Caracterización energética de la unión de 1,3,6- naftalén trisulfonato al factor de crecimiento para fibroblastos ácido humano: implicaciones para su uso como agente anti-angiogénico

The equilibrium interaction of anti-cancer agent 1,3,6-naphatalene trisulfonate with human acidic fi broblast growthfactor has been studied by calorimetry. The affi nity decreases with increasing ionic strength. At pH 7.0 and 0.15 MNaCl concentration, a binding constant of the protein with the ligand was estimated in the 102 – 103 M-1 range, anaffi nity two orders of magnitude lower than that of aFGF with heparin. The interaction is enthalpically driven, andthe entropy change is unfavorable. A small heat capacity change with an unusual positive value of 90 cal K-1mol-1 wasdetermined from the temperature dependence of the enthalpies. Changes in accessible apolar and polar surface areasin the interaction were calculated from the thermodynamic data obtained and parametric equations in the literature.The results were compared with those measured from NMR data. The study includes structural bioenergetic considerationsabout the possible use of 1,3,6-naphatalene trisulfonate as an anti-angiogenic agent itself, or as a lead for thedevelopment of anti-angiogenic drugs.Se ha estudiado, mediante calorimetría isotérmica de reacción, la interacción del agente anticancerígeno 1,3,6-naftaléntrisulfonato con el factor de crecimiento para fi broblastos ácido humano. La afi nidad decrece con el aumento de lafuerza iónica. A pH 7,0 y NaCl 0,15 M, la constante de unión de la proteína con el ligando se encuentra en el rango102 – 103 M-1, una afi nidad dos órdenes de magnitud menor que la del FGFa por heparina. El cambio de entalpíafavorece la interacción, siendo el cambio de entropía desfavorable. De la dependencia del cambio de entalpía con latemperatura se calculó un pequeño cambio en la capacidad calorífi ca del proceso, con un valor excepcionalmentepositivo de 90 cal K-1mol-1. A partir de los datos termodinámicos medidos y de ecuaciones paramétricas establecidasen la literatura, se calcularon cambios en la superfi cie accesible al disolvente, tanto polar como apolar, que acompañana la interacción. Los resultados se compararon con los medidos mediante resonancia magnética nuclear. Elestudio incluye consideraciones de bioenergética estructural sobre el posible uso de 1,3,6-naftalén trisulfonato comoagente antiangiogénico o como molécula líder para el desarrollo de fármacos anti-angiogénicos

FABIOLA: Defining the Components for Constraint Optimization Problems in Big Data Environment

The optimization problems can be found in several examples within companies, such as the minimization of the production costs, the faults produced, or the maximization of customer loyalty. The resolution of them is a challenge that entails an extra effort. In addition, many of today’s enterprises are encountering the Big Data problems added to these optimization problems. Unfortunately, to tackle this challenge by medium and small companies is extremely difficult or even impossible. In this paper, we propose a framework that isolates companies from how the optimization problems are solved. More specifically, we solve optimization problems where the data is heterogeneous, distributed and of a huge volume. FABIOLA (FAst BIg cOstraint LAb) framework enables to describe the distributed and structured data used in optimization problems that can be parallelized (the variables are not shared between the various optimization problems), and obtains a solution using Constraint Programming Techniques

No evidence for an association between <i>Clock</i> gene allelic variation and migration timing in a long-distance migratory shorebird (<i>Limosa lapponica baueri</i>)

The gene Clock is a key part of the Core Circadian Oscillator, and the length of the polyglutamine (poly-Q) repeat sequence in Clock (ClkpolyQcds) has been proposed to be associated with the timing of annual cycle events in birds. We tested whether variation in ClkpolyQcds corresponds to variation in migration timing in the bar-tailed godwit (Limosa lapponica baueri), a species in which individuals show strong annual consistency in their migration timing despite the New Zealand population migrating across a 5-week period. We describe allelic variation of the ClkpolyQcds in 135 godwits over-wintering in New Zealand (N.Z.) and investigate whether polymorphism in this region is associated with northward migration timing (chronophenotype) from N.Z. or (for 32 birds tracked by geolocator) after the primary stopover in Asia. Six Clock alleles were detected (Q(7)-Q(12)) and there was substantial variation between individuals (heterozygosity of 0.79). There was no association between ClkpolyQcds polymorphism and migration timing from N.Z. The length of the shorter Clock allele was related to migration timing from Asia, though this relationship arose largely from just a few northern-breeding birds with longer alleles. Other studies show no consistent associations between ClkpolyQcds and migration timing in birds, although Clock may be associated with breeding latitude in some species (as an adaptation to photoperiodic regime). Apparent relationships with migration timing could reflect latitude-related variation in migration timing, rather than Clock directly affecting migration timing. On current evidence, ClkpolyQcds is not a strong candidate for driving migration timing in migratory birds generally

An Architecture for Querying Business Process, Business Process Instances, and Business Data Models

Business data are usually managed by means of business processes during process instances. These viewpoints (business, instances and data) are strongly related because the life-cycle of business data objects need to be aligned with the business process and process instance models. However, current approaches do not provide a mechanism to integrate these three viewpoints nor to query them all together while maintaining the information in the distributed, heterogeneous systems where they have been created. In this paper, we propose the integration of the business process, business process instance, and business data models by using their metamodels and also an architecture to support this integration. The goal of this integration is to make the most of the three models and the technologies that support them in an isolated way. In our approach, it is not necessary to change the source data formats nor transforming them into a common one. Furthermore, the proposed architecture allows us to query the three models even though they come from three di�erent technologies

In-situ measurements of thermal-mechanical wear in blade-abradable liner contacts

The abradable coating on the casing of a jet engine minimises any air gaps by allowing blades to cut a path into the abradable, reducing efficiency losses. Unfortunately, abradable cutting performance varies significantly with rub conditions and abradable type, leading to poor cutting performance and potentially damaging the blades. This study further develops the abradable testing capabilities of a 200ms−1 spindle test rig by applying previously researched stroboscopic imagining techniques to record the front of the blade alongside thermal imaging of the blade and the abradable. The front camera makes it possible to see how adhesions are forming along the width of the blade, and how the adhesion growth differs between materials. The thermal camera can then be used to identify hot spots on both the blade and the abradable, providing an insight into how hot spots relate to adhesions both spatially and temporally. These tools have been proven with testing of Metco 601 at a range of incursion rates. At the incursion rate of 0.2μm/pass the tools were able to provide conclusive results, with video footage of the front, side, blade temperature and abradable temperatures being aligned temporally and spatially. Numerical data could then be extracted to produce rub maps of adhesion height, blade temperature, and abradable temperature on separate plots which is a powerful tool when looking for relationships between the data sets, and for identifying time-based patterns. Further benefits of this tool set were shown when focusing on individual adhesions events within a rub, allowing for the delays between abradable heating, adhesions forming, and blade heating to be observed and quantified. When applied to multiple materials and at different test conditions this tool will provide further insight into how adhesion formation differs, and potentially into why adhesions form

Linking data and BPMN processes to achieve executable models

We describe a formally well founded approach to link data and processes conceptually, based on adopting UML class diagrams to represent data, and BPMN to represent the process. The UML class diagram together with a set of additional process variables, called Artifact, form the information model of the process. All activities of the BPMN process refer to such an information model by means of OCL operation contracts. We show that the resulting semantics while abstract is fully executable. We also provide an implementation of the executor.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

GRM7 variants associated with age-related hearing loss based on auditory perception

Age-related hearing impairment (ARHI), or presbycusis, is a common condition of the elderly that results in significant communication difficulties in daily life. Clinically, it has been defined as a progressive loss of sensitivity to sound, starting at the high frequencies, inability to understand speech, lengthening of the minimum discernable temporal gap in sounds, and a decrease in the ability to filter out background noise. The causes of presbycusis are likely a combination of environmental and genetic factors. Previous research into the genetics of presbycusis has focused solely on hearing as measured by pure-tone thresholds. A few loci have been identified, based on a best ear pure-tone average phenotype, as having a likely role in susceptibility to this type of hearing loss; and GRM7 is the only gene that has achieved genome-wide significance. We examined the association of GRM7 variants identified from the previous study, which used an European cohort with Z-scores based on pure-tone thresholds, in a European–American population from Rochester, NY (N = 687), and used novel phenotypes of presbycusis. In the present study mixed modeling analyses were used to explore the relationship of GRM7 haplotype and SNP genotypes with various measures of auditory perception. Here we show that GRM7 alleles are associated primarily with peripheral measures of hearing loss, and particularly with speech detection in older adults

Data mining and neural networks to determine the financial market prediction

Predicting stock market movements has been a complex task for years by gaining the increasing interest of researchers and investors present all around the world. These have tried to get ahead of the way in order to know the levels of return and thus reduce the risk they face in investments [1]. Capital markets are areas of fundamental importance for the development of economies and their good management that favors the transition from savings to investment through the purchase and sale of shares [2]. These actions are so important that they are influenced by economic, social, political, and cultural variables. Therefore, it is reasonable to consider the value of an action in an instant not as a deterministic variable but as a random variable, considering its temporal trajectory as a stochastic process

Mobilization of Hematopoietic Stem Cells into Peripheral Blood for Autologous Transplantation Seems Less Efficacious in Poor Mobilizers with the Use of a Biosimilar of Filgrastim and Plerixafor: A Retrospective Comparative Analysis

Introduction: Biosimilars of granulocyte colony-stimulating factors (G-CSF) have shown similar efficacy to originator filgrastim (Neupogen® [NEU]; Amgen Inc.) as prophylaxis in neutropenia and in the mobilization of stem cells in patients receiving combination chemotherapy with G-CSF. Methods: This was a retrospective study in which the characteristics of stem cell mobilization treated with a G-CSF alone were compared in 216 patients and 56 donors. The two G-CSF compared were NEU and the biosimilar filgrastim Zarzio® (Sandoz GmbH) (referred to hereafter as BIO). Primary objectives were mobilization rate (minimum of 10 × 103/ml CD34+ on day 4 of treatment [day +4]) and use of the immunostimulant plerixafor (PLEX) in each group. Results: The general characteristics of the patients receiving NEU (n = 138) and those receiving BIO (n = 78) did not differ significantly. PLEX was used in 24% of BIO patients and in 25.7% of NEU patients. The median CD34+ cell count on day +4 was significantly lower in BIO patients who needed PLEX than in those who did not (2.4 vs. 4.8 × 103/ml; p = 0.002), as was the final CD34+ cell count (2.5 vs. 3.3 × 106/kg; p 0.03). Mobilization failure rate was higher in the BIO group than in the NEU group (20 vs. 0%; p = 0.01). With respect to donors, more than one apheresis was needed in three BIO donors, one of them with PLEX. The use of BIO was the only risk factor for mobilization failure in patients who needed PLEX (hazard ratio 10.3; 95% confidence interval 1.3-77.8). Conclusion: The study revealed that BIO had a lower efficacy for stem cell mobilization when the only treatment was G-CSF, especially in poor mobilizers needing PLEX

Generación de energía solar fotovoltaica en grandes superficies cubiertas de la ciudad de Paraná, Entre Ríos

El objetivo de este trabajo fue determinar la generación de energía eléctrica a través de plantas solares fotovoltaicas diseñadas sobre superficies cubiertas del parque industrial de la ciudad de Paraná. A partir de un relevamiento y selección de industrias con superficie cubierta mayor a 500 m² se identifican diferentes escenarios según la forma, inclinación y orientación de las cubiertas. A través del modelado de los escenarios con el software PVSyst se obtuvieron resultados de la productividad final (YF) e influencia de la radiación sobre cada situación. Sobre un total de 113.142 m² se obtiene una generación de 22.014 MWh al año, con pérdidas del 10,7% en comparación con un diseño óptimo. Se concluye que en el área de estudio se debe comenzar a diseñar edificios con orientación y geometría óptima para incorporar sistemas fotovoltaicos y maximizar la producción de energía limpia y reducir el impacto ambiental.The objective of this work was focused to determine the generation of electric energy through photovoltaic solar plants, which were assumed to be installed on covered surfaces of the industrial park of Paraná city. From a survey and selection of industries with a surface area of more than 500 m², different scenarios were identified according to the shape, inclination and orientation of the decks. Through modeling of these scenarios with the PVSyst software the results of the final yield (YF) and the influence of the radiation on each situation were obtained. Of a total of 113,142 m², a generation of 22,014 MWh per year was obtained, with losses of 10.7% compared to an optimum design. It is concluded that in the study area, the design of buildings with optimum orientation and geometry to incorporate photovoltaic systems should be started in order to maximize the production of clean energy and reduce the environmental impact.Asociación Argentina de Energías Renovables y Medio Ambiente (ASADES