Self-Organization Promotes the Evolution of Cooperation with Cultural Propagation

In this paper three computational models for the study of the evolution of cooperation under cultural propagation are studied: Kin Selection, Direct Reciprocity and Indirect Reciprocity. Two analyzes are reported, one comparing their behavior between them and a second one identifying the impact that different parameters have in the model dynamics. The results of these analyzes illustrate how game transitions may occur depending of some parameters within the models and also explain how agents adapt to these transitions by individually choosing their attachment to a cooperative attitude. These parameters regulate how cooperation can self-organize under different circumstances. The emergence of the evolution of cooperation as a result of the agent's adapting processes is also discussed

Stratified Abstraction of Access Control Policies

The shift to cloud-based APIs has made application security critically depend on understanding and reasoning about policies that regulate access to cloud resources. We present stratified predicate abstraction, a new approach that summarizes complex security policies into a compact set of positive and declarative statements that precisely state who has access to a resource. We have implemented stratified abstraction and deployed it as the engine powering AWS’s IAM Access Analyzer service, and hence, demonstrate how formal methods and SMT can be used for security policy explanation

PK-guided switch between standard half-life and extended half-life factor VII products

P117 Introduction: Extended half-life (EHL) factor VIII (FVIII) requires improvements in half-life (t1/2) & area under the curve (AUC) of 1.3 & 1.25 times compared to standard half-life (SHL) products. The aim of this study is compare pharmacokinetics (PK) after the switch from SHL to EHL in patients with hemophilia A (HA). Methods: Multicenter comparative, cross-sectional, prospective study analyzing PK differences after switch from SHL to EHL (ef-moroctocog alfa [rFVIII-Fc] & rurioctocog alfa pegol [PEG-rFVIII]). WAPPS- Hemo® was used to analyze PK parameters with 2-3 samples: t1/2; AUC, peak level (PL); trough level at 24, 48 & 72 hours (TL24, TL48, TL72); & time to reach FVIII levels of 1, 2, 5% (T1%, T2%, T5%). Ratio of t1/2 & AUC, the number of weekly doses & the dose/kg/week before & after the switch were compared. Wilcoxon & Kruskal-Wallis tests (SPSS®) were used to compare the PK parameters. Results: Eightythree patients from 8 Spanish hospitals were analyzed (62 rFVIII-Fc; 21 PEG-rFVIII), 79 had severe HA & 4 moderate HA. Median age was 30 years (range = 3-64) & no differences in weight were observed between both periods.Dose/kg/week & weekly infusion frequency were reduced after the switch to EHL, & significant improvements were observed in all PK parameters after the change from SHL to EHL (Table 1). The median ratios of t1/2 & AUC were 1.3 (IQR:1.2-1.6) and 1.6 (IQR:1.3-2.2) in the entire cohort. In patients with =12 years ratios of t1/2 & AUC were 1.4 (IQR:1.3-1.6) & 1.7 (IQR:1.3-2.3), and in the cohort of 16 patients <12 years treated with rFVIII-Fc were 1.3 (IQR:0.9-1.5) and 1.4 (IQR:1.1- 2.1).After the switch to EHL, median weekly dose frequency (30%, IQR:0-33.3%) & dose/kg/week (16.9%, IQR:8.7-32.8%) were reduced. In a small subset of 15 younger patients the dose/kg/week was increased a median of 28.6% (IQR:11.7-40-7%). No differences were observed in any of the PK parameters & median ratios of t1/2 & AUC in patients aged =12 years treated with rFVIII-Fc vs. PEG-rFVIII (46 rFVIII-Fc; 21 PEG-rFVIII). Discussion/Conclusion: EHL FVIII have shown significant PK improvements in clinical real practice, allowing to reduce weekly infusion number & dose/kg/week. Outside the clinical trial setting, we have observed an increase in t1/2 & AUC ratios accordingly to EHL definition. Comparisons regarding clinical outcomes (bleeding rate after switch) will be performed after a follow-up of 1 year with EHL for the full cohort

Unraveling the effect of silent, intronic and missense mutations on VWF splicing: contribution of next generation sequencing in the study of mRNA

Large studies in von Willebrand disease patients, including Spanish and Portuguese registries, led to identification of >250 different mutations. It is a challenge to determine the pathogenic effect of potential splice site mutations on VWF mRNA. This study aimed to elucidate the true effects of 18 mutations on VWF mRNA processing, investigate the contribution of next-generation sequencing to in vivo mRNA study in von Willebrand disease, and compare the findings with in silico prediction. RNA extracted from patient platelets and leukocytes was amplified by RT-PCR and sequenced using Sanger and next generation sequencing techniques. Eight mutations affected VWF splicing: c.1533+1G>A, c.5664+2T>C and c.546G>A (p.=) prompted exon skipping; c.3223-7_3236dup and c.7082-2A>G resulted in activation of cryptic sites; c.3379+1G>A and c.7473G>A (p.=) demonstrated both molecular pathogenic mechanisms simultaneously; and the p.Cys370Tyr missense mutation generated two aberrant transcripts. Of note, the complete effect of 3 mutations was provided by next generation sequencing alone because of low expression of the aberrant transcripts. In the remaining 10 mutations, no effect was elucidated in the experiments. However, the differential findings obtained in platelets and leukocytes provided substantial evidence that 4 of these would have an effect on VWF levels. In this first report using next generation sequencing technology to unravel the effects of VWF mutations on splicing, the technique yielded valuable information. Our data bring to light the importance of studying the effect of synonymous and missense mutations on VWF splicing to improve the current knowledge of the molecular mechanisms behind von Willebrand disease.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Unraveling the effect of silent, intronic and missense mutations on VWF splicing: contribution of next generation sequencing in the study of mRNA

Large studies in von Willebrand disease patients, including Spanish and Portuguese registries, led to the identification of >250 different mutations. It is a challenge to determine the pathogenic effect of potential splice site mutations on VWF mRNA. This study aimed to elucidate the true effects of 18 mutations on VWF mRNA processing, investigate the contribution of next-generation sequencing to in vivo mRNA study in von Willebrand disease, and compare the findings with in silico prediction. RNA extracted from patient platelets and leukocytes was amplified by RT-PCR and sequenced using Sanger and next generation sequencing techniques. Eight mutations affected VWF splicing: c.1533+1G>A, c.5664+2T>C and c.546G>A (p.=) prompted exon skipping; c.3223-7_3236dup and c.7082-2A>G resulted in activation of cryptic sites; c.3379+1G>A and c.7437G>A) demonstrated both molecular pathogenic mechanisms simultaneously; and the p.Cys370Tyr missense mutation generated two aberrant transcripts. Of note, the complete effect of three mutations was provided by next generation sequencing alone because of low expression of the aberrant transcripts. In the remaining 10 mutations, no effect was elucidated in the experiments. However, the differential findings obtained in platelets and leukocytes provided substantial evidence that four of these would have an effect on VWF levels. In this first report using next generation sequencing technology to unravel the effects of VWF mutations on splicing, the technique yielded valuable information. Our data bring to light the importance of studying the effect of synonymous and missense mutations on VWF splicing to improve the current knowledge of the molecular mechanisms behind von Willebrand disease. clinicaltrials.gov identifier:02869074

Análisis del switch guiado por farmacocinética de factores VIII de semivida estándar a factores de semivida extendida

CO-170 Introducción y objetivos: Los factores VIII (FVIII) de semivida extendida (EHL) han mostrado en los ensayos clínicos mejoras de al menos 1, 3 veces la semivida plasmática (t1/2) y 1, 25 veces el área bajo la curva (AUC) respecto a los FVIII estándar (SHL). Herramientas basadas en modelos farmacocinéticos (PK) poblacionales permiten estimar los parámetros PK individuales y ajustar la profilaxis. El objetivo de este estudio es analizar el switch PK-guiado de SHL a EHL en pacientes con hemofilia A (HA). Métodos: Estudio multicéntrico comparativo, cruzado, prospectivo que analiza las diferencias PK tras el cambio de factores SHL a EHL (Elocta® y Adynovi®) en pacientes con HA grave/moderada en profilaxis. Se ha empleado el PopPK WAPPS-Hemo® con 2-3 muestras para realizar un perfil PK individualizado de los valores de FVIII. Los parámetros PK analizados son: t1/2, AUC, nivel pico (NP), nivel valle a las 24, 48 y/o 72 h (NV24/NV48/NV72) y tiempo para alcanzar niveles de FVIII del 5%, 2% y 1% (T5%/T2%/T1%). También analizamos los ratios de t1/2 y AUC, el nº dosis semanales y la dosis/kg/semana. Para comparar los parámetros PK entre ambos periodos empleamos los test de Wilcoxon y Kruskal-Wallis (SPSS®). Los resultados se expresaron con la mediana y el rango o rango intercuartílico (RIC). Resultados: Se han analizado 64 pacientes procedentes de 8 hospitales españoles (48 switch a Elocta® y 16 a Adynovi®), 62 con HA grave y 2 con HA moderada, con una mediana de edad de 32 años (rango=5-64) y sin diferencias en el peso entre ambos periodo [71, 0 (rango=12-116) vs 72, 0 (16, 9- 116) kg; p=0, 156]. La dosis/kg/semana se redujo tras el switch a EHL [74, 5 (RIC:59, 2-108, 1) vs 69, 2 (RIC:46, 2-96, 7) UI/kg/semana; p<0, 0001], así como ..

Rivaroxaban Compared with Standard Anticoagulants for the Treatment of Acute Venous Thromboembolism in Children: a Randomised, Controlled, Phase 3 Trial

Background: Treatment of venous thromboembolism in children is based on data obtained in adults with little direct documentation of its efficacy and safety in children. The aim of our study was to compare the efficacy and safety of rivaroxaban versus standard anticoagulants in children with venous thromboembolism. Methods: In a multicentre, parallel-group, open-label, randomised study, children (aged 0–17 years) attending 107 paediatric hospitals in 28 countries with documented acute venous thromboembolism who had started heparinisation were assigned (2:1) to bodyweight-adjusted rivaroxaban (tablets or suspension) in a 20-mg equivalent dose or standard anticoagulants (heparin or switched to vitamin K antagonist). Randomisation was stratified by age and venous thromboembolism site. The main treatment period was 3 months (1 month in children <2 years of age with catheter-related venous thromboembolism). The primary efficacy outcome, symptomatic recurrent venous thromboembolism (assessed by intention-to-treat), and the principal safety outcome, major or clinically relevant non-major bleeding (assessed in participants who received ≥1 dose), were centrally assessed by investigators who were unaware of treatment assignment. Repeat imaging was obtained at the end of the main treatment period and compared with baseline imaging tests. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02234843 and has been completed. Findings: From Nov 14, 2014, to Sept 28, 2018, 500 (96%) of the 520 children screened for eligibility were enrolled. After a median follow-up of 91 days (IQR 87–95) in children who had a study treatment period of 3 months (n=463) and 31 days (IQR 29–35) in children who had a study treatment period of 1 month (n=37), symptomatic recurrent venous thromboembolism occurred in four (1%) of 335 children receiving rivaroxaban and five (3%) of 165 receiving standard anticoagulants (hazard ratio [HR] 0·40, 95% CI 0·11–1·41). Repeat imaging showed an improved effect of rivaroxaban on thrombotic burden as compared with standard anticoagulants (p=0·012). Major or clinically relevant non-major bleeding in participants who received ≥1 dose occurred in ten (3%) of 329 children (all non-major) receiving rivaroxaban and in three (2%) of 162 children (two major and one non-major) receiving standard anticoagulants (HR 1·58, 95% CI 0·51–6·27). Absolute and relative efficacy and safety estimates of rivaroxaban versus standard anticoagulation estimates were similar to those in rivaroxaban studies in adults. There were no treatment-related deaths. Interpretation: In children with acute venous thromboembolism, treatment with rivaroxaban resulted in a similarly low recurrence risk and reduced thrombotic burden without increased bleeding, as compared with standard anticoagulants. Funding: Bayer AG and Janssen Research & Development. © 2020 Elsevier Ltd

Educational orientation and employer influenced pedagogy practice and policy insights from three programmes in Europe

© Emerald Group Publishing Limited 2042-3896. Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between educational orientation and employer influenced pedagogy and to consider some implications for work-based learning (WBL) higher education (HE) policy and practice in Europe. Design/methodology/approach: The paper draws on purposefully selected case studies to describe the key attributes of WBL related pedagogy associated with three HE programmes in Finland, Spain and the UK. Findings: The national regulatory environment has a key role to play in issues associated with WBL pedagogy. The case studies also demonstrate a pluralistic approach to pedagogy and the key role that employers play in both providing regular intelligence to inform curriculum design and contributing to pedagogy. Research limitations/implications: The small number of case studies limits the opportunity for generalisation and the level of analysis masks subtle and interesting differentiations in pedagogy worthy of further exploration. Practical implications: The paper highlights implications for government to provide the vision and regulatory environment to encourage WBL and for universities and academics to design and implement innovative, pluralist pedagogies. Originality/value: The paper provides a new framework and a unique analysis of programme level case studies from three European countries

Traffic Games: Modeling Freeway Traffic with Game Theory.

We apply game theory to a vehicular traffic model to study the effect of driver strategies on traffic flow. The resulting model inherits the realistic dynamics achieved by a two-lane traffic model and aims to incorporate phenomena caused by driver-driver interactions. To achieve this goal, a game-theoretic description of driver interaction was developed. This game-theoretic formalization allows one to model different lane-changing behaviors and to keep track of mobility performance. We simulate the evolution of cooperation, traffic flow, and mobility performance for different modeled behaviors. The analysis of these results indicates a mobility optimization process achieved by drivers' interactions

Transnational education as enabler of access to quality higher education and its link to UN SDG4: the case of Greece

This chapter explores the impact of TNE in Greece with particular reference to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 4. The context of the research is a TNE collaborative partnership case study which involves Queen Margaret University in Scotland and Metropolitan College in Greece. A qualitative approach is used to gather and analyse primary evidence from TNE students and graduates. The findings suggest that TNE has had a positive impact in enabling access to good quality higher education in Greece in three respects: (1) affordability; (2) access to courses not available in the domestic HE system; and (3) the use of the host country language in delivery and assessment. This case study suggests that TNE promotes access to good quality higher education and creates a number of benefits for direct participants and wider stakeholder groups with direct reference to UN SDG4