1,503 research outputs found
Some Inequalities Involving Means and Their Converses
AbstractUsing an idea of J. Sàndor and V. E. S. Szabó, an inequality of Ky Fan and its generalizations are proved. We also establish some converses of these inequalities. As consequences some well-known inequalities are obtained
Greedy-based Value Representation for Optimal Coordination in Multi-agent Reinforcement Learning
Due to the representation limitation of the joint Q value function,
multi-agent reinforcement learning methods with linear value decomposition
(LVD) or monotonic value decomposition (MVD) suffer from relative
overgeneralization. As a result, they can not ensure optimal consistency (i.e.,
the correspondence between individual greedy actions and the maximal true Q
value). In this paper, we derive the expression of the joint Q value function
of LVD and MVD. According to the expression, we draw a transition diagram,
where each self-transition node (STN) is a possible convergence. To ensure
optimal consistency, the optimal node is required to be the unique STN.
Therefore, we propose the greedy-based value representation (GVR), which turns
the optimal node into an STN via inferior target shaping and further eliminates
the non-optimal STNs via superior experience replay. In addition, GVR achieves
an adaptive trade-off between optimality and stability. Our method outperforms
state-of-the-art baselines in experiments on various benchmarks. Theoretical
proofs and empirical results on matrix games demonstrate that GVR ensures
optimal consistency under sufficient exploration
INEQUALITIES OF J-P-S-F TYPE
By means of the theory of majorization and under the proper hypotheses, the following inequalities of Jensen-Pečarić-Svrtan-Fan (Abbreviated as J-P-S-F) type are established
Bis[bis(2,2′-bipyridine-κ2 N,N′)chloridocopper(II)] bis(μ-2,6-pyridinedicarboxylato)-κ4 O 2,N,O 6:O 6;κ4 O 2:O 2,N,O 6-bis[aquadichloridobismuthate(III)] pentahydrate
In the title compound, [CuCl(C10H8N2)2]2[Bi2Cl4(C7H3NO4)2(H2O)2]·5H2O, the dianion [Bi2Cl4(C7H3NO4)2(H2O)2]2− is located about an inversion center. The CuII atom of the cation is coordinated by four N atoms of the two chelating 2,2′-bypyridine ligands and one Cl− ion, completing a distorted trigonal–bipyramidal coordination environment. In the anion, each BiIII atom is seven-coordinate and is bonded to a tridentate pyridine-2,6-dicarboxylate ligand, a water molecule, two chloride ions and a bridging carboxylate O atom of another carboxylate ligand. The coordination geometry of BiIII is distorted pentagonal–bipyramidal with the Cl− ions located in axial positions. The structure of the dianion is additionally stabilized by an intramolecular O—H⋯O hydrogen bond between the coordinated water molecule and carboxylate O atom. In the crystal, O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds occur . The H atoms of the solvent water molecules could not be located
New cell separation technique for the isolation and analysis of cells from biological mixtures in forensic caseworks
Aim To isolate mucosal cells of the perpetrator in a sexual
assault case from a complex mixture of his mucosal cells
and the victim’s skin by micromanipulation prior to genomic
analysis.
Methods To capture and analyze mucosal cells we used
the micromanipulation with on-chip low volume polymerase
chain reaction (LV-PCR). Consensus DNA profiles
were generated from 5 replicate experiments.
Results and conclusions We validated the use of micromanipulation
with on-chip LV-PCR for genomic analysis of
complex biological mixtures in a fatal rape case. The perpetrator’s
mucosal cells were captured from nipple swabs of
the victim, and a single-source DNA profile was generated
from cell mixtures. These data suggest that micromanipulation
with on-chip LV-PCR is an effective forensic tool for
the analysis of specific cells from complex samples
Overweight worsens apoptosis, neuroinflammation and blood-brain barrier damage after hypoxic ischemia in neonatal brain through JNK hyperactivation
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Apoptosis, neuroinflammation and blood-brain barrier (BBB) damage affect the susceptibility of the developing brain to hypoxic-ischemic (HI) insults. c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) is an important mediator of insulin resistance in obesity. We hypothesized that neonatal overweight aggravates HI brain damage through JNK hyperactivation-mediated upregulation of neuronal apoptosis, neuroinflammation and BBB leakage in rat pups.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Overweight (OF) pups were established by reducing the litter size to 6, and control (NF) pups by keeping the litter size at 12 from postnatal (P) day 1 before HI on P7. Immunohistochemistry and immunoblotting were used to determine the TUNEL-(+) cells and BBB damage, cleaved caspase-3 and poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP), and phospho-JNK and phospho-Bim<sub>EL </sub>levels. Immunofluorescence was performed to determine the cellular distribution of phospho-JNK.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Compared with NF pups, OF pups had a significantly heavier body-weight and greater fat deposition on P7. Compared with the NF-HI group, the OF-HI group showed significant increases of TUNEL-(+) cells, cleaved levels of caspase-3 and PARP, and ED1-(+) activated microglia and BBB damage in the cortex 24 hours post-HI. Immunofluorescence of the OF-HI pups showed that activated-caspase 3 expression was found mainly in NeuN-(+) neurons and RECA1-(+) vascular endothelial cells 24 hours post-HI. The OF-HI group also had prolonged escape latency in the Morris water maze test and greater brain-volume loss compared with the NF-HI group when assessed at adulthood. Phospho-JNK and phospho-Bim<sub>EL </sub>levels were higher in OF-HI pups than in NF-HI pups immediately post-HI. JNK activation in OF-HI pups was mainly expressed in neurons, microglia and vascular endothelial cells. Inhibiting JNK activity by AS601245 caused more attenuation of cleaved caspase-3 and PARP, a greater reduction of microglial activation and BBB damage post-HI, and significantly reduced brain damage in OF-HI than in NF-HI pups.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Neonatal overweight increased HI-induced neuronal apoptosis, microglial activation and BBB damage, and aggravated HI brain damage in rat pups through JNK hyperactivation.</p
The Role of Pre-Existing Diabetes Mellitus on Hepatocellular Carcinoma Occurrence and Prognosis: A Meta-Analysis of Prospective Cohort Studies
The impact of pre-existing diabetes mellitus (DM) on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) occurrence and prognosis is complex and unclear. The aim of this meta-analysis is to evaluate the association between pre-existing diabetes mellitus and hepatocellular carcinoma occurrence and prognosis.We searched PubMed, Embase and the Cochrane Library from their inception to January, 2011 for prospective epidemiological studies assessing the effect of pre-existing diabetes mellitus on hepatocellular carcinoma occurrence, mortality outcomes, cancer recurrence, and treatment-related complications. Study-specific risk estimates were combined by using fixed effect or random effect models.The database search generated a total of 28 prospective studies that met the inclusion criteria. Among these studies, 14 reported the risk of HCC incidence and 6 studies reported risk of HCC specific mortality. Six studies provided a total of 8 results for all-cause mortality in HCC patients. Four studies documented HCC recurrence risks and 2 studies reported risks for hepatic decomposition occurrence in HCC patients. Meta-analysis indicated that pre-existing diabetes mellitus (DM) was significantly associated with increased risk of HCC incidence [meta-relative risk (RR) = 1.87, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.15-2.27] and HCC-specific mortality (meta-RR = 1.88, 95%CI: 1.39-2.55) compared with their non-DM counterparts. HCC patients with pre-existing DM had a 38% increased (95% CI: 1.13-1.48) risk of death from all-causes and 91% increased (95%CI: 1.41-2.57) risk of hepatic decomposition occurrence compared to those without DM. In DM patients, the meta-RR for HCC recurrence-free survival was 1.93(95%CI: 1.12-3.33) compared with non-diabetic patients.The findings from the current meta-analysis suggest that DM may be both associated with elevated risks of both HCC incidence and mortality. Furthermore, HCC patients with pre-existing diabetes have a poorer prognosis relative to their non-diabetic counterparts
Diaquabis(2,2′-biimidazole)cobalt(II) dichloride
There are independent cations and four chloride anions in the crystal structure of the title complex, [Co(C6H6N4)2(H2O)2]Cl2. In each cation, the CoII cation is coordinated by four N atoms from two biimidazole and two O atoms of two water molecules; one Co atom is at a position of site symmetry m, the other at a position of site symmetry 2/m. All Cl− ions and water molecules are also located on the mirror plane. Each structural unit is connected through O—H⋯Cl and N—H⋯Cl intermolecular hydrogen bonds, forming a three–dimensional supramolecular structure
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