Application of Neural Networks for Energy Reconstruction

The possibility to use Neural Networks for reconstruction of the energy deposited in the calorimetry system of the CMS detector is investigated. It is shown that using feed - forward neural network, good linearity, Gaussian energy distribution and good energy resolution can be achieved. Significant improvement of the energy resolution and linearity is reached in comparison with other weighting methods for energy reconstruction.Comment: 18 pages, 13 figures, LATEX, submitted to: Nuclear Instruments & Methods

Idiopathic hypertrophic pachymeningitis presenting with occipital neuralgia

Background: Although occipital neuralgia is usually caused by degenerative arthropathy, nearly 20 other aetiologies may lead to this condition.Methods: We present the first case report of hypertrophic pachymeningitis revealed by isolated occipital neuralgia.Results and conclusions: Idiopathic hypertrophic pachymeningitis is a plausible cause of occipital neuralgia and may present without cranial-nerve palsy. There is no consensus on the treatment for idiopathic hypertrophic pachymeningitis, but the usual approach is to start corticotherapy and then to add immunosuppressants. When occipital neuralgia is not clinically isolated or when a first-line treatment fails, another disease diagnosis should be considered. However, the cost effectiveness of extended investigations needs to be considered.Keywords: neuralgia/pathology, meningitis, neck pain/aetiology, revie

Estrogenic and Anti-Inflammatory Activities of a Steroidal Indoxyl

The estrogenic and anti-inflammatory activities of 3-methoxy-16, 17-seco-16-norestra-1,3,5-trien-15-(2'-indoxyliden)-17-oic acid is reported. After intraperitoneal administration, the dose of this compound required to reduce swelling of the rat paw by 50% (ED50) was 14.1 mg/kg using the carrageenan-induced rat paw oedema anti-inflammatory assay method. Indomethacin had an ED50 of 3.2 mg/kg in this assay while dexamethasone had an ED50 of 1.7 mg/kg. The estrogenic activity of the compound after intramuscular administration in rats was 0.72 relative to diethylstilbestrol, when the two compounds were assayed at three dose levels of 1.0, 0.3 and 0.1 mg/kg. Key Words: Steroidal indoxyl, synthesis, estrogenic, anti-inflammatory East and Central African Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences Vol.5(3) 2002: 44-4

A Cluster-Matching-Based Method for Video Face Recognition

Face recognition systems are present in many modern solutions and thousands of applications in our daily lives. However, current solutions are not easily scalable, especially when it comes to the addition of new targeted people. We propose a cluster-matching-based approach for face recognition in video. In our approach, we use unsupervised learning to cluster the faces present in both the dataset and targeted videos selected for face recognition. Moreover, we design a cluster matching heuristic to associate clusters in both sets that is also capable of identifying when a face belongs to a non-registered person. Our method has achieved a recall of 99.435% and a precision of 99.131% in the task of video face recognition. Besides performing face recognition, it can also be used to determine the video segments where each person is present.Comment: 13 page

Data filtering in the readout of the CMS Electromagnetic Calorimeter

For an efficient data taking, the Electromagnetic Calorimeter (ECAL) data of the CMS experiment must be limited to 10\% of the full event size (1MB). Other requirements limit the average data size to 2kB per data acquisition link. These conditions imply a reduction factor of close to twenty on the data collected. The data filtering in the readout of the ECAL detector is discussed. Test beam data are used to study the digital filtering applied in the readout channels and a full detector simulation allows to estimate the energy thresholds to achieve the desired data suppression factor

Exosomes released by EBV-infected nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells convey the viral Latent Membrane Protein 1 and the immunomodulatory protein galectin 9

BACKGROUND: Nasopharyngeal carcinomas (NPC) are consistently associated with the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). Their malignant epithelial cells contain the viral genome and express several antigenic viral proteins. However, the mechanisms of immune escape in NPCs are still poorly understood. EBV-transformed B-cells have been reported to release exosomes carrying the EBV-encoded latent membrane protein 1 (LMP1) which has T-cell inhibitory activity. Although this report suggested that NPC cells could also produce exosomes carrying immunosuppressive proteins, this hypothesis has remained so far untested. METHODS: Malignant epithelial cells derived from NPC xenografts – LMP1-positive (C15) or negative (C17) – were used to prepare conditioned culture medium. Various microparticles and vesicles released in the culture medium were collected and fractionated by differential centrifugation. Exosomes collected in the last centrifugation step were further purified by immunomagnetic capture on beads carrying antibody directed to HLA class II molecules. Purified exosomes were visualized by electron microscopy and analysed by western blotting. The T-cell inhibitory activities of recombinant LMP1 and galectin 9 were assessed on peripheral blood mononuclear cells activated by CD3/CD28 cross-linking. RESULTS: HLA-class II-positive exosomes purified from C15 and C17 cell supernatants were containing either LMP1 and galectin 9 (C15) or galectin 9 only (C17). Recombinant LMP1 induced a strong inhibition of T-cell proliferation (IC50 = 0.17 nM). In contrast recombinant galectin 9 had a weaker inhibitory effect (IC50 = 46 nM) with no synergy with LMP1. CONCLUSION: This study provides the proof of concept that NPC cells can release HLA class-II positive exosomes containing galectin 9 and/or LMP1. It confirms that the LMP1 molecule has intrinsic T-cell inhibitory activity. These findings will encourage investigations of tumor exosomes in the blood of NPC patients and assessment of their effects on various types of target cells

Data Filtering in the readout of the CMS Electromagnetic Calorimeter

For an efficient data taking, the Electromagnetic Calorimeter (ECAL) data of the CMS experiment must be limited to 10\% of the full event size (1MB). Other requirements limit the average data size to 2kB per data acquisition link. These conditions imply a reduction factor of close to twenty on the data collected. The data filtering in the readout of the ECAL detector is discussed. Test beam data are used to study the digital filtering applied in the readout channels and a full detector simulation allows to estimate the energy thresholds to achieve the desired data suppression factor

Radiation hardness qualification of PbWO4 scintillation crystals for the CMS Electromagnetic Calorimeter

This is the Pre-print version of the Article. The official published version can be accessed from the link below - Copyright @ 2010 IOPEnsuring the radiation hardness of PbWO4 crystals was one of the main priorities during the construction of the electromagnetic calorimeter of the CMS experiment at CERN. The production on an industrial scale of radiation hard crystals and their certification over a period of several years represented a difficult challenge both for CMS and for the crystal suppliers. The present article reviews the related scientific and technological problems encountered