#pseudoparticles

[dat-physics-gal]

Try telling that to solid state physicists.

(To my kindergarten class) It is easier to imagine an absence opening in a presence than a presence originating in an absence. Thus to answer your question, the holes in the swiss cheese must come after the cheese is formed, and it is not the case that the cheese is formed around the holes.

[jhavelikes]

An instanton (or pseudoparticle[1][2][3]) is a notion appearing in theoretical and mathematical physics. An instanton is a classical solution to equations of motion with a finite, non-zero action, either in quantum mechanics or in quantum field theory. More precisely, it is a solution to the equations of motion of the classical field theory on a Euclidean spacetime.

Instanton - Wikipedia

[stevishabitat]

The claim: Antibody cocktail Trump received is made from fetal stem cells

Since President Donald Trump’s COVID-19 diagnosis and hospitalization, health care professionals have voiced concerns regarding his broad medical regimen, which include steroid dexamethasone and Gilead’s remdesivir. One treatment in particular, an experimental antibody drug from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, is drawing criticism on social media.

“So it turns out the monoclonal antibodies Trump is on are from fetal stem cells. So Trump is being treated/saved with dead babies,” reads a Twitter post shared on the Facebook group Dogs for Democracy.

The tweet goes on to call out Republicans,  Supreme Court nominee Judge Amy Coney Barrett and anti-abortion activists.  

USA TODAY has reached out to the administrators of the Dogs for Democracy Facebook group for further comment.

What is Regeneron’s antibody cocktail?

When the human body is invaded by a foreign pathogen – be it a bacterium, virus, fungus or parasite – Y-shaped proteins called antibodies are formed. They circulate through the body to sequester and alert other immune chemicals and cells to destroy the pathogen, much like a search-and-destroy system.

Antibodies form the basis of “adaptive” immunity because they are genetically engineered, in a sense, by the body to recognize certain pathogens. This genetic engineering occurs within white blood cells called B cells, which manufacture and display the proteins on the cell surface, by way of genes rearranging like a set of numbers rearranging to form different sequences or patterns.

Because this rearrangement is random, there is no telling what kind of specificity an antibody will exhibit or whether it will be biologically useful. Only if a B cell meets the right pathogen at the right time will it then activate and secrete its bespoke antibody. The activated B cell will also go on to clone itself through a process called clonal expansion, which helps mount an effective immune response by spawning vast quantities of antibody and memory B cells (B cells which will remember the encounter for any future run-ins) as well as activating other immune cells.

A statement misconstrued

Alexandra Bowie of Regeneron told news aggregation platform Heavy in an October email that REGN-COV2 was not made with human embryonic stem cells.

“This particular discovery program (REGN-COV2) did not involve human stem cells or ESCs,” Bowie wrote.

The statement shared on Twitter is simply Regeneron’s official position on stem cell research in general and bears no relation to, or explanation of, how REGN-COV2 is made. Bowie also confirmed this with Heavy.

It is unclear why Regeneron released an official statement in April. In an email to USA TODAY, Bowie did not clarify the timing, only alluding to the fact it was a common practice among pharmaceutical companies and that Regeneron sought transparency.    

“Like many biopharma companies that conduct scientific research (see Pfizer, J&J, for instance), we have a general position statement on stem cell use,” Bowie said. “We share this and other similar statements in the interest of transparency and to help educate people on the steps we take to conduct our business responsibly.”

While REGN-COV’s monoclonal antibodies do appear to be derived from a B cell line isolated from a human donor who recovered from SARS-CoV-2 and an immunized mouse engineered to have a human immune system, USA TODAY did note a fetal-derived cell line mentioned in Regeneron’s early research.

In supplementary material to a paper published in June in the journal Science, HEK293T cells – an immortalized epithelial cell line (cells not normally immortal but altered to be so via spontaneous mutation or in the lab) derived from embryonic kidney cells obtained in 1972 – were described as “briefly” used to create SARS-CoV-2-like viral particles to test mouse and human-derived antibodies against.

Bowie affirmed HEK293T cells were used but reiterated stem cells were not.  

“This particular discovery program (REGN-COV2) did not involve human stem cells or ESCs,” she wrote. “The 293T cell line was originally derived from human embryonic kidney cells but is an immortalized epithelial cell – so not a stem cell. These cells were transfected and used in production of a ‘pseudoparticle’ that mimics the virus’ Spike protein and allowed us to test neutralization ability of our antibodies against the virus.”

Our rating: False

We rate this claim FALSE because it is not supported by our research. The experimental antibody therapy Trump received was not directly made from fetal or embryonic stem cells, rather antibodies obtained from SARS-CoV-2 human survivors and immunized mice engineered with a human immune system. Regeneron’s official statement released in April, cited on Twitter as a basis for the claim, is a general position on stem cell research and is unrelated to how the antibody therapy is actually made. However, an embryonic-derived cell line, albeit not a stem cell, does appear to have been involved at least in the early stages of Regeneron’s testing process, according to supplementary material published in June. The HEK293T cells used are an immortalized cell line derived from embryonic kidney cells but are not stem cells themselves.

Read more…

[healthtimetaylor]

Griffithsin has antiviral activity against hepatitis C virus.

PMID:  Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2011 Nov ;55(11):5159-67. Epub 2011 Sep 6. PMID: 21896910 Abstract Title:  Griffithsin has antiviral activity against hepatitis C virus. Abstract:  Hepatitis C virus (HCV)-infected patients undergoing liver transplantation universally experience rapid reinfection of their new liver graft. Current treatment protocols do not prevent graft reinfection and, in addition, an accelerated disease progression is observed. In the present study, we have evaluated a novel strategy to prevent HCV infection using a lectin, griffithsin (GRFT) that specifically binds N-linked high-mannose oligosaccharides that are present on the viral envelope. The antiviral effect of GRFT was evaluated in vitro using the HCV pseudoparticle (HCVpp) and HCV cell culture (HCVcc) systems. We show here that preincubation of HCVpp and HCVcc with GRFT prevents infection of Huh-7 hepatoma cells. Furthermore, GRFT interferes with direct cell-to-cell transmission of HCV. GRFT acts at an early phase of the viral life cycle by interfering in a genotype-independent fashion with the interaction between the viral envelope proteins and the viral receptor CD81. The capacity of GRFT to prevent infection in vivo was evaluated using uPA(+/+)-SCID mice (uPA stands for urokinase-type plasminogen activator) that harbor human primary hepatocytes in their liver (chimeric mice). In this proof-of-concept trial, we demonstrated that GRFT can mitigate HCV infection of chimeric mice. Treated animals that did become infected demonstrated a considerable delay in the kinetics of the viral infection. Our data demonstrate that GRFT can prevent HCV infection in vitro and mitigate HCV infection in vivo. GRFT treatment of chronically infected HCV patients undergoing liver transplantation may be a suitable strategy to prevent infection of the liver allograft.

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[verymerynice]

New Post has been published on Top Auto Blog

New Post has been published on http://topauto.site/new-hatchback-honda-bri/

New hatchback Honda Brio: strange update

At the ongoing Indonesia motor show GIIAS joint venture between Honda and local capital introduced the Honda Brio hatchback of the second generation. As expected, its prototype was shown in the spring in Jakarta concept car Honda Small RS. However, the approach to the development of production vehicles was a surprise.

Usually even a simple auto restyling is not without modified bumpers and retouched interior. But in the case of the new Brio is the opposite: the front bumper he got no change from the model of the previous generation, and in the interior at first glance is not noticeable any changes compared to the redesigned machine sample 2016.

However, it really is a new model built on an improved platform modern sedan Honda Amaze. About it in the first place say size: wheelbase increased by 60 mm (2405 mm), and length by as much as 205 mm (3815 mm). The most radically redesigned of the feed. Fifth all-glass door replaced traditional steel, and most of the increment in length occurred in the rear overhang. So handouts promise more room in the back seat and in the Luggage compartment.

In Indonesia, the Honda Brio is sold in two versions: budget and Satya pseudoparticles RS — such a gradation is preserved and the hatchback of the second generation. However, according to the technique, both cars are identical and are equipped with the same petrol engine 1.2 i-VTEC (90 HP, 110 Nm) paired with a manual transmission or a CVT. However, the first version in the local market belongs to government-subsidized category LCGC (Low Cost Green Cars) and cheaper “sport” almost in half. It is clear that it accounts for the lion’s share of 240 thousand Brio of the first generation, sold in Indonesia for six years.

It seems that this factor was decisive in such a modest exterior update Indonesian car. It is expected that in the middle of next year Honda Brio will be released to the markets of India, Thailand and other countries in the region. It is possible that these hatchbacks will look slightly different and at least lose the outdated front bumper.

[verymerynice]

New Post has been published on Top Auto Blog

New Post has been published on http://topauto.site/seat-introduced-the-sp/

Seat introduced the "sport" version of the crossover Ateca

After the first year of production of the first crossover Seat finally got pseudoparticles version of FR, which distinctive styling. The second news from the Spaniards – under the hood Ateca put gasoline turbo TSI with 190 HP

Spanish crossover Ateca will now be something to counter its German twin of the Volkswagen Tiguan in the ��daring” performance R-Line. Seat has announced the appearance of “Atici” traditional for the entire model family version FR, characteristic features of which is “charged” technical stuffing, and exterior decor in sports style.

Modification of the FR is built on the basis of the rich picking XCellence. All the usual FR Ateca version offers more aggressive bumpers and overlays on thresholds, a glossy radiator grille of a different design, available led fog lamps, black part of the glass and roof rails, and wheels R19 individually. No one could confuse the “heated” with a simple crossover, on the body and in the interior there was a scattering of logos FR.

In the cabin at Ateca FR sports steering wheel with leather upholstery, aluminium plates on the sills and sports seats with Alcantara available as options for the average SUV. Sports style emphasizes the red stitching on the steering wheel, gearshift lever and seats.

Importantly, aggressive appearance Seat Ateca FR will be completely combined with dynamic characteristics. It will debut on the FR petrol turbo engine family TSI 2.0 litre 190 HP, which will be available for other versions of “Atici”. In Europe, the car will be available with a 6-speed “mechanics” and with DSG, front-wheel or all-wheel drive, and diesel engines.

In the list of options for FR are Ateca suspension with DCC adaptive shock absorbers and active steering. Live specimens FR Seat Ateca will be presented at the spring auto show in Barcelona and European sales of the crossover will begin in the summer of 2017.