| 1. |
- Schael, S, et al.
(författare)
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Precision electroweak measurements on the Z resonance
- 2006
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Ingår i: Physics Reports. - : Elsevier BV. - 0370-1573 .- 1873-6270. ; 427:5-6, s. 257-454
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report on the final electroweak measurements performed with data taken at the Z resonance by the experiments operating at the electron-positron colliders SLC and LEP. The data consist of 17 million Z decays accumulated by the ALEPH, DELPHI, L3 and OPAL experiments at LEP, and 600 thousand Z decays by the SLID experiment using a polarised beam at SLC. The measurements include cross-sections, forward-backward asymmetries and polarised asymmetries. The mass and width of the Z boson, m(Z) and Gamma(Z), and its couplings to fermions, for example the p parameter and the effective electroweak mixing angle for leptons, are precisely measured: m(Z) = 91.1875 +/- 0.0021 GeV, Gamma(Z) = 2.4952 +/- 0.0023 GeV, rho(l) = 1.0050 +/- 0.0010, sin(2)theta(eff)(lept) = 0.23153 +/- 0.00016. The number of light neutrino species is determined to be 2.9840 +/- 0.0082, in agreement with the three observed generations of fundamental fermions. The results are compared to the predictions of the Standard Model (SM). At the Z-pole, electroweak radiative corrections beyond the running of the QED and QCD coupling constants are observed with a significance of five standard deviations, and in agreement with the Standard Model. Of the many Z-pole measurements, the forward-backward asymmetry in b-quark production shows the largest difference with respect to its SM expectation, at the level of 2.8 standard deviations. Through radiative corrections evaluated in the framework of the Standard Model, the Z-pole data are also used to predict the mass of the top quark, m(t) = 173(+10)(+13) GeV, and the mass of the W boson, m(W) = 80.363 +/- 0.032 GeV. These indirect constraints are compared to the direct measurements, providing a stringent test of the SM. Using in addition the direct measurements of m(t) and m(W), the mass of the as yet unobserved SM Higgs boson is predicted with a relative uncertainty of about 50% and found to be less than 285 GeV at 95% confidence level. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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| 2. |
- Lyons, Paul A, et al.
(författare)
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Genetically Distinct Subsets within ANCA-Associated Vasculitis
- 2012
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Ingår i: New England Journal of Medicine. - : Massachusetts Medical Society. - 0028-4793 .- 1533-4406. ; 367:3, s. 214-223
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND less thanbrgreater than less thanbrgreater thanAntineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis is a severe condition encompassing two major syndromes: granulomatosis with polyangiitis (formerly known as Wegeners granulomatosis) and microscopic polyangiitis. Its cause is unknown, and there is debate about whether it is a single disease entity and what role ANCA plays in its pathogenesis. We investigated its genetic basis. less thanbrgreater than less thanbrgreater thanMETHODS less thanbrgreater than less thanbrgreater thanA genomewide association study was performed in a discovery cohort of 1233 U. K. patients with ANCA-associated vasculitis and 5884 controls and was replicated in 1454 Northern European case patients and 1666 controls. Quality control, population stratification, and statistical analyses were performed according to standard criteria. less thanbrgreater than less thanbrgreater thanRESULTS less thanbrgreater than less thanbrgreater thanWe found both major-histocompatibility-complex (MHC) and non-MHC associations with ANCA-associated vasculitis and also that granulomatosis with polyangiitis and microscopic polyangiitis were genetically distinct. The strongest genetic associations were with the antigenic specificity of ANCA, not with the clinical syndrome. Anti-proteinase 3 ANCA was associated with HLA-DP and the genes encoding alpha(1)-antitrypsin (SERPINA1) and proteinase 3 (PRTN3) (P = 6.2x10(-89), P = 5.6x10(-12), and P = 2.6x10(-7), respectively). Anti-myeloperoxidase ANCA was associated with HLA-DQ (P = 2.1x10(-8)). less thanbrgreater than less thanbrgreater thanCONCLUSIONS less thanbrgreater than less thanbrgreater thanThis study confirms that the pathogenesis of ANCA-associated vasculitis has a genetic component, shows genetic distinctions between granulomatosis with polyangiitis and microscopic polyangiitis that are associated with ANCA specificity, and suggests that the response against the autoantigen proteinase 3 is a central pathogenic feature of proteinase 3 ANCA-associated vasculitis. These data provide preliminary support for the concept that proteinase 3 ANCA-associated vasculitis and myeloperoxidase ANCA-associated vasculitis are distinct autoimmune syndromes. (Funded by the British Heart Foundation and others.)
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| 3. |
- Replogle, Kirstin, et al.
(författare)
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The Songbird Neurogenomics (SoNG) Initiative: Community-based tools and strategies for study of brain gene function and evolution
- 2008
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Ingår i: BMC Genomics. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1471-2164. ; 9:131
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Songbirds hold great promise for biomedical, environmental and evolutionary research. A complete draft sequence of the zebra finch genome is imminent, yet a need remains for application of genomic resources within a research community traditionally focused on ethology and neurobiological methods. In response, we developed a core set of genomic tools and a novel collaborative strategy to probe gene expression in diverse songbird species and natural contexts. Results: We end-sequenced cDNAs from zebra finch brain and incorporated additional sequences from community sources into a database of 86,784 high quality reads. These assembled into 31,658 non-redundant contigs and singletons, which we annotated via BLAST search of chicken and human databases. The results are publicly available in the ESTIMA: Songbird database. We produced a spotted cDNA microarray with 20,160 addresses representing 17,214 non-redundant products of an estimated 11,500-15,000 genes, validating it by analysis of immediate-early gene (zenk) gene activation following song exposure and by demonstrating effective cross hybridization to genomic DNAs of other songbird species in the Passerida Parvorder. Our assembly was also used in the design of the "Lund-zfa" Affymetrix array representing similar to 22,000 non-redundant sequences. When the two arrays were hybridized to cDNAs from the same set of male and female zebra finch brain samples, both arrays detected a common set of regulated transcripts with a Pearson correlation coefficient of 0.895. To stimulate use of these resources by the songbird research community and to maintain consistent technical standards, we devised a "Community Collaboration" mechanism whereby individual birdsong researchers develop experiments and provide tissues, but a single individual in the community is responsible for all RNA extractions, labelling and microarray hybridizations. Conclusion: Immediately, these results set the foundation for a coordinated set of 25 planned experiments by 16 research groups probing fundamental links between genome, brain, evolution and behavior in songbirds. Energetic application of genomic resources to research using songbirds should help illuminate how complex neural and behavioral traits emerge and evolve.
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| 4. |
- Griffith, Simon C., et al.
(författare)
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Variation in reproductive success across captive populations: Methodological differences, potential biases and opportunities
- 2017
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Ingår i: Ethology. - : Wiley. - 1439-0310 .- 0179-1613. ; 123:1, s. 1-29
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Our understanding of fundamental organismal biology has been disproportionately influenced by studies of a relatively small number of ‘model’ species extensively studied in captivity. Laboratory populations of model species are commonly subject to a number of forms of past and current selection that may affect experimental outcomes. Here, we examine these processes and their outcomes in one of the most widely used vertebrate species in the laboratory – the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata). This important model species is used for research across a broad range of fields, partly due to the ease with which it can be bred in captivity. However despite this perceived amenability, we demonstrate extensive variation in the success with which different laboratories and studies bred their subjects, and overall only 64% of all females that were given the opportunity, bred successfully in the laboratory. We identify and review several environmental, husbandry, life-history and behavioural factors that potentially contribute to this variation. The variation in reproductive success across individuals could lead to biases in experimental outcomes and drive some of the heterogeneity in research outcomes across studies. The zebra finch remains an excellent captive animal system and our aim is to sharpen the insight that future studies of this species can provide, both to our understanding of this species and also with respect to the reproduction of captive animals more widely. We hope to improve systematic reporting methods and that further investigation of the issues we raise will lead both to advances in our fundamental understanding of avian reproduction as well as to improvements in future welfare and experimental efficiency.
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| 5. |
- Kim, Dae-Kyum, et al.
(författare)
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EVpedia: A Community Web Portal for Extracellular Vesicles Research
- 2015
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Ingår i: Bioinformatics. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 1367-4803 .- 1367-4811. ; 31:6, s. 933-939
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Motivation: Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are spherical bilayered proteolipids, harboring various bioactive molecules. Due to the complexity of the vesicular nomenclatures and components, online searches for EV-related publications and vesicular components are currently challenging. Results: We present an improved version of EVpedia, a public database for EVs research. This community web portal contains a database of publications and vesicular components, identification of orthologous vesicular components, bioinformatic tools and a personalized function. EVpedia includes 6879 publications, 172 080 vesicular components from 263 high-throughput datasets, and has been accessed more than 65 000 times from more than 750 cities. In addition, about 350 members from 73 international research groups have participated in developing EVpedia. This free web-based database might serve as a useful resource to stimulate the emerging field of EV research.
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| 6. |
- Naurin, Sara, et al.
(författare)
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A microarray for large-scale genomic and transcriptional analyses of the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata) and other passerines
- 2008
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Ingår i: Molecular Ecology Notes. - : Wiley. - 1471-8278 .- 1755-098X. ; 8:2, s. 275-281
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The microarray technology has revolutionized biological research in the last decade. By monitoring the expression of many genes simultaneously, microarrays can elucidate gene function, as well as scan entire genomes for candidate genes encoding complex traits. However, because of high costs of sequencing and design, microarrays have largely been restricted to a few model species. Cross-species microarray (CSM) analyses, where microarrays are used for other species than the one they were designed for, have had varied success. We have conducted a CSM analysis by hybridizing genomic DNA from the common whitethroat (Sylvia communis) on a newly developed Affymetrix array designed for the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata), the Lund-zf array. The results indicate a very high potential for the zebra finch array to act as a CSM utility in other passerine birds. When hybridizing zebra finch genomic DNA, 98% of the gene representatives had higher signal intensities than the background cut-off, and for the common whitethroat, we found the equivalent proportion to be as high as 96%. This was surprising given the fact that finches and warblers diverged 25-50 million years ago, but may be explained by a relatively low sequence divergence between passerines (89-93%). Passerine birds are widely used in studies of ecology and evolution, and a zebra finch array that can be used for many species may have a large impact on future research directions.
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