Para-Grassmann Variables and Coherent States

The definitions of para-Grassmann variables and q-oscillator algebras are recalled. Some new properties are given. We then introduce appropriate coherent states as well as their dual states. This allows us to obtain a formula for the trace of a operator expressed as a function of the creation and annihilation operators.Comment: This is a contribution to the Proc. of the O'Raifeartaigh Symposium on Non-Perturbative and Symmetry Methods in Field Theory (June 2006, Budapest, Hungary), published in SIGMA (Symmetry, Integrability and Geometry: Methods and Applications) at http://www.emis.de/journals/SIGMA

Function of the Myc-binding protein Miz1 in the mouse mammary gland

The study of the expression and function of proteins important for human health in normal development provides valuable information for the design of therapeutical opportunities in the context of disease. Myc is one of the current most promising targets for a number of cancer types including triple-negative breast cancer and Miz1 has been shown to play an important role in Myc-mediated tumorigenesis. In the present work, the function of the Myc-binding protein Miz1 in the mammary gland is investigated for the first time using two different lines of transgenic mice expressing Cre-recombinase to conditionally knockout the POZ domain of Miz1 in the murine mammary gland. Deletion of this evolutionary-conserved region impedes multimerization and stable association of Miz1 with chromatin. MMTV-Cre mediated deletion was used to investigate Miz1 function in the virgin gland, considering branching morphogenesis and mammary stem/progenitor biology. Ablation under the Wap-Cre promoter provided information about alveologenesis and mammary differentiation. The mammary gland is a very suitable organ for stem cell and developmental studies as rounds of proliferation, differentiation and apoptosis occur after each pregnancy. POZ domain deletion using MMTV-Cre (Line A), already active in the embryo, led to a delayed ductal tree formation, less cellularity in knockout ducts and a Myc-independent accumulation of stem/progenitor cells in virgin mammary glands of Miz1DPOZ animals. No differences in the expression of luminal and myoepithelial markers were observed between control and Miz1DPOZ virgin mice. In addition, the delay in the development of the mammary ductal tree in knockout mice is rescued at around two months of age. Endogenous Miz1 expression in the mammary gland of control animals was found to be highly boosted during lactation by immunohistochemistry and Western blotting. Very low Miz1 levels were detected at the end of pregnancy, which increased after parturition and diminished upon cessation of pup suckling at around 48 hours of forced involution. Miz1 POZ domain ablation in luminal alveolar mammary cells during pregnancy using the WAP-Cre transgenic line resulted in a lactation defect in mutant dams during the first two pregnancies analysed. Mutant lactating glands display a reduced alveologenesis as a result of a diminished mammary cell proliferation and differentiation. These data were also confirmed in vitro using the HC11 murine mammary cell line after retroviral infection for stable knockdown of Miz1. HC11 cells with low levels of Miz1 show a reduced proliferation and a decreased expression of ß-casein after inducing differentiation by addition of a lactogenic hormone cocktail containing prolactin. Apoptosis is unaffected after either Miz1 POZ domain ablation in vivo or stable knockdown of Miz1 in vitro. Mutant glands display lower levels of activated Stat5 which lead to a reduced expression of its transcriptional targets, mainly genes which code for milk proteins like a-casein, b-casein or whey acidic protein (WAP). Gene expression of negative regulators of the Jak2/Stat5 pathway like Socs (Socs1, Socs2 and Socs3) or Caveolin-1 (Cav1) is not upregulated in Miz1DPOZ lactating glands. In contrast, the expression of receptors important for a proper phosphorylation of Stat5, like the prolactin receptor or ErbB4, is decreased in lactating mutant glands. ChIP-Seq experiments revealed that genes encoding the prolactin receptor and ErbB4 are not direct targets of Miz1. Rather, Miz1 binds to genes which regulate vesicular transport and thus alters processes like endocytosis and autophagy in mammary gland cells. A model in which the vesicular transport of these receptors in mutant glands could be disrupted is proposed. In conclusion, this work shows for the first time that Miz1 is important for mammary stem/progenitor cell regulation in the virgin gland and for a proper proliferation and differentiation in the lactating mammary gland

The physiological role of the unfolded protein response in plants

http://www.scielo.cl/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0716-97602011000100010&lng=es&nrm=isoUnfolded protein response (UPR) is a signaling mechanism activated by misfolded protein accumulation in the endoplasmic reticulum. It is a widespread process that has been described in organisms ranging from yeasts to mammals. In recent years, our understanding of UPR signaling pathway in plants has advanced. Two transcription factors from Arabidopsis thaliana have been reported to function as the sensor/ transducer of this response (AtbZIP60 and AtbZIP28). They seem to be involved in both heat and biotic stress. Furthermore, overexpression of one of them (AtbZIP60) produces plants with a higher tolerance for salt stress, suggesting that this transcription factor may play a role in abiotic stress. Furthermore, some data suggest that crosstalk between genes involved in abiotic stress and UPR may also exist in plants. On the other hand, UPR is related to programmed cell death (PCD) in plants given that that triggering UPR results in induction of PCD-related genes. This article reviews the latest progress in understanding UPR signaling in plants and analyzes its relationship to key processes in plant physiology

Computational Methods and Software Tools for Functional Analysis of miRNA Data

miRNAs are important regulators of gene expression that play a key role in many biological processes. High-throughput techniques allow researchers to discover and characterize large sets of miRNAs, and enrichment analysis tools are becoming increasingly important in decoding which miRNAs are implicated in biological processes. Enrichment analysis of miRNA targets is the standard technique for functional analysis, but this approach carries limitations and bias; alternatives are currently being proposed, based on direct and curated annotations. In this review, we describe the two workflows of miRNAs enrichment analysis, based on target gene or miRNA annotations, highlighting statistical tests, software tools, up-to-date databases, and functional annotations resources in the study of metazoan miRNAs.Junta de Andalucia PI-0173-2017 CV20.3672

Para-Grassmann variables and coherent states

The definitions of para-Grassmann variables and q-oscillator algebras are recalled. Some new properties are given. We then introduce appropriate coherent states as well as their dual states. This allows us to obtain a formula for the trace of a operator expressed as a function of the creation and annihilation operators.Facultad de Ciencias Exacta

Analysis of various polymer parts in contact with biodiesel

[EN] In this paper, several parts consisting of polymeric materials are studied, in order to determine if they are affected when they are kept in contact with biodiesel at constant temperature and pressure. The samples used are constituted by polymers of silicone (S), acrylonitrile (AN) and propylene hexafluor (Viton-V7). These materials have been selected for investigation because they form part of an industrial process in which they are used, and have been observed early wear characteristics thereof. They consist of seals and cords which are in contact with biodiesel. These materials were kept immersed in biodiesel at atmospheric pressure at a temperature of 40°C for time periods up to 120 days. Virgins tested ones are characterized by various techniques: OM, SEM, XRD, DTA-TGA, among others. Viton sample was the least affected by treatment, while the acrylonitrile sample is the one that has shown the greatest variations.The authors thank Testing Laboratory belonging to the Mechanical Department of the FRSN for roughness measurements, the company AES for materials provided, and the UTN for financial support.Moreno, M.; Calio, A.; Quaranta, N.; Cristobal, A. (2021). Analysis of various polymer parts in contact with biodiesel. Journal of Applied Research in Technology & Engineering. 2(2):83-87. https://doi.org/10.4995/jarte.2021.14771OJS838722Rudbahs, R., & Smigins, R. (2014). Experimental research on biodiesel compatibility with fuel system elastomers. In 13th International Scientific Conference Engineering for Rural Development, Jelgava, Latvia, Vol. 13, pp. 278-282. Latvia University of Agriculture.Kass, M., Janke, C., Connatser, R., West, B., Szybist, J., Sluder, S. (2018). Influence of biodiesel decomposition chemistry on elastomer compatibility. Fuel, 233(18), 714-723. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2018.06.107Haseeb, A., Masjuki, H., Siang, C., & Fazal, M. (2010). Compatibility of elastomers in palm biodiesel. Renewable Energy, 35(10), 2356-2361. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.renene.2010.03.011Haseeb, A., Jun, T., Fazal, M., & Masjuki, H. (2011). Degradation of physical properties of different elastomers upon exposure to palm biodiesel. Energy, 36, 1814-1819. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.energy.2010.12.023Alves, S., Mello, V., & Medeiros, J. (2013). Palm and soybean biodiesel compatibility with fuel system elastomers. Tribology International, 65, 74-80. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.triboint.2013.03.026Bhardwaj, M., Gupta, P., & Kumar, N. (2014). Compatibility of metals and elastomers in biodiesel: A review. International Journal of Research, 1(7), 376-391

On-board real-time pose estimation for UAVs using deformable visual contour registration

Presentado al ICRA 2014 celebrado en Hong Kong del 31 de mayo al 7 de junio.We present a real time algorithm for estimating the pose of non-planar objects on which we have placed a visual marker. It is designed to overcome the limitations of small aerial robots, such as slow CPUs, low image resolution and geometric distortions produced by wide angle lenses or viewpoint changes. The method initially registers the shape of a known marker to the contours extracted in an image. For this purpose, and in contrast to state-of-the art, we do not seek to match textured patches or points of interest. Instead, we optimize a geometric alignment cost computed directly from raw polygonal representations of the observed regions using very simple and efficient clipping algorithms. Further speed is achieved by performing the optimization in the polygon representation space, avoiding the need of 2D image processing operations. Deformation modes are easily included in the optimization scheme, allowing an accurate registration of different markers attached to curved surfaces using a single deformable prototype. Once this initial registration is solved, the object pose is retrieved using a standard PnP approach. As a result, the method achieves accurate object pose estimation in real-time, which is very important for interactive UAV tasks, for example for short distance surveillance or bar assembly. We present experiments where our method yields, at about 30Hz, an average error of less than 5mm in estimating the position of a 19×19mm marker placed at 0.7m of the camera.This work has been partially funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness under project TaskCoop DPI2010-17112, by the ERANet Chistera project ViSen PCIN-2013-047 and by the EU project ARCAS FP7-ICT-2011-28761. A. Ruiz is supported by FEDER funds under grant TIN2012-38341-C04-03.Peer Reviewe