Valuation Semigroups of Two Dimensional Local Rings

We consider the question of when a semigroup is the semigroup of a valuation dominating a two dimensional noetherian local domain, giving some surprising examples. We give a necessary and sufficient condition for the pair of a semigroup S and a field extension L/k to be the semigroup and residue field of a valaution dominating a regular local ring R of dimension two with residue field k, generalizing the theorem of Spivakovsky for the case when there is no residue field extension.Comment: 34 pages. Final versio

Simultaneous capacitive probe and planar laser-induced fluorescence measurements in downwards gas-liquid annular flow

Various experimental techniques are available to analyse two-phase flows. The measurement concept and the applicability can however vary greatly. Prime examples from the opposite spectrum are planar laser-induced measurements (PLIF) versus capacitive probes. PLIF is an optical technique, it is non-intrusive but optical access is necessary. PLIF based measurements are known for their high temporal and spatial resolution but require a costly set-up. In contrast, the capacitive probe is another non-intrusive technique but doesn’t require optical access. It is fairly easy to set up, robust, and is cheap to construct. To rigorously compare both techniques, simultaneous PLIF and capacitive probe measurements are made in this work. As the void fraction is one of the key parameters to classify flow regimes, both techniques are compared on the determination of the void fraction. This is done for a limited set of six annular flows. The experiments were performed in a downward annular-flow facility with demineralized water - air as working medium. The first results indicate that both techniques give similar volume averaged void fractions. The mean absolute percentage error and the maximum relative error between both techniques are 0.30% and 0.54%, respectively. The PLIF measurements confirm however to have a better spatial resolution

A new family of diverse skin peptides from the microhylid frog genus phrynomantis

A wide range of frogs produce skin poisons composed of bioactive peptides for defence against pathogens, parasites and predators. While several frog families have been thoroughly screened for skin-secreted peptides, others, like the Microhylidae, have remained mostly unexplored. Previous studies of microhylids found no evidence of peptide secretion, suggesting that this defence adaptation was evolutionarily lost. We conducted transcriptome analyses of the skins of Phrynomantis bifasciatus and Phrynomantis microps, two African microhylid species long suspected to be poisonous. Our analyses reveal 17 evolutionary related transcripts that diversified from to those of cytolytic peptides found in other frog families. The 19 peptides predicted to be processed from these transcripts, named phrynomantins, show a striking structural diversity that is distinct from any previously identified frog skin peptide. Functional analyses of five phrynomantins confirm the loss of a cytolytic function and the absence of insecticidal or proinflammatory activity, suggesting that they represent an evolutionary transition to a new, yet unknown function. Our study shows that peptides have been retained in the defence poison of at least one microhylid lineage and encourages research on similarly understudied taxa to further elucidate the diversity and evolution of skin defence molecules

Cluster-based feedback control of turbulent post-stall separated flows

We propose a novel model-free self-learning cluster-based control strategy for general nonlinear feedback flow control technique, benchmarked for high-fidelity simulations of post-stall separated flows over an airfoil. The present approach partitions the flow trajectories (force measurements) into clusters, which correspond to characteristic coarse-grained phases in a low-dimensional feature space. A feedback control law is then sought for each cluster state through iterative evaluation and downhill simplex search to minimize power consumption in flight. Unsupervised clustering of the flow trajectories for in-situ learning and optimization of coarse-grained control laws are implemented in an automated manner as key enablers. Re-routing the flow trajectories, the optimized control laws shift the cluster populations to the aerodynamically favorable states. Utilizing limited number of sensor measurements for both clustering and optimization, these feedback laws were determined in only $O(10)$ iterations. The objective of the present work is not necessarily to suppress flow separation but to minimize the desired cost function to achieve enhanced aerodynamic performance. The present control approach is applied to the control of two and three-dimensional separated flows over a NACA 0012 airfoil with large-eddy simulations at an angle of attack of $9^\circ$, Reynolds number $Re = 23,000$ and free-stream Mach number $M_\infty = 0.3$. The optimized control laws effectively minimize the flight power consumption enabling the flows to reach a low-drag state. The present work aims to address the challenges associated with adaptive feedback control design for turbulent separated flows at moderate Reynolds number.Comment: 32 pages, 18 figure

Patterns of dissolved organic carbon and nitrogen fluxes in deciduous and coniferous forests under historic high nitrogen deposition

Numerous recent studies have indicated that dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and nitrogen (DON) play an important role in C and N cycling in natural ecosystems, and have shown that N deposition alters the concentrations and fluxes of dissolved organic substances and may increase leaching losses from forests. Our study was set up to accurately quantify concentrations and flux patterns of DOC, DON and dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) in deciduous and coniferous forest in Flanders, Belgium, under historical high nitrogen deposition. We measured DOC, DON and DIN concentrations at two weekly intervals in a silver birch (SB) stand, a corsican pine (CP) stand and a pine stand with higher N deposition (CPN), and used the SWAP model (calibrated with PEST) for generating accurate water and matter fluxes. The input with precipitation was an important source of DON, but not for DOC. Release of DOC from the forest floor was minimally affected by forest type, but higher N deposition (CPN stand) caused an 82% increase of DOC release from the forest floor. Adsorption to mineral soil material rich in iron and/or aluminum oxyhydroxides was suggested to be the most important process removing DOC from the soil solution, responsible for substantial retention (67–84%) of DOC entering the mineral soil profile with forest floor leachate. Generally, DON was less reactive (i.e. less removal from the soil solution) than DOC, resulting in decreasing DOC/DON ratios with soil depth. We found increased DOC retention in the mineral soil as a result of higher N deposition (84 kg ha−1 yr−1 additional DOC retention in CPN compared to CP). Overall DON leaching losses were 2.2, 3.3 and 5.0 kg N yr−1 for SB, CP and CPN, respectively, contributing between 9–28% to total dissolved N (TDN) leaching. The relative contribution to TDN leaching from DON loss from SB and CP was mainly determined by (large) differences in DIN leaching. The large TDN leaching losses are alarming, especially in the CPN stand that was N saturated

Role of differentially expressed microRNA-139-5p in the regulation of phenotypic internal anal sphincter smooth muscle tone.

The present study focused on the role of microRNA-139-5p (miRNA-139-5p) in the regulation of basal tone in internal anal sphincter (IAS). Applying genome-wide miRNA microarrays on the phenotypically distinct smooth muscle cells (SMCs) within the rat anorectrum, we identified miRNA-139-5p as differentially expressed RNA repressor with highest expression in the purely phasic smooth muscle of anococcygeus (ASM) vs. the truly tonic smooth muscle of IAS. This pattern of miRNA-139-5p expression, previously shown to target ROCK2, was validated by target prediction using ingenuity pathway (IPA) and by qPCR analyses. Immunoblotting, immunocytochemistry (ICC), and functional assays using IAS tissues and cells subjected to overexpression/knockdown of miRNA-139-5p confirmed the inverse relationship between miRNA-139-5p and ROCK2 expressions/IAS tone. Overexpression of miRNA-139-5p caused a decrease, while knockdown by anti-miRNA-139-5p caused an increase in the IAS tone; these tissue contractile responses were confirmed by single-cell contraction using magnetic twisting cytometry (MTC). These findings suggest miRNA-139-5p is capable of significantly influencing the phenotypic tonicity in smooth muscle via ROCK2: a lack of tone in ASM may be associated with the suppression of ROCK2 by high expression of miRNA-139-5p, whereas basal IAS tone may be associated with the persistence of ROCK2 due to low expression of miRNA-139-5p

Utility of 2013 American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Cholesterol Guidelines in HIV-Infected Adults With Carotid Atherosclerosis.

BackgroundAlthough HIV is associated with increased atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk, it is unknown whether guidelines can identify HIV-infected adults who may benefit from statins. We compared the 2013 American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association and 2004 Adult Treatment Panel III recommendations in HIV-infected adults and evaluated associations with carotid artery intima-media thickness and plaque.Methods and resultsCarotid artery intima-media thickness was measured at baseline and 3 years later in 352 HIV-infected adults without clinical atherosclerotic CVD and not on statins. Plaque was defined as IMT >1.5 mm in any segment. At baseline, the median age was 43 (interquartile range, 39-49), 85% were men, 74% were on antiretroviral medication, and 50% had plaque. The American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association guidelines were more likely to recommend statins compared with the Adult Treatment Panel III guidelines, both overall (26% versus 14%; P<0.001), in those with plaque (32% versus 17%; P=0.0002), and in those without plaque (16% versus 7%; P=0.025). In multivariable analysis, older age, higher low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, pack per year of smoking, and history of opportunistic infection were associated with baseline plaque. Baseline IMT (hazard ratio, 1.18 per 10% increment; 95% confidence interval, 1.05-1.33; P=0.005) and plaque (hazard ratio, 2.06; 95% confidence interval, 1.02-4.08; P=0.037) were each associated with all-cause mortality, independent of traditional CVD risk factors.ConclusionsAlthough the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association guidelines recommended statins to a greater number of HIV-infected adults compared with the Adult Treatment Panel III guidelines, both failed to recommend therapy in the majority of HIV-affected adults with carotid plaque. Baseline carotid atherosclerosis but not atherosclerotic CVD risk scores was an independent predictor of mortality. HIV-specific guidelines that include detection of subclinical atherosclerosis may help to identify HIV-infected adults who are at increased atherosclerotic CVD risk and may be considered for statins