The Angstrom Project Alert System: real-time detection of extragalactic microlensing

The Angstrom Project is undertaking an optical survey of stellar microlensing events across the bulge region of the Andromeda Galaxy (M31) using a distributed network of two-meter class telescopes. The Angstrom Project Alert System (APAS) has been developed to identify in real time candidate microlensing and transient events using data from the Liverpool and Faulkes North robotic telescopes. This is the first time that real-time microlensing discovery has been attempted outside of the Milky Way and its satellite galaxies. The APAS is designed to enable follow-up studies of M31 microlensing systems, including searches for gas giant planets in M31. Here we describe the APAS and we present a few example light curves obtained during its commissioning phase which clearly demonstrate its real-time capability to identify microlensing candidates as well as other transient sources.Comment: 4 pages, submitted to ApJ Letter

ТРАВМЫ У БЕРЕМЕННЫХ: СОВРЕМЕННЫЕ АСПЕКТЫ ПРОБЛЕМЫ (ОБЗОР ЛИТЕРАТУРЫ)

Abstract. In the format of the information and analytical review of the literature provides the data on injuries among pregnant women. The influence of different mechanism, the degree of the severity and nature of injuries on maternal and perinatal outcomes were shown in the article. The revealed-mined some contradictions had been detected in the results of studies on trauma outcomes depending on the severity and nature, as well as the lack of information on standards of conduct and protocols. Резюме. В формате информационно-аналитического обзора литературы приводятся данные о травматизме среди беременных. Показано влияние различных по механизму, степени тяжести и характеру возникновения травм на материнские и перинатальные исходы. Выявлены определенные противоречия в результатах исследований относительно исходов травмы в зависимости от ее тяжести и характера, а также недостаточность информации о стандартах и протоколах ведения

МОРФОЛОГИЯ ПРОСТОЙ И ПРОЛИФЕРИРУЮЩЕЙ МИОМЫ МАТКИ ПРИ БЕРЕМЕННОСТИ

Purpose. The identifying of the nature of growth of myoma nodes during the pregnancy, of the cause of the uterine fibroids relapse after conservative myomectomy during the pregnancy.Material and methods. Тhе сlinical, histologic and morphometric studies of remote myoma nodes during pregnancy were conducted in 41 women and among of 9 patients in this group with recurrent uterine fibroids after conservative myomectomy.Results. The paper presents the results of morphological and morphometric studies on remote for emergency indications myoma nodes during the pregnancy and the clinical results of the operations. There were found that 78% of women with the growing myoma nodes during pregnancy due to myocyte hypertrophy and secondary changes, and in 22% of patients diagnosed true growth of proliferating fibroids. The both variants of growth nodes were accompanied by clinically and morphological features of the malnutrition of the tumor. The recurrence of the proliferating uterine fibroids was detected in all the cases in the late periods.Conclusion. More than one fifth of pregnant women with uterine tumor growth is due to a true increase in the proliferating. It is in this cohort in the late periods (2–4 years) relapse of uterine fibroids. The urgency of the problem early relapse prevention of the proliferating uterine fibroids after conservative myomectomy during the pregnancy resulting from the lactation. Цель исследования. Выявление характера роста миоматозных узлов во время беременности, причины рецидива миомы матки после консервативной миомэктомии на фоне беременности.Материал и методы. Проведены клинические, гистологические и морфометрические исследования удаленных миоматозных узлов во время беременности у 41 женщины.Результаты. В работе изложены результаты морфологических и морфометрических исследований удаленных по экстренным показаниям миоматозных узлов во время беременности, а также клинические результаты проведенных операций. Установлено, что у 78,0% женщин рост миоматозных узлов во время беременности обусловлен гипертрофией миоцитов и вторичными изменениями, а у 22,0% больных выявлен истинный рост пролиферирующей миомы. Оба варианта роста узлов сопровождались клиническими и морфологическими признаками острого нарушения питания опухоли. Во всех без исключения случаях пролиферирующей миомы (22,0%) выявлен рецидив миомы в отдаленные сроки (2–4 года).Заключение. У более 1/5 беременных с ММ рост опухоли обусловлен истинным пролиферирующим ростом. Именно у этого контингента в отдаленные сроки (2–4 года) возникает рецидив миомы матки. Актуальность задачи скорейшей профилактики рецидива пролиферирующей миомы матки после консервативной миомэктомии на фоне беременности обусловлена лактацией.

Drainage surgery for primary open-angle glaucoma: past, present, future

Relevance. Despite many techniques for reducing intraocular pressure, surgical treatment of glaucoma has limited effectiveness. First, due to excessive scarring of new intraocular fluid outflow pathways and second, antifibrotics medicaments are unable to effectively control wound healing. The use of drainages reduces the risk of excessive scarring in the area of the filtration pad and forms several ways of outflow of intraocular fluid. The review presents the following sections: development history, advantages, disadvantages, surgical technique and promising directions of glaucoma drainage surgery.Purpose. Summarizing data on the possibility of drainage surgery, historical aspects, causes of scarring and methods of dealing with them. Provide data on various modern drainage devices that are used not only in Russia and their effectiveness.Material and methods. To perform the review, we searched for literature sources on the abstract databases E-library, PubMed and Scopus for the period up to and including 2018, using the keywords «glaucoma drainage surgery» (in the E-library database), «anti-glaucoma drainage» and «anti-glaucoma drainage device» (in the PubMed and Scopus databases). Abstracts of conferences were excluded from the review. A total of 40 articles related to the review topic were identified. The beginning of publications on this issue in domestic sources dates back to 1970, and in foreign sources to 1987.Results. The review presents the history of development, advantages, disadvantages of surgical techniques and promising areas of glaucoma drainage surgery. Various models of drainage devices, as well as their specific and non-specific complications are described. The effectivenes of various valves were 70%, with an average decrease in the level of IOP by at least 50% from the preoperative values. At the same time, the risk of an increase in the level of IOP above the target values is about 10% per year, which leads to the fact that after 5 years only in 50% of cases drainage devices function effectively. Therefore, studies of biomaterials, forms and techniques of drainage implantation surgery, new controlled-release antifibrotic drugs can positively affect the long-term effectiveness of glaucoma surgery.Conclusion. The data presented in the literature review allow us to identify the most effective models of drainage devices, their effectiveness, implantation techniques and possible complications

Timing of AR CrB eclipses

AR CrB is a short-period low-mass eclipsing binary. We conducted photometric observations of the system in 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, and obtained times of its light curves minima. The timing of eclipses (our times of minima combined with data from the literature) shows that the orbital period of AR CrB could possess periodical variations that can be explained by the gravitational influence of a third companion in a highly eccentric orbit around the central binary

Electronic properties and phase transitions in low-dimensional semiconductors

We present the first review of the current state of the literature on electronic properties and phase transitions in TlX and TlMX2 (M = Ga, In; X = Se, S, Te) compounds. These chalcogenides belong to a family of the low-dimensional semiconductors possessing chain or layered structure. They are of significant interest because of their highly anisotropic properties, semi- and photoconductivity, non-linear effects in their I-V characteristics (including a region of negative differential resistance), switching and memory effects, second harmonic optical generation, relaxor behavior and potential applications for optoelectronic devices. We review the crystal structure of TlX and TlMX2 compounds, their transport properties under ambient conditions, experimental and theoretical studies of the electronic structure, transport properties and semiconductor-metal phase transitions under high pressure, and sequences of temperature-induced structural phase transitions with intermediate incommensurate states. Electronic nature of the ferroelectric phase transitions in the above-mentioned compounds, as well as relaxor behavior, nanodomains and possible occurrence of quantum dots in doped and irradiated crystals is discussed.Comment: 70 pages, 38 figure

PEDIA: prioritization of exome data by image analysis

Purpose Phenotype information is crucial for the interpretation of genomic variants. So far it has only been accessible for bioinformatics workflows after encoding into clinical terms by expert dysmorphologists. Methods Here, we introduce an approach driven by artificial intelligence that uses portrait photographs for the interpretation of clinical exome data. We measured the value added by computer-assisted image analysis to the diagnostic yield on a cohort consisting of 679 individuals with 105 different monogenic disorders. For each case in the cohort we compiled frontal photos, clinical features, and the disease-causing variants, and simulated multiple exomes of different ethnic backgrounds. Results The additional use of similarity scores from computer-assisted analysis of frontal photos improved the top 1 accuracy rate by more than 20–89% and the top 10 accuracy rate by more than 5–99% for the disease-causing gene. Conclusion Image analysis by deep-learning algorithms can be used to quantify the phenotypic similarity (PP4 criterion of the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics guidelines) and to advance the performance of bioinformatics pipelines for exome analysis

Overview of the TCV tokamak experimental programme

The tokamak a configuration variable (TCV) continues to leverage its unique shaping capabilities, flexible heating systems and modern control system to address critical issues in preparation for ITER and a fusion power plant. For the 2019-20 campaign its configurational flexibility has been enhanced with the installation of removable divertor gas baffles, its diagnostic capabilities with an extensive set of upgrades and its heating systems with new dual frequency gyrotrons. The gas baffles reduce coupling between the divertor and the main chamber and allow for detailed investigations on the role of fuelling in general and, together with upgraded boundary diagnostics, test divertor and edge models in particular. The increased heating capabilities broaden the operational regime to include T (e)/T (i) similar to 1 and have stimulated refocussing studies from L-mode to H-mode across a range of research topics. ITER baseline parameters were reached in type-I ELMy H-modes and alternative regimes with \u27small\u27 (or no) ELMs explored. Most prominently, negative triangularity was investigated in detail and confirmed as an attractive scenario with H-mode level core confinement but an L-mode edge. Emphasis was also placed on control, where an increased number of observers, actuators and control solutions became available and are now integrated into a generic control framework as will be needed in future devices. The quantity and quality of results of the 2019-20 TCV campaign are a testament to its successful integration within the European research effort alongside a vibrant domestic programme and international collaborations

A global agenda for advancing freshwater biodiversity research

Global freshwater biodiversity is declining dramatically, and meeting the challenges of this crisis requires bold goals and the mobilisation of substantial resources. While the reasons are varied, investments in both research and conservation of freshwater biodiversity lag far behind those in the terrestrial and marine realms. Inspired by a global consultation, we identify 15 pressing priority needs, grouped into five research areas, in an effort to support informed stewardship of freshwater biodiversity. The proposed agenda aims to advance freshwater biodiversity research globally as a critical step in improving coordinated actions towards its sustainable management and conservation