Renormalization group and isochronous oscillations

We show how the condition of isochronicity can be studied for two dimensional systems in the renormalization group (RG) context. We find a necessary condition for the isochronicity of the Cherkas and another class of cubic systems. Our conditions are satisfied by all the cases studied recently by Bardet et al \cite{bard} and Ghose Choudhury and Guh

The dual developmental origin of spinal cerebrospinal fluid-contacting neurons gives rise to distinct functional subtypes.

Chemical and mechanical cues from the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) can affect the development and function of the central nervous system (CNS). How such cues are detected and relayed to the CNS remains elusive. Cerebrospinal fluid-contacting neurons (CSF-cNs) situated at the interface between the CSF and the CNS are ideally located to convey such information to local networks. In the spinal cord, these GABAergic neurons expressing the PKD2L1 channel extend an apical extension into the CSF and an ascending axon in the spinal cord. In zebrafish and mouse spinal CSF-cNs originate from two distinct progenitor domains characterized by distinct cascades of transcription factors. Here we ask whether these neurons with different developmental origins differentiate into cells types with different functional properties. We show in zebrafish larva that the expression of specific markers, the morphology of the apical extension and axonal projections, as well as the neuronal targets contacted by CSF-cN axons, distinguish the two CSF-cN subtypes. Altogether our study demonstrates that the developmental origins of spinal CSF-cNs give rise to two distinct functional populations of sensory neurons. This work opens novel avenues to understand how these subtypes may carry distinct functions related to development of the spinal cord, locomotion and posture

Identification of Class I HLA T Cell Control Epitopes for West Nile Virus

The recent West Nile virus (WNV) outbreak in the United States underscores the importance of understanding human immune responses to this pathogen. Via the presentation of viral peptide ligands at the cell surface, class I HLA mediate the T cell recognition and killing of WNV infected cells. At this time, there are two key unknowns in regards to understanding protective T cell immunity: 1) the number of viral ligands presented by the HLA of infected cells, and 2) the distribution of T cell responses to these available HLA/viral complexes. Here, comparative mass spectroscopy was applied to determine the number of WNV peptides presented by the HLA-A*11:01 of infected cells after which T cell responses to these HLA/WNV complexes were assessed. Six viral peptides derived from capsid, NS3, NS4b, and NS5 were presented. When T cells from infected individuals were tested for reactivity to these six viral ligands, polyfunctional T cells were focused on the GTL9 WNV capsid peptide, ligands from NS3, NS4b, and NS5 were less immunogenic, and two ligands were largely inert, demonstrating that class I HLA reduce the WNV polyprotein to a handful of immune targets and that polyfunctional T cells recognize infections by zeroing in on particular HLA/WNV epitopes. Such dominant HLA/peptide epitopes are poised to drive the development of WNV vaccines that elicit protective T cells as well as providing key antigens for immunoassays that establish correlates of viral immunity. © 2013 Kaabinejadian et al

The nuclear receptors of Biomphalaria glabrata and Lottia gigantea: Implications for developing new model organisms

© 2015 Kaur et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are creditedNuclear receptors (NRs) are transcription regulators involved in an array of diverse physiological functions including key roles in endocrine and metabolic function. The aim of this study was to identify nuclear receptors in the fully sequenced genome of the gastropod snail, Biomphalaria glabrata, intermediate host for Schistosoma mansoni and compare these to known vertebrate NRs, with a view to assessing the snail's potential as a invertebrate model organism for endocrine function, both as a prospective new test organism and to elucidate the fundamental genetic and mechanistic causes of disease. For comparative purposes, the genome of a second gastropod, the owl limpet, Lottia gigantea was also investigated for nuclear receptors. Thirty-nine and thirty-three putative NRs were identified from the B. glabrata and L. gigantea genomes respectively, based on the presence of a conserved DNA-binding domain and/or ligand-binding domain. Nuclear receptor transcript expression was confirmed and sequences were subjected to a comparative phylogenetic analysis, which demonstrated that these molluscs have representatives of all the major NR subfamilies (1-6). Many of the identified NRs are conserved between vertebrates and invertebrates, however differences exist, most notably, the absence of receptors of Group 3C, which includes some of the vertebrate endocrine hormone targets. The mollusc genomes also contain NR homologues that are present in insects and nematodes but not in vertebrates, such as Group 1J (HR48/DAF12/HR96). The identification of many shared receptors between humans and molluscs indicates the potential for molluscs as model organisms; however the absence of several steroid hormone receptors indicates snail endocrine systems are fundamentally different.The National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research, Grant Ref:G0900802 to CSJ, LRN, SJ & EJR [www.nc3rs.org.uk]

Summary report of the Standards, Options and Recommendations for the management of patients with non-small-cell lung carcinoma (2000)

SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Characterizations and simulations of a class of stochastic processes to model anomalous diffusion

In this paper we study a parametric class of stochastic processes to model both fast and slow anomalous diffusion. This class, called generalized grey Brownian motion (ggBm), is made up off self-similar with stationary increments processes (H-sssi) and depends on two real parameters alpha in (0,2) and beta in (0,1]. It includes fractional Brownian motion when alpha in (0,2) and beta=1, and time-fractional diffusion stochastic processes when alpha=beta in (0,1). The latters have marginal probability density function governed by time-fractional diffusion equations of order beta. The ggBm is defined through the explicit construction of the underline probability space. However, in this paper we show that it is possible to define it in an unspecified probability space. For this purpose, we write down explicitly all the finite dimensional probability density functions. Moreover, we provide different ggBm characterizations. The role of the M-Wright function, which is related to the fundamental solution of the time-fractional diffusion equation, emerges as a natural generalization of the Gaussian distribution. Furthermore, we show that ggBm can be represented in terms of the product of a random variable, which is related to the M-Wright function, and an independent fractional Brownian motion. This representation highlights the $H$-{\bf sssi} nature of the ggBm and provides a way to study and simulate the trajectories. For this purpose, we developed a random walk model based on a finite difference approximation of a partial integro-differenital equation of fractional type.Comment: 25 pages, 9 figure

Pharmacists in general practice: a qualitative interview case study of stakeholders’ experiences in a West London GP Federation

Background Increased patient demand for healthcare services coupled with a shortage of general practitioners necessitates changes in professional roles and service delivery. In 2016, NHS England began a three year pilot study of pharmacists in general practice, however, this is not an entirely new initiative. There is limited, current, evidence-based, UK research to inform the pilot so studies of pre-existing services must suffice until findings from a formal national evaluation are available. Methods The aim of this exploratory, descriptive interview study was to explore the experiences of stakeholders in eight general practices in the Ealing GP Federation, West London, where pharmacy services have been provided for several years. Forty-seven participants, including pharmacy team members (pre-registration and clinical pharmacists, independent prescribers and pharmacy technicians), general practitioners, patients, practice managers, practice nurses and receptionists took part in semi-structured, audio-recorded qualitative interviews which were transcribed verbatim, coded and analysed thematically to extract the issues raised by participants and the practicalities of providing pharmacy services in general practice. Results Findings are reported under the themes of Complementarity (incorporating roles, skills, education and workloads); Integration (incorporating relationships, trust and communication) and Practicalities (incorporating location and space, access, and costs). Participants reported the need for time to develop and understand the various roles, develop communication processes and build inter-professional trust. Once these were established, however, experiences were positive and included decreased workloads, increased patient safety, improved job satisfaction, improved patient relationships, and enhanced cost savings. Areas for improvement included patients’ awareness of services; pharmacists’ training; and regular, onsite access for practice staff to the pharmacy team. Conclusions Recommendations are made for the development of clear role definitions, identification of training needs, dedication of time for team building, production of educational materials for practice staff members and patients, and provision of on-site, full-time pharmacy services. Future work should focus on evaluation of various models of employing pharmacy teams in general practice; integration of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians into multidisciplinary general practice teams; relationships between local community pharmacy and general practice personnel and patients’ service and information needs. A formal national evaluation of the pilot scheme is overdue