Reducing Boolean Networks with Backward Boolean Equivalence

Boolean Networks (BNs) are established models to qualitatively describe biological systems. The analysis of BNs might be infeasible for medium to large BNs due to the state-space explosion problem. We propose a novel reduction technique called \emph{Backward Boolean Equivalence} (BBE), which preserves some properties of interest of BNs. In particular, reduced BNs provide a compact representation by grouping variables that, if initialized equally, are always updated equally. The resulting reduced state space is a subset of the original one, restricted to identical initialization of grouped variables. The corresponding trajectories of the original BN can be exactly restored. We show the effectiveness of BBE by performing a large-scale validation on the whole GINsim BN repository. In selected cases, we show how our method enables analyses that would be otherwise intractable. Our method complements, and can be combined with, other reduction methods found in the literature

Salmonella enteritidis Infection Complicated by Acute Myocarditis: A Case Report and Review of the Literature

Salmonella spp. is the cause of commonly encountered infections, with seasonal pattern of occurrence and worldwide distribution. Some of the clinical manifestations such as gastroenteritis and bacteremia are common, whereas others like mycotic aneurysms and osteomyelitis are infrequent especially in immunocompetent patients. Salmonella has been rarely described as a cause of myocarditis in the literature. We describe a case of an 18-year-old previously healthy male patient with myocarditis after Salmonella enteritidis infection. Clinical manifestations and diagnostic approach of this severe complication are discussed with a review of the literature

Minimization of Dynamical Systems over Monoids

Quantitative notions of bisimulation are well-known tools for the minimization of dynamical models such as Markov chains and ordinary differential equations (ODEs). In \emph{forward bisimulations}, each state in the quotient model represents an equivalence class and the dynamical evolution gives the overall sum of its members in the original model. Here we introduce generalized forward bisimulation (GFB) for dynamical systems over commutative monoids and develop a partition refinement algorithm to compute the coarsest one. When the monoid is $(\mathbb{R}, +)$, we recover %our framework recovers probabilistic bisimulation for Markov chains and more recent forward bisimulations for %systems of nonlinear ODEs. %ordinary differential equations. Using $(\mathbb{R}, \cdot)$ we get %When the monoid is $(\mathbb{R}, \cdot)$ we can obtain nonlinear reductions for discrete-time dynamical systems and ODEs %ordinary differential equations where each variable in the quotient model represents the product of original variables in the equivalence class. When the domain is a finite set such as the Booleans $\mathbb{B}$, we can apply GFB to Boolean networks (BN), a widely used dynamical model in computational biology. Using a prototype implementation of our minimization algorithm for GFB, we find disjunction- and conjunction-preserving reductions on 60 BN from two well-known repositories, and demonstrate the obtained analysis speed-ups. We also provide the biological interpretation of the reduction obtained for two selected BN, and we show how GFB enables the analysis of a large one that could not be analyzed otherwise. Using a randomized version of our algorithm we find product-preserving (therefore non-linear) reductions on 21 dynamical weighted networks from the literature that could not be handled by the exact algorithm.Comment: Accepted at Thirty-Eighth Annual ACM/IEEE Symposium on Logic in Computer Science (LICS), 202

Inflammatory Markers in Middle-Aged Obese Subjects: Does Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome Play a Role?

Background. Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome (OSAS) is associated with inflammation, but obesity may be a confounding factor. Thus, the aim of this study was to explore differences in serum levels of inflammation markers between obese individuals with or without OSAS. Methods. Healthy individuals (n = 61) from an outpatient obesity clinic were examined by polysomnography and blood analysis, for measurement of TNF-α, IL-6, CRP, and fibrinogen levels. According to Apnea-Hypopnea Index (AHI), participants were divided into two BMI-matched groups: controls (AHI < 15/h, n = 23) and OSAS patients (AHI ≥ 15/h, n = 38). Results. OSAS patients had significantly higher TNF-α levels (P < .001) while no other difference in the examined inflammation markers was recorded between groups. Overall, TNF-α levels were correlated with neck circumference (P < .001), AHI (P = .002), and Oxygen Desaturation Index (P = .002). Conclusions. Obese OSAS patients have elevated TNF-α levels compared to BMI-matched controls, suggesting a role of OSAS in promoting inflammation, possibly mediated by TNF-a

Post-COVID-19 interstitial lung disease: Insights from a machine learning radiographic model

IntroductionPost-acute sequelae of COVID-19 seem to be an emerging global crisis. Machine learning radiographic models have great potential for meticulous evaluation of post-COVID-19 interstitial lung disease (ILD).MethodsIn this multicenter, retrospective study, we included consecutive patients that had been evaluated 3 months following severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection between 01/02/2021 and 12/5/2022. High-resolution computed tomography was evaluated through Imbio Lung Texture Analysis 2.1.ResultsTwo hundred thirty-two (n = 232) patients were analyzed. FVC% predicted was ≥80, between 60 and 79 and &lt;60 in 74.2% (n = 172), 21.1% (n = 49), and 4.7% (n = 11) of the cohort, respectively. DLCO% predicted was ≥80, between 60 and 79 and &lt;60 in 69.4% (n = 161), 15.5% (n = 36), and 15.1% (n = 35), respectively. Extent of ground glass opacities was ≥30% in 4.3% of patients (n = 10), between 5 and 29% in 48.7% of patients (n = 113) and &lt;5% in 47.0% of patients (n = 109). The extent of reticulation was ≥30%, 5–29% and &lt;5% in 1.3% (n = 3), 24.1% (n = 56), and 74.6% (n = 173) of the cohort, respectively. Patients (n = 13, 5.6%) with fibrotic lung disease and persistent functional impairment at the 6-month follow-up received antifibrotics and presented with an absolute change of +10.3 (p = 0.01) and +14.6 (p = 0.01) in FVC% predicted at 3 and 6 months after the initiation of antifibrotic.ConclusionPost-COVID-19-ILD represents an emerging entity. A substantial minority of patients presents with fibrotic lung disease and might experience benefit from antifibrotic initiation at the time point that fibrotic-like changes are “immature.” Machine learning radiographic models could be of major significance for accurate radiographic evaluation and subsequently for the guidance of therapeutic approaches

Contribution to the study of correlation between the use of seatbelts-helmet and the grade of deverity of fractures of the visceral skull

Traffic accidents are one of the most common causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide, especially in the productive ages. Injuries-fractures of the visceral skull are quite common as a result of a traffic accident. The positive impact of the use of seatbelts and helmets in reducing mortality and morbidity in drivers and passengers of cars and motorcycles, respectively, is well known and obvious. The main purpose and object of this study was the correlation between the severity of fractures of the visceral skull in patients who suffered a traffic accident and the use of seatbelts and helmets. A secondary goal was the correlation between the grade of rehabilitation of visceral skull fractures and the use of seatbelts and helmets. The skull is divided into the cerebral and the visceral skull. The bones of the visceral skull include: nasal bones, maxillas, palatine bones, zygomatic bones, mandible, inferior nasal conchaes, vomer, lacrimal bones. The frontal bone, although involved in the formation of the face, belongs to the bones of the cerebral skull. Although the ethmoid bone is involved in the formation of the median orbital wall and the paranasal sinuses, it is considered by many to belong to the bones of the cerebral skull. In this study, the following types of fractures of the visceral skull were assessed according to their location: fractures of the nasal bones and bony nasal pyramid, naso-orbitalethmoid (NOE) fractures, fractures of the zygomatic complex, fractures of the maxillary bone (walls of maxillary sinus, dentoalvelar), mandibular fractures (symphysis / parasymphysis, body, angle, ramus, condylar / subcondylar, coronoidprocess, dentoalveolar), Le Fort fractures (I, II, III, bilateral or unilateral, combined or not), temporomandibular fractures, panfacial fractures. The study involved 120 patients who suffered fractures of the visceral skull after a traffic accident as drivers or passengers of cars or motorcycles and were treated in fully or partially at the University General Hospital of Ioannina from 2015 to 2019. These were 92 men and 28 women. The initial parameters collected, measured and related to the patient and the accident were: age, sex / gender, date of the accident, type of vehicle (car or motorcycle), role / position of the patient in the vehicle (driver or passenger), use or nonuse of safety device (seatbelt or helmet), alcohol effect. The severity of visceral skull fractures was categorized into three severity grades: mild, moderate, high. Mild severity fractures of the visceral skull included: fractures of the bony nasal pyramid, fractures of the walls of the maxillary sinus (except the roof), fractures of the maxillary alveolar processes, mandibular fractures (not including condyle or coronoid process), condylar fractures (without coexisting another fracture in the mandible), fractures of the coronoid process (without coexisting another fracture in the mandible). Moderate severity fractures of the visceral skull included: mandibular fractures involving the condyle or coronoid process and one or more of its other parts (including the possible combination of condylar fractures and fractures of coronoid process), pure fractures of the orbital floor (blow-out & blow-in), zygomatic complex fractures, Le Fort I fractures (including semi-Le Fort I). The coexistence of 2 or more fractures from the following categories was also classified in this grade of severity: fractures of the bony nasal pyramid, fractures of the walls of the maxillary sinus (except the roof), fractures of the maxillary alveolar processes, mandibular fractures. High severity fractures of the visceral skull included: naso-orbital-ethmoid fractures, Le Fort II fractures (including semi-Le Fort II), Le Fort III fractures (including semi-Le Fort III), combined Le Fort fractures, panfacial fractures. Additionally, the parameter of average or total grade of severity of fractures of the visceral skull for each group of patients was created and was equal to the sum of the severity grades for each patient in the group separately by the number of patients in this group. For reasons of completeness, the presence or absence of concomitant injuries in areas other than the visceral skull was also assessed. With regard to the treatment of fractures of the visceral skull, the following parameters were assessed and measured: surgical treatment (presence or absence), date of first or unique surgery, time in days between traffic accident and first or unique surgery, post-operative days of hospitalization, one or more revision surgeries (presence or absence). To assess the grade of rehabilitation of fractures of the visceral skull, criteria were created which could be measured (presence or absence) before and after possible treatment and were as follows: mandibular mobility disorder, maxillary mobilitydisorder (or paradoxical mobility), dental occlusion disorder (malocclusion), cosmetic disorder (strictly due to fractures of the visceral skull). The grade of rehabilitation for each criterion separately could take the following values: complete, partial / none. The overall grade of rehabilitation of fractures of the visceral skull could take one of the following values: complete, partial, none. The results of this study were divided into two categories: drivers and passengers of cars, drivers and passengers of motorcycles. Regarding the group of drivers andpassengers of cars, the following were the main conclusions: The absence of seatbelt use is associated with an increase in the grade ofseverity of fractures of the visceral skull, a relationship that was statistically significant (p0.05). The presence of seatbelt use is associated with a higher grade of rehabilitation of visceral skull fractures, but this relationship that was not statistically significant (p>0.05). Regarding the group of drivers and passengers of motorcycles, the following were the main conclusions: The absence of helmet use is associated with an increase in the grade of severity of fractures of the visceral skull, a relationship that was statistically significant (p0.05). The presence of helmet use is associated with a higher grade of rehabilitation of visceral skull fractures, but this relationship was not statistically significant (p>0.05). The results of our study demonstrate the value of using seatbelt and helmet inpreventing and reducing the morbidity of patients who have been involved in a traffic accident, especially in terms of visceral skull fractures. We hope future studies to be conducted with similar goals, which will probably overcome possible weaknesses of our study and with their conclusions will once again confirm the value of the use of seatbelts and helmets by drivers and passengers of cars and motorcycles respectively further consolidating their use

Ruptured echinococcus cyst

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