693 research outputs found
Efimov physics beyond three particles
Efimov physics originally refers to a system of three particles. Here we
review recent theoretical progress seeking for manifestations of Efimov physics
in systems composed of more than three particles. Clusters of more than three
bosons are tied to each Efimov trimer, but no independent Efimov physics exists
there beyond three bosons. The case of a few heavy fermions interacting with a
lighter atom is also considered, where the mass ratio of the constituent
particles plays a significant role. Following Efimov's study of the (2+1)
system, the (3+1) system was shown to have its own critical mass ratio to
become Efimovian. We show that the (4+1) system becomes Efimovian at a mass
ratio which is smaller than its sub-systems thresholds, giving a pure five-body
Efimov effect. The (5+1) and (6+1) systems are also discussed, and we show the
absence of 6- and 7-body Efimov physics there
Quantum Darwinism
Quantum Darwinism describes the proliferation, in the environment, of
multiple records of selected states of a quantum system. It explains how the
fragility of a state of a single quantum system can lead to the classical
robustness of states of their correlated multitude; shows how effective
`wave-packet collapse' arises as a result of proliferation throughout the
environment of imprints of the states of quantum system; and provides a
framework for the derivation of Born's rule, which relates probability of
detecting states to their amplitude. Taken together, these three advances mark
considerable progress towards settling the quantum measurement problem
A measure of individual role in collective dynamics
Identifying key players in collective dynamics remains a challenge in several
research fields, from the efficient dissemination of ideas to drug target
discovery in biomedical problems. The difficulty lies at several levels: how to
single out the role of individual elements in such intermingled systems, or
which is the best way to quantify their importance. Centrality measures
describe a node's importance by its position in a network. The key issue
obviated is that the contribution of a node to the collective behavior is not
uniquely determined by the structure of the system but it is a result of the
interplay between dynamics and network structure. We show that dynamical
influence measures explicitly how strongly a node's dynamical state affects
collective behavior. For critical spreading, dynamical influence targets nodes
according to their spreading capabilities. For diffusive processes it
quantifies how efficiently real systems may be controlled by manipulating a
single node.Comment: accepted for publication in Scientific Report
Mucosal atrophy in collagenous colitis: a case report
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Mucosal atrophy as a potential cause of impaired colonic compliance has not yet been described as a complication in Collagenous Colitis (CC).</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>We present a 51-year-old female patient with a 20-year history of diarrhea and diagnosed with CC ten years prior to her presentation. We reviewed reports from three colonoscopies performed after the diagnosis. Overall 12 biopsies obtained in the last two colonoscopies were re-analyzed by two pathologists blinded to the aim of the study. Besides the typical histological findings of CC, the endoscopic appearance was normal, and no histological signs of atrophy were found during the first colonoscopy. Surprisingly, the second and third colonoscopy revealed a region of advanced segmental mucosal atrophy in the cecum with the mucosal height normalizing toward the transverse colon. This pattern of atrophy was inversely related to the pattern of sub-epithelial collagen deposition, which increased toward the rectum.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>If no chance occurrence, our observation supports the idea that additional factors, probably luminal in nature, may be co-responsible for the mucosal atrophy in this case. Thus, mucosal atrophy in the proximal colon appears to be a new candidate among the growing list of rare complications associated with long standing CC.</p
Cooperation, Norms, and Revolutions: A Unified Game-Theoretical Approach
Cooperation is of utmost importance to society as a whole, but is often
challenged by individual self-interests. While game theory has studied this
problem extensively, there is little work on interactions within and across
groups with different preferences or beliefs. Yet, people from different social
or cultural backgrounds often meet and interact. This can yield conflict, since
behavior that is considered cooperative by one population might be perceived as
non-cooperative from the viewpoint of another.
To understand the dynamics and outcome of the competitive interactions within
and between groups, we study game-dynamical replicator equations for multiple
populations with incompatible interests and different power (be this due to
different population sizes, material resources, social capital, or other
factors). These equations allow us to address various important questions: For
example, can cooperation in the prisoner's dilemma be promoted, when two
interacting groups have different preferences? Under what conditions can costly
punishment, or other mechanisms, foster the evolution of norms? When does
cooperation fail, leading to antagonistic behavior, conflict, or even
revolutions? And what incentives are needed to reach peaceful agreements
between groups with conflicting interests?
Our detailed quantitative analysis reveals a large variety of interesting
results, which are relevant for society, law and economics, and have
implications for the evolution of language and culture as well
Parental knowledge of paediatric vaccination
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licens
Oral medicine acceptance in infants and toddlers: measurement properties of the caregiver-administered Children’s acceptance tool (CareCAT)
BACKGROUND: Developing age-appropriate medications remains a challenge in particular for the population of
infants and toddlers, as they are not able to reliably self-report if they would accept and consequently take an oral
medicine. Therefore, it is common to use caregivers as proxies when assessing medicine acceptance. The outcome
measures used in this research field differ and most importantly lack validation, implying a persisting gap in
knowledge and controversy in the field. The newly developed Caregiver-administered Children’s Acceptance Tool
(CareCAT) is based on a 5-point nominal scale, with descriptors of medication acceptance behavior. This crosssectional
study assessed the measurement properties of the tool with regards to the user’s understanding and its
intra- and inter-rater reliability.
METHODS: Participating caregivers were enrolled at a primary healthcare facility where their children (median age
6 months) had been prescribed oral antibiotics. Caregivers, trained observers and the tool developer observed and
scored on the CareCAT tool what behavior children exhibited when receiving the medicine (n = 104). The videorecords
of this process served as replicate observations (n = 69). After using the tool caregivers were asked to
explain their observations and the tool descriptors in their own words. The tool’s reliability was assessed by
percentage agreement and Cohen’s unweighted kappa coefficients of agreement for nominal scales.
RESULTS: The study found that caregivers using CareCAT had a satisfactory understanding of the tool’s descriptors.
Using its dichotomized scores the tool reliably was strong for acceptance behavior (agreement inter-rater 84–88%,
kappa 0.66–0.76; intra-rater 87–89%, kappa 0.68–0.72) and completeness of medicine ingestion (agreement inter-rater
82–86%, kappa 0.59–0.67; intra-rater 85–93%, kappa 0.50–0.70).
CONCLUSIONS: The CareCAT is a low-cost, easy-to-use and reliable instrument, which is relevant to assess acceptance
behavior and completeness of medicine ingestion, both of which are of significant importance for developing
age-appropriate medications in infants and toddlers
Individualizing therapy – in search of approaches to maximize the benefit of drug treatment (II)
Adjusting drug therapy to the individual, a common approach in clinical practice, has evolved from 1) dose adjustments based on clinical effects to 2) dose adjustments made in response to drug levels and, more recently, to 3) dose adjustments based on deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) sequencing of drug-metabolizing enzyme genes, suggesting a slow drug metabolism phenotype. This development dates back to the middle of the 20(th )century, when several different drugs were administered on the basis of individual plasma concentration measurements. Genetic control of drug metabolism was well established by the 1960s, and pharmakokinetic-based individualized therapy was in use by 1973
Plasmodial sugar transporters as anti-malarial drug targets and comparisons with other protozoa
Glucose is the primary source of energy and a key substrate for most cells. Inhibition of cellular glucose uptake (the first step in its utilization) has, therefore, received attention as a potential therapeutic strategy to treat various unrelated diseases including malaria and cancers. For malaria, blood forms of parasites rely almost entirely on glycolysis for energy production and, without energy stores, they are dependent on the constant uptake of glucose. Plasmodium falciparum is the most dangerous human malarial parasite and its hexose transporter has been identified as being the major glucose transporter. In this review, recent progress regarding the validation and development of the P. falciparum hexose transporter as a drug target is described, highlighting the importance of robust target validation through both chemical and genetic methods. Therapeutic targeting potential of hexose transporters of other protozoan pathogens is also reviewed and discussed
Modelling the Cost Effectiveness of Interventions for Osteoporosis: Issues to Consider
Expenditure on treating osteoporotic fractures and on preventative intervention is considerable and is likely to rise in forthcoming years due to the association between fracture risk and age. With funders such as the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee explicitly considering cost-effectiveness analyses within the process of producing guidance, it is imperative that economic models are as robust as possible. This article details issues that need to be considered specifically related to health technology assessments of interventions for osteoporosis, and highlights limitations within the current evidence base. A likely direction of impact on cost effectiveness of addressing the key issues has been included alongside a tentative categorization of the level of these impacts. It is likely that cost-effectiveness ratios presented in previous models that did not address the identified issues were favourable to interventions
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