Robust Transitivity in Hamiltonian Dynamics

A goal of this work is to study the dynamics in the complement of KAM tori with focus on non-local robust transitivity. We introduce $C^r$ open sets ($r=1, 2, ..., \infty$) of symplectic diffeomorphisms and Hamiltonian systems, exhibiting "large" robustly transitive sets. We show that the $C^\infty$ closure of such open sets contains a variety of systems, including so-called a priori unstable integrable systems. In addition, the existence of ergodic measures with large support is obtained for all those systems. A main ingredient of the proof is a combination of studying minimal dynamics of symplectic iterated function systems and a new tool in Hamiltonian dynamics which we call symplectic blender.Comment: 52 pages, 3 figure

AAV-mediated and pharmacological induction of Hsp70 expression stimulates survival of retinal ganglion cells following axonal injury.

We evaluated the effect of AAV2- and 17-AAG (17-N-allylamino-17-demethoxygeldanamycin)-mediated upregulation of Hsp70 expression on the survival of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) injured by optic nerve crush (ONC). AAV2-Hsp70 expression in the retina was primarily observed in the ganglion cell layer. Approximately 75% of all transfected cells were RGCs. RGC survival in AAV2-Hsp70-injected animals was increased by an average of 110% 2 weeks after the axonal injury compared with the control. The increase in cell numbers was not even across the retinas with a maximum effect of approximately 306% observed in the inferior quadrant. 17-AAG-mediated induction of Hsp70 expression has been associated with cell protection in various models of neurodegenerative diseases. We show here that a single intravitreal injection of 17-AAG (0.2 ug ul(-1)) results in an increased survival of ONC-injured RGCs by approximately 49% compared with the vehicle-treated animals. Expression of Hsp70 in retinas of 17-AAG-treated animals was upregulated approximately by twofold compared with control animals. Our data support the idea that the upregulation of Hsp70 has a beneficial effect on the survival of injured RGCs, and the induction of this protein could be viewed as a potential neuroprotective strategy for optic neuropathies

Ocular Graft Versus Host Disease Following Allogeneic Stem Cell Transplantation: A Review of Current Knowledge and Recommendations

Graft versus host disease (GVHD) is a common complication of allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT). Ocular GVHD develops in approximately 40-60% of patients following allo-SCT and its most common clinical manifestations include keratoconjunctivitis sicca and cicatricial conjunctivitis. Ocular GVHD may lead to severe ocular surface disease, which can significantly diminish quality of life and restrict daily activities. It is thus important to monitor the condition closely since with timely diagnosis, irreversible damage can be avoided. The current review will focus on updated information regarding ocular GVHD

Level Crossing Analysis of Burgers Equation in 1+1 Dimensions

We investigate the average frequency of positive slope $\nu_{\alpha}^{+}$, crossing the velocity field $u(x)- \bar u = \alpha$ in the Burgers equation. The level crossing analysis in the inviscid limit and total number of positive crossing of velocity field before creation of singularities are given. The main goal of this paper is to show that this quantity, $\nu_{\alpha}^{+}$, is a good measure for the fluctuations of velocity fields in the Burgers turbulence.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure

Level Crossing Analysis of the Stock Markets

We investigate the average frequency of positive slope $\nu_{\alpha}^{+}$, crossing for the returns of market prices. The method is based on stochastic processes which no scaling feature is explicitly required. Using this method we define new quantity to quantify stage of development and activity of stocks exchange. We compare the Tehran and western stock markets and show that some stocks such as Tehran (TEPIX) and New Zealand (NZX) stocks exchange are emerge, and also TEPIX is a non-active market and financially motivated to absorb capital.Comment: 6 pages and 4 figure

Nitrogen yield advantage from grass-legume mixtures is robust over a wide range of legume proportions and environmental conditions

Coordination of this project was supported by the EU Commission through COST Action 852 ‘Quality legume-based forage systems for contrasting environments‘. A636 contribution to the research leading to these results has been conducted as part of the Animal Change project which received funding from the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-20 13) under the grant agreement no. 266018.peer-reviewedCurrent challenges to global food security require sustainable intensification of agriculture through initiatives that include more efficient use of nitrogen (N), increased protein self-sufficiency through home-grown crops, and reduced N losses to the environment. Such challenges were addressed in a continental-scale field experiment conducted over three years, in which the amount of total nitrogen yield (Ntot) and the gain of N yield in mixtures as compared to grass monocultures (Ngainmix) was quantified from four-species grass-legume stands with greatly varying legume proportions. Stands consisted of monocultures and mixtures of two N2 fixing legumes and two non-fixing grasses.The amount of Ntot of mixtures was significantly greater (P ≤ 0.05) than that of grass monocultures at the majority of evaluated sites in all three years. Ntot and thus Ngainmix increased with increasing legume proportion up to one third of legumes. With higher legume percentages, Ntot and Ngainmix did not continue to increase. Thus, across sites and years, mixtures with one third proportion of legumes attained ~95% of the maximum Ntot acquired by any stand and had 57% higher Ntot than grass monocultures.Realized legume proportion in stands and the relative N gain in mixture (Ngainmix/Ntot in mixture) were most severely impaired by minimum site temperature (R = 0.70, P = 0.003 for legume proportion; R = 0.64, P = 0.010 for Ngainmix/Ntot in mixture). Nevertheless, the relative N gain in mixture was not correlated to site productivity (P = 0.500), suggesting that, within climatic restrictions, balanced grass-legume mixtures can benefit from comparable relative gains in N yield across largely differing productivity levels.We conclude that the use of grass-legume mixtures can substantially contribute to resource-efficient agricultural grassland systems over a wide range of productivity levels, implying important savings in N fertilizers and thus greenhouse gas emissions and a considerable potential for climate change mitigation.European Unio

Prediction of prostate cancer Gleason score upgrading from biopsy to radical prostatectomy using pre-biopsy multiparametric MRI PIRADS scoring system

An increase or 'upgrade' in Gleason Score (GS) in prostate cancer following Transrectal Ultrasound (TRUS) guided biopsies remains a significant challenge to overcome. to evaluate whether MRI has the potential to narrow the discrepancy of histopathological grades between biopsy and radical prostatectomy, three hundred and thirty men treated consecutively by laparoscopic radical prostatectomy (LRP) between July 2014 and January 2019 with localized prostate cancer were included in this study. Independent radiologists and pathologists assessed the MRI and histopathology of the biopsies and prostatectomy specimens respectively. A multivariate model was constructed using logistic regression analysis to assess the ability of MRI to predict upgrading in biopsy GS in a nomogram. A decision-analysis curve was constructed assessing impact of nomogram using different thresholds for probabilities of upgrading. PIRADS scores were obtained from MRI scans in all the included cases. In a multivariate analysis, the PIRADS v2.0 score significantly improved prediction ability of MRI scans for upgrading of biopsy GS (p = 0.001, 95% CI [0.06-0.034]), which improved the C-index of predictive nomogram significantly (0.90 vs. 0.64, p &lt; 0.05). PIRADS v2.0 score was an independent predictor of postoperative GS upgrading and this should be taken into consideration while offering treatment options to men with localized prostate cancer.</p

Antimicrobial and Barrier Properties of Bovine Gelatin Films Reinforced by Nano TiO2

The effects of nano titanium dioxide incorporation were investigated on the water vaporpermeability, oxygen permeability, and antimicrobial properties of bovine gelatin films. The nano TiO2 (TiO2-N) was homogenized by sonication and incorporated into bovine gelatin solutions at different concentrations(e.g. 1, 2, 3, and 5% w/w of dried gelatin). The permeability of the films to water vapor and oxygen wassignificantly decreased by incorporating of low concentration TiO2-N to gelatin solutions. TiO2-N gelatin filmsshowed an excellent antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. Theseproperties suggest that TiO2-N has the potential as filler in gelatin-based films for using as an active packagingmaterials in pharmaceutical and food packaging industries

Impact of safety-related dose reductions or discontinuations on sustained virologic response in HCV-infected patients: Results from the GUARD-C Cohort

BACKGROUND: Despite the introduction of direct-acting antiviral agents for chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, peginterferon alfa/ribavirin remains relevant in many resource-constrained settings. The non-randomized GUARD-C cohort investigated baseline predictors of safety-related dose reductions or discontinuations (sr-RD) and their impact on sustained virologic response (SVR) in patients receiving peginterferon alfa/ribavirin in routine practice. METHODS: A total of 3181 HCV-mono-infected treatment-naive patients were assigned to 24 or 48 weeks of peginterferon alfa/ribavirin by their physician. Patients were categorized by time-to-first sr-RD (Week 4/12). Detailed analyses of the impact of sr-RD on SVR24 (HCV RNA <50 IU/mL) were conducted in 951 Caucasian, noncirrhotic genotype (G)1 patients assigned to peginterferon alfa-2a/ribavirin for 48 weeks. The probability of SVR24 was identified by a baseline scoring system (range: 0-9 points) on which scores of 5 to 9 and <5 represent high and low probability of SVR24, respectively. RESULTS: SVR24 rates were 46.1% (754/1634), 77.1% (279/362), 68.0% (514/756), and 51.3% (203/396), respectively, in G1, 2, 3, and 4 patients. Overall, 16.9% and 21.8% patients experienced 651 sr-RD for peginterferon alfa and ribavirin, respectively. Among Caucasian noncirrhotic G1 patients: female sex, lower body mass index, pre-existing cardiovascular/pulmonary disease, and low hematological indices were prognostic factors of sr-RD; SVR24 was lower in patients with 651 vs. no sr-RD by Week 4 (37.9% vs. 54.4%; P = 0.0046) and Week 12 (41.7% vs. 55.3%; P = 0.0016); sr-RD by Week 4/12 significantly reduced SVR24 in patients with scores <5 but not 655. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, sr-RD to peginterferon alfa-2a/ribavirin significantly impacts on SVR24 rates in treatment-naive G1 noncirrhotic Caucasian patients. Baseline characteristics can help select patients with a high probability of SVR24 and a low probability of sr-RD with peginterferon alfa-2a/ribavirin