From newly obtained high-resolution, high signal-to-noise ratio spectra the abundances of
the elements La and Eu have been determined over the stellar metallicity range-3<[Fe/H]<+
0.3 in 159 giant and dwarf stars. Lanthanum is predominantly made by the s-process in the
solar system, while Eu owes most of its solar system abundance to the r-process. The
changing ratio of these elements in stars over a wide metallicity range traces the changing
contributions of these two processes to the Galactic abundance mix. Large s-process�…

We report precise Doppler measurements of GJ 436 (M2. 5 V) obtained at Keck Observatory.
The velocities reveal a planetary companion with orbital period of 2.644 days, eccentricity of
0.12 (consistent with zero), and velocity semiamplitude of K= 18.1 ms-1. The minimum mass
(M sin i) for the planet is 0.067M Jup= 1.2M Nep= 21M Earth, making it the lowest mass
exoplanet yet found around a main-sequence star and the first candidate in the Neptune-
mass domain. GJ 436 (mass= 0.41 M☉) is only the second M dwarf found to harbor a planet�…

We investigate the near-infrared K-band properties of the brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs)
in a sample of 93 X-ray galaxy clusters and groups, using data from the Two Micron All Sky
Survey. Our cluster sample spans a factor of 70 in mass, making it sensitive to any cluster
mass-related trends. We derive the cumulative radial distribution for the BCGs in the
ensemble and find that 70% of the BCGs are centered in the cluster to within 5% of the virial
radius r 200; this quantifies earlier findings that BCG position coincides with the cluster�…

Inhibitors of the enzyme dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP IV) are of increasing interest to both
diabetologists and the pharmaceutical industry alike, as they may become established as
the next member of the oral antidiabetic class of therapeutic agents, designed to lower blood
glucose and, possibly, prevent the progressive impairment of glucose metabolism in patients
with impaired glucose tolerance and Type 2 diabetes. DPP IV has become a focus of
attention for drug design, as it has a pivotal role in the rapid degradation of at least two of the�…