric; Gonzalez, Alicia; Probst, Ronald G.; Swaters, Robert A.; Tilvi, Vithal; Finkelstein, Steven L.; Jiang, Tianxing; Mobasher, Bahram; Dickinson, Mark; Dressler, Alan; Lee, Janice C.; Ammons, S. Mark; Zabludoff, Ann I.; Emig, Kimberly; Hibon, Pascale; Joshi, Bhavin; Pharo, John; Smith, Mark David; Trahan, Jacob; Veilleux, Sylvain; Wang, JunXian; Wong, Kenneth C.; Yang, Huan; Zabl, Johannes; FLARE Team, the DAWN Team
Lyman alpha galaxy populations at redshifts 8 and 9 offer a unique probe of cosmological reionization. Resonant scattering by neutral hydrogen should obscure such galaxies if the intergalactic medium is neutral, implying a steep decline in their observed counts at redshifts prior to the central phases of reionization. We are pursuing a pair of ambitious near-infrared narrow bandpass surveys to probe these populations: The Cosmic Deep and Wide Narrowband (DAWN) survey, using the NEWFIRM camera at the National Optical Astronomy Observatory's 4m Mayall telescope, and the First Light And Reionization Experiment (FLARE), using the FourStar camera at the 6.5m Magellan Telescopes. DAWN is an NOAO survey program, covering a total of five NEWFIRM fields (one square degree in all) to a limiting sensitivity around 9e-18 erg/cm2/s for emission lines at 1.06 micron wavelength, corresponding to redshift 7.7 for Lyman alpha. FLARE uses the larger aperture of the Magellan telescope to push to still higher redshift, with a limiting line flux near 5e-18 erg/cm2/s in the COSMOS field, and with additional coverage of a half dozen strongly lensed fields where we can probe still further down the Lyman alpha luminosity function. Imaging observations are largely complete for both surveys, and we are now pursuing spectroscopic followup at both near-IR and optical wavelengths. We will summarize initial results from both surveys in this meeting. With two nights of Keck+MOSFIRE observations complete already (and more scheduled in late 2015), we have numerous emission line confirmations-- both including many H alpha and Oxygen emitters in the foreground, and at least one Lyman alpha galaxy in the epoch of reionization.
Dermoscopic hemorrhagic dots: an early predictor of response of psoriasis to biologic agents
Lallas, Aimilios; Argenziano, Giuseppe; Zalaudek, Iris; Apalla, Zoe; Ardigo, Marco; Chellini, Patricia; Cordeiro, Natalia; Guimaraes, Mariana; Kyrgidis, Athanassios; Lazaridou, Elizabeth; Longo, Caterina; Moscarella, Elvira; Papadimitriou, Ilias; Pellacani, Giovanni; Sotiriou, Elena; Vakirlis, Efstratios; Ioannides, Dimitrios
Background Biologic agents are routinely used in the treatment of severe psoriasis. The evaluation of treatment response is mainly based on the physician's global clinical assessment. Objective To investigate whether dermoscopy might enhance the assessment of response of psoriasis to treatment with biologic agents. Methods Patients with severe psoriasis scheduled to receive a biologic agent were enrolled in the study. A target lesion from each patient was clinically and dermoscopically documented at baseline and after one, two and six months. The clinical response was evaluated by the recruiting clinicians at all visits, while dermoscopic images were evaluated by two independent investigators, blinded to the clinical information. Chi Square test was used for cross-tabulation comparisons, while odds ratios, 95% confidence intervals and p values were calculated using univariate logistic regression. Results Overall, there was a significant correlation between clinical response and vessel distribution at all time points: a regular vessel distribution correlated with no response, a clustered distribution with partial response, and the dermoscopic absence of vessels with complete response. The presence of dermoscopic hemorrhagic dots was a potent predictor of favorable clinical response at the subsequent visit at all time points. Among lesions initially clinically responding and later recurring, 87.5% displayed dermoscopic dotted vessels despite the macroscopic remission. Conclusion Dermoscopy might be a useful additional tool for evaluating the response of psoriatic patients to biologic agents. Hemorrhagic dots represent an early predictor of clinical response, while the persistence or reappearance of dotted vessels might predict clinical persistence or recurrence, respectively. PMID:27867739
Microwave subsecond pulses in solar flares - source localization, emission mechanism
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Altyntsev, A. T.; Kardapolova, N. N.; Kuznetsov, A. A.; Lesovoi, S. V.; Meshalkina, N. S.; Yan, Y.
The observations of bursts with fine temporal structures is one of few ways to study the primary energy release sites in solar flares. The localization of their sources in a flare region using the Siberian Solar Radio Telescope data (5.7 GHz) provide us with the unique possibility to determine plasma parameters, and to verify emission mechanisms. The simultaneous spectral observations (5.2 - 7.7 GHz) were provided by National Astronomical Observatories/Beijing spectropolarimeters. An analysis is made of the subsecond pulses of different types: short duration wide band pulses, U-type cm-bursts, the bursts with the "zebra" pattern. The suggestion is justified that in many cases the frequency drifts are response to the plasma density dynamics in the local sites in flare loops. It is argued that the conditions of emission escaping from the source strongly influent the apparent source sizes and the polarization degree of the subsecond sources. This research was supported by Grants 02-02-39030 and 03-02-16229 of RFBR, and E02-3.2-489 of Education department of Russia.
White, R. S.; Verwichte, E.; Foullon, C.
Transverse loop oscillations observed by the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly instrument on the Solar Dynamics Observatory spacecraft are studied after an impulsive solar flare eruption on 2012 May 8. We have found that a transversely oscillating coronal loop seen in the 171 A bandpass oscillates in anti-phase with respect to adjacent larger loops seen in the 193 A and 211 A bandpasses. These unusual oscillations are analyzed to investigate the excitation mechanism responsible for their initial inwardly directed anti-phase behavior. The transverse oscillations are analyzed by constructing space-time diagrams from cuts made parallel to the projected loop displacements. The displacement time oscillation profiles are background subtracted and fitted with a damped cosine curve that includes a linear change in the period with time. The local magnetic topology of the active region is modeled using potential field source surface extrapolation. It reveals that the loops are anchored in different topological regions with foot point locations identified on either side of the EUV flare peak emission source. In this context, the oscillation characteristics indicate that the excitation mechanism is closely linked to the local magnetic field topology and the reconnection generated wave dynamics in the active region rather than following an external flare blast wave. We discuss how observations such as these may serve to identify reconnection processes in similar quadrupolar active regions.
Flared landing approach flying qualities. Volume 2: Appendices
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Weingarten, Norman C.; Berthe, Charles J., Jr.; Rynaski, Edmund G.; Sarrafian, Shahan K.
An in-flight research study was conducted utilizing the USAF/Total In-Flight Simulator (TIFS) to investigate longitudinal flying qualities for the flared landing approach phase of flight. A consistent set of data were generated for: determining what kind of command response the pilot prefers/requires in order to flare and land an aircraft with precision, and refining a time history criterion that took into account all the necessary variables and the characteristics that would accurately predict flying qualities. Seven evaluation pilots participated representing NASA Langley, NASA Dryden, Calspan, Boeing, Lockheed, and DFVLR (Braunschweig, Germany). The results of the first part of the study provide guidelines to the flight control system designer, using MIL-F-8785-(C) as a guide, that yield the dynamic behavior pilots prefer in flared landings. The results of the second part provide the flying qualities engineer with a derived flying qualities predictive tool which appears to be highly accurate. This time-domain predictive flying qualities criterion was applied to the flight data as well as six previous flying qualities studies, and the results indicate that the criterion predicted the flying qualities level 81% of the time and the Cooper-Harper pilot rating, within + or - 1%, 60% of the time.
Population responses to contour integration: early encoding of discrete elements and late perceptual grouping.
Gilad, Ariel; Meirovithz, Elhanan; Slovin, Hamutal
The neuronal mechanisms underlying perceptual grouping of discrete, similarly oriented elements are not well understood. To investigate this, we measured neural population responses using voltage-sensitive dye imaging in V1 of monkeys trained on a contour-detection task. By mapping the contour and background elements onto V1, we could study their neural processing. Population response early in time showed activation patches corresponding to the contour/background individual elements. However, late increased activity in the contour elements, along with suppressed activity in the background elements, enabled us to visualize in single trials a salient continuous contour "popping out" from a suppressed background. This modulated activity in the contour and in background extended beyond the cortical representation of individual contour or background elements. Finally, the late modulation was correlated with behavioral performance of contour saliency and the monkeys' perceptual report. Thus, opposing responses in the contour and background may underlie perceptual grouping in V1.
Influences of misprediction costs on solar flare prediction
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Huang, Xin; Wang, HuaNing; Dai, XingHua
The mispredictive costs of flaring and non-flaring samples are different for different applications of solar flare prediction. Hence, solar flare prediction is considered a cost sensitive problem. A cost sensitive solar flare prediction model is built by modifying the basic decision tree algorithm. Inconsistency rate with the exhaustive search strategy is used to determine the optimal combination of magnetic field parameters in an active region. These selected parameters are applied as the inputs of the solar flare prediction model. The performance of the cost sensitive solar flare prediction model is evaluated for the different thresholds of solar flares. It is found that more flaring samples are correctly predicted and more non-flaring samples are wrongly predicted with the increase of the cost for wrongly predicting flaring samples as non-flaring samples, and the larger cost of wrongly predicting flaring samples as non-flaring samples is required for the higher threshold of solar flares. This can be considered as the guide line for choosing proper cost to meet the requirements in different applications.
Comparative responses to endocrine disrupting compounds in early life stages of Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar
Duffy, Tara A.; Iwanowicz, Luke R.; McCormick, Stephen D.
Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) are endangered anadromous fish that may be exposed to feminizing endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs) during early development, potentially altering physiological capacities, survival and fitness. To assess differential life stage sensitivity to common EDCs, we carried out short-term (four day) exposures using three doses each of 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE2), 17β-estradiol (E2), and nonylphenol (NP) on four early life stages; embryos, yolk-sac larvae, feeding fry and one year old smolts. Differential response was compared using vitellogenin (Vtg, a precursor egg protein) gene transcription. Smolts were also examined for impacts on plasma Vtg, cortisol, thyroid hormones (T4/T3) and hepatosomatic index (HSI). Compound-related mortality was not observed in any life stage, but Vtg mRNA was elevated in a dose-dependent manner in yolk-sac larvae, fry and smolts but not in embyos. The estrogens EE2 and E2 were consistently stronger inducers of Vtg than NP. Embryos responded significantly to the highest concentration of EE2 only, while older life stages responded to the highest doses of all three compounds, as well as intermediate doses of EE2 and E2. Maximal transcription was greater for fry among the three earliest life stages, suggesting fry may be the most responsive life stage in early development. Smolt plasma Vtg was also significantly increased, and this response was observed at lower doses of each compound than was detected by gene transcription suggesting this is a more sensitive indicator at this life stage. HSI was increased at the highest doses of EE2 and E2 and plasma T3 decreased at the highest dose of EE2. Our results indicate that all life stages after hatching are potentially sensitive to endocrine disruption by estrogenic compounds and that physiological responses were altered over a short window of exposure, indicating the potential for these compounds to impact fish in the wild.
The Role of Early Growth Response 1 (EGR1) in Brain Plasticity and Neuropsychiatric Disorders
Duclot, Florian; Kabbaj, Mohamed
It is now clearly established that complex interactions between genes and environment are involved in multiple aspects of neuropsychiatric disorders, from determining an individual's vulnerability to onset, to influencing its response to therapeutic intervention. In this perspective, it appears crucial to better understand how the organism reacts to environmental stimuli and provide a coordinated and adapted response. In the central nervous system, neuronal plasticity and neurotransmission are among the major processes integrating such complex interactions between genes and environmental stimuli. In particular, immediate early genes (IEGs) are critical components of these interactions as they provide the molecular framework for a rapid and dynamic response to neuronal activity while opening the possibility for a lasting and sustained adaptation through regulation of the expression of a wide range of genes. As a result, IEGs have been tightly associated with neuronal activity as well as a variety of higher order processes within the central nervous system such as learning, memory and sensitivity to reward. The immediate early gene and transcription factor early growth response 1 (EGR1) has thus been revealed as a major mediator and regulator of synaptic plasticity and neuronal activity in both physiological and pathological conditions. In this review article, we will focus on the role of EGR1 in the central nervous system. First, we will summarize the different factors influencing its activity. Then, we will analyze the amount of data, including genome-wide, that has emerged in the recent years describing the wide variety of genes, pathways and biological functions regulated directly or indirectly by EGR1. We will thus be able to gain better insights into the mechanisms underlying EGR1's functions in physiological neuronal activity. Finally, we will discuss and illustrate the role of EGR1 in pathological states with a particular interest in cognitive functions
Jasmonate signaling is activated in the very early stages of iron deficiency responses in rice roots.
Kobayashi, Takanori; Itai, Reiko Nakanishi; Senoura, Takeshi; Oikawa, Takaya; Ishimaru, Yasuhiro; Ueda, Minoru; Nakanishi, Hiromi; Nishizawa, Naoko K
Under low iron availability, plants induce the expression of various genes involved in iron uptake and translocation at the transcriptional level. This iron deficiency response is affected by various plant hormones, but the roles of jasmonates in this response are not well-known. We investigated the involvement of jasmonates in rice iron deficiency responses. High rates of jasmonate-inducible genes were induced during the very early stages of iron deficiency treatment in rice roots. Many jasmonate-inducible genes were also negatively regulated by the ubiquitin ligases OsHRZ1 and OsHRZ2 and positively regulated by the transcription factor IDEF1. Ten out of 35 genes involved in jasmonate biosynthesis and signaling were rapidly induced at 3 h of iron deficiency treatment, and this induction preceded that of known iron deficiency-inducible genes involved in iron uptake and translocation. Twelve genes involved in jasmonate biosynthesis and signaling were also upregulated in HRZ-knockdown roots. Endogenous concentrations of jasmonic acid and jasmonoyl isoleucine tended to be rapidly increased in roots in response to iron deficiency treatment, whereas these concentrations were higher in HRZ-knockdown roots under iron-sufficient conditions. Analysis of the jasmonate-deficient cpm2 mutant revealed that jasmonates repress the expression of many iron deficiency-inducible genes involved in iron uptake and translocation under iron sufficiency, but this repression is partly canceled under an early stage of iron deficiency. These results indicate that jasmonate signaling is activated during the very early stages of iron deficiency, which is partly regulated by IDEF1 and OsHRZs.
Hydrogen Balmer Line Broadening in Solar and Stellar Flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kowalski, Adam F.; Allred, Joel C.; Uitenbroek, Han; Tremblay, Pier-Emmanuel; Brown, Stephen; Carlsson, Mats; Osten, Rachel A.; Wisniewski, John P.; Hawley, Suzanne L.
The broadening of the hydrogen lines during flares is thought to result from increased charge (electron, proton) density in the flare chromosphere. However, disagreements between theory and modeling prescriptions have precluded an accurate diagnostic of the degree of ionization and compression resulting from flare heating in the chromosphere. To resolve this issue, we have incorporated the unified theory of electric pressure broadening of the hydrogen lines into the non-LTE radiative-transfer code RH. This broadening prescription produces a much more realistic spectrum of the quiescent, A0 star Vega compared to the analytic approximations used as a damping parameter in the Voigt profiles. We test recent radiative-hydrodynamic (RHD) simulations of the atmospheric response to high nonthermal electron beam fluxes with the new broadening prescription and find that the Balmer lines are overbroadened at the densest times in the simulations. Adding many simultaneously heated and cooling model loops as a "multithread" model improves the agreement with the observations. We revisit the three-component phenomenological flare model of the YZ CMi Megaflare using recent and new RHD models. The evolution of the broadening, line flux ratios, and continuum flux ratios are well-reproduced by a multithread model with high-flux nonthermal electron beam heating, an extended decay phase model, and a "hot spot" atmosphere heated by an ultrarelativistic electron beam with reasonable filling factors: ∼0.1%, 1%, and 0.1% of the visible stellar hemisphere, respectively. The new modeling motivates future work to understand the origin of the extended gradual phase emission.
Tumor interstitial fluid pressure as an early-response marker for anticancer therapeutics.
Ferretti, Stephane; Allegrini, Peter R; Becquet, Mike M; McSheehy, Paul Mj
Solid tumors have a raised interstitial fluid pressure (IFP) due to high vessel permeability, low lymphatic drainage, poor perfusion, and high cell density around the blood vessels. To investigate tumor IFP as an early-response biomarker, we have tested the effect of seven anticancer chemotherapeutics including cytotoxics and targeted cytostatics in 13 experimental tumor models. IFP was recorded with the wick-in-needle method. Models were either ectopic or orthotopic and included mouse and rat syngeneic as well as human xenografts in nude mice. The mean basal IFP was between 4.4 and 15.2mm Hg; IFP was lowest in human tumor xenografts and highest in rat syngeneic models. Where measured, basal IFP correlated positively with relative tumor blood volume (rTBV) determined by dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging. Most chemotherapeutics sooner (2 or 3 days) or later (6 or 7 days) lowered tumor IFP significantly, and the cytotoxic patupilone caused the greatest decrease in IFP. In rat mammary orthotopic BN472 tumors, significant drug-induced decreases in IFP and rTBV correlated positively with each other for both patupilone and the cytostatic vatalanib. In the two orthotopic models studied, early decreases in IFP were significantly (P < or = .005) correlated with late changes in tumor volume. Thus, drug-induced decreases in tumor IFP are an early marker of response to therapy, which could aid clinical development.
Early Traumatic Stress Responses in Parents Following a Serious Illness in Their Child: A Systematic Review.
Woolf, Claudia; Muscara, Frank; Anderson, Vicki A; McCarthy, Maria C
A systematic review of the literature investigating the early traumatic stress responses in parents of children diagnosed with a serious illness/injury. A literature review was conducted (September 2013) using Medline, PsycINFO, and CINAHL databases. Twenty-four studies related to parents of children hospitalized due to diagnosis of cancer, type 1 diabetes, meningococcal disease, trauma or serious injury, preterm birth and other serious illnesses requiring admission to intensive care were included. Parents were assessed for early traumatic stress symptoms within 3 months of their child's diagnosis/hospitalization. Prevalence rates of acute stress disorder in parents ranged from 12 to 63%. Prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder ranged from 8 to 68%. Variability was related to methodological factors including differences in study design, timing of assessments, measurement tools, and scoring protocols. Psychosocial factors rather than medical factors predicted parent distress. This review integrates and compares early traumatic reactions in parents with children suffering a range of serious illnesses. Findings suggest a high prevalence of acute and posttraumatic stress symptoms in parents. Methodological inconsistencies made comparison of early traumatic stress prevalence rates difficult. Risk factors associated with traumatic stress symptoms were identified.
Just as sunspot 1105 was turning away from Earth on Sept. 8, the active region erupted, producing a C3-class solar flare (peak @ 2330 UT) and a fantastic prominence. This is a three color closeup o...
2011 Valentines Day X-Class Flare
The video clip of the large X2 flare seen by Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) in extreme ultraviolet light on February 15, 2011, has been enlarged and superimposed on a video of SOHO's C2 coronagra...
An Observational Overview of Solar Flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Fletcher, Lyndsay; Battaglia, M.; Dennis, Brian R.; Liu, W.; Milligan, R. O.; Hudson, H. S.; Krucker, S.; Phillips, K.; Bone, L.; Veronig, A.; Caspi, A.; Temmer, M.
We present an overview of solar flares and associated phenomena, drawing upon a wide range of observational data primarily from the RHESSI era. Following an introductory discussion and overview of the status of observational capabilities, the article is split into topical sections which deal with different areas of flare phenomena (footpoints and ribbons, coronal sources, relationship to coronal mass ejections) and their interconnections. We also discuss flare soft X-ray spectroscopy and the energetics of the process. The emphasis is to describe the observations from multiple points of view, while bearing in mind the models that link them to each other and to theory. The present theoretical and observational understanding of solar flares is far from complete, so we conclude with a brief discussion of models, and a list of missing but important observations.
AR1429 Releases X1 Class Flare
The Solar Dynamics Observatory captured the X1 flare, shown here in the 171 Angstrom wavelength, a wavelength typically shown in the color gold. This movie runs from 10 PM ET March 4 to 3 AM March ...
Solar Eruptions: Coronal Mass Ejections and Flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Gopalswamy, Nat
This lecture introduces the topic of Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) and solar flares, collectively known as solar eruptions. During solar eruptions, the released energy flows out from the Sun in the form of magnetized plasma and electromagnetic radiation. The electromagnetic radiation suddenly increases the ionization content of the ionosphere, thus impacting communication and navigation systems. Flares can be eruptive or confined. Eruptive flares accompany CMEs, while confined flares hav only electromagnetic signature. CMEs can drive MHD shocks that accelerate charged particles to very high energies in the interplanetary space, which pose radiation hazard to astronauts and space systems. CMEs heading in the direction of Earth arrive in about two days and impact Earth's magnetosphere, producing geomagnetic storms. The magnetic storms result in a number of effects including induced currnts that can disrupt power grids, railroads, and underground pipelines
Early lactation feed intake and milk yield responses of dairy cows offered grass silages harvested at early maturity stages.
Randby, A T; Weisbjerg, M R; Nørgaard, P; Heringstad, B
The main objective was to evaluate the potential of grass silages of very high quality to support a high milk yield with a low or moderate, or even without concentrate supplementation. Production responses to increased levels of concentrate supplementation with 3 primary growth grass silages differing in digestibility were studied using 66 Norwegian Red dairy cows. Roundbale silage was produced from a timothy-dominated sward at very early (H1), early (H2), and normal (H3) stages of crop maturity. Crops were rapidly wilted (<24h) and a formic acid-based additive was applied. All silages were restrictedly fermented. Silage digestible organic matter in dry matter (DM) values were 747, 708, and 647 g/kg of DM for H1, H2, and H3, respectively. Dietary treatments were fed in a 3×3 factorial arrangement of the 3 silages supplemented with 3 concentrate levels (4, 8, and 12 kg/d) and, additionally, H1 was offered without concentrates and H3 with 16 kg/d, giving a total of 11 diets. Cows, blocked according to parity and calving date, were introduced to the experiment before calving and kept in the experiment until wk 16 of lactation. Silage was offered ad libitum in loose housing and concentrate was available in automatic feed stations. Intake of grass silage when fed as the sole feed was 16.9 kg of DM on average for lactation wk 1 to 16. When H1 was supplemented with 4 or 8 kg of concentrates, silage DM intake did not change, but total DM intake increased to 20.6 and 23.7 kg/d, respectively. Energy-corrected milk (ECM) yield increased from 23.4 kg when H1 was offered without concentrate supplement to 29.1 and 32.8 kg when supplemented with 4 or 8 kg concentrate, respectively. None of the other diets equaled the yield obtained by H1 plus 8 kg of concentrate. Feed intake and yield of cows offered H3 plus 4 kg of concentrates were strongly constrained by high dietary fiber concentration. They consumed 16.5 g of neutral detergent fiber/kg of body weight and spent more time
The biliprotein C-phycocyanin modulates the early radiation response: a pilot study.
Ivanova, Katia G; Stankova, Katia G; Nikolov, Vladimir N; Georgieva, Radostina T; Minkova, Kaledona M; Gigova, Lili G; Rupova, Ivanka T; Boteva, Rayna N
This study analyzed the effects of biliprotein C-phycocyanin (C-PC) on the enzymatic antioxidant defence system in lymphocytes of nuclear power-plant workers and non-exposed controls. Changes in the protein levels of manganese super oxide dismutase (MnSOD), catalase and glutathione-S-transferase (GST) were used as markers for early biological effects of a single in vitro exposure of cells to: (i) 2Gy gamma rays; (ii) 5muM C-PC; and (iii) a combination of C-PC plus irradiation with 2Gy. The results showed that C-PC selectively stimulated the lymphocyte antioxidant defence system of occupationally exposed subjects. The activation of the antioxidant protective mechanisms as part of the early radiation response was probably related to the chronic low-dose occupational exposure. The modulating capacity of C-PC at the molecular level may be of interest for the protection of occupationally exposed persons.
Early growth response 3 (Egr-3) is induced by transforming growth factor-β and regulates fibrogenic responses.
Fang, Feng; Shangguan, Anna J; Kelly, Kathleen; Wei, Jun; Gruner, Katherine; Ye, Boping; Wang, Wenxia; Bhattacharyya, Swati; Hinchcliff, Monique E; Tourtellotte, Warren G; Varga, John
Members of the early growth response (Egr) gene family of transcription factors have nonredundant biological functions. Although Egr-3 is implicated primarily in neuromuscular development and immunity, its regulation and role in tissue repair and fibrosis has not been studied. We now show that in normal skin fibroblasts, Egr-3 was potently induced by transforming growth factor-β via canonical Smad3. Moreover, transient Egr-3 overexpression was sufficient to stimulate fibrotic gene expression, whereas deletion of Egr-3 resulted in substantially attenuated transforming growth factor-β responses. Genome-wide expression profiling in fibroblasts showed that genes associated with tissue remodeling and wound healing were prominently up-regulated by Egr-3. Notably, <5% of fibroblast genes regulated by Egr-1 or Egr-2 were found to be coregulated by Egr-3, revealing substantial functional divergence among these Egr family members. In a mouse model of scleroderma, development of dermal fibrosis was accompanied by accumulation of Egr-3-positive myofibroblasts in the lesional tissue. Moreover, skin biopsy samples from patients with scleroderma showed elevated Egr-3 levels in the dermis, and Egr-3 mRNA levels correlated with the extent of skin involvement. These results provide the first evidence that Egr-3, a functionally distinct member of the Egr family with potent effects on inflammation and immunity, is up-regulated in scleroderma and is necessary and sufficient for profibrotic responses, suggesting important and distinct roles in the pathogenesis of fibrosis.
Full-Breadth Analysis of CD8+ T-Cell Responses in Acute Hepatitis C Virus Infection and Early Therapy
Lauer, Georg M.; Lucas, Michaela; Timm, Joerg; Ouchi, Kei; Kim, Arthur Y.; Day, Cheryl L.; zur Wiesch, Julian Schulze; Paranhos-Baccala, Glaucia; Sheridan, Isabelle; Casson, Deborah R.; Reiser, Markus; Gandhi, Rajesh T.; Li, Bin; Allen, Todd M.; Chung, Raymond T.; Klenerman, Paul; Walker, Bruce D.
Multispecific CD8+ T-cell responses are thought to be important for the control of acute hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, but to date little information is actually available on the breadth of responses at early time points. Additionally, the influence of early therapy on these responses and their relationships to outcome are controversial. To investigate this issue, we performed comprehensive analysis of the breadth and frequencies of virus-specific CD8+ T-cell responses on the single epitope level in eight acutely infected individuals who were all started on early therapy. During the acute phase, responses against up to five peptides were identified. During therapy, CD8+ T-cell responses decreased rather than increased as virus was controlled, and no new specificities emerged. A sustained virological response following completion of treatment was independent of CD8+ T-cell responses, as well as CD4+ T-cell responses. Rapid recrudescence also occurred despite broad CD8+ T-cell responses. Importantly, in vivo suppression of CD3+ T cells using OKT3 in one subject did not result in recurrence of viremia. These data suggest that broad CD8+ T-cell responses alone may be insufficient to contain HCV replication, and also that early therapy is effective independent of such responses. PMID:16189000
Composition of energetic particles from solar flares.
Garrard, T L; Stone, E C
We present a model for composition of heavy ions in the solar energetic particles (SEP). The SEP composition in a typical large solar particle event reflects the composition of the Sun, with adjustments due to fractionation effects which depend on the first ionization potential (FIP) of the ion and on the ratio of ionic charge to mass (Q/M). Flare-to-flare variations in composition are represented by parameters describing these fractionation effects and the distributions of these parameters are presented.
Solar eruptions: The CME-flare relationship
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Vršnak, B.
Coronal mass ejections (CMEs), caused by large-scale eruptions of the coronal magnetic field, often are accompanied by a more localized energy release in the form of flares, as a result of dissipative magnetic-field reconfiguration. Morphology and evolution of such flares, also denoted as dynamical flares are often explained as a consequence of reconnection of the arcade magnetic field, taking place below the erupting magnetic flux rope. A close relationship of the CME acceleration and the flare energy release is evidenced by various statistical correlations between parameters describing CMEs and flares, as well as by the synchronization of the CME acceleration phase with the impulsive phase of the associated flare. Such behavior implies that there must be a feedback relation between the dynamics of the CME and the flare-associated reconnection process. From the theoretical standpoint, magnetic reconnection affects the CME dynamics in several ways. First, it reduces the tension of the overlying arcade magnetic field and increases the magnetic pressure below the flux rope, and in this way enhances the CME acceleration. Furthermore, it supplies the poloidal magnetic flux to the flux rope, which helps sustaining the electric current in the rope and prolonging the action of the driving Lorentz force to large distances. The role of these processes, directly relating solar flares and CMEs, is illustrated by employing a simple model, where the erupting structure is represented by a curved flux rope anchored at both sides in the dense/inert photosphere, being subject to the kink and torus instability. It is shown that in most strongly accelerated ejections, where values on the order of 10 km s-2 are attained, the poloidal flux supplied to the erupting rope has to be several times larger than was the initial flux.
Regulation of early and delayed radiation responses in rat small intestine by capsaicin-sensitive nerves
Wang Junru; Zheng Huaien; Kulkarni, Ashwini; Ou Xuemei; Hauer-Jensen, Martin . E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
Purpose: Mast cells protect against the early manifestations of intestinal radiation toxicity, but promote chronic intestinal wall fibrosis. Intestinal sensory nerves are closely associated with mast cells, both anatomically and functionally, and serve an important role in the regulation of mucosal homeostasis. This study examined the effect of sensory nerve ablation on the intestinal radiation response in an established rat model. Methods and Materials: Rats underwent sensory nerve ablation with capsaicin or sham ablation. Two weeks later, a localized segment of ileum was X-irradiated or sham irradiated. Structural, cellular, and molecular changes were examined 2 weeks (early injury) and 26 weeks (chronic injury) after irradiation. The mast cell dependence of the effect of sensory nerve ablation on intestinal radiation injury was assessed using c-kit mutant (Ws/Ws) mast cell-deficient rats. Results: Capsaicin treatment caused a baseline reduction in mucosal mast cell density, crypt cell proliferation, and expression of substance P and calcitonin gene-related peptide, two neuropeptides released by sensory neurons. Sensory nerve ablation strikingly exacerbated early intestinal radiation toxicity (loss of mucosal surface area, inflammation, intestinal wall thickening), but attenuated the development of chronic intestinal radiation fibrosis (collagen I accumulation and transforming growth factor {beta} immunoreactivity). In mast cell-deficient rats, capsaicin treatment exacerbated postradiation epithelial injury (loss of mucosal surface area), but none of the other aspects of radiation injury were affected by capsaicin treatment. Conclusions: Ablation of capsaicin-sensitive enteric neurons exacerbates early intestinal radiation toxicity, but attenuates development of chronic fibroproliferative changes. The effect of capsaicin treatment on the intestinal radiation response is partly mast cell dependent.
Adiponectin treatment attenuates inflammatory response during early sepsis in obese mice
Wang, XianFeng; Buechler, Nancy L; Yoza, Barbara K; McCall, Charles E; Vachharajani, Vidula
Background Morbid obesity increases the cost of care in critically ill patients. Sepsis is the leading cause of death in noncoronary intensive care units. Circulating cell–endothelial cell interactions in microcirculation are the rate-determining factors in any inflammation; obesity increases these interactions further. Adiponectin deficiency is implicated in increased cardiovascular risk in obese patients. We have shown that adiponectin deficiency increases microvascular dysfunction in early sepsis. In the present study, we investigated the effect of adiponectin replacement on nutritionally obese mice with early sepsis. Methods We used cecal ligation and puncture model of sepsis in mice with diet-induced obesity (DIO) vs control diet (CTRL), with or without adiponectin treatment. We studied leukocyte/platelet adhesion in the cerebral microcirculation in early sepsis. We also studied the effect of adiponectin on free fatty acid (FFA)-fed and lipopolysaccharide-stimulated bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMDM) for mechanistic studies. Results Leukocyte and platelet adhesion increased in the cerebral microcirculation of DIO and CTRL mice with early sepsis vs. sham; moreover cell adhesion in DIO-sepsis group was significantly higher than in the CTRL-sepsis group. Adiponectin replacement decreased leukocyte/platelet adhesion in CTRL and DIO mice. In FFA-fed BMDM, adiponectin treatment decreased tumor necrosis factor-alpha mRNA expression and increased sirtuin-1 (SIRT1) mRNA expression. Furthermore, using BMDM from SIRT1 knockout mice, we showed that the adiponectin treatment decreased inflammatory response in FFA-fed BMDM via SIRT1-dependent and -independent pathways. Conclusion Adiponectin replacement attenuates microvascular inflammation in DIO-sepsis mice. Mechanistically, adiponectin treatment in FFA-fed mouse macrophages attenuates inflammatory response via SIRT1-dependent and -independent pathways. PMID:27785087
H-alpha spectra of dynamic chromospheric processes in five well-observed X-ray flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Canfield, Richard C.; Penn, Matthew J.; Wulser, Jean-Pierre; Kiplinger, Alan L.
Simultaneous H-alpha and hard X-ray (HXR) spectra were obtained for five solar flares to determine the relationship of H-alpha profiles and the nonthermal part of the flare represented by the hard X-ray burst. All five flares exhibited impulsive-phase redshifted H-alpha in emission, which was temporarily and spatially associated with intense HXR emission and broad impulsive-phase H-alpha wings. A few small regions within two flares showed a blueshifted H-alpha emission which appeared only early in the impulsive phase and was temporally correlated with the HXR emission but not with broad H-alpha wings. Finally, there were both redshifted and blueshifted absorption spectra with properties fully consistent with those known for erupting and untwisting filaments.
Early vs. asymptotic growth responses of herbaceous plants to elevated CO[sub 2
Thomas, S.C.; Jasienski, M.; Bazzaz, F.A. . Dept. of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology)
Although many studies have examined the effects of elevated carbon dioxide on plant growth,'' the dynamics of growth involve at least two parameters, namely, an early rate of exponential size increase and an asymptotic size reached late in plant ontogeny. The common practice of quantifying CO[sub 2] responses as a single response ratio thus obscures two qualitatively distinct kinds of effects. The present experiment examines effects of elevated CO[sub 2] on both early and asymptotic growth parameters in eight C[sub 3] herbaceous plant species (Abutilon theophrasti, Cassia obtusifolia, Plantago major, Rumex crispus, Taraxacum officinale, Dactylis glomerata, Lolium multiflorum, and Panicum dichotomoflorum). Plants were grown for 118--172 d in a factorial design of CO[sub 2] (350 and 700 [micro]L/L) and plant density (individually grown vs. high-density monocultures) under edaphic conditions approximating those of coastal areas in Massachusetts. For Abutilon theophrasti, intraspecific patterns of plant response were also assessed using eight genotypes randomly sampled from a natural population and propagated as inbred lines.
Transcriptome Analysis of Early Responsive Genes in Rice during Magnaporthe oryzae Infection
Wang, Yiming; Kwon, Soon Jae; Wu, Jingni; Choi, Jaeyoung; Lee, Yong-Hwan; Agrawal, Ganesh Kumar; Tamogami, Shigeru; Rakwal, Randeep; Park, Sang-Ryeol; Kim, Beom-Gi; Jung, Ki-Hong; Kang, Kyu Young; Kim, Sang Gon; Kim, Sun Tae
Rice blast disease caused by Magnaporthe oryzae is one of the most serious diseases of cultivated rice (Oryza sativa L.) in most rice-growing regions of the world. In order to investigate early response genes in rice, we utilized the transcriptome analysis approach using a 300 K tilling microarray to rice leaves infected with compatible and incompatible M. oryzae strains. Prior to the microarray experiment, total RNA was validated by measuring the differential expression of rice defense-related marker genes (chitinase 2, barwin, PBZ1, and PR-10) by RT-PCR, and phytoalexins (sakuranetin and momilactone A) with HPLC. Microarray analysis revealed that 231 genes were up-regulated (>2 fold change, p < 0.05) in the incompatible interaction compared to the compatible one. Highly expressed genes were functionally characterized into metabolic processes and oxidation-reduction categories. The oxidative stress response was induced in both early and later infection stages. Biotic stress overview from MapMan analysis revealed that the phytohormone ethylene as well as signaling molecules jasmonic acid and salicylic acid is important for defense gene regulation. WRKY and Myb transcription factors were also involved in signal transduction processes. Additionally, receptor-like kinases were more likely associated with the defense response, and their expression patterns were validated by RT-PCR. Our results suggest that candidate genes, including receptor-like protein kinases, may play a key role in disease resistance against M. oryzae attack. PMID:25506299
Impaired early visual response modulations to spatial information in chronic schizophrenia
Knebel, Jean-François; Javitt, Daniel C.; Murray, Micah M.
Early visual processing stages have been demonstrated to be impaired in schizophrenia patients and their first-degree relatives. The amplitude and topography of the P1 component of the visual evoked potential (VEP) are both affected; the latter of which indicates alterations in active brain networks between populations. At least two issues remain unresolved. First, the specificity of this deficit (and suitability as an endophenotype) has yet to be established, with evidence for impaired P1 responses in other clinical populations. Second, it remains unknown whether schizophrenia patients exhibit intact functional modulation of the P1 VEP component; an aspect that may assist in distinguishing effects specific to schizophrenia. We applied electrical neuroimaging analyses to VEPs from chronic schizophrenia patients and healthy controls in response to variation in the parafoveal spatial extent of stimuli. Healthy controls demonstrated robust modulation of the VEP strength and topography as a function of the spatial extent of stimuli during the P1 component. By contrast, no such modulations were evident at early latencies in the responses from patients with schizophrenia. Source estimations localized these deficits to the left precuneus and medial inferior parietal cortex. These findings provide insights on potential underlying low-level impairments in schizophrenia. PMID:21764264
Gene Expression Profiling Reveals Early Cellular Responses to Intracellular Magnetic Labeling with Superparamagnetic Iron Oxide Nanoparticles
Kedziorek, Dorota A.; Muja, Naser; Walczak, Piotr; Ruiz-Cabello, Jesus; Gilad, Assaf A.; Jie, Chunfa C.; Bulte, Jeff W. M.
With MRI (stem) cell tracking having entered the clinic, studies on the cellular genomic response toward labeling are warranted. Gene expression profiling was applied to C17.2 neural stem cells following superparamagnetic iron oxide/PLL (poly-L-lysine) labeling over the course of 1 week. Relative to unlabeled cells, less than 1% of genes (49 total) exhibited greater than 2-fold difference in expression in response to superparamagnetic iron oxide/PLL labeling. In particular, transferrin receptor 1 (Tfrc) and heme oxygenase 1 (Hmox1) expression was downregulated early, whereas genes involved in lysosomal function (Sulf1) and detoxification (Clu, Cp, Gstm2, Mgst1) were upregulated at later time points. Relative to cells treated with PLL only, cells labeled with superparamagnetic iron oxide/PLL complexes exhibited differential expression of 1399 genes. Though these differentially expressed genes exhibited altered expression over time, the overall extent was limited. Gene ontology analysis of differentially expressed genes showed that genes encoding zinc-binding proteins are enriched after superparamagnetic iron oxide/PLL labeling relative to PLL only treatment, whereas members of the apoptosis/ programmed cell death pathway did not display increased expression. Overexpression of the differentially expressed genes Rnf138 and Abcc4 were confirmed by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. These results demonstrate that, although early reactions responsible for iron homeostasis are induced, overall neural stem cell gene expression remains largely unaltered following superparamagnetic iron oxide/PLL labeling. PMID:20373404
The p66(Shc) adaptor protein controls oxidative stress response in early bovine embryos.
Betts, Dean H; Bain, Nathan T; Madan, Pavneesh
The in vitro production of mammalian embryos suffers from high frequencies of developmental failure due to excessive levels of permanent embryo arrest and apoptosis caused by oxidative stress. The p66Shc stress adaptor protein controls oxidative stress response of somatic cells by regulating intracellular ROS levels through multiple pathways, including mitochondrial ROS generation and the repression of antioxidant gene expression. We have previously demonstrated a strong relationship with elevated p66Shc levels, reduced antioxidant levels and greater intracellular ROS generation with the high incidence of permanent cell cycle arrest of 2-4 cell embryos cultured under high oxygen tensions or after oxidant treatment. The main objective of this study was to establish a functional role for p66Shc in regulating the oxidative stress response during early embryo development. Using RNA interference in bovine zygotes we show that p66Shc knockdown embryos exhibited increased MnSOD levels, reduced intracellular ROS and DNA damage that resulted in a greater propensity for development to the blastocyst stage. P66Shc knockdown embryos were stress resistant exhibiting significantly reduced intracellular ROS levels, DNA damage, permanent 2-4 cell embryo arrest and diminished apoptosis frequencies after oxidant treatment. The results of this study demonstrate that p66Shc controls the oxidative stress response in early mammalian embryos. Small molecule inhibition of p66Shc may be a viable clinical therapy to increase the developmental potential of in vitro produced mammalian embryos.
Transcriptome Analysis of Early Responsive Genes in Rice during Magnaporthe oryzae Infection.
Wang, Yiming; Kwon, Soon Jae; Wu, Jingni; Choi, Jaeyoung; Lee, Yong-Hwan; Agrawal, Ganesh Kumar; Tamogami, Shigeru; Rakwal, Randeep; Park, Sang-Ryeol; Kim, Beom-Gi; Jung, Ki-Hong; Kang, Kyu Young; Kim, Sang Gon; Kim, Sun Tae
Rice blast disease caused by Magnaporthe oryzae is one of the most serious diseases of cultivated rice (Oryza sativa L.) in most rice-growing regions of the world. In order to investigate early response genes in rice, we utilized the transcriptome analysis approach using a 300 K tilling microarray to rice leaves infected with compatible and incompatible M. oryzae strains. Prior to the microarray experiment, total RNA was validated by measuring the differential expression of rice defense-related marker genes (chitinase 2, barwin, PBZ1, and PR-10) by RT-PCR, and phytoalexins (sakuranetin and momilactone A) with HPLC. Microarray analysis revealed that 231 genes were up-regulated (>2 fold change, p < 0.05) in the incompatible interaction compared to the compatible one. Highly expressed genes were functionally characterized into metabolic processes and oxidation-reduction categories. The oxidative stress response was induced in both early and later infection stages. Biotic stress overview from MapMan analysis revealed that the phytohormone ethylene as well as signaling molecules jasmonic acid and salicylic acid is important for defense gene regulation. WRKY and Myb transcription factors were also involved in signal transduction processes. Additionally, receptor-like kinases were more likely associated with the defense response, and their expression patterns were validated by RT-PCR. Our results suggest that candidate genes, including receptor-like protein kinases, may play a key role in disease resistance against M. oryzae attack.
Early response of the visceral pleura following asbestos exposure: an ultrastructural study
Dodson, R.F.; Ford, J.O.
The acute in vivo response of the visceral pleura following intratracheal instillation of amosite asbestos was examined by light microscopy and by transmission and scanning electron microscopy in the guinea pig model. Asbestos fibers were observed close to the pleura in all time periods but were never found within the pleura or subpleural regions proper. Thus, pleural changes occurred in the absence of direct fiber contact. Morphological changes in the pleural and subpleural areas were seen as early as 2 h after exposure and were associated with pathological alterations of the underlying parenchyma. The normally squamous mesothelial cells became pleomorphic, ranging from slightly cuboidal, to protruding columnar-like cells to more bizarre forms. While many organelles remained unaltered, an increase in vacuolizaiton in portions of the pleura indicated localized and advanced intracellular responses. Beginning at 4 h postexposure, particulate-free macrophages were seen on the pleural surface, and were considered an extension of the inflammatory response occurring in the underlying parenchyma. Early proliferation of the mesothelial cells, in limited areas of the pleura, and cytoplasmic extensions into the pleural space were also observed. Distortions of the basal lamina and smooth-muscle bundles accompanied the morphological changes in the pleural cells. A trend toward normality was observed in the longer time frames, but some areas of pleural change persisted through 3 mo postexposure.
Neighborhood Deprivation during Early Childhood and Conduct Problems in Middle Childhood: Mediation by Aggressive Response Generation.
Galán, Chardée A; Shaw, Daniel S; Dishion, Thomas J; Wilson, Melvin N
The tremendous negative impact of conduct problems to the individual and society has provided the impetus for identifying risk factors, particularly in early childhood. Exposure to neighborhood deprivation in early childhood is a robust predictor of conduct problems in middle childhood. Efforts to identify and test mediating mechanisms by which neighborhood deprivation confers increased risk for behavioral problems have predominantly focused on peer relationships and community-level social processes. Less attention has been dedicated to potential cognitive mediators of this relationship, such as aggressive response generation, which refers to the tendency to generate aggressive solutions to ambiguous social stimuli with negative outcomes. In this study, we examined aggressive response generation, a salient component of social information processing, as a mediating process linking neighborhood deprivation to later conduct problems at age 10.5. Participants (N = 731; 50.5 % male) were drawn from a multisite randomized prevention trial that includes an ethnically diverse and low-income sample of male and female children and their primary caregivers followed prospectively from toddlerhood to middle childhood. Results indicated that aggressive response generation partially mediated the relationship between neighborhood deprivation and parent- and teacher-report of conduct problems, but not youth-report. Results suggest that the detrimental effects of neighborhood deprivation on youth adjustment may occur by altering the manner in which children process social information.
Early immunological response to German cockroach frass exposure induces a Th2/Th17 environment.
Page, Kristen; Zhou, Ping; Ledford, John R; Day, Scottie B; Lutfi, Riad; Dienger, Krista; Lewkowich, Ian P
Cockroach exposure is a major risk factor for the development of asthma; however, the early immune events induced by cockroach leading to the Th2 response are not fully understood. Exposure of naïve mice to German cockroach (GC) feces (frass) was sufficient to induce dendritic cell (DC) recruiting and activating chemokines C-C motif ligand 20, granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor and macrophage inflammatory protein-1α into the airways. This corresponded with an increase in myeloid DCs (mDCs) in the airways as well as increased expression of CD80 and CD86 on the mDCs. Plasmacytoid DCs in the lung were unchanged. Levels of IL-5, IL-17A and IL-6 cytokines in whole lung cultures were significantly increased 18 h following GC frass exposure demonstrating the early development of a mixed Th2/Th17 response. In addition, GC frass stimulated the production of IL-23, IL-6 and IL-12p70 from bone marrow-derived mDCs. Adoptive transfer of GC frass-pulsed mDCs induced airway reactivity, airway inflammation as well as eosinophilia and induced a strong Th2/Th17 response in the lung. MyD88-deficient bone marrow-derived mDCs did not respond to GC frass treatment, suggesting a functional Toll-like receptor pathway was important to induce the Th2/Th17 response. Together, our data show that GC frass activated the innate immune response to augment DC recruitment and activation of mDCs which promoted robust T cell-skewing cytokines and ultimately drive the development of airway inflammation.
Multithread Hydrodynamic Modeling of a Solar Flare
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Warren, Harry P.
Past hydrodynamic simulations have been able to reproduce the high temperatures and densities characteristic of solar flares. These simulations, however, have not been able to account for the slow decay of the observed flare emission or the absence of blueshifts in high spectral resolution line profiles. Recent work has suggested that modeling a flare as a sequence of independently heated threads instead of as a single loop may resolve the discrepancies between the simulations and observations. In this paper, we present a method for computing multithread, time-dependent hydrodynamic simulations of solar flares and apply it to observations of the Masuda flare of 1992 January 13. We show that it is possible to reproduce the temporal evolution of high temperature thermal flare plasma observed with the instruments on the GOES and Yohkoh satellites. The results from these simulations suggest that the heating timescale for a individual thread is on the order of 200 s. Significantly shorter heating timescales (20 s) lead to very high temperatures and are inconsistent with the emission observed by Yohkoh.
Absolute Abundance Measurements in Solar Flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Warren, Harry
We present measurements of elemental abundances in solar flares with EVE/SDO and EIS/Hinode. EVE observes both high temperature Fe emission lines Fe XV-XXIV and continuum emission from thermal bremsstrahlung that is proportional to the abundance of H. By comparing the relative intensities of line and continuum emission it is possible to determine the enrichment of the flare plasma relative to the composition of the photosphere. This is the first ionization potential or FIP bias (F). Since thermal bremsstrahlung at EUV wavelengths is relatively insensitive to the electron temperature it is important to account for the distribution of electron temperatures in the emitting plasma. We accomplish this by using the observed spectra to infer the differential emission measure distribution and FIP bias simultaneously. In each of the 21 flares that we analyze we find that the observed composition is close to photospheric. The mean FIP bias in our sample is F=1.17+-0.22. Furthermore, we have compared the EVE measurements with corresponding flare observations of intermediate temperature S, Ar, Ca, and Fe emission lines taken with EIS. Our initial calculations also indicate a photospheric composition for these observations. This analysis suggests that the bulk of the plasma evaporated during a flare comes from deep in the chromosphere, below the region where elemental fractionation in the non-flaring corona occurs.
Global ionospheric flare detection system (GIFDS)
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Wenzel, Daniela; Jakowski, Norbert; Berdermann, Jens; Mayer, Christoph; Valladares, Cesar; Heber, Bernd
The Global Ionospheric Flare Detection System (GIFDS) is currently under development at the German Aerospace Center as a ground based detector for continuous monitoring of the solar flare activity in order to provide real time warnings on solar X-ray events. GIFDS is using Very Low Frequency (VLF) radio transmissions in the northern hemisphere which respond to enhanced ionization in the bottomside ionosphere caused by X-ray flares. Since solar flares can only be detected during daytime, VLF receivers have to be installed around the globe to guarantee continuous records at the dayside sector. GIFDS consists of a network of Perseus SDR (Software Defined Radio) receivers equipped with a MiniWhip antenna each. Reliable detection of solar flares is ensured by recording multiple frequency channels ranging from 0 to 500 kHz. The applicability of the system is demonstrated in a first analysis by comparing VLF measurements with GOES's (Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite) X-ray flux data. The high potential of GIFDS for a permanent monitoring of solar flares in near real time is discussed.
Flare Size Distributions and Active Region Types
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Bai, Taeil
Size distributions of solar flares measured by various size indicators follow a power law with a negative index of about 1.8. On the basis of general appearance of power-law distributions, Lu and his collegues proposed an avalenche model. According to this model, the power-law index should be independent of active region size, but the cutoff size above which the size distribution steepens rapidly is expected to depend on the active region size. I have analyzed the size distribution of flares, using GOES soft X-ray observations for 2004 and 2005. For flares observed by GOES during these years, their locations are almost completely identified even for C-class flares. This enable us to study the dependence of size distribution on active region type. Comparing the power-law portion of size distributions below the high-end cutoff, I have found that the size distribution index depends on active region type. Flares from prolific active regions exhibit a flatter distribution, while flares from non-prolific active regions exhibit a steeper distribution. I plan to discuss a plausible mechanism for such behavior.
The EVE Doppler Sensitivity and Flare Observations
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Hudson, H. S.; Woods, T. N.; Chamberlin, P. C.; Didkovsky, L.; Del Zanna, G.
The Extreme-ultraviolet Variability Experiment (EVE) obtains continuous EUV spectra of the Sun viewed as a star. Its primary objective is the characterization of solar spectral irradiance, but its sensitivity and stability make it extremely interesting for observations of variability on time scales down to the limit imposed by its basic 10 s sample interval. In this paper we characterize the Doppler sensitivity of the EVE data. We find that the 30.4 nm line of He II has a random Doppler error below 0.001 nm (1 pm, better than 10 km/s as a redshift), with ample stability to detect the orbital motion of its satellite, the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). Solar flares also displace the spectrum, both because of Doppler shifts and because of EVE's optical layout, which (as with a slitless spectrograph) confuses position and wavelength. As a flare develops, the centroid of the line displays variations that reflect Doppler shifts and therefore flare dynamics. For the impulsive phase of the flare SOL2010-06-12, we find the line centroid to have a redshift of 16.8 +/- 5.9 km/s relative to that of the flare gradual phase (statistical errors only). We find also that high-temperature lines, such as Fe XXIV 19.2 nm, have well-determined Doppler components for major flares, with decreasing apparent blueshifts as expected from chromospheric evaporation flows.
Ionospheric effects of solar flares at Mars
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Mahajan, K. K.; Lodhi, Neelesh K.; Singh, Sachchidanand
From an analysis of electron density profiles recorded aboard Mars Global Surveyor, we report observations of some new and aeronomically important solar flare effects in the ionosphere of Mars. We find that all flares result in the formation of a well defined E layer peak, not always seen on other days. Further, while majority of flares result in elevated electron densities in the E region alone, some flares affect both the E and F1 layers. These altitude - related effects can provide vital information on the relative enhancement of photon fluxes in the various wavelength bands during solar flares. By using the unit optical depth values at Mars from Fox (2004) and the XUV irradiance model of Meier et al. (2002) for the Bastille Day solar flare, we infer that the well defined E peaks could result from enhancement of photon fluxes in the 10-13 nm spectral band. The extension of effect to the F1 layer is due to hardening of the 26-91 nm spectral band, as supported by Solar EUV Monitor measurements on Solar Heliospheric Observatory.
Using Two-Ribbon Flare Observations and MHD Simulations to Constrain Flare Properties
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kazachenko, Maria D.; Lynch, Benjamin J.; Welsch, Brian
Flare ribbons are emission structures that are frequently observed during flares in transition-region and chromospheric radiation. These typically straddle a polarity inversion line (PIL) of the radial magnetic field at the photosphere, and move apart as the flare progresses. The ribbon flux - the amount of unsigned photospheric magnetic flux swept out by flare ribbons - is thought to be related to the amount coronal magnetic reconnection, and hence provides a key diagnostic tool for understanding the physical processes at work in flares and CMEs. Previous measurements of the magnetic flux swept out by flare ribbons required time-consuming co-alignment between magnetograph and intensity data from different instruments, explaining why those studies only analyzed, at most, a few events. The launch of the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) and the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA), both aboard the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), presented a rare opportunity to compile a much larger sample of flare-ribbon events than could readily be assembled before. We created a dataset of 363 events of both flare ribbon positions and fluxes, as a function of time, for all C9.-class and greater flares within 45 degrees of disk center observed by SDO from June 2010 till April 2015. For this purpose, we used vector magnetograms (2D magnetic field maps) from HMI and UV images from AIA. A critical problem with using unprocessed AIA data is the existence of spurious intensities in AIA data associated with strong flare emission, most notably "blooming" (spurious smearing of saturated signal into neighboring pixels, often in streaks). To overcome this difficulty, we have developed an algorithmic procedure that effectively excludes artifacts like blooming. We present our database and compare statistical properties of flare ribbons, e.g. evolutions of ribbon reconnection fluxes, reconnection flux rates and vertical currents with the properties from MHD simulations.
Effects of flare definitions on the statistics of derived flare distributions
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Ryan, D. F.; Dominique, M.; Seaton, D.; Stegen, K.; White, A.
The statistical examination of solar flares is crucial to revealing their global characteristics and behaviour. Such examinations can tackle large-scale science questions or give context to detailed single-event studies. However, they are often performed using standard but basic flare detection algorithms relying on arbitrary thresholds. This arbitrariness may lead to important scientific conclusions being drawn from results caused by subjective choices in algorithms rather than the true nature of the Sun. In this paper, we explore the effect of the arbitrary thresholds used in the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) event list and Large Yield RAdiometer (LYRA) Flare Finder algorithms. We find that there is a small but significant relationship between the power law exponent of the GOES flare peak flux frequency distribution and the flare start thresholds of the algorithms. We also find that the power law exponents of these distributions are not stable, but appear to steepen with increasing peak flux. This implies that the observed flare size distribution may not be a power law at all. We show that depending on the true value of the exponent of the flare size distribution, this deviation from a power law may be due to flares missed by the flare detection algorithms. However, it is not possible determine the true exponent from GOES/XRS observations. Additionally we find that the PROBA2/LYRA flare size distributions are artificially steep and clearly non-power law. We show that this is consistent with an insufficient degradation correction. This means that PROBA2/LYRA should not be used for flare statistics or energetics unless degradation is adequately accounted for. However, it can be used to study variations over shorter timescales and for space weather monitoring.
The October 28, 2003 extreme EUV solar flare and resultant extreme ionospheric effects: Comparison to other Halloween events and the Bastille Day event
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Tsurutani, B. T.; Judge, D. L.; Guarnieri, F. L.; Gangopadhyay, P.; Jones, A. R.; Nuttall, J.; Zambon, G. A.; Didkovsky, L.; Mannucci, A. J.; Iijima, B.; Meier, R. R.; Immel, T. J.; Woods, T. N.; Prasad, S.; Floyd, L.; Huba, J.; Solomon, S. C.; Straus, P.; Viereck, R.
Some of the most intense solar flares measured in 0.1 to 0.8 nm x-rays in recent history occurred near the end of 2003. The Nov 4 event is the largest in the NOAA records (X28) and the Oct 28 flare was the fourth most intense (X17). The Oct 29 flare was class X7. These flares are compared and contrasted to the July 14, 2000 Bastille Day (X10) event using the SOHO SEM 26.0 to 34.0 nm EUV and TIMED SEE 0.1-194 nm data. High time resolution, ~30s ground-base GPS data and the GUVI FUV dayglow data are used to examine the flare-ionosphere relationship. In the 26.0 to 34.0 nm wavelength range, the Oct 28 flare is found to have a peak intensity greater than twice that of the Nov 4 flare, indicating strong spectral variability from flare-to-flare. Solar absorption of the EUV portion of the Nov 4 limb event is a possible cause. The dayside ionosphere responds dramatically (~2.5 min 1/e rise time) to the x-ray and EUV input by an abrupt increase in total electron content (TEC). The Oct 28 TEC ionospheric peak enhancement at the subsolar point is ~25 TECU (25 × 1012 electrons/cm2) or 30% above background. In comparison, the Nov 4, Oct 29 and the Bastille Day events have ~5-7 TECU peak enhancements above background. The Oct 28 TEC enhancement lasts ~3 hrs, far longer than the flare duration. This latter ionospheric feature is consistent with increased electron production in the middle altitude ionosphere, where recombination rates are low. It is the EUV portion of the flare spectrum that is responsible for photoionization of this region. Further modeling will be necessary to fully understand the detailed physics and chemistry of flare-ionosphere coupling.
Early establishment of trees at the alpine treeline: idiosyncratic species responses to temperature-moisture interactions
Loranger, Hannah; Zotz, Gerhard; Bader, Maaike Y.
On a global scale, temperature is the main determinant of arctic and alpine treeline position. However on a local scale, treeline form and position vary considerably due to other climatic factors, tree species ecology and life-stage-dependent responses. For treelines to advance poleward or uphill, the first steps are germination and seedling establishment. These earliest life stages may be major bottlenecks for treeline tree populations and will depend differently on climatic conditions than adult trees. We investigated the effect of soil temperature and moisture on germination and early seedling survival in a field experiment in the French Alps near the local treeline (2100 m a.s.l.) using passive temperature manipulations and two watering regimes. Five European treeline tree species were studied: Larix decidua, Picea abies, Pinus cembra, Pinus uncinata and Sorbus aucuparia. In addition, we monitored the germination response of three of these species to low temperatures under controlled conditions in growth chambers. The early establishment of these trees at the alpine treeline was limited either by temperature or by moisture, the sensitivity to one factor often depending on the intensity of the other. The results showed that the relative importance of the two factors and the direction of the effects are highly species-specific, while both factors tend to have consistent effects on both germination and early seedling survival within each species. We show that temperature and water availability are both important contributors to establishment patterns of treeline trees and hence to species-specific forms and positions of alpine treelines. The observed idiosyncratic species responses highlight the need for studies including several species and life-stages to create predictive power concerning future treeline dynamics. PMID:27402618
Early establishment of trees at the alpine treeline: idiosyncratic species responses to temperature-moisture interactions.
Loranger, Hannah; Zotz, Gerhard; Bader, Maaike Y
On a global scale, temperature is the main determinant of arctic and alpine treeline position. However on a local scale, treeline form and position vary considerably due to other climatic factors, tree species ecology and life-stage-dependent responses. For treelines to advance poleward or uphill, the first steps are germination and seedling establishment. These earliest life stages may be major bottlenecks for treeline tree populations and will depend differently on climatic conditions than adult trees. We investigated the effect of soil temperature and moisture on germination and early seedling survival in a field experiment in the French Alps near the local treeline (2100 m a.s.l.) using passive temperature manipulations and two watering regimes. Five European treeline tree species were studied: Larix decidua, Picea abies, Pinus cembra, Pinus uncinata and Sorbus aucuparia In addition, we monitored the germination response of three of these species to low temperatures under controlled conditions in growth chambers. The early establishment of these trees at the alpine treeline was limited either by temperature or by moisture, the sensitivity to one factor often depending on the intensity of the other. The results showed that the relative importance of the two factors and the direction of the effects are highly species-specific, while both factors tend to have consistent effects on both germination and early seedling survival within each species. We show that temperature and water availability are both important contributors to establishment patterns of treeline trees and hence to species-specific forms and positions of alpine treelines. The observed idiosyncratic species responses highlight the need for studies including several species and life-stages to create predictive power concerning future treeline dynamics.
Circulating tumor DNA as an early marker of therapeutic response in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer
Tie, J.; Kinde, I.; Wang, Y.; Wong, H. L.; Roebert, J.; Christie, M.; Tacey, M.; Wong, R.; Singh, M.; Karapetis, C. S.; Desai, J.; Tran, B.; Strausberg, R. L.; Diaz, L. A.; Papadopoulos, N.; Kinzler, K. W.; Vogelstein, B.; Gibbs, P.
Background Early indicators of treatment response in metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) could conceivably be used to optimize treatment. We explored early changes in circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) levels as a marker of therapeutic efficacy. Patients and methods This prospective study involved 53 mCRC patients receiving standard first-line chemotherapy. Both ctDNA and CEA were assessed in plasma collected before treatment, 3 days after treatment and before cycle 2. Computed tomography (CT) scans were carried out at baseline and 8–10 weeks and were centrally assessed using RECIST v1.1 criteria. Tumors were sequenced using a panel of 15 genes frequently mutated in mCRC to identify candidate mutations for ctDNA analysis. For each patient, one tumor mutation was selected to assess the presence and the level of ctDNA in plasma samples using a digital genomic assay termed Safe-SeqS. Results Candidate mutations for ctDNA analysis were identified in 52 (98.1%) of the tumors. These patient-specific candidate tissue mutations were detectable in the cell-free DNA from the plasma of 48 of these 52 patients (concordance 92.3%). Significant reductions in ctDNA (median 5.7-fold; P < 0.001) levels were observed before cycle 2, which correlated with CT responses at 8–10 weeks (odds ratio = 5.25 with a 10-fold ctDNA reduction; P = 0.016). Major reductions (≥10-fold) versus lesser reductions in ctDNA precycle 2 were associated with a trend for increased progression-free survival (median 14.7 versus 8.1 months; HR = 1.87; P = 0.266). Conclusions ctDNA is detectable in a high proportion of treatment naïve mCRC patients. Early changes in ctDNA during first-line chemotherapy predict the later radiologic response. PMID:25851626
Th1 and Th17 hypercytokinemia as early host response signature in severe pandemic influenza
Introduction Human host immune response following infection with the new variant of A/H1N1 pandemic influenza virus (nvH1N1) is poorly understood. We utilize here systemic cytokine and antibody levels in evaluating differences in early immune response in both mild and severe patients infected with nvH1N1. Methods We profiled 29 cytokines and chemokines and evaluated the haemagglutination inhibition activity as quantitative and qualitative measurements of host immune responses in serum obtained during the first five days after symptoms onset, in two cohorts of nvH1N1 infected patients. Severe patients required hospitalization (n = 20), due to respiratory insufficiency (10 of them were admitted to the intensive care unit), while mild patients had exclusively flu-like symptoms (n = 15). A group of healthy donors was included as control (n = 15). Differences in levels of mediators between groups were assessed by using the non parametric U-Mann Whitney test. Association between variables was determined by calculating the Spearman correlation coefficient. Viral load was performed in serum by using real-time PCR targeting the neuraminidase gene. Results Increased levels of innate-immunity mediators (IP-10, MCP-1, MIP-1β), and the absence of anti-nvH1N1 antibodies, characterized the early response to nvH1N1 infection in both hospitalized and mild patients. High systemic levels of type-II interferon (IFN-γ) and also of a group of mediators involved in the development of T-helper 17 (IL-8, IL-9, IL-17, IL-6) and T-helper 1 (TNF-α, IL-15, IL-12p70) responses were exclusively found in hospitalized patients. IL-15, IL-12p70, IL-6 constituted a hallmark of critical illness in our study. A significant inverse association was found between IL-6, IL-8 and PaO2 in critical patients. Conclusions While infection with the nvH1N1 induces a typical innate response in both mild and severe patients, severe disease with respiratory involvement is characterized by early secretion of Th17
Oilfield Flare Gas Electricity Systems (OFFGASES Project)
Rachel Henderson; Robert Fickes
The Oilfield Flare Gas Electricity Systems (OFFGASES) project was developed in response to a cooperative agreement offering by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) under Preferred Upstream Management Projects (PUMP III). Project partners included the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission (IOGCC) as lead agency working with the California Energy Commission (CEC) and the California Oil Producers Electric Cooperative (COPE). The project was designed to demonstrate that the entire range of oilfield 'stranded gases' (gas production that can not be delivered to a commercial market because it is poor quality, or the quantity is too small to be economically sold, or there are no pipeline facilities to transport it to market) can be cost-effectively harnessed to make electricity. The utilization of existing, proven distribution generation (DG) technologies to generate electricity was field-tested successfully at four marginal well sites, selected to cover a variety of potential scenarios: high Btu, medium Btu, ultra-low Btu gas, as well as a 'harsh', or high contaminant, gas. Two of the four sites for the OFFGASES project were idle wells that were shut in because of a lack of viable solutions for the stranded noncommercial gas that they produced. Converting stranded gas to useable electrical energy eliminates a waste stream that has potential negative environmental impacts to the oil production operation. The electricity produced will offset that which normally would be purchased from an electric utility, potentially lowering operating costs and extending the economic life of the oil wells. Of the piloted sites, the most promising technologies to handle the range were microturbines that have very low emissions. One recently developed product, the Flex-Microturbine, has the potential to handle the entire range of oilfield gases. It is deployed at an oilfield near Santa Barbara to run on waste gas that is only 4% the
In-vivo response of the Human Uterus to Orciprenaline in Early Labour
Tyack, A. J.; Baillie, P.; Meehan, F. P.
The effect of orciprenaline on uterine activity in 10 women in early induced labour at term with intact membranes was studied. Nine had uterine contractions in response to intravenous oxytocin and one to prostaglandin E2. The inhibition of uterine contractility was dose-dependent. The effective dose varied between 10 and 20 μg/minute. Tachyphylaxis was not observed. The only significant effects noted in the mother were tachycardia and increased pulse pressure and in the fetus a smaller increase in heart rate. PMID:5090762
Golden bullet-denosumab: early rapid response of metastatic giant cell tumor of the bone.
Demirsoy, Ugur; Karadogan, Meriban; Selek, Özgür; Anik, Yonca; Aksu, Görkem; Müezzinoglu, Bahar; Corapcioglu, Funda
Giant cell tumor of the bone (GCTB) is usually a benign, locally aggressive tumor with metastatic potential. Histogenesis of GCTB is unknown and a correlation has not been found between histologic and clinical course. For this reason, many authors consider its prognosis unpredictable. Lung metastasis after GCTB treatment is well known and generally has unfavorable outcome, despite varied chemotherapy regimens. Denosumab, which inhibits RANK-RANKL interaction, is a new, promising actor among targeted therapeutic agents for GCTB. In this report, we emphasize on early rapid response to denosumab in metastatic GCTB.
About the onsets of closely-consecutive homologous flares
Martres, M.J.; Mein, N.
The onsets of closely consecutive homologous flares (CCHF), which are separated by less than 6 hours and most often by about 1 hour, are compared with that of isolated flares (no flare in the region half a day before). Isolated flares appear to be formed of two components, a surging arch and a flaring arch, while a set of CCHF may be composed of consecutive elementary flares or of a series of complex ones. It is shown that the onset of eruptive flare phenomena is not the same for an isolated event and for a member of CCHF (excluding the first) as found in H-alpha and EUV observations, and probably in X-ray observations also. It is suggested that a CCHF set would become a single flare with episodic enhancement of brightness by taking account of the common H-alpha behavior of surging and flaring arches as well as the EUV emission.
About the onsets of closely-consecutive homologous flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Martres, M. J.; Mein, N.; Mein, P.; Mouradian, Z.; Rayrole, J.; Schmieder, B.; Simon, G.; Soru-Escaut, I.; Woodgate, B.; Strong, K.
The onsets of closely consecutive homologous flares (CCHF), which are separated by less than 6 hours and most often by about 1 hour, are compared with that of isolated flares (no flare in the region half a day before). Isolated flares appear to be formed of two components, a surging arch and a flaring arch, while a set of CCHF may be composed of consecutive elementary flares or of a series of complex ones. It is shown that the onset of eruptive flare phenomena is not the same for an isolated event and for a member of CCHF (excluding the first) as found in H-alpha and EUV observations, and probably in X-ray observations also. It is suggested that a CCHF set would become a single flare with episodic enhancement of brightness by taking account of the common H-alpha behavior of surging and flaring arches as well as the EUV emission.
Peak flux of flares associated with coronal mass ejections
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Sheshagiriyappa Suryanarayana, Gadikere; Manjunathayya Balakrishna, Kagalagodu
Features of flares that occur in association with coronal mass ejections (CMEs) have often displayed variations compared to flares with no associated CMEs. A comparative estimation of peak flux values of flares associated with CMEs and those without CMEs is made. Peak flux values of flares associated with CMEs show distinctly higher values in comparison to flares with no associated CMEs. Higher peak flux of CME associated flares may be attributed to the heating of plasma to higher temperature when associated with CMEs. While providing a distinct difference between the flux values of flares clearly associated with CMEs compared to flares associated with no CMEs, this study also highlights an evident difficulty in making distinct flare-CME associations.
Solar and stellar flares and their impact on planets
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Shibata, Kazunari
Recent observations of the Sun revealed that the solar atmosphere is full of flares and flare-like phenomena, which affect terrestrial environment and our civilization. It has been established that flares are caused by the release of magnetic energy through magnetic reconnection. Many stars show flares similar to solar flares, and such stellar flares especially in stars with fast rotation are much more energetic than solar flares. These are called superflares. The total energy of a solar flare is 1029 - 1032 erg, while that of a superflare is 1033 - 1038 erg. Recently, it was found that superflares (with 1034 - 1035 erg) occur on Sun-like stars with slow rotation with frequency once in 800 - 5000 years. This suggests the possibility of superflares on the Sun. We review recent development of solar and stellar flare research, and briefly discuss possible impacts of superflares on the Earth and exoplanets.
Statistical and theoretical studies of flares from Sagittarius A*
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Li, Ya-Ping; Yuan, Qiang; Wang, Q. Daniel; Chen, P. F.; Neilsen, Joseph; Fang, Taotao; Zhang, Shuo; Dexter, Jason
Multi-wavelength flares have routinely been observed from the supermassive black hole, Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*), at our Galactic center. The nature of these flares remains largely unclear, despite many theoretical models. We study the statistical properties of the Sgr A* X-ray flares and find that they are consistent with the theoretical prediction of the self-organized criticality system with the spatial dimension S = 3. We suggest that the X-ray flares represent plasmoid ejections driven by magnetic reconnection (similar to solar flares) in the accretion flow onto the black hole. Motivated by the statistical results, we further develop a time-dependent magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) model for the multi-band flares from Sgr A* by analogy with models of solar flares/coronal mass ejections (CMEs). We calculate the X-ray, infrared flare light curves, and the spectra, and find that our model can explain the main features of the flares.
Xu, Zhe; Jiang, Yunchun; Yang, Jiayang; Yang, Bo; Bi, Yi
We present observations of the violent changes in photospheric magnetic structures associated with an X1.1 flare, which occurred in a compact δ-configuration region in the following part of AR 11890 on 2013 November 8. In both central and peripheral penumbra regions of the small δ sunspot, these changes took place abruptly and permanently in the reverse direction during the flare: the inner/outer penumbra darkened/disappeared, where the magnetic fields became more horizontal/vertical. Particularly, the Lorentz force (LF) changes in the central/peripheral region had a downward/upward and inward direction, meaning that the local pressure from the upper atmosphere was enhanced/released. It indicates that the LF changes might be responsible for the penumbra changes. These observations can be well explained as the photospheric response to the coronal field reconstruction within the framework of the magnetic implosion theory and the back reaction model of flares.
EUV irradiance observations from SDO/EVE as a diagnostic of solar flares
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Milligan, Ryan O.
For the past six years, the EUV Variability Experiment (EVE) onboard the Solar Dynamics Observatory has been monitoring changes in the Sun's extreme ultraviolet output over a range of timescales. Its primary function is to provide measurements of the solar spectral irradiance that is responsible for driving fluctuations in Earth's ionosphere and thermosphere. However, despite its modest spectral resolution and lack of spatial information, the EVE spectral range contains many lines and continua that have become invaluable for diagnosing the response of the lower solar atmosphere itself to an injection of energy, particularly during a flare's impulsive phase. In addition, high temperature emission lines can also be used to track changes in temperature and density of flaring plasma in the corona. The high precision of EVE observations are therefore crucial in helping us understand particle acceleration and energy transport mechanisms during solar flares, as well as the origins of the Sun's most geoeffective emission.
Transcriptome analysis of silkworm, Bombyx mori, during early response to Beauveria bassiana challenges.
Hou, Chengxiang; Qin, Guangxing; Liu, Ting; Geng, Tao; Gao, Kun; Pan, Zhonghua; Qian, Heying; Guo, Xijie
Host-pathogen interactions are complex processes and it is a central challenge to reveal these interactions. Fungal infection of silkworm, Bombyx mori, may induce a variety of responsive reaction. However, little is known about the molecular mechanism of silkworm immune response against the fungal infection. To obtain an overview of the interaction between silkworm and an entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana, Digital Gene Expression profiling, a tag based high-throughput transcriptome sequencing method, was employed to screen and identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs, FDR ≤ 0.001, ∣log2ratio∣ ≥ 1) of silkworm larvae during early response against B. bassiana infection. Total 1430 DEGs including 960 up-regulated and 470 down-regulated ones were identified, of which 627 DEGs can be classified into GO categories by Gene Ontology (GO) analysis. KEGG pathways analysis of these DEGs suggested that many biological processes, such as defense and response, signal transduction, phagocytosis, regulation of gene expression, RNA splicing, biosynthesis and metabolism, protein transport etc. were involved in the interaction between the silkworm and B. bassiana. A number of differentially expressed fungal genes were also identified by mapping the sequencing tags to B. bassiana genome. These results provided new insights to the molecular mechanism of silkworm immune response to B. bassiana infection.
ALD1 Regulates Basal Immune Components and Early Inducible Defense Responses in Arabidopsis.
Cecchini, Nicolás M; Jung, Ho Won; Engle, Nancy L; Tschaplinski, Timothy J; Greenberg, Jean T
Robust immunity requires basal defense machinery to mediate timely responses and feedback cycles to amplify defenses against potentially spreading infections. AGD2-LIKE DEFENSE RESPONSE PROTEIN 1 (ALD1) is needed for the accumulation of the plant defense signal salicylic acid (SA) during the first hours after infection with the pathogen Pseudomonas syringae and is also upregulated by infection and SA. ALD1 is an aminotransferase with multiple substrates and products in vitro. Pipecolic acid (Pip) is an ALD1-dependent bioactive product induced by P. syringae. Here, we addressed roles of ALD1 in mediating defense amplification as well as the levels and responses of basal defense machinery. ALD1 needs immune components PAD4 and ICS1 (an SA synthesis enzyme) to confer disease resistance, possibly through a transcriptional amplification loop between them. Furthermore, ALD1 affects basal defense by controlling microbial-associated molecular pattern (MAMP) receptor levels and responsiveness. Vascular exudates from uninfected ALD1-overexpressing plants confer local immunity to the wild type and ald1 mutants yet are not enriched for Pip. We infer that, in addition to affecting Pip accumulation, ALD1 produces non-Pip metabolites that play roles in immunity. Thus, distinct metabolite signals controlled by the same enzyme affect basal and early defenses versus later defense responses, respectively.
Early Versus Late Onset of Cannabis Use: Differences in Striatal Response to Cannabis Cues
Wetherill, Reagan R.; Hager, Nathan; Jagannathan, Kanchana; Mashhoon, Yasmin; Pater, Heather; Childress, Anna Rose; Franklin, Teresa R.
Addiction theories posit that addiction is the result of a progressive transition from voluntary to habitual, compulsive drug use—changes that have been linked, in animals, to a shift from ventral to dorsal striatal control over drug-seeking behavior. Thus, we hypothesized that early-onset (EOs) cannabis users versus late-onset (LOs) cannabis users might exhibit, respectively, greater dorsal versus ventral striatal response to drug cues. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging and an event-related blood oxygen level-dependent backward-masking task to evaluate striatal responses to backward-masked cannabis cues (vs. neutral cues) in EOs (<16 years old, n = 15) and LOs (≥16 years old, n = 26) with similar recent cannabis use patterns. Direct comparisons revealed that EOs showed greater response to cannabis cues in the dorsal striatum than LOs (p < 0.01, k > 50 voxels). Within-group analyses revealed that EOs showed greater neural response to cannabis cues in the dorsal striatum, whereas LOs exhibited greater neural response to cannabis cues in the ventral striatum. Although cross-sectional, these findings are consistent with recent addiction theories suggesting a progressive shift from ventral to dorsal striatal control over drug-seeking behavior and highlight the importance of age of onset of cannabis use on the brain and cognition. PMID:28331903
Effects of argon laser radiation on aortic endothelial cells: Early membrane changes and proliferative response
Franceschi, D.; Graham, D.; Alexander, J.J.; Koehler, K. )
Membrane fluidity, transmembrane signaling responses, and proliferative characteristics of endothelial cells were studied to characterize biochemical and molecular changes after treatment with argon laser energy. Bovine aortic endothelial cells grown in monolayers were irradiated at 50, 100, and 200 J with an argon laser (wavelength, 488 and 514 nm). Proliferation, assayed by ({sup }3H)thymidine incorporation, was measured daily for 6 days. An initial lag phase was observed for irradiated cells when compared to nonirradiated controls (P less than 0.03), with eventual recovery by the third day. Membrane fluidity, determined by fluorescence anisotropy, was measured 1 hr after irradiation. A decrease in static rotational motion of 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH) was noted in irradiated versus nonirradiated cells indicating a decrease in membrane fluidity (P less than 0.02). Dynamic studies of intracellular calcium and pH flux utilizing fluorescent probes demonstrated a preserved response to mitogenic stimulation. An increase in intracellular Ca2+ with a concomitant alkalinization of the intracellular milieu was observed in irradiated and non-irradiated cells in response to stimulation with endothelial cell growth factor (ECGF). These responses resemble those characterized for other mitogens. Argon laser energy applied to aortic endothelial cells decreases membrane fluidity early after irradiation. These alterations probably cause the initial lag observed in their proliferative response; however, the capacity to respond to exogenous mitogenic stimulation is maintained.
Vestibular activation differentially modulates human early visual cortex and V5/MT excitability and response entropy.
Seemungal, Barry M; Guzman-Lopez, Jessica; Arshad, Qadeer; Schultz, Simon R; Walsh, Vincent; Yousif, Nada
Head movement imposes the additional burdens on the visual system of maintaining visual acuity and determining the origin of retinal image motion (i.e., self-motion vs. object-motion). Although maintaining visual acuity during self-motion is effected by minimizing retinal slip via the brainstem vestibular-ocular reflex, higher order visuovestibular mechanisms also contribute. Disambiguating self-motion versus object-motion also invokes higher order mechanisms, and a cortical visuovestibular reciprocal antagonism is propounded. Hence, one prediction is of a vestibular modulation of visual cortical excitability and indirect measures have variously suggested none, focal or global effects of activation or suppression in human visual cortex. Using transcranial magnetic stimulation-induced phosphenes to probe cortical excitability, we observed decreased V5/MT excitability versus increased early visual cortex (EVC) excitability, during vestibular activation. In order to exclude nonspecific effects (e.g., arousal) on cortical excitability, response specificity was assessed using information theory, specifically response entropy. Vestibular activation significantly modulated phosphene response entropy for V5/MT but not EVC, implying a specific vestibular effect on V5/MT responses. This is the first demonstration that vestibular activation modulates human visual cortex excitability. Furthermore, using information theory, not previously used in phosphene response analysis, we could distinguish between a specific vestibular modulation of V5/MT excitability from a nonspecific effect at EVC.
Transcriptome Analysis of Silkworm, Bombyx mori, during Early Response to Beauveria bassiana Challenges
Hou, Chengxiang; Qin, Guangxing; Liu, Ting; Geng, Tao; Gao, Kun; Pan, Zhonghua; Qian, Heying; Guo, Xijie
Host–pathogen interactions are complex processes and it is a central challenge to reveal these interactions. Fungal infection of silkworm, Bombyx mori, may induce a variety of responsive reaction. However, little is known about the molecular mechanism of silkworm immune response against the fungal infection. To obtain an overview of the interaction between silkworm and an entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana, Digital Gene Expression profiling, a tag based high-throughput transcriptome sequencing method, was employed to screen and identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs, FDR≤0.001, ∣log2ratio∣≥1) of silkworm larvae during early response against B. bassiana infection. Total 1430 DEGs including 960 up-regulated and 470 down-regulated ones were identified, of which 627 DEGs can be classified into GO categories by Gene Ontology (GO) analysis. KEGG pathways analysis of these DEGs suggested that many biological processes, such as defense and response, signal transduction, phagocytosis, regulation of gene expression, RNA splicing, biosynthesis and metabolism, protein transport etc. were involved in the interaction between the silkworm and B. bassiana. A number of differentially expressed fungal genes were also identified by mapping the sequencing tags to B. bassiana genome. These results provided new insights to the molecular mechanism of silkworm immune response to B. bassiana infection. PMID:24618587
Early Growth Response Gene 1 ("EGR-1") Is Required for New and Reactivated Fear Memories in the Lateral Amygdala
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Maddox, Stephanie A.; Monsey, Melissa S.; Schafe, Glenn E.
The immediate-early gene early growth response gene-1 (EGR-1, zif-268) has been extensively studied in synaptic plasticity and memory formation in a variety of memory systems. However, a convincing role for EGR-1 in amygdala-dependent memory consolidation processes has yet to emerge. In the present study, we have examined the role of EGR-1 in the…
Responsible Eclecticism: Using a Structured Analysis Process to Facilitate Curriculum Discourse with Graduate Preservice Early Childhood Students
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Jaruszewicz, Candace
Teaching from an informed and culturally responsive philosophy of education is critical for teaching in the 21st century and engagement in reconceptualizing the field of early childhood. This article describes a process used with graduate preservice early childhood education students over a two-course sequence, to generate a personal philosophy…
Early developmental responses to seedling environment modulate later plasticity to light spectral quality.
von Wettberg, Eric J B; Stinchcombe, John R; Schmitt, Johanna
Correlations between developmentally plastic traits may constrain the joint evolution of traits. In plants, both seedling de-etiolation and shade avoidance elongation responses to crowding and foliage shade are mediated by partially overlapping developmental pathways, suggesting the possibility of pleiotropic constraints. To test for such constraints, we exposed inbred lines of Impatiens capensis to factorial combinations of leaf litter (which affects de-etiolation) and simulated foliage shade (which affects phytochrome-mediated shade avoidance). Increased elongation of hypocotyls caused by leaf litter phenotypically enhanced subsequent elongation of the first internode in response to low red:far red (R:FR). Trait expression was correlated across litter and shade conditions, suggesting that phenotypic effects of early plasticity on later plasticity may affect variation in elongation traits available to selection in different light environments.
Early detection of disease program: Evaluation of the cellular immune response
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Criswell, B. S.; Knight, V.; Martin, R. R.; Kasel, J. A.
The early cellular responses of specific components of the leukocyte and epithelial cell populations to foreign challenges of both an infectious and noninfectious character were evaluated. Procedures for screening potential flight crews were developed, documented, and tested on a control population. Methods for preparing suitable populations of lymphocytes, polymorphonuclear leukocytes, macrophages, and epithelial cells were first established and evaluated. Epithelial cells from viral infected individuals were screened with a number of anti-viral antisera. This procedure showed the earliest indication of disease as well as providing a specific diagnosis to the physicians. Both macrophages and polymorphonuclear leukocytes were studied from normal individuals, smokers, and patients with viral infections. Newer techniques enabling better definition of lymphocyte subpopulations were then developed, namely the E and EAC rosette procedures for recognition of T (thymus-derived) and B (bone-marrow-derived) lymphocyte subpopulations. Lymphocyte and lymphocyte subpopulation response to multiple mitogens have been evaluated.
Early warning and response: why the international community failed to prevent the genocide.
Adelman, H; Suhrke, A
The enormity of the genocide in Rwanda demands that it be subjected to searching enquiry and that members of the international community, collectively and individually, examine their own roles in the event. This paper draws extensively on Study II of the Joint Evaluation, and examines the effectiveness of international monitoring (early warning) and management of the Rwanda conflict. It is not intended to explore all the factors which together contributed to the genocide that were or might have been amenable to modification by the international community. The focus is on warning and response beginning with the start of the civil war in 1990, and culminating in an analysis of the international response to the genocide in April-June 1994.
TLR9 Activation Dampens the Early Inflammatory Response to Paracoccidioides brasiliensis, Impacting Host Survival
Menino, João Filipe; Saraiva, Margarida; Gomes-Alves, Ana G.; Lobo-Silva, Diogo; Sturme, Mark; Gomes-Rezende, Jéssica; Saraiva, Ana Laura; Goldman, Gustavo H.; Cunha, Cristina; Carvalho, Agostinho; Romani, Luigina; Pedrosa, Jorge; Castro, António Gil; Rodrigues, Fernando
Background Paracoccidioides brasiliensis causes paracoccidioidomycosis, one of the most prevalent systemic mycosis in Latin America. Thus, understanding the characteristics of the protective immune response to P. brasiliensis is of interest, as it may reveal targets for disease control. The initiation of the immune response relies on the activation of pattern recognition receptors, among which are TLRs. Both TLR2 and TLR4 have been implicated in the recognition of P. brasiliensis and regulation of the immune response. However, the role of TLR9 during the infection by this fungus remains unclear. Methodology/Principal findings We used in vitro and in vivo models of infection by P. brasiliensis, comparing wild type and TLR9 deficient (−/−) mice, to assess the contribution of TLR9 on cytokine induction, phagocytosis and outcome of infection. We show that TLR9 recognizes either the yeast form or DNA from P. brasiliensis by stimulating the expression/production of pro-inflammatory cytokines by bone marrow derived macrophages, also increasing their phagocytic ability. We further show that TLR9 plays a protective role early after intravenous infection with P. brasiliensis, as infected TLR9−/− mice died at higher rate during the first 48 hours post infection than wild type mice. Moreover, TLR9−/− mice presented tissue damage and increased expression of several cytokines, such as TNF-α and IL-6. The increased pattern of cytokine expression was also observed during intraperitoneal infection of TLR9−/− mice, with enhanced recruitment of neutrophils. The phenotype of TLR9−/− hosts observed during the early stages of P. brasiliensis infection was reverted upon a transient, 48 hours post-infection, neutrophil depletion. Conclusions/Significance Our results suggest that TLR9 activation plays an early protective role against P. brasiliensis, by avoiding a deregulated type of inflammatory response associated to neutrophils that may lead to tissue damage. Thus
Feasibility of flare gas reformation to practical energy in Farashband gas refinery: no gas flaring.
Rahimpour, Mohammad Reaza; Jokar, Seyyed Mohammad
A suggested method for controlling the level of hazardous materials in the atmosphere is prevention of combustion in flare. In this work, three methods are proposed to recover flare gas instead of conventional gas-burning in flare at the Farashband gas refinery. These methods aim to minimize environmental and economical disadvantages of burning flare gas. The proposed methods are: (1) gas to liquid (GTL) production, (2) electricity generation with a gas turbine and, (3) compression and injection into the refinery pipelines. To find the most suitable method, the refinery units that send gas to the flare as well as the required equipment for the three aforementioned methods are simulated. These simulations determine the amount of flare gas, the number of GTL barrels, the power generated by the gas turbine and the required compression horsepower. The results of simulation show that 563 barrels/day of valuable GTL products is produced by the first method. The second method provides 25 MW electricity and the third method provides a compressed natural gas with 129 bar pressure for injection to the refinery pipelines. In addition, the economics of flare gas recovery methods are studied and compared. The results show that for the 4.176MMSCFD of gas flared from the Farashband gas refinery, the electricity production gives the highest rate of return (ROR), the lowest payback period, the highest annual profit and mild capital investment. Therefore, the electricity production is the superior method economically.
Early Prediction of Long-Term Response to Cabergoline in Patients with Macroprolactinomas
Lee, Youngki; Ku, Cheol Ryong; Kim, Eui-Hyun; Lee, Eun Jig; Kim, Sun Ho
Background Cabergoline is typically effective for treating prolactinomas; however, some patients display cabergoline resistance, and the early characteristics of these patients remain unclear. We analyzed early indicators predicting long-term response to cabergoline. Methods We retrospectively reviewed the cases of 44 patients with macroprolactinomas who received cabergoline as first-line treatment; the patients were followed for a median of 16 months. The influence of various clinical parameters on outcomes was evaluated. Results Forty patients (90.9%) were treated medically and displayed tumor volume reduction (TVR) of 74.7%, a prolactin normalization (NP) rate of 81.8%, and a complete response (CR; TVR >50% with NP, without surgery) rate of 70.5%. Most patients (93.1%) with TVR ≥25% and NP at 3 months eventually achieved CR, whereas only 50% of patients with TVR ≥25% without NP and no patients with TVR <25% achieved CR. TVR at 3 months was strongly correlated with final TVR (R=0.785). Patients with large macroadenomas exhibited a low NP rate at 3 months, but eventually achieved TVR and NP rates similar to those of patients with smaller tumors. Surgery independently reduced the final dose of cabergoline (β=-1.181 mg/week), and two of four patients who underwent surgery were able to discontinue cabergoline. Conclusion Determining cabergoline response using TVR and NP 3 months after treatment is useful for predicting later outcomes. However, further cabergoline administration should be considered for patients with TVR >25% at 3 months without NP, particularly those with huge prolactinomas, because a delayed response may be achieved. As surgery can reduce the cabergoline dose necessary for successful disease control, it should be considered for cabergoline-resistant patients. PMID:25309786
Effects of aerobic exercise in early evening on the following nocturnal sleep and its haemodynamic response.
Miura, Akira; Myouken, Shizuka; Yamada, Masako; Fujihara, Chizuko; Miura, Kouhei; Kashima, Hideaki; Eguchi, Kouhei; Endo, Masako Y; Koga, Shunsaku; Fukuba, Yoshiyuki
We determined effect of aerobic exercise in early evening on the quality, quantity, and haemodynamic response of subsequent nocturnal sleep in the home. Ten healthy young participants performed two protocols, with/without cycle ergometer exercise (60 min at 50% heart rate reserve) in early evening. Blood pressure (BP) (Holter) and physical activity (accelerometer) were measured from late afternoon of day 1 until noon of next day (day 2). Additionally, at bedtime participants were equipped with a small device worn on the wrist that identified sleep stage. There were no substantial differences in objective indices of sleep between two protocols (total sleep time: 438 ± 76 vs. 457 ± 64 min; P > 0.10). BP during nocturnal sleep tended to be lowered by prior exercise (MAP: 71 ± 5 vs. 68 ± 6 mmHg; P = 0.08). Aerobic exercise in early evening apparently has no acute effect on sleep per se, but seems to have a residual effect on haemodynamics, i.e. prolongation of post-exercise hypotension.
Early hemorrhage triggers metabolic responses that build up during prolonged shock
Moore, Hunter B.; Moore, Ernest E.; Wither, Matthew; Nemkov, Travis; Gonzalez, Eduardo; Slaughter, Anne; Fragoso, Miguel; Hansen, Kirk C.; Silliman, Christopher C.; Banerjee, Anirban
Metabolic staging after trauma/hemorrhagic shock is a key driver of acidosis and directly relates to hypothermia and coagulopathy. Metabolic responses to trauma/hemorrhagic shock have been assayed through classic biochemical approaches or NMR, thereby lacking a comprehensive overview of the dynamic metabolic changes occurring after shock. Sprague-Dawley rats underwent progressive hemorrhage and shock. Baseline and postshock blood was collected, and late hyperfibrinolysis was assessed (LY30 >3%) in all of the tested rats. Extreme and intermediate time points were collected to assay the dynamic changes of the plasma metabolome via ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. Sham controls were used to determine whether metabolic changes could be primarily attributable to anesthesia and supine positioning. Early hemorrhage-triggered metabolic changes that built up progressively and became significant during sustained hemorrhagic shock. Metabolic phenotypes either resulted in immediate hypercatabolism, or late hypercatabolism, preceded by metabolic deregulation during early hemorrhage in a subset of rats. Hemorrhagic shock consistently promoted hyperglycemia, glycolysis, Krebs cycle, fatty acid, amino acid, and nitrogen metabolism (urate and polyamines), and impaired redox homeostasis. Early dynamic changes of the plasma metabolome are triggered by hemorrhage in rats. Future studies will determine whether metabolic subphenotypes observed in rats might be consistently observed in humans and pave the way for tailored resuscitative strategies. PMID:25876652
Defensive Responses to Early Memories with Peers: a Possible Pathway to Disordered Eating.
Ferreira, Cláudia; Marta-Simões, Joana; Trindade, Inês A
Childhood and early adolescence experiences, specifically those that provide an adulthood enriched with warm and safe memories, are consistently stated in literature as powerful emotional regulators. In contrast, individuals who scarcely recall positive experiences may begin to believe that others see the self as inferior, inadequate and unattractive. In order to cope with a perceived loss of social desirability and achieve other's acceptance, individuals may become submissive, and women, particularly, may resort to the presentation of a perfect body image. Both mechanisms are defensive responses suggested to be associated with mental health difficulties, particularly disordered eating behaviors. The present study aimed at exploring the association between early memories of warmth and safeness with peers and eating psychopathology. Also, a path analysis was conducted to investigate the mediator role of submissiveness and perfectionistic self-presentation focused on body image on this association, in a sample of 342 female students. Results revealed that the absence of early positive memories with peers holds a significant effect over eating psychopathology's severity, and also that this effect is mediated through submissiveness and body image-related perfectionistic self-presentation. This model accounted for 13%, 19% and 51% of submissiveness, perfectionistic self-presentation of body image and eating psychopathology's variances, respectively, and showed excellent model fit.
Intravenous mesenchymal stem cells prevented rejection of allogeneic corneal transplants by aborting the early inflammatory response.
Oh, Joo Youn; Lee, Ryang Hwa; Yu, Ji Min; Ko, Jung Hwa; Lee, Hyun Ju; Ko, Ah Young; Roddy, Gavin W; Prockop, Darwin J
Mesenchymal stem/progenitor cells (MSCs) were reported to enhance the survival of cellular and organ transplants. However, their mode of action was not established. We here used a mouse model of corneal allotransplantation and demonstrated that peri-transplant intravenous (i.v.) infusion of human MSCs (hMSCs) decreased the early surgically induced inflammation and reduced the activation of antigen-presenting cells (APCs) in the cornea and draining lymph nodes (DLNs). Subsequently, immune rejection was decreased, and allograft survival was prolonged. Quantitative assays for human GAPDH revealed that <10 hMSCs out of 1 × 10(6) injected cells were recovered in the cornea 10 hours to 28 days after i.v. infusion. Most of hMSCs were trapped in lungs where they were activated to increase expression of the gene for a multifunctional anti-inflammatory protein tumor necrosis factor-α stimulated gene/protein 6 (TSG-6). i.v. hMSCs with a knockdown of TSG-6 did not suppress the early inflammation and failed to prolong the allograft survival. Also, i.v. infusion of recombinant TSG-6 reproduced the effects of hMSCs. Results suggest that hMSCs improve the survival of corneal allografts without engraftment and primarily by secreting TSG-6 that acts by aborting early inflammatory responses. The same mechanism may explain previous reports that MSCs decrease rejection of other organ transplants.
Linguistic category structure influences early auditory processing: Converging evidence from mismatch responses and cortical oscillations.
Scharinger, Mathias; Monahan, Philip J; Idsardi, William J
While previous research has established that language-specific knowledge influences early auditory processing, it is still controversial as to what aspects of speech sound representations determine early speech perception. Here, we propose that early processing primarily depends on information propagated top-down from abstractly represented speech sound categories. In particular, we assume that mid-vowels (as in 'bet') exert less top-down effects than the high-vowels (as in 'bit') because of their less specific (default) tongue height position as compared to either high- or low-vowels (as in 'bat'). We tested this assumption in a magnetoencephalography (MEG) study where we contrasted mid- and high-vowels, as well as the low- and high-vowels in a passive oddball paradigm. Overall, significant differences between deviants and standards indexed reliable mismatch negativity (MMN) responses between 200 and 300ms post-stimulus onset. MMN amplitudes differed in the mid/high-vowel contrasts and were significantly reduced when a mid-vowel standard was followed by a high-vowel deviant, extending previous findings. Furthermore, mid-vowel standards showed reduced oscillatory power in the pre-stimulus beta-frequency band (18-26Hz), compared to high-vowel standards. We take this as converging evidence for linguistic category structure to exert top-down influences on auditory processing. The findings are interpreted within the linguistic model of underspecification and the neuropsychological predictive coding framework.
Linguistic category structure influences early auditory processing: Converging evidence from mismatch responses and cortical oscillations
Scharinger, Mathias; Monahan, Philip J.; Idsardi, William J.
While previous research has established that language-specific knowledge influences early auditory processing, it is still controversial as to what aspects of speech sound representations determine early speech perception. Here, we propose that early processing primarily depends on information propagated top-down from abstractly represented speech sound categories. In particular, we assume that mid-vowels (as in 'bet') exert less top-down effects than the high-vowels (as in 'bit') because of their less specific (default) tongue height position as compared to either high- or low-vowels (as in 'bat'). We tested this assumption in a Magnetoencephalographic (MEG) study where we contrasted mid- and high-vowels, as well as the low- and high-vowels in a passive oddball paradigm. Overall, significant differences between deviants and standards indexed reliable mismatch-negativity (MMN) responses between 200 and 300 ms post stimulus onset. MMN amplitudes differed in the mid/high-vowel contrasts and were significantly reduced when a mid-vowel standard was followed by a high-vowel deviant, extending previous findings. Furthermore, mid-vowel standards showed reduced oscillatory power in the pre-stimulus beta-frequency band (18–26 Hz), compared to high-vowel standards. We take this as converging evidence for linguistic category structure to exert top-down influences on auditory processing. The findings are interpreted within the linguistic model of underspecification and the neuropsychological predictive coding framework. PMID:26780574
Solar Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) Flare Observations and Findings from the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) EUV Variability Experiment (EVE)
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Woods, Thomas N.; Mason, James; Eparvier, Francis; Jones, Andrew
There have been more than six thousand flares observed by the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) since it launched in February 2010. The SDO mission is ideal for studying flares with 24/7 operations from its geosynchronous orbit (GEO) and with some 7000 TeraBytes of data taken so far. These data include more than 100,000,000 images of coronal full-disk images from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) and Dopplergrams and magnetograms from the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) and over 15,000,000 spectra of the solar EUV irradiance from the EUV Variability Experiment (EVE). This presentation will focus primarily on the EVE flare observations and a couple key flare findings involving both AIA and EVE observations. One of these findings includes the discovery of the EUV late phase that occur in about 15% of flares. The EUV late phase is the brightening of warm coronal emissions in the EUV that starts much later after the main X-ray bright phase, lasts up to several hours, and can emit more total energy than the EUV radiation during the X-ray phase. The combination of EVE and AIA observations have revealed that the cause for the EUV late phase is a second set of post-flare coronal loops that form much higher than the primary post-flare loops near the source of the flare. This second set of loops is much longer and thus has a much slower cooling rate; consequently, the radiation from these loops appears much later after the main X-ray flare phase. Another key finding is that the EVE solar EUV irradiance observations in cool coronal emissions have dimming during and following eruptive flare events, which is often associated with coronal mass ejections (CMEs). Furthermore, the magnitude of the EVE coronal dimming is consistent with the amount of mass lost, as observed near the flaring region by AIA. This result could be important for space weather operations because EVE's near-realtime data products of its on-disk (Earth-facing) flare observations may provide an
Milligan, Ryan O.; McElroy, Sarah A.
Data from the Multiple EUV Grating Spectrograph component of the Extreme-ultraviolet Variability Experiment (EVE) on board the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) were used to quantify the contribution of continuum emission to each of the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) channels of the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA), also on SDO, during an X-class solar flare that occurred on 2011 February 15. Both the pre-flare-subtracted EVE spectra and fits to the associated free-free continuum were convolved with the AIA response functions of the seven EUV passbands at 10 s cadence throughout the course of the flare. It was found that 10%-25% of the total emission in the 94 Å, 131 Å, 193 Å, and 335 Å passbands throughout the main phase of the flare was due to free-free emission. Reliable measurements could not be made for the 171 Å channel, while the continuum contribution to the 304 Å channel was negligible due to the presence of the strong He II emission line. Up to 50% of the emission in the 211 Å channel was found to be due to free-free emission around the peak of the flare, while an additional 20% was due to the recombination continuum of He II. The analysis was extended to a number of M- and X-class flares and it was found that the level of free-free emission contributing to both the 171 Å and 211 Å passbands increased with increasing GOES class. These results suggest that the amount of continuum emission that contributes to AIA observations during flares is more significant than stated in previous studies which used synthetic, rather than observed, spectra. These findings highlight the importance of spectroscopic observations carried out in conjunction with those from imaging instruments so that the data are interpreted correctly.
Doppler speeds of the hydrogen Lyman lines in solar flares from EVE
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Brown, Stephen A.; Fletcher, Lyndsay; Labrosse, Nicolas
Aims: The hydrogen Lyman lines provide important diagnostic information about the dynamics of the chromosphere, but there have been few systematic studies of their variability during flares. We investigate Doppler shifts in these lines in several flares, and use these to calculate plasma speeds. Methods: We use spectral data from the Multiple EUV Grating Spectrograph B (MEGS-B) detector of the Extreme-Ultraviolet Variability Experiment (EVE) instrument on the Solar Dynamics Observatory. MEGS-B obtains full-disk spectra of the Sun at a resolution of 0.1 nm in the range 37-105 nm, which we analyse using three independent methods. The first method performs Gaussian fits to the lines, and compares the quiet-Sun centroids with the flaring ones to obtain the Doppler shifts. The second method uses cross-correlation to detect wavelength shifts between the quiet-Sun and flaring line profiles. The final method calculates the "center-of-mass" of the line profile, and compares the quiet-Sun and flaring centroids to obtain the shift. Results: In a study of 6 flares we find strong signatures of both upflow and downflow in the Lyman lines, with speeds measured in Sun-as-a-Star data of around 10 km s-1, and speeds in the flare excess signal of around 30 km s-1. Conclusions: All events showing upflows in Lyman lines are associated with some kind of eruption or coronal flow in imaging data, which may be responsible for the net blueshifts. Events showing downflows in the Lyman lines may be associated with loop contraction or faint downflows, but it is likely that chromospheric condensation flows are also contributing.
Are solar gamma-ray-line flares different from other large flares?
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Cliver, E. W.; Crosby, N. B.; Dennis, B. R.
We reevaluate evidence indicating that gamma-ray-line (GRL) flares are fundamentally different from other large flares without detectable GRL emission and find no compelling support for this proposition. For large flares observed by the Solar Maximum Mission (SMM) from 1980 to 1982, we obtain a reasonably good correlation between 4-8 MeV GRL fluences and greater than 50 keV hard X-ray fluences and find no evidence for a distinct population of large hard X-ray flares that lack commensurate GRL emission. Our results are consistent with the acceleration of the bulk of the approximately 100 keV electrons and approximately 10 MeV protons (i.e., the populations of these species that interact in the solar atmosphere to produce hard X-ray and GRL emission) by a common process in large flares of both long and short durations.
Noninvasive Dynamic Imaging of Tumor Early Response to Nanoparticle-mediated Photothermal Therapy.
Zhang, Fan; Cao, Jianbo; Chen, Xiao; Yang, Kai; Zhu, Lei; Fu, Guifeng; Huang, Xinglu; Chen, Xiaoyuan
In spite of rapidly increasing interest in the use of nanoparticle-mediated photothermal therapy (PTT) for treatment of different types of tumors, very little is known on early treatment-related changes in tumor response. Using graphene oxide (GO) as a model nanoparticle (NP), in this study, we tracked the changes in tumors after GO NP-mediated PTT by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and quantitatively identified MRI multiple parameters to assess the dynamic changes of MRI signal in tumor at different heating levels and duration. We found a time- and temperature-dependent dynamic change of the MRI signal intensity in intratumor microenvironment prior to any morphological change of tumor, mainly due to quick and effective eradication of tumor blood vessels. Based on the distribution of GO particles, we also demonstrated that NP-medited PTT caused heterogeneous thermal injury of tumor. Overall, these new findings provide not only a clinical-related method for non-invasive early tracking, identifying, and monitoring treatment response of NP-mediated PTT but also show a new vision for better understanding mechanisms of NP-mediated PTT.
Early responses of human cancer cells upon photodynamic treatment monitored by laser phase microscopy
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Roelofs, Theo A.; Graschew, Georgi; Perevedentseva, Elena V.; Rakowsky, Stefan; Dressler, Cathrin; Beuthan, Juergen; Schlag, Peter M.
Photodynamic treatment of cancer cells is known to eventually cause cell death in most cases. The precise pathways and the time course seem to vary among different cell types and modes of photodynamic treatment. In this contribution, the focus was put on the responses of human colon carcinoma cells HCT-116 within the first 15 minutes after laser irradiation in the presence of Photofrin« II (PII). To monitor the cell response in this early time period laser phase microscopic imaging was used, a method sensitive to changes in overall cell shape and intracellular structures, mediated by changes in the local refractive index. Laser irradiation of cells loaded with PII induced a significant reduction of the phase shifts, which probably reflects the induced damage to the different cellular membrane structures. The data suggest that even within the first 30 s after the onset of laser illumination, a significant reduction of the phase shifts can be detected. These results underline that laser phase microscopy is a suitable diagnostic tool for cellular research, also in the early time domain.
Solanum lycopersicum AUXIN RESPONSE FACTOR 9 regulates cell division activity during early tomato fruit development.
de Jong, Maaike; Wolters-Arts, Mieke; Schimmel, Bernardus C J; Stultiens, Catharina L M; de Groot, Peter F M; Powers, Stephen J; Tikunov, Yury M; Bovy, Arnoud G; Mariani, Celestina; Vriezen, Wim H; Rieu, Ivo
The transformation of the ovary into a fruit after successful completion of pollination and fertilization has been associated with many changes at transcriptomic level. These changes are part of a dynamic and complex regulatory network that is controlled by phytohormones, with a major role for auxin. One of the auxin-related genes differentially expressed upon fruit set and early fruit development in tomato is Solanum lycopersicum AUXIN RESPONSE FACTOR 9 (SlARF9). Here, the functional analysis of this ARF is described. SlARF9 expression was found to be auxin-responsive and SlARF9 mRNA levels were high in the ovules, placenta, and pericarp of pollinated ovaries, but also in other plant tissues with high cell division activity, such as the axillary meristems and root meristems. Transgenic plants with increased SlARF9 mRNA levels formed fruits that were smaller than wild-type fruits because of reduced cell division activity, whereas transgenic lines in which SlARF9 mRNA levels were reduced showed the opposite phenotype. The expression analysis, together with the phenotype of the transgenic lines, suggests that, in tomato, ARF9 negatively controls cell division during early fruit development.
SCN2A-Related Early-Onset Epileptic Encephalopathy Responsive to Phenobarbital
Baumer, Fiona M.; Peters, Jurriaan M.; El Achkar, Christelle M.; Pearl, Phillip L.
Voltage-gated sodium channels (Nav) are critical regulators of neuronal excitability. Genes for the α-subunits of three sodium channel subtypes—SCN1A, SCN2A, and SCN3A—are all located on chromosome 2q24. A full-term boy with an unremarkable birth history presented at 1 month of age with unusual movements that had started on day of life 2. Exam was notable for lack of visual attention, hypotonia, and hyperreflexia. Electroencephalogram (EEG) showed an invariant burst suppression with multifocal spikes, ictal episodes with bicycling movements associated with buildups of rhythmic activity, and epileptic spasms. Work-up revealed a 1.77-Mb duplication at locus 2q24.3, encompassing the entirety of SCN2A and SCN3A, but not SCN1A. Phenobarbital led to rapid resolution of the clinical seizures and EEG background normalized other than rare sharp waves. Early-onset epileptic encephalopathy (EOEE), with neonatal seizures, burst suppression, and reversibility with phenobarbital, is part of the enlarging spectrum of Nav channelopathies. The delayed diagnosis provided an unusual opportunity to view the early natural history of this disorder and its remarkable responsiveness to barbiturate therapy. The clinical and EEG response to phenobarbital implicates seizures as the cause of the encephalopathy. PMID:27595042
Detection of Early Tumor Response to Axitinib in Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma by Dynamic Contrast Enhanced Ultrasound.
Lo, Glen M; Al Zahrani, Hassan; Jang, Hyun Jung; Menezes, Ravi; Hudson, John; Burns, Peter; McNamara, Mairéad G; Kandel, Sonja; Khalili, Korosh; Knox, Jennifer; Rogalla, Patrik; Kim, Tae Kyoung
This study aimed to evaluate the utility of dynamic contrast-enhanced ultrasound (DCE-US) in measuring early tumor response of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma to axitinib. Twenty patients were enrolled (aged 18-78 y; median 65). DCE-US was performed with bolus injection and infusion/disruption replenishment. Median overall survival was 7.1 mo (1.8-27.3) and progression free survival was 3.6 mo (1.8-17.4). Fifteen patients completed infusion scans and 12 completed bolus scans at 2 wk. Among the perfusion parameters, fractional blood volume at infusion (INFBV) decreased at 2 wk in 10/15 (16%-81% of baseline, mean 47%) and increased in 5/15 (116%-535%, mean 220%). This was not significantly associated with progression free survival (p = 0.310) or progression at 16 wk (p = 0.849), but was borderline statistically significant (p = 0.050) with overall survival, limited by a small sample size. DCE-US is potentially useful in measuring early tumor response of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma to axitinib, but a larger trial is needed.
Noninvasive Dynamic Imaging of Tumor Early Response to Nanoparticle-mediated Photothermal Therapy
Zhang, Fan; Cao, Jianbo; Chen, Xiao; Yang, Kai; Zhu, Lei; Fu, Guifeng; Huang, Xinglu; Chen, Xiaoyuan
In spite of rapidly increasing interest in the use of nanoparticle-mediated photothermal therapy (PTT) for treatment of different types of tumors, very little is known on early treatment-related changes in tumor response. Using graphene oxide (GO) as a model nanoparticle (NP), in this study, we tracked the changes in tumors after GO NP-mediated PTT by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and quantitatively identified MRI multiple parameters to assess the dynamic changes of MRI signal in tumor at different heating levels and duration. We found a time- and temperature-dependent dynamic change of the MRI signal intensity in intratumor microenvironment prior to any morphological change of tumor, mainly due to quick and effective eradication of tumor blood vessels. Based on the distribution of GO particles, we also demonstrated that NP-medited PTT caused heterogeneous thermal injury of tumor. Overall, these new findings provide not only a clinical-related method for non-invasive early tracking, identifying, and monitoring treatment response of NP-mediated PTT but also show a new vision for better understanding mechanisms of NP-mediated PTT. PMID:26681988
Nutritional influences on early white matter development: response to Anderson and Burggren.
Deoni, Sean C L; Dean, Douglas C; Walker, Lindsay; Dirks, Holly; O'Muircheartaigh, Jonathan
Does breastfeeding alter early brain development? In a recent retrospective study, our group examined the cross-sectional relationship between early infant feeding practice and white matter maturation and cognitive development. In groups matched for child and mother age, gestation duration, birth weight, gender distribution, and socio-economic status; we observed that children who were breastfed exclusively for at least 3 months showed, on average, increased white matter myelin development compared to children who either were exclusively formula-fed, or received a mixture of breast milk and formula. In secondary analysis on sub-sets of these children, again matched for important confounding variables, we found improved cognitive test scores of receptive language in the exclusively breast-fed children compared to formula or formula+breast-fed children; and that prolonged breastfeeding was associated with increased motor, language, and visual functioning in exclusively breast-fed children. In response to this work, Anderson and Burggren have questioned our methodology and, by association, our findings. Further, they use their critique as a platform for advancing an alternative interpretation of our findings: that observed results were not associated with prolonged breast-feeding, but rather delayed the introduction of cow's milk. In this response, we address and clarify some of the misconceptions presented by Anderson and Burggren.
Functional response of U.S. grasslands to the early 21st-century drought.
Moran, M Susan; Ponce-Campos, Guillermo E; Huete, Alfredo; McClaran, Mitchel P; Zhang, Yongguang; Hamerlynck, Erik P; Augustine, David J; Gunter, Stacey A; Kitchen, Stanley G; Peters, Debra P C; Starks, Patrick J; Hernandez, Mariano
Grasslands across the United States play a key role in regional livelihood and national food security. Yet, it is still unclear how this important resource will respond to the prolonged warm droughts and more intense rainfall events predicted with climate change. The early 21st-century drought in the southwestern United States resulted in hydroclimatic conditions that are similar to those expected with future climate change. We investigated the impact of the early 21st-century drought on aboveground net primary production (ANPP) of six desert and plains grasslands dominated by C4 (warm season) grasses in terms of significant deviations between observed and expected ANPP. In desert grasslands, drought-induced grass mortality led to shifts in the functional response to annual total precipitation (P(T)), and in some cases, new species assemblages occurred that included invasive species. In contrast, the ANPP in plains grasslands exhibited a strong linear function of the current-year P(T) and the previous-year ANPP, despite prolonged warm drought. We used these results to disentangle the impacts of interannual total precipitation, intra-annual precipitation patterns, and grassland abundance on ANPP, and thus generalize the functional response of C4 grasslands to predicted climate change. This will allow managers to plan for predictable shifts in resources associated with climate change related to fire risk, loss of forage, and ecosystem services.
Solanum lycopersicum AUXIN RESPONSE FACTOR 9 regulates cell division activity during early tomato fruit development
de Jong, Maaike; Wolters-Arts, Mieke; Schimmel, Bernardus C. J.; Stultiens, Catharina L. M.; de Groot, Peter F. M.; Powers, Stephen J.; Tikunov, Yury M.; Bovy, Arnoud G.; Mariani, Celestina; Vriezen, Wim H.; Rieu, Ivo
The transformation of the ovary into a fruit after successful completion of pollination and fertilization has been associated with many changes at transcriptomic level. These changes are part of a dynamic and complex regulatory network that is controlled by phytohormones, with a major role for auxin. One of the auxin-related genes differentially expressed upon fruit set and early fruit development in tomato is Solanum lycopersicum AUXIN RESPONSE FACTOR 9 (SlARF9). Here, the functional analysis of this ARF is described. SlARF9 expression was found to be auxin-responsive and SlARF9 mRNA levels were high in the ovules, placenta, and pericarp of pollinated ovaries, but also in other plant tissues with high cell division activity, such as the axillary meristems and root meristems. Transgenic plants with increased SlARF9 mRNA levels formed fruits that were smaller than wild-type fruits because of reduced cell division activity, whereas transgenic lines in which SlARF9 mRNA levels were reduced showed the opposite phenotype. The expression analysis, together with the phenotype of the transgenic lines, suggests that, in tomato, ARF9 negatively controls cell division during early fruit development. PMID:25883382
Long Non-coding RNA in Neurons: New Players in Early Response to BDNF Stimulation.
Aliperti, Vincenza; Donizetti, Aldo
Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is a neurotrophin family member that is highly expressed and widely distributed in the brain. BDNF is critical for neural survival and plasticity both during development and in adulthood, and dysfunction in its signaling may contribute to a number of neurodegenerative disorders. Deep understanding of the BDNF-activated molecular cascade may thus help to find new biomarkers and therapeutic targets. One interesting direction is related to the early phase of BDNF-dependent gene expression regulation, which is responsible for the activation of selective gene programs that lead to stable functional and structural remodeling of neurons. Immediate-early coding genes activated by BDNF are under investigation, but the involvement of the non-coding RNAs is largely unexplored, especially the long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs). lncRNAs are emerging as key regulators that can orchestrate different aspects of nervous system development, homeostasis, and plasticity, making them attractive candidate markers and therapeutic targets for brain diseases. We used microarray technology to identify differentially expressed lncRNAs in the immediate response phase of BDNF stimulation in a neuronal cell model. Our observations on the putative functional role of lncRNAs provide clues to their involvement as master regulators of gene expression cascade triggered by BDNF.
Waite, J H; Gladstone, G R; Lewis, W S; Goldstein, R; McComas, D J; Riley, P; Walker, R J; Robertson, P; Desai, S; Clarke, J T; Young, D T
Jupiter's aurora is the most powerful in the Solar System. It is powered largely by energy extracted from planetary rotation, although there seems also to be a contribution from the solar wind. This contrasts with Earth's aurora, which is generated through the interaction of the solar wind with the magnetosphere. The major features of Jupiter's aurora (based on far-ultraviolet, near-infrared and visible-wavelength observations) include a main oval that generally corotates with the planet and a region of patchy, diffuse emission inside the oval on Jupiter's dusk side. Here we report the discovery of a rapidly evolving, very bright and localized emission poleward of the northern main oval, in a region connected magnetically to Jupiter's outer magnetosphere. The intensity of the emission increased by a factor of 30 within 70 s, and then decreased on a similar timescale, all captured during a single four-minute exposure. This type of flaring emission has not previously been reported for Jupiter (similar, but smaller, transient events have been observed at Earth), and it may be related directly to changes in the solar wind.
Enclosed ground-flare incinerator
Wiseman, Thomas R.
An improved ground flare is provided comprising a stack, two or more burner assemblies, and a servicing port so that some of the burner assemblies can be serviced while others remain in operation. The burner assemblies comprise a burner conduit and nozzles which are individually fitted to the stack's burner chamber and are each removably supported in the chamber. Each burner conduit is sealed to and sandwiched between a waste gas inlet port and a matching a closure port on the other side of the stack. The closure port can be opened for physically releasing the burner conduit and supplying sufficient axial movement room for extracting the conduit from the socket, thereby releasing the conduit for hand removal through a servicing port. Preferably, the lower end of the stack is formed of one or more axially displaced lower tubular shells which are concentrically spaced for forming annular inlets for admitting combustion air. An upper tubular exhaust stack, similarly formed, admits additional combustion air for increasing the efficiency of combustion, increasing the flow of exhausted for improved atmospheric dispersion and for cooling the upper stack.
Reverse Current in Solar Flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Knight, J. W., III
An idealized steady state model of a stream of energetic electrons neutralized by a reverse current in the pre-flare solar plasma was developed. These calculations indicate that, in some cases, a significant fraction of the beam energy may be dissipated by the reverse current. Joule heating by the reverse current is a more effective mechanism for heating the plasma than collisional losses from the energetic electrons because the Ohmic losses are caused by thermal electrons in the reverse current which have much shorter mean free paths than the energetic electrons. The heating due to reverse currents is calculated for two injected energetic electron fluxes. For the smaller injected flux, the temperature of the coronal plasma is raised by about a factor of two. The larger flux causes the reverse current drift velocity to exceed the critical velocity for the onset of ion cyclotron turbulence, producing anomalous resistivity and an order of magnitude increase in the temperature. The heating is so rapid that the lack of ionization equilibrium may produce a soft X-ray and EUV pulse from the corona.
Association of the dopamine receptor interacting protein gene, NEF3, with early response to antipsychotic medication.
Strous, Rael D; Greenbaum, Lior; Kanyas, Kyra; Merbl, Yifat; Horowitz, Anat; Karni, Osnat; Viglin, Dina; Olender, Tsviya; Deshpande, Smita N; Lancet, Doron; Ben-Asher, Edna; Lerer, Bernard
Genetic variation in antipsychotic drug targets could underlie variability among patients in the time required for antipsychotic effects to be elicited. In a clinical, pharmacogenetic study we focused on the dopamine receptor interacting protein (DRIP) gene family. DRIPs are pivotally involved in regulating dopamine receptor signal transduction. Consecutively hospitalized, acutely psychotic patients with DSM-IV schizophrenia (n=121) were included in the study if they received treatment with typical antipsychotic medication (TYP, n=72) or TYP plus risperidone (TYP-R, n=49) for at least 2 wk. Clinical state and adverse effects were rated at baseline and after 2 wk. Patients improved significantly on both TYP and TYP-R with no significant difference between them. Early responders were defined as patients whose PANSS change scores were greater than the median. Twenty-two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were analysed in five DRIP-encoding genes. Two SNPs in NEF3, which encodes the DRIP, neurofilament-medium (NF-M), were associated with early response (rs1457266, p=0.01; rs1379357, p=0.006). A 5 SNP haplotype spanning NEF3 was over-represented in early responders (p=0.015), in the combined patient group and in the TYP group alone. These findings suggest that variation in NEF3, most likely functional variants that are in linkage disequilibrium with the SNPs that we studied, influences rate of response to TYP. Since NEF3 is primarily associated with dopamine D1 receptor function, the evidence for a complementary role of dopamine D1 receptors in antipsychotic effects is considered. The findings reported here open an interesting research avenue in the pharmacogenetics of antipsychotic effects but require replication in larger samples treated in a controlled context.
Prespecified dose-response analysis for A Very Early Rehabilitation Trial (AVERT)
Churilov, Leonid; Ellery, Fiona; Collier, Janice; Chamberlain, Jan; Langhorne, Peter; Lindley, Richard I.; Moodie, Marj; Dewey, Helen; Thrift, Amanda G.; Donnan, Geoff
Objective: Our prespecified dose-response analyses of A Very Early Rehabilitation Trial (AVERT) aim to provide practical guidance for clinicians on the timing, frequency, and amount of mobilization following acute stroke. Methods: Eligible patients were aged ≥18 years, had confirmed first (or recurrent) stroke, and were admitted to a stroke unit within 24 hours of stroke onset. Patients were randomized to receive very early and frequent mobilization, commencing within 24 hours, or usual care. We used regression analyses and Classification and Regression Trees (CART) to investigate the effect of timing and dose of mobilization on efficacy and safety outcomes, irrespective of assigned treatment group. Results: A total of 2,104 patients were enrolled, of whom 2,083 (99.0%) were followed up at 3 months. We found a consistent pattern of improved odds of favorable outcome in efficacy and safety outcomes with increased daily frequency of out-of-bed sessions (odds ratio [OR] 1.13, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.09 to 1.18, p < 0.001), keeping time to first mobilization and mobilization amount constant. Increased amount (minutes per day) of mobilization reduced the odds of a good outcome (OR 0.94, 95% CI 0.91 to 0.97, p < 0.001). Session frequency was the most important variable in the CART analysis, after prognostic variables age and baseline stroke severity. Conclusion: These data suggest that shorter, more frequent mobilization early after acute stroke is associated with greater odds of favorable outcome at 3 months when controlling for age and stroke severity. Classification of evidence: This study provides Class III evidence that shorter, more frequent early mobilization improves the chance of regaining independence after stroke. PMID:26888985
Early Development of Brain Responses to Rapidly Presented Auditory Stimulation: a Magnetoencephalographic Study
Sheridan, Carolin; Draganova, Rossitza; Ware, Maureen; Murphy, Pamela; Govindan, Rathinaswamy; Siegel, Eric R; Eswaran, Hari; Preissl, Hubert
Background The processing of rapidly presented stimuli has been shown to be a precursor for the perception of speech in infants, long before they learn to speak. However, the onset and early development of rapid temporal processing (RTP) skills is not yet well understood. The main goal of this study was to assess the development of RTP skills during the prenatal and early postnatal stages of life. Methodology Tone pairs were presented in two difficulties (long and short) and event-related magnetic fields were recorded using MEG. 22 pregnant women (gestational ages between 29 and 38 weeks') participated in the fetal study and 15 returned for a neonatal follow-up study between 2 and 38 days after delivery or 38 and 44 weeks gestational age (GA). Results In the postnatal follow-up study, a trend towards two peaks with increasing chronological and gestational age was observed in the longer tone pair. However, no such trend was evident in neonatal responses to the short tone pairs or in fetal recordings. Conclusions Neonates showed a gradual trend to successful processing of the longer tone pair with increasing age. By 22 days of chronological age, the infants processed this tone pair successfully, as indicated by two-peak waveforms. Therefore, the first three weeks of life could be critical for the development of RTP. Significance This study is a first approach towards the assessment of early RTP development. The results provide promising indications for future studies, which might lead to an early detection of deficits in speech perception and therefore prevent further language impairments. PMID:19900775
In vivo diagnostics of early abiotic plant stress response via Raman spectroscopy.
Altangerel, Narangerel; Ariunbold, Gombojav O; Gorman, Connor; Alkahtani, Masfer H; Borrego, Eli J; Bohlmeyer, Dwight; Hemmer, Philip; Kolomiets, Michael V; Yuan, Joshua S; Scully, Marlan O
Development of a phenotyping platform capable of noninvasive biochemical sensing could offer researchers, breeders, and producers a tool for precise response detection. In particular, the ability to measure plant stress in vivo responses is becoming increasingly important. In this work, a Raman spectroscopic technique is developed for high-throughput stress phenotyping of plants. We show the early (within 48 h) in vivo detection of plant stress responses. Coleus (Plectranthus scutellarioides) plants were subjected to four common abiotic stress conditions individually: high soil salinity, drought, chilling exposure, and light saturation. Plants were examined poststress induction in vivo, and changes in the concentration levels of the reactive oxygen-scavenging pigments were observed by Raman microscopic and remote spectroscopic systems. The molecular concentration changes were further validated by commonly accepted chemical extraction (destructive) methods. Raman spectroscopy also allows simultaneous interrogation of various pigments in plants. For example, we found a unique negative correlation in concentration levels of anthocyanins and carotenoids, which clearly indicates that plant stress response is fine-tuned to protect against stress-induced damages. This precision spectroscopic technique holds promise for the future development of high-throughput screening for plant phenotyping and the quantification of biologically or commercially relevant molecules, such as antioxidants and pigments.
Broad CTL Response in Early HIV Infection Drives Multiple Concurrent CTL Escapes.
Leviyang, Sivan; Ganusov, Vitaly V
Recent studies have highlighted the ability of HIV to escape from cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) responses that concurrently target multiple viral epitopes. Yet, the viral dynamics involved in such escape are incompletely understood. Previous analyses have made several strong assumptions regarding HIV escape from CTL responses such as independent or non-concurrent escape from individual CTL responses. Using experimental data from evolution of HIV half genomes in four patients we observe concurrent viral escape from multiple CTL responses during early infection (first 100 days of infection), providing confirmation of a recent result found in a study of one HIV-infected patient. We show that current methods of estimating CTL escape rates, based on the assumption of independent escapes, are biased and perform poorly when CTL escape proceeds concurrently at multiple epitopes. We propose a new method for analyzing longitudinal sequence data to estimate the rate of CTL escape across multiple epitopes; this method involves few parameters and performs well in simulation studies. By applying our novel method to experimental data, we find that concurrent multiple escapes occur at rates between 0.03 and 0.4 day(-1), a relatively broad range that reflects uncertainty due to sparse sampling and wide ranges of parameter values. However, we show that concurrent escape at rates 0.1-0.2 day(-1) across multiple epitopes is consistent with our patient datasets.
Transcription profiling of the early gravitropic response in Arabidopsis using high-density oligonucleotide probe microarrays
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Moseyko, Nick; Zhu, Tong; Chang, Hur-Song; Wang, Xun; Feldman, Lewis J.
Studies of plant tropisms, the directed growth toward or away from external stimuli such as light and gravity, began more than a century ago. Yet biochemical, physiological, and especially molecular mechanisms of plant tropic responses remain for the most part unclear. We examined expression of 8,300 genes during early stages of the gravitropic response using high-density oligonucleotide probe microarrays. Approximately 1.7% of the genes represented on the array exhibited significant expression changes within the first 30 min of gravity stimulation. Among gravity-induced genes were a number of genes previously implicated to be involved in gravitropism. However, a much larger number of the identified genes have not been previously associated with gravitropism. Because reorientation of plants may also expose plants to mechanical perturbations, we also compared the effects of a gentle mechanical perturbation on mRNA levels during the gravity response. It was found that approximately 39% of apparently gravity-regulated genes were also regulated by the mechanical perturbation caused by plant reorientation. Our study revealed the induction of complex gene expression patterns as a consequence of gravitropic reorientation and points to an interplay between the gravitropic and mechanical responses and to the extreme sensitivity of plants to even very gentle mechanical perturbations.
Detecting Solar Neutrino Flares and Flavors
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Fargion, D.
Most power-full solar flare as the ones occurred on 23th February 1956, September 29th 1989 and recent ones occurred on 28th October, on 2nd-4th and 13th November 2003 have been respectively recorded by Radio-X- and Cosmic Rays detectors. These flares took place most in the open or in the edge and in the hidden solar disk (as for the September 29th, 1989 beyond 105Wo and for last November 2003 flare events). The 4th November event was the most powerful X event in the highest known rank category X28. The observed and estimated total flare energy E = 1031-1033 erg should be a source also of a prompt secondary neutrino burst originated, by proton-proton-pion production on the sun itself; a more delayed and spread neutrino flux signal arise later on the terrestrial atmosphere. These first earliest prompt solar neutrino burst might be already recorde, in a few neutrino clustered events, in largest neutrino underground detectors as Super-Kamiokande one, in time correlation with the sharp X-Radio flare onset. Our first estimate at the Super-Kamiokande II Laboratory is found to be a few (1-5) events. Their discover (or absence) should constrains the solar flare acceleration, energetic and its inner environment. Any large neutrino flare event might even verify the expected neutrino flavour mixing leading to comparable electron- muon event as well as a comparable energy fluence and spectra. Rare Tau appearence by neutrino muon into tau conversion might also arise.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Hayashi, M. R.; Shibata, K.; Matsumoto, R.
Origin of X-ray flares in protostars and the formation of magnetohydrodynamical jets are studied by numerically simulating the interaction between the disk material and the dipole magnetic field of the central protostar.At the initial state, we assume that a thin Keplerian disk is threaded by the dipole magnetic fields of the central star. The closed magnetic loops connecting the central star and the disk are twisted by the rotation of the disk. As the twist accumulates, magnetic loops expand and finally approach to the open field configuration. In the presence of resistivity, magnetic reconnection takes place in the current sheet developed along the expanding magnetic loops. Outgoing magnetic island and 'post flare loops' are formed as a result of the reconnection.This process can be regarded as a bifurcation to the lower energy state triggered by continuous helicity injection (e.g., Kusano 1995). The time scale of this flare is the order of the rotation period of the disk. The released magnetic energy (typically 10(35) erg in protostars) goes into the thermal energy of the plasma in the flaring loop and the thermal and kinetic energies of the ejected plasmoids. The maximum speed of the streamer is the order of the Keplerian rotation speed around the inner edge of the disk. High energy particles created by the reconnection by bremsstrahlung emission at the footpoints of the flaring loop. The length of the flaring loop is several times larger than the radius of the central star. The magnetic reconnection accompanying this mechanism can explain hard X-ray flares in protostars observed by ASCA (Koyama et al. 1995).
Energetics of RHESSI X-Class Flares
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Dennis, Brian R.; Haga, Leah; Holman, Gordon D.; Hudson, Hugh
The thermal and nonthermal energies of several X-class flares seen with the Reuven Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) will be presented. The same techniques described by Emslie et al. (JGR, 109, A10104, 2004) are used to take the RHESSI imaging spectroscopic observations and compute the energies in the thermal plasma and in the nonthermal electrons as a function of time throughout the flares. Radiative and conductive cooling rates are estimated and total thermal and nonthermal energies are computed for each flare. Typically, the energy in nonthermal electrons integrated up to the time of peak soft X-ray emission is equal to or exceeds the energy in the thermal plasma at that time. This suggests that energy must have been converted into a form not visible with RHESSI and that the total energy released by the flares may be significantly greater than the sum of energies calculated from the RHESSI observations alone. This conclusion is supported by the high radiative energy seen with SORCE during the impulsive phase of the 28 October 2003 flare. The peak increase in total solar irradiance of 270 mW per square meters measured with SORCE was over two orders of magnitude higher than the peak soft X-ray flux seen with GOES or RHESSI. The implications of this new observation as compared to the energetics derived from the X-ray ob