Molecular Biomarkers of Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration With Incomplete Response to Anti-Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Treatment.

The standard treatment for neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) consists of intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factors (VEGF). However, for some patients, even maximal anti-VEGF treatment does not entirely suppress exudative activity. The goal of this study was to identify molecular biomarkers in nAMD with incomplete response to anti-VEGF treatment. Aqueous humor (AH) samples were collected from three groups of patients: 17 patients with nAMD responding incompletely to anti-VEGF (18 eyes), 17 patients affected by nAMD with normal treatment response (21 eyes), and 16 control patients without any retinopathy (16 eyes). Proteomic and multiplex analyses were performed on these samples. Proteomic analyses showed that nAMD patients with incomplete anti-VEGF response displayed an increased inflammatory response, complement activation, cytolysis, protein-lipid complex, and vasculature development pathways. Multiplex analyses revealed a significant increase of soluble vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (sVCAM-1) [ p = 0.001], interleukin-6 (IL-6) [ p = 0.009], bioactive interleukin-12 (IL-12p40) [ p = 0.03], plasminogen activator inhibitor type 1 (PAI-1) [ p = 0.004], and hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) [ p = 0.004] levels in incomplete responders in comparison to normal responders. Interestingly, the same biomarkers showed a high intercorrelation with r2 values between 0.58 and 0.94. In addition, we confirmed by AlphaLISA the increase of sVCAM-1 [ p < 0.0001] and IL-6 [ p = 0.043] in the incomplete responder group. Incomplete responders in nAMD are associated with activated angiogenic and inflammatory pathways. The residual exudative activity of nAMD despite maximal anti-VEGF treatment may be related to both angiogenic and inflammatory responses requiring specific adjuvant therapy. Data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD02247

(1+1) Schrodinger Lie bialgebras and their Poisson-Lie groups

All Lie bialgebra structures for the (1+1)-dimensional centrally extended Schrodinger algebra are explicitly derived and proved to be of the coboundary type. Therefore, since all of them come from a classical r-matrix, the complete family of Schrodinger Poisson-Lie groups can be deduced by means of the Sklyanin bracket. All possible embeddings of the harmonic oscillator, extended Galilei and gl(2) Lie bialgebras within the Schrodinger classification are studied. As an application, new quantum (Hopf algebra) deformations of the Schrodinger algebra, including their corresponding quantum universal R-matrices, are constructed.Comment: 25 pages, LaTeX. Possible applications in relation with integrable systems are pointed; new references adde

Galilean Conformal and Superconformal Symmetries

Firstly we discuss briefly three different algebras named as nonrelativistic (NR) conformal: Schroedinger, Galilean conformal and infinite algebra of local NR conformal isometries. Further we shall consider in some detail Galilean conformal algebra (GCA) obtained in the limit c equal to infinity from relativistic conformal algebra O(d+1,2) (d - number of space dimensions). Two different contraction limits providing GCA and some recently considered realizations will be briefly discussed. Finally by considering NR contraction of D=4 superconformal algebra the Galilei conformal superalgebra (GCSA) is obtained, in the formulation using complex Weyl supercharges.Comment: 16 pages, LateX; talk presented at XIV International Conference "Symmetry Methods in Physics", Tsakhkadzor, Armenia, August 16-22, 201

Novel hybrid adaptive controller for manipulation in complex perturbation environments

© 2015 Smith et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. In this paper we present a hybrid control scheme, combining the advantages of task-space and joint-space control. The controller is based on a human-like adaptive design, which minimises both control effort and tracking error. Our novel hybrid adaptive controller has been tested in extensive simulations, in a scenario where a Baxter robot manipulator is affected by external disturbances in the form of interaction with the environment and tool-like end-effector perturbations. The results demonstrated improved performance in the hybrid controller over both of its component parts. In addition, we introduce a novel method for online adaptation of learning parameters, using the fuzzy control formalism to utilise expert knowledge from the experimenter. This mechanism of meta-learning induces further improvement in performance and avoids the need for tuning through trial testing

Symmetries and currents of the ideal and unitary Fermi gases

The maximal algebra of symmetries of the free single-particle Schroedinger equation is determined and its relevance for the holographic duality in non-relativistic Fermi systems is investigated. This algebra of symmetries is an infinite dimensional extension of the Schroedinger algebra, it is isomorphic to the Weyl algebra of quantum observables, and it may be interpreted as a non-relativistic higher-spin algebra. The associated infinite collection of Noether currents bilinear in the fermions are derived from their relativistic counterparts via a light-like dimensional reduction. The minimal coupling of these currents to background sources is rewritten in a compact way by making use of Weyl quantisation. Pushing forward the similarities with the holographic correspondence between the minimal higher-spin gravity and the critical O(N) model, a putative bulk dual of the unitary and the ideal Fermi gases is discussed.Comment: 67 pages, 2 figures; references added, minor improvements in the presentation, version accepted for publication in JHE

Principles of sensorimotor learning.

The exploits of Martina Navratilova and Roger Federer represent the pinnacle of motor learning. However, when considering the range and complexity of the processes that are involved in motor learning, even the mere mortals among us exhibit abilities that are impressive. We exercise these abilities when taking up new activities - whether it is snowboarding or ballroom dancing - but also engage in substantial motor learning on a daily basis as we adapt to changes in our environment, manipulate new objects and refine existing skills. Here we review recent research in human motor learning with an emphasis on the computational mechanisms that are involved

Autoantibodies against type I IFNs in patients with life-threatening COVID-19

Interindividual clinical variability in the course of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection is vast. We report that at least 101 of 987 patients with life-threatening coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pneumonia had neutralizing immunoglobulin G (IgG) autoantibodies (auto-Abs) against interferon-w (IFN-w) (13 patients), against the 13 types of IFN-a (36), or against both (52) at the onset of critical disease; a few also had auto-Abs against the other three type I IFNs. The auto-Abs neutralize the ability of the corresponding type I IFNs to block SARS-CoV-2 infection in vitro. These auto-Abs were not found in 663 individuals with asymptomatic or mild SARS-CoV-2 infection and were present in only 4 of 1227 healthy individuals. Patients with auto-Abs were aged 25 to 87 years and 95 of the 101 were men. A B cell autoimmune phenocopy of inborn errors of type I IFN immunity accounts for life-threatening COVID-19 pneumonia in at least 2.6% of women and 12.5% of men