Rischio sismico di Sistemi Urbani utilizzando l’analogia delle reti neuronali

L’obiettivo della ricerca è stata la messa a punto di un modello di rischio sismico per Sistemi Urbani con approccio multi-livello, utilizzando l’analogia con le reti neuronali, finalizzato sia ad una valutazione di confronto tra centri urbani, sulla base di indicatori di rischio, che ad una valutazione predittiva delle conseguenze di un evento sismico atteso. Lo studio dei Sistemi Urbani viene utilmente condotto per “livelli” di approfondimento del modello, con l’obiettivo di valutare dapprima sinteticamente (ad esempio attraverso le informazioni contenute in banche-dati esistenti) la propensione alla perdita di capacità di un numero elevato di centri urbani, da cui ricavare le situazioni di rischio più elevato, su cui occorra effettuare approfondimenti o stabilire priorità di ulteriori indagini (Livello 0). Qualora sia possibile effettuare studi di maggiore dettaglio sui centri urbani ad elevato rischio, si procederà con indagini e rilievi anche speditivi, valutando le perdite di capacità dei sistemi analizzati e rilevati, fino ad individuare parti dell’abitato a maggiore rischio (Livello 1). La ricerca è stata condotta nell’ambito del Task 5/7 del Progetto Reluis – Linea 10

Can changes in angiogenic biomarkers between the first and second trimesters of pregnancy predict development of pre-eclampsia in a low-risk nulliparous patient population?

OBJECTIVE: To determine if change in maternal angiogenic biomarkers between the first and second trimesters predicts pre-eclampsia in low-risk nulliparous women. DESIGN: A nested case-control study of change in maternal plasma soluble Flt-1 (sFlt-1), soluble endoglin (sEng) and placenta growth factor (PlGF). We studied 158 pregnancies complicated by pre-eclampsia and 468 normotensive nonproteinuric controls. SETTING: A multicentre study in 16 academic medical centres in the USA. POPULATION: Low-risk nulliparous women. METHODS: Luminex assays for PlGF, sFlt-1 and sEng performed on maternal EDTA plasma collected at 9-12, 15-18 and 23-26 weeks of gestation. Rate of change of analyte between first and either early or late second trimester was calculated with and without adjustment for baseline clinical characteristics. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Change in PlGF, sFlt-1 and sEng. RESULTS: Rates of change of PlGF, sEng and sFlt-1 between first and either early or late second trimesters were significantly different in women who developed pre-eclampsia, severe pre-eclampsia or early-onset pre-eclampsia compared with women who remained normotensive. Inclusion of clinical characteristics (race, body mass index and blood pressure at entry) increased sensitivity for detecting severe and particularly early-onset pre-eclampsia but not pre-eclampsia overall. Receiver operating characteristics curves for change from first to early second trimester in sEng, PlGF and sFlt-1 with clinical characteristics had areas under the curve of 0.88, 0.84 and 0.86, respectively, and for early-onset pre-eclampsia with sensitivities of 88% (95% CI 64-99), 77% (95% CI 50-93) and 77% (95% CI 50-93) for 80% specificity, respectively. Similar results were seen in the change from first to late second trimester. CONCLUSION: Change in angiogenic biomarkers between first and early second trimester combined with clinical characteristics has strong utility for predicting early-onset pre-eclampsia

A retrospective study of the impact of 21-gene recurrence score assay on treatment choice in node positive micrometastatic breast cancer.

To assess clinical utility of the 21-gene assay (Oncotype DX® Recurrence Score®), we determined whether women with HER2(−)/ER+ pN1mi breast cancer with low ( vs. 57.9% in the intermediate-risk group and 100% in the high-risk group (p \u3c 0.001). A total of 80.2% of the low-risk group were recommended endocrine therapy alone, while 77.8% of the high-risk group were recommended both endocrine and chemotherapy (p \u3c 0.001). The Oncotype DX Recurrence Score result provides actionable information that can be incorporated into treatment planning for women with HER2(−)/ER+ pN1mi breast cancer. The Recurrence Score result has clinical utility in treatment planning for HER2(−)/ER+ pN1mi breast cancer patients

What did HERA teach us about the structure of the proton?

Starting in 2008 the H1 and ZEUS experiments have been combining their data in order to provide the most complete and accurate set of deep-inelastic data as the legacy of HERA. The present review presents these combinations, both published and preliminary, and explores how they have been used to give information on the structure of the proton. The HERAPDF parton distribution functions (PDFs) are presented and compared with other current PDFs and with data from the Tevatron and LHC colliders.Comment: 49 pages, 49 figures, to be published in J.Phys.