1,649 research outputs found

    Extremal structure and Samuel compactification

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    AbstractLet M be a uniform space and X the Banach space of bounded and uniformly continuous functions from M into R, provided with its supremum norm.The aim of this paper is to discuss the connection between the geometry of X and the nature of M. In particular, we will prove that certain reconstructions of the unit ball of X by means of its extreme points admit a translation in terms of extension of uniformly continuous functions. We also analyze the impact of these properties on the Samuel compactification of M

    Substance P regulates puberty onset and fertility in the female mouse

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    Puberty is a tightly regulated process that leads to reproductive capacity. Kiss1 neurons are crucial in this process by stimulating GnRH, yet how Kiss1 neurons are regulated remains unknown. Substance P (SP), an important neuropeptide in pain perception, induces gonadotropin release in adult mice in a kisspeptin-dependent manner. Here, we assessed whether SP, through binding to its receptor NK1R (neurokinin 1 receptor), participates in the timing of puberty onset and fertility in the mouse. We observed that 1) selective NK1R agonists induce gonadotropin release in prepubertal females; 2) the expression of Tac1 (encoding SP) and Tacr1 (NK1R) in the arcuate nucleus is maximal before puberty, suggesting increased SP tone; 3) repeated exposure to NK1R agonists prepubertally advances puberty onset; and 4) female Tac1-/- mice display delayed puberty; moreover, 5) SP deficiency leads to subfertility in females, showing fewer corpora lutea and antral follicles and leading to decreased litter size. Thus, our findings support a role for SP in the stimulation of gonadotropins before puberty, acting via Kiss1 neurons to stimulate GnRH release, and its involvement in the attainment of full reproductive capabilities in female mice. Copyright © 2015 by the Endocrine Society

    Affine convex body semigroups

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    In this paper we present a new kind of semigroups called convex body semigroups which are generated by convex bodies of R^k. They generalize to arbitrary dimension the concept of proportionally modular numerical semigroup of [7]. Several properties of these semigroups are proven. Affine convex body semigroups obtained from circles and polygons of R^2 are characterized. The algorithms for computing minimal system of generators of these semigroups are given. We provide the implementation of some of them

    Dictionary Matching with One Gap

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    The dictionary matching with gaps problem is to preprocess a dictionary DD of dd gapped patterns P1,,PdP_1,\ldots,P_d over alphabet Σ\Sigma, where each gapped pattern PiP_i is a sequence of subpatterns separated by bounded sequences of don't cares. Then, given a query text TT of length nn over alphabet Σ\Sigma, the goal is to output all locations in TT in which a pattern PiDP_i\in D, 1id1\leq i\leq d, ends. There is a renewed current interest in the gapped matching problem stemming from cyber security. In this paper we solve the problem where all patterns in the dictionary have one gap with at least α\alpha and at most β\beta don't cares, where α\alpha and β\beta are given parameters. Specifically, we show that the dictionary matching with a single gap problem can be solved in either O(dlogd+D)O(d\log d + |D|) time and O(dlogεd+D)O(d\log^{\varepsilon} d + |D|) space, and query time O(n(βα)loglogdlog2min{d,logD}+occ)O(n(\beta -\alpha )\log\log d \log ^2 \min \{ d, \log |D| \} + occ), where occocc is the number of patterns found, or preprocessing time and space: O(d2+D)O(d^2 + |D|), and query time O(n(βα)+occ)O(n(\beta -\alpha ) + occ), where occocc is the number of patterns found. As far as we know, this is the best solution for this setting of the problem, where many overlaps may exist in the dictionary.Comment: A preliminary version was published at CPM 201

    Mouse Anesthesia: The Art and Science

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    There is an art and science to performing mouse anesthesia, which is a significant component to animal research. Frequently, anesthesia is one vital step of many over the course of a research project spanning weeks, months, or beyond. It is critical to perform anesthesia according to the approved research protocol using appropriately handled and administered pharmaceutical-grade compounds whenever possible. Sufficient documentation of the anesthetic event and procedure should also be performed to meet the legal, ethical, and research reproducibility obligations. However, this regulatory and documentation process may lead to the use of a few possibly oversimplified anesthetic protocols used for mouse procedures and anesthesia. Although a frequently used anesthetic protocol may work perfectly for each mouse anesthetized, sometimes unexpected complications will arise, and quick adjustments to the anesthetic depth and support provided will be required. As an old saying goes, anesthesia is 99% boredom and 1% sheer terror. The purpose of this review article is to discuss the science of mouse anesthesia together with the art of applying these anesthetic techniques to provide readers with the knowledge needed for successful anesthetic procedures. The authors include experiences in mouse inhalant and injectable anesthesia, peri-anesthetic monitoring, specific procedures, and treating common complications. This article utilizes key points for easy access of important messages and authors’ recommendation based on the authors’ clinical experiences

    VFISV: Very Fast Inversion of the Stokes Vector for the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager

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    In this paper we describe in detail the implementation and main properties of a new inversion code for the polarized radiative transfer equation (VFISV: Very Fast inversion of the Stokes vector). VFISV will routinely analyze pipeline data from the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) on-board of the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). It will provide full-disk maps (4096×\times4096 pixels) of the magnetic field vector on the Solar Photosphere every 10 minutes. For this reason VFISV is optimized to achieve an inversion speed that will allow it to invert 16 million pixels every 10 minutes with a modest number (approx. 50) of CPUs. Here we focus on describing a number of important details, simplifications and tweaks that have allowed us to significantly speed up the inversion process. We also give details on tests performed with data from the spectropolarimeter on-board of the Hinode spacecraft.Comment: 23 pages, 9 figures (2 color). Submitted for publication to Solar Physic

    Dietary squalene increases high density lipoprotein-cholesterol and paraoxonase 1 and decreases oxidative stress in mice

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    Background and Purpose: Squalene, the main hydrocarbon in the unsaponifiable fraction of virgin olive oil, is involved in cholesterol synthesis and it has been reported to own antiatherosclerotic and antiesteatosic effects. However, the squalene’s role on lipid plasma parameters and the influence of genotype on this effect need to be addressed. Experimental Approaches: Three male mouse models (wild-type, Apoa1- and Apoe- deficient) were fed chow semisynthetic diets enriched in squalene to provide a dose of 1 g/kg during 11 weeks. After this period, their plasma parameters and lipoprotein profiles were analyzed. Key Results: Squalene administration at a dose of 1 g/kg showed decreased reactive oxygen species in lipoprotein fractions independently of the animal background and caused an specific increase in high density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol levels, accompanied by an increase in phosphatidylcholine and paraoxonase 1 and no changes in apolipoproteins A1 and A4 in wild-type mice. In these mice, the cholesterol increase was due to its esterified form and associated with an increased hepatic expression of Lcat. These effects were not observed in absence of apolipoprotein A1. The increases in HDL- paraoxonase 1 were translated into decreased plasma malondialdehyde levels depending on the presence of Apolipoprotein A1. Conclusions and Implications: Dietary squalene promotes changes in HDL- cholesterol and paraoxonase 1 and decreases reactive oxygen species in lipoproteins and plasma malondialdehyde levels, providing new benefits of its intake that might contribute to explain the properties of virgin olive oil, although the phenotype related to apolipoproteins A1 and E may be particularly relevant

    Resolving the Azimuthal Ambiguity in Vector Magnetogram Data with the Divergence-Free Condition: Application to Discrete Data

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    We investigate how the divergence-free property of magnetic fields can be exploited to resolve the azimuthal ambiguity present in solar vector magnetogram data, by using line-of-sight and horizontal heliographic derivative information as approximated from discrete measurements. Using synthetic data we test several methods that each make different assumptions about how the divergence-free property can be used to resolve the ambiguity. We find that the most robust algorithm involves the minimisation of the absolute value of the divergence summed over the entire field of view. Away from disk centre this method requires the sign and magnitude of the line-of-sight derivatives of all three components of the magnetic field vector.Comment: Solar Physics, in press, 20 pages, 11 figure

    Multivariate statistical analysis applied to water quality of a tropical Coastal Lagoon, Cartagena, Colombian Caribbean

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    Coastal lagoons are one of the most threatened ecosystems in the world, because of population growth, habitat destruction, pollution, wastewater, overexploitation and invasive species which are the main causes of their degradation. The objective of this paper was to evaluate the water quality behavior in a stressed coastal lagoon in Cartagena, Colombian Caribbean. Environmental data was analyzed using hypothesis testing, confidence intervals, and also Principal components analysis (PCA). The study was focused on water parameters such as dissolved oxygen (DO), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5), chemical oxygen demand (COD), salinity, pH, total dissolved solids, total coliforms (TC), Fecal coliforms (FC), ammonium (NH4+) and total phosphorus (TP). The analysis was conducted in line with the Colombian national water standard. Results showed that BOD5, COD, phosphorus, and coliforms are out of the limits permitted for these variables in Colombia and are reaching levels that may be a threat to human health. Principal components analysis detected five components that explained 79.4% of the variance of data and showed that anthropogenic and temporal factors might be affecting the variation of the parameters. © 2020, Gadjah Mada University. All rights reserved.Fundacion Universitaria Konrad LorenzThe authors would like to thank Fundacion Universitaria Tecnologico Comfenalco, University of Cartagena and SENA for financially supporting this research
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