Dimensional reduction and the phase diagram of 5d Yang-Mills theory

We present a non-perturbative study of the phase diagram of 5d SU(2) Yang-Mills theory with one compact extra dimension on the lattice. Assuming at least a modest scale separation between the cutoff and the compactification scales leads to an exponential separation between the compactification scale and the four-dimensional correlation length. While we demonstrate that it is not possible to take a full five-dimensional continuum limit, this dynamical generation of scale hierarchy opens up the possibility for us to make limited, but non-perturbative, predictions about continuum theories whose low-energy sector is described by an effective 5d Yang-Mills theory.Comment: 7 pages. Presented at the XXVII International Symposium on Lattice Field Theory, July 26-31, 2009, Peking University, Beijing, Chin

Framework for non-perturbative analysis of a Z(3)-symmetric effective theory of finite temperature QCD

We study a three dimensional Z(3)-symmetric effective theory of high temperature QCD. The exact lattice-continuum relations, needed in order to perform lattice simulations with physical parameters, are computed to order O(a^0) in lattice perturbation theory. Lattice simulations are performed to determine the phase structure of a subset of the parameter space.Comment: 28 pages, 11 figures; v3: references rearranged, typos corrected, figs changed, published versio

EMMI Rapid Reaction Task Force on "Thermalization in Non-abelian Plasmas"

Recently, different proposals have been put forward on how thermalization proceeds in heavy-ion collisions in the idealized limit of very large nuclei at sufficiently high energy. Important aspects of the parametric estimates at weak coupling may be tested using well-established classical-statistical lattice simulations of the far-from-equilibrium gluon dynamics. This has to be confronted with strong coupling scenarios in related theories based on gauge-string dualities. Furthermore, closely related questions about far-from-equilibrium dynamics arise in early-universe cosmology and in non-relativistic systems of ultracold atoms. These were central topics of the EMMI Rapid Reaction Task Force meeting held on December 12-14, 2011, at the University of Heidelberg, which we report on.Comment: 13 pages, summary of the EMMI Rapid Reaction Task Force on "Thermalization in Non-abelian Plasmas", December 12-14, 2011, University of Heidelberg, German

Saliva-based testing for diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection : A meta-analysis

Non peer reviewe

Detection of SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid antigen from serum can aid in timing of COVID-19 infection

SARS-CoV-2 RNA can be detected in respiratory samples for weeks after onset of COVID-19 disease. Therefore, one of the diagnostic challenges of PCR positive cases is differentiating between acute COVID-19 disease and convalescent phase. The presence of SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid antigen in serum and plasma samples of COVID-19 patients has been demonstrated previously. Our study aimed to characterize the analytical specificity and sensitivity of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (Salocor SARS-CoV-2 Antigen Quantitative Assay Kit (c) (Salofa Ltd, Salo, Finland)) for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid antigen in serum, and to characterize the kinetics of antigenemia. The evaluation material included a negative serum panel of 155 samples, and 126 serum samples from patients with PCR-confirmed COVID-19. The specificity of the Salocor SARS-CoV-2 serum nucleocapsid antigen test was 98.0 %. In comparison with simultaneous positive PCR from upper respiratory tract (URT) specimens, the test sensitivity was 91.7 %. In a serum panel in which the earliest serum sample was collected two days before the collection of positive URT specimen, and the latest 48 days after (median 1 day post URT sample collection), the serum N antigen test sensitivity was 95.6 % within 14 days post onset of symptoms. The antigenemia resolved approximately two weeks after the onset of disease and diagnostic PCR. The combination of simultaneous SARS-CoV-2 antigen and antibody testing appeared to provide useful in-formation for timing of COVID-19. Our results suggest that SARS-CoV-2 N-antigenemia may be used as a diag-nostic marker in acute COVID-19.Peer reviewe

Plaquette expectation value and lattice free energy of three-dimensional SU(N) gauge theory

We use high precision lattice simulations to calculate the plaquette expectation value in three-dimensional SU(N) gauge theory for N=2,3,4,5,8. Using these results, we study the N-dependence of the first non-perturbative coefficient in the weak-coupling expansion of hot QCD. We demonstrate that, in the limit of large N, the functional form of the plaquette expectation value with ultraviolet divergences subtracted is 15.9(2)-44(2)/N^2.Comment: 14 pages, 6 figures. v2: references added; published versio

Cardiorespiratory Fitness Estimation Based on Heart Rate and Body Acceleration in Adults With Cardiovascular Risk Factors : Validation Study

Publisher Copyright: © Antti-Pekka E Rissanen, Mirva Rottensteiner, Urho M Kujala, Jari L O Kurkela, Jan Wikgren, Jari A Laukkanen. Originally published in JMIR Cardio (https://cardio.jmir.org), 25.10.2022. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work, first published in JMIR Cardio, is properly cited. The complete bibliographic information, a link to the original publication on https://cardio.jmir.org, as well as this copyright and license information must be included.Background: Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Adding CRF to conventional risk factors (eg, smoking, hypertension, impaired glucose metabolism, and dyslipidemia) improves the prediction of an individual's risk for adverse health outcomes such as those related to cardiovascular disease. Consequently, it is recommended to determine CRF as part of individualized risk prediction. However, CRF is not determined routinely in everyday clinical practice. Wearable technologies provide a potential strategy to estimate CRF on a daily basis, and such technologies, which provide CRF estimates based on heart rate and body acceleration, have been developed. However, the validity of such technologies in estimating individual CRF in clinically relevant populations is poorly known. Objective: The objective of this study is to evaluate the validity of a wearable technology, which provides estimated CRF based on heart rate and body acceleration, in working-aged adults with cardiovascular risk factors. Methods: In total, 74 adults (age range 35-64 years; n=56, 76% were women; mean BMI 28.7, SD 4.6 kg/m2) with frequent cardiovascular risk factors (eg, n=64, 86% hypertension; n=18, 24% prediabetes; n=14, 19% type 2 diabetes; and n=51, 69% metabolic syndrome) performed a 30-minute self-paced walk on an indoor track and a cardiopulmonary exercise test on a treadmill. CRF, quantified as peak O2 uptake, was both estimated (self-paced walk: a wearable single-lead electrocardiogram device worn to record continuous beat-to-beat R-R intervals and triaxial body acceleration) and measured (cardiopulmonary exercise test: ventilatory gas analysis). The accuracy of the estimated CRF was evaluated against that of the measured CRF. Results: Measured CRF averaged 30.6 (SD 6.3; range 20.1-49.6) mL/kg/min. In all participants (74/74, 100%), mean difference between estimated and measured CRF was −0.1 mL/kg/min (P = .90), mean absolute error was 3.1 mL/kg/min (95% CI 2.6-3.7), mean absolute percentage error was 10.4% (95% CI 8.5-12.5), and intraclass correlation coefficient was 0.88 (95% CI 0.80-0.92). Similar accuracy was observed in various subgroups (sexes, age, BMI categories, hypertension, prediabetes, and metabolic syndrome). However, mean absolute error was 4.2 mL/kg/min (95% CI 2.6-6.1) and mean absolute percentage error was 16.5% (95% CI 8.6-24.4) in the subgroup of patients with type 2 diabetes (14/74, 19%). Conclusions: The error of the CRF estimate, provided by the wearable technology, was likely below or at least very close to the clinically significant level of 3.5 mL/kg/min in working-aged adults with cardiovascular risk factors, but not in the relatively small subgroup of patients with type 2 diabetes. From a large-scale clinical perspective, the findings suggest that wearable technologies have the potential to estimate individual CRF with acceptable accuracy in clinically relevant populations.Peer reviewe

Two-color QCD via dimensional reduction

We study the thermodynamics of two-color QCD at high temperature and/or density using a dimensionally reduced superrenormalizable effective theory, formulated in terms of a coarse grained Wilson line. In the absence of quarks, the theory is required to respect the Z(2) center symmetry, while the effects of quarks of arbitrary masses and chemical potentials are introduced via soft Z(2) breaking operators. Perturbative matching of the effective theory parameters to the full theory is carried out explicitly, and it is argued how the new theory can be used to explore the phase diagram of two-color QCD.Comment: 17 pages, 1 eps figure, jheppub style; v2: minor update, references added, published versio

Hydroxychloroquine is Metabolized by Cytochrome P450 2D6, 3A4 and 2C8, and Inhibits Cytochrome P450 2D6, while its Metabolites also Inhibit Cytochrome P450 3A in vitro

This study aimed to explore the cytochrome P450 (CYP) metabolic and inhibitory profile of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ). Hydroxychloro-quine metabolism was studied using human liver microsomes (HLMs) and recombinant CYP enzymes. The inhibitory effects of HCQ and its metabolites on nine CYPs were also determined in HLMs, us-ing an automated substrate cocktail method. Our metabolism data in-dicated that CYP3A4, CYP2D6, and CYP2C8 are the key enzymes involved in HCQ metabolism. All three CYPs formed the primary me-tabolites desethylchloroquine (DCQ) and desethylhydroxychloro-quine (DHCQ) to various degrees. Although the intrinsic clearance (CLint) value of HCQ depletion by recombinant CYP2D6 was > 10-fold higher than that by CYP3A4 (0.87 versus 0.075 mu l/min/pmol), scaling of recombinant CYP CLint to HLM level resulted in almost equal HLM CLint values for CYP2D6 and CYP3A4 (11 and 14 mu l/min/mg, respec-tively). The scaled HLM CLint of CYP2C8 was 5.7 mu l/min/mg. Data from HLM experiments with CYP-selective inhibitors also suggested rela-tively equal roles for CYP2D6 and CYP3A4 in HCQ metabolism, with a smaller contribution by CYP2C8. In CYP inhibition experiments, HCQ, DCQ, DHCQ, and the secondary metabolite didesethylchloroquine were direct CYP2D6 inhibitors, with 50% inhibitory concentration (IC50) val- ues between 18 and 135 mu M. HCQ did not inhibit other CYPs. Further- more, all metabolites were time-dependent CYP3A inhibitors (IC50 shift 2.2-3.4). To conclude, HCQ is metabolized by CYP3A4, CYP2D6, and CYP2C8 in vitro. HCQ and its metabolites are reversible CYP2D6 inhibi- tors, and HCQ metabolites are time-dependent CYP3A inhibitors. These data can be used to improve physiologically-based pharmacokinetic models and update drug-drug interaction risk estimations for HCQ.Peer reviewe

Varhaiskasvatuksen opettajien käsityksiä lasten tunteiden säätelytaitojen kehittymisestä

Tiivistelmä. Tunteiden säätelytaidot ovat tärkeä osa jokaisen ihmisen elämää, sillä niitä tarvitaan päivittäisessä arjessa esimerkiksi rakentavassa vuorovaikutuksessa toisten ihmisten kanssa ja erilaisten vaikeiden tilanteiden selvittämisessä. Tunteiden säätely on keskeinen taito myös oppimiselle. Tutkimusalueena tunteiden säätely kiinnostaa yhä enemmän, etenkin varhaiskasvatuksen ja koulun ympäristöissä, koska näissä konteksteissa tunteiden säätelyn merkitys korostuu oppimisessa ja sosiaalisessa vuorovaikutuksessa. Tunteiden kanssasäätelyssä aikuinen tukee lapsen tunteiden säätelyä ja siihen liittyvien strategioiden käyttöä. Tämä pro gradu -tutkimus on osa TunTuVa-hanketta, jossa varhaiskasvatushenkilöstöä koulutetaan tukemaan lasten tunteiden säätelytaitojen oppimista. Tutkimuksessa selvitetään varhaiskasvatuksen opettajien tärkeinä pitämiä teemoja lasten tunteiden säätelyn kehitykseen liittyen, sekä selvittää koulutuksen vaikutusta opettajien näkemyksiin. Tutkimus on rajattu varhaiskasvatuksen opettajiin ja tutkimusjoukkoja on yhteensä kolme. Ensimmäiseen kysymykseen liittyen opettajat (n=128) vastasivat avoimia vastauksia sisältävään alkukyselyyn. Toiseen tutkimuskysymykseen etsittiin vastausta kahden eri tutkimusryhmän — alku- ja loppukyselyyn (n=62) sekä alku- ja viivästettyyn loppukyselyyn (n=35) vastanneiden opettajien kautta. Lähestymistapamme on kvalitatiivinen eli laadullinen, jota vahvistetaan kvantifioimalla laadullisen analyysin tuloksia. Käytämme tutkimuksessamme valmista TunTuVa-hankkeessa kerättyä kyselyaineistoa. Aineiston sisällönanalyysi on teoriasidonnainen — olemme rakentaneet analyysirungon aiemman teorian ja aineiston sisällön pohjalta. Analyysirungon avulla olemme koodanneet aineiston. Tulosten perusteella varhaiskasvatuksen opettajat korostavat aikuisen kanssasäätelyn tärkeyttä lapsen tunteiden säätelyn kehittymisessä eniten. Koulutus vaikuttaa vahvistavan tätä ajatusta. Tutkimustuloksemme tukevat ajatusta, että varhaiskasvatuksen opettajien koulutus on merkittävä tapa lisätä tietoa ja taitoja tukea lasten tunteiden säätelytaitojen oppimista.Early childhood education teachers’ perceptions of the development of children’s emotion regulation skills. Abstract. Emotion regulation skills are an important part of every person’s life, as they are needed in everyday life, for example to resolve various difficult situations. Emotion regulation skills are also regarded a part of learning skills. As a research area, emotion regulation is of increasing interest, especially in early childhood education and school environments, as these are the contexts where these skills are needed, in social interactions and in learning. In the co-regulation of emotions, the adult supports the child’s emotion regulation and the use of related strategies. The present research is a part of the TunTuVa project, where early childhood education personnel are trained to support children’s emotion regulation development. The research aims to explore the early childhood teacher’s views about the important factors related to children’s development of emotion regulation skills and how these views change along with TunTuVa-training. Our research is limited to early childhood education teachers and there are three research groups in total. Regarding the first question, teachers (n=128) answered the initial open-ended questionnaire. The answer to the second research question was sought through teachers who responded to two different research groups — the initial and final questionnaire (n=62) and the initial and delayed final questionnaire (n=35). Our approach is qualitative, which is strengthened by quantifying the results of the qualitative analysis. In our research, we use ready-made survey data collected in the TunTuVa project. The content analysis of the data is theory-related — we have used both previous theory and the content of the data to build the analysis frame, by which we coded the data. Based on the results, early childhood education teachers emphasize the importance of adult co-regulation in the development of a child’s emotion regulation the most. Training seemed to reinforce this idea. This study supports the notion that it is important to pay attention to teacher’s education and training to support their knowledge and skills to foster children’s emotion regulation development by co-regulation of emotions