306 research outputs found
Some Remarks on Calabi-Yau Manifolds
No full textThe article under review can be regarded as an announcement of or supplement to results in forthcoming papers of the author and his collaborators concerning quintic threefolds, the Dwork pencil, and its natural generalization to higher dimensions [G. Bini, "Quotients of hypersurfaces in weighted projective space'', preprint, arxiv.org/abs/0905.2099, Adv. Geom., to appear; G. Bini, B. van Geemen and T. L. Kelly, "Mirror quintics, discrete symmetries and Shioda maps'', preprint, arxiv.org/abs/0809.1791, J. Algebraic Geom., to appear; G. Bini and A. Garbagnati, "The geometry of the generalized Dwork pencil and its quotients'', in preparation]
Growth, genes, genomes: iInsights into microbial respiration of arsenic and selenium
No full textArsenic (As) and selenium (Se) are naturally occurring metalloids in the Earth’s crust. Their speciation is governed by the microbial communities in various environments which influences their mobility among the soil, water, and air interface. Microorganisms can utilize As and Se oxyanion as terminal electron acceptors in dissimilatory reduction. These organisms are ubiquitous and phylogenetically diverse. The objectives of the studies in this thesis were to gain an understanding of the metabolism of As and Se respiring bacteria, analyze the genes encoding enzymes involved in respiration and understand how these enzymes are regulated in the presence of various electron acceptors. We were able to isolate two novel As and Se respiring bacteria from different environments; from a wastewater treatment facility in Verona, NJ and an estuarine canal from Chennai, India. Based on 16S rRNA gene analysis, strain S4 was classified as a novel genus and species, Selenovibrio woodruffi and strain S5 as a novel species, Desulfurispirillum indicum. We analyzed the genome of D. indicum and examined the expression of putative reductases to further understand respiratory metabolism of As and Se oxyanions. Five molybdoenzyme genes were identified in the genome of strain S5, three of which we were annotated to encode for a respiratory arsenate reductase arr, periplasmic nitrate reductase nar, and respiratory nitrate reductase nap. Also, an arsenate resistance system, ars, was identified. We were not able to positively identify a selenate reductase gene. Gene expression studies revealed that arr was an inducible gene and the only gene highly expressed during arsenate respiration. Growth studies showed that selenate respiration was inhibited by nitrate. Lastly, we also enriched activated sludge samples for tellurium oxyanion respiring bacteria. Thus, we not only added novel, phylogenetically different organisms to the ever-increasing list of As and Se respiring microbes, we also provided insights into the genes and enzymes involved in As and Se respiration and how they are regulated.Ph. D.Includes bibliographical referencesby Ines Rauschenbac
Erratum: Corrigendum to “C-reactive protein levels after cardiac arrest in patients treated with therapeutic hypothermia” (Resuscitation (2014) 85 (932–938) (S0300957214004717) (10.1016/j.resuscitation.2014.04.003))
No full textThe authors regret that the name of the second author appeared incorrectly in the published version of the above paper. The correct spelling of this author's name is Julia Bini Viotti. The authors would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused.SCOPUS: er.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe
AUTHOR REPLY
No full textAs you have pointed out the main conclusion drawn from our
data is that, for the time being, the choice between laparoscopic
and robot-assisted surgery can only be based on cost, time, and
training requirements, since there is consistently no difference in
efficacy and safety in available trials. When longer follow-up
becomes available, durability of results could be compared and
further guide our choice
Is there a quantum gravity effect on the cosmic microwave background power spectrum?
No full textAn assessment is made of recent attempts to evaluate how quantum gravity may affect the anisotropy spectrum of the cosmic microwave background. A perturbative scheme for the solution of the Wheeler-DeWitt equation has been found to allow for enhancement of power at large scales, whereas the alternative predicts a suppression of power at large scales. Both effects are corrections which, although conceptually interesting, turn out to be too small to be detected. Another scheme relies upon a Born-Oppenheimer analysis: by using a perturbative approach to the nonlinear ordinary differential equation obeyed by the two-point function for scalar fluctuations, a new family of power spectra has been obtained and studied by the author
Paleokarstic fills in Iglesiente (Sardinia Italy) sedimentary processes and age
No full textThe Mount S. Giovanni caves developed mostly during Paleozoic and Mesozoic in Cambrian limestones (Gonnesa formation) locally mineralized. Their infilling, of economic interest, took place during or nearly after the volcanic Cenozoic phase. The material derives from the removal of important pedogenetic cover, with episodes of clays masses redeposition and phases of wall collapses and of concretioning. -from Author
Utopia:Wreckage
No full textThe lesson taught by every historical attempt to construct society in accordance with an idea: where utopia is, wreckage will follow. So we have been told, and do, in large part, believe. The empire of capitalist parliamentarism, sovereign police, and conventional skepticism rises from the ruins of futures past. This symposium invited four inventive, provocative, and engaged thinkers to reflect upon utopia and its wreckages, to help us understand the valences of realization and ruination, of wreaking and wrecking, within socialist/post-socialist, sovereign/post-sovereign, imperial/post-imperial, feminist, and queer political programmes. Boris Buden is a writer and cultural critic. He studied philosophy in Zagreb and cultural theory at the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Among his many publications are Barikade (Zagreb 1996) and Zone des Übergangs. Vom Ende des Postkommunismus (2009). Among his translations into Croatian are two books of Sigmund Freud. Bini Adamczak is an unstable alliance of everyday reproduction modes, unwanted heritages, and quarrelsome spectres, such as deconstructivist feminisms and the orthodox critique of value. She’s a performer, visual artist, and independent author of borderlining texts such as Kommunismus. Kleine Geschichte wie alles anders wird (2004) and Gestern Morgen. Über die Einsamkeit kommunistischer Gespenster und die Rekonstruktion der Zukunft (Münster, 2007). Daniel Loick teaches social and political philosophy at Goethe University Frankfurt. His book on sovereignty, Ironien des Politischen. Elemente einer kritischen Theorie der Souveränität (2011) will be published this fall. He is also co-organizer of the international conference Re-Thinking Marx at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Karen Tongson is associate professor of English and Gender Studies at the University of Southern California. Her book on race, sexuality, popular culture, and the suburbs, Relocations: Queer Suburban Imaginaries, will appear in August 2011. She is on of the editors of the series Postmillennial Pop and is also co-editor-in-chief of The Journal of Popular Music Studies. Programme 15:00 Welcome 15:30 Introduction 16:00 Boris Buden (Berlin): Dislocation of Utopia. In-between Capitalism and Socialism 17:00 Bini Adamczak (Frankfurt): The Feeling of Revolution. Queer Questions of 1917 18:00 Break 18:30 Daniel Loick (Frankfurt): Post-Sovereign Politics. Lessons from Benjamin 19:30 Keynote: Karen Tongson (Los Angeles): Inland Emperors. Sexuality at the End of the Suburb
Cardiovascular disease risk burden in primary Sjögren's syndrome: results of a population-based multicentre cohort study.
No full textCardiovascular disease risk burden in primary Sjögren's syndrome: results of a population-based multicentre cohort study.
Bartoloni E1, Baldini C, Schillaci G, Quartuccio L, Priori R, Carubbi F, Bini V, Alunno A, Bombardieri S, De Vita S, Valesini G, Giacomelli R, Gerli R.
Author information
Abstract
OBJECTIVE:
Systemic autoimmune diseases, in particular systemic lupus erythematosus and rheumatoid arthritis, are characterized by a high risk of premature cardiovascular (CV) events. Disease-related characteristics and traditional CV disease risk factors may contribute to atherosclerotic damage. However, there are limited data on the risk of overt CV events in primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS).
METHODS:
We retrospectively analysed a cohort of patients with 1343 pSS. Disease-related clinical and laboratory data, traditional CV disease risk factors and overt CV events were recorded. Prevalence of traditional CV disease risk factors and of major CV events was compared between a subgroup of 788 female patients with pSS aged from 35 to 74 years and 4774 age-matched healthy women.
RESULTS:
Hypertension and hypercholesterolaemia were more prevalent, whereas smoking, obesity and diabetes mellitus were less prevalent, in women with pSS than in control subjects. Cerebrovascular events (2.5% vs. 1.4%, P = 0.005) and myocardial infarction (MI) (1.0% vs. 0.4%, P = 0.002) were more common in patients with pSS. In the whole population, central nervous system involvement (odds ratio (OR) 5.6, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.35-23.7, P = 0.02) and use of immunosuppressive therapy (OR 1.9, 95% CI 1.04-3.70, P = 0.04) were associated with a higher risk of CV events. Patients with leucopenia had a higher risk of angina (P = 0.01).
CONCLUSIONS:
pSS is associated with an increased risk of cerebrovascular events and MI. Disease-related clinical and immunological markers may have a role in promoting CV events.
© 2015 The Association for the Publication of the Journal of Internal Medicine.
KEYWORDS:
Sjögren's syndrome; atherosclerosis; autoimmune disease; cardiovascular disease risk factor
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