The use of artificial neural networks to study fatty acids in neuropsychiatric disorders

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The range of the fatty acids has been largely investigated in the plasma and erythrocytes of patients suffering from neuropsychiatric disorders. In this paper we investigate, for the first time, whether the study of the platelet fatty acids from such patients may be facilitated by means of artificial neural networks.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Venous blood samples were taken from 84 patients with a DSM-IV-TR diagnosis of major depressive disorder and from 60 normal control subjects without a history of clinical depression. Platelet levels of the following 11 fatty acids were analyzed using one-way analysis of variance: C14:0, C16:0, C16:1, C18:0, C18:1 <it>n</it>-9, C18:1 <it>n</it>-7, C18:2 <it>n</it>-6, C18:3 <it>n</it>-3, C20:3 <it>n</it>-3, C20:4 <it>n</it>-6 and C22:6 <it>n</it>-3. The results were then entered into a wide variety of different artificial neural networks.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>All the artificial neural networks tested gave essentially the same result. However, one type of artificial neural network, the self-organizing map, gave superior information by allowing the results to be described in a two-dimensional plane with potentially informative border areas. A series of repeated and independent self-organizing map simulations, with the input parameters being changed each time, led to the finding that the best discriminant map was that obtained by inclusion of just three fatty acids.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our results confirm that artificial neural networks may be used to analyze platelet fatty acids in neuropsychiatric disorder. Furthermore, they show that the self-organizing map, an unsupervised competitive-learning network algorithm which forms a nonlinear projection of a high-dimensional data manifold on a regular, low-dimensional grid, is an optimal type of artificial neural network to use for this task.</p

A comparison of oxidative stress in smokers and non-smokers: an in vivo human quantitative study of n-3 lipid peroxidation

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Cigarette smoking is believed to cause oxidative stress by several mechanisms, including direct damage by radical species and the inflammatory response induced by smoking, and would therefore be expected to cause increased lipid peroxidation. The aim was to carry out the first study of the relationship of smoking in humans to the level of <it>n</it>-3 lipid peroxidation indexed by the level of ethane in exhaled breath.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Samples of alveolar air were obtained from 11 smokers and 18 non-smokers. The air samples were analyzed for ethane using mass spectrometry.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The two groups of subjects were matched with respect to age and gender. The mean cumulative smoking status of the smokers was 11.8 (standard error 2.5) pack-years. The mean level of ethane in the alveolar breath of the group of smokers (2.53 (0.55) ppb) was not significantly different from that of the group of non-smokers (2.59 (0.29) ppb; <it>p </it>= 0.92). With all 29 subjects included, the Spearman rank correlation coefficient between ethane levels and cumulative smoking status was -0.11 (<it>p </it>= 0.58), while an analysis including only the smokers yielded a corresponding correlation coefficient of 0.11 (<it>p </it>= 0.75).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our results show no evidence that cigarette smoking is related to increased <it>n</it>-3 lipid peroxidation as measured by expired ethane.</p

HERSUS Project and Digital sharing platform [1st prize, 31. International Urban Planners' Exhibition]

ХЕРСУС (Јачање свести о наслеђу и одрживости грађене средине у високошколском образовању у домену архитектонског и урбанистичког пројектовања) је Еразмус+ стратешко партнерство за високо образовање које окупља пет универзитета из Србије, Италије, Кипра, Грчке и Шпаније који заједно раде на дизајну и развоју курсева уз дисеминацију знања кроз семинаре, радионице и заједнички изграђену платформу дељења. ХЕРСУС платформа дељења је дигитална платформа за истраживаче и студенте замишљена као образовно средство и архива ресурса о темама одрживости и свести о наслеђу у архитектури и урбанизму. Платформа је дизајнирана и развијена као извор референци и инспирације када се ради о истраживањима у областима које пројекат ХЕРСУС има за циљ да истражи. У платформи се стварају везе између наизглед удаљених тема, показујући основне наративе, везе и преклапања која спајају садржаје на различитим просторним и друштвеним нивоима.HERSUS (Enhancing of Heritage Awareness and SustainaЬility of Built Environment in Architectural and Urban Design Higher Education) is Erasmus + Strategic Partnerships for higher education which brings together five Universities from SerЬia, ltaly, Cyprus, Greece, and Spain working together оп the design and development of the courses while disseminating knowledge through international training courses, workshops, and а jointly built Sharing Platform. The HERSUS Sharing Platform is а digital platform for researchers and students conceived as ап educational tool and archive of resources around the topics of sustainaЬility and heritage awareness in architecture and urban design. The platform has been designed and developed as а source of reference and inspiration to refer to when doi ng research in the fields that the HERSUS project aims to investigate. ln the platform, links аге created between apparently distant subjects, showing underlying narratives, connections and overlappings that bring contents together оп different levels.ПРВА НАГРАДА 31. Међународног Салона Урбанизма у категорији Дигиталне технике, дизајн и продукција у урбанизму и архитектури / 1st prize at the 31st International Urban Planners Exhibition in category Digital techniques, design and production in architecture and urbanis

Infected pancreatic necrosis: outcomes and clinical predictors of mortality. A post hoc analysis of the MANCTRA-1 international study

: The identification of high-risk patients in the early stages of infected pancreatic necrosis (IPN) is critical, because it could help the clinicians to adopt more effective management strategies. We conducted a post hoc analysis of the MANCTRA-1 international study to assess the association between clinical risk factors and mortality among adult patients with IPN. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression models were used to identify prognostic factors of mortality. We identified 247 consecutive patients with IPN hospitalised between January 2019 and December 2020. History of uncontrolled arterial hypertension (p = 0.032; 95% CI 1.135-15.882; aOR 4.245), qSOFA (p = 0.005; 95% CI 1.359-5.879; aOR 2.828), renal failure (p = 0.022; 95% CI 1.138-5.442; aOR 2.489), and haemodynamic failure (p = 0.018; 95% CI 1.184-5.978; aOR 2.661), were identified as independent predictors of mortality in IPN patients. Cholangitis (p = 0.003; 95% CI 1.598-9.930; aOR 3.983), abdominal compartment syndrome (p = 0.032; 95% CI 1.090-6.967; aOR 2.735), and gastrointestinal/intra-abdominal bleeding (p = 0.009; 95% CI 1.286-5.712; aOR 2.710) were independently associated with the risk of mortality. Upfront open surgical necrosectomy was strongly associated with the risk of mortality (p &lt; 0.001; 95% CI 1.912-7.442; aOR 3.772), whereas endoscopic drainage of pancreatic necrosis (p = 0.018; 95% CI 0.138-0.834; aOR 0.339) and enteral nutrition (p = 0.003; 95% CI 0.143-0.716; aOR 0.320) were found as protective factors. Organ failure, acute cholangitis, and upfront open surgical necrosectomy were the most significant predictors of mortality. Our study confirmed that, even in a subgroup of particularly ill patients such as those with IPN, upfront open surgery should be avoided as much as possible. Study protocol registered in ClinicalTrials.Gov (I.D. Number NCT04747990)

Gaia Early Data Release 3: Structure and properties of the Magellanic Clouds

We compare the Gaia DR2 and Gaia EDR3 performances in the study of the Magellanic Clouds and show the clear improvements in precision and accuracy in the new release. We also show that the systematics still present in the data make the determination of the 3D geometry of the LMC a difficult endeavour; this is at the very limit of the usefulness of the Gaia EDR3 astrometry, but it may become feasible with the use of additional external data. We derive radial and tangential velocity maps and global profiles for the LMC for the several subsamples we defined. To our knowledge, this is the first time that the two planar components of the ordered and random motions are derived for multiple stellar evolutionary phases in a galactic disc outside the Milky Way, showing the differences between younger and older phases. We also analyse the spatial structure and motions in the central region, the bar, and the disc, providing new insights into features and kinematics. Finally, we show that the Gaia EDR3 data allows clearly resolving the Magellanic Bridge, and we trace the density and velocity flow of the stars from the SMC towards the LMC not only globally, but also separately for young and evolved populations. This allows us to confirm an evolved population in the Bridge that is slightly shift from the younger population. Additionally, we were able to study the outskirts of both Magellanic Clouds, in which we detected some well-known features and indications of new ones

Concepts, values and authors for the definition of authenticity: International Charters AI analysis.

The debate on the "authenticity" concept has a founding moment in the premises of the Venice Charter, but it is a conceptual instrument with multiple meanings and definitions. At least 34 of the 55 charters that succeeded the Venice Charter, from 1963 to 2023 consider “authenticity” as a notion at the bottom of the idea of transmission of Cultural Heritage “to future generations". Among these, the Nara Charter (1994) in Art. 10 defines, with reference to the Venice Charter, the concept of "authenticity" as an "essential qualifying factor concerning values" that cannot be determined by "fixed criteria" but is based on the "respect due to all cultures", to which are also associated concepts such as "integrity" (1964), "spirit of the place" (1981), "community" (1982) "cultural value", "intervention project" (2019), and -in the most recent charters- "tangible and intangible aspects" (2019) and "reuse" (2021). The evolution of the “authenticity” concept over time is a metaphor for the evolutionary changes in society. For its interpretation, artificial intelligence tools for text coding, such as MAXQDA2022, can help to clarify (and generate) the relationships between concepts and their application (Transformation Maps by Word Economic Forum Strategic Intelligence) over time and in the cultural context. The research aims to interpret the path of the International Charters (starting from the codification of the term authenticity of the Venice Charter) to grab their evolution and transformation with the historical-cultural contexts from which the charters originated. The paper proposes in parallel a reading of the main theoretical positions of the actors that contributed to the drafting of the Maps. The parallelism between the evolutionary matrix of the concepts generated by the IA and the critical interpretation of the theoretical positions will offer an evolutionary conceptual history of the authenticity-integrity binomial

Students Questionnaire : Iuav, Italy

The students’ questionnaires involved about 500 students from Iuav and other Italian Universities. The LimeSurvey Platform registered 206 complete and 294 incomplete questionnaires. The most involved categories are the Second Cycle – Master’s Degree courses, with more than 300 accesses. It can be noticed how about 290 students stopped filling in at question Q2.1. The difficulties for Iuav students to address specific courses to Sustainability and/or Cultural Heritage emerged from the questionnaires, given the fact that current programs address architecture with an interdisciplinary perspective. The answers to the third part show the most interesting results and reveal students’ perception of educational programs and highlight their specific expectation about the future work environment

Experts Questionnaire: Iuav, Italy

The collected data will be crucial for the implementation of higher education programs. The qualitative analyses of the experts’ questionnaires highlight the central and innovative perspective of Sustainability and Cultural Heritage learning in urban and architectural design. The report aims to collect the information from the expert questionnaires and relate it to a wide cultural and theoretical frame. The primary references for Sustainability and Cultural Heritage learning are: the increase of awareness from Cultural Heritage awareness of the communities, the sharing of quality principles for interventions on Cultural Heritage and the importance of cultural debate concerning Heritage values and Sustainability in our contemporary world