Search results for "present"
showing 10 items of 3598 documents
Introduction to Spreadsheet Modeling and Metaheuristics
2017
Models, as a simplified representation of reality, are used daily in an attempt to control or understand some aspects of a real system. Simplification of reality is the accepted view of the modeling process, which assumes that reality represents the absolute truth. Without getting too deep into a philosophical discourse, it is worth mentioning the notion of model-dependent realism, a phrase coined by physicists Stephen Hawkings and Leonard Molinow in their book The Grand Design. Model-dependent realism “is based on the idea that our brains interpret the input from our sensory organs by making a model of the world to aid in the decision-making process.” This implies that more than one model …
The ‘Open Garden of Politics’: The impact of open primaries for candidate selection in the British Conservative Party
2016
International audience; Since 2003, hundreds of open primaries for the selection of parliamentary candidates have been held by the British Conservative Party as a means of democratising party organisation and enhancing representativeness. In the run-up to the 2015 general election, only 26 primaries could be identified. This article will apply the analytical framework provided by Hazan and Rahat to demonstrate that the relative failure of the experiment in terms of intra-party competition, participation, representation and responsiveness is counterbalanced by the benefits brought by this procedure, both as a tool of party branding at the national level and as a strategy for raising the prof…
Modelling Rainfall-induced Shallow Landslides at Different Scales Using SLIP - Part II
2016
Abstract This paper (Part II) is companion of another one published in this Conference (Part I). Both the papers describe the approach followed in the application of the SLIP model at different scales to foresee the triggering mechanism of rainfall-induced shallow landslides. In particular, this paper (Part II) focuses on the modeling at medium and large scale (regional and national level). The possibility of using the same means to model the phenomenon from the scale of the representative elementary volume (i.e. flume laboratory tests) to the medium and large scale (hundreds or thousands square kilometers wide areas) allowed from the one hand to strengthen the model assumptions and on the …
Visualization of Simulated Arrhythmias due to Gap Junctions
2018
New computational models are able to simulate details of cardiac cell networks. Their results allow a better understanding of the functionality of the heart and suggest possible actions to reduce non-fatal premature beats that can give rise to serious diseases. We developed a user-friendly interface to organize Neuron simulations and to present in real-time a three-dimensional representation of the electrical activity due to the gap junctions which interconnect the cells inside cardiac tissues. All physiological parameters were set according to real experimental observations and compared against different types of arrhythmias, retrieved from the Physionet Data Base.
Consequence of Histoincompatibility beyond GvH-Reaction in Cytomegalovirus Disease Associated with Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation: Cha…
2021
Hematopoietic cell (HC) transplantation (HCT) is the last resort to cure hematopoietic malignancies that are refractory to standard therapies. Hematoablative treatment aims at wiping out tumor cells as completely as possible to avoid leukemia/lymphoma relapse. This treatment inevitably co-depletes cells of hematopoietic cell lineages, including differentiated cells that constitute the immune system. HCT reconstitutes hematopoiesis and thus, eventually, also antiviral effector cells. In cases of an unrelated donor, that is, in allogeneic HCT, HLA-matching is performed to minimize the risk of graft-versus-host reaction and disease (GvHR/D), but a mismatch in minor histocompatibility antigens …
Exploring the human microbiome from multiple perspectives: factors altering its composition and function
2017
Abstract Our microbiota presents peculiarities and characteristics that may be altered by multiple factors. The degree and consequences of these alterations depend on the nature, strength and duration of the perturbations as well as the structure and stability of each microbiota. The aim of this review is to sketch a very broad picture of the factors commonly influencing different body sites, and which have been associated with alterations in the human microbiota in terms of composition and function. To do so, first, a graphical representation of bacterial, fungal and archaeal genera reveals possible associations among genera affected by different factors. Then, the revision of sequence-bas…
The genetic prehistory of the Baltic Sea region
2018
Correction: Nature communications 9 (2018), art. no. 1494 doi:10.1038/s41467-018-03872-y While the series of events that shaped the transition between foraging societies and food producers are well described for Central and Southern Europe, genetic evidence from Northern Europe surrounding the Baltic Sea is still sparse. Here, we report genome-wide DNA data from 38 ancient North Europeans ranging from similar to 9500 to 2200 years before present. Our analysis provides genetic evidence that hunter-gatherers settled Scandinavia via two routes. We reveal that the first Scandinavian farmers derive their ancestry from Anatolia 1000 years earlier than previously demonstrated. The range of Mesolit…
Reciprocal regulation of the Il9 locus by counteracting activities of transcription factors IRF1 and IRF4.
2017
The T helper 9 (Th9) cell transcriptional network is formed by an equilibrium of signals induced by cytokines and antigen presentation. Here we show that, within this network, two interferon regulatory factors (IRF), IRF1 and IRF4, display opposing effects on Th9 differentiation. IRF4 dose-dependently promotes, whereas IRF1 inhibits, IL-9 production. Likewise, IRF1 inhibits IL-9 production by human Th9 cells. IRF1 counteracts IRF4-driven Il9 promoter activity, and IRF1 and IRF4 have opposing function on activating histone modifications, thus modulating RNA polymerase II recruitment. IRF1 occupancy correlates with decreased IRF4 abundance, suggesting an IRF1-IRF4-binding competition at the I…
Rational Combination of Parvovirus H1 With CTLA-4 and PD-1 Checkpoint Inhibitors Dampens the Tumor Induced Immune Silencing
2019
The recent therapeutic success of immune checkpoint inhibitors in the treatment of advanced melanoma highlights the potential of cancer immunotherapy. Oncolytic virus-based therapies may further improve the outcome of these cancer patients. A human ex vivo melanoma model was used to investigate the oncolytic parvovirus H-1 (H-1PV) in combination with ipilimumab and/or nivolumab. The effect of this combination on activation of human T lymphocytes was demonstrated. Expression of CTLA-4, PD-1, and PD-L1 immune checkpoint proteins was upregulated in H-1PV-infected melanoma cells. Nevertheless, maturation of antigen presenting cells such as dendritic cells was triggered by H-1PV infected melanom…
Cancer Acidity and Hypertonicity Contribute to Dysfunction of Tumor-Associated Dendritic Cells: Potential Impact on Antigen Cross-Presentation Machin…
2020
Macrophages (M) and dendritic cells (DC), major players of the mononuclear phagocyte system (MoPh), are potent antigen presenting cells that steadily sense and respond to signals from the surrounding microenvironment, leading to either immunogenic or tolerogenic outcomes. Next to classical MHC-I/MHC-II antigen-presentation pathways described in the vast majority of cell types, a subset of MoPh (CD8+, XCR1+, CLEC9A+, BDCA3+ conventional DCs in human) is endowed with a high competence to cross-present external (engulfed) antigens on MHC-I molecules to CD8+ T-cells. This exceptional DC function is thought to be a crucial crossroad in cytotoxic antitumor immunity and has been extensively studie…