Jagiellonian University

About: Jagiellonian University is a education organization based out in Krakow, Poland. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Catalysis. The organization has 17438 authors who have published 44092 publications receiving 862633 citations. The organization is also known as: Academia Cracoviensis & Akademia Krakowska.

Broad-band X-ray/γ-ray spectra and binary parameters of GX 339–4 and their astrophysical implications

Abstract: We present X-ray/γ-ray spectra of the binary GX 339–4 observed in the hard state simultaneously by Ginga and CGRO OSSE during an outburst in 1991 September. The Ginga X-ray spectra are well represented by a power law with a photon spectral index of Γ ≃ 1.75 and a Compton reflection component with a fluorescent Fe Kα line corresponding to a solid angle of an optically thick, ionized medium of ∼ 0.4 × 2 π. The OSSE data (≥ 50 keV) require a sharp high-energy cut-off in the power-law spectrum. The broad-band spectra are very well modelled by repeated Compton scattering in a thermal plasma with an optical depth of τ ∼ 1 and kT ≃ 50 keV. We also study the distance to the system and find it to be ≳ 3 kpc, ruling out earlier determinations of ∼ 1 kpc. Using this limit, the observed reddening and the orbital period, we find the allowed range of the mass of the primary is consistent with it being a black hole. We find the data are inconsistent with models of either homogenous or patchy coronae above the surface of an accretion disc. Rather, they are consistent with the presence of an inner hot disc with the viscosity parameter of α ∼ 1 accreting at a rate close to the maximum set by advection. The hot disc is surrounded by a cold outer disc, which gives rise to the reflection component and a soft X-ray excess, also present in the data. The seed photons for Comptonization are unlikely to be due to thermal synchrotron radiation. Rather, they are supplied by the outer cold disc and/or cold clouds within the hot disc. e± pair production is negligible if electrons are thermal. The hot disc model, for which scaled parameters are independent of the black hole mass, is supported by the similarity of the spectrum of GX 339–4 to those of other black hole binaries and Seyfert 1s. On the other hand, their spectra in the soft γ-ray regime are significantly harder than those of weakly magnetized neutron stars. Based on this difference, we propose that the presence of broad-band spectra corresponding to thermal Comptonization with kT ≳ 50 keV represents a black hole signature.

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

Abstract: A search is presented for dark matter pair production in association with a W or Z boson in pp collisions representing 20.3 fb(-1) of integrated luminosity at root s = 8 TeV using data recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Events with a hadronic jet with the jet mass consistent with a W or Z boson, and with large missing transverse momentum are analyzed. The data are consistent with the standard model expectations. Limits are set on the mass scale in effective field theories that describe the interaction of dark matter and standard model particles, and on the cross section of Higgs production and decay to invisible particles. In addition, cross section limits on the anomalous production of W or Z bosons with large missing transverse momentum are set in two fiducial regions.

DISCOVERY OF VERY HIGH ENERGY γ -RAY EMISSION FROM CENTAURUS A WITH H.E.S.S.

Abstract: We report the discovery of faint very high energy (VHE, E>100 GeV) gamma-ray emission from the radio galaxy Centaurus A in observations performed with the H.E.S.S. experiment, an imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telescope array consisting of four telescopes located in Namibia. Centaurus A has been observed for more than 120 h. A signal with a statistical significance of 5.0 sigma is detected from the region including the radio core and the inner kpc jets. The integral flux above an energy threshold of ~250 GeV is measured to be ~0.8 % of the flux of the Crab Nebula (apparent luminosity: L(>250 GeV)~2.6x10^39 erg s^-1, adopting a distance of 3.8 Mpc. The spectrum can be described by a power law with a photon index of 2.7 +/- 0.5_stat +/- 0.2_sys. No significant flux variability is detected in the data set. However, the low flux only allows detection of variability on the timescale of days to flux increments above a factor of ~15-20 (3 sigma and 4 sigma, respectively). The discovery of VHE gamma-ray emission from Centaurus A reveals particle acceleration in the source to >TeV energies and, together with M 87, establishes radio galaxies as a class of VHE emitters.

Neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) - formation and implications

Abstract: Neutrophils are cells of the immune system which freely circulate in blood vessels and are recruited to the inflammation sites when the human organism responds to microbial infections. One of the mechanisms of neutrophil action is the formation of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) The process of NET generation, called netosis, is a specific type of cell death, different from necrosis and apoptosis. NETs are formed by neutrophils upon contact with various bacteria or fungi as well as with activated platelets or under the influence of numerous inflammatory stimuli, and this process is associated with dramatic changes in the morphology of the cells. The main components of NETs, DNA and granular antimicrobial proteins, determine their antimicrobial properties. The pathogens trapped in NETs are killed by oxidative and non-oxidative mechanisms. On the other hand, it was also discovered that chromatin and proteases released into the circulatory system during NET formation can regulate procoagulant and prothrombotic factors and take part in clot formation in blood vessels. NETs have also been detected in lungs where they are involved in chronic inflammation processes in ALI/ARDS patients. Moreover, DNA-proteins complexes have been found in the airway fluids of cystic fibrosis patients where they can increase the viscosity of the sputum and have a negative impact on the lung functions. The DNA-complexed granular proteins and other proteins released by neutrophils during netosis lead to autoimmunity syndromes such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), small-vessel vasculitis (SVV) or autoimmune diseases associated with the formation of autoantibodies against chromatin and neutrophil components. A possible involvement of NETs in metastasis is also considered.