Cohomologically hyperbolic endomorphisms of complex manifolds

We show that if a compact Kahler manifold X admits a cohomologically hyperbolic surjective endomorphism then its Kodaira dimension is non-positive. This gives an affirmative answer to a conjecture of Guedj in the holomorphic case. The main part of the paper is to determine the geometric structure and the fundamental groups (up to finite index) for those X of dimension 3.Comment: International Journal of Mathematics (to appear

Meddelelser fra Nationaløkonomisk Forening 1992

OBJECTIVES: Laparoscopic nephrectomy for xanthogranulomatous pyelonephritis is currently associated with great operative difficulty and surgical complications. Herein, we report on our single-center experience and describe predictive factors for successfully accomplishing this procedure. METHOD: Between March 1998 and April 2010, 66 patients (27 men and 39 women) underwent laparoscopic nephrectomy for the treatment of a unilateral nonfunctioning kidney. These patients had previous diagnoses of renal chronic inflammation associated with calculi and previous pyonephrosis. All of the nephrectomies were performed using the transperitoneal approach, and a similar technique was used for radical nephrectomy. RESULTS: Laparoscopic nephrectomy for the treatment of renal chronic inflammation was successful in 58/66 cases (87.9%). Eight cases were converted to the open technique because of difficulty in progression, which was related to the discovery of dense adhesions in the hilar or perirenal region. One major (colonic lesion) and two minor (wound infection) complications occurred in the conversion group. A diagnosis of xanthogranulomatous pyelonephritis was confirmed pathologically for all of the specimens. Of the factors examined, a longitudinal renal length greater than 12 cm (laparoscopy group - 7.2 +/- 1.8 cm, versus open group - 13.6 +/- 1.5 cm; p<0.05) and time to access the renal vessels (laparoscopy group - 32 +/- 18 min, versus open group - 91 +/- 11 min; p<0.05) were associated with a higher conversion rate. Although the number of patients in the conversion group was small, the majority of these patients received right-sided nephrectomy. CONCLUSIONS: Laparoscopic nephrectomy for the treatment of xanthogranulomatous pyelonephritis is feasible and associated with low levels of morbidity. Factors including the time required to control the renal vessels, renal length and right-sided nephrectomy were associated with higher chances of conversion into an open procedure

Cohomological aspects on complex and symplectic manifolds

We discuss how quantitative cohomological informations could provide qualitative properties on complex and symplectic manifolds. In particular we focus on the Bott-Chern and the Aeppli cohomology groups in both cases, since they represent useful tools in studying non K\"ahler geometry. We give an overview on the comparisons among the dimensions of the cohomology groups that can be defined and we show how we reach the $\partial\overline\partial$-lemma in complex geometry and the Hard-Lefschetz condition in symplectic geometry. For more details we refer to [6] and [29].Comment: The present paper is a proceeding written on the occasion of the "INdAM Meeting Complex and Symplectic Geometry" held in Cortona. It is going to be published on the "Springer INdAM Series

Molecular dynamics simulations of oxide memristors: thermal effects

We have extended our recent molecular-dynamic simulations of memristors to include the effect of thermal inhomogeneities on mobile ionic species appearing during operation of the device. Simulations show a competition between an attractive short-ranged interaction between oxygen vacancies and an enhanced local temperature in creating/destroying the conducting oxygen channels. Such a competition would strongly affect the performance of the memristive devices.Comment: submit/0169777; 6 pages, 4 figure

Morphological features of microglial cells in the hippocampal dentate gyrus of Gunn rat: a possible schizophrenia animal model

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Schizophrenia is a debilitating and complex mental disorder whose exact etiology remains unknown. There is growing amount of evidence of a relationship between neuroinflammation, as demonstrated by microglial activation, and schizophrenia. Our previous studies have proposed that hyperbilirubinemia plays a role in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. Furthermore, we suggested the Gunn rat, an animal model of bilirubin encephalopathy, as a possible animal model of schizophrenia. However, the effects of unconjugated bilirubin on microglia, the resident immune cell of the CNS, in Gunn rats have never been investigated. In the present study, we examined how microglial cells respond to bilirubin toxicity in adult Gunn rats.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Using immunohistochemical techniques, we compared the distribution, morphology, and ultrastructural features of microglial cells in Gunn rats with Wistar rats as a normal control. We also determined the ratio of activated and resting microglia and observed microglia-neuron interactions. We characterized the microglial cells in the hippocampal dentate gyrus.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We found that microglial cells showed activated morphology in the hilus, subgranular zone, and granular layer of the Gunn rat hippocampal dentate gyrus. There was no significant difference between cell numbers between in Gunn rats and controls. However, there was significant difference in the area of CD11b expression in the hippocampal dentate gyrus. Ultrastructurally, microglial cells often contained rich enlarged rich organelles in the cytoplasm and showed some phagocytic function.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We propose that activation of microglia could be an important causal factor of the behavioral abnormalities and neuropathological changes in Gunn rats. These findings may provide basic information for further assessment of the Gunn rat as an animal model of schizophrenia.</p

Standardization of Preclinical PET/CT Imaging to Improve Quantitative Accuracy, Precision, and Reproducibility: A Multicenter Study

Preclinical PET/CT is a well-established noninvasive imaging tool for studying disease development/progression and the development of novel radiotracers and pharmaceuticals for clinical applications. Despite this pivotal role, standardization of preclinical PET/CT protocols, including CT absorbed dose guidelines, is essentially nonexistent. This study (1) quantitatively assesses the variability of current preclinical PET/CT acquisition and reconstruction protocols routinely used across multiple centers and scanners; and (2) proposes acquisition and reconstruction PET/CT protocols for standardization of multicenter data, optimized for routine scanning in the preclinical PET/CT laboratory. Methods: Five different commercial preclinical PET/CT scanners in Europe and the United States were enrolled. Seven different PET/CT phantoms were used for evaluating biases on default/general scanner protocols, followed by developing standardized protocols. PET, CT, and absorbed dose biases were assessed. Results: Site default CT protocols were the following: greatest extracted Hounsfield units (HU) were 133 HU for water and −967 HU for air; significant differences in all tissue equivalent material (TEM) groups were measured. The average CT absorbed doses for mouse and rat were 72 mGy and 40 mGy, respectively. Standardized CT protocol were the following: greatest extracted HU were −77 HU for water and −990 HU for air; TEM precision improved with a reduction in variability for each tissue group. The average CT absorbed dose for mouse and rat decreased to 37 mGy and 24 mGy, respectively. Site default PET protocols were the following: uniformity was substandard in one scanner, recovery coefficients (RCs) were either over- or underestimated (maximum of 43%), standard uptake values (SUVs) were biased by a maximum of 44%. Standardized PET protocols were the following: scanner with substandard uniformity improved by 36%, RC variability decreased by 13% points, and SUV accuracy improved to 10%. Conclusion: Data revealed important quantitative biases in preclinical PET/CT and absorbed doses with default protocols. Standardized protocols showed improvements in measured PET/CT accuracy and precision with reduced CT absorbed dose across sites. Adhering to standardized protocols generates reproducible and consistent preclinical imaging datasets, thus augmenting translation of research findings to the clinic

Mutational Profile and Pathological Features of a Case of Interleukin-10 and RGS1-Positive Spindle Cell Variant Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma with spindle cell morphology is a rare variant. We present the case of a 74-year-old male who initially presented with a right supraclavicular (lymph) node enlargement. Histological analysis showed a proliferation of spindle-shaped cells with narrow cytoplasms. An immunohistochemical panel was used to exclude other tumors, such as melanoma, carcinoma, and sarcoma. The lymphoma was characterized by a cell-of-origin subtype of germinal center B-cell-like (GCB) based on Hans’ classifier (CD10-negative, BCL6-positive, and MUM1-negative); EBER negativity, and the absence of BCL2, BCL6, and MYC rearrangements. Mutational profiling using a custom panel of 168 genes associated with aggressive B-cell lymphomas confirmed mutations in ACTB, ARID1B, DUSP2, DTX1, HLA-B, PTEN, and TNFRSF14. Based on the LymphGen 1.0 classification tool, this case had an ST2 subtype prediction. The immune microenvironment was characterized by moderate infiltration of M2-like tumor-associated macrophages (TMAs) with positivity of CD163, CSF1R, CD85A (LILRB3), and PD-L1; moderate PD-1 positive T cells, and low FOXP3 regulatory T lymphocytes (Tregs). Immunohistochemical expression of PTX3 and TNFRSF14 was absent. Interestingly, the lymphoma cells were positive for HLA-DP-DR, IL-10, and RGS1, which are markers associated with poor prognosis in DLBCL. The patient was treated with R-CHOP therapy, and achieved a metabolically complete response