Bio-Inspired Group Behaviors for the Deployment of a Swarm of Robots to Multiple Destinations

We present a methodology for characterizing and synthesizing swarm behaviors using both a macroscopic model that represents a swarm as a continuum and a microscopic model that represents individual robots. We develop a systematic approach for synthesizing behaviors at the macroscopic level that can be realized on individual robots at the microscopic level. Our methodology is inspired by a dynamical model of ant house hunting [1], a decentralized process in which a colony attempts to emigrate to the best site among several alternatives. The model is hybrid because the colony switches between different sets of behaviors, or modes, during this process. At the macroscopic level, we are able to synthesize controllers that result in the deployment of a robotic swarm in a predefined ratio between distinct sites. We then derive hybrid controllers for individual robots using only local interactions and no communication that respect the specifications of the global continuous behavior. Our simulations demonstrate that our synthesis procedure yields a correct microscopic model from the macroscopic description with guarantees on performance at both levels

Finite state abstraction of a stochastic model of the lactose regulation system of \u3cem\u3eEscherichia coli\u3c/em\u3e

This paper focuses on the lactose regulation system in Escherichia coli bacteria, one of the most extensively studied examples of positive feedback in a naturally occurring gene network. State-of-the-art nonlinear dynamical system models predict a bi-stability phenomenon that is confirmed in experiments. However, such deterministic models fail to explain experimental observations of spontaneous transition between the two stable states in the system and the simultaneous occurrence of both steady states in a population of cells. In this paper, we propose a stochastic model that explains this phenomenon. Furthermore, we also extract a coarser two-state continuous-time Markov chain as a higher level abstraction of this model, and show that macroscopic properties are retained in the abstraction

The fractalkine/Cx3CR1 system is implicated in the development of metabolic visceral adipose tissue inflammation in obesity.

Diet-induced obesity and related peripheral and central inflammation are major risk factors for metabolic, neurological and psychiatric diseases. The chemokine fractalkine (Cx3CL1) and its receptor Cx3CR1 play a pivotal role in recruitment, infiltration and proinflammatory polarization of leukocytes and micoglial cells, however, the role of fractalkine signaling in the development of metabolic inflammation is not fully resolved. To address this issue, fractalkine receptor deficient (Cx3CR1 gfp/gfp) mice were exposed to normal or fat-enriched diet (FatED) for 10weeks and physiological-, metabolic- and immune parameters were compared to those animals in which the fractalkine signaling is maintained by the presence of one functioning allele (Cx3CR1 +/gfp). Mice with intact fractalkine signaling develop obesity characterized by increased epididymal white fat depots and mild glucose intolerance, recruit leukocytes into the visceral adipose tissue and display increased expression of subset of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines when exposed to fat-enriched diet. By contrast, Cx3CR1-deficient (gfp/gfp) mice gain significantly less weight on fat-enriched diet and have smaller amount of white adipose tissue (WAT) in the visceral compartment than heterozygote controls. Furthermore, Cx3CR1 gfp/gfp mice fed a fat-enriched diet do not develop glucose intolerance, recruit proportionally less number of gfp-positive cells and express significantly less MCP-1, IL-1alpha and TNFalpha in the WAT than control animals with fat-enriched diet induced obesity. Furthermore, heterozygote obese, but not fractalkine receptor deficient mice express high levels of anti-inflammatory IL-10 and arginase1 markers in the visceral fat. The effect of fat-enriched diet on cytokine expression pattern was specific for the WAT, as we did not detect significant elevation of interleukin-1, tumor necrosis factor-alpha and monocyte chemotacting protein (MCP-1) expression in the liver or in the hypothalamus in either genotype. These results highlight the importance of fractalkine signaling in recruitment and polarization of adipose tissue immune cells and identify fractalkine as a target to fight obesity-induced inflammatory complications

From Discrete to Continuous and Back: Abstractions and Mesoscopic Phenomena in Cells

We discuss the interplay between stochasticity and multistability in bio-molecular networks. The resulting cell-level stochastic behavior reflects the fundamentally discrete and random nature of the underlying molecular processes. These ideas are illustrated on the well studied example of the lac operon. We first describe the switching behavior predicted by a differential-equation based model and then show how cell-level stochastic behavior emerges. Finally we point out that the observed macroscopic behavior may not be enough to determine both the dynamic and stochastic parameters

Development of e-Learning Modules for Teaching Energy for Sustainable World

Within the project ”Teaching Energy for Sustainable World” (SustEner) financed by the European Union nine practically oriented modules with remote experiments or interactive animation materials will be offered in a web based learning portal. Here the development and the operation of two modules titled ”Solar Powered Electric Vehicles” and ”Luminous Efficacy of Modern Light Sources” are described in some detail

Immunoanalytic investigation of grain proteins antigenic for celiac disease patients in an einkorn collection

Our study focuses on the complex characterization of a wild and cultivated einkorn collection of the Cereal Gene Bank of Agriculture Research Institute in Hungary, using proteomics, immune analytics and bioinformatics analyses. In a serological ELISA pre-screen of 208 different Triticum monococcum L. ssp. monococcum and Triticum monococcum L. ssp. aegilopoides genotypes with celiac disease samples high diversity was observed in the immune response. Based on the immune analytic results, four genotypes with significantly reduced immune reactivity were selected for detailed proteomics characterization. Our results confirm the benefits of high-throughput/large-scale pre-screening and the use of a complex examination platform to get relevant information about the genetic diversity of celiac disease-relevant proteins in the analyzed einkorn genotypes. These genotypes cannot be incorporated into the daily diet of celiac patients; however, they may represent candidates – especially in combination with enzymatic treatments - to improve the lifestyle of individuals suffering from other clinical conditions like non-celiac wheat sensitivity

Fundamentals of interface phenomena in advanced bulk nanoscale materials

The review is devoted to a study of interface phenomena influencing advanced properties of nanoscale materials processed by means of severe plastic deformation, high-energy ball milling and their combinations. Interface phenomena include processes of interface defect structure relaxation from a highly nonequilibrium state to an equilibrium condition, grain boundary phase transformations and enhanced grain boundary and triple junction diffusivity. On the basis of an experimental investigation, a theoretical description of the key interfacial phenomena controlling the functional properties of advanced bulk nanoscale materials has been conducted. An interface defect structure investigation has been performed by TEM, high-resolution x-ray diffraction, atomic simulation and modeling. The problem of a transition from highly non-equilibrium state to an equilibrium one, which seems to be responsible for low thermostability of nanoscale materials, was studied. Also enhanced grain boundary diffusivity is addressed. Structure recovery and dislocation emission from grain boundaries in nanocrystalline materials have been investigated by analytical methods and modeling