A pulsational distance to Omega Centauri based on Near-Infrared Period-Luminosity relations of RR Lyrae stars

We present new Near-Infrared (J,K) magnitudes for 114 RR Lyrae stars in the globular cluster Omega Cen (NGC 5139) which we combine with data from the literature to construct a sample of 180 RR Lyrae stars with J and K mean magnitudes on a common photometric system. This is presently the largest such sample in any stellar system. We also present updated predictions for J,K-band Period-Luminosity relations for both fundamental and first-overtone RR Lyrae stars, based on synthetic horizontal branch models with metal abundance ranging from Z=0.0001 to Z=0.004. By adopting for the Omega Cen variables with measured metal abundances an alpha-element enhancement of a factor of 3 (about 0.5 dex) with respect to iron we find a true distance modulus of 13.70 (with a random error of 0.06 and a systematic error of 0.06), corresponding to a distance d=5.5 Kpc (with both random and systematic errors equal to 0.03 Kpc). Our estimate is in excellent agreement with the distance inferred for the eclipsing binary OGLEGC-17, but differ significantly from the recent distance estimates based on cluster dynamics and on high amplitude Delta Scuti stars.Comment: 24 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication on The Astrophysical Journa

Immunotherapy as a turning point in the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a malignant disease of hematopoietic precursors at the earliest stage of maturation, resulting in a clonalproliferation of myoblasts replacing normal hematopoiesis. AML represents one of the most common types of leukemia, mostly affecting elderly patients. To date, standard chemotherapy protocols are only effective in patients at low risk of relapse and therapy-related mortality. The average 5-year overall survival (OS) is approximately 28%. Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) improves prognosis but is limited by donor availability, a relatively young age of patients, and absence of significant comorbidities. Moreover, it is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. However, increasing understanding of AML immunobiology is leading to the development of innovative therapeutic strategies. Immunotherapy is considered an attractive strategy for controlling and eliminating the disease. It can be a real breakthrough in the treatment of leukemia, especially in patients who are not eligible forintensive chemotherapy. In this review, we focused on the progress of immunotherapy in the field of AML by discussing monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), immune checkpoint inhibitors, chimeric antigen receptor T cells (CAR-T cells), and vaccine therapeutic choices

When Viruses Meet Fungi: Tackling the Enemies in Hematology

The association of invasive fungal infections (IFI) and viral infections has been described in patients with hematologic malignancies (HM), in particular in hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients. Regrettably, the diagnosis is often challenging, making the treatment inappropriate in some circumstances. The present review takes into consideration the viral infections commonly associated with IFI. Clinical presentation of IFI and viral infections, risk factors, and impact on the outcome of HM patients are discussed throughout the paper

Hubble Space Telescope Observations of an Outer Field in Omega Centauri: A Definitive Helium Abundance

We revisit the problem of the split main sequence (MS) of the globular cluster omega Centauri, and report the results of two-epoch Hubble Space Telescope observations of an outer field, for which proper motions give us a pure sample of cluster members, and an improved separation of the two branches of the main sequence. Using a new set of stellar models covering a grid of values of helium and metallicity, we find that the best possible estimate of the helium abundance of the bluer branch of the MS is Y = 0.39 +/- 0.02. For the cluster center we apply new techniques to old observations: we use indices of photometric quality to select a high-quality sample of stars, which we also correct for differential reddening. We then superpose the color-magnitude diagram of the outer field on that of the cluster center, and suggest a connection of the bluer branch of the MS with one of the more prominent among the many sequences in the subgiant region. We also report a group of undoubted cluster members that are well to the red of the lower MS.Comment: 26 pages, 10 figures (4 in low resolution. AJ accepted on March 21, 201

Alterações no trato urinário inferior na polineuropatia amiloidótica familiar: abordagem urodinâmica

A polineuropatia amiloidótica familiar (PAF) é uma polineuropatia de pequenas fibras com afetação do sistema nervoso autónomo. Como tal, pode manifestar-se por disfunção na fisiologia da micção e condicionar o aparecimento de sintomatologia vesico-esfincteriana, muitas vezes de início precoce. A abordagem urodinâmica revela ser um útil método de diagnóstico capaz de demonstrar alterações no trato urinário inferior e contribuir para a terapêutica urológica atempada, podendo evitar consequências graves no trato urinário superior e proporcionar a estes doentes uma vida com qualidade, adiando a sua incapacidade.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

On the distance and reddening of the starburst galaxy IC10

We present deep and accurate optical photometry of the Local Group starburst galaxy IC10. The photometry is based on two sets of images collected with the Advanced Camera for Surveys and with the Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 on board the Hubble Space Telescope. We provide new estimates of the Red Giant Branch tip (TRGB) magnitude, m_{F814W}^{TRGB}=21.90+-0.03, and of the reddening, E(B-V)=0.78+-0.06, using field stars in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) as a reference. Adopting the SMC and two globulars, Omega Centauri and 47 Tucanae, as references we estimate the distance modulus to IC10: independent calibrations give weighted average distances of mu=24.51+-0.08 (TRGB) and mu=24.56+-0.08 (RR Lyrae). We also provide a new theoretical calibration for the TRGB luminosity, and using these predictions we find a very similar distance to IC10 (mu~24.60+-0.15). These results suggest that IC10 is a likely member of the M31 subgroup.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, ApJ Letters accepte

Bayesian detection of unmodeled bursts of gravitational waves

The data analysis problem of coherently searching for unmodeled gravitational-wave bursts in the data generated by a global network of gravitational-wave observatories has been at the center of research for almost two decades. As data from these detectors is starting to be analyzed, a renewed interest in this problem has been sparked. A Bayesian approach to the problem of coherently searching for gravitational wave bursts with a network of ground-based interferometers is here presented. We demonstrate how to systematically incorporate prior information on the burst signal and its source into the analysis. This information may range from the very minimal, such as best-guess durations, bandwidths, or polarization content, to complete prior knowledge of the signal waveforms and the distribution of sources through spacetime. We show that this comprehensive Bayesian formulation contains several previously proposed detection statistics as special limiting cases, and demonstrate that it outperforms them.Comment: 18 pages, 3 figures, revisions based on referee comment

Richness of Deep Echo State Network Dynamics

Reservoir Computing (RC) is a popular methodology for the efficient design of Recurrent Neural Networks (RNNs). Recently, the advantages of the RC approach have been extended to the context of multi-layered RNNs, with the introduction of the Deep Echo State Network (DeepESN) model. In this paper, we study the quality of state dynamics in progressively higher layers of DeepESNs, using tools from the areas of information theory and numerical analysis. Our experimental results on RC benchmark datasets reveal the fundamental role played by the strength of inter-reservoir connections to increasingly enrich the representations developed in higher layers. Our analysis also gives interesting insights into the possibility of effective exploitation of training algorithms based on stochastic gradient descent in the RC field.Comment: Preprint of the paper accepted at IWANN 201