On Mirror Maps for Manifolds of Exceptional Holonomy

We study mirror symmetry of type II strings on manifolds with the exceptional holonomy groups G2 and Spin(7). Our central result is a construction of mirrors of Spin(7) manifolds realized as generalized connected sums. In parallel to twisted connected sum G2 manifolds, mirrors of such Spin(7) manifolds can be found by applying mirror symmetry to the pair of non-compact manifolds they are glued from. To provide non-trivial checks for such geometric mirror constructions, we give a CFT analysis of mirror maps for Joyce orbifolds in several new instances for both the Spin(7) and the G2 case. For all of these models we find possible assignments of discrete torsion phases, work out the action of mirror symmetry, and confirm the consistency with the geometrical construction. A novel feature appearing in the examples we analyse is the possibility of frozen singularities

Prognostic significance of DNA cytometry in cutaneous malignant lymphomas.

The current classification of cutaneous malignant lymphomas (ML) into low-grade and high-grade lymphomas was found to be of limited reproducibility and permitted only a rough prediction about outcome. With this in mind, the relationship between nuclear DNA content and both prognosis and histologic grading according to the Kiel classification was evaluated on Feulgen-stained imprint specimens. In all, 49 cases of malignant non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, primary of the skin or with an involvement of the skin as one of the first symptoms, were studied using a computerized high-resolution image analysis system. The 2c deviation index (2cDI), which reflects the variation of the nuclear DNA values around the normal diploid peak, was found to be the best prognostically relevant criterion. Using the 2cDI, a significant discrimination (P less than 0.001 in the U test) between low-grade and high-grade ML was achieved. The prognostic benefit of the 2cDI was well documented by a significant inverse correlation between the 2cDI and the period of time until the patients progressed at least into one higher stage or died of lymphoma (r equals -0.63, P less than 0.05). In addition, the 2cDI enabled prognosis of the course of disease. In the group with low 2cDI values (2cDI, less than 0.5), no progression of the disease was observed after 1 year. In the groups presenting with a 2cDI between 0.5 and 1.0 and higher than 1.0, a progression was found in 57% and 64% of the cases studied, respectively. In conclusion, these measurements indicate that the determination of DNA distribution patterns in imprint specimens allows a precise and objective prognostic evaluation of cutaneous ML

An den Wurzeln der Tugend. Rheinischer Adel und Freimaurerei 1765-1815

Die Studie untersucht die Bedeutung des »Esoterischen« für die Selbstsicht der adlig-bürgerlichen Eliten beim Übergang zur Moderne. Auf der Grundlage der mythischen Geschichtskonstruktionen von Genealogien des rheinischen Adels sowie des Geheimbunds der Freimaurerei zeichnet sie die parallel zu den Entwicklungen der Naturwissenschaften verlaufende Transformation der Vorstellung vom tugendhaften »Adel des Blutes« hin zum bürgerlichen »Adel des Intellekts« nach. Die Studie kann dabei zeigen, wie der esoterische Gehalt des frühneuzeitlichen Bildes von Wachstum und Fortschritt des Familienstammbaums sich um 1800 mehr und mehr auf die Konzepte »Nation« und »Volk« im Gesamten ausweitete. Das esoterische Denken hielt sich auf dieser Grundlage bis in die Moderne und sollte vorhandene rassische Vorstellungen adlig-bürgerlicher Eliten der »Sattelzeit« nachhaltig prägen

Cirulating Sézary Cells in the Diagnosis of Sézary Syndrome (Quantitative and Morphometric Analyses)

Plastic-embedded circulating Sézary cells were examined in semithin and thin sections (assisted by the nuclear contour index-NCI). Eight cases of Sézary syndrome were analyzed as well as 11 controls (3 cases of widespread eczemas and 8 cases of erythroderma), 7 cases of mycosis fungoides, and 3 healthy individuals. Discriminating criteria between Sézary syndrome and benign diseases were sought: in addition to Sézary cells (NCI > 6.5) intermediate lymphocytes (5.0 < NCI ≤ 6.5) proved to be helpful. Cases with Sézary syndrome were clearly differentiated when the following 3 ultrastructural criteria were fulfilled: (1) Sézary cells (SC) > 9%; (2) intermediate lymphocytes (IL) > 20%; (3) the sum of SC and IL > 37%.A good correlation between thin and semithin sections was obtained (correlation coefficient for Sézary cells r = 0.82). Usually the values of SC were slightly higher on thin sections. The diagnosis of SS can be made on semithin sections when the ultrastructural criteria are fulfilled. In this way 8 of 12 samples of Sézary syndrome were correctly classified. Therefore, semithin sections (studied by light microscopy) are recommended as a routine method in the diagnosis of cases suspected of Sézary syndrome, whereas thin sections (studied by electron microscopy) appeared to be necessary in problem cases only

Fullerene-based Biocomponents : New Concepts For Functionalising Membranes

Lipophilic hexakisadducts of fullerene C60 form unprecedented rod-like nanoaggregates in phospholipid-membrane bilayers, resulting in modification of the micromechanic properties and stabilisation of the membrane. Lipofullerenes with amphiphilic side chains enable additionally derivatisation and molecular recognition at the membrane surface. The amphiphilic spacer acts as a transmembrane anchor and provides the terminal functionality outside of the membrane. New systems derived from parent compound 3 carry two functional groups each and can be easily modified due to the modular synthesis. Terminal functionalities to be investigated include D(+)-biotin and IDA (iminodiacetic acid) ligands, as used in nickel-histidine tags. Modification of the lipophilic region, for instance with unsaturated addends is also possible. These addends should allow polymerisation inside the membrane and potentially lead to a tremendous increase of the membrane rigidity. Furthermore, mono- and bilayer-forming fullerene derivatives without the membrane-forming support of lecithins are investigated and exhibit interesting features

Adsorção de corante azul de metileno por diferentes métodos de obtenção de quitina de resíduo de camarão

A indústria têxtil, muito importante para a economia mundial, gera um&nbsp;efluente que contém corantes e, quando descartado em corpos hídricos&nbsp;sem o tratamento adequado, pode causar impactos na saúde humana e&nbsp;no meio ambiente. Um desses corantes amplamente utilizado é o azul&nbsp;de metileno, cujas características são a alta solubilidade em água e seu&nbsp;potencial tóxico, causando desde irritações nos olhos, náuseas e vômitos&nbsp;até confusão mental. Entre os potenciais adsorventes desse corante está&nbsp;a quitina, que é um biopolímero extraído do exoesqueleto do camarão.&nbsp;Objetivando o desenvolvimento de um material adsorvente de baixo&nbsp;custo com potencial uso na indústria de tratamento de efluentes têxteis,&nbsp;verificou-se a capacidade de remoção de corante azul de metileno por&nbsp;quitina de resíduo de camarão, obtida por onze diferentes metodologias.&nbsp;Os três tratamentos mais eficientes alcançaram aproximadamente 75%&nbsp;de remoção do corante, comprovando o alto poder de adsorção do&nbsp;resíduo de camarão. Além de proporcionar desenvolvimento tecnológico&nbsp;de materiais, a pesquisa traz benefícios socioeconômicos para a colônia&nbsp;de pescadores com a utilização de resíduo de camarão para a adsorção&nbsp;de outro resíduo proveniente da indústria têxtil, contribuindo para a&nbsp;sustentabilidade de ambas as atividades e reduzindo o impacto ambiental.The textile industry, very important for the world economy,&nbsp;generates an effluent containing dyes, and which, when discarded&nbsp;in water bodies without proper treatment, can cause impacts to&nbsp;human health and the environment. One of these widely used&nbsp;dyes is methylene blue, whose characteristics are high solubility&nbsp;in water and its toxic potential, and which effects range from&nbsp;eye irritations, nausea, vomiting and even mental confusion.&nbsp;Among the potential adsorbents of this dye is chitin, which is a&nbsp;biopolymer extracted from the shrimp exoskeleton. Aiming at the&nbsp;development of a low-cost adsorbent material with potential use&nbsp;in the textile effluent treatment industry, the ability to remove&nbsp;methylene blue dye by shrimp residue chitin, obtained by eleven&nbsp;different methodologies, was verified. The three most efficient&nbsp;treatments reached approximately 75% of dye removal, proving the&nbsp;high adsorption power of shrimp residue. In addition to providing&nbsp;technological development of materials, the research brings socioeconomic&nbsp;benefits to the fishermen’s colony with the use of shrimp&nbsp;residue for the adsorption of other waste from the textile industry,&nbsp;contributing to the sustainability of both activities and reducing the&nbsp;environmental impact

Combined DNA methylation and gene expression profiling in gastrointestinal stromal tumors reveals hypomethylation of SPP1 as an independent prognostic factor

Cataloged from PDF version of article.Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) have distinct gene expression patterns according to localization, genotype and aggressiveness. DNA methylation at CpG dinucleotides is an important mechanism for regulation of gene expression. We performed targeted DNA methylation analysis of 1.505 CpG loci in 807 cancer-related genes in a cohort of 76 GISTs, combined with genome-wide mRNA expression analysis in 22 GISTs, to identify signatures associated with clinicopathological parameters and prognosis. Principal component analysis revealed distinct DNA methylation patterns associated with anatomical localization, genotype, mitotic counts and clinical follow-up. Methylation of a single CpG dinucleotide in the non-CpG island promoter of SPP1 was significantly correlated with shorter disease-free survival. Hypomethylation of this CpG was an independent prognostic parameter in a multivariate analysis compared to anatomical localization, genotype, tumor size and mitotic counts in a cohort of 141 GISTs with clinical follow-up. The epigenetic regulation of SPP1 was confirmed in vitro, and the functional impact of SPP1 protein on tumorigenesis-related signaling pathways was demonstrated. In summary, SPP1 promoter methylation is a novel and independent prognostic parameter in GISTs, and might be helpful in estimating the aggressiveness of GISTs from the intermediate-risk category. © 2014 UICC

Challenges in Smart Low-Temperature District Heating Development

Previous research and development shows that low temperature district heating (LTDH) system is economic feasible for low energy buildings and buildings at sparse areas. Coupling with reduced network temperature and well-designed district heating (DH) networks, LTDH can reduce network heat loss by up to 75% comparing with the current medium temperature district heating system. Further system efficiency improvement can be achieved through a holistic approach which includes measures such as reduced system design margin, enhanced demand side management and improved operation of decentralized heat generations. The realization of such efficiency improvement measures will increase the demand for well functioned monitoring, communication, control and decision support tools and services to coordinate each component in the DH system

An open-source framework for the uncertainty quantification of aeroelastic wind turbine simulation tools

The uncertainty quantification of aeroelastic wind turbine simulations is an active research topic. This paper presents a dedicated, open-source framework for this purpose. The framework is built around the uncertainpy package, likewise available as open source. Uncertainty quantification is done with a non-intrusive, global and variance-based surrogate model, using PCE (i.e., polynomial chaos expansion). Two methods to handle the uncertain parameter distribution along the blades are presented. The framework is demonstrated on the basis of an aeroelastic stability analysis. A sensitivity analysis is performed on the influence of the flapwise, edgewise and torsional stiffness of the blades on the damping of the most critical mode for both a Bladed linearization and a Bladed time domain simulation. The sensitivities of both models are in excellent agreement and the PCE surrogate models are shown to be accurate approximations of the true models