A giant exoplanet orbiting a very-low-mass star challenges planet formation models.

Surveys have shown that super-Earth and Neptune-mass exoplanets are more frequent than gas giants around low-mass stars, as predicted by the core accretion theory of planet formation. We report the discovery of a giant planet around the very-low-mass star GJ 3512, as determined by optical and near-infrared radial-velocity observations. The planet has a minimum mass of 0.46 Jupiter masses, very high for such a small host star, and an eccentric 204-day orbit. Dynamical models show that the high eccentricity is most likely due to planet-planet interactions. We use simulations to demonstrate that the GJ 3512 planetary system challenges generally accepted formation theories, and that it puts constraints on the planet accretion and migration rates. Disk instabilities may be more efficient in forming planets than previously thought.

The 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko observation campaign in support of the Rosetta mission.

We present a summary of the campaign of remote observations that supported the European Space Agency's Rosetta mission. Telescopes across the globe (and in space) followed comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko from before Rosetta's arrival until nearly the end of the mission in September 2016. These provided essential data for mission planning, large-scale context information for the coma and tails beyond the spacecraft and a way to directly compare 67P with other comets. The observations revealed 67P to be a relatively 'well-behaved' comet, typical of Jupiter family comets and with activity patterns that repeat from orbit to orbit. Comparison between this large collection of telescopic observations and the in situ results from Rosetta will allow us to better understand comet coma chemistry and structure. This work is just beginning as the mission ends-in this paper, we present a summary of the ground-based observations and early results, and point to many questions that will be addressed in future studies.This article is part of the themed issue 'Cometary science after Rosetta'.

Descripción clínica y socio-demográfica de pacientes psiquiátricos internados involuntariamente bajo el régimen de hospitalización administrativa en Chile / Clinical and socio-demographic description of involuntary psychiatric inpatients admitted under the state of administrative hospitalization in Chile

Introduction: According to the "Operational framework for the admission of psychiatric inpatients and for the delivery of mental health services" in force since 2001, a person can be hospitalized at a psychiatric service without their agreement if their mental disorder poses a risk for their own safety or for the safety of other people. Aim: To describe the socio-demographic and clinical characteristics of psychiatric inpatients hospitalized under the "administrative hospitalization" rule (a specific type of involuntary hospitalization) at the psychiatric service of the Clinica San Carlos de Apoquindo between the years 2006 and 2008. Methods: Data was obtained from the patients clinical recordings. Results: Most of 32 patients were young women, active workers, with bipolar disorder and history of suicide behavior and poor medication compliance. Discussion: Our study is a first step to characterize the involuntary psychiatric inpatients population hospitalized under the procedures regulated by Chilean legislation established since less than ten years.

Introducción: El "Reglamento para la internación de las personas con enfermedades mentales y sobre los establecimientos que la proporcionan" en vigencia desde 2001 establece que una persona sólo puede ser hospitalizada en un servicio psiquiátrico sin su consentimiento si como consecuencia de su patología psiquiátrica pone en riesgo su seguridad o la de terceros. Objetivo: Describir socio-demográfica y clínicamente a pacientes que fueron internados bajo el régimen de hospitalización administrativa (caso especial de la hospitalización involuntaria) en el servicio de psiquiatría de la Clínica San Carlos de Apoquindo. Métodos: Se revisó retrospectivamente los registros clínicos de todos los pacientes que fueron hospitalizados involuntariamente entre los años 2006 y 2008. Resultados: Se describen 32 casos, principalmente mujeres jóvenes con trabajo activo al momento de la hospitalización, con diagnóstico de trastorno bipolar y con historia de intentos de suicidio previos y mala adherencia al tratamiento. Discusión: El presente estudio representa un avance en la caracterización de la población de pacientes psiquiátricos que se hospitalizan involuntariamente dentro del marco legal establecido en Chile hace menos de una década.

3-Chlorobenzoate is taken up by a chromosomally encoded transport system in Cupriavidus necator JMP134.

Cupriavidus necator JMP134(pJP4) is able to grow on 3-chlorobenzoate (3-CB), a model chloroaromatic pollutant. Catabolism of 3-CB is achieved via the expression of the chromosomally encoded benABCD genes and the tfd genes from plasmid pJP4. Since passive diffusion of benzoic acid derivatives at physiological pH is negligible, the uptake of this compound should be facilitated by a transport system. However, no transporter has so far been described to perform this function, and identification of chloroaromatic compound transporters has been limited. In this work, uptake experiments using 3-[ring-UL-(14)C]CB showed an inducible transport system in strain JMP134, whose expression is activated by 3-CB and benzoate. A similar level of 3-CB uptake was found for a mutant strain of JMP134, defective in chlorobenzoate degradation, indicating that metabolic drag is not an important component of the measured uptake rate. Competitive inhibitor assays showed that uptake of 3-CB was inhibited by benzoate and, to a lesser degree, by 3-CB and 3,5-dichlorobenzoate, but not by any of 12 other substituted benzoates tested. The expression of several gene candidates for this transport function was analysed by RT-PCR, including both permease-type and ABC-type ATP-dependent transporters. Induction of a chromosomally encoded putative permease transporter (benP gene) was found specifically in the presence of 3-CB or benzoate. A benP knockout mutant of strain JMP134 displayed an almost complete loss of 3-CB transport activity. This is to our knowledge the first report of a 3-CB transporter.

Flares from a candidate Galactic magnetar suggest a missing link to dim isolated neutron stars.

Magnetars are young neutron stars with very strong magnetic fields of the order of 10(14)-10(15) G. They are detected in our Galaxy either as soft gamma-ray repeaters or anomalous X-ray pulsars. Soft gamma-ray repeaters are a rare type of gamma-ray transient sources that are occasionally detected as bursters in the high-energy sky. No optical counterpart to the gamma-ray flares or the quiescent source has yet been identified. Here we report multi-wavelength observations of a puzzling source, SWIFT J195509+261406. We detected more than 40 flaring episodes in the optical band over a time span of three days, and a faint infrared flare 11 days later, after which the source returned to quiescence. Our radio observations confirm a Galactic nature and establish a lower distance limit of approximately 3.7 kpc. We suggest that SWIFT J195509+261406 could be an isolated magnetar whose bursting activity has been detected at optical wavelengths, and for which the long-term X-ray emission is short-lived. In this case, a new manifestation of magnetar activity has been recorded and we can consider SWIFT J195509+261406 to be a link between the 'persistent' soft gamma-ray repeaters/anomalous X-ray pulsars and dim isolated neutron stars.

Anomalies of intestinal rotation and fixation: consequences of late diagnosis beyond two years of age.

The malrotation and no well fixation anomalies of the digestive tract is also frequent in older child, young and adult, with characteristic and specific clinical presentation. Actually, the diagnostic and treatment seem to be late, after suffering prolonged symptoms and/or in emergency. We present nine cases of anomalies in the embryonic development of the digestive tract which were diagnosed and treated in infants or young, all above 2 years old. Eight cases were of more or less complete intestinal malrotation; one of them was a complete malrotation with an intrinsic duodenal stenosis associated (no bands of Ladd) and another one was a right paramesocolic hernia, always accompanied by malrotation. The association with other extra-digestive anomalies, especially urological, was 70%. The predominant symptom was intermittent abdominal pain (IAP)-80%-sometimes accompanied by vomiting (35%) and episodes of diarrhoea (25%). In all the cases, while the clinical background was early, diagnosis was late. Indeed, in 60% of the cases diagnosis was made intra-operatively in emergency surgical interventions. The imaging procedures employed were scanning and Doppler ultrasound, CT scan, and contrast gastrointestinal series (GIS). Up to 30% of errors in interpretation occurred, although they were eventually corrected with other tests. The most reliable diagnostic procedures were GIS and CT scan with contrast, although partial interpretation errors occurred with the latter procedure. Surgery was essential in 80% of the pre-operative cases, and in another two it was required as a preventative measure. Post-operatively, there was notable persistence of SBS in the cases of intestinal necrosis, and of other lesser symptoms in the rest. We conclude that: intestinal malrotations and malfixations are still being diagnosed very late, with serious systemic consequences such as intestinal obstructions or necroses, and prolonged clinical suffering. This could all be avoided if more attention were paid to the digestive symptoms associated with IAP, and to subocclusion or other abdominal phenomena (distension,...), together with, in the case of doubt about the findings with the previous procedures, the opportune imaging tests (e.g., abdominal Doppler ultrasound, CT scan with contrast, and barium GIS). Unlike other authors, we consider that the morbidity/mortality associated with cases of late diagnosis of these anomalies is high, and calls for earlier surgical treatment.