Charming penguin contributions to charmless B decays into two pseudoscalar mesons

We present estimates of the charming penguin contribution to B => K pi, pi pi,K eta, K eta' decays due to intermediate charmed meson states. We find that this contribution is indeed significant for B => K pi decays, and its inclusion, together with the tree and penguin terms, produces large branching ratios in agreement with data, though the analysis is affected by large theoretical uncertainties. On the other hand, for B => pi pi, K eta, K eta' decays, the effect of the charming penguin contribution is more modest. We also compute CP asymmetries for B => K pi, pi pi decays and we obtain rather large results.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figures, LaTeX2e with epsfig. Minor changes in the text, this version will appear in Phys. Rev.

Medial or Lateral, That Is the Question: A Retrospective Study to Compare Two Injection Techniques in the Treatment of Knee Osteoarthritis Pain with Hyaluronic Acid

Background: Mild-to-moderate knee osteoarthritis (KOA) can be successfully treated using intra-articular hyaluronic acid (IA-HA). The medial infrapatellar (MIP) approach and lateral infrapatellar (LIP) approach are two of the most used techniques for performing IA-HA, but it is still not clear which one is preferable. Objectives: The study aims to find the best knee injection technique between MIP and LIP approaches. Methods: In total, 161 patients were enrolled, divided into two groups (MIP or LIP). Each technique was performed once a week for three weeks. Patients were evaluated using the Numeric Rating Scale (NRS), Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) and Roles and Maudsley Score (RMS) at T0 (before the first injection), T1 (one week after the third injection) and T2 (six months after). Results: NRS, KOOS and RMS showed a statistically significant improvement in both groups at all the detection times, without significant differences. No differences were detected between the groups in terms of systemic effect effusions, while the MIP group presented a mildly higher number of bruises in comparison with the LIP group (p = 0.034). Conclusions: Both the IA-HA techniques are equally effective in measured outcomes. The MIP approach seems to produce some local and transient side effects. So, the choice of the LIP or MIP approach depends on the operator’s skill and experience

Risk of Severe Non AIDS Events Is Increased among Patients Unable to Increase their CD4+ T-Cell Counts >200+/μl Despite Effective HAART

Immunological non-response (INR) despite virological suppression is associated with AIDS-defining events/death (ADE). Little is known about its association with serious non-AIDS-defining events (nADE)

On the role of the final state interactions in rare B-decays

The effects of final state interactions (FSI) in hadronic B-decays are investigated. The model for FSI, based on Regge phenomenology of high-energy hadronic interactions is proposed. It is shown that this model explains the pattern of phases in matrix elements of $B\to\pi\pi$ and $B\to\rho\rho$ decays. These phases play an important role for CP-violation in B-decays. The most precise determination of the unitarity triangle angle $\alpha$ from $B_d\to \rho\pi$ decays is performed. The relation between CP-asymmetries in $B\to K\pi$ decays is discussed. It is emphasized that the large distance FSI can explain the structure of polarizations of the vector mesons in B-decays and other puzzles like a very large branching ratio of the B-decay to $\bar\Xi_c\Lambda_c$.Comment: 19 page

Factors influencing the normalization of CD4+ T-cell count, percentage and CD4+/CD8+ T-cell ratio in HIV-infected patients on long-term suppressive antiretroviral therapy

AbstractWe evaluated factors associated with normalization of the absolute CD4+ T-cell counts, per cent CD4+ T cells and CD4+/CD8+ T-cell ratio. A multicentre observational study was carried out in patients with sustained HIV-RNA <50 copies/mL. Outcomes were: CD4-count >500/mm3 and multiple T-cell marker recovery (MTMR), defined as CD4+ T cells >500/mm3 plus %CD4 T cells >29% plus CD4+/CD8+ T-cell ratio >1. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and Cox regression analyses to predict odds for achieving outcomes were performed. Three hundred and fifty-two patients were included and followed-up for a median of 4.1 (IQR 2.1–5.9) years, 270 (76.7%) achieving a CD4+ T-cell count >500 cells/mm3 and 197 (56%) achieving MTMR. Using three separate Cox models for both outcomes we demonstrated that independent predictors were: both absolute CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell counts, %CD4+ T cells, a higher CD4+/CD8+ T-cell ratio, and age. A likelihood-ratio test showed significant improvements in fitness for the prediction of either CD4+ >500/mm3 or MTMR by multivariable analysis when the other immune markers at baseline, besides the absolute CD4+ count alone, were considered. In addition to baseline absolute CD4+ T-cell counts, pretreatment %CD4+ T cells and the CD4+/CD8+ T-cell ratio influence recovery of T-cell markers, and their consideration should influence the decision to start antiretroviral therapy. However, owing to the small sample size, further studies are needed to confirm these results in relation to clinical endpoints

Sequential Structural and Fluid Dynamics Analysis of Balloon-Expandable Coronary Stents: A Multivariable Statistical Analysis

Several clinical studies have identified a strong correlation between neointimal hyperplasia following coronary stent deployment and both stent-induced arterial injury and altered vessel hemodynamics. As such, the sequential structural and fluid dynamics analysis of balloon-expandable stent deployment should provide a comprehensive indication of stent performance. Despite this observation, very few numerical studies of balloon-expandable coronary stents have considered both the mechanical and hemodynamic impact of stent deployment. Furthermore, in the few studies that have considered both phenomena, only a small number of stents have been considered. In this study, a sequential structural and fluid dynamics analysis methodology was employed to compare both the mechanical and hemodynamic impact of six balloon-expandable coronary stents. To investigate the relationship between stent design and performance, several common stent design properties were then identified and the dependence between these properties and both the mechanical and hemodynamic variables of interest was evaluated using statistical measures of correlation. Following the completion of the numerical analyses, stent strut thickness was identified as the only common design property that demonstrated a strong dependence with either the mean equivalent stress predicted in the artery wall or the mean relative residence time predicted on the luminal surface of the artery. These results corroborate the findings of the large-scale ISAR-STEREO clinical studies and highlight the crucial role of strut thickness in coronary stent design. The sequential structural and fluid dynamics analysis methodology and the multivariable statistical treatment of the results described in this study should prove useful in the design of future balloon-expandable coronary stents

Increasing Clinical Virulence in Two Decades of the Italian HIV Epidemic

The recent origin and great evolutionary potential of HIV imply that the virulence of the virus might still be changing, which could greatly affect the future of the pandemic. However, previous studies of time trends of HIV virulence have yielded conflicting results. Here we used an established methodology to assess time trends in the severity (virulence) of untreated HIV infections in a large Italian cohort. We characterized clinical virulence by the decline slope of the CD4 count (n = 1423 patients) and the viral setpoint (n = 785 patients) in untreated patients with sufficient data points. We used linear regression models to detect correlations between the date of diagnosis (ranging 1984–2006) and the virulence markers, controlling for gender, exposure category, age, and CD4 count at entry. The decline slope of the CD4 count and the viral setpoint displayed highly significant correlation with the date of diagnosis pointing in the direction of increasing virulence. A detailed analysis of riskgroups revealed that the epidemics of intravenous drug users started with an apparently less virulent virus, but experienced the strongest trend towards steeper CD4 decline among the major exposure categories. While our study did not allow us to exclude the effect of potential time trends in host factors, our findings are consistent with the hypothesis of increasing HIV virulence. Importantly, the use of an established methodology allowed for a comparison with earlier results, which confirmed that genuine differences exist in the time trends of HIV virulence between different epidemics. We thus conclude that there is not a single global trend of HIV virulence, and results obtained in one epidemic cannot be extrapolated to others. Comparison of discordant patterns between riskgroups and epidemics hints at a converging trend, which might indicate that an optimal level of virulence might exist for the virus

Irrigation system performance in relation with groundwater assessment from collective to catchment scale

The performance of on demand irrigation system located in Merguellil Valley (Tunisia) have been analysed from both agronomic and engineering point of view. A full set of mitigation options, including technical alternatives and management strategies have been formulated examined and evaluated through a stockholder driven participatory approach that embraces both water managers, farmers and researchers

Age of Onset of Mood Disorders and Complexity of Personality Traits

The aim of the present study is to evaluate the link between the age of onset of mood disorders and the complexity of the personality traits. Methods. 209 patients with major depressive or manic/hypomanic episodes were assessed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM Axis I diagnoses and the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory-III (MCMI-III). Results. 17.2% of the patients had no elevated MCMI-III scores, 45.9% had one peak, and 36.9% had a complex personality disorder with two or more elevated scores. Mood disorders onset of 29 years or less was the variable most related to the complexity of personality disorders as indicated from a recursive partitioning analysis. Conclusions. The relationship between mood disorders and personality traits differ in reference to age of onset of the mood disorder. In younger patients, maladaptive personality traits can evolve both in a mood disorder onset and in a complex personality disorder, while the later development of a severe mood disorder can increase the personality symptomatology. Our results suggest a threshold of mood disorder onset higher compared to previous studies. Maladaptive personality traits should be assessed not only during adolescence but also in young adults to identify and treat potential severe mood disorders