On Smooth Orthogonal and Octilinear Drawings: Relations, Complexity and Kandinsky Drawings

We study two variants of the well-known orthogonal drawing model: (i) the smooth orthogonal, and (ii) the octilinear. Both models form an extension of the orthogonal, by supporting one additional type of edge segments (circular arcs and diagonal segments, respectively). For planar graphs of max-degree 4, we analyze relationships between the graph classes that can be drawn bendless in the two models and we also prove NP-hardness for a restricted version of the bendless drawing problem for both models. For planar graphs of higher degree, we present an algorithm that produces bi-monotone smooth orthogonal drawings with at most two segments per edge, which also guarantees a linear number of edges with exactly one segment.Comment: Appears in the Proceedings of the 25th International Symposium on Graph Drawing and Network Visualization (GD 2017

Planar Octilinear Drawings with One Bend Per Edge

In octilinear drawings of planar graphs, every edge is drawn as an alternating sequence of horizontal, vertical and diagonal ($45^\circ$) line-segments. In this paper, we study octilinear drawings of low edge complexity, i.e., with few bends per edge. A $k$-planar graph is a planar graph in which each vertex has degree less or equal to $k$. In particular, we prove that every 4-planar graph admits a planar octilinear drawing with at most one bend per edge on an integer grid of size $O(n^2) \times O(n)$. For 5-planar graphs, we prove that one bend per edge still suffices in order to construct planar octilinear drawings, but in super-polynomial area. However, for 6-planar graphs we give a class of graphs whose planar octilinear drawings require at least two bends per edge

On the central stellar mass density and the inside-out growth of early-type galaxies

[Abridged] In this paper we derive the central stellar mass density within a fixed radius and the effective stellar mass density within the effective radius for a complete sample of 34 ETGs morphologically selected at 0.9<z_{spec}<2 and compare them with those derived for a sample of ~900 local ETGs in the same mass range. We find that the central stellar mass density of high-z ETGs spans just an order of magnitude and it is similar to the one of local ETGs as actually found in previous studies.However, we find that the effective stellar mass density of high-z ETGs spans three orders of magnitude, exactly as the local ETGs and that it is similar to the effective stellar mass density of local ETGs showing that it has not changed since z~1.5, in the last 9-10 Gyr. Thus, the wide spread of the effective stellar mass density observed up to z~1.5 must originate earlier, at z>2. Also, we show that the small scatter of the central mass density of ETGs compared to the large scatter of the effective mass density is simply a peculiar feature of the Sersic profile hence, independent of redshift and of any assembly history experienced by galaxies. Thus, it has no connection with the possible inside-out growth of ETGs. Finally, we find a tight correlation between the central stellar mass density and the total stellar mass of ETGs in the sense that the central mass density increases with mass as M^{~0.6}. This implies that the fraction of the central stellar mass of ETGs decreases with the mass of the galaxy. These correlations are valid for the whole population of ETGs considered independently of their redshift suggesting that they originate in the early-phases of their formation.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figures. Accepted for publication in MNRAS (MNRAS version

Accumulation of Self-Reactive Naive and Memory B Cell Reveals Sequential Defects in B Cell Tolerance Checkpoints in Sjogren's Syndrome

This work was funded by grants number 18237 and 20089 from Arthritis Research UK (http://www.arthritisresearchuk.org) to MB and the William Harvey Research Foundation. EC was recipient of short-term travel fellowships from EMBO (ASTF 318-2010) and EFIS-IL

A comprehensive 1000 Genomes-based genome-wide association meta-analysis of coronary artery disease

Existing knowledge of genetic variants affecting risk of coronary artery disease (CAD) is largely based on genome-wide association studies (GWAS) analysis of common SNPs. Leveraging phased haplotypes from the 1000 Genomes Project, we report a GWAS meta-analysis of 185 thousand CAD cases and controls, interrogating 6.7 million common (MAF>0.05) as well as 2.7 million low frequency (0.005<MAF<0.05) variants. In addition to confirmation of most known CAD loci, we identified 10 novel loci, eight additive and two recessive, that contain candidate genes that newly implicate biological processes in vessel walls. We observed intra-locus allelic heterogeneity but little evidence of low frequency variants with larger effects and no evidence of synthetic association. Our analysis provides a comprehensive survey of the fine genetic architecture of CAD showing that genetic susceptibility to this common disease is largely determined by common SNPs of small effect siz

Large-scale pharmacogenomic study of sulfonylureas and the QT, JT and QRS intervals: CHARGE Pharmacogenomics Working Group

Sulfonylureas, a commonly used class of medication used to treat type 2 diabetes, have been associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Their effects on QT interval duration and related electrocardiographic phenotypes are potential mechanisms for this adverse effect. In 11 ethnically diverse cohorts that included 71 857 European, African-American and Hispanic/Latino ancestry individuals with repeated measures of medication use and electrocardiogram (ECG) measurements, we conducted a pharmacogenomic genome-wide association study of sulfonylurea use and three ECG phenotypes: QT, JT and QRS intervals. In ancestry-specific meta-analyses, eight novel pharmacogenomic loci met the threshold for genome-wide significance (P&lt;5 × 10−8), and a pharmacokinetic variant in CYP2C9 (rs1057910) that has been associated with sulfonylurea-related treatment effects and other adverse drug reactions in previous studies was replicated. Additional research is needed to replicate the novel findings and to understand their biological basis

How collective action produces psychological change and how that change endures over time: a case study of an environmental campaign

Previous research on collective action has suggested that both intra‐ and intergroup interactions are important in producing psychological change. In this study, we examine how these two forms of interaction relate to each other over time. We present results from a longitudinal ethnographic study of participation in an environmental campaign, documenting endurance and prevalence of psychological change. Participants, locals (n = 14) and self‐defined activists (n = 14), connected enduring psychological changes, such as changes in consumer behaviour and attitudes to their involvement in the environmental campaign. Thematic analysis of interviews suggested that participants linked the process of change to categorizing themselves in a new environmental‐activist way that influenced their everyday lives beyond the immediate campaign. This recategorization was a result of a conflictual intergroup relationship with the police. The intergroup interaction produced supportive within‐group relationships that facilitated the feasibility and sustainability of new world views that were maintained by staying active in the campaign. The data from the study support and extend previous research on collective action and are the basis of a model, suggesting that intragroup processes condition the effects of intergroup dynamics on sustained psychological change

Sensorimotor Difficulties Are Associated with the Severity of Autism Spectrum Conditions

Present diagnostic criteria for autism spectrum conditions (ASC) include social communication and interaction difficulties, repetitive behaviour and movement, and atypical sensory responsivity. Few studies have explored the influence of motor coordination and sensory responsivity on severity of ASC symptoms. In the current study, we explore whether sensory responsivity and motor coordination differences can account for the severity of autistic behaviours in children with ASC. 36 children took part: 18 (13 male, 5 female) with ASC (ages 7-16: mean age 9.93 years) and 18 (7 male, 11 female) typically developing (TD) children (ages 6-12; mean age 9.16 years). Both groups completed a battery of assessments that included motor coordination, sensory responsivity, receptive language, non-verbal reasoning and social communication measures Children with ASC also completed the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule and Autism Diagnostic Interview – Revised.. Results showed that children with ASC scored significantly lower on receptive language, coordination and sensory responsivity and a sensorimotor subscale, Modulation of Activity (MoA) compared to the TD group. In the ASC group, MoA significantly predicted ASC severity across all ASC measures; receptive language and sensory responsivity significantly predicted parental reported autism measures; and coordination significantly predicted examiner observed reported scores. Additionally, specific associations were found between the somatosensory perceptive modalities and ASC severity. The results show that sensorimotor skills are associated with severity of ASC symptoms; furthering the need to research sensorimotor integration in ASC and also implying that diagnosis of ASC should also include the assessment of both coordination deficit and atypical sensory responsivity

Microfluidic Blood Cell Sorting: Now and Beyond

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/106971/1/smll201302907.pd

Spoiling for a Fight: B Lymphocytes As Initiator and Effector Populations within Tertiary Lymphoid Organs in Autoimmunity and Transplantation.

Tertiary lymphoid organs (TLOs) develop at ectopic sites within chronically inflamed tissues, such as in autoimmunity and rejecting organ allografts. TLOs differ structurally from canonical secondary lymphoid organs (SLOs), in that they lack a mantle zone and are not encapsulated, suggesting that they may provide unique immune function. A notable feature of TLOs is the frequent presence of structures typical of germinal centers (GCs). However, little is known about the role of such GCs, and in particular, it is not clear if the B cell response within is autonomous, or whether it synergizes with concurrent responses in SLOs. This review will discuss ectopic lymphoneogenesis and the role of the B cell in TLO formation and subsequent effector output in the context of autoimmunity and transplantation, with particular focus on the contribution of ectopic GCs to affinity maturation in humoral immune responses and to the potential breakdown of self-tolerance and development of humoral autoimmunity