Comparison of quantum mechanical and classical trajectory calculations of cross sections for ion-atom impact ionization of negative - and positive -ions for heavy ion fusion applications

Stripping cross sections in nitrogen have been calculated using the classical trajectory approximation and the Born approximation of quantum mechanics for the outer shell electrons of 3.2GeV I$^{-}$ and Cs$^{+}$ ions. A large difference in cross section, up to a factor of six, calculated in quantum mechanics and classical mechanics, has been obtained. Because at such high velocities the Born approximation is well validated, the classical trajectory approach fails to correctly predict the stripping cross sections at high energies for electron orbitals with low ionization potential.Comment: submitted to Phys. Rev.

Comportamento inicial de progênies de cafeeiros com resistência à ferrugem selecionadas de ensaios em vários campos experimentais do Procafé.

O programa de melhoramento genético de cafeeiros, a cargo do Mapa-Fundação Procafé, vem sendo executado em campos experimentais de diferentes regiões cafeeiras, visando associar resistência à ferrugem e boa produtividade das plantas. Nos ensaios, após 3-4 safras, são selecionadas as melhores plantas, para inclusão das progênies em competição conjunta. No presente trabalho foram reunidas, em ensaio em execução na FEX Varginha, 78 seleções, correspondentes a plantas selecionadas de ensaios em Mal Floriano-ES, em Coromandel-FSA, no CEPEC em Martins Soares e também em Varginha. O ensaio foi delineado em blocos ao acaso, com 2 repetições e parcelas de 8 plantas. O plantio foi realizado em janeiro de 2009 no espaçamento de 3,5 x 1 m. Os tratos culturais foram os usuais, com 2 aplicações de fungicidas triazóis mais cúpricos, para controle da ferrugem e cercosporiose, em todo o ensaio

Sex/gender-disaggregated fatal violence: a systematic review (protocol)

The aim of this review is to update and expand Stoeckl et. al’s (2013) systematic review on Intimate Partner Homicide (IPH) by estimating the prevalence of sex/gender disaggregated homicide at a global, regional, and country level. Stoeckl et. al.’s (2013) review provided a disaggregation of IPH by sex of victim and victim/perpetrator intimate relationship. Applying Walby et. al. (2017), this review will expand this by including homicides between non-intimates as well as intimates (i.e., beyond IPH) and two additional dimensions: sexual aspects and sex/gender motivation. Data on three dimensions (victim/perpetrator relationship, sexual aspects, and sex/gender motivation) will be identified through the systematic review strategy (including review of national statistics offices/organisations) detailed above. Additionally, data on a further two dimensions (sex of the victim and sex of the perpetrator) will be extracted from the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC) (as part of the UKPRP/MRC project, within which this review is nested, to create a global dataset on violence). Since 2013, UNODC homicide data have been collected according to the International Classification on Crime for Statistical Purposes (ICCS, 2015). This means that data exist on the sex of victim (and, often, sex of perpetrator) in many countries

Paradoxical antidepressant effects of alcohol are related to acid sphingomyelinase and its control of sphingolipid homeostasis

Alcohol is a widely consumed drug that can lead to addiction and severe brain damage. However, alcohol is also used as self-medication for psychiatric problems, such as depression, frequently resulting in depression-alcoholism comorbidity. Here, we identify the first molecular mechanism for alcohol use with the goal to self-medicate and ameliorate the behavioral symptoms of a genetically induced innate depression. An induced over-expression of acid sphingomyelinase (ASM), as was observed in depressed patients, enhanced the consumption of alcohol in a mouse model of depression. ASM hyperactivity facilitates the establishment of the conditioned behavioral effects of alcohol, and thus drug memories. Opposite effects on drinking and alcohol reward learning were observed in animals with reduced ASM function. Importantly, free-choice alcohol drinking—but not forced alcohol exposure—reduces depression-like behavior selectively in depressed animals through the normalization of brain ASM activity. No such effects were observed in normal mice. ASM hyperactivity caused sphingolipid and subsequent monoamine transmitter hypo-activity in the brain. Free-choice alcohol drinking restores nucleus accumbens sphingolipid- and monoamine homeostasis selectively in depressed mice. A gene expression analysis suggested strong control of ASM on the expression of genes related to the regulation of pH, ion transmembrane transport, behavioral fear response, neuroprotection and neuropeptide signaling pathways. These findings suggest that the paradoxical antidepressant effects of alcohol in depressed organisms are mediated by ASM and its control of sphingolipid homeostasis. Both emerge as a new treatment target specifically for depression-induced alcoholism. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00401-016-1658-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

The Wage Premium of Globalization: Evidence from European Mergers and Acquisitions

We provide evidence on the impact of globalization on labor market outcomes analyzing pay differences between foreign-acquired and domestically-owned firms. For this purpose, we use firm level data from 16 European countries over the time period 1999-2006. Applying propensity score matching techniques we estimate positive wage premia of cross-boarder merger and acquisitions (M&As), suggesting that foreign acquired firms exhibit higher short-run (post-acquisition) wages than their domestic counterparts. The observed wage disparities are most pronounced for low paying firms (with average wages below the median). Finally, we find systematic wage premia in Western European countries, but not so in Eastern Europe

Global, regional, and national comparative risk assessment of 79 behavioural, environmental and occupational, and metabolic risks or clusters of risks, 1990-2015: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015

SummaryBackground The Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2015 provides an up-to-date synthesis of the evidence for risk factor exposure and the attributable burden of disease. By providing national and subnational assessments spanning the past 25 years, this study can inform debates on the importance of addressing risks in context. Methods We used the comparative risk assessment framework developed for previous iterations of the Global Burden of Disease Study to estimate attributable deaths, disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs), and trends in exposure by age group, sex, year, and geography for 79 behavioural, environmental and occupational, and metabolic risks or clusters of risks from 1990 to 2015. This study included 388 risk-outcome pairs that met World Cancer Research Fund-defined criteria for convincing or probable evidence. We extracted relative risk and exposure estimates from randomised controlled trials, cohorts, pooled cohorts, household surveys, census data, satellite data, and other sources. We used statistical models to pool data, adjust for bias, and incorporate covariates. We developed a metric that allows comparisons of exposure across risk factors—the summary exposure value. Using the counterfactual scenario of theoretical minimum risk level, we estimated the portion of deaths and DALYs that could be attributed to a given risk. We decomposed trends in attributable burden into contributions from population growth, population age structure, risk exposure, and risk-deleted cause-specific DALY rates. We characterised risk exposure in relation to a Socio-demographic Index (SDI). Findings Between 1990 and 2015, global exposure to unsafe sanitation, household air pollution, childhood underweight, childhood stunting, and smoking each decreased by more than 25%. Global exposure for several occupational risks, high body-mass index (BMI), and drug use increased by more than 25% over the same period. All risks jointly evaluated in 2015 accounted for 57·8% (95% CI 56·6–58·8) of global deaths and 41·2% (39·8–42·8) of DALYs. In 2015, the ten largest contributors to global DALYs among Level 3 risks were high systolic blood pressure (211·8 million [192·7 million to 231·1 million] global DALYs), smoking (148·6 million [134·2 million to 163·1 million]), high fasting plasma glucose (143·1 million [125·1 million to 163·5 million]), high BMI (120·1 million [83·8 million to 158·4 million]), childhood undernutrition (113·3 million [103·9 million to 123·4 million]), ambient particulate matter (103·1 million [90·8 million to 115·1 million]), high total cholesterol (88·7 million [74·6 million to 105·7 million]), household air pollution (85·6 million [66·7 million to 106·1 million]), alcohol use (85·0 million [77·2 million to 93·0 million]), and diets high in sodium (83·0 million [49·3 million to 127·5 million]). From 1990 to 2015, attributable DALYs declined for micronutrient deficiencies, childhood undernutrition, unsafe sanitation and water, and household air pollution; reductions in risk-deleted DALY rates rather than reductions in exposure drove these declines. Rising exposure contributed to notable increases in attributable DALYs from high BMI, high fasting plasma glucose, occupational carcinogens, and drug use. Environmental risks and childhood undernutrition declined steadily with SDI; low physical activity, high BMI, and high fasting plasma glucose increased with SDI. In 119 countries, metabolic risks, such as high BMI and fasting plasma glucose, contributed the most attributable DALYs in 2015. Regionally, smoking still ranked among the leading five risk factors for attributable DALYs in 109 countries; childhood underweight and unsafe sex remained primary drivers of early death and disability in much of sub-Saharan Africa. Interpretation Declines in some key environmental risks have contributed to declines in critical infectious diseases. Some risks appear to be invariant to SDI. Increasing risks, including high BMI, high fasting plasma glucose, drug use, and some occupational exposures, contribute to rising burden from some conditions, but also provide opportunities for intervention. Some highly preventable risks, such as smoking, remain major causes of attributable DALYs, even as exposure is declining. Public policy makers need to pay attention to the risks that are increasingly major contributors to global burden. Funding Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

The Novel Immunosuppressive Protein Kinase C Inhibitor Sotrastaurin Has No Pro-Viral Effects on the Replication Cycle of Hepatitis B or C Virus

The pan-protein kinase C (PKC) inhibitor sotrastaurin (AEB071) is a novel immunosuppressant currently in phase II trials for immunosuppression after solid organ transplantation. Besides T-cell activation, PKC affects numerous cellular processes that are potentially important for the replication of hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV), major blood-borne pathogens prevalent in solid organ transplant recipients. This study uses state of the art virological assays to assess the direct, non-immune mediated effects of sotrastaurin on HBV and HCV. Most importantly, sotrastaurin had no pro-viral effect on either HBV or HCV. In the presence of high concentrations of sotrastaurin, well above those used clinically and close to levels where cytotoxic effects become detectable, there was a reduction of HCV and HBV replication. This reduction is very likely due to cytotoxic and/or anti-proliferative effects rather than direct anti-viral activity of the drug. Replication cycle stages other than genome replication such as viral cell entry and spread of HCV infection directly between adjacent cells was clearly unaffected by sotrastaurin. These data support the evaluation of sotrastaurin in HBV and/or HCV infected transplant recipients

Treatment patterns of patients with migraine eligible for anti-CGRP pathway monoclonal antibodies

IntroductionMigraine is a debilitating neurological disorder, with a wide range of symptoms and disease burden, underscoring the heterogeneity of patients’ disease characteristics and treatment needs. To characterize the profile of migraine patients in the US who may be eligible for preventive treatment with an anti-CGRP pathway mAb and to better understand treatment patterns and real-world use of acute and preventive medications for migraine, we conducted a retrospective cohort study of adult patients.MethodsThese patients were identified as having migraine using diagnosis codes or migraine-specific medication use (first = index) in the IQVIA PharMetrics® Plus database. Patients were required to have ≥ 12 months of continuous enrollment in medical and pharmacy benefits prior to index (baseline) and after index (follow-up). Patients were stratified into chronic migraine (CM) and non-chronic migraine (non-CM) by diagnosis codes. Based on acute migraine-specific medication dispensing data in the follow-up period, non-CM patients were divided into 3 cohorts: highest, middle, and lowest tertile of total units of dispensed acute migraine-specific medication (gepants, ditans, ergot derivatives, and triptans). Migraine medication use was captured in the baseline and follow-up periods.ResultsA total of 22,584 CM and 216,807 non-CM patients (72,269 patients in each tertile) were identified and included in the study. Over the follow-up, CM patients had a mean of 70 units of acute migraine-specific medications dispensed, while the highest, middle, and lowest tertile of non-CM patients had a mean of 92, 29, and 10 units, respectively. Anti-calcitonin gene-related peptide pathway mAbs were dispensed for 28.9% of CM patients, and for 6.9%, 4.1%, and 2.9% of non-CM patients in the highest, middle, and lowest tertiles, respectively.ConclusionA lower proportion of non-CM patients had use of anti-calcitonin gene-related peptide pathway mAbs compared to CM patients, confirming the unmet need with appropriate preventive medication. There appears to be a persistent gap in management of patients without a diagnosis of CM who are dispensed high quantities of acute migraine-specific medications