We have isolated a cDNA from rat small intestine that encodes a novel Na+-independent neutral amino acid transporter with distinctive characteristics in substrate selectivity and transport property. The encoded protein, designated L-type amino acid transporter-2 (LAT-2), shows amino acid sequence similarity to the system L Na+-independent neutral amino acid transporter LAT-1 (Kanai, Y., Segawa, H., Miyamoto, K., Uchino, H., Takeda, E., and Endou, H.(1998) J. Biol. Chem. 273, 23629–23632) (50% identity) and the system y+L transporters y+LAT-1 (47%) and KIAA0245/y+LAT-2 (45%) (Torrents, D., Estevez, R., Pineda, M., Fernandez, E., Lloberas, J., Shi, Y.-B., Zorzano, A., and Palacin, M. (1998) J. Biol. Chem. 273, 32437–32445). LAT-2 is a nonglycosylated membrane protein. It requires 4F2 heavy chain, a type II membrane glycoprotein, for its functional expression inXenopus oocytes. LAT-2-mediated transport is not dependent on Na+ or Cl− and is inhibited by a systeml-specific inhibitor, 2-aminobicyclo-(2,2,1)-heptane-2-carboxylic acid (BCH), indicating that LAT-2 is a second isoform of the system L transporter. Compared with LAT-1, which prefers large neutral amino acids with branched or aromatic side chains, LAT-2 exhibits remarkably broad substrate selectivity. It transports all of the l-isomers of neutral α-amino acids. LAT-2 exhibits higher affinity (K m = 30–50 μm) to Tyr, Phe, Trp, Thr, Asn, Ile, Cys, Ser, Leu, Val, and Gln and relatively lower affinity (K m = 180–300 μm) to His, Ala, Met, and Gly. In addition, LAT-2 mediates facilitated diffusion of substrate amino acids, as distinct from LAT-1, which mediates amino acid exchange. LAT-2-mediated transport is increased by lowering the pH level, with peak activity at pH 6.25, because of the decrease in the K m value without changing the V max value. Because of these functional properties and a high level of expression of LAT-2 in the small intestine, kidney, placenta, and brain, it is suggested that the heterodimeric complex of LAT-2 and 4F2 heavy chain is involved in the trans-cellular transport of neutral amino acids in epithelia and blood-tissue barriers.
Gamma-ray line signatures can be expected in the very-high-energy (E(γ)>100 GeV) domain due to self-annihilation or decay of dark matter (DM) particles in space. Such a signal would be readily distinguishable from astrophysical γ-ray sources that in most cases produce continuous spectra that span over several orders of magnitude in energy. Using data collected with the H.E.S.S. γ-ray instrument, upper limits on linelike emission are obtained in the energy range between ∼ 500 GeV and ∼ 25 TeV for the central part of the Milky Way halo and for extragalactic observations, complementing recent limits obtained with the Fermi-LAT instrument at lower energies. No statistically significant signal could be found. For monochromatic γ-ray line emission, flux limits of (2 × 10(-7) -2 × 10(-5)) m(-2) s(-1) sr(-1) and (1 × 10(-8) -2 × 10(-6)) m(-2) s(-1)sr(-1) are obtained for the central part of the Milky Way halo and extragalactic observations, respectively. For a DM particle mass of 1 TeV, limits on the velocity-averaged DM annihilation cross section ⟨σv⟩(χχ → γγ) reach ∼ 10(-27) cm(3)s(-1), based on the Einasto parametrization of the Galactic DM halo density profile.
The first three months of sky-survey operation with the Large Area Telescope (LAT) onboard the Fermi Gamma-Ray Space Telescope reveal 132 bright sources at |b|>10° with test statistic greater than 100 (corresponding to about 10σ). Two methods, based on the CGRaBS, CRATES, and BZCat catalogs, indicate high-confidence associations of 106 of these sources with known active galactic nuclei (AGNs). This sample is referred to as the LAT Bright AGN Sample (LBAS). It contains two radio galaxies, namely, Centaurus A and NGC 1275, and 104 blazars consisting of 58 flat spectrum radio quasars (FSRQs), 42 BL Lac objects, and 4 blazars with unknown classification. Four new blazars were discovered on the basis of the LAT detections. Remarkably, the LBAS includes 10 high-energy-peaked BL Lacs (HBLs), sources which were previously difficult to detect in the GeV range. Another 10 lower-confidence associations are found. Only 33 of the sources, plus two at |b| < 10°, were previously detected with Energetic Gamma-Ray Experiment Telescope(EGRET), probably due to variability. The analysis of the γ-ray properties of the LBAS sources reveals that the average GeV spectra of BL Lac objects are significantly harder than the spectra of FSRQs. No significant correlation between radio and peak γ-ray fluxes is observed. Blazar log N–log S distributions and luminosity functions are constructed to investigate the evolution of the different blazar classes, with positive evolution indicated for FSRQs but none for BL Lacs. The contribution of LAT blazars to the total extragalactic γ-ray intensity is estimated.
Encouraged by the global agreement between theoretical predictions and experimental measurements for $B \to J/ψV$ decays, we extend that perturbative QCD formalism to $B_{d,s}^0 \to J/ψf_0(500) [f_0(980)]$ decays at the presently known next-to-leading order in the quark-antiquark description of $f_0(500)$ and $f_0(980)$. With the angle $φ_f \approx 25^\circ$ of the $f_0(500)-f_0(980)$ mixing in the quark-flavor basis, we find that the branching ratios of the $B_d^0 \to J/ψf_0(500) (\to π^+ π^-)$ and $B_{d,s}^0 \to J/ψf_0(980) (\to π^+ π^-)$ modes generally agree with the current data or the upper limits within uncertainties, except for the seemingly challenging $B_s^0 \to J/ψf_0(500) (\to π^+π^-)$ one. Then, we further explore the relevant observables of the $B_{d,s}^0 \to J/ψf_0(500) [f_0(980)]$ decays, which could provide further constraints on the mixing angle $φ_f$ and/or SU(3) flavor symmetry breaking effects. As a byproduct, we predict ${\rm BR}(B_{d}^0 \to J/ψf_0(980)(\to K^+ K^-))=5.8^{+3.1}_{-2.9} \times 10^{-7}$ and ${\rm BR}(B_{s}^0 \to J/ψf_0(980)(\to K^+ K^-)) =4.6^{+2.6}_{-2.3} \times 10^{-5}$. All theoretical predictions await the future examinations with high precision.
We present detailed observations of the bright short–hard gamma-ray burst GRB 090510 made with the Gamma-ray Burst Monitor (GBM) and Large Area Telescope (LAT) on board the Fermi observatory. GRB 090510 is the first burst detected by the LAT that shows strong evidence for a deviation from a Band spectral fitting function during the prompt emission phase. The time-integrated spectrum is fit by the sum of a Band function with Epeak = 3.9 ± 0.3 MeV, which is the highest yet measured, and a hard power-law component with photon index −1.62 ± 0.03 that dominates the emission below ≈20 keV and above ≈100 MeV. The onset of the high-energy spectral component appears to be delayed by ∼0.1 s with respect to the onset of a component well fit with a single Band function. A faint GBM pulse and a LAT photon are detected 0.5 s before the main pulse. During the prompt phase, the LAT detected a photon with energy 30.5+5.8−2.6 GeV, the highest ever measured from a short GRB. Observation of this photon sets a minimum bulk outflow Lorentz factor, Γ≳ 1200, using simple γγ opacity arguments for this GRB at redshift z = 0.903 and a variability timescale on the order of tens of ms for the ≈100 keV–few MeV flux. Stricter high confidence estimates imply Γ ≳ 1000 and still require that the outflows powering short GRBs are at least as highly relativistic as those of long-duration GRBs. Implications of the temporal behavior and power-law shape of the additional component on synchrotron/synchrotron self-Compton, external-shock synchrotron, and hadronic models are considered.