On the design of a wireless multi-antenna monitoring system

In this paper we investigate the design of a wireless monitoring system. This system consists of several wireless monitoring units, each transmitting data collected from sensors. This data is received and processed at a central control unit. The typical operating environment poses several challenges. The channel’s delay spread is substantial and the distance between receiver and transmitter is in the order of 400 meters. In order to guarantee reliable communication, we combine multi-antenna techniques (spacetime block coding) with strong coding (LDPC codes). The cost and complexity of the monitoring units is kept low, and most of the processing is performed on the central control unit. We present a system design for the monitoring units and show simulation results

Spectral Analysis of Correlated One-Dimensional Systems with Impurities

An averaging procedure is proposed to account for spectral features of correlated one-dimensional systems in the presence of non-magnetic impurities. The dynamical spin structure factor for a corresponding random ensemble of Heisenberg chain segments is calculated by exact numerical diagonalization. It is shown that a few-pole approximation is sufficient to describe the numerical results. A similar analysis is proposed for the discussion of experimental spectra, such as obtained by inelastic neutron scattering measurements on Zn-doped CuO chains. By examination of the disorder-induced pseudo-gap, the loss of spectral weight, and the discrete peak structures due to smallest-cluster contributions, the underlying impurity distribution function can be determined.Comment: RevTex, 4 pages with 4 eps figure

Individual goals and social preferences in operational decisions

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to develop propositions explaining the influence of individual goals and social preferences on human decision making in transport planning. The aim is to understand which individual goals and social preferences planners pursue and how these influence planners’ decisions. Design/methodology/approach: Propositions are developed based on investigation of decision making of transport planners in a Dutch logistics service provider using multiple data collection methods. Findings: The study shows how decision making of transport planners is motivated by individual goals as well as social preferences for reciprocity and group identity. Research limitations/implications: Further research including transaction data analysis is needed to triangulate findings and to strengthen conclusions. Propositions are developed to be tested in future research. Practical implications: Results suggest that efforts to guide planners in their decision making should go beyond traditional (monetary) incentives and consider their individual goals and social preferences. Moreover, this study provides insight into why transport planners deviate from desired behaviour. Originality/value: While individual decision making plays an essential role in operational planning, the factors influencing how individuals make operational planning decisions are not fully understood

Congenital Short Bowel Syndrome: from clinical and genetic diagnosis to the molecular mechanisms involved in intestinal elongation

AbstractCongenital Short Bowel Syndrome (CSBS) is a rare gastrointestinal disorder in which the mean length of the small intestine is substantially reduced when compared to its normal counterpart. Families with several affected members have been described and CSBS has been suggested to have a genetic basis. Recently, our group found mutations in CLMP as the cause of the recessive form of CSBS, and mutations in FLNA as the cause of the X-linked form of the disease. These findings have improved the quality of genetic counselling for CSBS patients and made prenatal diagnostics possible. Moreover, they provided a reliable starting point to further investigate the pathogenesis of CSBS, and to better understand the development of the small intestine. In this review, we present our current knowledge on CSBS and discuss hypotheses on how the recent genetic findings can help understand the cause of CSBS

Diversity-Oriented Enzymatic Synthesis of Cyclopropane Building Blocks

While biocatalysis is increasingly incorporated into drug development pipelines, it is less commonly used in the early stages of drug discovery. By engineering a protein to produce a chiral motif with a derivatizable functional handle, biocatalysts can be used to help generate diverse building blocks for drug discovery. Here we show the engineering of two variants of Rhodothermus marinus nitric oxide dioxygenase (RmaNOD) to catalyze the formation of cis- and trans-diastereomers of a pinacolboronate-substituted cyclopropane which can be readily derivatized to generate diverse stereopure cyclopropane building blocks

Diversity-Oriented Enzymatic Synthesis of Cyclopropane Building Blocks

While biocatalysis is increasingly incorporated into drug development pipelines, it is less commonly used in the early stages of drug discovery. By engineering a protein to produce a chiral motif with a derivatizable functional handle, biocatalysts can be used to help generate diverse building blocks for drug discovery. Here we show the engineering of two variants of Rhodothermus marinus nitric oxide dioxygenase (RmaNOD) to catalyze the formation of cis- and trans-diastereomers of a pinacolboronate-substituted cyclopropane which can be readily derivatized to generate diverse stereopure cyclopropane building blocks

Effectiveness of suicide prevention interventions:A systematic review and meta-analysis

Objective: This study provides an estimate of the effect size of suicide prevention interventions and evaluates the possible synergistic effects of multilevel interventions. Method: A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted of controlled studies evaluating suicide prevention interventions versus control published between 2011 and 2017 in PubMed, PsycINFO, and Cochrane databases. Data extraction and risk of bias assessment according to ROBINS criteria were performed by independent assessors. Cohen's delta was calculated by a random meta-analysis on completed and attempted suicides as outcomes. Meta-regression explored a possible synergistic effect in multilevel interventions. PROSPERO ID number: CRD42018094373. Results: The search yielded 16 controlled studies with a total of 252,932 participants. The meta-analysis was performed in 15 studies with 29,071 participants. A significant effect was found for suicide prevention interventions on completed suicides (d = -0.535, 95% CI -0.898; -0.171, p = .004) and on suicide attempts (d = -0.449, 95% CI -0.618; -0.280, p < .001). Regarding the synergistic effect of multilevel interventions, meta-regression showed a significantly higher effect related to the number of levels of the intervention (p = .032). Conclusions: Suicide prevention interventions are effective in preventing completed and attempted suicides and should be widely implemented. Further research should focus on multilevel interventions due to their greater effects and synergistic potential. Further research is also needed into risk appraisal for completed versus attempted suicide, as the preferred intervention strategy differs with regard to both outcomes

Trans-eQTLs Reveal That Independent Genetic Variants Associated with a Complex Phenotype Converge on Intermediate Genes, with a Major Role for the HLA

This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited

<i>C-elegans</i> model identifies genetic modifiers of alpha-synuclein inclusion formation during aging

Inclusions in the brain containing alpha-synuclein are the pathological hallmark of Parkinson's disease, but how these inclusions are formed and how this links to disease is poorly understood. We have developed a &lt;i&gt;C-elegans&lt;/i&gt; model that makes it possible to monitor, in living animals, the formation of alpha-synuclein inclusions. In worms of old age, inclusions contain aggregated alpha-synuclein, resembling a critical pathological feature. We used genome-wide RNA interference to identify processes involved in inclusion formation, and identified 80 genes that, when knocked down, resulted in a premature increase in the number of inclusions. Quality control and vesicle-trafficking genes expressed in the ER/Golgi complex and vesicular compartments were overrepresented, indicating a specific role for these processes in alpha-synuclein inclusion formation. Suppressors include aging-associated genes, such as sir-2.1/SIRT1 and lagr-1/LASS2. Altogether, our data suggest a link between alpha-synuclein inclusion formation and cellular aging, likely through an endomembrane-related mechanism. The processes and genes identified here present a framework for further study of the disease mechanism and provide candidate susceptibility genes and drug targets for Parkinson's disease and other alpha-synuclein related disorders

The Dynamics of the Pulmonary Microbiome During Mechanical Ventilation in the Intensive Care Unit and the Association with Occurrence of Pneumonia

RATIONALE: Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is the most common nosocomial infections in patients admitted to the ICU. The adapted island model predicts several changes in the respiratory microbiome during intubation and mechanical ventilation. OBJECTIVES: We hypothesised that mechanical ventilation and antibiotic administration decrease the diversity of the respiratory microbiome and that these changes are more profound in patients who develop VAP. METHODS: Intubated and mechanically ventilated ICU-patients were included. Tracheal aspirates were obtained three times a week. 16S rRNA gene sequencing with the Roche 454 platform was used to measure the composition of the respiratory microbiome. Associations were tested with linear mixed model analysis and principal coordinate analysis. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: 111 tracheal aspirates were obtained from 35 patients; 11 had VAP, 18 did not have VAP. Six additional patients developed pneumonia within the first 48 hours after intubation. Duration of mechanical ventilation was associated with a decrease in α diversity (Shannon index; fixed-effect regression coefficient (β): -0.03 (95% CI -0.05 to -0.005)), but the administration of antibiotic therapy was not (fixed-effect β: 0.06; 95% CI -0.17 to 0.30). There was a significant difference in change of β diversity between patients who developed VAP and control patients for Bray-Curtis distances (p=0.03) and for Manhattan distances (p=0.04). Burkholderia, Bacillales and, to a lesser extent, Pseudomonadales positively correlated with the change in β diversity. CONCLUSION: Mechanical ventilation, but not antibiotic administration, was associated with changes in the respiratory microbiome. Dysbiosis of microbial communities in the respiratory tract was most profound in patients who developed VAP.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio