Effects of Ground-State Correlations on High Energy Scattering off Nuclei: the Case of the Total Neutron-Nucleus Cross Section

With the aim at quantitatively investigating the longstanding problem concerning the effect of short range nucleon-nucleon correlations on scattering processes at high energies, the total neutron-nucleus cross section is calculated within a parameter-free approach which, for the first time, takes into account, simultaneously, central, spin, isospin and tensor nucleon-nucleon (NN) correlations, and Glauber elastic and Gribov inelastic shadowing corrections. Nuclei ranging from 4He to 208Pb and incident neutron momenta in the range 3 GeV/c - 300 GeV/c are considered; the commonly used approach which approximates the square of the nuclear wave function by a product of one-body densities is carefully analyzed, showing that NN correlations can play a non-negligible role in high energy scattering off nuclei.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure

Non-linear Finite-Time Tracking Control of Uncertain Robotic Manipulators Using Time-Varying Disturbance Observer-Based Sliding Mode Method

In this paper, a time-varying chattering-free disturbance observer-based position tracking control law of serial robotic manipulators is presented to track a reference signal in a finite time. The key idea is to employ a positive-increasing function associated with the control/observer objectives to improve the control performance. First, the model of an uncertain robotic manipulator is presented as the case study of the proposed strategy. Then, the time-varying form of the robotic manipulator model is obtained to provide finite-time boundedness using the first-order sliding mode method. Moreover, without any knowledge about the upper bounds of the uncertainties, a reduced-order observer is presented to estimate the uncertainties in a finite time. Subsequently, a disturbance observer-based finite-time position tracking control law is designed. The time-varying gains are provided to converge the position tracking error to a neighborhood of zero in a finite time. Finally, comparative simulations are presented to show the effectiveness of the proposed scheme compared to other existing strategies

Identification of plasma and urinary metabolites and catabolites derived from orange juice (poly)phenols: analysis by high-performance liquid chromatography–high-resolution mass spectrometry

Orange juice is a rich source of (poly)phenols, in particular, the flavanones hesperetin-7-O-rutinoside and naringenin-7-O-rutinoside. Following the acute consumption of 500 mL of orange juice containing 398 μmol of (poly)phenols by 12 volunteers, 0–24 h plasma and urine samples were analyzed by targeted high-performance liquid chromatography–high-resolution mass spectrometry in order to identify flavanone metabolites and phenolic acid and aromatic catabolites. A total of 19 flavanone metabolites—comprising di-O-glucuronide, O-glucuronide, O-glucuronyl-sulfate, and sulfate derivatives of hesperetin, naringenin, and eriodictyol—and 65 microbial-derived phenolic catabolites, such as phenylpropanoid, phenylpropionic, phenylacetic, benzoic, and hydroxycarboxylic acids and benzenetriol and benzoylglycine derivatives, including free phenolics and phase II sulfate, glucuronide, and methyl metabolites, were identified or partially identified in plasma and/or urine samples. The data obtained provide a detailed evaluation of the fate of orange juice (poly)phenols as they pass through the gastrointestinal tract and are absorbed into the circulatory system prior to renal excretion. Potential pathways for these conversions are proposed

Dietary determinants of changes in waist circumference adjusted for body mass index - a proxy measure of visceral adiposity

Background Given the recognized health effects of visceral fat, the understanding of how diet can modulate changes in the phenotype “waist circumference for a given body mass index (WCBMI)”, a proxy measure of visceral adiposity, is deemed necessary. Hence, the objective of the present study was to assess the association between dietary factors and prospective changes in visceral adiposity as measured by changes in the phenotype WCBMI. Methods and Findings We analyzed data from 48,631 men and women from 5 countries participating in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study. Anthropometric measurements were obtained at baseline and after a median follow-up time of 5.5 years. WCBMI was defined as the residuals of waist circumference regressed on body mass index, and annual change in WCBMI (¿WCBMI, cm/y) was defined as the difference between residuals at follow-up and baseline, divided by follow-up time. The association between energy, energy density (ED), macronutrients, alcohol, glycemic index (GI), glycemic load (GL), fibre and ¿WCBMI was modelled using centre-specific adjusted linear regression, and random-effects meta-analyses to obtain pooled estimates. Men and women with higher ED and GI diets showed significant increases in their WCBMI, compared to those with lower ED and GI [1 kcal/g greater ED predicted a ¿WCBMI of 0.09 cm (95% CI 0.05 to 0.13) in men and 0.15 cm (95% CI 0.09 to 0.21) in women; 10 units greater GI predicted a ¿WCBMI of 0.07 cm (95% CI 0.03 to 0.12) in men and 0.06 cm (95% CI 0.03 to 0.10) in women]. Among women, lower fibre intake, higher GL, and higher alcohol consumption also predicted a higher ¿WCBMI. Conclusions Results of this study suggest that a diet with low GI and ED may prevent visceral adiposity, defined as the prospective changes in WCBMI. Additional effects may be obtained among women of low alcohol, low GL, and high fibre intake

Follow-up for breast cancer - the patients' view

Background: International and national guidelines (S3 guideline) for the surveillance of post-treatment breast cancer patients recommend a clinical follow-up including routine history and physical examination and regular mammograms. The practice of a clinical follow-up has been often discussed, but has been proven not to be inferior when compared to an intensified follow-up in randomized trials. Patients and Methods: The present manuscript reports the patients' view on the basis of a survey including 2000 patients with a history of breast cancer. Results: A total of 452 patients (22.6%) answered the questionnaire. The median age was 62 years (range 23-85 years). More than 80% of the patients were disease-free at the time of the survey. The need for surveillance was affirmed by the majority of patients (>95%), and one third stated that there was a need for more technical efforts during follow-up. In contrast to the follow-up guidelines, the results of the present survey indicated that most of the regularly scheduled follow-up visits were expanded using extensive laboratory and imaging procedures. Conclusion: This survey shows that the majority of physicians obviously do not accept the present follow-up guidelines. A new surveillance study investigating the efficacy of an intensified surveillance based on the improved possibilities of modern diagnostics and endocrine, immunotherapeutic, chemotherapeutic and interventional treatment options is warranted

Identification of Ecdysone Hormone Receptor Agonists as a Therapeutic Approach for Treating Filarial Infections

Background A homologue of the ecdysone receptor has previously been identified in human filarial parasites. As the ecdysone receptor is not found in vertebrates, it and the regulatory pathways it controls represent attractive potential chemotherapeutic targets. Methodology/ Principal Findings Administration of 20-hydroxyecdysone to gerbils infected with B. malayi infective larvae disrupted their development to adult stage parasites. A stable mammalian cell line was created incorporating the B. malayi ecdysone receptor ligand-binding domain, its heterodimer partner and a secreted luciferase reporter in HEK293 cells. This was employed to screen a series of ecdysone agonist, identifying seven agonists active at sub-micromolar concentrations. A B. malayi ecdysone receptor ligand-binding domain was developed and used to study the ligand-receptor interactions of these agonists. An excellent correlation between the virtual screening results and the screening assay was observed. Based on both of these approaches, steroidal ecdysone agonists and the diacylhydrazine family of compounds were identified as a fruitful source of potential receptor agonists. In further confirmation of the modeling and screening results, Ponasterone A and Muristerone A, two compounds predicted to be strong ecdysone agonists stimulated expulsion of microfilaria and immature stages from adult parasites. Conclusions The studies validate the potential of the B. malayi ecdysone receptor as a drug target and provide a means to rapidly evaluate compounds for development of a new class of drugs against the human filarial parasites

Automated Selection of Hotspots (ASH): enhanced automated segmentation and adaptive step finding for Ki67 hotspot detection in adrenal cortical cancer

BACKGROUND: In prognosis and therapeutics of adrenal cortical carcinoma (ACC), the selection of the most active areas in proliferative rate (hotspots) within a slide and objective quantification of immunohistochemical Ki67 Labelling Index (LI) are of critical importa