772 research outputs found
Androgen receptor polymorphisms and testicular cancer risk
Testicular cancer (TC) is currently the most common malignant solid tumour in Caucasian males aged 15-39 years. Epidemiological evidence suggests that its onset may be due to an imbalance in the action of steroidal sex hormones and their receptors. A faulty androgen receptor signalling pathway can, in fact, cause various male reproductive disorders. The androgen receptor (AR) gene has two polymorphic segments consisting of CAG and GGC repeats. The length of CAG repeats has been shown to affect the regulation of AR activity. In our study, we used fragment analysis to evaluate the AR gene repeats of 302 TC patients and 322 controls, to establish if there is any association between repeat number and TC. This study of the largest Italian caseload investigated to date highlighted three particularly significant aspects. First, a CAG repeat number of â„25 may be considered a risk factor for the onset of TC, given its greater frequency in patients in comparison with controls. This difference became significant for the non-seminoma group. Second, men with CAG repeats below 21 or above 24 were found to have a, respectively, 50 and 76% higher risk of TC than those with CAG 21-24, suggesting that these too can be considered a risk factor for TC. Finally, stage II patients were more likely to have a CAG repeat number 24 than stage I patients. © 2014 American Society of Andrology and European Academy of Andrology
Neutron star universal relations with microscopic equations of state
We calculate neutron star's moment of inertia and deformabilities usingvarious microscopic equations of state for nuclear and hybrid starconfigurations. Correlations between the various observables are examined andwe confirm several universal relations. We focus in particular on theconstraints for the neutron star radii imposed by a determination of theaverage tidal deformability of the binary neutron star system GW170817. We findcompatible radii between 12 and 13 kilometers and identify the suitableequations of state
A Comparison between Groups and an Analysis of Predictors
Objective For the treatment of obesity, both conservative and surgical
procedures are available. Psychological factors are likely to influence the
choice of treatment; however, to date, systematic studies that investigate
these factors are few in number. The aim of our study was to analyze whether
patients who undergo a surgical treatment differ from those who require a
conservative treatment in regard to psychological factors, regardless of their
somatic conditions. Furthermore, predictors of treatment choice will be
examined. Methods A total of 244 patients (189 women), with a mean body mass
index of 45.1 kg/m2, underwent a weight reduction treatment, with 126 patients
undergoing bariatric surgery and 118 patients participating in a conservative,
multimodal outpatient weight reduction program. Differences in the results of
the psychological questionnaires between conservatively and surgically treated
patients were evaluated through the use of t-tests, Ï2-tests and an ANCOVA.
For the analysis of the predictors, logistic regression models were
calculated. Results Surgically and conservatively treated obese patients
differ in psychological, somatic, and socio-demographic factors. The
psychological differences between the groups are independent of obesity-
related co-morbidities, such as body mass index (BMI), type 2 diabetes
mellitus, hypertension and coronary heart disease. The following psychological
and somatic factors equally predict the choice of bariatric surgery: apathy,
delegated active coping, a sense of coherence, complaints, type 2 diabetes
mellitus, BMI, and age. Conclusion Longitudinal studies are required to assess
the predictive value of the psychological factors in regard to the
postsurgical weight course to improve the pre-surgical screening and treatment
selection process. The pre-surgical identification of psychological predictors
should result in a more personalized medicine course and may ensure long term
outcomes
ICELUS: Investigating strategy switching for throughput maximization to a mobile sink
Wireless sensor networks offer a pragmatic solution for monitoring in a variety of scenarios. For efficient and practical data gathering, especially in large-scale systems deployed in inaccessible areas, unmanned vehicles are becoming a compelling solution. The added infrastructure flexibility comes at the cost of limited contact time between the mobile entity and the stationary devices. The channel fading caused by mobility further decreases the data yield.We address this challenge by analysing the relevant classes of data transfer schemes and identifying adaptation conditions that enable the selection of the best fitting strategy. The result of this analysis, ICELUS, provides an integrated protocol that exploits the available communication resources. © 2016 IFIP
A possible rheological model of gum candies
An appropriate rheological model can be used in production of good quality gum candy required by consumers. For this purpose Creep-Recovery Test (CRT) curves were recorded with a Stable Micro System TA.XT-2 precision texture analyser with 75 mm diameter cylinder probe on gum candies purchased from the local market. The deformation speed was 0.2 mm sâ1, the creeping- and recovering time was 60 s, while the loading force was set to 1 N, 2 N, 5 N, 7 N, and 10 N. The two-element Kelvin-Voigt-model, a three-element model, and the four-element Burgers-model were fitted on the recorded creep data, and then the parameters of the models were evaluated. The best fitting from the used models was given by the Burgers model
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