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Viscoelastic characterization of coating layers by ultrasonic interference and critical attenuation

This study proposes a characterization technique for a viscoelastic coating layer on a metal substrate immersed in water based on ultrasonic interference and critical attenuation phenomena. Theoretical analysis shows that the reflection spectrum for the normal incidence wave has local minima at the resonance frequencies of the coating layer, which provide its elastic property if the layer thickness is given a priori. Furthermore, it is revealed that the lower envelope of the reflection spectrum takes a minimum, whose frequency can be related to the critical attenuation condition. This feature implies a possibility that the viscous property of the coating material can be estimated by similarly measuring a characteristic frequency to the estimation of the elastic property. Two bonded specimens consisting of polycarbonate (PC) sheets and metal substrates were prepared to validate the proposed method. The reflection spectra measured for the normal wave incidence showed multiple local minima and critical attenuation, which are predicted to appear by theoretical predictions. The wave velocities and loss factors of PC estimated from the two specimens are in fair agreement with the properties shown in the previous paper. This result demonstrates that the ultrasonic interference and critical attenuation behavior can be applied to the characterization of the viscoelastic coating layers.

A Recipe for Eccentricity and Inclination Damping for Partial-gap Opening Planets in 3D Disks

In a previous paper, we showed that, like the migration speed, the eccentricity damping efficiency is modulated linearly by the depth of the partial gap a planet carves in the disk surface density profile, resulting in less efficient e-damping compared to the prescription commonly used in population synthesis works. Here, we extend our analysis to 3D, refining our e-damping formula and studying how the inclination damping efficiency is also affected. We perform high-resolution 3D locally isothermal hydrodynamical simulations of planets with varying masses embedded in disks with varying aspect ratios and viscosities. We extract the gap profile and orbital damping timescales for fixed eccentricities and inclinations up to the disk scale height. The limit in gap depths below which vortices appear, in the low-viscosity case, happens roughly at the transition between classical type-I and type-II migration regimes. The orbital damping timescales can be described by two linear trends with a break around gap depths ∼80% and with slopes and intercepts depending on the eccentricity and inclination. These trends are understood on physical grounds and are reproduced by simple fitting formulas whose error is within the typical uncertainty of type-I torque formulas. Thus, our recipes for the gap depth and orbital damping efficiencies yield a simple description for planet–disk interactions to use in N-body codes in the case of partial-gap opening planets that is consistent with high-resolution 3D hydrosimulations. Finally, we show examples of how our novel orbital damping prescription can affect the outcome of population synthesis experiments.

#1202 Long-term evaluation of coronary calcifications in kidney transplanted patients: a single center follow up of 15 years

Abstract Background Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) have a relevant cardiovascular (CV) risk. Vascular calcification, particularly at coronary levels, have been related to the increased CV mortality. Few data are available on the long-term behavior of coronary artery calcifications (CAC) in kidney transplantation (KTx). In a previous paper (Alfieri C et al. Sci Rep. 2019 May 3;9(1):6869), our group explored the prevalence, the clinical and biochemical factors related with CAC and the factors implicated with CAC progression in a group of 64 KTx patients (KTXps) followed up for 5 years. Here we present the preliminary data about CAC follow up of the same population followed up for 15 years after KTx. Methods In 2007 we studied a total of 67 KTxps transplanted in our unit between 2007 and 2008. At the present time, 19 of them were lost from the follow up: 8 died, 4 because of major cardiovascular event (MACE), 11 KTxps had a graft loss and the other 20 did not adhere to the control. For this study, we evaluated 28 KTxps (M = 18; mean age 60 ± 9 yrs). Clinical parameters, blood and urinary analyses were recorded for 15 years, with particular attention for the year before CAC evaluation. For the statistical analysis the mean values of these evaluations were considered. At baseline and after 15 years from KTx, coronary TC for the evaluation of CAC using Agatson score was performed. According to the score obtained, patients were categorized in 4 groups both at baseline and at 15th year: 1) 0-10; 2) 10-100; 3) 100-400; 4) >400. The progression of CAC was determined considering the modification in CAC category (Cat-Prog+T15) and using the formula proposed by Sevrukov (AJR, 2005 Dec;185(6):1546-53) (Prog+). Results At baseline and at 15 yrs after KTx, 46% and 18% of pts were in the 1st group, 14% and 25% in the 2nd, 29% and 18% in the 3rd and 11% and 39% in 4th, respectively. CAC at 15yrs were significantly higher than baseline (156 ± 50 vs 334 ± 71 p < 0.0001). Both at baseline and after 15yrs CAC correlated directly with age (p = 0.0001; p = 0.01 resp.) and with each other (p < 0.0001). In the 79% Cat-Prog+T15 was found, in the 10,7% of more than 1 class of CAC. Prog+ was discovered in the 71% of KTxps. They were characterized to have higher systolic blood pressure levels (P = 0.05, with no difference in specific therapy), lower mean Hb and Ca levels (p = 0.02; p = 0.07 resp). In a logistic model, mean Ca Levels resulted the only independent factor inversely related with CAC15prog+ (p = 0.04). During the 15 years of KTx a MACE was experienced by the 25% of KTxps, just older than the others. Apparently, no impact for CACs was found in MACE. Conclusions To the best of our knowledge, our study is the first one to evaluate CACs in the same cohort of KTxps for such a long time. According to the preliminary data obtained, the prevalence of CAC in KTxps is quite high, and is related to age. CAC worsening, after 15 years of KTX was observed in a consistent part of the cohort and was related to different parameters, especially to Ca levels. Future researches, possibly involving a higher number of KTxps could explain better these findings and explore more deeply the relation of CACs with MACE in the long term.

Thinking About the Future of Cognitive Remediation Therapy Revisited: What Is Left to Solve Before Patients Have Access?

In our previous paper on the Future of Cognitive Remediation published more than 10 years ago, we envisaged an imminent and wide implementation of cognitive remediation therapies into mental health services. This optimism was misplaced. Despite evidence of the benefits, costs, and savings of this intervention, access is still sparse. The therapy has made its way into some treatment guidance, but these documents weight the same evidence very differently, causing confusion, and do not consider barriers to implementation. This paper revisits our previous agenda and describes how some challenges were overcome but some remain. The scientific community, with its commitment to Open Science, has produced promising sets of empirical data to explore the mechanisms of treatment action. This same community needs to understand the specific and nonspecific effects of cognitive remediation if we are to provide a formulation-based approach that can be widely implemented. In the last 10 years we have learned that cognitive remediation is not "brain training" but is a holistic therapy that involves an active therapist providing motivation support, and who helps to mitigate the impact of cognitive difficulties through metacognition to develop awareness of cognitive approaches to problems. We conclude that, of course, more research is needed but, in addition and perhaps more importantly at this stage, we need more public and health professionals' understanding of the benefits of this therapy to inform and include this approach as part of treatment regimens.

Emerging γ-soft-like spectrum in 196Pt in the SU3-IBM (I)

Abstract Recently, it has been argued that a spherical-like spectrum emerges in the SU3-IBM,
opening up new approaches to understand the γ-softness in realistic nuclei. In a previous paper,
γ-softness with degeneracy of the ground and quasi-γ bands was observed. In this paper, another
special point connected with the middle degenerate point is discussed, which is found to be related
with the properties of 196Pt. This emergent γ-softness has also been shown to be important for
understanding the prolate-oblate asymmetric shape phase transition. The low-lying spectra, B(E2)
values and quadrupole moments in 196Pt are discussed showing that the new model can account
for several observed features. This is the first part of the discussions on the γ-soft-like spectrum of
196Pt.

MiR-6839-5p inhibits cell proliferation, migration and invasion; a possible correlation with the suppressing VEGFA expression in human chondrosarcoma cells

MicroRNAs play an important role in the proliferation, invasion, and metastasis of malignancy. In previous studies (detailed in our previous paper), the expression of miR-6839-5p was significantly increased in SW1353 cells after 125I seed 6 Gy irradiation, which indicated miR-6839-5p may play a tumor suppression function in chondrosarcoma cells. This study aimed to identify the effects of miR-6839-5p on the human chondrosarcoma cells, and investigate the potential target genes of miR-6839-5p. Firstly, chondrosarcoma cells (SW1353 and CAL78) were transfected with hsa-miR-6839-5p specific mimic. Secondly, Cell viability assay (MTT assay), Colony formation assay, Wound healing assay, Transwell assay, TUNEL staining and Western blotting experiments were performed, and the results proved miR-6839-5p can inhibit chondrosarcoma cells proliferation, migration and invasion. Meanwhile, miR-6839-5p significantly down-regulated apoptosis facilitator Bcl-2 expression, and promoted apoptosis of chondrosarcoma cells. It is reasonable to speculate miR-6839-5p might downregulate Bcl-2 expression to induce apoptosis in SW1353 human chondrosarcoma cells. Lastly, RNA extraction and bioinformatic analysis was performed on SW1353 cells transfected with hsa-miR-6839-5p specific mimic to investigate the potential target genes of miR-6839-5p. A total of 253 differentially expressed mRNA genes (105 up-regulated genes and 148 down-regulated genes) were found, and 23 differentially expressed downregulated genes were identified. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was conducted to validate the results, which demonstrated the expression of BST2, VEGFA, FPR3 and PPARA was significantly downregulated by miR-6839-5p mimic. Furthermore, miR-6839-5p inhibitor can restore or partially restore the expression value of the above four genes. The analysis results of miRNA target gene prediction database indicated VEGFA was the most likely direct target gene of miR-6839-5p.

R-matrix calculations for opacities: III. Plasma broadening of autoionizing resonances

A general formulation is employed to study and quantitatively ascertain the effect of plasma broadening of intrinsic autoionizing (AI) resonances in photoionization cross sections. In particular, R-matrix data for iron ions described in the previous paper in the RMOP series (RMOP-II, hereafter RMOP2) are used to demonstrate underlying physical mechanisms due to electron collisions, ion microfields (Stark), thermal Doppler effects, core excitations, and free–free transitions. Breit–Pauli R-matrix cross sections for a large number of bound levels of Fe ions are considered, 454 levels of Fe XVII, 1184 levels of Fe XVIII and 508 levels of Fe XIX. Following a description of theoretical and computational methods, a sample of results is presented to show significant broadening and shifting of AI resonances due to extrinsic plasma broadening as a function of temperature and density. The redistribution of AI resonance strengths broadly preserves their integrated strengths as well as the naturally intrinsic asymmetric shapes of resonance complexes which are broadened, smeared and flattened, eventually dissolving into the bound-free continua.

Three-Body 3D-Kepler Electromagnetic Problem—Existence of Periodic Solutions

The main purpose of the present paper is to prove the existence of periodic solutions of the three-body problem in the 3D Kepler formulation. We have solved the same problem in the case when the three particles are considered in an external inertial system. We start with the three-body equations of motion, which are a subset of the equations of motion (previously derived by us) for any number of bodies. In the Minkowski space, there are 12 equations of motion. It is proved that three of them are consequences of the other nine, so their number becomes nine, as much as the unknown trajectories are. The Kepler formulation assumes that one particle (the nucleus) is placed at the coordinate origin. The motion of the other two particles is described by a neutral system with respect to the unknown velocities. The state-dependent delays arise as a consequence of the finite vacuum speed of light. We obtain the equations of motion in spherical coordinates and split them into two groups. In the first group all arguments of the unknown functions are delays. We take their solutions as initial functions. Then, the equations of motion for the remaining two particles must be solved to the right of the initial point. To prove the existence–uniqueness of a periodic solution, we choose a space consisting of periodic infinitely smooth functions satisfying some supplementary conditions. Then, we use a suitable operator which acts on these spaces and whose fixed points are periodic solutions. We apply the fixed point theorem for the operators acting on the spaces of periodic functions. In this manner, we show the stability of the He atom in the frame of classical electrodynamics. In a previous paper of ours, we proved the existence of spin functions for plane motion. Thus, we confirm the Bohr and Sommerfeld’s hypothesis for the He atom.

On the perturbation of the interferometric phase in interferometry-polarimetry of fusion plasmas

The perturbation of the interferometric phase is a corrective term of the measured phase shift that should be taken into account in the measurement of the electron line density in a combined interferometer-polarimeter for the diagnostics of the electron density and the magnetic field in a fusion plasma. In this paper we first review in detail the theory of this effect and present a new and complete derivation of it, which also accounts for some errors published in a previous paper. Then we consider this effect in the interferometer-polarimeter of three different plasma devices: RTP, JET and DTT and for each machine we calculate the expected phase perturbation for a typical plasma profile, especially with reference to the use of the popular three-wave technique for the polarization modulation of the input probing beam.

Increases in Awareness and Uptake of Dating Apps’ Sexual Health Features Among US Men Who Have Sex with Men, 2018 to 2021

AbstractDating apps are now used by the majority of MSM to meet sexual and romantic partners. While research has demonstrated an association between app use and greater number of sex partners and STIs, dating apps also pose an opportunity for intervention. By advocating for new and improved sexual health features on dating apps, Building Healthy Online Communities (BHOC) aims to increase communication about sexual health on the apps. As a follow-up to our previous paper assessing the uptake of sexual health-related profile options on dating apps through Emory’s annual survey of 10,000 MSM in the US, BHOC and Emory partnered to explore the change in uptake over time, again through their annual survey. Among survey participants in 2021, 85% reported using dating apps to meet a partner in the past year, and among this group, 93% reported awareness of sexual health features, up from 77% in 2018 (p < 0.0001). 71% of app users who were aware of features in 2021 reported using one or more sexual health feature, up from 61% in 2018 (p < 0.0001). BHOC will continue to advocate for increased uptake of these features, especially among subgroups with lower levels of uptake.

Are early-type galaxies quenched by present-day environment? A study of dwarfs in the Fornax Cluster.

Galaxies undergo numerous transformative processes throughout their lifetimes that ultimately lead to the expulsion of gas and the cessation of star-forming activity. This phenomenon is commonly known as quenching, and in this study, we delve into the possibility that this process is caused by the environmental processes associated with the surrounding cluster. To this end, we used the results of our previous paper ---where we analyzed dwarf galaxies in the survey together with massive galaxies from the survey--- to compute the quenching time of each galaxy and compare it with the infall time into the cluster. Using as an approximation of the quenching time and deriving the infall time from phase-space models, we determined the probability of the quenching being produced by the local environment of galaxies. Our results reveal a relation between galaxy mass and quenching probability. Massive galaxies, down to exhibit a low, almost zero probability of quenching, suggesting their independence of environmental effects. As we move into the mass regime of dwarf galaxies, the probability increases with decreasing mass, highlighting their sensitivity to environmental quenching. For dwarfs, 36pm 9<!PCT!> of our observational data are consistent with this hypothesis, challenging the idea that the present-day cluster, Fornax, is the primary driver of quenching in the low-mass galaxies of our sample with stellar mass from to To further investigate the importance of environmental processes, we compared these results with cosmological simulations, selecting galaxies under similar conditions to our observational sample. Remarkably, the simulated sample shows lower quenching probabilities as we move down in mass, and barely 5pm 1<!PCT!> of galaxies meet the quenching criteria. This discrepancy between observations and simulations underlines the fact that the modelling of quenching is still in its infancy. In general, the number of observed galaxies quenched by their environment is lower than expected, which suggests that preprocessing plays a larger role in galaxy evolution. Ultimately, our results highlight the need for higher-quality simulations and refinement of galaxy formation and evolution models.

Experimental study of the influence of O2 content on electrical and optical characteristics of He/CF4 APPJ

CF4 is an important source of reactive F-containing species (RFS) so that it is used to mix with inert gas as the working gas of atmospheric pressure plasma jet (APPJ) for material surface fluoridation modification. The addition of a small amount of O2 can increase the density of RFS in He/CF4 APPJ. Therefore, the hydrodynamic, electrical and optical properties of He/CF4/O2 APPJ interacting with the dielectric are experimentally investigated in this paper. Meanwhile, the influence of the excitation source on plasma discharge is discussed in detail and the internal mechanism of the experimental phenomenon in this paper is analyzed using the simulation results based on the model established in the previous paper. It is found that the addition of a small amount of O2 can increase the intensity and accelerate the axial propagation speed of He/CF4 APPJ due to the low ionization energy of O2 and the increase of the Penning ionization between metastable He and O2. With the increase of O2 content, the stability of the discharge is gradually enhanced due to the electron attachment reaction of O2 and the position of the primary current pulse in each half voltage cycle gradually approaches the position of the peak voltage because the increase in O2 content raises the breakdown threshold in dielectric barrier discharge region. In the presence of downstream dielectric, the addition of 0.1%O2 does not significantly change the radial development radius of APPJ due to the higher electron attachment rate and electron collision excitation loss power. The discharge pulse intensity is generally reduced compared to the absence of dielectric and the glow discharge in the strict sense no longer exists. The continuous spectrum intensity of RFS increases with the addition of a small amount of O2 while decreases significantly when O2 content is too high.

Statistical mechanics of elastica for the shape of supercoiled DNA: Hyperelliptic elastica of genus three

This article studies the statistical mechanics of elastica as a model of the shapes of the supercoiled DNA, and shows that its excited states can be characterized by the focusing modified KdV (MKdV) equation due to thermal fluctuation. Following the previous paper (Matsutani and Previato, 2022), the hyperelliptic solutions of the focusing MKdV equation of genus three are considered. Numerical evaluation shows that the excited states given by the solution has a pattern as a repetition of the modulation of figure-eight and the inverse ‘S’ as a thermal fluctuation of elastica, called the S-eight mode. Our model states that the excited states of elastica due to the thermal effect have the S-eight mode. Since in the shapes of the AFM image of the supercoiled DNAs observed by Japaridze et al. (2017), the S-eight mode appears, our model is a novel model that mathematically represents the shape of the supercoiled DNA.

Entanglement entropy in lattices with non-Abelian gauge groups

Entanglement entropy, taken here to be geometric, requires a geometrically separable Hilbert space. In lattice gauge theories, it is not immediately clear if the physical Hilbert space is geometrically separable. In a previous paper we have shown that the physical Hilbert space in pure gauge Abelian lattice theories exhibits some form of geometric scaling with the lattice volume, which suggest that the space is locally factorizable and, therefore, geometrically separable. In this paper, we provide strong evidence that indicates that this scaling is not present when the group is non-Abelian. We do so by looking at the scaling of the dimension of the physical Hilbert space of theories with certain discrete groups. The lack of an appropriate scaling implies that the physical Hilbert space of such a theory does not admit a local factorization. We then extend the reasoning, as sensibly possible, to SU(2) and SU(N) to reach the same conclusion. Lastly, we show that the addition of matter fields to non-Abelian lattice gauge theories makes the resulting physical Hilbert space locally factorizable. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Prediction of dynamical systems from time-delayed measurements with self-intersections

In the context of predicting the behaviour of chaotic systems, Schroer, Sauer, Ott and Yorke conjectured in 1998 that if a dynamical system defined by a smooth diffeomorphism T of a Riemannian manifold X admits an attractor with a natural measure μ of information dimension smaller than k, then k time-delayed measurements of a one-dimensional observable h are generically sufficient for μ-almost sure prediction of future measurements of h. In a previous paper we established this conjecture in the setup of injective Lipschitz transformations T of a compact set X in Euclidean space with an ergodic T-invariant Borel probability measure μ. In this paper we prove the conjecture for all (also non-invertible) Lipschitz systems on compact sets with an arbitrary Borel probability measure, and establish an upper bound for the decay rate of the measure of the set of points where the prediction is subpar. This partially confirms a second conjecture by Schroer, Sauer, Ott and Yorke related to empirical prediction algorithms as well as algorithms estimating the dimension and number of required delayed measurements (the so-called embedding dimension) of an observed system. We also prove general time-delay prediction theorems for locally Lipschitz or Hölder systems on Borel sets in Euclidean space.

The most common habitable planets III – modelling temperature forcing and surface conditions on rocky exoplanets and exomoons

ABSTRACT Small rocky planets, as well as larger planets that suffered extensive volatile loss, tend to be drier and have thinner atmospheres as compared to Earth. Such planets probably outnumber worlds better endowed with volatiles, being the most common habitable planets. For the subgroup of fast rotators following eccentric orbits, atmospheres suffer radiative forcing and their heat capacity provides a method for gauging atmospheric thickness and surface conditions. We further explore the model presented in a previous paper and apply it to real and hypothetical exoplanets in the habitable zone of various classes of stars, simulating atmospheric and orbital characteristics. For planetary eccentricities e ∼ 0.3, the forcing-induced hypothetical temperature variation would reach ∼80 K for airless planets and ∼10 K for planets with substantial atmospheres. For Kepler-186 f and Kepler-442 b, assuming e ∼ 0.1, temperature variations can reach ∼24 K. We also consider habitable exomoons in circular orbits around gas giants within the habitable zone, which suffer radiative forcing due to their epicyclic motion. We study several combinations of parameters for the characterization of planets (mass, eccentricity, and semimajor axis) and exomoons (mass, orbital radius, albedo, and atmospheric characteristics) for different stellar types. For e ∼ 0.3, exomoon temperature varies up to ∼90 K, while for ∼0.6 variations can reach ∼200 K. Such exomoons may plausibly retain their volatiles by continued volcanic activity fuelled by tidal dissipation. Although currently undetectable, such effects might be within reach of future Extremely Large Telescope-class telescopes and space missions with mid-infrared and coronagraphic capabilities.

Abstract PS07-01: Exemestane and breast cancer prevention: how low can we go? Drug and biomarker tissue levels in a randomized presurgical trial on exemestane alternative dosing regimen

Abstract Exemestane is an effective drug to reduce breast cancer risk reaching an overall 65% reduction in breast cancer in the placebo–controlled phase III MAP.3 trial. To improve its acceptability in primary prevention programs, we are seeking the minimal effective dose. In a 3-arm presurgical trial of 4-6 weeks before breast surgery in 180 postmenopausal women with ER-positive breast cancer, we investigated the activity of alternative exemestane schedules: 25 mg per day (QD), 25 mg three times/week (TIW) or 25 mg per week (QW) and showed that in adherent participants TIW was not inferior to QD in reducing circulating estradiol (Serrano et al JAMA Oncol. doi:10.1001/jamaoncol.2023.0089). Moreover, Ki67 reduction was seen in all arms with no significant difference among arms. Here, we analyzed the concentration of sex steroids, exemestane, and its main metabolite in the cancer and adjacent non-cancerous breast tissue. Tissues samples were homogenized before liquid-liquid extraction. After reconstitution, samples were analyzed by coupling liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (Sciex QTRAP 6500, Nexera system, Shimadzu). We obtained breast cancer tissue from 93 and non-cancerous breast tissue from 117 participants to measure exemestane, 17-OH-exemestane, and sex steroids. Exemestane and 17-OH-exemestane concentrations were detectable only in the QD arm, while in TIW and QW arms levels were below the Lower Limit of Detection (< LLD). Median exemestane level was 3807 fmol/g and 17485 fmol/g and median 17-OH-exemestane level was 338 fmol/g and 1343 fmol/g in cancer and non-cancerous tissue, respectively. Interestingly, drug and its metabolite accumulated 4-5-fold in non-cancerous tissue compared to cancer tissue in the QD arm. Despite the between-arm drug concentration difference, estradiol was almost completely suppressed in all arms in the non-cancerous tissue, attaining level < LLD in QD and TIW arms, and barely detectable in QW arm. The median in the QW arm was < LLD (< LLD, interquartile range < LLD, 25.5 fmol/g) showing no differences in QD vs TIW and QD vs QW (p = 0.364 and p = 0.693 respectively). While a dose-response trend was observed in cancer tissue, estradiol level was < LLD (< LLD,52.2 fmol/g) on QD, 17.1 (< LLD, 125.3) on TIW, and 128 (< LLD, 224.8) on QW (p=0.046 QD vs TIW arms). Estrone showed a clear dose response trend among arms, whereas no differences were observed for testosterone and androstenedione for both cancer and non-cancerous tissue in all arms. The Ki-67 change was analyzed in the previous paper; here we report the data for those patients who had drug and hormones tissue concentration measured, where Ki-67 decreased in all arms: median Ki67 change from baseline was QD -8 (-10, -3), TIW -6 (-11, -2), QW -4 (-8, -1). Conclusions: Exemestane 25 mg three times a week maintains comparable activity to the standard dose on tissue estradiol suppression and Ki67 decrease. Considering the estradiol suppression in non-cancerous tissue of the lowest exemestane dose, QW might even be considered for breast cancer risk reduction in primary prevention. Further analyses are ongoing to investigate the correlation with other biomarkers including the role of polymorphic UGT2B17 genotype that could identify candidates to lower exemestane dosage. Citation Format: Davide Serrano, Harriet Johansson, Bjørn-Erik Bertelsen, Gunnar Mellgren, Parijatham Thomas, Katherine Crew, Nagi B Kumar, Debora Macis, Valentina Aristarco, Aliana Guerrieri Gonzaga, Sara Gandini, Mauro D’Amico, Tania Buttiron Webber, Irene Maria Briata, Stefano Spinaci, Viviana Galimberti, Giuseppe Viale, Lana A. Vornik, Eduardo Villar-Sanchez, Powel Brown, Brandy M Heckman-Stoddard, Eva Szabo, Bernardo Bonanni, Andrea De Censi. Exemestane and breast cancer prevention: how low can we go? Drug and biomarker tissue levels in a randomized presurgical trial on exemestane alternative dosing regimen [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2023 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2023 Dec 5-9; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(9 Suppl):Abstract nr PS07-01.

Tuning parameters of single quadrupole mass detector hyphenated to supercritical fluid chromatography for enantioseparation of synthetic cathinones

In our previous paper, we introduced a new method for the enantioseparation of cathinones on chiral zwitterion ion exchangers by SFC-ESI-MS with an inverse make-up solvent gradient. The inverse gradient enabled us to stabilize electrospray ionization while simultaneously increasing MS response. In this study, we fine-tuned our previously optimized SFC-ESI-MS method and compared its efficiency with that of the default ESI-MS method. To enhance analyte detection, we designed a complex series of experiments in which all combinations of the following three parameters were evaluated: cone voltage (5 to 27 V), probe temperature (250 to 550°C) and capillary voltage for positive ionization (0.3 to 1.5 kV). After optimization, various ratios of the make-up solvent (methanol/water/formic acid) introduced before entering the ESI ion source were also tested. Despite this comprehensive testing regime, there were no significant differences between the results obtained for the tuned and default ESI-MS parameters. Similarly, the most suitable make-up solvent composition was the originally used ratio of 90/10/0.1 (v/v/v). These results reinforce the findings of our previous paper, in which we optimized the make-up solvent flow rate and showed its significant impact on ESI-MS response.

Immulina® mitigates the development of illness when administered during the prodromal period of influenza viral infection in mice (Part 2)

BackgroundImmulina®, a dietary supplement derived from Limnospira (formerly Arthrospira), is being investigated as a potential agent to increase antiviral resilience. In our recently published manuscript, we described the effects of Immulina® on influenza when taken daily, beginning before infection (prophylaxis) or after the onset of clinical symptoms of viral illness (therapeutic). However, the benefit of Immulina® in infected individuals before the manifestation of any symptoms (prodromal) has not been investigated yet. PurposeTo evaluate Immulina®’s potential use to increase the host antiviral immune response using a prodromal therapy regime. Study DesignThe efficacy of Immulina® extract was evaluated in rodents using a prodromal protocol (test material administered prior to the emergence of viral illness symptoms). MethodsImmulina® (25, 50 and 100 mg/kg body weight) was orally administered to both genders of mice, 2 hours following influenza A viral infection, and continued daily for 14 days. ResultsCompared to the infected control mice, animals fed Immulina® exhibited statistically significant reduction in the emergence of various physical symptoms of viral-induced illness and decreased viral RNA levels. The effects are likely mediated through the host immune system since the level of various cytokines (IL-6 and IFN-γ) were significantly increased in lung tissue. ConclusionThis study, together with our previous paper, indicate that Immulina® was most effective at enhancing immune antiviral resilience if administered before or soon after initial infection. The data generated can be used to guide additional research using human subjects.

Solving the membership problem for certain subgroups of [formula omitted]

For positive integers u and v, let Lu=[10u1] and Rv=[1v01]. Let Gu,v be the group generated by Lu and Rv. In a previous paper, the authors determined a characterization of matrices M=[abcd] in Gu,v when u,v≥3 in terms of the short continued fraction representation of b/d. We extend this result to the case where uv≥5. Additionally, we compute [Gu,v:Gu,v] where Gu,v={[1+uvn1vn2un31+uvn4]∈SL2(Z):(n1,n2,n3,n4)∈Z4} for u,v≥1, extending a result of Chorna, Geller, and Shpilrain and solving the membership problem for Gu,v with u,v≥1.