High Rate of Regression From Micro-Macroalbuminuria to Normoalbuminuria in Children and Adolescents With Type 1 Diabetes Treated or Not With Enalapril: The influence of HDL cholesterol

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the frequency of normalization, the persistence of remission, and the impact on normalization of glycemic control and lipid profile, we analyzed data from a retrospective observational cohort study of type 1 diabetic children and adolescents with abnormal urinary albumin excretion (UAE). RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: All diabetic children and adolescents (n = 41) who had persistent abnormal UAE in the period of 1984 to 2008 and followed up until 2009 (follow-up duration = 13.1 \ub1 6.2 years) were included in the study. Nine patients progressed to macroalbuminuria; 24 patients were administered ACE inhibitor treatment. RESULTS: The cumulative prevalence of abnormal UAE was 9%. During follow-up, 14 of 17 untreated and 19 of 24 treated patients reverted to normoalbuminuria. In the remission group compared with the nonremission group, A1C levels during follow-up decreased (7.5 \ub1 1.0 vs. 9.4 \ub1 1.2%, P < 0.0001) and serum HDL cholesterol increased (52.7 \ub1 11.3 vs. 42.7 \ub1 8.6 mg/dL, P < 0.05). The micro-macroalbuminuric patients had lower HDL cholesterol (51.0 \ub1 11.4 vs. 62.4 \ub1 13.6 mg/dL, P < 0.0001) than 134 normoalbuminuric diabetic patients. CONCLUSIONS: Microalbuminuria and macroalbuminuria were not permanent in most of our diabetic children and adolescents. If abnormal UAE values are high and persist for >1 year, only long-lasting treatment with ACE inhibitors seems able to induce persistent remission, especially when associated with good metabolic control and high HDL cholesterol level

Stroke survivors’ priorities for research related to life after stroke

Background - Stroke has transitioned from an untreatable, unpreventable disease to a highly treatable and preventable disease over recent decades, and the number of stroke survivors is expected to increase. The number is also foreseen to grow larger as a result of an aging population. With an escalating number of stroke survivors, research on how to improve life after stroke is needed. Aims - The primary aim was to determine which area of research related to life after stroke that stroke patients and their informal carers prioritized as being relevant and valuable. Methods - A cross-sectional study of all patients who had completed the 12 months of follow-up in the EFFECTS trial. In the questionnaire the stroke patients and their informal carers were asked to prioritize areas of research they considered important and valuable with respect to their life after stroke. Results - Of the 731 patients who were still alive after the 12 months-follow-up, 589 responded. The most prioritized areas of research were Balance and walking difficulties (290 (49%) responders) and Post-stroke fatigue (173 (29%) responders). Women answered the undefined alternative “other” more often than men (43 women (11%) versus 11 men (6%), p = .04). Younger patients prioritized Post-stroke fatigue to a higher extent (88 (45%) versus (22%), p Balance and walking difficulties (214 (54%) versus 76 (40%), p = .002) and Speech difficulties (38 (10%) versus 9 (5%), p = .045). Conclusions - Life after stroke is perceived differentely with aging. Future research should address strategies to face challenges such as imbalance and walking difficulties and post-stroke-fatigue

Relativistic diffusion processes and random walk models

The nonrelativistic standard model for a continuous, one-parameter diffusion process in position space is the Wiener process. As well-known, the Gaussian transition probability density function (PDF) of this process is in conflict with special relativity, as it permits particles to propagate faster than the speed of light. A frequently considered alternative is provided by the telegraph equation, whose solutions avoid superluminal propagation speeds but suffer from singular (non-continuous) diffusion fronts on the light cone, which are unlikely to exist for massive particles. It is therefore advisable to explore other alternatives as well. In this paper, a generalized Wiener process is proposed that is continuous, avoids superluminal propagation, and reduces to the standard Wiener process in the non-relativistic limit. The corresponding relativistic diffusion propagator is obtained directly from the nonrelativistic Wiener propagator, by rewriting the latter in terms of an integral over actions. The resulting relativistic process is non-Markovian, in accordance with the known fact that nontrivial continuous, relativistic Markov processes in position space cannot exist. Hence, the proposed process defines a consistent relativistic diffusion model for massive particles and provides a viable alternative to the solutions of the telegraph equation.Comment: v3: final, shortened version to appear in Phys. Rev.

Diffusion in the special theory of relativity

The Markovian diffusion theory is generalized within the framework of the special theory of relativity using a modification of the mathematical calculus of diffusion on Riemannian manifolds (with definite metric) to describe diffusion on Lorentzian manifolds with an indefinite metric. A generalized Langevin equation in the fiber space of position, velocity and orthonormal velocity frames is defined from which the generalized relativistic Kramers equation in the phase space in external force fields is derived. The obtained diffusion equation is invariant under Lorentz transformations and its stationary solution is given by the J\"{u}ttner distribution. Besides a non-stationary analytical solution is derived for the example of force-free relativistic diffusion.Comment: 10 pages, 1 figur

Towards Graphene Nanoribbon-based Electronics

The successful fabrication of single layer graphene has greatly stimulated the progress of the research on graphene. In this article, focusing on the basic electronic and transport properties of graphene nanoribbons (GNRs), we review the recent progress of experimental fabrication of GNRs, and the theoretical and experimental investigations of physical properties and device applications of GNRs. We also briefly discuss the research efforts on the spin polarization of GNRs in relation to the edge states.Comment: 9pages,10figure

Методы восстановления генерального распределения душевых денежных доходов населения на основе выборочных данных большого объема

This paper provides an analysis of popular methods for correcting sample distribution of income per-capita and proposes a methodology for evaluating the parameters of a lognormal income distribution, taking into account unequal response rates between individuals with different income levels, income deciles - a result of survey design and the survey non-response rate. The authors propose the fitting of a lognormal distribution on the basis of comparing mean and boundary income levels for defined population intervals between the sample and general distribution, instead of the more common approach of frequency analysis between the two. The mean income value of a given interval, with enough observations, is less volatile than the individual frequencies on the interval. This is especially important in situations where individual frequencies in the sample distribution significantly differ from the population distribution itself. The authors examine two different criteria for estimating the optimal lognormal distribution parameters. The first method is similar to the methodology used in Russian statistics, and does not require preliminary information on the share of the poor population. The parameters are estimated using the condition of equality between the sample and population mean income, and the right-income boundary of the first income deciles. The second criterion is based on minimizing the squared sum of deviations between the mean income levels for the middle eight income deciles of the sample and population mean values. Neither of the two criteria uses the hypothesis of non-response rates increasing with households’ income growth, which allows one to assess the representative-value of the sample survey. The results of the calculations show that the method achieves the highest parity between sample and population distributions in the middle-part of the lognormal distribution, but suffers from underrepresentation in the lower part of the distribution, i.e. for poor households and individuals.В статье дается анализ популярных методов коррекции выборочного распределения душевых доходов населения и описывается методика оценки параметров логнормального распределения денежных доходов, учитывающая неравномерное представительство респондентов с разным уровнем доходов, в доходных децилях, которое зависит от дизайна выборки и доли отказов респондентов от участия в опросе. Ключевая идея работы состоит в выборе критерия для оценки параметров теоретического распределения, основанного не на сравнении групповых частот, а на сравнении границ и средних значений в теоретических децилях выборочных и искомых распределений. Средние значения в интервалах доходов, при достаточном количестве наблюдений, значительно меньше зависят от частоты представительности респондентов в интервалах. Это особенно важно, когда частотные характеристики выборки существенно отличаются от аналогичных показателей генеральной совокупности. Рассмотрены два критерия оптимального выбора параметров логнормального распределения. Первый близок по методике, используемой в российской статистике, но при этом не требуется предварительная информация о том, какую часть составляет бедное население. Параметры оцениваются исходя из условия выполнения равенства среднего генерального дохода и совпадения выборочных и теоретических границ первого децильного интервала. Во втором случае минимизируется сумма отклонений выборочных и теоретических средних, рассчитанных в теоретических децилях. Оба критерия построены без учета гипотезы о возрастании вероятности отказов населения от участия в опросе в связи с ростом дохода домохозяйства, что позволяет сделать оценки представительности генеральных данных в выборочной совокупности. Результаты конкретных расчетов показывают наибольшее представительство в средней части распределения и недостаточность наблюдений на концах, то есть и в группе бедных домохозяйств

O(N) methods in electronic structure calculations

Linear scaling methods, or O(N) methods, have computational and memory requirements which scale linearly with the number of atoms in the system, N, in contrast to standard approaches which scale with the cube of the number of atoms. These methods, which rely on the short-ranged nature of electronic structure, will allow accurate, ab initio simulations of systems of unprecedented size. The theory behind the locality of electronic structure is described and related to physical properties of systems to be modelled, along with a survey of recent developments in real-space methods which are important for efficient use of high performance computers. The linear scaling methods proposed to date can be divided into seven different areas, and the applicability, efficiency and advantages of the methods proposed in these areas is then discussed. The applications of linear scaling methods, as well as the implementations available as computer programs, are considered. Finally, the prospects for and the challenges facing linear scaling methods are discussed.Comment: 85 pages, 15 figures, 488 references. Resubmitted to Rep. Prog. Phys (small changes

Purification and functional characterisation of rhiminopeptidase A, a novel aminopeptidase from the venom of Bitis gabonica rhinoceros

This study describes the discovery and characterisation of a novel aminopeptidase A from the venom of B. g. rhinoceros and highlights its potential biological importance. Similar to mammalian aminopeptidases, rhiminopeptidase A might be capable of playing roles in altering the blood pressure and brain function of victims. Furthermore, it could have additional effects on the biological functions of other host proteins by cleaving their N-terminal amino acids. This study points towards the importance of complete analysis of individual components of snake venom in order to develop effective therapies for snake bites

Idiopathic osteonecrosis of the medial tibial plateau

Osteonecrosis of the medial tibial plateau is characterized by acute pain on the medial aspect of the knee. Progression can lead to articular collapse and requires early diagnosis and treatment. We studied seven patients affected of idiopathic osteonecrosis of the tibial plateau. The mean age was 62 years and the mean follow-up 42 months. We performed roentgenograms in all patients, bone scans in three patients and magnetic resonance image (MRI) in five. MRI shows T1-weighted low-intensity signal and T2-weighted high-intensity signal with a surrounding area of intermediate low-intensity signal. An increased focal uptake was seen at bone scan. Histological findings showed necrotic bone with empty lacunae. Surgical treatment consisted of tibial subchondral drilling in four patients-two of them by failure of conservative treatment, and a total knee arthroplasty in other two. One patient had a satisfactory evolution with conservative treatment. Idiopathic osteonecrosis of the tibial plateau must be considered in elderly patients with knee pain over the medial tibial plateau. At early stages, decompression with tibial drilling must be considered. This procedure allows a prompt and effective relief of symptom