Value Functions and Transversality Conditions for Infinite-Horizon Optimal Control Problems

This paper investigates the relationship between the maximum principle with an infinite horizon and dynamic programming and sheds new light upon the role of the transversality condition at infinity as necessary and sufficient conditions for optimality with or without convexity assumptions. We first derive the nonsmooth maximum principle and the adjoint inclusion for the value function as necessary conditions for optimality that exhibit the relationship between the maximum principle and dynamic programming. We then present sufficiency theorems that are consistent with the strengthened maximum principle, employing the adjoint inequalities for the Hamiltonian and the value function. Synthesizing these results, necessary and sufficient conditions for optimality are provided for the convex case. In particular, the role of the transversality conditions at infinity is clarified

Agricultural activity of mining families in Wieprz commune

Zjawisko dwuzawodowości było i wciąż jest bardzo popularne na Pogórzu Śląskim. Właściciele małych gospodarstw rolniczych z tego obszaru bardzo często uzupełniali dochody przez pracę w pobliskich kopalniach węgla kamiennego. Trwający już dwie dekady proces transformacji polskiej gospodarki miał istotny wpływ, zarówno na rolnictwo, jak i górnictwo, co poskutkowało zmianami w gospodarstwach rolniczych użytkowanych przez rodziny górnicze. Celem podjętych badań było wykazanie zmian w skali i strukturze produkcji rolniczej gospodarstw użytkowanych przez rodziny górnicze.The phenomenon of dual employment was and still is very popular in the Silesian Piedmont (Pogórze Śląskie). Owners of small agricultural holdings from this area have often supplemented their income by working in the nearby industrial facilities, including coal mines. Poland's economic transformation processes of the last two decades have had significant consequences, including a decline in the profitability of agricultural production as well as in the scale of employment and wages in mining, which has also brought changes to the agricultural holdings used by mining families. The purpose of the survey was to identify the changes in the scale and structure of agricultural production of holdings run by mining families. The research conducted has shown that the process of reducing agricultural activity on the farms held by mining families is progressing at a slower pace than in other ones

Capability for self-care of patients with heart failure

Agnieszka Mlynarska,1,2 Krzysztof S Golba,2,3 Rafal Mlynarski2 1Department of Internal Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Medical University of Silesia, Katowice, Poland; 2Department of Electrocardiology, Upper Silesian Heart Centre, Katowice, Poland; 3Department of Electrocardiology and Heart Failure, School of Health Sciences, Medical University of Silesia, Katowice, Poland Background: A thorough analysis of the capability for self-care in patients with heart failure (HF) reduces the frequency of hospitalizations that are caused by decompensation. The aim of the study was to assess the effect of the method of therapy for HF, the degree of the acceptance of illness, and the occurrence of frailty syndrome on adherence to the therapeutic recommendations and self-care in patients with HF.Methods: The study included 180 patients who were hospitalized after being diagnosed with HF. In all, we used the Polish versions of three validated instruments: the nine-item European Heart Failure Self-care Behavior Scale, Illness Acceptance Scale, and The Tilburg Frailty Indicator.Results: The capability for self-care of patients with HF was 27.8%. More than 65% of the patients followed the recommendations for taking medication and also followed a low-sodium diet, while only 5.5% of the patients followed the recommendations for physical exercise. Positive correlations were found between the capability for self-care and frailty syndrome and its components: general frailty components vs the capability for self-care: r=0.4449, P=0.0000; physical frailty components vs the capability for self-care: r=0.3974, P=0.0000; emotional frailty components vs the capability for self-care: r=0.2831, P=0.0001; social frailty components vs the capability for self-care: r=0.2180, P=0.0032, and a negative correlation between the capability for self-care and the degree of the acceptance of the illnesses (r=-0.4662, P=0.0000).Conclusion: A relatively low capability for self-care was found in patients with HF. The presence of frailty syndrome and a low level of the acceptance of illness are connected with a low capability for self-care. Keywords: self-care, heart failure, frailty, rehospitalization, acceptance of illnes

Modified frailty as a novel factor in predicting the response to cardiac resynchronization in the elderly population

Agnieszka Mlynarska,1,2 Rafal Mlynarski,2,3 Czeslaw Marcisz,1 Krzysztof S Golba2,3 1Department of Gerontology and Geriatric Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Medical University of Silesia, Katowice, Poland; 2Department of Electrocardiology, Upper Silesian Heart Centre, Katowice, Poland; 3Department of Electrocardiology and Heart Failure, School of Health Sciences, Medical University of Silesia, Katowice, Poland Background: The response to cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) is an important element of the treatment of advanced heart failure, especially in the geriatric population. The aim of the study was to examine the impact of frailty syndrome on the response to treatment with CRT. Methods: Two hundred and forty-six patients of 60 years or older (aged 73.35±6.95; 22.4% women) with an implanted CRT were included in this single-center prospective study. There was a 12-month follow-up. The Tilburg Frailty Indicator was used to determine frailty (5 or more points). The response to CRT was evaluated based on an analysis of clinical criteria. Results: One hundred and sixty-nine of 246 (68.9%) patients were found to be clinical CRT responders. Frailty syndrome was recognized in 173 (70.32%). There were 63.0% responders in the frailty-affected group, whereas there were statistically more responders (79.5%) in the robust group (P=0.0116). In the logistic regression, frailty emerged as an independent predictor of the response to CRT (OR=0.81, 95% CI=0.71–0.92; P=0.0008). The area under the curve of the ROC curve for frailty in the responders to CRT was 0.62. The cut-off value for a designation of frailty was 6 (P=0.0014). Conclusion: Frailty is a novel independent factor that can be used to predict the clinical response to CRT in the elderly population. Modifying the level of recognition in the Tilburg Frailty Indicator can improve the prediction of a response to CRT. Keywords: cardiac resynchronization, frailty syndrome, heart failure, outcomes, responder

Carcinoma in situ testis displays permissive chromatin modifications similar to immature foetal germ cells

BACKGROUND: The majority of testicular germ cell cancers develop through a pre-invasive carcinoma in situ (CIS) stage. The CIS cell is a neoplastic counterpart of foetal germ cells. During their development, foetal germ cells undergo extensive and essential epigenetic modifications, but little is known about epigenetic patterns in CIS cells. METHODS: Immunohistochemistry was used to investigate epigenetic patterns in CIS, germ cell tumours, normal adult and foetal testicular tissue. RESULTS: CIS cells show low levels of DNA methylation and repressive histone modifications H3K9me2 and H3K27me3, but high levels of H3K9 acetylation, H3K4 methylation and H2A.Z, which all are associated with an activated and accessible chromatin structure. Collectively this renders a permissive chromatin structure and in accordance high levels of RNA polymerase II activity and proliferation (Ki-67 and mitotic index) is observed in CIS cells. Epigenetic patterns similar to that of CIS cells were observed in human gonocytes present within sex cords in foetal testes but correspond to migrating primordial germ cell in mice. Development of overt tumours involves epigenetic repression of the chromatin. CONCLUSION: CIS cells have a permissive and foetal-like chromatin structure, which is associated with a high transcriptional and proliferative activity, likely empowering neoplastic transformation. Developmental epigenetic cues in foetal germ cells are substantially different between humans and mice