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The goal of real-time mobile robots is to travel in the shortest path between two points in a navigation environment. Autonomous navigation allows robots to planning this path without the need for human intervention. In this paper, Autonomous navigation mobile robot system has been simulated by MATLAB which a camera is used to snapshotting robot environment represented by maze while image processing techniques are used for extracting maze parameters. These parameters are used to planning the shortest path between start point and target based on Depth-first Search (DFS) and Breadth-first Search (BFS) searching algorithms.

Targeted therapy is currently under intensive investigation due to the resistance of liver cancer to cytotoxic chemotherapies. Dissecting the molecular events that drive the progression of liver cancer and defining specific targets are urgently needed to develop efficient tailored therapies. Cell membrane gp96 (mgp96) has been implicated in tumor growth and malignancy. Here, we explored the functional and clinical relevance of mgp96 in liver cancer. We found that elevated mgp96 abundance was associated with tumor metastasis and recurrence in patients with primary liver tumors. Decreased KDELR1 levels in hepatoma cells contribute to cell membrane translocation of the normally ER-resident gp96. Urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) was identified as a mgp96 client protein, and mgp96 stabilized uPAR protein. Our clinical results proved that elevated mgp96 abundance is positively correlated with uPAR expression levels in liver tumors. We further provided evidence that targeting mgp96 with siRNA or a specific mAb that blocked the mgp96-uPAR interaction led to inhibited cell growth, survival, and invasion in vitro , as well as the suppression of liver tumor growth and metastasis in vivo . mgp96 promotes liver cancer progression through increasing the protein stability and signaling of uPAR, and may be a new promising target for suppressing uPAR-mediated tumor growth and metastasis in liver cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Networks-on-Chip (NoCs) are considered a viable solution to fully exploit the computational power of multi- and many-cores, but their non negligible power consumption requires ad hoc power-performance design methodologies. In this perspective, several proposals exploited the possibility to dynamically tune voltage and frequency for the interconnect, taking steps from traditional CPU-based power management solutions. However, the impact of the actuators, i.e. the limited range of frequencies for a PLL (Phase Locked Loop) or the time to increase voltage and frequency for a Dynamic Voltage and Frequency Scaling (DVFS) modules, are often not carefully accounted for, thus overestimating the benefits. This paper presents a control-based methodology for the NoC power-performance optimization exploiting the Dynamic Frequency Scaling (DFS). Both timing and power overheads of the actuators are considered, thanks to an ad hoc simulation framework. Moreover the proposed methodology eventually allows for user and/or OS interactions to change between different high level power-performance modes, i.e. to trigger performance oriented or power saving system behaviors. Experimental validation considered a 16-core architecture comparing our proposal with different settings of threshold-based policies. We achieved a speedup up to 3 for the timing and a reduction up to 33.17% of the power ∗ time product against the best threshold-based policy. Moreover, our best control-based scheme provides an averaged power-performance product improvement of 16.50% and 34.79% against the best and the second considered threshold-based policy setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the expressions of claudin-4 in human clear-cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC), and its relationship with clinical pathology and prognosis.Methods:The expression of claudin-4 in 50 cases of ccRCC and 10 normal kidney tissues were detected by immunohistochemical staining (IHC), analyzing the relationship between the expression level of claudin-4 and clinicopathological variables. Western blot was employed to confirm the expression of claudin-4 in 4 cases of ccRCC and 4 normal kidney tissues. The relationship of claudin-4 expression level and disease-free survival (DFS) was analyzed to predict the prognosis of ccRCC. Results: The expression level of claudin-4 in ccRCC was significantly higher than that in normal kidney tissues (P<0.05) and was markedly associated with tumor diameters, T stages, clinical stages and lymph node metastasis. The result of Western blot also confirmed that the expression of claudin-4 was much higher in ccRCC than normal kidney tissues (P<0.01), which were positively correlated with the results of immunohistochemical (IHC) staining (r2=0.748, P<0.01). Furthermore, Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that elevated expression of claudin-4 was associated with worse prognosis in ccRCC. Cox proportional-hazards regression model analysis indicated that claudin-4 was not an independent prognostic factor for ccRCC patients after surgery (relative risk=1.686, 95%CI: 0.174-16.311, P=0. 652). Conclusion: Claudin-4 might play a positive role in carcinogenesis and development of ccRCC, which might become a potential therapeutic target and adverse prognostic factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper describes structure and measurement results of the system detecting present maximum temperature on the surface of an integrated circuit. The system consists of the set of proportional to absolute temperature sensors, temperature processing path and a digital part designed in VHDL. Analogue parts of the circuit where designed with full-custom technique. The system is a part of temperature-controlled oscillator circuit - a power management system based on dynamic frequency scaling method. The oscillator cooperates with microprocessor dedicated for thermal experiments. The whole system is implemented in UMC CMOS 0.18 μm (1.8 V) technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives Few studies are available on the potential impact of body weight on breast cancer prognosis in screen-detected patients. Moreover, it is not known whether body mass index (BMI) could have a different prognostic impact in screen-detected versus symptomatic breast cancer patients. To investigate these unsolved issues, we carried out a retrospective study evaluating the effect of BMI on breast cancer prognosis in screen-detected vs symptomatic breast cancer patients. Materials and methods We conducted a follow-up study on 448 women diagnosed with incident, histologically-confirmed breast cancer. Patients were categorized according to their BMI as normal weight, overweight and obese. Disease free survival (DFS), overall survival (OS), and BMI curves were compared according to mode of cancer detection. Results Among screen-detected patients, higher BMI was associated with a significant lower DFS, whereas no significant difference was observed among symptomatic patients. OS showed similar results. In the multivariate analysis adjusting for age, education, tumor size, nodal status, estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR) and menopausal status, the risk for high level of BMI among screen-detected patients did not reach the statistical significance for either recurrence or survival. Conclusion Our study highlights the potential impact of high bodyweight in breast cancer prognosis, the findings confirm that obesity plays a role in women breast cancer prognosis independently from diagnosis mode. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inflammation is an essential component of pathogenesis and progression of cancer. A high neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is considered as a prognostic indicator for breast cancer. This meta-analysis was conducted to establish the overall accuracy of the NLR test in the diagnosis of breast cancer. A comprehensive search of the literature was conducted by using PubMed, Web of Science and China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI). Published studies dating up to July 2014 and 4,293 patients were enrolled in the present study. In order to evaluate the association between NLR and overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), recurrence-free survival (RFS) or cancer specific survival (CSS), the hazard ratios (HRs) and their 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were extracted. OS was the primary outcome. The results suggested that increased NLR was a strong predictor for OS with HR of 2.28 (95% CI = 1.08–4.80, P heterogeneity < 0.001). Stratified analyses indicated that a high NLR appeared to be a negative prognostic marker in Caucasian populations (HR = 4.53, 95% CI = 3.11–6.60, P heterogeneity = 0.096), multivariate analysis method (HR = 2.10, 95% CI = 1.52–2.89, P heterogeneity = 0.591), and mixed metastasis (HR = 4.53, 95% CI = 3.11–6.60, P heterogeneity = 0.096). Elevated NLR was associated with a high risk for DFS (HR = 1.38, 95% CI = 1.09–1.74, P heterogeneity = 0.050) and in subgroups of multivariate analysis (HR = 1.64, 95% CI = 1.25–2.14, P heterogeneity = 0.545) and mixed metastasis (HR = 1.99, 95% CI = 1.28–3.09, P heterogeneity = 0.992). In summary, NLR could be considered as a predictive factor for patients with breast cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of microRNA‐30a (miR‐30a) deregulation in tumor progression and its downstream signaling pathways remain unknown. Here we confirmed significant downregulation of miR‐30a in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tissues and cell lines compared with non‐tumor counterparts. MiR‐30a downregulation was significantly associated with worse disease‐free survival (DFS) of HCC patients. Gain‐ and loss‐of‐function studies revealed that downregulation of miR‐30a facilitated tumor cell migration, invasion and epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT). We identified SNAI1 as a direct target of miR‐30a and demonstrated miR‐30a as a novel regulator of EMT by targeting SNAI1, indicating its potential therapeutic value for reducing invasion and metastasis of HCC.MiR‐30a is significantly downregulated in HCC tissues and cell lines. Reduced miR‐30a correlated with intrahepatic metastasis, advanced TNM stage, and short DFS. Downregulation of miR‐30a promotes cell migration, invasion and EMT changes. SNAI1 is a direct target of miR‐30a. SNAI1 functions in reduced miR‐30a‐promoted cell migration, invasion and EMT changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI) provides 8461 channels in the infrared spectrum. In current numerical weather prediction (NWP) models, it is not feasible to assimilate all channels and it is known that the information content between adjacent channels is redundant. This issue has been addressed in NWP centres by employing a channel selection strategy. The goal of this article is to add new channels to the existing IASI operational channel selection, aimed at improving the data assimilation in cloudy conditions and the simultaneous retrieval of cloud microphysical variables, specifically liquid and ice water contents. Cloudy profiles from the French convective-scale model Applications of Research to Operations at MEsoscale (AROME) are used in the study to focus on the retrieval of cloud variables over the Mediterranean region. Three channel selection methodologies were evaluated in this study: a statistical approach based on the degrees of freedom of the signal (DFS), a physical method based on the channel spectral sensitivity to the cloud variables and a random selection. To validate the new selections, an idealized framework is used with observing system simulation experiments (OSSE) in the context of one-dimensional variational retrievals. The current operational IASI selection has already been shown to provide good retrievals of cloud variables. However, all the different channel selections improve the results with small differences in the 1D-Var retrievals. Based on the physical and DFS methods, the final sets of 134 channels sensitive to cloud variables are proposed for future investigation in operational implementation. Additional tests on temperature and water-vapour retrieval results, air-mass dependence and cloud microphysical parametrization have also been conducted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

End-vertices of a given graph search may have some nice properties, as for example it is well known that the last vertex of Lexicographic Breadth First Search (LBFS) in a chordal graph is simplicial, see Rose, Tarjan and Lueker 1976. Therefore it is interesting to consider if these vertices can be recognized in polynomial time or not, as first studied in Corneil, Köhler and Lanlignel 2010. A graph search is a mechanism for systematically visiting the vertices of a graph. At each step of a graph search, the key point is the choice of the next vertex to be explored. Graph searches only differ by this selection mechanism during which a tie-break rule is used. In this paper we study how the choice of the tie-break in case of equality during the search, for a given graph search including the classic ones such as BFS and DFS, can determine the complexity of the end-vertex problem. In particular we prove a counterintuitive NP-completeness result for Breadth First Search solving a problem raised in Corneil, Köhler and Lanlignel 2010. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Usually, cloud storage systems are developed based on DFS (Distributed File System) for scalability and reliability reasons. DFSs are designed to improve throughput than IO response time, and therefore, they are appropriate for batch processing jobs. Recently, cloud storage systems have been used for update intensive applications such as OLTP and so on. However, in DFSs, in-place update operations are not carefully considered. Therefore, when updates are frequent, I/O performance of DFSs are degraded significantly. DFSs with RAID techniques have been proposed to improve their performance and reliability. Their performance degradation caused by frequent update operations can be more significant. In this paper, we propose an in-place update method for DFS RAID exploiting a differential logging technique. The proposed method reduces the I/O costs, network traffic and XOR operation costs for RAID. We demonstrate the efficiency of our proposed in-place update method through various experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association between epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations and prognosis in patients with completely resected lung adenocarcinoma. A total of 131 patients were included in this study. EGFR mutation status in exons 18-21 of the tyrosine kinase-binding domain was detected using nested PCR amplification of individual exon. The χ test was used to analyze the associations between EGFR mutations and the different variables. The log-rank test and Cox regression model were used to evaluate the factors influencing disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS). EGFR mutations in 18-21 exons were detected in 58 of the 131 patients (44.3 %). Smoking status ( P = 0.029), N stage ( P = 0.021), and pathologic stage ( P = 0.048) were significantly associated with EGFR mutations. The median DFS in mutant EGFR and wild-type EGFR groups was 36.6 and 25.7 months, respectively ( P = 0.533). No significant correlation was observed between EGFR mutations and OS ( P = 0.564). However, patients with exon 19 mutation tended to have longer DFS than those with exon 21 mutation (46.2 vs. 21.9 months, P = 0.056), and the 1-, 2-, and 3-year OS rates were significantly higher in patients with exon 19 mutation compared to patients with exon 21 mutation (100, 96.7, 93.3 vs. 91.3, 82.6, 60.9 %, respectively, P = 0.01). Our data demonstrated that EGFR mutations do not have significant prognostic value in primary resected lung adenocarcinomas, but patients with exon 19 mutation tended to have better prognostic value compared to patients with exon 21 mutation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Rates of disease recurrence and death following surgery remain high in early-stage non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), despite adjuvant treatment and curative intent. Recently, osimertinib showed overwhelming evidence for disease-free survival (DFS), as demonstrated by an overall reduction in the risk of disease recurrence or death in the adjuvant setting of 80% versus control in the ADAURA study (stage IB-IIIA; hazard ratio 0.20; 99.12% confidence interval 0.14-0.30; P < 0.001). However, due to the early unblinding of ADAURA and lack of mature overall survival data, there is a need to qualitatively confirm consensus on the clinical and patient relevance of DFS., Materials and Methods: We conducted a modified Delphi panel study consisting of two rounds of surveys, followed by a consensus meeting. An international panel of experts in the field of NSCLC and epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKIs) (n = 13) was asked to rate agreement and comment on a list of pre-defined statements covering key consensus gaps. Statements were eliminated or updated between surveys, depending on the level of agreement. A final list of agreed-upon statements was drafted in the consensus meeting., Results: Consensus was reached on 32 qualitative statements, with topics including unmet needs in early-stage NSCLC, the value of DFS, and the value of osimertinib. Crucially, DFS was agreed to be a clinically and patient-relevant endpoint in adjuvant NSCLC. The relevance of DFS was found to relate to the ability of an adjuvant therapy, such as osimertinib, to keep patients in the clinically valuable curative intent setting, while preventing the burden associated with distant and locoregional recurrence, and progressive disease., Conclusions: Addressing the need for measures that reflect clinical benefit is essential to continue improving outcomes for NSCLC patients. To that end, this work provides a qualitative framework for clinicians to consider the clinical and patient relevance of DFS in adjuvant NSCLC and the benefit demonstrated in ADAURA thus far., Competing Interests: Disclosure MP reports being an advisor to Takeda, Pfizer, Roche, Novartis, AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Merck Sharp & Dohme, Eli Lilly, Amgen, Sanofi, Gritstone, GlaxoSmithKline; speaker fees from Takeda, Pfizer, Roche, Chugai, Amgen, AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Merck Sharp & Dohme, Illumina; institutional research grants from Takeda, AstraZeneca, Roche, Boehringer Ingelheim. BMS reports being a consultant to Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Galvanize Therapeutics, Flame Therapeutics; advisory boards for AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Genentech, Bristol Myers Squibb; research support to Bristol Myers Squibb; board of Lung Cancer Research Foundation; employment at Xalud Therapeutics, PPD, Pfizer. CG reports receiving honoraria, speaker’s bureau and advisory board fees from AstraZeneca, Boehringer-Ingelheim, and MSD; received travel and accommodation fees from Boehringer-Ingelheim. RC reports honoraria and consultancy fees from AstraZeneca, Boeringher Ingelheim, Lilly Oncology, Roche, Pfizer, MSD, Bristol Myers Squibb, Janssen, Takeda, Bayer, Sanofi, and Novartis; grants paid to institution for conduct of clinical trials or contracted research by Roche, AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Clovis, Lilly Oncology, MSD, BMS, Abbvie, Takeda, Janssen, and Novartis. FdM reports advisor fees from AstraZeneca, Roche, BMS, Novartis, MSD, XCovery, Takeda, Eli Lilly. RAS reports participation in advisory boards for Amgen, AstraZeneca, Bayer, BMS, Boehringer Ingelheim, Lily, Merck, Novartis, Pfizer, Roche, Taiho, Takeda, Yuhan; research grant from AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim. MT reports honoraria and lecture fees from Johnson & Johnson Japan, AstraZeneca KK, Eli Lilly Japan, Chugai Pharmaceutical CO., LTD, Taiho Pharma, Medtronic Japan, Ono Pharmaceutical CO.,LTD, MSD, Bristol-Myers Squibb KK, Teijin Pharma; consulting or advisory roles for AstraZeneca KK, Chugai Pharmaceutical CO Ltd, MSD, Novartis; receiving facilities research grant and commissioned research for Boehringer-Ingelheim Japan, MSD, AstraZeneca KK, Ono Pharmaceutical CO Ltd, MSD, Bristol-Myers Squibb KK, Eli Lilly Japan. SL reports receiving research support from AstraZeneca, Hutchison, BMS, Heng Rui Beigene and Roche, Hansoh; receiving speaker fees from AstraZeneca, Roche, Hansoh, Hengrui Therapeutics; advisor/consultant for Astra Zeneca, Pfizer, Hutchison MediPharma, ZaiLab, GenomiCare, Yuhan Corporation, Menarini, InventisBio Co. Ltd., and Roche. GL reports honoraria and advisory board membership/chair from AstraZeneca, Novartis, Hoffman La Roche, Pfizer, Abbvie, Merck, Bristol Myers Squibb, and Takeda; industry research funding from Takeda, AstraZeneca, and Boehringer Ingelheim; educational sessions for AstraZeneca, Takeda, EMD-Serono, Pfizer. RGC reports participating in advisory boards for MSD, Bristol-Myers, Roche, Boehringer Ingelheim, Pfizer, Novartis, AstraZeneca, Lilly, Takeda; consulting for MSD, Bristol-Myers, Roche, Boehringer Ingelheim, Pfizer, Novartis, AstraZeneca, Lilly, Takeda; receiving speaker honoraria from MSD, Bristol-Myers, Roche, Boehringer Ingelheim, Pfizer, Novartis, AstraZeneca, Lilly, Takeda. MT reports speaker and consultancy fees from AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Eli-Lilly, BMS, Novartis, Roche, MSD, Boehringer Ingelheim, Otsuka, Takeda, Pierre Fabre, Amgen, Merck; received institutional research grants from AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim. All other authors have declared no conflicts of interest, (Copyright © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Based on the quantum Zeno dynamics, we present an approach for deterministic preparation of arbitrary four-qubit decoherence-free state of superconducting quantum interference devices with respective to collective amplitude damping in a decoherence-free way, namely, not only the form of the target state is free of decoherence, but also the whole process for preparation. The operation is fast and convenient since we only need to manipulate three weak laser pulses sequentially. Other decoherence effects such as cavity decay and the spontaneous emission of qubits are also taken into account in virtue of master equation, and the strictly numerical simulation signifies the final fidelity is high corresponding to the current experimental technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Let be a graph with vertex set . A moplex of is both a clique and a module whose neighborhood is a minimal separator in or empty. A moplex ordering of is an ordered partition of for some integer into moplexes which are defined in the successive transitory elimination graphs, i.e., for , is a moplex of the graph induced by and induces a clique. In this paper we prove the terminal vertex by an execution of the lexicographical depth-first search (LexDFS for short) algorithm on belongs to a moplex whose vertices are numbered consecutively and further that the LexDFS algorithm on defines a moplex ordering of , which is similar to the result about the maximum cardinality search (MCS for short) algorithm on chordal graphs [J.R.S. Blair, B.W. Peyton, An introduction to chordal graphs and clique trees, IMA Volumes in Mathematics and its Applications, 56 (1993) pp. 1–30] and the result about the lexicographical breadth-first search (LexBFS for short) algorithm on general graphs [A. Berry, J.-P. Bordat, Separability generalizes Dirac’s theorem, Discrete Appl. Math., 84 (1998) 43–53]. As a corollary, we can obtain a simple algorithm on a chordal graph to generate all minimal separators and all maximal cliques. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The diversity of today'smobile applications requires embedded processor cores with a high resource efficiency, that means, the devices should provide a high performance at low area requirements and power consumption. The fine-grained parallelism supported by multiple functional units of VLIW architectures offers a high throughput at reasonable low clock frequencies compared to single-core RISC processors. To efficiently utilize the processor pipeline, common system architectures have to cope with data hazards due to data dependencies between consecutive operations. On the one hand, such hazards can be resolved by complex forwarding circuits (i.e., a pipeline bypass) which forward intermediate results to a subsequent instruction. On the other hand, the pipeline bypass can strongly affect or even dominate the total resource requirements and degrade the maximum clock frequency. In this work the CoreVA VLIW architecture is used for the development and the analysis of application-specific bypass configurations. It is shown that many paths of a comprehensive bypass system are rarely used and may not be required for certain applications. For this reason, several strategies have been implemented to enhance the efficiency of the total system by introducing applicationspecific bypass configurations. The configuration can be carried out statically by only implementing required paths or at runtime by dynamically reconfiguring the hardware. An algorithm is proposed which derives an optimized configuration by iteratively disabling single bypass paths. The adaptation of these applicationspecific bypass configurations allows for a reduction of the critical path by 26%. As a result, the execution time and energy requirements could be reduced by up to 21.5%. Using Dynamic Frequency Scaling (DFS) and dynamic deactivation/reactivation of bypass paths allows for a runtime reconfiguration of the bypass system. This ensures the highest efficiency while processing varying applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lifestyle changes can contribute to climate change mitigation. Social and technical changes are however intimately related, and consumption entangled with technology. Design researchers have proposed several strategies for facilitating more sustainable consumption patterns through design. However, many actors and structures influence both technology development and how consumption patterns evolve. Understanding the preconditions for design-led contribution requires looking beyond the designer-product-user triad. To frame further investigation into the role of design in transformation of consumption, theoretical concepts from the social sciences are introduced. Laundering is taken as an example to examine the dynamics at play and how to theoretically cope with them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Small breast epithelial mucin (SBEM) has been implicated in tumor genesis and micrometastasis in breast cancer. Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) was characterized by high incidence in young women, early relapse and a very poor prognosis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association of SBEM expression in tissues of TNBC with disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS). Methods: SBEM protein expression was detected in 87 available formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue specimens from TNBC patients by means of immunohistochemistry (IHC). We analyzed the correlation between the SBEM protein expression and DFS and OS during a 5 year follow-up period, respectively. And a SBEM cut-off value of prognosis was established associated with DFS and OS. SBEM was analyzed against other risk factors in multivariate analysis. Results: SBEM 3+ score was cut-off value of prognosis and significantly correlated with DFS (p = 0.000) and OS (p = 0.001) in TNBC patients. There was a marked associations (p <0.05) between SBEM 3+ score and tumor size, grade, node status, TNM stage and Ki67. Multivariate analysis showed that patients with SBEM 3+ represented a higher risk of recurrence and mortality than those with a lower SBEM expression (HR = 3.370 with p = 0.008 for DFS and HR = 4.185 with p = 0.004 for OS). Conclusions: SBEM is an independent risk predictor and may offer utility as a prognostic marker in TNBC patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Since relapse following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) can be due to the escape of the residual malignant cells from the graft-versus-leukemia (GvL) effect and given the role of NK cells in GvL and the importance of HLA-E in the modulation of NK cell function, we investigated whether polymorphisms of HLA-E molecule could impact on the incidence of relapse and the improvement of Disease-free Survival (DFS) after allogeneic HSCT. The study group included 56 pairs of donors and patients with malignant hematological disorders undergoing HLA-E matched allogeneic HSCT. The median follow-up was 43.6 (range 20.5–113.1) months. They were genotyped for HLA-E locus using a sequence-specific primer (SSP)-PCR. We found a lower incidence of relapse (p =0.02) in the patients with HLA-E*0103/0103 genotype compared to those with other genotypes of HLA-E. We also showed an association between HLA-E*0103/0103 genotype and a better DFS (p =0.001). Our results suggest a protective role for HLA-E*0103/0103 genotype against relapse and an association between this genotype and an improved DFS following HLA-E matched allogeneic HSCT. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The main purpose of this study is to devise a novel methodology for automated scenario generation, which simultaneously checks the feasibility and the correctness of scenarios in terms of event sequence, logical propagation, and violation of constraints. Modern day warfare is highly fluidic, fast moving, and unpredictable. Such situation stipulates the fast decision making and rapid deployment of fighting forces. Management of combat assets and utilization of battlefield information, therefore, become the key factors that deice the outcome of engagement. In this context, the Korean Armed Forces are building a framework, in which commanders can rapidly and efficiently evaluate every conceivable engagement scenario before committing real assets. The methodology is derived from the Conflict Table, event transition probabilities, DEVS formalism, and DFS algorithm. The presented example illustrates an one-on-one combat engagement scenario with two submarines, of which results validate the effectiveness of the proposed methodology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Cell division control protein 42 (CDC42) is involved in colorectal cancer (CRC) progression by modulating CD8 + T cell activation, immune escape, and direct oncogenetic biological processes. This study aimed to explore the correlation of blood CDC42 with disease risk, comorbidities, disease features, tumor markers, and prognosis among CRC patients., Methods: CDC42 in peripheral blood mononuclear cells was detected by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction from 250 resectable CRC patients and 50 healthy controls (HCs). CDC42 was divided by quartiles, as well as high and low expressions in CRC patients for correlation and survival analysis., Results: CDC42 was elevated in CRC patients vs. HCs (p < 0.001), which had a good ability to distinguish CRC patients from HCs with the area under the curve (95% confidence interval) of 0.889 (0.841-0.937). In CRC patients, CDC42 was not associated with demographics or comorbidities (all p > 0.05), while its higher quartile was linked to increased T stage (p < 0.001), N stage (p = 0.009), TNM stage (p < 0.001), abnormal carcinoembryonic antigen (p = 0.043), and adjuvant chemotherapy administration (p = 0.002). Higher CDC42 quartile (p = 0.002) and CDC42 high (vs. low) (p < 0.001) were related to worse disease-free survival (DFS); meanwhile, elevated CDC42 quartile (p = 0.002) and CDC42 high (vs. low) (p = 0.001) were also linked to poor overall survival (OS). Multivariate Cox's regression analysis presented that CDC42 quartile 3 and 4 (vs. quartile 1) independently predicted declined DFS and OS (all p < 0.05)., Conclusion: Circulating CDC42 relates to higher disease risk, T, N, and TNM stage, abnormal tumor marker, and poor prognosis among CRC patients., (© 2022 The Authors. Journal of Clinical Laboratory Analysis published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Abstract: The presence of anti-nuclear antibodies (ANA) is a hallmark of systemic autoimmune rheumatic diseases (SARD). The indirect immunofluorescence (IIF) assay on HEp-2 cells is a commonly used test for the detection of ANA and was recently recommended as the screening test of choice by a task force of the American College of Rheumatology. However, up to 20% of serum samples from healthy individuals (HI) have been reported to have a positive ANA test, the majority of which are directed to the dense fine speckles 70 (DFS70) antigen. Even more important, the DFS IIF pattern has been reported in 33% of ANA positive HI, but not in ANA positive SARD sera. Since the intended use of the ANA HEp-2 test is to aid in the diagnosis of SARD, the reporting of anti-DFS70 antibodies and their associated pattern (DFS) as a positive test, significantly reduces the specificity and the positive likelihood of the ANA test. This has significant implications for diagnostic algorithms involving the detection of ANA. We summarize the current knowledge of anti-DFS70 antibodies and their impact on ANA testing. We also suggest a test algorithm which considers the DFS pattern and the presence of anti-DFS70 antibodies. In addition, we describe a novel method based on immunoadsorption of anti-DFS70 antibodies, which increases the specificity of the ANA HEp-2 test for SARD and which has the potential to overcome a significant limitation of the ANA HEp-2 assay. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

We consider an alternative expression of the Shapley value that reveals a system of compensations: each player receives an equal share of the worth of each coalition he belongs to, and has to compensate an equal share of the worth of any coalition he does not belong to. We give a representation in terms of formation of the grand coalition according to an ordering of the players and define the corresponding compensation vector. Then, we generalize this idea to cooperative games with a communication graph in order to construct new allocation rules called the compensation solutions. Firstly, we consider cooperative games with arbitrary graphs and construct rooted spanning trees (see Demange, J Political Econ 112:754-778, ) instead of orderings of the players by using the classical algorithms DFS and BFS. If the graph is complete, we show that the compensation solutions associated with DFS and BFS coincide with the Shapley value and the equal surplus division respectively. Secondly, we consider cooperative games with a forest (cycle-free graph) and all its rooted spanning trees. The compensation solution is characterized by component efficiency and relative fairness. The latter axiom takes into account the relative position of a player with respect to his component in the communication graph. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]