Multi-frequency based location search algorithm of small electromagnetic inhomogeneities embedded in two-layered medium

In this paper, we consider a problem for finding the locations of electromagnetic inhomogeneities completely embedded in homogeneous two layered medium. For this purpose, we present a filter function operated at several frequencies and design an algorithm for finding the locations of such inhomogeneities. It is based on the fact that the collected Multi-Static Response (MSR) matrix can be modeled via a rigorous asymptotic expansion formula of the scattering amplitude due to the presence of such inhomogeneities. In order to show the effectiveness, we compare the proposed algorithm with traditional MUltiple SIgnal Classification (MUSIC) algorithm and Kirchhoff migration. Various numerical results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm is robust with respect to random noise and yields more accurate location than the MUSIC algorithm and Kirchhoff migration.Comment: 21 pages, 25 figure

β2-microglobulin modified with advanced glycation end products modulates collagen synthesis by human fibroblasts

β2-microglobulin modified with advanced glycation end products modulates collagen synthesis by human fibroblasts. β2-microglobulin amyloidosis (Aβ2m) is a serious complication for patients undergoing long-term dialysis. β2-microglobulin modified with advanced glycation end products (β2m-AGE) is a major component of the amyloid in Aβ2m. It is not completely understood whether β2m-AGE plays an active role in the pathogenesis of Aβ2m, or if its presence is a secondary event of the disease. β2-microglobulin amyloid is mainly located in tendon and osteo-articular structures that are rich in collagen, and local fibroblasts constitute the principal cell population in the synthesis and metabolism of collagen. Recent identification of AGE binding proteins on human fibroblasts lead to the hypothesis that the fibroblast may be a target for the biological action of β2m-AGE. The present study demonstrated that two human fibroblast cell lines exhibited a decrease in procollagen type I mRNA and type I collagen synthesis after exposure to β2m-AGE for 72 hours. Similar results were observed using AGE-modified albumin. Antibody against the RAGE, the receptor for AGE, attenuated this decrease in synthesis, indicating that the response was partially mediated by RAGE. In addition, antibody against epidermal growth factor (EGF) attenuated the decrease in type I procollagen mRNA and type I collagen induced by β2m-AGE, suggesting that EGF acts as an intermediate factor. These findings support the hypothesis that β2m-AGE actively participates in connective tissue and bone remodeling via a pathway involving fibroblast RAGE, and at least one interposed mediator, the growth factor EGF

Travel-Related Monkeypox Outbreaks in the Era of COVID-19 Pandemic: Are We Prepared?

Several neglected infectious pathogens, such as the monkeypox virus (MPXV), have re-emerged in the last few decades, becoming a global health burden. Despite the incipient vaccine against MPXV infection, the global incidence of travel-related outbreaks continues to rise. About 472 confirmed cases have been reported in 27 countries as of 31 May 2022, the largest recorded number of cases outside Africa since the disease was discovered in the early 1970s

An eQTL biological data visualization challenge and approaches from the visualization community

In 2011, the IEEE VisWeek conferences inaugurated a symposium on Biological Data Visualization. Like other domain-oriented Vis symposia, this symposium's purpose was to explore the unique characteristics and requirements of visualization within the domain, and to enhance both the Visualization and Bio/Life-Sciences communities by pushing Biological data sets and domain understanding into the Visualization community, and well-informed Visualization solutions back to the Biological community. Amongst several other activities, the BioVis symposium created a data analysis and visualization contest. Unlike many contests in other venues, where the purpose is primarily to allow entrants to demonstrate tour-de-force programming skills on sample problems with known solutions, the BioVis contest was intended to whet the participants' appetites for a tremendously challenging biological domain, and simultaneously produce viable tools for a biological grand challenge domain with no extant solutions. For this purpose expression Quantitative Trait Locus (eQTL) data analysis was selected. In the BioVis 2011 contest, we provided contestants with a synthetic eQTL data set containing real biological variation, as well as a spiked-in gene expression interaction network influenced by single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) DNA variation and a hypothetical disease model. Contestants were asked to elucidate the pattern of SNPs and interactions that predicted an individual's disease state. 9 teams competed in the contest using a mixture of methods, some analytical and others through visual exploratory methods. Independent panels of visualization and biological experts judged entries. Awards were given for each panel's favorite entry, and an overall best entry agreed upon by both panels. Three special mention awards were given for particularly innovative and useful aspects of those entries. And further recognition was given to entries that correctly answered a bonus question about how a proposed "gene therapy" change to a SNP might change an individual's disease status, which served as a calibration for each approaches' applicability to a typical domain question. In the future, BioVis will continue the data analysis and visualization contest, maintaining the philosophy of providing new challenging questions in open-ended and dramatically underserved Bio/Life Sciences domains

Robust hybrid estimation and rejection of multi-frequency signals

We consider the problem of output regulation for LTI systems in the presence of unknown exosystems. The knowledge about the multi-frequency signals exosystem consists in the maximum number of frequencies and their maximal value. The control scheme relies on two main components: an estimation algorithm, to reconstruct the signal generated by the exosystem, and a controller, to enforce the output regulation property to the closed-loop system. To tackle the first task, we propose a hybrid observer for the estimation of the (possibly piece-wise continuous) number and values of the frequencies contained in the exogenous signal. The hybrid observer is particularly appealing for numerical implementations, and it is combined with a self-tuning algorithm of the free parameters (gains), thus improving its performance even in case of noisy measurements. Semi-global exponential convergence of the estimation error is provided. As far as the second task is concerned, a robust hybrid regulator is designed for practical rejection of the multi-frequency disturbance signal acting on the plant. The result is achieved by exploiting the frequencies estimated by the hybrid observer. The effectiveness of the proposed control scheme is shown by means of numerical simulations

Carbohydrate Intake in the Etiology of Crohn's Disease and Ulcerative Colitis

Background: Diet may have a role in the etiology of inflammatory bowel disease. In previous studies, the associations between increased intakes of carbohydrates, sugar, starch, and inflammatory bowel disease are inconsistent. However, few prospective studies have investigated the associations between these macronutrients and incident Crohn's disease (CD) or ulcerative colitis (UC). Methods: A total of 401,326 men and women were recruited between 1991 and 1998. At recruitment, dietary intakes of carbohydrate, sugar, and starch were measured using validated food frequency questionnaires. The cohort was monitored identifying participants who developed incident CD or UC. Cases were matched with 4 controls, and odds ratios were calculated for quintiles of total carbohydrate, sugar, and starch intakes adjusted for total energy intake, body mass index, and smoking. Results: One hundred ten participants developed CD, and 244 participants developed UC during follow-up. The adjusted odds ratio for the highest versus the lowest quintiles of total carbohydrate intake for CD was 0.87, 95% CI = 0.24 to 3.12 and for UC 1.46, 95% CI = 0.62 to 3.46, with no significant trends across quintiles for either (CD, Ptrend = 0.70; UC, Ptrend = 0.41). Similarly, no associations were observed with intakes of total sugar (CD, Ptrend = 0.50; UC, Ptrend = 0.71) or starch (CD, Ptrend = 0.69; UC, Ptrend = 0.17). Conclusions: The lack of associations with these nutrients is in agreement with many case–control studies that have not identified associations with CD or UC. As there is biological plausibility for how specific carbohydrates could have an etiological role in inflammatory bowel disease, future epidemiological work should assess individual carbohydrates, although there does not seem to be a macronutrient effect

Electrodeposition on Nanofibrous Polymer Scaffolds: Rapid Mineralization, Tunable Calcium Phosphate Composition and Topography

A straightforward, fast and versatile technique to fabricate mineralized nanofibrous polymer scaffolds for bone regeneration is developed. Nanofibrous poly( L -lactic acid) scaffolds are fabricated using both electrospinning and phase separation techniques. An electrodeposition process is designed to deposit calcium phosphate on the nanofibrous scaffolds. Such scaffolds contain a high quality mineral coating on the fiber surface and have surface topography and chemical composition that are tunable by varying the processing parameters. These scaffolds can mimic the composition and structure of the natural bone extracellular matrix and provide a more biocompatible interface for bone regeneration.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/78221/1/adfm_201000993_sm_supplfigs.pd

Understanding Health Workers' Job Preferences to Improve Rural Retention in Timor-Leste: Findings from a Discrete Choice Experiment

Background Timor-Leste built its health workforce up from extremely low levels after its war of independence, with the assistance of Cuban training, but faces challenges as the first cohorts of doctors will shortly be freed from their contracts with government. Retaining doctors, nurses and midwives in remote areas requires a good understanding of health worker preferences. Methods The article reports on a discrete choice experiment (DCE) carried out amongst 441 health workers, including 173 doctors, 150 nurses and 118 midwives. Qualitative methods were conducted during the design phase. The attributes which emerged were wages, skills upgrading/specialisation, location, working conditions, transportation and housing. Findings One of the main findings of the study is the relative lack of importance of wages for doctors, which could be linked to high intrinsic motivation, perceptions of having an already highly paid job (relative to local conditions), and/or being in a relatively early stage of their career for most respondents. Professional development provides the highest satisfaction with jobs, followed by the working conditions. Doctors with less experience, males and the unmarried are more flexible about location. For nurses and midwives, skill upgrading emerged as the most cost effective method. Conclusions The study is the first of its kind conducted in Timor-Leste. It provides policy-relevant information to balance financial and non-financial incentives for different cadres and profiles of staff. It also augments a thin literature on the preferences of working doctors (as opposed to medical students) in low and middle income countries and provides insights into the ability to instil motivation to work in rural areas, which may be influenced by rural recruitment and Cuban-style training, with its emphasis on community service.Our Research Report for 2000-2002 reflects an outstanding level of achievement throughout the institution and demonstrates once again our high level of commitment to strategic and applied research particularly in areas that enhance the quality of life.Funding: The authors thank the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the European Commission for their financial support.sch_iih11pub4608pub1

Transient Protein-Protein Interaction of the SH3-Peptide Complex via Closely Located Multiple Binding Sites

Protein-protein interactions play an essential role in cellular processes. Certain proteins form stable complexes with their partner proteins, whereas others function by forming transient complexes. The conventional protein-protein interaction model describes an interaction between two proteins under the assumption that a protein binds to its partner protein through a single binding site. In this study, we improved the conventional interaction model by developing a Multiple-Site (MS) model in which a protein binds to its partner protein through closely located multiple binding sites on a surface of the partner protein by transiently docking at each binding site with individual binding free energies. To test this model, we used the protein-protein interaction mediated by Src homology 3 (SH3) domains. SH3 domains recognize their partners via a weak, transient interaction and are therefore promiscuous in nature. Because the MS model requires large amounts of data compared with the conventional interaction model, we used experimental data from the positionally addressable syntheses of peptides on cellulose membranes (SPOT-synthesis) technique. From the analysis of the experimental data, individual binding free energies for each binding site of peptides were extracted. A comparison of the individual binding free energies from the analysis with those from atomistic force fields gave a correlation coefficient of 0.66. Furthermore, application of the MS model to 10 SH3 domains lowers the prediction error by up to 9% compared with the conventional interaction model. This improvement in prediction originates from a more realistic description of complex formation than the conventional interaction model. The results suggested that, in many cases, SH3 domains increased the protein complex population through multiple binding sites of their partner proteins. Our study indicates that the consideration of general complex formation is important for the accurate description of protein complex formation, and especially for those of weak or transient protein complexes