Solving the Sports League Scheduling Problem with Tabu Search

In this paper we present a tabu approach for a version of the Sports League Scheduling Problem. The approach adopted is based on a formulation of the problem as a Constraint Satisfaction Problem (CSP). Tests were carried out on problem instances of up to 40 teams representing 780 integer variables with 780 values per variable. Experimental results show that this approach outperforms some existing methods and is one of the most promising methods for solving problems of this type

C17 Prevents Inflammatory Arthritis and Associated Joint Destruction in Mice

C17 was first described about ten years ago as a gene expressed in CD34+ cells. A more recent study has suggested a role for C17 in chondrogenesis and development of cartilage. However, based on sequence analysis, we believe that C17 has homology to IL-2 and hence we present the hypothesis that C17 is a cytokine possessing immune-regulatory properties. We provide evidence that C17 is a secreted protein preferentially expressed in chondrocytes, hence in cartilage-rich tissues. Systemic expression of C17 in vivo reduces disease in a collagen antibody-induced arthritis model in mice (CAIA). Joint protection is evident by delayed disease onset, minimal edema, bone protection and absence of diverse histological features of disease. Expression of genes typically associated with acute joint inflammation and erosion of cartilage or bone is blunted in the presence of C17. Consistent with the observed reduction in bone erosion, we demonstrate reduced levels of RANKL in the paws and sera of mice over-expressing C17. Administration of C17 at the peak of disease, however, had no effect on disease progression, indicating that C17's immune-regulatory activity must be most prominent prior to or at the onset of severe joint inflammation. Based on this data we propose C17 as a cytokine that s contributes to immune homeostasis systemically or in a tissue-specific manner in the joint

Optimal tissue types in the thoracic electrical impedance model for thoracic electrical bioimpedance (TEB) studies

In this study we have identified the tissues required to be included in the thoracic electrical impedance model for studies relating to impedance cardiography. This is a useful finding, as it expedites and simplifies the segmentation process when employed to construct digital human models from a set of magnetic resonance or computed tomography images. Laplace equations with inhomogeneous boundary conditions were solved within an anatomically accurate thorax model. When the number of tissue types in the model was reduced to only 7 (i.e. blood, fat, liver, lung, muscle, skin and bone) the calculations indicated a 3.6% error in the result. Addition of internal air reduced the error to as small as 1.3%. Further reductions in the number of tissue types introduced larger errors in the measurement. It was therefore concluded that 8 tissue types are essential to acceptably preserve the computational accuracy while facilitating a simplification of the segmentation proces