619 research outputs found
Dual -1 Hahn polynomials and perfect state transfer
We find all the spin chains with perfect state transfer (PST) that are
connected with the dual -1 Hahn polynomials . For
odd we recover a model that had already been identified while for even, we
obtain a new system exhibiting PST.Comment: 11 page
Response of Autonomic Nervous System to Body Positions: Fourier and Wavelet Analysis
Two mathematical methods, the Fourier and wavelet transforms, were used to
study the short term cardiovascular control system. Time series, picked from
electrocardiogram and arterial blood pressure lasting 6 minutes, were analyzed
in supine position (SUP), during the first (HD1), and the second parts (HD2) of
head down tilt and during recovery (REC). The wavelet transform
was performed using the Haar function of period (,2,,6) to
obtain wavelet coefficients. Power spectra components were analyzed within
three bands, VLF (0.003-0.04), LF (0.04-0.15) and HF (0.15-0.4) with the
frequency unit cycle/interval. Wavelet transform demonstrated a higher
discrimination among all analyzed periods than the Fourier transform. For the
Fourier analysis, the LF of R-R intervals and VLF of systolic blood pressure
show more evident difference for different body positions. For the wavelet
analysis, the systolic blood pressures show much more evident difference than
the R-R intervals. This study suggests a difference in the response of the
vessels and the heart to different body positions. The partial dissociation
between VLF and LF results is a physiologically relevant finding of this work.Comment: RevTex,8 figure
Dissipation of vibration in rough contact
The relationship which links the normal vibration occurring during the sliding of rough surfaces and the nominal contact area is investigated. Two regimes are found. In the first one, the vibrational level does not depend on the contact area, while in the second one, it is propor- tional to the contact area. A theoretical model is proposed. It is based on the assumption that the vibrational level results from a competition between two processes of vibration damping, the internal damping of the material and the contact damping occurring at the interface
PICALM Rescues Endocytic Defects Caused by the Alzheimer's Disease Risk Factor APOE4
APOE4 is the strongest genetic risk factor for late-onset Alzheimer's disease (AD). Narayan and Sienski et al. find that APOE4 disrupts early endocytosis, a process by which cells take up external material. By increasing the levels of another AD risk factor, PICALM, the authors are able to reverse these disruptions
Neuronal network dysfunction in a model for Kleefstra syndrome mediated by enhanced NMDAR signaling
Kleefstra syndrome (KS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder caused by mutations in the histone methyltransferase EHMT1. To study the impact of decreased EHMT1 function in human cells, we generated excitatory cortical neurons from induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells derived from KS patients. Neuronal networks of patient-derived cells exhibit network bursting with a reduced rate, longer duration, and increased temporal irregularity compared to control networks. We show that these changes are mediated by upregulation of NMDA receptor (NMDAR) subunit 1 correlating with reduced deposition of the repressive H3K9me2 mark, the catalytic product of EHMT1, at the GRIN1 promoter. In mice EHMT1 deficiency leads to similar neuronal network impairments with increased NMDAR function. Finally, we rescue the KS patient-derived neuronal network phenotypes by pharmacological inhibition of NMDARs. Summarized, we demonstrate a direct link between EHMT1 deficiency and NMDAR hyperfunction in human neurons, providing a potential basis for more targeted therapeutic approaches for KS
Examining the independent and joint effects of genomic and exposomic liabilities for schizophrenia across the psychosis spectrum
Psychosis spectrum disorder has a complex pathoetiology characterised by interacting environmental and genetic vulnerabilities. The present study aims to investigate the role of gene-environment interaction using aggregate scores of genetic (polygenic risk score for schizophrenia (PRS-SCZ)) and environment liability for schizophrenia (exposome score for schizophrenia (ES-SCZ)) across the psychosis continuum
Evidence, and replication thereof, that molecular-genetic and environmental risks for psychosis impact through an affective pathway
Background There is evidence that environmental and genetic risk factors for schizophrenia spectrum disorders are transdiagnostic and mediated in part through a generic pathway of affective dysregulation. Methods We analysed to what degree the impact of schizophrenia polygenic risk (PRS-SZ) and childhood adversity (CA) on psychosis outcomes was contingent on co-presence of affective dysregulation, defined as significant depressive symptoms, in (i) NEMESIS-2 (n = 6646), a representative general population sample, interviewed four times over nine years and (ii) EUGEI (n = 4068) a sample of patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorder, the siblings of these patients and controls. Results The impact of PRS-SZ on psychosis showed significant dependence on co-presence of affective dysregulation in NEMESIS-2 [relative excess risk due to interaction (RERI): 1.01, p = 0.037] and in EUGEI (RERI = 3.39, p = 0.048). This was particularly evident for delusional ideation (NEMESIS-2: RERI = 1.74, p = 0.003; EUGEI: RERI = 4.16, p = 0.019) and not for hallucinatory experiences (NEMESIS-2: RERI = 0.65, p = 0.284; EUGEI: -0.37, p = 0.547). A similar and stronger pattern of results was evident for CA (RERI delusions and hallucinations: NEMESIS-2: 3.02, p < 0.001; EUGEI: 6.44, p < 0.001; RERI delusional ideation: NEMESIS-2: 3.79, p < 0.001; EUGEI: 5.43, p = 0.001; RERI hallucinatory experiences: NEMESIS-2: 2.46, p < 0.001; EUGEI: 0.54, p = 0.465). Conclusions The results, and internal replication, suggest that the effects of known genetic and non-genetic risk factors for psychosis are mediated in part through an affective pathway, from which early states of delusional meaning may arise
A Large Hadron Electron Collider at CERN
This document provides a brief overview of the recently published report on
the design of the Large Hadron Electron Collider (LHeC), which comprises its
physics programme, accelerator physics, technology and main detector concepts.
The LHeC exploits and develops challenging, though principally existing,
accelerator and detector technologies. This summary is complemented by brief
illustrations of some of the highlights of the physics programme, which relies
on a vastly extended kinematic range, luminosity and unprecedented precision in
deep inelastic scattering. Illustrations are provided regarding high precision
QCD, new physics (Higgs, SUSY) and electron-ion physics. The LHeC is designed
to run synchronously with the LHC in the twenties and to achieve an integrated
luminosity of O(100) fb. It will become the cleanest high resolution
microscope of mankind and will substantially extend as well as complement the
investigation of the physics of the TeV energy scale, which has been enabled by
the LHC
Estimating Exposome Score for Schizophrenia Using Predictive Modeling Approach in Two Independent Samples: The Results From the EUGEI Study
Exposures constitute a dense network of the environment: exposome. Here, we argue for embracing the exposome paradigm to investigate the sum of nongenetic "risk" and show how predictive modeling approaches can be used to construct an exposome score (ES; an aggregated score of exposures) for schizophrenia. The training dataset consisted of patients with schizophrenia and controls, whereas the independent validation dataset consisted of patients, their unaffected siblings, and controls. Binary exposures were cannabis use, hearing impairment, winter birth, bullying, and emotional, physical, and sexual abuse along with physical and emotional neglect. We applied logistic regression (LR), Gaussian Naive Bayes (GNB), the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO), and Ridge penalized classification models to the training dataset. ESs, the sum of weighted exposures based on coefficients from each model, were calculated in the validation dataset. In addition, we estimated ES based on meta-analyses and a simple sum score of exposures. Accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, area under the receiver operating characteristic, and Nagelkerke's R2 were compared. The ESMeta-analyses performed the worst, whereas the sum score and the ESGNB were worse than the ESLR that performed similar to the ESLASSO and ESRIDGE. The ESLR distinguished patients from controls (odds ratio [OR] = 1.94, P < .001), patients from siblings (OR = 1.58, P < .001), and siblings from controls (OR = 1.21, P = .001). An increase in ESLR was associated with a gradient increase of schizophrenia risk. In reference to the remaining fractions, the ESLR at top 30%, 20%, and 10% of the control distribution yielded ORs of 3.72, 3.74, and 4.77, respectively. Our findings demonstrate that predictive modeling approaches can be harnessed to evaluate the exposome
- …