Delaunay-restricted Optimal Triangulation of 3D Polygons

Triangulation of 3D polygons is a well studied topic of research. Existing methods for finding triangulations that minimize given metrics (e.g., sum of triangle areas or dihedral angles) run in a costly O(n4) time [BS95,BDE96], while the triangulations are not guaranteed to be free of intersections. To address these limitations, we restrict our search to the space of triangles in the Delaunay tetrahedralization of the polygon. The restriction allows us to reduce the running time down to O(n2) in practice (O(n3) worst case) while guaranteeing that the solutions are intersection free. We demonstrate experimentally that the reduced search space is not overly restricted. In particular, triangulations restricted to this space usually exist for practical inputs, and the optimal triangulation in this space approximates well the optimal triangulation of the polygon. This makes our algorithms a practical solution when working with real world data

Commitments to Quantum States

What does it mean to commit to a quantum state? In this work, we propose a simple answer: a commitment to quantum messages is binding if, after the commit phase, the committed state is hidden from the sender's view. We accompany this new definition with several instantiations. We build the first non-interactive succinct quantum state commitments, which can be seen as an analogue of collision-resistant hashing for quantum messages. We also show that hiding quantum state commitments (QSCs) are implied by any commitment scheme for classical messages. All of our constructions can be based on quantum-cryptographic assumptions that are implied by but are potentially weaker than one-way functions. Commitments to quantum states open the door to many new cryptographic possibilities. Our flagship application of a succinct QSC is a quantum-communication version of Kilian's succinct arguments for any language that has quantum PCPs with constant error and polylogarithmic locality. Plugging in the PCP theorem, this yields succinct arguments for NP under significantly weaker assumptions than required classically; moreover, if the quantum PCP conjecture holds, this extends to QMA. At the heart of our security proof is a new rewinding technique for extracting quantum information

Identification of Genetic Association of Multiple Rare Variants Using Collapsing Methods

Next-generation sequencing technology allows investigation of both common and rare variants in humans. Exomes are sequenced on the population level or in families to further study the genetics of human diseases. Genetic Analysis Workshop 17 (GAW17) provided exomic data from the 1000 Genomes Project and simulated phenotypes. These data enabled evaluations of existing and newly developed statistical methods for rare variant sequence analysis for which standard statistical methods fail because of the rareness of the alleles. Various alternative approaches have been proposed that overcome the rareness problem by combining multiple rare variants within a gene. These approaches are termed collapsing methods, and our GAW17 group focused on studying the performance of existing and novel collapsing methods using rare variants. All tested methods performed similarly, as measured by type I error and power. Inflated type I error fractions were consistently observed and might be caused by gametic phase disequilibrium between causal and noncausal rare variants in this relatively small sample as well as by population stratification. Incorporating prior knowledge, such as appropriate covariates and information on functionality of SNPs, increased the power of detecting associated genes. Overall, collapsing rare variants can increase the power of identifying disease-associated genes. However, studying genetic associations of rare variants remains a challenging task that requires further development and improvement in data collection, management, analysis, and computation

TDP-43 Liquid-Liquid Phase Separation (LLPS) Deficiency Attenuates Amyloid Beta Deposition in the 5XFAD Transgenic Mouse Model of Alzheimer\u27s Disease

Background: TAR DNA-binding protein 43 (TDP-43) can be found within the cell nucleus in most tissues and is a fundamental component to protein production, as it works to slice and reconfigure mRNA molecules. Recently, TDP-43 inclusions have been identified as a prevalent proteinopathy in the brains of individuals diagnosed with Alzheimer\u27s Disease (AD). However, despite the growing body of evidence demonstrating the important role of TDP-43 in AD pathogenesis, whether and how TDP-43 proteinopathy and other AD pathological hallmarks interact remain largely unknown. Furthermore, TDP-43 has a high propensity to undergo liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS), a biological process necessary for the condensation of proteins, nucleic acids, and other biomolecules. Purpose of Research: The correlation between TDP-43 LLPS and AD deposition is an intriguing, yet currently unexplored area of interest. The purpose of this study is to investigate whether and how TDP-43 and its phase separation are involved in amyloid deposition in APP transgenic mice for Alzheimer\u27s Disease. Methods: We crossed our recently generated mice expressing endogenous LLPS-deficient murine TDP-43 with the widely used 5XFAD transgenic mouse model. Different approaches were then performed to assess amyloid deposition and associated neuroinflammation. Results: When compared to 5XFAD mice, 5XFAD mice expressing LLPS-deficient TDP-43 showed significantly reduced amyloid deposition throughout the brain. Neuroinflammation, as evaluated by GFAP and Iba1 expression was also alleviated by LLPS-deficient TDP-43. Conclusion: For the first time, our study demonstrates the likely role TDP-43 LLPS plays in amyloid deposition. And, targeting TDP-43 LLPS may serve as a novel therapeutic approach to Alzheimer\u27s Disease treatment.https://digitalcommons.unmc.edu/surp2021/1036/thumbnail.jp

Multiple Pyogenic Liver Abscesses Caused by Eggerthella lenta Treated with Ertapenem: A Case Report

Anaerobic gram-positive bacilli can occasionally be implicated in infections but are difficult to identify in culture by conventional biochemical methods. We report a case of liver abscesses caused by Eggerthella lenta, identified via 16S rRNA sequencing in a previously healthy patient, successfully treated with percutaneous drainage and ertapenem

Combinatorial fluorescence energy transfer molecular beacons for probing nucleic acid sequences

We report the design, synthesis, and characterization of molecular beacons (MB) consisting of three distinct fluorophores, 6-carboxyfluorescein (Fam), N,N,N ,N -tetramethyl-6-carboxyrhodamine (Tam), and Cyanine-5 (Cy5). The primary light absorber/energy donor (Fam) is located on one terminus of the MB, whereas the primary energy acceptor/secondary donor (Tam) and secondary acceptor (Cy5) are located at the other terminus of the MB. In the absence of target DNA or RNA, the MB exists in the stem-closed form. Excitation of Fam initiates an energy transfer cascade from Fam to Tam and further to Cy5 generating unique fluorescence signatures defined as the ratio of the emission from each of the three fluorophores. This energy transfer cascade was investigated in detail by steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy, as well as fluorescence depolarization studies. In the presence of the complementary target DNA, the MB opened efficiently and hybridized with the target separating Fam and Tam by a large distance, so that energy transfer from Fam to Tam was blocked in the stem-open form. This opening of the MB generates a "bar code" fluorescence signature, which is different from the signature of the stem-closed MB. The fluorescence signature of this combinatorial fluorescence energy transfer MB can be tuned by variation of the spacer length between the individual fluorophores

Inorganic−Organic Hybrid Luminescent Binary Probe for DNA Detection Based on Spin-Forbidden Resonance Energy Transfer

We describe the design of new fluorescent binary probe sensors for DNA detection based on spin-forbidden resonance energy transfer (SF-RET). Binary probes consist of a donor and acceptor fluorophores that are attached to two different oligonucleotides and serve as a resonance energy transfer (RET) donor−acceptor pair when hybridized to adjacent sites of a target sequence. In the absence of target, excitation of the donor results in fluorescence only from the donor, but when the probes hybridize to the target, the fluorophores are brought into close proximity favoring RET, yielding fluorescence mainly from the acceptor fluorophore. These new binary probes use the metal complex Ru(bpy‘)(DIP)_2^(2+) as the energy donor and an organic fluorophore (Cy5) as the energy acceptor. Energy transfer from the MLCT state of the Ru complex to singlet Cy5 is spin forbidden and produces a delayed fluorescence of Cy5. This paper demonstrates that fluorescence delay of Cy5 can be used to time resolve the emission of the probe from the intense fluorescence background of a model system for cellular background; this provides the reported system to overcome intense autofluorescence, an important and general advantage over “classical” spin-allowed steady-state probes

The role of inhaled and/or nasal corticosteroids on the bronchodilator response

PurposeTo compare the profiles of the bronchodilator response (BDR) among children with asthma and/or allergic rhinitis (AR) and to determine whether BDR in these children is reduced by treatment with inhaled and/or nasal corticosteroid.MethodsSixty-eight children with asthma (mean age, 10.9 years), 45 children with comorbid asthma and AR (mean age, 10.5 years), and 44 children with AR alone (mean age, 10.2 years) were investigated. After a 2-week baseline period, all children were treated with inhaled fluticasone propionate (either 100 or 250 µg b.i.d., tailored to asthma severity) or nasal fluticasone propionate (one spray b.i.d. in each nostril) or both, according to the condition. Before and 2 weeks after starting treatment, all children were evaluated with spirometry and bronchodilator testing. BDR was calculated as a percent change from the forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) at baseline.ResultsThe mean BDR was 10.3% [95% confidence interval (CI) 8.3-12.4%] in children with asthma, 9.0% (95% CI 7.3-10.9%) in subjects with asthma and AR, and 5.0% (95% CI 4.1-5.9%) in children with AR alone (P<0.001). After treatment, the mean BDR was reduced to 5.2% (95% CI 4.2-6.3%) (P<0.001) in children with asthma and to 4.5% (95% CI 3.5-5.5%) (P<0.001) in children with asthma and AR. However, children with rhinitis showed no significant change in BDR after treatment, with the mean value being 4.7% (95% CI 3.7-5.8%) (P=0.597).ConclusionThe findings of this study imply that an elevated BDR in children with AR cannot be attributed to nasal inflammation alone and highlights the close relationship between the upper and lower airways