Brunel University London

About: Brunel University London is a education organization based out in London, United Kingdom. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Large Hadron Collider & Population. The organization has 10918 authors who have published 29515 publications receiving 893330 citations. The organization is also known as: Brunel & University of Brunel.

Combined Measurement of the Higgs Boson Mass in pp Collisions at √s=7 and 8 TeV with the ATLAS and CMS Experiments

Abstract: A measurement of the Higgs boson mass is presented based on the combined data samples of the ATLAS and CMS experiments at the CERN LHC in the H→γγ and H→ZZ→4l decay channels. The results are obtained from a simultaneous fit to the reconstructed invariant mass peaks in the two channels and for the two experiments. The measured masses from the individual channels and the two experiments are found to be consistent among themselves. The combined measured mass of the Higgs boson is mH=125.09±0.21 (stat)±0.11 (syst) GeV.

Estrogenic activity of surfactants and some of their degradation products assessed using a recombinant yeast screen

Abstract: An estrogen-inducible screen was developed in yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) in order to assess whether surfactants and their major degradation products are estrogenic. The DNA sequence of the human estrogen receptor (hER) was integrated into the yeast genome, which also contained expression plasmids carrying estrogen-responsive sequences (ERE) controlling the expression of the reporter gene lac-Z (encoding the enzyme β-galactosidase). Thus, in the presence of estrogens, β-galactosidase is synthesized and secreted into the medium, where it causes a color change from yellow to red. This recombinant strain was used to determine whether representatives of major surfactant classes and some of their principal degradation products possess estrogenic activity. The results were compared to the effects of the main natural estrogen 17β-estradiol. None of the parent surfactants tested possessed estrogenic activity. However, one class of surfactants, the alkylphenol polyethoxylates, degrade to persistent metabolites that were weakly estrogenic. Another group of degradation products, the sulfophenyl carboxylates, which are derived from the biodegradation of linear alkylbenzene sulfonates, do not appear to possess estrogenic activity.

Vitellogenesis as a biomarker for estrogenic contamination of the aquatic environment.

Abstract: A rapidly increasing number of chemicals, or their degradation products, are being recognized as possessing estrogenic activity, albeit usually weak. We have found that effluent from sewage treatme...

Direct observation of a free radical interaction between vitamin E and vitamin C

Abstract: VITAMIN E (α-tocopherol) and vitamin C (ascorbic acid) react rapidly with organic free radicals, and it is widely accepted that the antioxidant properties of these compounds are responsible in part for their biological activity1–5. Tissue vitamin C levels are often considerably greater than those of vitamin E, for example in liver the values are approximately 2 mM and 0.02 mM, respectively. Nevertheless, vitamin E is considerably more lipophilic than vitamin C, and in biomembranes has been found to be the more potent antioxidant, particularly with respect to lipid peroxidation; penetration to a precise site in the membrane may be an important feature of the protection against highly reactive radicals6. Tappel has suggested that the two vitamins act synergistically, vitamin E acting as the primary antioxidant and the resulting vitamin E radical then reacting with vitamin C to regenerate vitamin E7. We now report direct observation of this interaction, which we feel may be an important feature in the maintenance of vitamin E levels in tissues.

Misunderstanding science? : the public reconstruction of science and technology

Abstract: Introduction Alan Irwin and Brian Wynne 1. Misunderstood misunderstandings: social identities and the public uptake of science Brian Wynne 2. Science and hell's kitchen: the local understanding of hazard issues Alan Irwin, Alison Dale and Denis Smith 3. Authorising science: public understanding of science in museums Sharon Macdonald 4. Disembodied knowledge? Making sense of medical science Helen Lambert and Hilary Rose 5. Now you see it, now you don't: mediating science and managing uncertainty in reproductive medicine Frances Price 6. Knowing ignorance and ignoring knowledge: discourses of ignorance in the public understanding of science Mike Michael 7. Insiders and outsiders: identifying experts on home ground Rosemary McKechnie 8. Nature's advocates: on putting science to work in environmental organisations Steven Yearley.