cometadata/datacite-rtg-text-other-reclassification-records huggingface dataset:
Exceptional chemotherapy response in metastatic colorectal cancer associated with hyper-indel-hypermutated cancer genome and comutation of POLD1 and MLH1
Creators: name: Toffoli, G.
name: Auman, J.T.
name: Posocco, B.
name: Parker, J.S.
name: Hayes, D.N.
name: Polite, B.N.
name: Marangon, E.
name: Yin, X.
name: Innocenti, F.
name: Hayward, M.C.
name: Patel, N.M.
name: Sharma, M.R.
name: Zhao, X.
name: Moschos, S.J.
name: Grilley-Olson, J.E.
Publisher: name: American Society of Clinical Oncology
Year: 2017

description: Purpose A 73-year-old woman with metastatic colon cancer experienced a complete response to chemotherapy with dose-intensified irinotecan that has been durable for 5 years.Wesequenced her tumor and germ line DNA and looked for similar patterns in publicly available genomic data from patients with colorectal cancer. Patients and Methods Tumor DNA was obtained from a biopsy before therapy, and germ line DNA was obtained from blood. Tumor and germline DNA were sequenced using a commercial panel with approximately 250 genes. Whole-genome amplification and exome sequencing were performed for POLE and POLD1. A POLD1 mutation was confirmed by Sanger sequencing. The somatic mutation and clinical annotation data files from the colon (n = 461) and rectal (n = 171) adenocarcinoma data sets were downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas data portal and analyzed for patterns of mutations and clinical outcomes in patients withPOLE- and/orPOLD1- mutated tumors. Results The pattern of alterations included APC biallelic inactivation and microsatellite instability high (MSI-H) phenotype, with somatic inactivation of MLH1 and hypermutation (estimated mutation rate > 200 per megabase). The extremely high mutation rate led us to investigate additional mechanisms for hypermutation, including loss of function of POLE. POLE was unaltered, but a related gene not typically associated with somatic mutation in colon cancer, POLD1, had a somatic mutation c.2171G > A[p.Gly724Glu]. Additionally, we noted that the high mutation rate was largely composed of dinucleotide deletions. A similar pattern of hypermutation (dinucleotide deletions, POLD1 mutations, MSI-H) was found in tumors from The Cancer Genome Atlas. Conclusion POLD1 mutation with associated MSI-H and hyper-indel-hypermutated cancer genome characterizes a previously unrecognized variant of colon cancer that was found in this patient with an exceptional response to chemotherapy.
Molecular and clinical characterization of a claudin-low subtype of gastric cancer
Creators: name: Bortone, D.S.
name: Sanoff, H.K.
name: Nishijima, T.F.
name: Lee, M.S.
name: Parker, J.S.
name: Selitsky, S.R.
name: Smith, C.C.
name: Vincent, B.G.
name: Kardos, J.
name: Chai, S.
Publisher: name: American Society of Clinical Oncology
Year: 2017

description: Purpose Claudin-low molecular subtypes have been identified in breast and bladder cancers and are characterized by low expression of claudins, enrichment for epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT), and tumor-initiating cell (TIC) features. We evaluated whether the claudin-low subtype also exists in gastric cancer. Materials and Methods Four hundred fifteen tumors from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) gastric cancer mRNA data set were clustered on the claudin, EMT, and TIC gene sets to identify claudin-low tumors. We derived a 24-gene predictor that classifies gastric cancer into claudin-low and non-claudin-low subtypes. This predictor was validated with the Asian Cancer Research Group(ACRG)data set. We characterized molecular and clinical features of claudin-low tumors. Results We identified 46 tumors that had consensus enrichment for claudin-low features in TCGA data set. Claudin-low tumors were most commonly diffuse histologic type (82%) and originally classified as TCGA genomically stable(GS)subtype (78%). Compared with GS subtype, claudin-low subtype had significant activation in Rho family of GTPases signaling, which appears to play a key role in its EMT and TIC properties. In the ACRG data set, 28 of 300 samples were classified as claudin-low tumors by the 24-gene predictor and were phenotypically similar to the initially derived claudin-low tumors. Clinically, claudin-low subtype had the worst overall survival. Of note, the hazard ratios that compared claudin-low versus GS subtype were 2.10 (95% CI, 1.07 to 4.11) in TCGA and 2.32 (95% CI, 1.18 to 4.55) in the ACRG cohorts, with adjustment for age and pathologic stage. Conclusion We identified a gastric claudin-low subtype that carries a poor prognosis likely related to therapeutic resistance as a result of its EMT and TIC phenotypes.
A new look at microlensing limits on dark matter in the Galactic halo
Creators: name: Hawkins, M. R. S.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Astrophysics of Galaxies (astro-ph.GA)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: The motivation for this paper is to review the limits set on the MACHO content of the Galactic halo by microlensing experiments in the direction of the Large Magellanic Cloud. This has been prompted by recent measurements of the Galactic rotation curve, which suggest that the limits have been biassed by the assumption of an over-massive halo. The paper first discusses the security of the detection efficiency calculations which are central to deriving the MACHO content of the Galactic halo. It then sets out to compare the rotation curves from various halo models with recent observations, with a view to establishing what limits can be put on an all-MACHO halo. The main thrust of the paper is to investigate whether lighter halo models which are consistent with microlensing by an all-MACHO halo are also consistent with recent measures of the Galactic rotation curve. In this case the population of bodies discovered by the MACHO collaboration would make up the entire dark matter content of the Galactic halo. The main result of this paper is that it is easy to find low mass halo models consistent with the observed Galactic rotation curve, which also imply an optical depth to microlensing similar to that found by the MACHO collaboration. This means that all-MACHO halos cannot be ruled out on the basis of their observations. In conclusion, limits placed on the MACHO content of the Galactic halo from microlensing surveys in the Magellanic Clouds are inconsistent and model dependent, and do not provide a secure basis for rejecting an all-MACHO halo.
description: 8 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in A&A
BRG1 and BRM function antagonistically with c-MYC in adult cardiomyocytes to regulate conduction and contractility
Creators: name: Jain, M.K.
name: Wolfram, J.A.
name: Bultman, S.J.
name: Quintana, M.
name: Jensen, B.C.
name: Jeyaraj, D.
name: Lee, H.-G.
name: Holley, D.W.
name: Chen, X.
name: Wang, Z.
name: Willis, M.S.
name: Parker, J.
name: Tannu, M.
Publisher: name: Academic Press
Year: 2017

description: Rationale The contractile dysfunction that underlies heart failure involves perturbations in multiple biological processes ranging from metabolism to electrophysiology. Yet the epigenetic mechanisms that are altered in this disease state have not been elucidated. SWI/SNF chromatin-remodeling complexes are plausible candidates based on mouse knockout studies demonstrating a combined requirement for the BRG1 and BRM catalytic subunits in adult cardiomyocytes. Brg1/Brm double mutants exhibit metabolic and mitochondrial defects and are not viable although their cause of death has not been ascertained. Objective To determine the cause of death of Brg1/Brm double-mutant mice, to test the hypothesis that BRG1 and BRM are required for cardiac contractility, and to identify relevant downstream target genes. Methods and results A tamoxifen-inducible gene-targeting strategy utilizing αMHC-Cre-ERT was implemented to delete both SWI/SNF catalytic subunits in adult cardiomyocytes. Brg1/Brm double-mutant mice were monitored by echocardiography and electrocardiography, and they underwent rapidly progressive ventricular dysfunction including conduction defects and arrhythmias that culminated in heart failure and death within 3 weeks. Mechanistically, BRG1/BRM repressed c-Myc expression, and enforced expression of a DOX-inducible c-MYC trangene in mouse cardiomyocytes phenocopied the ventricular conduction defects observed in Brg1/Brm double mutants. BRG1/BRM and c-MYC had opposite effects on the expression of cardiac conduction genes, and the directionality was consistent with their respective loss- and gain-of-function phenotypes. To support the clinical relevance of this mechanism, BRG1/BRM occupancy was diminished at the same target genes in human heart failure cases compared to controls, and this correlated with increased c-MYC expression and decreased CX43 and SCN5A expression. Conclusion BRG1/BRM and c-MYC have an antagonistic relationship regulating the expression of cardiac conduction genes that maintain contractility, which is reminiscent of their antagonistic roles as a tumor suppressor and oncogene in cancer.
$B$−$\bar{B}$ mixing: decay matrix at high precision
Creators: name: Nierste, U.
Publisher: name: Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA)
Year: 2022

description: I review the status of the Standard-Model prediction of the width difference $\Delta$$\Gamma$$_s$ among the two $B$$_s$ meson eigenstates. Ongoing effort addresses three-loop QCD corrections, corresponding to the next-to-next-to-leading order of QCD. With an improved theoretical precision of the ratio $\Delta$$\Gamma$$_s$/$\Delta$$M$$_s$, where $\Delta$$M$$_s$ denotes the mass difference in the $B$$_s$-$\bar{B}$s system, one can probe new physics in $\Delta$$M$$_s$ without sensitivity to |$V$$_{cb}$|, whose value is currently controversial.
Identification of control targets in Boolean molecular network models via computational algebra
Creators: name: Murrugarra, David
name: Veliz-Cuba, Alan
name: Aguilar, Boris
name: Laubenbacher, Reinhard
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Molecular Networks (q-bio.MN)
subject: FOS: Biological sciences

description: Motivation: Many problems in biomedicine and other areas of the life sciences can be characterized as control problems, with the goal of finding strategies to change a disease or otherwise undesirable state of a biological system into another, more desirable, state through an intervention, such as a drug or other therapeutic treatment. The identification of such strategies is typically based on a mathematical model of the process to be altered through targeted control inputs. This paper focuses on processes at the molecular level that determine the state of an individual cell, involving signaling or gene regulation. The mathematical model type considered is that of Boolean networks. The potential control targets can be represented by a set of nodes and edges that can be manipulated to produce a desired effect on the system. Experimentally, node manipulation requires technology to completely repress or fully activate a particular gene product while edge manipulations only require a drug that inactivates the interaction between two gene products. Results: This paper presents a method for the identification of potential intervention targets in Boolean molecular network models using algebraic techniques. The approach exploits an algebraic representation of Boolean networks to encode the control candidates in the network wiring diagram as the solutions of a system of polynomials equations, and then uses computational algebra techniques to find such controllers. The control methods in this paper are validated through the identification of combinatorial interventions in the signaling pathways of previously reported control targets in two well studied systems, a p53-mdm2 network and a blood T cell lymphocyte granular leukemia survival signaling network.
description: 12 pages, 4 figures, 2 tables
Open research practices required or incentivised by UK health research funders
Creators: name: Logullo, Patricia
name: Collins, Gary
Publisher: name: Open Science Framework
Year: 2022
Subjects: subject: code sharing
subject: data sharing
subject: funders
subject: funding
subject: materials sharing
subject: open data
subject: open research
subject: open research practices
subject: open science
subject: research integrity
subject: UK funders

description: Information about what open research practices are suggested, incentivised or required from health researchers by the UK funders listed
The Goodman-Nguyen Relation within Imprecise Probability Theory
Creators: name: Pelessoni, Renato
name: Vicig, Paolo
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Probability (math.PR)
subject: FOS: Mathematics

description: The Goodman-Nguyen relation is a partial order generalising the implication (inclusion) relation to conditional events. As such, with precise probabilities it both induces an agreeing probability ordering and is a key tool in a certain common extension problem. Most previous work involving this relation is concerned with either conditional event algebras or precise probabilities. We investigate here its role within imprecise probability theory, first in the framework of conditional events and then proposing a generalisation of the Goodman-Nguyen relation to conditional gambles. It turns out that this relation induces an agreeing ordering on coherent or C-convex conditional imprecise previsions. In a standard inferential problem with conditional events, it lets us determine the natural extension, as well as an upper extension. With conditional gambles, it is useful in deriving a number of inferential inequalities.
description: Published version: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0888613X14001017
Crisis at the Delhi Jal Board
Creators: name: P Praveen Siddharth,
name: Shriya Mohan,
Publisher: name: National University of Singapore
Year: 2010
Subjects: India
New Delhi
water sector reform
civil society
world bank
privatisation of water

description: This case study highlights some of the issues in restructuring public institutions in developing countries with active civil society organisations. New Delhi, the large and fast growing capital city of India, has had a water problem for years which is a result of not just water shortage but also inefficient water management. In 1998, the local Delhi authorities embarked on a project to reform the local water supply authority, the Delhi Jal Board and approached the World Bank for assistance. The World Bank granted an initial loan of $2.5 Million for hiring consultants to study the issues and submit recommendations. Based on the advice of the selected consultants, the Delhi authorities planned to introduce reforms in two of the 21 existing water districts as a pilot scheme with additional funding from the World Bank to part-finance the project. However, this ran into rough weather with environmentalists as well as anti-corruption citizen groups protesting against the ‘privatization’ of water amid allegations of irregularities in awarding the project to the selected consultants by the World Bank.
EXERCISE INTENSITY AND PACING STRATEGY OF A 5-KM INDOOR RACE WALK DURING A WORLD RECORD ATTEMPT: A CASE STUDY
Creators: name: VERNILLO, GIANLUCA
Publisher: name: Universit� degli Studi di Milano
Year: 2012

description: The aim of this case study was to describe the physiological and regulatory processes, by means of heart rate (HR) monitoring and pacing strategy, in a top-level race walker (age: 32 years; height: 1.76 m; body mass: 62 kg; training volume: 130?150 km?wk-1) who was focused on the attainment of the 5-km indoor race walk (RW) World Record. The HRmean was 185 6 14.9 b?min-1, with an HRmean/HRmax ratio of 0.96. Almost the whole race (91.8%) was performed to an intensity ?90% of the HRmax; lower intensity work was negligible (8.1%). The race profile was a reverse J-shaped pacing curve; in fact, the athlete completed the first 1,000 m in the fastest time, slowing during the middle 3,000 m, and increasing the speed during the final 1,000 m of the race. Despite the attempt failed (the athlete performed only the 2009 World leading performance, 18 minutes 23 seconds 47 tenths), these data suggest that a more linear strain distribution for the entire performance would be optimal instead of a fast-start strategy, which leads to a drastic decrement of the walking velocity. Moreover, this study supports the use of HR monitoring combined with the regulation of the effort to understand the physiological and regulatory processes during an indoor RW event.
Making sense of Open Data Statistics with Information from Wikipedia
Creators: name: Hienert, Daniel
name: Wegener, Dennis
name: Schomisch, Siegfried
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Human-Computer Interaction (cs.HC)
subject: Computers and Society (cs.CY)
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences

description: Today, more and more open data statistics are published by governments, statistical offices and organizations like the United Nations, The World Bank or Eurostat. This data is freely available and can be consumed by end users in interactive visualizations. However, additional information is needed to enable laymen to interpret these statistics in order to make sense of the raw data. In this paper, we present an approach to combine open data statistics with historical events. In a user interface we have integrated interactive visualizations of open data statistics with a timeline of thematically appropriate historical events from Wikipedia. This can help users to explore statistical data in several views and to get related events for certain trends in the timeline. Events include links to Wikipedia articles, where details can be found and the search process can be continued. We have conducted a user study to evaluate if users can use the interface intuitively, if relations between trends in statistics and historical events can be found and if users like this approach for their exploration process.
description: In Availability, reliability, and security in information systems and HCI : IFIP 8.4, 8.9, TC 5 International Cross-Domain Conference, CD-ARES 2013, Regensburg, Germany, September 2-6, 2013 ; proceedings, edited by Alfredo Cuzzocrea, Christian Kittl, Dimitris E. Simos, Edgar Weippl, and Lida Xu, Lecture Notes in Computer Science 8127, 329-344
List of UK funders of research in health
Creators: name: Logullo, Patricia
name: Collins, Gary
Publisher: name: Open Science Framework
Year: 2022
Subjects: subject: code sharing
subject: data sharing
subject: funders
subject: funding
subject: materials sharing
subject: open data
subject: open research
subject: open research practices
subject: open science
subject: research integrity
subject: UK funders

description: List of not-for-profit organisations that provide financial support to health researchers working in the United Kingdom
Combined kinase inhibitors of MEK1/2 and either PI3K or PDGFR are efficacious in intracranial triple-negative breast cancer
Creators: name: Deal, A.
name: Siegel, M.B.
name: Sambade, M.J.
name: Johnson, G.L.
name: Golitz, B.T.
name: Van Swearingen, A.E.D.
name: Chen, X.
name: Mounsey, L.
name: Sud, S.
name: Bash, R.E.
name: Miller, C.R.
name: Santos, C.
name: Bevill, S.M.
name: Rashid, N.
name: McNeill, R.S.
name: Parker, J.S.
name: Anders, C.K.
Publisher: name: Oxford University Press
Year: 2017

description: Background: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), lacking expression of hormone and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 receptors, is an aggressive subtype that frequently metastasizes to the brain and has no FDA-approved systemic therapies. Previous literature demonstrates mitogen-Activated protein kinase kinase (MEK) pathway activation in TNBC brain metastases. Thus, we aimed to discover rational combinatorial therapies with MEK inhibition, hypothesizing that co-inhibition using clinically available brain-penetrant inhibitors would improve survival in preclinical models of TNBC brain metastases. Methods: Using human-derived TNBC cell lines, synthetic lethal small interfering RNA kinase screens were evaluated with brain-penetrant inhibitors against MEK1/2 (selumetinib, AZD6244) or phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase (PI3K; buparlisib, BKM120). Mice bearing intracranial TNBC tumors (SUM149, MDA-MB-231Br, MDA-MB-468, or MDA-MB-436) were treated with MEK, PI3K, or platelet derived growth factor receptor (PDGFR; pazopanib) inhibitors alone or in combination. Tumors were analyzed by western blot and multiplexed kinase inhibitor beads/mass spectrometry to assess treatment effects. Results: Screens identified MEK+PI3K and MEK+PDGFR inhibitors as tractable, rational combinations. Dual treatment of selumetinib with buparlisib or pazopanib was synergistic in TNBC cells in vitro. Both combinations improved survival in intracranial SUM149 and MDA-MB-231Br, but not MDA-MB-468 or MDA-MB-436. Treatments decreased mitogen-Activated protein kinase (MAPK) and PI3K (Akt) signaling in sensitive (SUM149 and 231Br) but not resistant models (MDA-MB-468). Exploratory analysis of kinome reprogramming in SUM149 intracranial tumors after MEK PI3K inhibition demonstrates extensive kinome changes with treatment, especially in MAPK pathway members. Conclusions: Results demonstrate that rational combinations of the clinically available inhibitors selumetinib with buparlisib or pazopanib may prove to be promising therapeutic strategies for the treatment of some TNBC brain metastases. Additionally, effective combination treatments cause widespread alterations in kinase pathways, including targetable potential resistance drivers.
ON THE AXIOMATISABILITY OF THE DUAL OF COMPACT ORDERED SPACES
Creators: name: ABBADINI, MARCO
Publisher: name: Universit� degli Studi di Milano
Year: 2021

description: We prove that the category of Nachbin's compact ordered spaces and order-preserving continuous maps between them is dually equivalent to a variety of algebras, with operations of at most countable arity. Furthermore, we show that the countable bound on the arity is the best possible: the category of compact ordered spaces is not dually equivalent to any variety of finitary algebras. Indeed, the following stronger results hold: the category of compact ordered spaces is not dually equivalent to (i) any finitely accessible category, (ii) any first-order definable class of structures, (iii) any class of finitary algebras closed under products and subalgebras. An explicit equational axiomatisation of the dual of the category of compact ordered spaces is obtained; in fact, we provide a finite one, meaning that our description uses only finitely many function symbols and finitely many equational axioms. In preparation for the latter result, we establish a generalisation of a celebrated theorem by D. Mundici: our result asserts that the category of unital commutative distributive lattice-ordered monoids is equivalent to the category of what we call MV-monoidal algebras. Our proof is independent of Mundici's theorem.
Impact of select PPE design elements and repeated laundering in firefighter protection from smoke exposure
Creators: name: Mayer, Alexander C.
name: Horn, Gavin P.
name: Fent, Kenneth W.
name: Bertke, Steve J.
name: Kerber, Steve
name: Kesler, Richard M.
name: Newman, Hannah
name: Smith, Denise L.
Publisher: name: Taylor & Francis
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Biochemistry
subject: Space Science
subject: Molecular Biology
subject: Biotechnology
subject: 59999 Environmental Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: FOS: Earth and related environmental sciences
subject: 39999 Chemical Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: FOS: Chemical sciences
subject: 69999 Biological Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: FOS: Biological sciences
subject: Science Policy

description: As the Fire Service becomes more aware of the potential health effects from occupational exposure to hazardous contaminants, personal protective equipment (PPE) manufacturers, and fire departments have responded by developing and implementing improved means of firefighter protection, including more frequent laundering of PPE after exposures. While laboratory testing of new PPE designs and the effect of laundering on PPE fabric provides a useful way to evaluate these approaches, laboratory scale testing does not necessarily translate to full garment protection. Utilizing a fireground smoke exposure simulator, along with air and/or filter-substrate sampling for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and benzene, this pilot study tested the chemical-protective capabilities of firefighting PPE of different designs (knit hood vs. particulate-blocking hood, turnout jacket with zipper closure vs. hook & dee closure), including the impact of repeatedly exposing and cleaning (through laundering or decontamination on-scene) PPE 40 times. Overall, PAH contamination on filters under hoods in the neck region were higher (median PAHs = 14.7 µg) than samples taken under jackets in the chest region (median PAHs = 7.05 µg). PAH levels measured under particulate-blocking hoods were lower than levels found under knit hoods. Similarly, zippered closures were found to provide a greater reduction in PAHs compared to hook & dee closures. However, neither design element completely eliminated contaminant ingress. Measurements for benzene under turnout jackets were similar to ambient chamber air concentrations, indicating little to no attenuation from the PPE. The effect of laundering or on-scene decontamination on contaminant breakthrough appeared to depend on the type of contaminant. Benzene breakthrough was negatively associated with laundering, while PAH breakthrough was positively associated. More research is needed to identify PPE features that reduce breakthrough, how targeted changes impact exposures, and how fireground exposures relate to biological absorption of contaminants.
Open research practices by UK funders
Creators: name: Logullo, Patricia
name: Collins, Gary
Publisher: name: Open Science Framework
Year: 2022
Subjects: subject: Medicine and Health Sciences
subject: code sharing
subject: data sharing
subject: funders
subject: funding
subject: materials sharing
subject: open data
subject: open research
subject: open research practices
subject: open science
subject: research integrity
subject: UK funders

description: A study on how funders of health research in the UK practice and incentivise open research
Electric-dipole-induced spin resonance in a lateral double quantum dot incorporating two single domain nanomagnets
Creators: name: Forster, F.
name: Mühlbacher, M.
name: Schuh, D.
name: Wegscheider, W.
name: Ludwig, S.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: On-chip magnets can be used to implement relatively large local magnetic field gradients in na- noelectronic circuits. Such field gradients provide possibilities for all-electrical control of electron spin-qubits where important coupling constants depend crucially on the detailed field distribution. We present a double quantum dot (QD) hybrid device laterally defined in a GaAs / AlGaAs het- erostructure which incorporates two single domain nanomagnets. They have appreciably different coercive fields which allows us to realize four distinct configurations of the local inhomogeneous field distribution. We perform dc transport spectroscopy in the Pauli-spin blockade regime as well as electric-dipole-induced spin resonance (EDSR) measurements to explore our hybrid nanodevice. Characterizing the two nanomagnets we find excellent agreement with numerical simulations. By comparing the EDSR measurements with a second double QD incorporating just one nanomagnet we reveal an important advantage of having one magnet per QD: It facilitates strong field gradients in each QD and allows to control the electron spins individually for instance in an EDSR experi- ment. With just one single domain nanomagnet and common QD geometries EDSR can likely be performed only in one QD.
All the Maharajah’s Men
Creators: name: Anisha George,
Publisher: name: National University of Singapore
Year: 2011
Subjects: India
financial crisis
aviation
merger
air traffic rights
privatisation
national carrier

description: In the early 2000s, the national air carriers of India, Air India (operating international air services) and Indian Airlines (servicing domestic routes and neighbouring countries) were facing a financial crisis following a slump in the aviation sector worldwide due to global recession and rising fuel prices. In 2007, the two airlines had been merged in a bid to galvanize their fortunes but the merger had not been successful. Expensive fleet acquisition, sale of bilateral air traffic rights in favour of private and foreign carriers and attempted integration policies in the course of the merger resulted in mounting losses and debt for the company. The leader of the airline’s largest trade union sought to work with a newly-appointed, socialist Minister for Aviation to garner government support to save the airline through capital and equity infusion. The alternate options to government aid were privatisation or a shrinking of the airline. The government had occupied an ambivalent stance and public support stood against the airline’s favour. Given the political scenario, the strategic importance of the national carrier and the ailing aviation scenario of India itself, how could the merged national carrier be saved?
Probabilistically Perfect Cloning of Two Pure States: A Geometric Approach
Creators: name: Yerokhin, Vadim
name: Shehu, Andi
name: Feldman, Edgar
name: Bagan, Emilio
name: Bergou, Janos A.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Quantum Physics (quant-ph)
subject: Information Theory (cs.IT)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences

description: We solve the long-standing problem of making n perfect clones from m copies of one of two known pure states with minimum failure probability in the general case where the known states have arbitrary a priori probabilities. The solution emerges from a geometric formulation of the problem. This formulation also reveals a deeper connection between cloning and state discrimination. The convergence of cloning to state discrimination as the number of clones goes to infinity exhibits a phenomenon analogous to a second order symmetry breaking phase transition.
IL TRAUMA VIOLENTO E LE SUE CONSEGUENZE SULLE VITTIME: ANALISI DELLE DINAMICHE COMPORTAMENTALI, NUTRIZIONALI E DEL LORO STATO DI SALUTE
Creators: name: GORIO, MARIA CARLOTTA
Publisher: name: Universit� degli Studi di Milano
Year: 2020

description: Il tema focale di questa trattazione � il trauma violento, nello specifico il Child Abuse & Neglect e le Esperienze Sfavorevoli Infantili (ESI). Questi eventi traumatici comportano conseguenze di varia tipologia gravose per la salute delle vittime. Considerando la natura complessa e variegata dell?argomento, si � proposto un approccio multidisciplinare, cos� da percorrere in maniera esaustiva tutte le caratteristiche di questo fenomeno. Obiettivo primario � stato comprenderne le cause, le conseguenze sulla salute, primariamente comportamentali e nutrizionali, e l?individuazione di best practices da adottare per favorire l?identificazione precoce dei traumi e proporre un approccio preventivo. Due progetti sono stati quindi sviluppati, il primo relativo ai minori e il secondo all?adulto. Nello specifico, per quanto concerne il progetto focalizzato sulla salute dei minori, � stato avviato uno studio osservazionale, tramite il questionario INTOVIAN, presso il Pronto Soccorso dell?Ospedale dei Bambini Buzzi di Milano, al fine di individuare situazioni familiari critiche e prevenire l?insorgenza di problematiche pi� pregiudizievoli per la salute del bambino. I dati raccolti hanno mostrato uno spaccato importante della situazione e fornito fondamentali informazioni per proseguire nel progetto e migliorare il sistema di prevenzione. Per quanto concerne l?adulto, invece, si � svolto uno studio pilota sull?epigenetica del trauma. Sono state, infatti, condotte valutazioni biochimiche su prelievi tissutali post mortem di soggetti che erano stati particolarmente esposti a situazioni traumatiche durante la vita (depressi, suicidi). Seppur il campione di riferimento non sia particolarmente numeroso, i dati preliminari sembrano indicare una effettiva influenza ambientale. L'obiettivo ultimo di questo studio � l?individuazione di strategie di prevenzione tramite un approccio multidisciplinare.
IL PRINCIPIO DI DIRITTO NELL'INTERESSE DELLA LEGGE
Creators: name: TURRINI, MARYAM
Publisher: name: Universit� degli Studi di Milano
Year: 2021

description: This paper addresses the principle of law in the interest of law, pursuant to Article 363 of the Italian Code of Civil Procedure which is a clear expression of the nomophylactic function of the Court of Cassation. In Section first, this paper addresses the origins and historical evolution of the principle of law in the interest of the law with particular reference to the Law Decree of February 2nd, 2006, n� 40 through which the legislator has intended to strengthen the nomophylactic function of the Court of Cassation. In Section second, with the aim at pointing out the peculiarities of the art. 363 of the Italian Code of Civil Procedure, this paper addresses the enunciation of the principle of law in the interest of the law and other cases of principles of law stated by the Court of Cassation. The Section third of this paper deals with the general characters and function of the principle of law in the interest of the law. By the Law Decree of February 2nd, 2006, n� 40, the scope of the legality review performed by the Court of Cassation has been broadened. In the Italian legal system, protective measures ? lacking the features of decision-making and being final ? were not reviewed by the Court of Cassation. The latest widening of the legality review to these acts not covered by the Court of Cassation, pursuant to Article 111 of the Italian Constitution, is a telling aspect of the 2006 reform. In the Section fourth, this paper addresses the procedural rules applicable in case of enunciation of the principle of law in the interest of the law pursuant to art. 363 of the Italian Code of Civil Procedure. Finally, in the Section fifth, this paper addresses a comparative assessment on the principle of law in the interest of the law with particular reference to French and Belgian legal systems.
Counting Dirac braid relators and hyperelliptic Lefschetz fibrations
Creators: name: Endo, Hisaaki
name: Kamada, Seiichi
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Geometric Topology (math.GT)
subject: FOS: Mathematics
subject: 57M15, 57N13

description: We define a new invariant $w$ for hyperelliptic Lefschetz fibrations over closed oriented surfaces, which counts the number of Dirac braids included intrinsically in the monodromy, by using chart description introduced by the second author. As an application, we prove that two hyperelliptic Lefschetz fibrations of genus $g$ over a given base space are stably isomorphic if and only if they have the same numbers of singular fibers of each type and they have the same value of $w$ if $g$ is odd. We also give examples of pair of hyperelliptic Lefschetz fibrations with the same numbers of singular fibers of each type which are not stably isomorphic.
description: 30 pages, 32 figures; (v2) the title changed, Section 1 rewritten, remarks added. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1403.7946
Tumor-homing cytotoxic human induced neural stem cells for cancer therapy
Creators: name: Bagó, J.R.
name: Werff, R.V.
name: Hingtgen, S.D.
name: Okolie, O.
name: Underhill, T.M.
name: Parker, J.S.
name: Schmid, R.S.
name: Miller, C.R.
name: Ewend, M.G.
name: Dumitru, R.
Publisher: name: American Association for the Advancement of Science
Year: 2017

description: Engineered neural stem cells (NSCs) are a promising approach to treating glioblastoma (GBM). The ideal NSC drug carrier for clinical use should be easily isolated and autologous to avoid immune rejection. We transdifferentiated (TD) human fibroblasts into tumor-homing early-stage induced NSCs (h-iNSCTE), engineered them to express optical reporters and different therapeutic gene products, and assessed the tumor-homing migration and therapeutic efficacy of cytotoxic h-iNSCTE in patient-derived GBM models of surgical and nonsurgical disease. Molecular and functional analysis revealed that our single-factor SOX2 TD strategy converted human skin fibroblasts into h-iNSCTE that were nestin+ and expressed pathways associated with tumor-homing migration in 4 days. Time-lapse motion analysis showed that h-iNSCTE rapidly migrated to human GBM cells and penetrated human GBM spheroids, a process inhibited by blockade of CXCR4. Serial imaging showed that h-iNSCTE delivery of the proapoptotic agent tumor necrosis factor-A-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) reduced the size of solid human GBM xenografts 250-fold in 3 weeks and prolonged median survival from 22 to 49 days. Additionally, h-iNSCTE thymidine kinase/ganciclovir enzyme/prodrug therapy (h-iNSCTE-TK) reduced the size of patient-derived GBM xenografts 20-fold and extended survival from 32 to 62 days. Mimicking clinical NSC therapy, h-iNSCTE-TK therapy delivered into the postoperative surgical resection cavity delayed the regrowth of residual GBMs threefold and prolonged survival from 46 to 60 days. These results suggest that TD of human skin into h-iNSCTE is a platform for creating tumor-homing cytotoxic cell therapies for cancer, where the potential to avoid carrier rejection could maximize treatment durability in human trials.
AMMASSI ROCCIOSI FRATTURATI: MODELLAZIONE DEL RETICOLO DI FRATTURAZIONE, EFFETTI SULLA CIRCOLAZIONE IDRICA E SULLA STABILIT�.
Creators: name: MERRI, ANDREA
Publisher: name: Universit� degli Studi di Milano
Year: 2011

description: Rock joint characterization is a very complex task due to the heterogeneity and spatial variability of the fracture parameters. This PhD thesis is aimed to model a discrete fracture network and assess the effects of fracture properties on fluid flow and rock mass stability. Data were collected on a quartz rock mass well exposed both on surface and underground, along a well developed network of mining tunnels. A large number of structural and geomechanical data were collected and analysed by statistical procedures. Distribution and probability density function of fracture parameters were derived from row data. Geostatistical interpolation methods were used to reproduce the spatial variability of the rock features, such as the variation of fracture spacing, aperture and orientation. A stochastic simulation of the discrete fracture network was then developed using FracMan software package, and a flow model, based on the dual porosity approach, was developed to assess the water inflow into the tunnel system. A review of the fracture permeability assessment is also discussed and applied for the definition of the model properties. The fracture parameters were validated using backfitting methods until the obtained results were consistent with the hydrogeological and mechanical conditions of the study site. Block stability was then evaluated considering the blocks defined by the intersections between the discrete fracture network and the tunnels. Kinematics of instability were analyzed for the identified blocks; the factor of safety and the volume of stable and unstable blocks were also evaluated.
Interference effects on Higgs mass measurement in $e^+e^-\to H(γγ) Z$ at CEPC
Creators: name: Xu, Guang-Zhi
name: Li, Gang
name: Li, Yi-Jie
name: Liu, Kui-Yong
name: Zhang, Yu-Jie
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: A high luminosity Circular Electron Positron Collider (CEPC) as a Higgs Factory will be helpful to the precision measurement of the Higgs mass. The signal-background interference effect is carefully studied for the Higgs diphoton decay mode in the associated Z boson production at the future $e^+e^-$ colliders at energy $246 {\rm GeV}$. The mass shifts go up from about $20 {\rm MeV}$ to $50 {\rm MeV}$ for the experimental mass resolution ranging from $0.8 {\rm GeV}$ to $2 {\rm GeV}$.
description: Comments and suggestions are welcome
Topological Crystalline Insulator and Quantum Anomalous Hall States in IV-VI based Monolayers and their Quantum Wells
Creators: name: Niu, C.
name: Buhl, P. M.
name: Bihlmayer, G.
name: Wortmann, D.
name: Blugel, S.
name: Mokrousov, Y.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Different from the two-dimensional (2D) topological insulator, the 2D topological crystalline insulator (TCI) phase disappears when the mirror symmetry is broken, e.g., upon placing on a substrate. Here, based on a new family of 2D TCIs - SnTe and PbTe monolayers - we theoretically predict the realization of the quantum anomalous Hall effect with Chern number C = 2 even when the mirror symmetry is broken. Remarkably, we also demonstrate that the considered materials retain their large-gap topological properties in quantum well structures obtained by sandwiching the monolayers between NaCl layers. Our results demonstrate that the TCIs can serve as a seed for observing robust topologically non-trivial phases.
description: 5 pages, submitted on 27th Feb 2015
INHERENT CHIRALITY AT WORK FOR APPLICATIONS IN CHIRAL ELECTROCHEMISTRY, CHIROPTICS AND SPINTRONICS.
Creators: name: GRECCHI, SARA
Publisher: name: Universit� degli Studi di Milano
Year: 2022

description: This three-year thesis project is aimed to deeply investigate the potentialities of the inherently chiral strategy in the chiral voltammetry field, as well as in circular dichroism and magnetoelectrochemistry ones. Voltammetric experiments must take place at chiral electrochemical interphases with the implementation of (inherently) chiral selectors, according to two strategies: i) exploitation of electrode surfaces modified with electrodeposited heterocycle-based inherently chiral oligomer films (with the stereogenic element responsible for chirality coinciding with the functional group responsible for the material specific properties); ii) use of enantiopure chiral media with high intrinsic order. Concerning the modification of electrodes with inherently chiral oligomer films, several new inherently chiral monomers were studied with different techniques, in order to amplify the range of monomer structures studied and the combination of chiral selector/probe investigated (in fact, many new chiral probes, also of pharmaceutical interest were used in enantioselection tests, with different nature, chemical structures, bulkiness and reactivity). Enantioselection tests were discussed as a function of the experimental conditions; moreover, discussion of experiments with a systematic series of planar stereogenicity ferrocenes provided key clues concerning the probe-selector interactions in the process, while experiments on a systematic new family of inherently chiral monomers with different substituents on the N atoms in the biindole core enabled to study the effect of H bonds in the enantioselection process. Finally, the inherently chiral oligomer films were discussed in advanced application for magnetoelectrochemistry experiments, employing an innovative experimental setup and resulting in impressive spin-related effects. Also concerning the chiral media approach, several new chiral selectors were presented, employing them as low concentration chiral additives in achiral commercial ionic liquids or as bulk media, testing their performances in enantioselection experiments. The performances of bio-based and synthetic chiral selectors were compared, studying different artificial inherently chiral media. The application of another kind of advanced chiral media were exploited, studying the enantioselection ability and properties of chiral Deep Eutectic Solvents (DESs) of natural origin. The DESs employed in this research project are composed of a mixture of at least two components, a hydrogen bond acceptor (HBA) and a hydrogen bond donor (HBD), which are able to self-associate to form a new eutectic phase characterized by a melting point (< 100�C) lower than that of each individual component and significantly lower than the predicted one for an ideal case.
Prospective assessment of serum periostin as a biomarker for diagnosis and monitoring of eosinophilic oesophagitis
Creators: name: Veerappan, R.
name: Dellon, E.S.
name: Selitsky, S.R
name: Genta, R.M.
name: Parker, J.S.
name: Beitia, R.
name: Lash, R.H.
name: Higgins, L.L.
Publisher: name: Blackwell Publishing Ltd
Year: 2016

description: Background Periostin is highly expressed in eosinophilic oesophagitis (EoE), but has not been extensively studied as a non-invasive biomarker. Aim To assess whether serum periostin distinguished EoE from controls at baseline, had utility for monitoring treatment response, or was associated with IL-13 levels. Methods This was a sub-analysis of a prospective cohort study of adults undergoing out-patient upper endoscopy. Incident cases of EoE were diagnosed per consensus guidelines. Controls were subjects with either GERD or dysphagia without EoE. EoE patients were treated with swallowed/topical steroids and had repeat endoscopy/biopsy. Serum periostin levels for cases and controls were compared at baseline, and pre/post-treatment levels were compared for cases. Serum IL-13 and tissue expression of periostin were also assessed. Results A total of 61 incident EoE cases and 87 controls were analysed. Despite a marked increase in tissue periostin expression in cases, the median baseline serum periostin level was only slightly higher in cases than controls (22.1 ng/mL vs. 20.7; P = 0.04); there was no change in post-treatment levels. There was also no difference in serum periostin for cases by histologic response or atopic status. There was a strong trend towards higher serum IL-13 levels in cases in the highest periostin quartile (57.1 pg/mL vs. 2.6; P = 0.07). Conclusions Serum periostin levels were similar in cases and controls, and there were no changes post-treatment. Given elevated IL-13 levels in the EoE patients with the highest periostin levels, future studies could explore periostin as a biomarker in EoE, perhaps in the setting of anti-IL-13 therapy.