Prothymosin $\alpha$ (proT$\alpha$) and its C-terminal decapeptide proT$\alpha$(100–109) were shown to pleiotropically enhance innate and adaptive immune responses. Their activities have been broadly studied in vitro, focusing primarily on the restoration of the deficient immunoreactivity of cancer patients' leukocytes. Previously, we showed that proT$\alpha$ and proT$\alpha$(100–109) act as danger-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs), ligate Toll-like receptor-4, signal through TRIF- and MyD88-dependent pathways, promote the maturation of dendritic cells and elicit T-helper type 1 (Th1) immune responses in vitro, leading to the optimal priming of tumor antigen-reactive T-cell functions. Herein, we assessed their activity in a preclinical melanoma model. Immunocompetent mice bearing B16.F1 tumors were treated with two cycles of proT$\alpha$ or proT$\alpha$(100–109) together with a B16.F1-derived peptide vaccine. Coadministration of proT$\alpha$ or proT$\alpha$(100–109) and the peptide vaccine suppressed melanoma-cell proliferation, as evidenced by reduced tumor-growth rates. Higher melanoma infiltration by CD3+ T cells was observed, whereas ex vivo analysis of mouse total spleen cells verified the in vivo induction of melanoma-reactive cytotoxic responses. Additionally, increased levels of proinflammatory and Th1-type cytokines were detected in mouse serum. We propose that, in the presence of tumor antigens, DAMPs proT$\alpha$ and proT$\alpha$(100–109) induce Th1-biased immune responses in vivo. Their adjuvant ability to orchestrate antitumor immunoreactivities can eventually be exploited therapeutically in humans.

Due to ice melting, the energy reserves in the Arctic Ocean have become accessible. Therefore, with reference to the climatic changes that have been taking place in recent years, the aim of this paper is to analyze the reallocation of power in the geopolitical complex of the Arctic Ocean, through the context of the distribution, availability and development of the energy reserves in the area . That includes the study of the energy dividends of the Arctic Ocean’s coastal states as well as the strategic and political importance of the geopolitical complex of the research, in terms of energy.

OBJECTIVES: Three-dimensional (3D) bioprinting, a method derived from additive manufacturing technology, is a recent and ongoing trend for the construction of 3D volumetric structures. The purpose of this systematic review is to summarize evidence from existing human and animal studies assessing the application of 3D printing on bone repair and regeneration in the craniofacial region. DATA & SOURCES: A rigorous search of all relevant clinical trials and case series was performed, based on specific inclusion and exclusion criteria. The search was conducted in all available electronic databases and sources, supplemented by a manual search, in December 2017. STUDY SELECTION: 43 articles (6 human and 37 animal studies) fulfilled the criteria. The human studies included totally 81 patients with craniofacial bone defects. Titanium or hydroxylapatite scaffolds were most commonly implanted. The follow-up period ranged between 6 and 24 months. Bone repair was reported successful in nearly every case, with minimal complications. Also, animal intervention studies used biomaterials and cells in various combination, offering insights into the techniques, through histological, biochemical, histomorphometric and microcomputed tomographic findings. The results in both humans and animals, though promising, are yet to be verified for clinical impact. CONCLUSIONS: Future research should be focused on well-designed clinical trials to confirm the short- and long- term efficacy of 3D printing strategies for craniofacial bone repair. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Emerging 3D printing technology opens a new era for tissue engineering. Humans and animals on application of 3D printing for craniofacial bone repair showed promising results which will lead clinicians to investigate more thoroughly alternative therapeutic methods for craniofacial bone defects.

 

 

  

Fires affecting large areas usually create a mosaic of recovering plant communities reflecting their pre-fire composition and local conditions of burning. However, post-fire recovery patterns may also reveal the effects of landscape heterogeneity on the natural regeneration process of plant communities. This study combines field data and remote sensing image interpretation techniques to assess the role of various landscape characteristics in the post-fire recovery process in a mountainous region of Greece burned by a severe wildfire. Remote sensing techniques were used to accurately map secluded, large burned areas. By introducing a temporal component, we explored the correlation between post-fire regeneration and underlying topography, soils and basement rock. Pre-fire forest cover was reduced by more than half 8 years after fire. Regarding the dominant pre-fire forest trees, Abies cephalonica did not regenerate well after fire and most pre-fire stands were converted to grasslands and shrublands. In contrast, Pinus nigra regenerated sufficiently to return to its pre-fire cover, especially in areas underlain by softer basement rock. The use of different time series of high-resolution images improved the quality of the results obtained, justifying their use despite their high cost.

The quantification of the amount of the expected eroded material that will migrate towards lower elevations after a forest fire is one of the most crucial and practical information needed from the local authorities, in order to design post-fire stabilization measures and actions. It is one of the greatest challenges in natural resources and environmental planning and computer simulation models are becoming increasingly popular in predicting soil loss for various land use and management practices. Quite a few models along with their modifications are being developed aiming to fulfil the need for accurate quantification of soil erosion risk. Depending on the availability and the quality of the spatial data, which have to be imported into the various models as parameters, different methodologies are followed. Geraneia Mt is an extended mountain range at the west outskirts of Attica, central Greece, reaching the altitude of 1351 m, part of which has been designated as Natura 2000 site and is characterized by almost vertical slopes of carbonate rocks. The mountain was almost completely burned by a wild fire in late July 2018, which consumed most of its Pinus halepensis forests. The ridge of the protected area, covered by endemic fir Abies cephalonica forest was also affected by the fire. The soil covers carbonate rocks which comprise the higher elevations and the vertical slopes of the mountain as debris and loose deposits crop out at the south-facing mountain front which was greatly affected by the fire. Several erosion risk spatial models were applied on the protected area of Geraneia Mt in order to compare the sensitivity of their results and evaluate the risk of the affected habitat to be deteriorated. For each model, the most sensitive model parameters were calibrated and predicted soil loss amounts were compared. A qualitative and quantitative estimation was achieved and the advantages and disadvantages of each model had been identified.

Mediterranean Temporary Ponds (MTPs) constitute priority habitat under the European Union Habitats’ Directive. They are inhabited by rare species and subjected to unstable environmental conditions. Lakes and ponds act as early indicators of climate change, to which high altitude ecosystems are especially vulnerable. This study presents a full dataset of the geo-environmental parameters of such habitats (MTPs) along with their current ecological status for the first time. Furthermore, this paper aims to address the lack of basic geo-environmental background on the network of MTPs of Mt. Oiti concerning their geological, geomorphological, mineralogical and geochemical characteristics along with the pressures received from various activities. The study area is located in a mountainous Natura 2000 site of Central Greece, which hosts four MTPs. Fieldwork and sampling of water and bottom sediments were carried out during dry and wet periods between 2012 and 2014. Electrical Resistivity Tomography measurements identified synforms shaped under the ponds that topography does not always adopt them, mostly due to erosion procedures. The most significant feature, distinguishing those pond waters from any other province water bodies is the extremely low content of all studied ions (including NO2−, NO3−, NH4+, PO43−, HCO3−, SO42−, Al, As, B, Ba, Ca, Cd, Ce, Cl, Co, Cr, Cs, Cu, Fe, Ga, Gd, Ge, Hf, Hg, K, La, Li, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, Ni, P, Rb, S, Sb, Se, Si, Sn, Sr, Ti, U, V, W, Zn, and Zr). MTPs water bodies are of bicarbonate dominant type, and a fresh meteoric water origin is suggested. The main pressures identified were grazing and trampling by vehicles. MTPs of Mt. Oiti were classified according to their ecological status form excellent to medium. Our results can contribute to a better understanding of the mountainous temporary ponds development in the Mediterranean environment.

AIM OF THE STUDY: To investigate the association of personality traits with the severity of vasomotor symptoms (VMS) in a predominantly Greek population. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A questionnaire-based study of women from the Menopause Clinic of a University Hospital in Athens, Greece. Sociodemographic parameters were documented through a structured interview. All women completed the Menopause Rating Scale (MRS) for the assessment of severity of menopausal symptoms, the Hot Flush Beliefs Scale (HFBS) for the assessment of how women were coping with their symptoms and the Big Five Inventory questionnaires for the assessment of personality traits. Associations between baseline parameters and menopausal symptoms were assessed with univariate and multivariate regression analyses. RESULTS: One hundred women were included. Employed women had lower MRS sub-scores (psychological p< 0.001, somatic p< 0.047, urogenital p< 0.008). Married women scored higher in the psychological and somatic domains. Women of university educational level coped significantly better with hot flushes (β coefficient [SE]: 0.72 [0.25], p< 0.01) and night sweats (0.57 [0.19], p< 0.01) than women of primary education, although the significance of these findings was not replicated when taking into account confounders. Regarding personality traits, women with low openness (-0.33 [0.11], p< 0.01) and empathy (-0.83 [0.37], p = 0.03) and high agreeableness (1.13 [0.21], p< 0.001) had more severe menopausal symptoms. In contrast, women with high agreeableness could better cope with their menopausal symptoms (-0.75 [0.36], p = 0.04). These associations were independent of sociodemographic factors. CONCLUSIONS: Personality traits, especially agreeableness, openness and empathy are associated with menopausal symptoms and functionality in postmenopausal women. These associations might serve as indicators of women at risk of experiencing more severe VMS.

We report an analysis of the first known β Cep pulsator observed by the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) mission, the runaway star PHL 346 = HN Aqr. The star, previously known as a singly periodic pulsator, has at least 34 oscillation modes excited, 12 of those in the g-mode domain and 22 p modes. Analysis of archival data implies that the amplitude and frequency of the dominant mode and the stellar radial velocity were variable over time. A binary nature would be inconsistent with the inferred ejection velocity from the Galactic disk of 420 km s-1, which is too large to be survivable by a runaway binary system. A kinematic analysis of the star results in an age constraint (23 ± 1 Myr) that can be imposed on asteroseismic modeling and that can be used to remove degeneracies in the modeling process. Our attempts to match the excitation of the observed frequency spectrum resulted in pulsation models that were too young. Hence, asteroseismic studies of runaway pulsators can become vital not only in tracing the evolutionary history of such objects, but to understand the interior structure of massive stars in general. TESS is now opening up these stars for detailed asteroseismic investigation.

A special issue of the Journal of Greek Media and Culture (5.2), edited by Dimitris Plantzos. With a special focus on the city of Athens and its current predicament of austerity, recession and precarity, the issue brings together cultural historians, social anthropologists, urban archaeologists and contemporary artists in order to compose ‘a Greek archaeology of the present’. The new special issue includes articles by Penelope Papailias, Neni Panourgiá, Stelios Lekakis, Charis Kanellopoulou, Faidon Moudopoulos and Dimitris Giannakis; a visual essay by Penelope Petsini; and a viewpoint-piece by novelist Christos Chrissopoulos. This new collection of articles and essays attempts a re-charting of Athens as a city in the process of spatial and social restructuring; as a field of cultural expression, as well as a deeply traumatized, multi-cultural community in awe of its own urbanization. To this end, individual contributions explore the biopolitics of the ‘Greek crisis’; the gentrification of urban space; the commodification of cultural life; the restructuring of public memory; the renegotiation of collective histories within an urban setting.

Augmented reality (AR) comprises special hardware and software, which is used in order to offer computer-processed imaging data to the surgeon in real time, so that real-life objects are combined with computer-generated images. AR technology has recently gained increasing interest in the surgical practice. Preclinical research has provided substantial evidence that AR might be a useful tool for intra-operative guidance and decision-making. AR has been applied to a wide spectrum of orthopedic procedures, such as tumor resection, fracture fixation, arthroscopy, and component's alignment in total joint arthroplasty. The present study aimed to summarize the current state of the application of AR in orthopedics, in preclinical and clinical level, providing future directions and perspectives concerning potential further benefits from this technology.

BACKGROUND: The classification of hepatitis viruses still predominantly relies on ad hoc criteria, i.e., phenotypic traits and arbitrary genetic distance thresholds. Given the subjectivity of such practices coupled with the constant sequencing of samples and discovery of new strains, this manual approach to virus classification becomes cumbersome and impossible to generalize. METHODS: Using two well-studied hepatitis virus datasets, HBV and HCV, we assess if computational methods for molecular species delimitation that are typically applied to barcoding biodiversity studies can also be successfully deployed for hepatitis virus classification. For comparison, we also used ABGD, a tool that in contrast to other distance methods attempts to automatically identify the barcoding gap using pairwise genetic distances for a set of aligned input sequences. RESULTS—DISCUSSION: We found that the mPTP species delimitation tool identified even without adapting its default parameters taxonomic clusters that either correspond to the currently acknowledged genotypes or to known subdivision of genotypes (subtypes or subgenotypes). In the cases where the delimited cluster corresponded to subtype or subgenotype, there were previous concerns that their status may be underestimated. The clusters obtained from the ABGD analysis differed depending on the parameters used. However, under certain values the results were very similar to the taxonomy and mPTP which indicates the usefulness of distance based methods in virus taxonomy under appropriate parameter settings. The overlap of predicted clusters with taxonomically acknowledged genotypes implies that virus classification can be successfully automated.

We consider singular foliations whose holonomy groupoid may be nicely decomposed using Lie groupoids (of unequal dimension). We show that the Baum-Connes conjecture can be formulated in this setting. This conjecture is shown to hold under assumptions of amenability. We examine several examples that can be described in this way and make explicit computations of their K-theory.

Akrotiri Penisnsula is located west of Limassol at the Southern end of the Island of Cyprus. It covers an area of approximately 100km². The development of the peninsula started with the deposition of calcareous marls in to the Episkopi grabben during the Miocene which resulted the Akrotiri High in the form of an isolated island. The maritime space between the Akrotiri Island and the mainland eventually closed during the Quaternary and several geomorphic features were developed. Beachrocks identified at three continuous pocket beaches at the southwest part of the Akrotiri peninsula. Detailed GNSS measurements and GIS analysis revealed that the area is uplifted. A direct relationship between the development of the beachrocks and the paleogeographic evolution of the area is apparent. Additionally, results from Petrographic, mineral and sedimentary analysis on beachrock samples are indicating a continuous supply of material from the nearby Kouris River. A gradual reduction of the sediment granulometry consists the beachrock is observed. Also the transition of the texture of the samples from non-uniform to uniform is observed. The sample mineralogy varies eg quartz, alkaline feldspars, carbonate minerals, ortho and clino pyroxenes, serpentinites, hornblende, muscovite. A reduction in the contribution of overbearing minerals (according to their hardness) was observed from North to Southern beachrock slabs and the increase of carbonates, quartz and feldspart. It should be noted that there is a strong participation of fossils fragments were a number of them was preserved in good condition. SEM-EDX analysis were conducted and showed that the micritic and sparitic crystals of cement are consisted by High Magnesium Calcite +(>4 mol% CaCO3 or 1.2 wt.). The cement agent forms an isopachous coating around the sediment grains and with meniscus forms connect all the sedimentary particles which leads to the formation of a high density beachrock slabs.

Beachrocks are hard coastal sedimentary formations consisted from various beach sediments, coastal fauna residues and anthropogenic articles. Beachrocks are rapidly cemented through precipitation of carbonate cements typically consisted of High-Magnesian Calcite (HMC), which commonly precipitates in shallow marine environments, (>4 mol % CaCO3 or 1.2 wt. %) or aragonite (Ar). However, debate still exists concerning the accurate depositional environment of beachrocks and data for the mechanism of their formation are considered necessary. This study aims to contribute to the understanding of the beachrock formation, using mineralogical and geochemical methods, analyzing the cement and the consolidated sediments. Bulk samples were collected from three consecutive beaches located at the West part of Akrotiri Peninsula (Cyprus island). The samples were examined under polarizing microscope for the determination of the cement (HMC as micritic and sparitic crystals), its characteristics (isopachous bladed coating, formation of meniscus etc) and the participation of well-preserved fossil fragments. The mineralogical analysis, with the use of XRD analyzer, indicated a variety of minerals which consisting the beachrock (quartz, carbonates, plagioclase, olivine, biotite, zircon etc). Using SEM-EDS it was possible to accurately determine the cement composition and to observe its crystal characteristics. The cement agent was mainly consisted by High-Magnesian Calcite (HMC) of different crystal sizes and matrix material was present as secondary pores filling. The three studied beachrocks at the west of Akrotiri peninsula, were formed in the middle-low intertidal zone. Evidence of continuous uplift of the beachrock is observed both from geomorphological analysis and through its infrastructure. The beachrocks were highly affected by the nearby Kouris river, which supplied the material derived from the inner Cyprus areas rich in Mg2+ rocks (eg. ophiolites) and Ca2+ (eg. limestones, marbles).

Biogenic amines (BAs) are low-molecular-mass organic bases that occur in plant- and animal-derived products. BAs in food can occur by free amino acid enzymatic decarboxylation and other metabolic processes. Usually, in the human body, amines contained in foods are quickly detoxified by enzymes such as amine oxidases or by conjugation; however, in allergic individuals or if monoamine oxidase inhibitors are applied, the detoxification process is disturbed and BAs accumulate in the body. Knowing the concentration of BAs is essential because they can affect human health and also because they can be used as freshness indicators to estimate the degree of food spoilage.

The recent impact of the Biopharmaceutics Classification System (BCS) and the Biopharmaceutics Drug Disposition Classification System (BDDCS) on relevant scientific advancements is discussed. The major advances associated with the BCS concern the extensive work on dissolution of poorly absorbed BCS class II drugs in nutritional liquids (e.g. milk, peanut oil) and biorelevant media for the accurate prediction of the rate and the extent of oral absorption. The use of physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) modeling as predictive tool for bioavailability is also presented. Since recent dissolution studies demonstrate that the two mechanisms (diffusion- and reaction-limited dissolution) take place simultaneously, the neglected reaction-limited dissolution models are discussed, regarding the biopharmaceutical classification of drugs. Solubility- and dissolution-enhancing formulation strategies based on the supersaturation principle to enhance the extent of drug absorption, along with the applications of the BDDCS to the understanding of disposition phenomena are reviewed. Finally, recent classification systems relevant either to the BCS or the BDDCS are presented. These include: i) a model independent approach based on %metabolism and the fulfilment (or not) of the current regulatory dissolution criteria, ii) the so called AB Gamma system, a continuous version of the BCS, and iii) the so-called Extended Clearance Classification System (ECCS). ECCS uses clearance concepts (physicochemical properties and membrane permeability) to classify compounds and differentiates from BDDCS by bypassing the measure of solubility (based on the assumption that since it inter-correlates with lipophilicity, it is not directly relevant to clearance mechanisms or elimination).

Νumerous attempts have been made to explain and classify Bitcoin. The different opinions of eminent economists on the subject have raised a series of questions: What is the public’s notion of the digital currency? Would a general use of a digital currency be acceptable and if so, what kind of use would that be? Does the view of the experts on the subject conform with that of the layman individual? Our goal is to find out if the view of the public coincides with theopinion of the experts on the subject and to determine if is information can be implemented in order to establish a use of Bitcoin in our everyday lives, apart from the specialized use it has to date. During the first stage of this research, methods and rules of analysis such as descriptive statistics and tables and charts were used. Firstly, a questionnaire was used and secondly, the answers were gathered, classified and added up according to the participants’ choices. During the second stage the data was collected with the use of randomsampling, while various techniques, such as simple and multiple regressions were utilized for analyzing the results. The conclusion which has been obtained is that the public perceives Bitcoin differently than the experts do. Individuals believe that Bitcoin is mainly a means of transactions/payments, contrary to the experts’ opinion, which is that it is foremost an investment asset. Additionally, we may perceive a convergence between the view of public and that of the experts on the adoption of Bitcoin technology by existing trading systems.

Despite significant progress by genome-wide association studies, the ability of genetic variants to conduce to the prediction or prognosis of type-2 diabetes (T2D) is weak. Expression analysis of the corresponding genes may suggest possible links between single-nucleotide polymorphisms and T2D phenotype and/or risk. Herein, we investigated the expression patterns of 24 T2D-susceptibility genes, and their individual transcript variants (tv), in peripheral blood of T2D patients and controls (CTs), applying RNA-seq and real-time qPCR methodologies, and explore possible associations with disease features. Our data revealed the deregulation of certain transcripts in T2D patients. Among them, the down-regulation of CAPN10 tv3 was confirmed as an independent predictor for T2D. In patients, increased expression of CDK5 tv2, CDKN2A tv3 or THADA tv5 correlated positively with serum insulin levels, of CDK5 tv1 positively with % HbA1c levels, while in controls, elevated levels of TSPAN8 were associated positively with the presence of T2D family history. Herein, a T2D-specific expression profile of specific transcripts of disease-susceptibility genes is for the first time described in human peripheral blood. Large-scale studies are needed to evaluate the potential of these molecules to serve as disease biomarkers.

Cyprus has a long record of tsunami waves, as noted by archaeological and geological records. Large boulder deposits have been noted in southeastern and western part of the Island. In the area of Cape Greco (southeastern Cyprus) large boulders have been noted, however, no detailed geomorphological research exists so far and the related high energy event remains undated. In this context, we focused at Cape Greco Peninsula at the southeastern coast of Cyprus, in order to record in detail large boulders deposits. The accumulation of the boulders along the uplifted coastline (3m amsl) was recorded. The boulders are fragments of a layer of an upper Pleistocene aeolianite, which is overlaying unconformly a lower Pleistocene calcarenite. Dimensions and spatial distribution of 272 small, medium and large boulders were documented. The precise distance of the boulders deposition from the coastline was recorded by field measurements and remote sensing with the use of GNSS, Drone mapping and GIS technics. Several large boulders weighting more than ~30 metric tons were located up to 60m inland. Geomorphologic mapping and morphometric measurements, along with the presence of marine organisms suggests that some of the boulders were removed from their original intertidal zone and were transported inland by the force of large waves. Samples of Vermetus sp. were collected from the displaced boulders in order to date the extreme event. In this work, we report and compare preliminary results from the application of widely accepted hydrodynamic equations, in order to determine the extreme event that caused their transport inland. We further attempt a correlation of the event with already known tsunami events from Eastern Mediterranean, based on the estimated wave heights and the radiocarbon dating of marine gastropods (Vermetus sp.).

Archaeological remains are valuable relative sea-level (RSL) indicators in Israel, a tectonically stable coast with minor isostatic inputs. Previous research has used archaeological indicators to argue for centennial sea-level fluctuations. Here, we place archaeological indicators in a quality-controlled dataset where all indicators have consistently calculated vertical and chronological uncertainties, and we subject the data to statistical analysis. We combine the archaeological data with bio-construction data from Dendropoma petraeum colonial vermetids. The final dataset consists of 99 relative sea-level index points and 12 limiting points from the last 4000 a. The temporal distribution of the index points is uneven; Israel has only four index points before 2000 a BP. We apply an Errors-In-Variables Integrated Gaussian Process (EIV IGP) to the index points to model the evolution of RSL. Results show RSL in Israel rose from −0.8 ± 0.5 m at ∼2750 a BP (Iron Age) to 0.0 ± 0.1 m by ∼1850 a BP (Roman period) at 0.8 mm/a, and continued rising to 0.1 ± 0.1 m until ∼1600 a BP (Byzantine Period). RSL then fell to −0.3 ± 0.1 m by 0.5 mm/a until ∼650 a BP (Late Arab period), before returning to present levels at a rate of 0.4 mm/a. The re-assessed Israeli record supports centennial-scale RSL fluctuations during the last 3000 a BP, although the magnitude of the RSL fall during the last 2000 a BP is 50% less. The new Israel RSL record demonstrates correspondence with regional climate proxies. This quality-controlled Israeli RSL dataset can serve as a reference for comparisons with other sea-level records from the Eastern Mediterranean.

BACKGROUND: Cardiosphere-derived cells (CDCs) have yielded promising efficacy signals in early-phase clinical trials of ischemic and nonischemic cardiomyopathy. The potential efficacy of CDCs in acute myocarditis, an inflammatory cardiomyopathy without effective therapy, remains unexplored. Given that CDCs produce regenerative, cardioprotective, anti-inflammatory, and anti-fibrotic effects (all of which could be beneficial in acute myocarditis), we investigated the efficacy of intracoronary delivery of CDCs in a rat model of experimental autoimmune myocarditis. METHODS: Lewis rats underwent induction of experimental autoimmune myocarditis by subcutaneous footpad injection of purified porcine cardiac myosin supplemented with Mycobacterium tuberculosis on days 1 and 7. On day 10, rats were randomly assigned to receive global intracoronary delivery of 500 000 CDCs or vehicle. Global intracoronary delivery was performed by injection of cells or vehicle into the left ventricular (LV) cavity during transient occlusion of the aortic root. Rats were euthanized 18 days after infusion. Cardiac volumes and systolic function were assessed by serial echocardiography, performed on days 1, 10, and 28. Myocardial inflammation, T-cell infiltration, and cardiac fibrosis were evaluated by histology. RESULTS: Experimental autoimmune myocarditis was successfully induced in 14/14 rats that completed follow-up. Left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and volumes were comparable on days 1 and 10 between groups. CDC infusion resulted in increased LVEF (81.5% +/- 3% vs 65.4% +/- 8%, P < .001) and decreased LV end-systolic volume (43 +/- 15 vs 100 +/- 24 muL, P < .001) compared to placebo administration at 18 days post-infusion. Cardiosphere-derived cell infusion decreased myocardial inflammation (7.4% +/- 7% vs 20.7% +/- 4% of myocardium, P = .007), cardiac fibrosis (16.6% +/- 13% vs 38.1% +/- 3% of myocardium, P = .008), and myocardial T-cell infiltration (30.4 +/- 29 vs 125.8 +/- 49 cells per field, P = .005) at 18 days post-infusion compared to placebo administration. CONCLUSION: Intracoronary delivery of CDCs attenuates myocardial inflammation, T-cell infiltration, and fibrosis while preventing myocarditis-induced systolic dysfunction and adverse remodeling in rats with experimental autoimmune myocarditis.

Longitudinal stability of the forearm is mainly provided by three structures: the radiocapitellar contact, which acts as the primary stabilizer, the central band of the interosseous ligamentous complex (IOLC) and the intact triangular fibrocartilage complex (TFCC). In an Essex-Lopresti lesion the forearm becomes fully destabilized, since all of these three components are injured. Fixation or replacement of the radial head with a metallic prosthesis along with repair of the TFCC and stabilization of the distal radioulnar joint (DRUJ) are well-established treatment goals. However the reconstruction of the central band of the IOLC remains to some extent controversial. The authors believe that the reconstruction of the central band, particularly in active patients, is crucial in order to restore normal load distribution through the forearm, thus ensuring both transverse and longitudinal stability. In this article, we present a case with an Essex-Lopresti lesion, which was effectively treated acutely with restoration of all three components of the injury (radial head prosthesis, DRUJ repair and reconstruction of the central band of the IOLC). A novel technique by rerouting the brachioradialis tendon is described in detail.

From a large screening of microbial extracts for the discovery of proteasome modulating natural products, the fungal strain Cercospora sp. (CF-223709) was selected as the most promising for further investigation. Different liquid cultures of the strain were initially screened for their anti-oxidant activity (DPPH, ABTS) and for their cytotoxicity against the A2058, HepG2 and CCD25sk cell lines. A detailed chemical analysis and evaluation of the capacity to activate 26S-proteasome was followed for the most active extract. Three main polyketides were isolated and characterized by extensive analysis of NMR and HRMS spectra data as penialidine F (1), fulvic acid (2), and SB238569 (3). Fulvic acid showed the most significant anti-oxidant activity. Its IC50 value (8.16 $μ$M) against the ABTS radical resulted 3-fold lower than the standard trolox. Fulvic acid also demonstrated a significant effect on proteasome by enhancing the chymotrypsin- and caspase-like activities of the 26S proteasome of human fibroblasts by 71.43{%} and 37.5{%} at 1 $μ$M, respectively. Furthermore by scaling up the culture in a 30 L submerged bioreactor, Cercospora sp. produced up to 162.6 ± 1.3 mg of fulvic acid/L. Our findings suggest that CF-223709 can be a promising source of proteasome activating natural compounds.

In this article we examine patterns of root allomorphy in Greek that involve vowel alternations and propose a Generalized Non-linear Affixation (Bermúdez-Otero 2012) analysis according to which these alternations result from the competition between segments that belong, on the one hand, to the vocabulary items of roots and, on the other, to the exponents of functional heads (Voice/Aspect, n). More specifically, we claim that phonological entities have a gradient degree of presence in a structure, that is, are specified with a certain activation strength value underlyingly (Smolensky and Goldrick 2016). As a result, the surface realization of roots is determined by the relevant activation level of the exponents of functional heads they are eventually combined with. From all available exponents, the one that optimally complements the strength value of the vocabulary item of a given root will eventually surface. Our analysis is shown to be theoretically advantageous because it develops a strictly phonological account of allomorphy and, moreover, it captures the attested generalizations without resorting to extensive stem/span listing or to the application of phonologically unrestricted readjustment rules.

Economic growth and social evolution are  connected to trust relationships in a society. The quality of the accounting information, the tax information system and the tax audit mechanism evolve multiple benefits in an economy. Tax evasion, the illegal practice where people and companies do not pay taxes, is a crime because of the negative effect in economy and society. In this paper, we describe a theoretical framework on the characteristics of a fair and efficient tax auditing information system which could be a tool against tax evasion, a tool for an economy to grow, especially in countries that face fluctuations in economic activity. We conclude that a fair and efficient tax auditing information system increases the reliability of tax administration, improves taxpayers’ tax compliance and causes a developmental trajectory for the economy.

Late years, innovative close-range Remote Sensing (RS) technology such as Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) photogrammetry and Terrestrial Laser Scanning (TLS) are widely applied in the field of geoscience due to their efficiency in collecting surface data. Detection and mapping of landslide and rockfall events using RS products has been proved to be an effective approach to provide landslide inventories. However, most of the studies are lacking valuable semantic information about landslide elements and how they react with the surrounding environment. The proposed methodology was divided in five main working phases. The first phase includes designing and execution of an optimal UAV flight planning to collect accurate 3D data. During the second phase, the pre-processing and raw data preparation such as point cloud filtering and elimination of ambiguities is taking place, while at the next phase an image segmentation using the 3D point cloud RGB information is created. The main task was focused on identifying the specific landslide elements by using an object-based approach. A sequence of image-based processes was applied, including multi-scale object segmentation, spectral, morphometric and contextual information extraction aiming to detect the landslide among other features. The next phase was set up for object classification in meaningful and homogeneous landslide classes (e.g. scarp, depletion zone, accumulation zone) which are spatially connected by introducing contextual information. The proposed methodology presents the effectiveness and efficiency of UAV platforms to acquire accurate data from intense relief environments and complex surface topographies.

Chronic stress, a suggested precipitant of brain pathologies, such as depression and Alzheimer's disease, is known to impact on brain plasticity by causing neuronal remodeling as well as neurogenesis suppression in the adult hippocampus. Although many studies show that stressful conditions reduce the number of newborn neurons in the adult dentate gyrus (DG), little is known about whether and how stress impacts on dendritic development and structural maturation of these newborn neurons. We, herein, demonstrate that chronic stress impacts differentially on doublecortin (DCX)-positive immature neurons in distinct phases of maturation. Specifically, the density of the DCX-positive immature neurons whose dendritic tree reaches the inner molecular layer (IML) of DG is reduced in stressed animals, whereas their dendritic complexity is increased. On the contrary, no change on the density of DCX-positive neurons whose dendritic tree extends to the medial/outer molecular layer (M/OML) of the DG is found under stress conditions, whereas the dendritic complexity of these cells is diminished. In addition, DCX+ cells displayed a more complex and longer arbor in the dendritic compartments located in the granular cell layer of the DG under stress conditions; on the contrary, their dendritic segments localized into the M/OML were shorter and less complex. These findings suggest that the neuroplastic effects of chronic stress on dendritic maturation and complexity of DCX+ immature neurons vary based on the different maturation stage of DCX-positive cells and the different DG sublayer, highlighting the complex and dynamic stress-driven neuroplasticity of immature neurons in the adult hippocampus.

Chronic stress, a suggested precipitant of brain pathologies, such as depression and Alzheimer's disease, is known to impact on brain plasticity by causing neuronal remodeling as well as neurogenesis suppression in the adult hippocampus. Although many studies show that stressful conditions reduce the number of newborn neurons in the adult dentate gyrus (DG), little is known about whether and how stress impacts on dendritic development and structural maturation of these newborn neurons. We, herein, demonstrate that chronic stress impacts differentially on doublecortin (DCX)-positive immature neurons in distinct phases of maturation. Specifically, the density of the DCX-positive immature neurons whose dendritic tree reaches the inner molecular layer (IML) of DG is reduced in stressed animals, whereas their dendritic complexity is increased. On the contrary, no change on the density of DCX-positive neurons whose dendritic tree extends to the medial/outer molecular layer (M/OML) of the DG is found under stress conditions, whereas the dendritic complexity of these cells is diminished. In addition, DCX+ cells displayed a more complex and longer arbor in the dendritic compartments located in the granular cell layer of the DG under stress conditions; on the contrary, their dendritic segments localized into the M/OML were shorter and less complex. These findings suggest that the neuroplastic effects of chronic stress on dendritic maturation and complexity of DCX+ immature neurons vary based on the different maturation stage of DCX-positive cells and the different DG sublayer, highlighting the complex and dynamic stress-driven neuroplasticity of immature neurons in the adult hippocampus.

Introduction: The identification of novel noninvasive biomarkers to ameliorate early-diagnosis, and disease prognosis, as well as to support personalized treatment and monitoring decisions is of first clinical priority for cancer patients' care. Exosomes are natural endosome-derived extracellular vesicles that have emerged as crucial mediators of intercellular communication and tumor progression. Considering that deregulated miRNA levels have been described in numerous human malignancies and that tumor-derived exosomes reflect miRNA expression of donor tumor cells, the evaluation of exosome-derived circulating miRNAs (exomiRs) may offer a new promising class of noninvasive molecular markers to improve patients' management and quality-of-life. Areas covered: In the current review we have summarized the existing knowledge on the clinical relevance of circulating exosomal miRNAs in improving cancer diagnosis and prognosis, and thus supporting personalized patients' management Expert commentary: Cancer research has highlighted the abundance of exomiRs in patients' plasma and serum samples, as well as their biomarker capabilities in the vast majority of human malignancies studied so far. Their analytical stability constitutes exomiRs ideal molecular markers to overcome numerous limitations of cancer clinical management, while future large-scale studies should unveil exomiRs translational utility in modern cancer molecular diagnostics.

Almost all confirmed optical counterparts of HMXBs in the SMC are OB stars with equatorial decretion disks (OBe). These sources emit strongly in Balmer lines and standout when imaged through narrow-band Hα imaging. The lack of secure counterparts for a significant fraction of the HMXBs motivated us to search for more. Using the catalogs for OB/OBe stars (Maravelias et al. 2017) and for HMXBs (Haberl & Sturm 2016) we detect 70 optical counterparts (out of 104 covered by our survey). We provide the first identification of the optical counterpart to the source XTEJ0050-731. We verify that 17 previously uncertain optical counterparts are indeed the proper matches. Regarding 52 confirmed HMXBs (known optical counterparts with Hα emission), we detect 39 as OBe and another 13 as OB stars. This allows a direct estimation of the fraction of active OBe stars in HMXBs that show Hα emission at a given epoch to be at least ˜75% of their total HMXB population.

© 2019 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston 2019. Bisphosphonates (BPs) are potent inhibitors of osteoclast mediated bone resorption. These drugs are widely used in the management of osteoporosis and other diseases, characterized by high bone turnover. The effect of BPs on gestation and lactation, when they are used as therapeutic agents in premenopausal women, is yet unknown. We conducted a detailed literature review and identified the cases of BPs use in young women, as well as, the effects of this therapy on the gestation and the embryo. The published data, regarding the use of BPs in premenopausal women and their effects on the pregnancy outcome, are limited. However, we could identify the outcomes of 40 pregnant women, who had received BPs prior to or during pregnancy, that have been documented in the literature. All women had valid indications to receive BPs for serious bone metabolism conditions. We could not identify any prospective trials, which focus on pregnancy outcomes following after the in-utero exposure to BPs. In total, no serious adverse effects were reported. Problems related to the offspring, such as hypocalcemia and a tendency for low body weight (LBW), were self-resolving. In addition, no serious adverse outcomes were reported for women having completed pregnancy. Nevertheless, follow-up was limited for both outcomes suggesting the necessity of national and international registries.

In order to study the geomorphological and environmental characteristics of St. George bay, western Naxos, Greece (Fig.1), a series of 14 beachrock samples were collected and examined. Two transections of the bay, based on field measurements, were designed, in order to provide a deeper understanding of the beachrock development setting. Detailed recording of the beachrocks was accomplished through scuba diving, using a sonar device, measuring tapes, GPS device and Dive Computer. Special attention was given to the cement, as to extract information about the conditions of formation of the beachrocks. Thin sections from the beachrock samples were studied through petrographic microscope in order to investigate their basic characteristics and to obtain information about their basic petrographic and mineral composition. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) alongside with Energy Dispersive Spetrometry (EDS) were used for elemental analysis of the beachrock samples and their cement and Raman spectroscopy was used for identification of the cement crystal structure. For better interpretation of the results, the suggested tool, by Mauz et al. (2015), for reconstructing relative sea level in the far-field was used. In order to estimate the  ecological status of the bay, a study of the macroalgae of the area was also accomplished. Macroalgae sampling of two different methods was conducted, destructive (conventional samples) and non-destructive (photographic samples). 57 conventional samples were collected throughout the beachrock reef. These samples were prepared into herbariums and were identified in the best taxonomic level possible using stereoscope and microscope. Photographic samples were taken from the southwestern and northeastern part of St. George bay, from different types of bedrock (beachrocks, granodiorite, aeolianite) for comparison reasons. The percentages of different types of surface coverage (algal, sediment coverage) were counted for each sample, using the program Adobe Photoshop CS6. Finally, a statistical analysis of the data from the photographic samples was conducted, using the program PRIMER 5, in order to have a better evaluation of the algae data. The depth and coordinates of each conventional and photographic sample were recorded. The results regarding the beach rock samples indicate that their formation took place under meteoric and marine vadose zone conditions. Certain results indicate that the development of the beachrocks took place during a sea level rise. Finally, macroalgae statistical analyses indicated that there are no significant differences between beachrocks and other rocks as substrates and the overall ecological status of St. George bay can be characterized as good, according to the Ecological Evaluation Index (EEI, Orfanidis et al., 2003).

The study area is located at coastal area of the Ancient Harbor of Lechaion, at the area of the outer harbor moles (Figs. 1- 2), in order to investigate a possible extension of the existing ancient settlements. It is located on the southeastern coast of the Corinthian Gulf, 3km to the west of the modern city of Corinth, Greece. The construction of the Ancient Harbor dates to the 6th-7th century BC and archaeological evidence suggest that its use continued throughout the Roman period (Rothaus, 1995; Stiros et al., 1996). Lechaion harbor site lies in the southern coastal area of the Lechaion Gulf (Fig. 1). The broader area comprises alluvial and coastal deposits including loose materials, sands, pebbles and gravels (Papanikolaou et al., 1998).

The reported study is situated within the process of developing a reform-oriented national mathematics curriculum for compulsory education in Greece by a design team that involved teachers, academic researchers, and policy-makers. From an activity theory perspective, we identify the activity systems of mathematics teaching, research in mathematics education, and educational policy interacting in the design process. We focus on the contradictions between the three activity systems and how these were dealt with. We based our analysis on email exchanges during the curriculum design, field notes from whole-team sessions, and interviews with key persons. Our results highlight that the emerging contradictions primarily concerned the teaching and research activity systems. Members of the team who acted as brokers between the different activity systems and facilitated their interaction played an important role in overcoming the contradictions.

The use of Very High Resolution (VHR) satellite imagery at various applications is gaining more and more popularity due to the growing number of offered data and the increasing spectral properties. WorldView-2 is the first commercial VHR multi-spectral satellite providing imagery in eight different sensors having bands that range from the visible to near-infrared (0.40-1.04 μm). The integration of the “Coastal” band (0.40-0.45 μm) in the 8-band WorldView series of satellite imagery data, which was followed by the addition of the similar wavelength band 1 (0.43 - 0.45 µm) in the Landsat-8 Operational Land Imager (OLI), gave a great boost to applications related to shallow water depths. The fundamental principle underlying the methods used to study the sea bottom from remotely sensed imagery is that different wavelengths of the solar light penetrate the water body to different depths (Phinn et al. 2008). The ability to accurately determine the seagrass at underwater regions is of great importance for the biodiversity of the submarine environment. The use of certain spectral wavelength data tends to be the most cost effective way of monitoring the marine habitats by mapping the sea bottom type along with several other jobs like modeling coastlines or even navigating through shallow aquatic areas by studying the bathymetry (Fornes et al. 2006).

The use of techniques of two different origin were compared and combined aiming to map the seagrass meadows at shallow waters of South Evoikos Gulf, in central Greece. The high spatial and spectral resolution of WorldView-2 satellite images and its ability of water penetration, offers a positive approach for sea bottom mapping, in a relatively high resolution. In addition, the ground truth fieldwork survey with side scan data acquisition revealed that it was in impressively high agreement with the outcomes from the remote sensing data interpretation.

The excavation trenches by the Department of History and Archaeology of the NKUA at the archaeological site of Plasi Marathon (Attica, Greece) have already revealed several architectural remains of the Classical period. A combined GPR and ERT survey was initiated in order to determine the existence and geometry of additional buried structures in the unexcavated parts of the site. The results of this geophysical survey will not only assist the archaeologist’s planning for the next excavation steps, but will also provide valuable information for the density of habitation in the area, a significant factor for the understanding of the importance of ancient Marathon. Fifty-two GPR and eighteen ERT profiles were carried out in a selected area. After data processing, the obtained radargrams and resistivity tomograms are presented in the form of fence diagrams. Moreover, volume/depth slices have been extracted for specified depths from GPR and ERT in order to compare their results. Several identified geophysical anomalies can be interpreted as archaeological domestic remains, supporting a rather dense pattern of habitation, hence the archaeological significance of the site.

The excavation trenches by the Department of History and Archaeology of the NKUA at the archaeological site of Plasi Marathon (Attica, Greece) have already revealed several architectural remains of the Classical period. A combined GPR and ERT survey was initiated in order to determine the existence and geometry of additional buried structures in the unexcavated parts of the site. The results of this geophysical survey will not only assist the archaeologist’s planning for the next excavation steps, but will also provide valuable information for the density of habitation in the area, a significant factor for the understanding of the importance of ancient Marathon. Fifty-two GPR and eighteen ERT profiles were carried out in a selected area. After data processing, the obtained radargrams and resistivity tomograms are presented in the form of fence diagrams. Moreover, volume/depth slices have been extracted for specified depths from GPR and ERT in order to compare their results. Several identified geophysical anomalies can be interpreted as archaeological domestic remains, supporting a rather dense pattern of habitation, hence the archaeological significance of the site.

Beachrocks are a window in the past environmental, geological, sedimentological and geographical conditions that were dominant on the coastal zone. The minerochemical examination of cement and the sedimentological analysis are the most efficient methods for understanding the formation mechanism. However, the examination of beachrock samples have limitations and the evidence of formation mechanism are not enough. This study emphasizes on the beachrock formation mechanism through the comparison of cement characteristics, mineral chemistry and sedimentology of beachrock occurrences from different geological and geographical setting areas Diolkos, Corinth, Greece and Sumuide, Okinawa, Japan. Furthermore, in order to investigate the beachrock formation, artificial beachrock samples were created in-vitro using sand samples and ureolytic bacteria from Okinawa under accelerating conditions. Bulk samples were collected from the study areas in order to analyze their mineralogical (XRD and SEM-EDS) and chemical (XRF) composition. Microscopy studies (optical and SEM-EDS) revealed that the cement agent from Diolkos is mainly composed of High-Magnesian Calcite (HMC) in comparison to the Sumuide beachrock which is characterized by the presence of calcite and aragonite. Additionally, the analysis revealed clastic silicate and aluminosilicate minerals. The grain composition of Diolkos slab consists of quartz, plagioclase, K-feldspar with 20% bioclasts compared to the Sumuide beachrock grains that consist of calcareous residuals from the local coral reef. The artificial beachrock investigation indicated that ureolytic bacteria that reside in the Sumuide beach sediment, are capable to precipitate aragonite coating the sediment grains and filing the pores. The cementation was most active in the top part of the samples than the bottom part. This is an indicator that the beachrock formation might occur in depths were these bacteria can be found. The artificial beachrock analysis included its physicochemical parameters using UCS penetration, pH and Ca2+ measurements, X-Ray CT-scanning, petro-graphic polarized microscopy, XRD, and SEM-EDS.

Sedimentological and geomorphological features of Mylopotas and Manganari beaches in Ios Island are investigated in order to determine seasonal changes in the texture of coastal sediments and shoreline position caused by both natural processes and human activities. The fieldwork was conducted in April 2018 and September 2018 including mapping of beach morphology in seasonal scale through topographic monitoring of shoreline, coastline and fixed cross sections in the sites under investigation using a differential GPS. In addition, sediment sampling was carried out along selected cross sections in beaches of Mylopotas (three) and Manganari (two). Grain size analysis and statistical processing were realized to reveal spatial and temporal changes of sediment parameters, such as sorting, skewness, mean and kurtosis. The results indicate a rather homogenous grain size distribution at each study area, with the majority of samples being classified as slightly gravelly sand. DGPS measurements of shoreline position in Manganari Beach indicate changes that vary between 2.50 m and 4.70 m, with the maximum displacement to be observed in the southern part of the beach, where the shoreline is retreated during spring period. Seasonal variations of shoreline position in Mylopotas Beach are up to 4.50 m with the shoreline to be advanced during spring period in the southern and northern part of the beach, while the minimum changes are measured in the central part, where a beachrock formation occurs. Occasional human interferences, such as small-scale beach restoration and nourishment projects, installation of leisure facilities and reshaping of sand dunes, conducted mainly during spring period, alter the coastal sediment budget and transport reinforcing shoreline retreat.

Olive oil is widely accepted as a superior edible oil. Great attention has been given lately to olive oil polyphenols which are linked to significant health beneficial effects. Towards a survey of Greek olive oil focusing on polyphenols, representative extra virgin olive oils (EVOOs) from the main producing areas of the country and the same harvesting period have been collected and analyzed. Significant differences and interesting correlations have been identified connecting certain polyphenols namely hydroxytyrosol, tyrosol, oleacein and oleocanthal with specific parameters e.g. geographical origin, production procedure and cultivation practice. Selected EVOOs polyphenol extracts, with different oleacein and oleocanthal levels, as well as isolated oleacein and oleocanthal were bio-evaluated in mammalian cells and as a dietary supplement in the Drosophila in vivo model. We found that oleocanthal and oleacein activated healthy aging-promoting cytoprotective pathways and suppressed oxidative stress in both mammalian cells and in flies.

In Volleyball, complex 1 consists of the serve’s pass (reception) - setting - attack skills in this specified order. This sequence is a stable pattern to win a point. Furthermore, it is important for the teams’ success. Taking into account that this pattern is a first-order Markov chain, the creation of a probability transition matrix is feasible. Assuming multinomial likelihood with a Dirichlet prior on the transition probabilities a Markovian transition matrix can be constructed and the calculation of conditional success probabilities is, thus, achievable. Data from the performance analysis of the winning team from recent world championships in three age categories (U19, U21, Men) of male Volleyball is used. The findings lead to redefining target pass area and to shrinking the evaluation scale at least for the teams under study. Moreover, pass accuracy is necessary because it must give at least two options for attack, but not sufficient condition for the success of attack in all age categories for male Volleyball. In the U19 age category, there is a lack of stabilization in the complex 1 sequence after pass against jump spin serve.

Optimizing consolidation treatment in transplant-eligible newly diagnosed multiple myeloma patients in order to improve efficacy and bone-related outcomes is intriguing. We conducted an open-label, prospective study evaluating the efficacy and safety of bortezomib and lenalidomide (VR) consolidation after ASCT, in the absence of dexamethasone and bisphosphonates. Fifty-nine patients, who received bortezomib-based induction, were given 4 cycles of VR starting on day 100 post-ASCT. After ASCT, 58{%} of patients improved their response status, while following VR consolidation 39{%} further deepened their response; stringent complete response rates increased to 51{%} after VR from 24{%} post-ASCT. VR consolidation resulted in a significant reduction of soluble receptor activator of nuclear factor-$ąppa$B ligand/osteoprotegerin ratio and sclerostin circulating levels, which was more pronounced among patients achieving very good partial response or better. After a median follow-up of 62 months, no skeletal-related events (SREs) were observed, despite the lack of bisphosphonates administration. The median TTP after ASCT was 37 months, while median overall survival (OS) has not been reached yet; the probability of 4- and 5-year OS was 81{%} and 64{%}, respectively. In conclusion, VR consolidation is an effective, dexamethasone- and bisphosphonate-free approach, which offers long OS with improvements on bone metabolism and no SREs.

A massive dataset of over 1900 focal mechanisms of crustal earthquakes with M ≥ 3.5 in the Greek region was employed to resolve the contemporary stress-field using a damped least-squares inversion. The results are in good agreement with the strain-rate field of the Global Strain Rate Model, which was used as reference, both in terms of their principal axes orientations and expected faulting styles. Dual stress-states were identified using the Multiple Inverse Method in regions delineated by joining neighboring Area Sources of the European Seismic Hazard Model 2013 (ESHM13). North-western Greece is mostly affected by transpressional tectonics characterized by NE-SW contraction. Northern/central Greece and the Corinth Rift are dominated by E-W normal faulting, with secondary oblique-normal to strike-slip faulting at the western margin of the latter. North and central Aegean are mainly governed by transtensional regime, characterized by stable N-S extension. The stress-tensor was found to be compatible with the Fault Sources (FS) of ESHM13, in terms of orientation and expected faulting type. Differences were observed in regions of low strain-rate, such as the Southern Aegean, where left-lateral, E-W strike-slip instead of normal faulting was inferred. Discrepancies in areas with strong local heterogeneities were highlighted by anomalies in the stress-ratio, Φ, indicating transtensional regime in the pull-apart basins of Western Greece and transpressional tectonics in north-western Greece and south of Crete. The latter is characterized by stable N-S contraction, SW-NE sinistral strike-slip and E-W reverse faulting in the vicinity of the subduction zone. A low Φ, E-W oriented zone was identified along the active volcanic arc, where a remarkable 90° rotation occurs in the stress field. This rotation is related to the transition from E-W (in the north) to N-S (in the south) normal faulting in Peloponnese and Dodecanese Islands, as well as rearrangement from dextral to sinistral SW-NE strike-slip faulting in North and South Aegean, respectively.

The study area is located at the broader area of Farsala (East Thessaly) and more specifically between the city of Farsala and its railway station. The main target of the geophysical survey was to investigate the subsurface litho-stratigraphic structure in order to assess the existence of two (2) possible fault zones. These zones were proposed in the primary Neotectonic Map of the area of Farsala, scale 1:25.000 (Fig. 1), produced by the Section of Dynamic Tectonics & Applied Geology of National Kapodistrian University of Athens in 2016, in the context of the Seismic Hazard Mapping of the Farsala broader area.

The gravity method has been applied, with a total of 1.122 gravity measurements for the subsurface investigation of the geotectonic structure beneath the urban and sub-urban areas of Athens basin. The aim was to gather new information for the subsurface geological and tectonic structure of Athens basin and re-assess the seismic hazard risk of the area that may damage its infrastructures. The standard corrections have been applied (drift, tide, latitude, free-air, Bouguer, terrain ones) along with an additional Building Correction that has been calculated based on the urban characteristics. Afterwards, the isolation of the residual anomaly has been accomplished with the contribution of the Fourier filters and the analysis of the power energy spectrum. The processing results provided important data regarding the geological and tectonic structure beneath the Quaternary formations that cover the basin. We managed to verify already proposed concealed fault zones or even discover and propose new ones that may affect the city in the future by generating disastrous earthquakes. In the context of the interpretation, two geophysicalgeological profiles have been constructed, along which the geotectonic regime of the subsurface is clarified.

Following publication of the original article [1], the authors opted to correct the middle initial of co-author Despina N. Perrea from S to N. The original article has been corrected.

We present cross correlations of the J-band SMARTS light curves and Fermi gamma-ray light curves for 8 bright blazars that have been monitored extensively on sub-weekly time scales over the past decade. Because of the uneven temporal sampling, we use the Discrete Correlation Function (DCF) and we create an empirical boot-strapping method to assess the significance of the DCF amplitude for each blazar. Our results are perhaps surprising. Early on in the Fermi mission, the flaring blazar 3C454.3 showed zero lag between optical and gamma-ray or infrared and gamma-ray fluxes, which Bonning et al. (2012) suggested was consistent with the gamma rays being produced by inverse Compton scattering of ambient photons by synchrotron-emitting electrons. However, of the 8 blazars we examine, only one - 3C454.3 - shows a significant peak at zero lag. The other seven show no significant peak at zero lag. Some blazars show broad peaks at lags of 10s of days, at or just below 3 sigma significance. In addition, analyses of time periods of a year or two only, for a given blazar, show strong changes from one epoch to the next. These results complicate our understanding of blazar emission mechanisms. Possible physical explanations are discussed.

We report the results of cross correlations of the SMARTS optical/infrared and Fermi-LAT gamma-ray light curves for 8 bright blazars that have been monitored with 1 day resolution over the past decade. For the temporal correlation analysis of unevenly sampled variability data, we use the Discrete Correlation Function (DCF), creating an empirical bootstrapping method to assess the significance of the DCF amplitude for each blazar. Our results are perhaps surprising. Early on in the Fermi mission, the brightest gamma-ray blazar 3C 454.3 showed zero lag between optical/infrared and gamma-ray fluxes as reported by Bonning et al. (2012), which was consistent with the leptonic model that optical/infrared photons are produced by synchrotron radiation of relativistic electrons and gamma rays are produced by inverse Compton scattering of ambient photons by the synchrotron-emitting electrons. However, among the 8 blazars, only one blazar - 3C 454.3 - shows a significant peak at zero lag, and the other 7 blazars show no significant peak at zero lag. Some blazars show broad peaks at tens of days of lags at or just below 3 sigma significance. In addition, for a given blazar, strong changes of the DCFs from one epoch to the next are shown by the analyses of time periods of one or two year. These results make it complicated to understand blazar emission mechanisms. We discuss possible physical explanations.

Crocus sativus L. natural compounds have been extensively used in traditional medicine for thousands of years. Recent research evidence is now emerging in support of its therapeutic potential for different pathologies including neurodegenerative diseases. Herein, the C. sativus L. natural compounds trans-crocin 4 and trans-crocetin were selected for in depth molecular characterization of their potentially protective effects against Alzheimer's Disease (AD), utilizing two AD neuronal cell culture models (SH-SY5Y overexpressing APP and PC12 expressing hyperphosphorylated tau). Biologically relevant concentrations, ranging from 0.1 muM to 1 mM, applied for 24 h or 72 h, were well tolerated by differentiated wild type SH-SY5Y and PC12 cells. When tested on neuronally differentiated SH-SY5Y-APP both trans-crocin 4 and trans-crocetin had significant effects against amyloidogenic pathways. Trans-crocin 4 significantly decreased of beta-secretase, a key enzyme of the amyloidogenic pathway, and APP-C99, while it decreased gamma-secretases that generate toxic beta-amyloid peptides. Similarly, trans-crocetin treatment led to a reduction in beta- and gamma-secretases, as well as to accumulation of cellular AbetaPP. When tested on the neuronally differentiated PC12-htau cells, both compounds proved effective in suppressing the active forms of GSK3beta and ERK1/2 kinases, as well as significantly reducing total tau and tau phosphorylation. Collectively, our data demonstrate a potent effect of trans-crocin 4 and trans-crocetin in suppressing key molecular pathways of AD pathogenesis, rendering them a promising tool in the prevention and potentially the treatment of AD.

FurE, a member of the NCS1 family, is an Aspergillus nidulans transporter specific for uracil, allantoin and uric acid. Recently, we showed that C- or N-terminally truncated FurE versions are blocked for endocytosis and, surprisingly, show modified substrate specificities. Bifluorescence complementation assays and genetic analyses supported the idea that C- and N-termini interact dynamically and through this interaction regulate selective substrate translocation. Here we functionally dissect and define distinct motifs crucial for endocytosis, transport activity, substrate specificity and folding, in both cytosolic termini of FurE. Subsequently, we obtain novel genetic and in silico evidence indicating that the molecular dynamics of specific N- and C-terminal regions exert long range effects on the gating mechanism responsible for substrate selection, via pH-dependent interactions with other internal cytosolic loops and membrane lipids. Our work shows that expanded cytoplasmic termini, acquired through evolution mostly in eukaryotic transporters, provide novel specific functional roles.

New sedimentological, micropaleontological and geochemical data from the Upper Miocene pre-evaporitic sedimentary sequence of the Faneromeni section (Crete Island, eastern Mediterranean) revealed a stepwise restriction of the Mediterranean Sea preceding the Messinian Salinity Crisis (MSC), which was modulated by a sedimentary cyclicity responding to orbital parameters. This cyclicity is manifested by lithological alternations from laminated to indurated homogeneous marls and clayey limestones, and covers the Tortonian-Messinian Transition (TMT; 7.6–6.7 Ma). This time window covers the successive closure of the marine Mediterranean-Atlantic gateways, which culminated in the onset of the MSC. In the present study, we present the first evidence for changes in the upper water column reflected by sea surface temperature (SST) and salinity (SSS) variations that correlate with pronounced paleoclimatic fluctuations. Planktonic foraminiferal isotopes, in combination with paired mixed layer Sr/Ca-derived SST data, reveal that the very warm late Tortonian interval has been followed by a strong long-term cooling ( 10 °C) and desalination ( 10‰) trend during the earliest Messinian, attributed to the paroxysmal phase of the so-called “siphon” event. In particular, the climate shift that occurred at the end of a global carbon isotope (δ13C) decrease suggests that changes in the carbon cycle were instrumental in driving late Miocene climate dynamics (cooling and aridity) in the progressively isolated eastern Mediterranean Sea. The observed salinity variability during this time interval also provides further insights about seasonal freshwater inputs and gives new support to the much-debated hydrologic regime (linear salinity increase vs step-function evolution with strong salinity fluctuations) preceding the deposition of evaporites. The novel methodology of foraminiferal Sr/Ca paleothermometry and results of this study could have numerous potential applications to other regions and relevant extreme geological events. Therefore, in the near future we expect this approach to add important new information to our understanding of Neogene climates.

Aims: We use new deep XMM-Newton observations of the northern disk of M 31 to trace the hot interstellar medium (ISM) in unprecedented detail and to characterise the physical properties of the X-ray emitting plasmas. Methods: We used all XMM-Newton data up to and including our new observations to produce the most detailed image yet of the hot ISM plasma in a grand design spiral galaxy such as our own. We compared the X-ray morphology to multi-wavelength studies in the literature to set it in the context of the multi-phase ISM. We performed spectral analyses on the extended emission using our new observations as they offer sufficient depth and count statistics to constrain the plasma properties. Data from the Panchromatic Hubble Andromeda Treasury were used to estimate the energy injected by massive stars and their supernovae. We compared these results to the hot gas properties. Results: The brightest emission regions were found to be correlated with populations of massive stars, notably in the 10 kpc star-forming ring. The plasma temperatures in the ring regions are ~0.2 keV up to ~0.6 keV. We suggest this emission is hot ISM heated in massive stellar clusters and superbubbles. We derived X-ray luminosities, densities, and pressures for the gas in each region. We also found large extended emission filling low density gaps in the dust morphology of the northern disk, notably between the 5 kpc and 10 kpc star-forming rings. We propose that the hot gas was heated and expelled into the gaps by the populations of massive stars in the rings. Conclusions. It is clear that the massive stellar populations are responsible for heating the ISM to X-ray emitting temperatures, filling their surroundings, and possibly driving the hot gas into the low density regions. Overall, the morphology and spectra of the hot gas in the northern disk of M 31 is similar to other galaxy disks.

PURPOSE: Bladder cancer represents a major cause of malignancy-related morbidity and the most expensive per-patient-to-treat cancer, due to the lifelong surveillance of the patients. Accurate disease prognosis is essential in establishing personalized treatment decisions; yet optimum tools for precise risk stratification remain a competing task. In the present study, we have performed the complete evaluation of TP63 clinical significance in improving disease prognosis. METHODS: The levels of DeltaNp63 and TAp63 transcripts of TP63 were quantified in 342 bladder tissue specimens of our screening cohort (n = 182). Hedegaard et al. (Cancer Cell 30:27-42. doi:10.1016/j.ccell.2016.05.004, 2016) (n = 476) and TCGA provisional (n = 413) were used as validation cohorts for NMIBC and MIBC, respectively. Survival analysis was performed using recurrence and progression for NMIBC or mortality for MIBC as endpoint events. Bootstrap analysis was performed for internal validation, while decision curve analysis was used for the evaluation of the clinical net benefit on disease prognosis. RESULTS: DeltaNp63 was significantly expressed in bladder tissues, and was found to be over-expressed in bladder tumors. Interestingly, reduced DeltaNp63 levels were correlated with muscle-invasive disease, high-grade tumors and high-EORTC-risk NMIBC patients. Moreover, DeltaNp63 loss was independently associated with higher risk for NMIBC relapse (HR = 2.730; p = 0.007) and progression (HR = 7.757; p = 0.016). Hedegaard et al. and TCGA validation cohorts confirmed our findings. Finally, multivariate models combining DeltaNup63 loss with established prognostic markers led to a superior clinical benefit for NMIBC prognosis and risk stratification. CONCLUSIONS: DeltaNup63 loss is associated with adverse outcome of NMIBC resulting in superior prediction of NMIBC early relapse and progression.

(Abridged) The Maunakea Spectroscopic Explorer (MSE) is an end-to-end science platform for the design, execution and scientific exploitation of spectroscopic surveys. It will unveil the composition and dynamics of the faint Universe and impact nearly every field of astrophysics across all spatial scales, from individual stars to the largest scale structures in the Universe. Major pillars in the science program for MSE include (i) the ultimate Gaia follow-up facility for understanding the chemistry and dynamics of the distant Milky Way, including the outer disk and faint stellar halo at high spectral resolution (ii) galaxy formation and evolution at cosmic noon, via the type of revolutionary surveys that have occurred in the nearby Universe, but now conducted at the peak of the star formation history of the Universe (iii) derivation of the mass of the neutrino and insights into inflationary physics through a cosmological redshift survey that probes a large volume of the Universe with a high galaxy density. MSE is positioned to become a critical hub in the emerging international network of front-line astronomical facilities, with scientific capabilities that naturally complement and extend the scientific power of Gaia, the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, the Square Kilometer Array, Euclid, WFIRST, the 30m telescopes and many more.

The Ingessana hills in the southern Blue Nile of Sudan consist of serpentinised and highly silicified dunites in contact with the intruding Bau granite. The observed chromite mineralization zones are associated with NE-SW trending shear-zones. The mineralization associated with ophiolitic belts includes podiform chromite, asbestos, talc, and base metal (Cu, Ni, Co) mineralization. We applied Linear Spectral Unmixing algorithm on a 10m spatial resolution Sentinel-2 images in order to detect and map the chromite mineralization and the associated mineralization of ophiolitic belts. The resulting abundance maps show the capability of Sentinel-2 for detailed mineral mapping and detection of potential chromite ore deposit locations.

 

 Pediatric Allergy and Immunology (PAI) 2019, 30(3):296-304.

We propose 200 ks total ACIS-S observations of the spiral galaxy NGC 2336, one of the most actively star-forming galaxies in the local Universe. The proposed observations will reach Lx 7 x 10^{37} erg/s, yielding over 40 high-mass X-ray binaries (XRBs). Archival UV data and supporting Hubble Space Telescope observations fully leverage our proposed Chandra observations by allowing us to: (a) measure the age and metallicity distribution of young XRBs; (b) measure the formation efficiency of young XRBs as a function of the age of their parent stellar populations; (c) constrain XRB formation models; (d) characterize the ultra-luminous XRB population; (e) explore the role of star formation in energizing the ISM; and (f) identify the nature of the nuclear source.

Earthquake scenarios were applied towards seismic risk assessment in the earthquake prone city of Aigion (W. Corinth Gulf), by combining deterministic seismic hazard and empirical structural vulnerability. Ground motions for three hazardous fault sources for Aigion were generated using a finite source stochastic simulation technique, taking into account the well-established seismotectonics of the area and site effects derived from ambient noise horizontal-to-vertical-spectral-ratios (HVSR). Validation of the parameters of the stochastic simulation and the estimated damage was performed with respect to real recordings and the damage database of a past seismic event in the area. Vulnerability was assessed empirically for an exposure model comprising 3200 buildings, compiled with on site and remoted techniques. The European Macroseismic Scale (EMS-98) was used to describe the ground motion severity in terms of macroseismic intensity and the taxonomy of the building stock into 7 structural types. Seismic risk was spatialized using GIS mapping tools on a building block scale in terms of EMS-98 damage grades and their maximum probability of occurrence. The obtained risk assessment models indicate that the northeastern and partly the southern part of Aigion are more susceptible to damage, in accordance with damage distribution from the most recent Mw6.4 disastrous earthquake for the city in 1995, the site amplification inferred from HVSR, and the assessed vulnerability of the constructions. Nevertheless, the current building stock demonstrates significantly enhanced seismic behaviour, due to rehabilitation after the 1995 earthquake. Despite unavoidable uncertainties, intrinsic to both the method and data, the herein seismic risk assessment appears realistic and consistent, thus allowing its exploitation towards loss estimation and mitigation scenarios.

The study of the east dipping N-S mountain front of Olympus Mt that is presented in this work, was based on the interpretation of high-resolution digital elevation model (DEM), as the main dataset for calculating various tectonic geomorphology indices, through quantitative techniques. Since the fluvial network maintains its connection to the tectonic forcing and therefore contains potentially useful information about variations in rock uplift rates across the landscape, we used a highly detailed one generated from the DEM in order to calculate various indices and extract quantitate information. Calculations were made in a GIS platform by using the Ks index, the drainage basin asymmetry index and the geometry of the triangular facets on the front of the mountain, alongside the fault zone delineating the mountain. The results extracted by combining the previous methodologies are in agreement with the observations which were made during the fieldwork, that there is no uniform uplift along the main Olympus fault zone.

A web - interactive application which spreads geo-environmental information over the internet and also accepts and manages real time rural data is described in this paper. Story Maps context has been chosen for this reason, since this is considered to be a new and innovative Web-based Geographic Information System application method for using it as a mean for organizing and presenting new digital geographic information by combining interactive maps with multimedia and other apps simultaneously in one platform. The protected area of Kallidromo Mt. (central Greece) was chosen as a case study, due to its environmental sensitivity since it is characterized as Natura protected area and also because of the availability of several kinds of geospatial data.

Little research has been conducted on emerging adulthood in Greece, although sociodemographic specificities and constraints due to financial crisis are expected to reinforce prolonged transition to adulthood in this Southern European country. Using a person-centered approach, the current study aimed to examine dimensions of emerging adulthood, criteria for adulthood, and identity development among studying youth in association with personal and structural variables (i.e., gender, age, living arrangement, work experience, steady romantic relationship status, and financial adversity). Participants were 814 university students (Mage = 19.9 years). Latent profile analysis yielded five profiles: anxious explorers in-between (29.90%), immature explorers (29.58%), emerging adults (18.30%), adult committers (12.58%), and blocked in transition (9.64%). Significant between-profile differentiation was found regarding all variables except from age and work experience. The results support the existence of emerging adulthood in Greece and indicate diverse paths to adulthood within the rather homogeneous population of studying youth in this country.

We present the results of the photometric analysis of a large part of the main body of the Small Magellanic Cloud. Using the 6.5m Magellan Telescope at the Las Campanas Observatory in Chile, we have acquired deep B and I images in four fields (0.44 deg each in diameter), yielding accurate photometry for 1068 893 stars down to 24th magnitude, with a spatial resolution of 0.20 arcsec per pixel. Colour-magnitude diagrams and (completeness-corrected) luminosity functions have been constructed, yielding significant new results that indicate at least two discrete star formation events over a period from 2.7 to 4 Gyr ago. Also, we have derived star formation rates as a function of look-back time and have found enhancements of SF between 4 and 6 Gyr and at younger ages.

Electrons in the outer Van Allen (radiation) belt occasionally reach relativistic energies, turning them into a potential hazard for spacecraft operating in geospace. Such electrons have secured the reputation of satellite killers and play a prominent role in space weather. The flux of these electrons can vary over time scales of years (related to the solar cycle) to minutes (related to sudden storm commencements). Electric fields and plasma waves are the main factors regulating the electron transport, acceleration and loss. Both the fields and the plasma waves are driven directly or indirectly by disturbances originating in the Sun, propagating through interplanetary space and impacting the Earth. This paper reviews our current understanding of the response of outer Van Allen belt electrons to solar eruptions and their interplanetary extensions, i.e. interplanetary coronal mass ejections and high-speed solar wind streams and the associated stream interaction regions.

ISO15189:2012 requires medical laboratories to document metrological traceability of their results. While the ISO17511:2003 standard on metrological traceability in laboratory medicine requires the use of the highest available level in the traceability chain, it recognizes that for many measurands there is no reference above the manufacturer's selected measurement procedure and the manufacturer's working calibrator. Some immunoassays, although they intend to measure the same quantity and may even refer to the same reference material, unfortunately produce different results because of differences in analytical selectivity as manufacturers select different epitopes and antibodies for the same analyte. In other cases, the cause is the use of reference materials, which are not commutable. The uncertainty associated with the result is another important aspect in metrological traceability implementation. As the measurement uncertainty on the clinical samples is influenced by the uncertainty of all steps higher in the traceability chain, laboratories should be provided with adequate and appropriate information on the uncertainty of the value assignment to the commercial calibrators that they use. Although the between-lot variation in value assignment will manifest itself as part of the long-term imprecision as estimated by the end-user, information on worst-case to be expected lot-lot variation has to be communicated to the end-user by the IVD provider. When laboratories use ancillary equipment that potentially could have a critical contribution to the reported results, such equipment needs verification of its proper calibration and criticality to the result uncertainty could be assessed by an approach based on risk analysis, which is a key element of ISO15189:2012 anyway. This paper discusses how the requirement for metrological traceability as stated in ISO15189 should be met by the medical laboratory and how this should be assessed by accreditation bodies

The eclipsing binary system DV Psc has been known to be magnetically active for almost two decades. However, there has been no evidence of a magnetic cycle on this system until recently. This study focuses on the long-term photometric monitoring of DV Psc between 2005-2017. A total of 50 individual light curves in BVRI optical bands were collected, in order to investigate its magnetic activity and cycle, as well as determine its orbital and physical properties. The combined photometric and spectroscopic observations of this study resulted in a unified model for the system, which describes accurately the light curves throughout the years, as a result of the variable spot activity. A total of 105 new times of minimum light are calculated through the entire time span of observations and they are combined with the 203 bibliographic ones since 1997, increasing significantly the existing sample. This resulted in an accurate ephemeris and an updated O-C diagram for a total span of 20 yr (1997-2017). It is found that the system exhibits intense magnetic activity, which is shown through the strong asymmetries on the light curves (O'Connell effect) and the periodic variation of the O-C diagram. The existence of a third body, orbiting the eclipsing binary with a period of Porb=9.79±0.60 yr in an eccentric orbit with eccentricity e=0.83±0.24, as well as a magnetic cycle of 14.74±0.84 yr are most likely connected with this variability. The absolute physical parameters of the system are calculated for a new and unified model, which explains the light curves through the entire observing season. The evolution state of DV Psc is studied through the mass-radius and temperature-luminosity (HR) diagrams, as well as the location of the two components with respect to the ZAMS and TAMS region.

 

Developing educational material based on satellite remote sensing technologies, information and methods, is a key trend in modern pedagogy of Earth System Sciences. Here, we present “MICE”, a classroom activity on Melting ICe Effects, that utilizes remote sensing information to demonstrate the value of Earth Observation (EO) as a context to teach the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) school curriculum. The activity focuses on the subject of polar ice melting as a main climate change effect and the different impact of land and sea ice melting on sea level rise. Students, have the opportunity to discover the above experimentally and subsequently, to observe the diachronic change on polar ice through sequences of satellite images and discover the positive climate feedback on global warming. The activity was translated and adapted to the Greek curriculum from the freely available classroom resources of the European Space Agency (ESA, “Teach with Space” collection). MICE, has been enriched with Greek scientific material, including up-to-date information on climate impacts, localized for the extended region. As part of an evolutionary process, the activity was pilot-tested with 6th grade primary school students and adjusted according to the trial findings. This work is considered as the first step towards the development of original Greek educational material that will utilize EO and climate change as the context to teach STEM school curriculum, capitalizing on the pedagogical role satellite remote sensing and inquiry-based teaching methods, can play.

Developing educational material based on satellite remote sensing technologies, information and methods, is a key trend in modern pedagogy of Earth System Sciences. Here, we present “MICE”, a classroom activity on Melting ICe Effects, that utilizes remote sensing information to demonstrate the value of Earth Observation (EO) as a context to teach the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) school curriculum. The activity focuses on the subject of polar ice melting as a main climate change effect and the different impact of land and sea ice melting on sea level rise. Students, have the opportunity to discover the above experimentally and subsequently, to observe the diachronic change on polar ice through sequences of satellite images and discover the positive climate feedback on global warming. The activity was translated and adapted to the Greek curriculum from the freely available classroom resources of the European Space Agency (ESA, “Teach with Space” collection). MICE, has been enriched with Greek scientific material, including up-to-date information on climate impacts, localized for the extended region. As part of an evolutionary process, the activity was pilot-tested with 6th grade primary school students and adjusted according to the trial findings. This work is considered as the first step towards the development of original Greek educational material that will utilize EO and climate change as the context to teach STEM school curriculum, capitalizing on the pedagogical role satellite remote sensing and inquiry-based teaching methods, can play.

The synergy of different methods was used for the creation of an earthquake-induced landslides (EIL) inventory for the Ionian Islands. More specifically, post-earthquake field surveys were conducted shortly after recent earthquakes (2003 and 2015 in Lefkada, 2014 in Cephalonia and 2018 in Zakynthos) in order to obtain detailed field information of the EIL among other earthquake effects. The available literature on historical earthquakes were reexamined with emphasis on their environmental effects and especially EIL. Remote sensing products including satellite imagery and orthophotos were interpreted. All qualitative and quantitative information related to EIL and derived from the aforementioned steps were inserted in a database especially designed and developed in GIS environment for the purpose of this study and the respective inventory map was produced. This landslide inventory map was used and combined with other thematic maps in order to test the earthquake-induced landslide susceptibility (LS) of the Ionian Islands. The Analytical Hierarchical Process was applied along with the Weighted Linear Combination method in the frame of a multi-criteria decision analysis for the calculation of the spatial distribution of the Landslide Susceptibility Index (LSI). Along with the inventory, morphological data were derived from a TanDEM-X elevation model of the Ionian Islands based on data produced by TanDEM-X and TerraSAR-X satellite pair. Lithological and geological data were digitized from previous already published geological and neotectonic maps updated with corrections from field mapping for the purpose of this study. Land use and soil thickness were derived from the 2018 version of Corine Land Cover. Road network was digitized from the topographic maps of the Hellenic Military Geographical Service, while rainfall data was collected from the database of the National Meteorological Service. Data classification of each factor according to their estimated LS followed, by using the reverse ranking method, where 1 is the least and 10 is the most susceptible. Each category was normalized to 100% and the final raster thematic maps of landslide controlling factors were produced. Finally, using numerical weight for each factor, which was assigned by the Analytic Hierarchy Process using Pairwise Comparison Method and according to the weighted linear combination, a map was generated where each cell has a certain LSI value. The higher the LSI value, the higher the LS, whereas lower LSI value means lower LS. The resulted map, classified with natural breaks method, constitutes the earthquake-induced LS map of the Ionian Islands with five LS categories: very low, low, moderate, high and very high LS. Comparison of the EIL inventory map and the LS map show that the EIL in the Ionian Islands are structurally controlled as the majority of them have been generated along morphological discontinuities formed by active faults or inactive thrusts and overthrusts.

This paper examines the effects of the unconventional monetary policy (UMP) launched by the European Central Bank on the cross-market correlations between bond, stock and currency forward markets. Using a dynamic conditional correlation analysis and several robustness tests, we investigate possible differences on the correlation dynamics across four UMP periods and across a range of developed countries and emerging market economies. The empirical results indicate a spillover effect on both developed and emerging markets, although this impact is not identical across assets and countries. We also find that the new UMP phase started in 2014 has a more prominent impact, highlighting differences on the impact between the earlier and the new wave of UMPs and across cross-market correlations.

This paper examines the impact of the four unconventional monetary policy announcements followed by the European Central Bank on the stock price of European banks, as well as on the STOXX Europe 600 Banks index, from January 2010 to December 2016. The results show that there is a positive relation between the announced programs and the stock returns of the European banks at the same day of the announcement, while the impact is stronger for the long-term sovereign bond purchases (Securities Markets Programme). We also find that the banks of the countries which benefit most from the unconventional policies are these from Southern Europe. On the contrary, the announcement of these programs displays a limited effect on the banks of the European core countries and those with solid banking system. Finally, the announcements seem to reduce the volatility of stock prices and especially for the Covered Bond Purchase Programme (CBPP3).

BACKGROUND: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a leading cause of worldwide liver-related morbidity and mortality. The World Health Organization released an integrated strategy targeting HCV-elimination by 2030. This study aims to estimate the required interventions to achieve elimination using updated information for direct-acting antiviral (DAA) treatment coverage, to compute the total costs (including indirect/societal costs) of the strategy and to identify whether the elimination strategy is cost-effective/cost-saving in Greece. AIM: To estimate the required interventions and subsequent costs to achieve HCV elimination in Greece. METHODS: A previously validated mathematical model was adapted to the Greek HCV-infected population to compare the outcomes of DAA treatment without the additional implementation of awareness or screening campaigns versus an HCV elimination strategy, which includes a sufficient number of treated patients. We estimated the total costs (direct and indirect costs), the disability-adjusted life years and the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio using two different price scenarios. RESULTS: Without the implementation of awareness or screening campaigns, approximately 20000 patients would be diagnosed and treated with DAAs by 2030. This strategy would result in a 19.6% increase in HCV-related mortality in 2030 compared to 2015. To achieve the elimination goal, 90000 patients need to be treated by 2030. Under the elimination scenario, viremic cases would decrease by 78.8% in 2030 compared to 2015. The cumulative direct costs to eliminate the disease would range from 2.1-2.3 billion euros (euro) by 2030, while the indirect costs would be euro1.1 billion. The total elimination cost in Greece would range from euro3.2-3.4 billion by 2030. The cost per averted disability-adjusted life year is estimated between euro10100 and euro13380, indicating that the elimination strategy is very cost-effective. Furthermore, HCV elimination strategy would save euro560-895 million by 2035. CONCLUSION: Without large screening programs, elimination of HCV cannot be achieved. The HCV elimination strategy is feasible and cost-saving despite the uncertainty of the future cost of DAAs in Greece.

Superimpositions of serial 3D dental surface models comprise a powerful tool to assess morphological changes due to growth, treatment, or pathology. In this study, we evaluated the effect of artifacts on the superimposition outcome, using standard model acquisition and superimposition techniques. Ten pre- and post-orthodontic treatment plaster models were scanned with an intraoral scanner and superimposed using the iterative closest point algorithm. We repeated the whole process after manual removal of plaster artifacts, according to the current practice, as well as after re-scanning the cleaned models, to assess the effect of the model acquisition process derived artifacts on the superimposition outcome. Non-parametric multivariate models showed no mean effect on accuracy and precision by software settings, cleaning status (artifact removal), or time point. The choice of the superimposition reference area was the only factor that affected the measurements. However, assessment of individual cases revealed significant differences on the detected tooth movement, depending on artifact removal and on the model acquisition process. The effects of all factors tended to decrease with an increase in the size of the superimposition reference area. The present findings highlight the importance of accurate, artifact-free models, for valid assessment of morphological changes through serial 3D model superimpositions.

BACKGROUND: Major depression is associated with endothelial dysfunction and arterial stiffening, which may mediate development of hypertension and increased cardiovascular risk. The effect of response to antidepressant treatment on these vascular parameters has not been elucidated. AIMS: We aimed to assess the net effect of antidepressant therapy on endothelial function and arterial stiffness in patients with psychotic depression. METHOD: Thirty-seven patients with major psychotic depression, according to DSM-IV-TR, were treated with titrated citalopram 20-60 mg and risperidone 0.5-1 mg and were followed for 6 months. Twelve additional patients who denied treatment, or were non-compliant, were also followed for the same time period. Vascular function was assessed by flow-mediated dilatation (FMD), carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (PWV) and augmentation index (AI), at baseline and at the end of follow-up. RESULTS: Aortic and peripheral blood pressure (BP), PWV, FMD and AI (p < 0.05 for all) were significantly improved in the group that received treatment. Overall, only responders to treatment (n = 24) presented significant improvements in all hemodynamic and vascular parameters (p < 0.05 for all), irrespectively of traditional cardiovascular risk factors (TRFs), vasoactive medication and BP lowering. In a secondary analysis, patients with psychotic depression presented worse endothelial function as compared to controls matched for TRFs. LIMITATIONS: Non-randomized study. CONCLUSIONS: Patients who respond to therapy for major psychotic depression present sustained improvement in vascular function. Given that depressed patients are considered to be at high cardiovascular risk and are often non-compliant with treatment, further research to assess cardiovascular benefits of vigilant monitoring of antidepressant therapy is warranted.

BACKGROUND: Major depression is associated with endothelial dysfunction and arterial stiffening, which may mediate development of hypertension and increased cardiovascular risk. The effect of response to antidepressant treatment on these vascular parameters has not been elucidated. AIMS: We aimed to assess the net effect of antidepressant therapy on endothelial function and arterial stiffness in patients with psychotic depression. METHOD: Thirty-seven patients with major psychotic depression, according to DSM-IV-TR, were treated with titrated citalopram 20-60 mg and risperidone 0.5-1 mg and were followed for 6 months. Twelve additional patients who denied treatment, or were non-compliant, were also followed for the same time period. Vascular function was assessed by flow-mediated dilatation (FMD), carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (PWV) and augmentation index (AI), at baseline and at the end of follow-up. RESULTS: Aortic and peripheral blood pressure (BP), PWV, FMD and AI (p < 0.05 for all) were significantly improved in the group that received treatment. Overall, only responders to treatment (n = 24) presented significant improvements in all hemodynamic and vascular parameters (p < 0.05 for all), irrespectively of traditional cardiovascular risk factors (TRFs), vasoactive medication and BP lowering. In a secondary analysis, patients with psychotic depression presented worse endothelial function as compared to controls matched for TRFs. LIMITATIONS: Non-randomized study. CONCLUSIONS: Patients who respond to therapy for major psychotic depression present sustained improvement in vascular function. Given that depressed patients are considered to be at high cardiovascular risk and are often non-compliant with treatment, further research to assess cardiovascular benefits of vigilant monitoring of antidepressant therapy is warranted.

© 2019 American Psychological Association. Anxiety is a common and debilitating condition, which tends to follow a chronic course if left untreated. While studies have provided evidence that yoga is an effective mind-body intervention for a variety of psychological symptoms, more meta-analytic evidence supporting yoga's efficacy specifically for anxiety symptoms is needed. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of yoga on anxiety symptoms using meta-analytic methods. A systematic search was conducted for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on yoga and anxiety on electronic databases over key terms. Risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane tool. Outcome data were extracted from eligible studies, and moderators were coded across studies to indicate differences in study sample, delivery method, and type of dependent variable. Effect size aggregation and omnibus analyses, as well as moderator tests, were performed. A total of 38 RCTs (N = 2,295 adults) met inclusion criteria. Yoga practice had a large and statistically significant effect on anxiety symptoms compared with control conditions (d = 0.80). In subomnibus analyses, statistically significant effects of the yoga intervention were detected on biological measures (d = 0.45), nonanxiety mental health outcomes (d = 0.55), physical health measures (d = 0.45), and mental and physical health outcomes combined (d = 0.65). Significant moderation was found by study location, with the largest effects appearing in Indian samples. Results suggest that yoga significantly decreases anxiety symptoms, while it appears to have an ameliorative effect on psychological symptoms more globally.

BACKGROUND: For people living with HIV, major guidelines in high-income countries recommend testing for transmitted drug resistance (TDR) to guide the choice of first-line antiretroviral therapy (ART). However, individuals who fail a first-line regimen can now be switched to one of several effective regimens. Therefore, the virological and clinical benefit of TDR testing needs to be evaluated. METHODS: We included individuals from the HIV-CAUSAL Collaboration who enrolled <6 months of HIV diagnosis between 2006 and 2015, were ART-naive, and had measured CD4 count and HIV-RNA. Follow-up started at the date when all inclusion criteria were first met (baseline). We compared 2 strategies: (1) TDR testing within 3 months of baseline versus (2) no TDR testing. We used inverse probability weighting to estimate the 5-year proportion and hazard ratios (HRs) of virological suppression (confirmed HIV-RNA <50 copies/mL), and of AIDS or death under both strategies. RESULTS: Of 25,672 eligible individuals (82% males, 52% diagnosed in 2010 or later), 17,189 (67%) were tested for TDR within 3 months of baseline. Of these, 6% had intermediate- or high-level TDR to any antiretroviral drug. The estimated 5-year proportion virologically suppressed was 77% under TDR testing and 74% under no TDR testing; HR 1.06 (95% confidence interval: 1.03 to 1.19). The estimated 5-year risk of AIDS or death was 6% under both strategies; HR 1.03 (95% confidence interval: 0.95 to 1.12). CONCLUSIONS: TDR prevalence was low. Although TDR testing improved virological response, we found no evidence that it reduced the incidence of AIDS or death in first 5 years after diagnosis.

BACKGROUND: It has been suggested that the use of window functions, other than the rectangular, in the sliding window method, may be beneficial for reducing the effects of motion-related outliers in the time-series, when assessing dynamic functional connectivity (dFC) in resting-state fMRI (rs-fMRI). METHODOLOGY: Ten window functions for a wide range of window lengths (20-150 s) combined with Pearson and Kendall correlation metrics, were investigated. One hundred high quality rs-fMRI datasets from healthy controls, were used to systematically assess the effect of varying the window function and length on dFC assessment. To this end, two approaches were implemented: a) simulated outliers were added to the experimental data and b) the experimental data were divided into low and high motion subgroups. RESULTS: The presence of experimental motion-noise tended to inflate the number of dynamic connections for longer (≥100 s) wide-shaped windows, while shorter (20-30 s) narrow-shaped windows exhibited increased sensitivity in the presence of simulated outliers. Moreover, window sizes from 60 s to 90 s were mildly affected by motion-related effects. In most cases, the number of dynamic connections increased, and gradually lower frequencies were captured, with an increasing window size. CONCLUSIONS: Subject motion considerably affects the obtained dFC patterns; thus, it is preferable to perform motion artefact removal in the pre-processing stage rather than using alternative window functions to mitigate their effects. Provided that motion-noise is not excessive, the choice of a rectangular window is adequate. Finally, low frequency oscillations in functional connectivity seem to play an important role in the context of dFC assessment.

Magnetoelectric (ME) composites that exhibit both ferroelectric and ferromagnetic properties have attracted significant attention, thanks to their potential applications, e.g., low-energy-consumption storage devices. Here, we study bulk composites based on Pb(Zr0.52Ti0.48)O-3 (PZT) as a piezoelectric (PE) matrix and Fe3O4 nanoparticles (NPs) as soft ferromagnetic (FM) and magnetostrictive additives, in the form PZT-xFe(3)O(4) with 0%<= x <= 50wt.%, all sintered at T=1000 degrees C for 2h in air. We focus our study on a completely insulating sample x=5% and measure its properties at room temperature upon an out-of-plane external electric field, E-ex: namely, piezoelectric response [in-plane strain, S(E-ex)], polarization [P(E-ex)], and relaxation of the remanent magnetization, [m(rem)(t,E-ex)], prepared upon application and removal of an external magnetic field. The peaks observed in the butterflylike S(E-ex) curves at E-peak(+/-)=+/- 6kV/cm and the nucleation field recorded in the P(E-ex) loops at the same range around E-nuc(+/-)=+/- 6kV/cm (both referring to the PZT PE matrix) are clearly imprinted on the relaxation behavior of the m(rem)(t,E-ex) data (referring to the Fe3O4 FM NPs). This experimental fact proves the ME coupling between the PZT matrix and the embedded Fe3O4 NPs. We ascribe this feature to the comparable piezoelectricity of the PZT matrix and the magnetostriction of the Fe3O4 NPs that probably motivate and/or promote a strain transfer mechanism occurring at the PZT matrix-Fe3O4 NP interfaces. Our work proves that the low cost PZT-xFe(3)O(4) composite is a promising candidate ME material for future studies, aiming to potential applications.

For many decades classical anti-tumor therapies included chemotherapy, radiation and surgery; however, in the last two decades, following the identification of the genomic drivers and main hallmarks of cancer, the introduction of therapies that target specific tumor-promoting oncogenic or non-oncogenic pathways, has revolutionized cancer therapeutics. Despite the significant progress in cancer therapy, clinical oncologists are often facing the primary impediment of anticancer drug resistance, as many cancer patients display either intrinsic chemoresistance from the very beginning of the therapy or after initial responses and upon repeated drug treatment cycles, acquired drug resistance develops and thus relapse emerges, resulting in increased mortality. Our attempts to understand the molecular basis underlying these drug resistance phenotypes in pre-clinical models and patient specimens revealed the extreme plasticity and adaptive pathways employed by tumor cells, being under sustained stress and extensive genomic/proteomic instability due to the applied therapeutic regimens. Subsequent efforts have yielded more effective inhibitors and combinatorial approaches (e.g. the use of specific pharmacologic inhibitors with immunotherapy) that exhibit synergistic effects against tumor cells, hence enhancing therapeutic indices. Furthermore, new advanced methodologies that allow for the early detection of genetic/epigenetic alterations that lead to drug chemoresistance and prospective validation of biomarkers which identify patients that will benefit from certain drug classes, have started to improve the clinical outcome. This review discusses emerging principles of drug resistance to cancer therapies targeting a wide array of oncogenic kinases, along with hedgehog pathway and the proteasome and apoptotic inducers, as well as epigenetic and metabolic modulators. We further discuss mechanisms of resistance to monoclonal antibodies, immunomodulators and immune checkpoint inhibitors, potential biomarkers of drug response/drug resistance, along with possible new therapeutic avenues for the clinicians to combat devastating drug resistant malignancies. It is foreseen that these topics will be major areas of focused multidisciplinary translational research in the years to come.

Je fais partie de ceux qui aiment la vie. J’ai eu le bonheur d’avoir de bons parents, de fonder une famille heureuse... Toute ma vie, j’ai travaillé à des tâches passionnantes : j’ai aimé mes études, j’ai fait avec joie de l’enseignement et de la recherche... Je ne cesse de m’intéresser à la vie du monde, à la promotion de la femme, au maintien de la paix. Je fais confiance aux possibilités de l’homme et je crois au progrès. Je ne demande qu’à travailler, c’est-à-dire à vivre jusqu’à l’extinction de mes forces. Itinéraire de vie singulier que celui d’Eugénie Cotton. Il s’étend sur deux siècles et trois Républiques, traverse deux grandes guerres, connaît l’âge d’or et l’écroulement d’un Empire colonial. Scientifique et intellectuelle, Cotton pénétra, au début du XXe siècle, dans des territoires perçus alors comme exclusivement masculins. Femme de tête sous le Front populaire, elle réforma l’École normale supérieure de jeunes filles. Dirigeante en pleine guerre froide de grandes organisations procommunistes, féminines ou mixtes, elle fut partie prenante d’un univers à la fois international et transnational de luttes sociales, politiques et féministes. Autant d’histoires d’une vie et d’un siècle racontées « à la manière d’une passionnante enquête ».

This white paper is the first of a two-part series highlighting the most well-known high-energy cosmic accelerators and contributions that MeV gamma- ray astronomy will bring to understanding their energetic particle phenomena. This white paper discusses active galactic nuclei and gamma-ray bursts.

We analyze the engineering of subwavelength nanoantennas composed of anisotropic nanospheroids, for the development of photonic devices. Instead of using conventional isotropic dielectrics, we introduce resonant anisotropic nanoparticles, allowing for shifting Kerker condition points further inside the visible. To address this study, we construct a perturbation-based discrete eigenfunction method, for the electromagnetic scattering of a plane wave by a prolate or oblate uniaxial anisotropic spheroid. The method is fast and yields the solution for the bistatic radar and total scattering cross sections, which is valid for small eccentricities of the spheroid. The validity of this technique is verified by the alternative general purpose discrete dipole approximation method. We investigate the engineering of subwavelength nanoantennas due to material and geometry shaping, like the change of anisotropy type, anisotropy ratio, and deviation of the nanoantenna from sphericity. © 1995-2012 IEEE.

Cannabinoid administration during adolescence affects various physiological processes, such as motor and affective response, cognitive-related functions and modulates neurotransmitter activity. Literature remains scant concerning the parallel examination of the effects of adolescent escalating low-dose Δ -tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ -THC) on the behavioral and plasticity profile of adult rats in both sexes. Herein, we investigated the long-term behavioral, neurochemical and neurobiological effects of adolescent escalating low Δ -THC doses in adult male and female rats. In adult males, adolescent low-dose Δ -THC exposure led to increased spontaneous locomotor activity, impaired behavioral motor habituation and defective short-term spatial memory, paralleled with decreased BDNF protein levels in the prefrontal cortex. In this brain area, serotonergic activity was increased, as depicted by the increased serotonin turnover rate, while the opposite effect was observed in the hippocampus, a region where SERT levels were enhanced by Δ -THC, compared with vehicle. In adult females, adolescent Δ -THC treatment led to decreased spontaneous vertical activity and impaired short-term spatial memory, accompanied by increased BDNF protein levels in the prefrontal cortex. Present findings emphasize the key role of adolescent escalating low Δ -THC exposure in the long-term regulation of motor response, spatial-related cognitive functions and neuroplasticity indices in adulthood. In this framework, these changes could, at a translational level, contribute to clinical issues suggesting the development of psychopathology in a sex-differentiated manner following Δ -THC exposure during adolescence.

Reconstruction of the central band of the interosseous membrane is an emerging procedure implemented in the treatment of longitudinal radioulnar dissociation (LRUD), usually in its chronic setting, after Essex-Lopresti injuries of the forearm.There are no sufficient clinical data to support reconstruction of the central band of the interosseous membrane in acute LRUD injuries.Clinical and cadaveric studies comparing autografts (palmaris longus, flexor carpi radialis and bone-patellar-bone), allografts (Achilles tendon) and synthetic ligaments have not shown superiority of one technique another; however, they have shown special concerns with respect to the use of synthetic grafts.Latrogenic fracture, decrease of rotational range of movement, iatrogenic nerve injury (superficial radial and median nerve), donor site morbidity with autografts and recurrent instability are the complications reported in literature after interosseous membrane reconstruction. Cite this article: 2019;4:143-150. DOI: 10.1302/2058-5241.4.180072.

The spatial and temporal scale of flash flood occurrence provides limited opportunities for measurements and observations using of conventional monitoring networks. These observational difficulties, often accompanied by a lack of instrumental data have turned the focus to event-based, post-disaster studies. Post-flood surveys are particularly useful, as they provide the opportunity to observe aspects of hydrological behaviour of catchments under rare runoff conditions and extreme meteorological forcing, by capitalizing on field evidence. Recently, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and the Structure for Motion (SfM) technique have been used to enhance field surveys and monitoring related to different aspects of disasters. The simple consumer-grade equipment required, its enhanced observation capabilities and certain conveniences they offer in field surveys indicate a strong potential of these technologies in many aspects of flash floods, especially given the opportunistic nature of their study. This work explores further this potential, aiming to demonstrate the application of UAVs in post-flood peak flow estimation. The research team surveyed two selected cross sections after the catastrophic 2017 flood of Mandra, developing a high resolution (2.7cm) digital surface model (DSM) using UAV imagery and the Structure from Motion technique (SfM). The detailed DSM was used to study channel geometry and flow obstructions, extract cross sections and calculate the cross sectional area and wetted perimeter. Water energy slope was defined with the use of high water marks that were placed on the DSM on the appropriate elevation. Peak discharge in the two ungauged sections were estimated at 170m3/s and 140m3/s (with a range to account for the uncertainty inherent in the dynamic nature of Manning coefficient), using the slope-conveyance method, indicating a unit peak discharge of approximately 9-10m3/s/km2. Following recommendations described in relevant literature on the integration of survey observations by means of hydrological modelling, we applied a spatially distributed hydrologic model to simulate discharge at the surveyed cross-sections (the Kinematic Local Excess Model (KLEM)) and other checks, all of which were in agreement, with the peak flow estimates provided by the UAV-aided survey analysis. The UAV allowed the collection of aerial imagery in a rapid way from an extensive area, despite that a large portion of it was inaccessible due to road closures and safety issues. In addition, detailed DSMs created using aerial imagery and the SfM technique was found to be particularly useful for studying channel geometry, obstructions and other characteristics of flow as well as for measuring cross sectional areas on demand, even at a later time, when the channel had changed due to human intervention (e.g. cleanup using heavy machinery) and water flow. These capabilities fit to the opportunistic context of studying flash flood events in the sense that UAVs can rapidly collect information within the short time frame that it is available. Nevertheless, it has to be noted that combination of ground with aerial observations is preferable.

BACKGROUND: The aim of the study was to assess the accuracy of commercially available software in estimating anterior tooth root inclination from digital impressions of the crowns of the teeth. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Following sample size calculation and application of inclusion and exclusion criteria, 55 anterior natural teeth derived from 14 dry human skulls were selected. Impressions were taken and plaster study models were fabricated. Plaster models were scanned using the high-resolution mode of an Ortho Insight 3D laser scanner. The teeth on the digital scans were segmented and virtual roots were predicted and constructed by the Ortho Insight 3D software. The 55 natural teeth were removed from the dry skulls and scanned using the Identica extraoral white-light scanner in order to calculate their actual root angulation. The teeth were scanned twice, once to acquire the crown and the cervical part of the root, and a second time to acquire the remaining part of the root, including the apex. The two scanned segments were joined in software by superimposing them along their common part. The accuracy of the digital models generated by the Ortho Insight 3D scanner in predicting root angulation was assessed by comparing these results to the corresponding measurements of the 55 natural teeth. The long axes of the tooth models obtained from the software prediction and the scanning of the actual teeth were computed and the discrepancy between them was evaluated. The error of the methods was evaluated by repeating the measurements on 14 teeth and showed an acceptable range. RESULTS: The predicted tooth angulation was found to differ significantly from the actual angulation, both statistically and clinically. The angle between the predicted and actual long axes ranged from 2.0 to 37.6°(average 9.7°; median 7.4°). No statistically significant difference was found between tooth categories. CONCLUSIONS: Further investigations and improvements of the software are needed before it can be considered clinically effective.

The Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) presents us with a unique opportunity to study in detail the effect of environmental processes (interaction with the LMC and the Milky Way) on its star formation history. With the 6.5m Magellan Telescope at the Las Campanas Observatory in Chile we have acquired deep B and I images in four 0.44 degree fields covering a large part of the main body of the SMC, yielding accurate photometry for 1,068,893 stars down to ~24th magnitude, with a spatial resolution of 0.201 arcsec/pixel. Colour-magnitude diagrams and luminosity functions (corrected for completeness) have been constructed, yielding significant new results that indicate at least two discrete star formation events around 2.7 and 4-5 Gyr ago.

Sea level indicators, such as tidal notches and beachrocks, may provide valuable information for the relative sea level (RSL) changes of an area. The study area, Okinawa, belongs to the Ryukyu Islands, Japan (Pacific Ocean), forming the emerged part of an active island arc, where the Philippine Sea plate is subducting beneath the Asian continent. Evidence of emergence has been noted by various studies. Beachrocks have also been studied, however, detailed examinations of their spatial extent and cement characteristics has not been accomplished. The purpose of this study is to discuss the RSL evolution in Okinawa through the re-evaluation of reported sea level indicators, with additional observations of beachrocks and notches and RSL predictions. Our findings suggest that the majority of Okinawa beachrocks have formed in the intertidal zone. Although the vertical uncertainty of the produced SLIPs is relatively large, there is a good agreement between the different types of sea level indicators. Comparisons with RSL predictions as well as the presence of uplifted notches further suggest that Okinawa island is generally characterized by an uplift trend, which is larger in its southern part.

The purpose of the study is the determination of the shoreline changes and the sediment processes along the beach of Marathon Bay, which is located at northeast Attica. In the wider on shore area the Schinias National Park, at the northeast of the bay, the Olympic Rowing Centre, military bases, archeological sites, museums etc. are encountered. The area is also characterized by high touristic activity during summer. In the area there are specific locations and constructions endangered due to coastal retreat. A lagoon was established in the study area 3.500 years BP (Pavlopoulos et al., 2006) as it is characterized by low elevations, gentle slopes and fine sediments. A survey of the coastal and marine geomorphology was carried out by acoustic scanning of the seafloor with an echo sounder and sonar side scan topographical sections perpendicular to the shoreline along with collection and analysis of surface sediments. The quantification of long-term shoreline displacements was carried out by comparing historical and contemporary aerial photographs (1945, 1960, 1969, 1988, 1996, 2001, 2010) along with very high resolution satellite imagery (2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018), not to mention the tracing of the coastline (2013) with Real Time Kinematics equipment (RTK-GNSS). The quantification of long-term shoreline displacements was made with the use of the add-on application of Digital Shoreline Analysis System (DSAS) within the GIS platform ArcMap 10.6 (Thieler et al., 2009). This was accomplished by drawing 261 transects (every 50 meters), except those neighboring anthropogenic structures, perpendicularly to the historical shorelines from a stable baseline (Tsokos et al., 2018). At each transect the rate of displacement was measured.

A growing body of evidence suggests that network-based interventions to reduce HIV transmission and/or improve HIV-related health outcomes have an important place in public health efforts to move towards 90-90-90 goals. However, the social processes involved in network-based recruitment may pose a risk to participants of increasing HIV-related stigma if network recruitment causes HIV status to be assumed, inferred, or disclosed. On the other hand, the social processes involved in network-based recruitment to HIV testing may also encourage HIV-related social support. Yet despite the relevance of these processes to both network-based interventions and to other more common interventions (e.g., partner services), there is a dearth of literature that directly examines them among participants of such interventions. Furthermore, both HIV-related stigma and social support may influence participants' willingness and ability to recruit their network members to the study. This paper examines (1) the extent to which stigma and support were experienced by participants in the Transmission Reduction Intervention Project (TRIP), a risk network-tracing intervention aimed at locating recently HIV-infected and/or undiagnosed HIV-infected people and linking them to care in Athens, Greece; Odessa, Ukraine; and Chicago, Illinois; and (2) whether stigma and support predicted participant engagement in the intervention. Overall, experiences of stigma were infrequent and experiences of support frequent, with significant variation between study sites. Experiences and perceptions of HIV-related stigma did not change significantly between baseline and six-month follow-up for the full TRIP sample, and significantly decreased during the course of the study at the Chicago site. Experiences of HIV-related support significantly increased among recently-HIV-infected participants at all sites, and among all participants at the Odessa site. Both stigma and support were found to predict participants' recruitment of network members to the study at the Athens site, and to predict participants' interviewer-rated enthusiasm for naming and recruiting their network members at both the Athens and Odessa sites. These findings suggest that network-based interventions like TRIP which aim to reduce HIV transmission likely do not increase stigma-related risks to participants, and may even encourage increased social support among network members. However, the present study is limited by its associational design and by some variation in implementation by study site. Future research should directly assess contextual differences to improve understanding of the implications of site-level variation in stigma and support for the implementation of network-based interventions, given the finding that these constructs predict participants' recruitment of network members and engagement in the intervention, and thereby could limit network-based interventions' abilities to reach those most in need of HIV testing and care.

Visible Light Communication (VLC) systems use light-emitting diode (LED) technology to provide high-capacity optical links. The advantages they offer, such as the high data rate and the low installation and operational cost, have identified them as a significant solution for modern networks. However, such systems are vulnerable to various exogenous factors, with the background sunlight noise having the greatest impact. In order to reduce the negative influence of the background noise effect, optical filters can be used. In this work, for the first time, a low-cost optical vanadium dioxide (VO2) optical filter has been designed and experimentally implemented based on the requirements of typical and realistic VLC systems in order to significantly increase their performance by reducing the transmittance of background noise. The functionality of the specific filter is investigated by means of its bit error rate (BER) performance estimation, taking into account its experimentally measured characteristics. Numerous results are provided in order to prove the significant performance enhancement of the VLC systems which, as it is shown, reaches almost six orders of magnitude in some cases, using the specific experimental optical filter. © 2019 by the authors.

The author brings out the many faces of explanation in history of science by commenting on the contributions to a Focus section of Isis on historical explanation. The essay starts by indicating several ways in which the term “explanation” is used in historiographical discourse. It then distinguishes the object of explanation from the process of explanation and points out common themes and points of contention among the thirteen contributions. It also discusses two of those points in more detail: the problems of causal explanation in history of science and the imperative of avoiding anachronism in historical interpretation. The essay concludes by suggesting a pluralist take on explaining science historically.

In this article we present an interactive toolkit for the extended vocal  performance of Attic tragic poetry in drama related to its prosodic aspects. We focus on the development of modules for the phonological articulation of the ancient text based on archeomusicological readings (related to music and language) in order to add aesthetic values to the modern performance of ancient Greek drama. These tools are based on prosodic elements (melodic, rhythmic) of the ancient text and are used to: a) detect the dynamic of the articulation, accent, pronunciation as well as the tonality/pitch of the actor’s voice (recited or sung), b) track the movements and gestures of the performer and c) combine the data which is collected by the above mentioned processes (a and b) to trigger interactive sound and speech processing during the performance in order to reintroduce the prosodic aspects of voice in ancient drama.

Coastal erosion is becoming a significant problem in Greece, Bangladesh, and globally. For the prevention and minimization of damage from coastal erosion, combinations of various structures have been used conventionally. However, most of these methods are expensive. Therefore, creating artificial beachrock using local ureolytic bacteria and the MICP (Microbially Induced Carbonate Precipitation) method can be an alternative for coastal erosion protection, as it is a sustainable and eco-friendly biological ground improvement technique. Most research on MICP has been confined to land ureolytic bacteria and limited attention has been paid to coastal ureolytic bacteria for the measurement of urease activity. Subsequently, their various environmental effects have not been investigated. Therefore, for the successful application of MICP to coastal erosion protection, the type of bacteria, bacterial cell concentration, reaction temperature, cell culture duration, carbonate precipitation trend, pH of the media that controls the activity of the urease enzyme, etc., are evaluated. In this study, the effects of temperature, pH, and culture duration, as well as the trend in carbonate precipitation of coastal ureolytic bacteria isolated from two coastal regions in Greece and Bangladesh, were evaluated. The results showed that urease activity of coastal ureolytic bacteria species relies on some environmental parameters that are very important for successful sand solidification. In future, we aim to apply these findings towards the creation of artificial beachrock in combination with a geotextile tube for coastal erosion protection in Mediterranean countries, Bangladesh, and globally, for bio-mediated soil improvement.

In recent years, traditional material for coastal erosion protection has become very expensive and not sustainable and eco-friendly for the long term. As an alternative countermeasure, this study focused on a sustainable biological ground improvement technique that can be utilized as an option for improving the mechanical and geotechnical engineering properties of soil by the microbially induced carbonate precipitation (MICP) technique considering native ureolytic bacteria. To protect coastal erosion, an innovative and sustainable strategy was proposed in this study by means of combing geotube and the MICP method. For a successful sand solidification, the urease activity, environmental factors, urease distribution, and calcite precipitation trend, among others, have been investigated using the isolated native strains. Our results revealed that urease activity of the identified strains denoted as G1 (Micrococcus sp.), G2 (Pseudoalteromonas sp.), and G3 (Virgibacillus sp.) relied on environment-specific parameters and, additionally, urease was not discharged in the culture solution but would discharge in and/or on the bacterial cell, and the fluid of the cells showed urease activity. Moreover, we successfully obtained solidified sand bearing UCS (Unconfined Compressive Strength) up to 1.8 MPa. We also proposed a novel sustainable approach for field implementation in a combination of geotube and MICP for coastal erosion protection that is cheaper, energy-saving, eco-friendly, and sustainable for Mediterranean countries, as well as for bio-mediated soil improvement.

Floods are among the most dangerous natural hazards affecting the development of an area. In Greece, many drainage basins are relatively small with steep slopes, configured by steep streams with braided main channel morphology. These systems are usually dry, but experience extreme flash flood events of low frequency, but high magnitude. Such exceptionally high runoff may be a source of significant damage to human infrastructure. Despite the importance of these floods, the hydrological analysis of ephemeral streams in Greece has been especially difficult due to the lack of discharge gauges.The aim of this study is to present a flood hazard assessment and mapping methodology for the Kerinitis River drainage basin which is located in the North Peloponnese. Additionally, the simulation of a flash flood event along the main channel of the river caused by an extreme rainfall event, similar to the storm that took place on January 11th and 12th, 1997 above the nearby catchment of Xerias River, using a surface GIS-based runoff model was attempted. The application of this modeling led to the direct runoff hydrograph along the Kerinitis main channel at the outlet of the basin (the apex of the fan-delta). The proposed methodologies are based on the application of GIS with the integration of various data concerning the study area.

The last decade Greece is undergoing a multi-crisis. During this period of time the history and the past emerged in a peculiar way: the past was used as an example to be followed, while the demonstrators were calling people for disobedience and resistance against the imposed monetary and fiscal measures and against the state as well. This projection of the past to the present was entrenched on certain historical facts which are questionable and not overall well accepted, such as the 1945-9 Civil war, or the 1973 students’ uprising against the military dictatorship. Under these circumstances one could be reasonably wondering about the uses of history and the ways history is perceived as a means that construct identities. The notion of the ‟resistance cultureˮ is emerged through the utilization of history and the school history’s null curriculum, revealing the role various forms of historical narratives can play in the process of historical awareness.

We study the frequency content of an extra carrier oscillation along B-DNA aperiodic and periodic polymers and oligomers made of N monomers. In our work, we employ two variants of the Tight-Binding (TB) approach: a wire model and an extended ladder model including diagonal hoppings, as well as Real-Time Time-Dependent Density Functional Theory (RT-TDDFT). In the wire model, the site is a monomer, i.e., a base pair, while, in the extended ladder model, the site is a base. Initially, we focus on the Fourier Spectra of the probabilities to find the extra carrier at each monomer, having placed it at time zero at a specific monomer. We define the weighted mean frequency (WMF) of each site, a measure of its frequency content, using as weight the Fourier amplitude of each component of its frequency spectrum. The large-N limits of the WMFs are constants in the THz domain. To obtain a measure of the overall frequency content of carrier oscillations in the polymer, we define the total weighted mean frequency (TWMF), averaging the WMFs of all sites weighting over the mean over time probabilities of finding the extra carrier at each site. The large-N limit of the TWMFs are also constants in the THz domain. Generally, the frequency content of coherent carrier oscillations along B-DNA aperiodic and periodic polymers is in the THz domain.

Objective. This study sought to identify processes linking daily parental need experiences to daily parenting, focusing on the intervening role of parental psychological availability and stress. Design. In total, 206 mothers (Mage = 40.33 years) and 206 fathers (Mage = 42.36 years) and their elementary school child (Mage = 9.93 years; 46.6% female) participated in a 7-day multi-informant diary study. Results. Parents? daily need satisfaction was related to more daily psychological availability and lower daily stress in parent-child interactions, but parental need frustration related to less daily psychological availability and more stress. Psychological availability and stress were related to more daily parent-reported and child-perceived autonomy support and psychological control, respectively. However, parental need-based experiences were related to children?s reported parenting only indirectly (i.e., through psychological availability and stress). These associations were obtained at the within-day level but not in models predicting parenting the next day. Conclusion. Parental need-based experiences are a critical resource for parenting.

Recent theoretical and practical advances have led to the emergence of review-based recommender systems, where user preference data is encoded in at least two dimensions; the traditional rating scores in a predefined discrete scale and the user-generated reviews in the form of free-text. The main contribution of this work is the presentation of a new technique of incorporating those reviews into collaborative filtering matrix factorization algorithms. The text of each review, of arbitrary length, is mapped to a continuous feature space of fixed length, using neural language models and more specifically, the Paragraph Vector model. Subsequently, the resulting feature vectors (the neural embeddings) are used in combination with the rating scores in a hybrid probabilistic matrix factorization algorithm, based on maximum a-posteriori estimation. The proposed methodology is then compared to three other similar approaches on six datasets in order to assess its performance. The obtained results demonstrate that the new formulation outperforms the other systems on a set of two metrics, thereby indicating the robustness of the idea.

Archaeobotany is used to discover details on local land uses in prehistoric settlements developed during the middle and beginning of late Holocene. Six archaeological sites from four countries (Spain, Italy, Greece, and Turkey) have pollen and charcoal records showing clear signs of the agrarian systems that had developed in the Mediterranean basin during different cultural phases, from pre-Neolithic to Recent Bronze Age. A selected list of pollen taxa and sums, including cultivated trees, other woody species, crops and annual or perennial synanthropic plants are analysed for land use reconstructions. In general, cultivation has a lower image in palynology than forestry, and past land uses became visible when oakwoods were affected by human activities. On-site palynology allows us to recognise the first influence of humans even before it can be recognised in off-site sequences, and off-site sequences can allow us to determine the area of influence of a site. Neolithic and Bronze Age archaeological sites show similar land use dynamics implying oak exploitation, causing local deforestation, and cultivation of cereal fields in the area or around the site. Although a substantial difference makes the Neolithic influence quite distant from the Bronze Age impact, mixed systems of land exploitation emerged everywhere. Multiple land use activities exist (multifunctional landscapes) at the same time within the area of influence of a site. Since the Neolithic, people have adopted a diffuse pattern of land use involving a combination of diverse activities, using trees–crops–domesticated animals. The most recurrent combination included wood exploitation, field cultivation and animal breeding. The lesson from the past is that the multifunctional land use, combining sylvo-pastoral and crop farming mixed systems, has been widely adopted for millennia, being more sustainable than the monoculture and a promising way to develop our economy.

Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) is a heterogeneous group of neurodegenerative syndromes associated with several causative and susceptibility genes. Herein, we aimed to determine the incidence of the most common causative dementia genes in a cohort of 118 unrelated Greek FTD spectrum patients. We also screened for novel possible disease-associated variants in additional 21 genes associated with FTD or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants were identified in 16 cases (13.6%). These included repeat expansions in C9orf72 and loss-of-function GRN variants, and likely pathogenic variants in TARDBP, MAPT, and PSEN1. We also identified 14 variants of unknown significance in other rarer FTD or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis genes that require further segregation and functional analysis. Our genetic screen revealed a high genetic burden in familial Greek FTD cases (30.4%), whereas only two of the sporadic cases (3.5%) carried a likely pathogenic variant. A substantial number of familial cases still remain without an obvious causal variant, suggesting the existence of other FTD genetic causes besides those currently screened in clinical routine

Genetic testing for cancer predisposition leads to the identification of a number of variants with uncertain significance. To some extent, variants of BRCA1/2 have been classified, in contrast to variants of other genes. CHEK2 is a typical example, in which a large number of variants of unknown clinical significance were identified and still remained unclassified. Herein, the CHEK2 variant assessment was performed through an in vivo, yeast-based, functional assay. In total, 120 germline CHEK2 missense variants, distributed along the protein sequence, and two large in-frame deletions were tested, originating from genetic test results in breast cancer families, or selected from the ClinVar database. Of these, 32 missense and two in-frame deletions behaved as non-functional, 73 as functional, and 15 as semi-functional, after comparing growth rates of each strain with positive and negative controls. The majority of non-functional variants were localized in the CHK2 kinase and forkhead-associated domains. In vivo results from the non-functional variants were in agreement with in silico predictions, and, where available, with strong breast cancer family history, to a great extent. The results of the largest, to date, yeast-based assay, evaluating CHEK2 variants, can complement and assist in the classification of rare CHEK2 variants with unclear clinical significance

Being an assembly of protein machines, cells depend on adequate supply of energetic molecules for retaining their homeodynamics. Consequently, mitochondria functionality is ensured by quality control systems and mitochondrial dynamics (fusion/fission). Similarly, proteome stability is maintained by the machineries of the proteostasis network. We report here that reduced mitochondrial fusion rates in Drosophila caused developmental lethality or if induced in the adult accelerated aging. Imbalanced mitochondrial dynamics were tolerable for various periods in young flies, where they caused oxidative stress and proteome instability that mobilized Nrf2 and foxo to upregulate cytoprotective antioxidant/proteostatic modules. Consistently, proteasome inhibition or Nrf2, foxo knock down in young flies exaggerated perturbed mitochondrial dynamics toxicity. Neither Nrf2 overexpression (with concomitant proteasome activation)nor Atg8a upregulation suppressed the deregulated mitochondrial dynamics toxicity, which was mildly mitigated by antioxidants. Thus, despite extensive functional wiring of mitostatic and antioxidant/proteostatic modules, sustained loss-of mitostasis exhausts adaptation responses triggering premature aging.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: This review aims to discuss the recent developments in the area of apolipoprotein E (apoE) mimetics and their therapeutic potential for treating cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of mortality worldwide. RECENT FINDINGS: Ongoing research efforts target the development of novel therapies that would not only reduce circulating levels of atherogenic lipoproteins, but could also increase high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels and/or improve HDL function. Among them, synthetic peptides that mimic the structure of natural human apoE, a component of triglyceride-rich lipoproteins and HDL, have been designed and proven to be functionally similar to apoE. In specific, apoE mimetic peptides mediate hepatic clearance of circulating atherogenic lipoproteins, dramatically reduce plasma cholesterol, and lead to attenuation of atherosclerosis development in vivo. These peptides also exhibit pleiotropic antiatherogenic properties, such as macrophage cholesterol efflux capacity, as well as anti-inflammatory and antioxidative functions. SUMMARY: ApoE mimetics are undergoing preclinical and clinical evaluation with promising results to date that render them attractive candidates in cardiovascular disease prevention and treatment.

Context. The ESA Gaia mission provides a unique time-domain survey for more than 1.6 billion sources with G ≲ 21 mag. Aims: We showcase stellar variability in the Galactic colour-absolute magnitude diagram (CaMD). We focus on pulsating, eruptive, and cataclysmic variables, as well as on stars that exhibit variability that is due to rotation and eclipses. Methods: We describe the locations of variable star classes, variable object fractions, and typical variability amplitudes throughout the CaMD and show how variability-related changes in colour and brightness induce "motions". To do this, we use 22 months of calibrated photometric, spectro-photometric, and astrometric Gaia data of stars with a significant parallax. To ensure that a large variety of variable star classes populate the CaMD, we crossmatched Gaia sources with known variable stars. We also used the statistics and variability detection modules of the Gaia variability pipeline. Corrections for interstellar extinction are not implemented in this article. Results: Gaia enables the first investigation of Galactic variable star populations in the CaMD on a similar, if not larger, scale as was previously done in the Magellanic Clouds. Although the observed colours are not corrected for reddening, distinct regions are visible in which variable stars occur. We determine variable star fractions to within the current detection thresholds of Gaia. Finally, we report the most complete description of variability-induced motion within the CaMD to date. Conclusions: Gaia enables novel insights into variability phenomena for an unprecedented number of stars, which will benefit the understanding of stellar astrophysics. The CaMD of Galactic variable stars provides crucial information on physical origins of variability in a way that has previously only been accessible for Galactic star clusters or external galaxies. Future Gaia data releases will enable significant improvements over this preview by providing longer time series, more accurate astrometry, and additional data types (time series BP and RP spectra, RVS spectra, and radial velocities), all for much larger samples of stars. A movie associated to Fig. 11 is available at https://www.aanda.org.Data are only available at the CDS via anonymous ftp to http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (ftp://130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/qcat?J/A+A/623/A110.

Context. Pismis 18 is a moderately populated, intermediate-age open cluster located within the solar circle at a Galactocentric distance of about seven kpc. Few open clusters have been studied in detail in the inner disc region before the Gaia-ESO Survey. Aims: New data from the Gaia-ESO Survey allowed us to conduct an extended radial velocity membership study as well as spectroscopic metallicity and detailed chemical abundance measurements for this cluster. Methods: Gaia-ESO Survey data for 142 potential members, lying on the upper main sequence and on the red clump, yielded radial velocity measurements, which, together with proper motion measurements from the Gaia Second Data Release (Gaia DR2), were used to determine the systemic velocity of the cluster and membership of individual stars. Photometry from Gaia DR2 was used to re-determine cluster parameters based on high confidence member stars only. Cluster abundance measurements of six radial-velocity member stars with UVES high-resolution spectroscopy are presented for 23 elements. Results: The average radial velocity of 26 high confidence members is -27.5 ± 2.5 (std) km s-1 with an average proper motion of pmra = -5.65 ± 0.08 (std) mas yr-1 and pmdec = -2.29 ± 0.11 (std) mas yr-1. According to the new estimates, based on high confidence members, Pismis 18 has an age of τ = 700+40-50 Myr, interstellar reddening of E(B - V) = 0.562+0.012-0.026 mag and a de-reddened distance modulus of DM0 = 11.96+0.10-0.24 mag. The median metallicity of the cluster (using the six UVES stars) is [Fe/H] = +0.23 ± 0.05 dex, with [α/Fe] = 0.07 ± 0.13 and a slight enhancement of s- and r-neutron-capture elements. Conclusions: With the present work, we fully characterized the open cluster Pismis 18. We confirmed its present location in the inner disc. We estimated a younger age than the previous literature values and we gave, for the first time, its metallicity and its detailed abundances. Its [α/Fe] and [s-process/Fe], both slightly super-solar, are in agreement with other inner-disc open clusters observed by the Gaia-ESO survey. Full Table 2 is only available at the CDS via anonymous ftp to http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (ftp://130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/qcat?J/A+A/626/A90

In this article, a rigorous analytical methodology is introduced for designing near-zero refractive index metamaterials (NZIMs). Our proposed NZIM media is realized by three stacked layers of perforated metallic surfaces, each layer composed of a fishnet-like periodic array of square holes. By a proper design of such structures, a low refractive index medium is achieved at their corresponding plasma frequency. The low refractive index property is studied by retrieving the effective parameters of NZIM via inversion techniques, which gives an effective near-zero refractive index, at an operating frequency of 1.5 GHz. Then, the designed NZIM is used for gain enhancement of a circular waveguide antenna. The analysis shows that the proposed platform can enhance the directivity of our antenna by 3 dB while maintaining the return loss <−20 dB. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Genetic Algorithms (GAs) have been predominantly used in video games for finding the best possible sequence of actions that leads to a win condition. This work sets out to investigate an alternative application of GAs on action-adventure type video games. The main intuition is to encode actions depending on the state of the world of the game instead of the sequence of actions, like most of the other GA approaches do. Additionally, a methodology is being introduced which modifies a part of the agent's logic and reuses it in another game. The proposed algorithm has been implemented in the GVG-AI competition's framework and more specifically for the Zelda and Portals games. The obtained results, in terms of average score and win percentage, seem quite satisfactory and highlight the advantages of the suggested technique, especially when compared to a rolling horizon GA implementation of the aforementioned framework; firstly, the agent is efficient at various levels (different world topologies) after being trained in only one of them and secondly, the agent may be generalized to play more games of the same category.

With very large fields of view, high-cadence sampling, high angular, and spectral resolutions, and polarization capabilities, the new generation gamma- ray instruments are ready to address the most pressing science questions of the next decades, and they are essential for the time-domain multi-messenger era.

A distinct combination of transcription factors elicits the acquisition of a specific fate and the initiation of a differentiation program. Multiciliated cells (MCCs) are a specialized type of epithelial cells that possess dozens of motile cilia on their apical surface. Defects in cilia function have been associated with ciliopathies that affect many organs, including brain and airway epithelium. Here we show that the geminin coiled-coil domain-containing protein 1 GemC1 (also known as Lynkeas) regulates the transcriptional activation of p73, a transcription factor central to multiciliogenesis. Moreover, we show that GemC1 acts in a trimeric complex with transcription factor E2F5 and tumor protein p73 (officially known as TP73), and that this complex is important for the activation of the p73 promoter. We also provide in vivo evidence that GemC1 is necessary for p73 expression in different multiciliated epithelia. We further show that GemC1 regulates multiciliogenesis through the control of chromatin organization, and the epigenetic marks/tags of p73 and Foxj1. Our results highlight novel signaling cues involved in the commitment program of MCCs across species and tissues.This article has an associated First Person interview with the first author of the paper.

The subventricular zone (SVZ) is one of two main niches where neurogenesis persists during adulthood, as it retains neural stem cells (NSCs) with self-renewal capacity and multi-lineage potency. Another critical cellular component of the niche is the population of postmitotic multiciliated ependymal cells. Both cell types are derived from radial glial cells that become specified to each lineage during embryogenesis. We show here that GemC1, encoding Geminin coiled-coil domain-containing protein 1, is associated with congenital hydrocephalus in humans and mice. Our results show that GemC1 deficiency drives cells toward a NSC phenotype, at the expense of multiciliated ependymal cell generation. The increased number of NSCs is accompanied by increased levels of proliferation and neurogenesis in the postnatal SVZ. Finally, GemC1-knockout cells display altered chromatin organization at multiple loci, further supporting a NSC identity. Together, these findings suggest that GemC1 regulates the balance between NSC generation and ependymal cell differentiation, with implications for the pathogenesis of human congenital hydrocephalus.

Physical activity, health and well-being are valued in France, where over 65% of the population practice sport (Schann, 2014). French towns provide sport clubs, athletic facilities and parks for jogging, running or cycling and most workplaces include gyms, fitness programs or sport activities. Companies like Apple have integrated gyms in the workplace; the bank Société Générale provides dance activities for employees and managers; the Valeo group-smart technology for smart cars organizes sport events resembling the Olympics. Physical activities are encouraged to improve or maintain employee health while developing-strengthening cooperation and teambuilding for both genders. In contrast, gender inequality prevails, especially in sport leadership and entrepreneurship. This study focuses on the major obstacles confronted by women entrepreneurs in France and in francophone countries. Method: In depth literature review (30 studies) on women’s entrepreneurial activities over the period 2002-2018, a topic not sufficiently studied in France, including two studies on gender inequalities in sport. Results: The leaky pipeline, a barrier to retention, along with the family/work conflict, lack of trust, funding or access to capital and limited-inadequate networking. Discussion/Conclusion: Need to eliminate gender stereotypes in France. Out of the 30 million people over 18 years of age who play sport or engage in physical activities at least once a week, almost half are women (14.5 million). On the other hand, women continue to be invisible (underrepresented) in sport leadership and entrepreneurship. They usually turn to social entrepreneurship: education, social care or health services. Future studies required to identity obstacles confronted by women entrepreneurs in France, the country of the first woman Olympic entrepreneur, Alice Milliat, who was compared to Pierre de Coubertin in 1922 for the successful organization of the "Women’s Olympic Games" in Paris on August 20, 1922, an event which attracted 20,000 spectators (Kamberidou, 2016).

This paper focuses on the socio-cultural aspects of gender integration in the Armed Forces, arguing for gender-neutral standards. It begins with a detailed literature review relevant to women’s integration in the military, subsequently focusing on Greece, and in the final analysis arguing that coed military sport participation and exercises serve as a means of bridging the gender-divide and eliminating gender harassment. Though coed sport (mixed-gender teams) as a tool for women’s inclusion and integration in the military seems to be part of the solution, it is a topic on which research is scarce (Kefi Chatzichamperi, 2018, 2019). This study does not examine physiologic attributes: biological and anatomical differences or research on sex hormones and how they affect the nervous system and physical strength, and subsequently soldier performance (Tenan, 2017). Using a qualitative theoretical approach, it discusses the social dimensions of evidence-based research on why and how gender integration is relevant. It includes current and ongoing studies presented at the 14th Conference of the European Research Group on Military and Society (ERGOMAS), hosted by the Hellenic Army Academy in Athens, indicating that a main challenge in the military today is to ensure a gender balance through women’s inclusion, active engagement and retention. Research emphasizes the need for change in the military culture on all levels—legal and organizational—including gender-awareness and diversity training, especially on the complimentary skills that both genders bring to the table as opposed to the "wastage of talent" (Kamberidou, 2013). Certainly, establishing gender-neutral standards to eliminate sexism, and promote inclusion and integration is a complex and multifaceted process, the reason researchers in the social sciences use a variety of theoretical approaches (Patsantaras, 2015, 2013; Seagrave, 2016). The results indicate that the gender participation gap continues in all current military organizations: Hungary holding the highest female participation rate (19.3%) and Turkey the lowest (0.8%).   Keywords: Degendering, gender/sex distinction, gender harassment, armed forces, homophobia, sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), mixed-gender sports  

BACKGROUND: Skin cancer represents the most common human malignancy, and it includes BCC, SCC, and melanoma. Since melanoma is one of the most aggressive types of cancer, we have herein attempted to develop a gene-specific intron retention signature that can distinguish BCC and SCC from melanoma biopsy tumors. METHODS: Intron retention events were examined through RT-sqPCR protocols, using total RNA preparations derived from BCC, SCC, and melanoma Greek biopsy specimens. Intron-hosted miRNA species and their target transcripts were predicted via the miRbase and miRDB bioinformatics platforms, respectively. Iotantronic ORFs were recognized through the ORF Finder application. Generation and visualization of protein interactomes were achieved by the IntAct and Cytoscape softwares, while tertiary protein structures were produced by using the I-TASSER online server. RESULTS: c-MYC and Sestrin-1 genes proved to undergo intron retention specifically in melanoma. Interaction maps of proteins encoded by genes being potentially targeted by retained intron-accommodated miRNAs were generated and SRPX2 was additionally delivered to our melanoma-specific signature. Novel ORFs were identified in MCT4 and Sestrin-1 introns, with potentially critical roles in melanoma development. CONCLUSIONS: The property of c-MYC, Sestrin-1, and SRPX2 genes to retain specific introns could be clinically used to molecularly differentiate non-melanoma from melanoma tumors.

Akrotiri Salt Lake is located 5km west of the city of Lemesos, in the southern-most part of the island of Cyprus. The palaeogeographic evolution of the Akrotiri Salt Lake presents a great scientific interest, especially during the Holocene where the eustatic movements combined with local active tectonics and climate changes have developed a unique geomorphological environment. The Salt Lake, today a closed lagoon, which is depicted in Venetian maps (Bordon AD 1528) as being connected to the sea, can provide evidence of the geological settings and landscape evolution of the area. In this study, we investigate the development of Akrotiri Salt Lake through a series of cores which penetrated the Holocene sediment sequence. Sedimentological, micropaleontological (benthic foraminifera and ostracods) analyses and geochronological studies performed on deposited sediments, identifying the complexity of the evolution of the Salt Lake and the progressive change of the area from maritime space to an open bay and finally to a closed Salt Lake.

Akrotiri Salt Lake is located 5km west of the city of Lemesos, in the southern-most part of the island of Cyprus. The palaeogeographic evolution of the Akrotiri Salt Lake presents a great scientific interest, especially during the Holocene where the eustatic movements combined with local active tectonics and climate changes have developed a unique geomorphological environment. The Salt Lake, today a closed lagoon, which is depicted in Venetian maps (Bordon AD 1528) as being connected to the sea, can provide evidence of the geological settings and landscape evolution of the area. In this study, we investigate the development of Akrotiri Salt Lake through a series of cores which penetrated the Holocene sediment sequence. Sedimentological, micropaleontological (benthic foraminifera and ostracods) analyses and geochronological studies performed on deposited sediments, identifying the complexity of the evolution of the Salt Lake and the progressive change of the area from maritime space to an open bay and finally to a closed Salt Lake.

Three main aquifer systems developed on Kythira Island include (Pagounis, 1981; Pagounis & Gertsos, 1984, Danamos, 1991; Koumantakis et al., 2006):

• The porous aquifer system in Neogene and Quaternary formations.
• The karstic aquifer system in the carbonate formations of the Pindos and Tripolis units.
• The aquifer system (both shallow and deep) in the fractured hard rocks mainly of the Phyllites – Quartzites unit.

The main discharge of the aquifer systems takes place in coastal and submarine brackish springs around the island, except for its northern part where the Phyllites – Quartzites unit outcrops and its central part where springs of small capacity discharge the carbonate formations of the Pindos unit. The municipal water supply of Kythira has been reinforced by a series of projects and interventions, focusing on the summer touristic period, when water demand surpasses by far water availability, mainly consisting of new deep boreholes. Precipitation is the direct recharge of the three aforementioned aquifer systems while indirectly lateral discharge occurs in places between adjacent and tangential aquifer systems and from the streams runoff as well. On August 4, 2017 a shrub, rather a forest fire broke out close to the island hospital; it expanded rapidly due to strong winds blowing in the area and raged out of control for four days, inducing considerable damage. The size of the fire-affected area was about 20km2, 16km2 mainly of shrub and 4km2 of agriculture land. For the detailed evaluation of the geo-environmental impact of the aforementioned fire to the aquifer systems of the Kythira Island concerning the quantitative and qualitative degradation seventeen municipal water points were finally selected for further hydrogeological study. The water points monitoring network were used in September 2017, June 2018 and October 2018 for measurements of the water tables heads and springs discharges while water samples were collected and chemical, trace elements and microbiological analysis were carried out. The impact of the fire on the quantity of the aquifer systems of the wider fire-affected area could not be fully clarified and there was indirect evidence of their recharge (it remains unknown its rate compared to the recharge before the August 2017 fire) during the three field trips such as:

• Fluctuation of the measurements of the water table heads.
• Fluctuation of the measurements of springs discharges.
• Fluctuation of the measurements of boreholes hydrometers.
• Changes to the hydrochemical facies of the Piper’s, Durov’s and Stiff’s diagrams of the collected water samples.

The results and the evaluation of the chemical and trace elements showed that there was no impact of the fire on the quality of the wider fire-affected area aquifer systems. However, microbiological analysis from the Mylopotamos spring showed qualitative degradation, due to human activities in the wider area preexisting the August 2017 fire (Pagounis, 1981). For the sustainable water resources management of the wider fire-affected area new projects were proposed in order to prevent phenomena that favors the runoff instead of infiltration which lead to the restriction of the recharge of the three main aquifer systems, such as works of artificial recharge.

Mediterranean temporary ponds (MTPs) constitute priority habitats under the European Union Habitats Directive, inhabited by several rare endemic species and subjected to unstable environmental conditions. Lakes and pond act as early indicators of climate change, in which alpine ecosystems are especially vulnerable. The study area is located in a mountainous Natura 2000 site of Central Greece, designated as “National Forest Park of Mt Oiti” (Ethnikos Drymos Oitis), which hosts a number of MTPs. Field sampling of soil and water carried out in four MTPs during dry and wet periods between 2012 and 2014. Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) technique was used for the delineation of the subsurface geological structure. This study aims to present the current ecological status of Mt Oiti MTPs with respect to their geo-environmental characteristics, emphasizing to their indirect correlation with plant species richness. Moreover, this paper aims to address the lack of basic ecological background on MPTs network of Mt Oiti concerning their characteristics along with the pressures received from various activities. MTPs of Mt Oiti were classified according to their ecological status, by identifying the habitats’ threats and defining their geological structure, mineralogy and physiochemical parameters of each pond.

The Stypsi Cu-Mo-Au-Re prospect, Lesvos island, is a shallow porphyry-epithermal system hosted within a middle Miocene microgranite porphyry, which was emplaced along NNE-, NW- and NE-trending structures, within trachyandesites to trachydacites and felsic pyroclastics of the Stypsi caldera. The mineralization comprises three stages: Stage I is characterized by magnetite-actinolite ± quartz in transitional and banded quartz veins mostly developed within the microgranite and the surrounding lavas related to calcic-potassic and propylitic alteration of the host rocks. In the banded veins, quartz is botryoidal, suggesting crystallization from a gel. Abundant vapor-rich inclusions in the bands produce a dark grey to black color. Within the veins, magnetite, chalcopyrite, bornite and native gold were followed in time by pyrite, hematite, sphalerite and galena. Stage I mineralization was synchronous and also postdates quartz formation in the veins, since it crosscuts and/or fills vugs in the center of the veins. Sulfides are associated with various combinations of K-feldspar, actinolite, epidote, chlorite, and calcite gangue minerals. Pyrite-molybdenite-chalcopyrite (Stage II) and late intermediate sulfidation epithermal veins (Stage III) overprint earlier mineralization and alteration, and are associated with sericite-calcite and sericite-kaolinite alteration of the porphyry system and spatially associated lavas, respectively. Molybdenite is widespread in the first two mineralization stages, with Re content ranging from about 0.3 wt% in Stage I to 1.96 wt% in Stage II. A barren silicic and advanced argillic (alunite-kaolinite) lithocap, is exposed on top of the porphyry-style mineralization and is crosscut by non-mineralized high-sulfidation epithermal chalcedony-barite veins. Bulk ore analyses of surface samples from the Stypsi prospect yielded values of up to 276 ppm Mo, 978 ppm Cu, up to 0.5 g/t Au, up to 3 g/t Ag, and up to 70 ppb Pd and Re. Fluid inclusion data indicate that the Stage I transitional and banded quartz veins were deposited at 420 °C–530 °C and at pressures up to 450 bars, from boiling hydrothermal fluids. The fluid in the veins consists of a brine (40–61 wt% NaCl equiv) that coexists with a lower salinity (6–14 wt% NaCl equiv) liquid phase and a low-density vapor-rich fluid. Fluid inclusions in quartz of the Stage III intermediate-sulfidation epithermal veins are characterized by relatively low homogenization temperatures (231 °C–288 °C) and salinities (up to 1.9 wt% NaCl equiv), which was the result of subsequent dilution of the moderately saline fluids by circulating meteoric water. This study verifies earlier works suggesting that Au-enriched felsic magmas are able to crystallize Re-rich molybdenite, and that Re may also be redistributed and enriched in later stages during the deposition of porphyry-style mineralization. The Stypsi prospect ressembles in many respects (e.g., Au grades, Cu/Mo ratios, the Re content of molybdenite and the presence of ore-grade calcic-potassic alteration), other porphyry Cu-Mo-Re-Au systems hosted in calc-alkaline rocks in northeastern Aegean, Greece.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the hard tissue and facial profile changes in matched extraction and non-extraction Class I patients by the use of geometric morphometrics. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: From a parent sample of 542 Class I patients, previously subjected to discriminant analysis, a subsample of 68 borderline cases was obtained, 34 treated with extraction and 34 without extraction of 4 first premolars. Geometric morphometric methods (Procrustes superimposition and Principal Component Analysis) were applied on cephalometric tracings to assess the validity of the discriminant analysis in successfully identifying a morphologically homogeneous group and to evaluate inter- and intra-group skeletal and facial profile shape changes. RESULTS: No significant pre-treatment shape difference between the two groups was found, thus validating the discriminant analysis. The non-extraction group showed increase in hard tissue facial height (P < 0.001), with slight lower lip retrusion and upper lip protrusion (P = 0.027). The extraction group showed retraction of the hard tissue and facial profile outline (P < 0.001). Permutation tests for post-treatment inter-group differences resulted in P = 0.054 for the soft tissue outline and P = 0.078 for the hard tissue skeletal component. CONCLUSIONS: The evidence indicates that borderline cases treated with four premolar extractions will exhibit lip retrusion compared to non-extraction treatment.

Platis Gialos Bay located at the Southern part of Sifnos Isl. and his length is determined at 1.000 m, with SE direction. The coast of Platis Gialos Sifnos has been under erosion and permanent coastal retreat for several years, especially at the central and west part of the beach. The main causes of coastal erosion are anthropogenic.This paper focuses most intently on the geomorphological and sedimentological dynamic processes of the Bay which forming the current situation. For this reason a number of tasks took place in order to determine the level of disturbances of this dynamic equilibrium. This study included two phases of survey for two different periods (summer/winter). The first phase deals with the geomorphological and sedimentological coast characteristics, and includes: i) long-term geomorphological evolution of the coastal zone through the analysis of satellite images (Google Earth), in order to estimate the intensity of coastal erosion. ii) topographic sections at the surface of the coastal zone, through D-GPS (Spectra Precision SP80 GNSS Receiver), perpendicular to the coastline, iii) sediment sampling in the subaerial coastal area, iv) analytical recording and mapping of the summer and winter shorelines via the D-GPS, v) the situation of the potential feeders of the shore with materials, necessary for the formation of an alluvial beach, and vi) recording of land uses (Fig.1). The second phase, includes the geomorphological and sedimentological characteristics of the marine area, in particular: i) topographic sections of the bottom surface until the depth of 1.5 m, through D-GPS, perpendicular to the coastline ii)sediment sampling in the subaquatic marine area, iii) data of the numerical recomposition of the wind and wave conditions of the study area, iv) bathymetric eco-sonar data (Lowrance LCX-15MT), v) side-scan single beam eco-sounder (StarFish 450), to determine the seabed morphological features of the bay and, vi) substrate component mapping (Fig. 1). Laboratory analyzes were followed by the methods of dry granulometry, in order to categorize it, in different types on the basis of Folk & Ward (1957) method through GRATISTAT (v.8) software.

Many researchers have presented that ground penetrating radar (GPR) is a subsurface survey method indicated to acquire important preliminary information in various geological subsurface investigations, but also in archaeological and cultural heritage studies (Conyers, 2016). GPR stands out among the geophysical methods applied in archaeology, given the fact that it is a non-destructive practical field technique. GPR results can be presented as bi-dimensional profiles (2D) and three-dimension images (3D), in the form of block diagrams, fence-diagrams and volume/depth-slices. Especially the amplitude maps (e.g., depth-slices maps) allow the identification of areas with high or low amplitude of specific deep reflectors. Therefore, they can be used to identify buried targets and their dimensions, allowing the reconstruction of the subsurface in 3D (Porsani et al., 2010).

Many researchers have presented that ground penetrating radar (GPR) is a subsurface survey method indicated to acquire important preliminary information in various geological subsurface investigations, but also in archaeological and cultural heritage studies (Conyers, 2016). GPR stands out among the geophysical methods applied in archaeology, given the fact that it is a non-destructive practical field technique. GPR results can be presented as bi-dimensional profiles (2D) and three-dimension images (3D), in the form of block diagrams, fence-diagrams and volume/depth-slices. Especially the amplitude maps (e.g., depth-slices maps) allow the identification of areas with high or low amplitude of specific deep reflectors. Therefore, they can be used to identify buried targets and their dimensions, allowing the reconstruction of the subsurface in 3D (Porsani et al., 2010).

The disastrous phenomenon of aseismic ground fissures along the eastern Thessaly basin has deteriorated since 1989. The main reason for these fissures is the over-pumping, which leads to differential vertical compaction of the aquifer system and subsidence on the land surface. In this paper, we present the results of a combined geophysical survey applied in the area (VES and TEM soundings), in order to investigate the subsurface geological conditions. The geological regime of the area is comprised of the alpine basement, transgression formations and finally a package of post-alpine deposits with respectful thickness. A peudo-3D representation of resistivity maps for several depths of investigation was produced. Additionally, a dataset of deep boreholes was used for the calibration of the geophysical data. All the borehole and sounding interpreted data were grouped into three categories in order to produce the Lithology Model of the area. The alpine bedrock was adumbrated only at the southeast and central part of the basin, where we do not observe ground fissures. The absence of alpine bedrock for depths up to 300 meters, the thick and coarse-grained deposits and finally the over-pumping seem to contribute to the creation of the ground fissures.

The disastrous phenomenon of aseismic ground fissures along the eastern Thessaly basin has deteriorated since 1989. The main reason for these fissures is the over-pumping, which leads to differential vertical compaction of the aquifer system and subsidence on the land surface. In this paper, we present the results of a combined geophysical survey applied in the area (VES and TEM soundings), in order to investigate the subsurface geological conditions. The geological regime of the area is comprised of the alpine basement, transgression formations and finally a package of post-alpine deposits with respectful thickness. A peudo-3D representation of resistivity maps for several depths of investigation was produced. Additionally, a dataset of deep boreholes was used for the calibration of the geophysical data. All the borehole and sounding interpreted data were grouped into three categories in order to produce the Lithology Model of the area. The alpine bedrock was adumbrated only at the southeast and central part of the basin, where we do not observe ground fissures. The absence of alpine bedrock for depths up to 300 meters, the thick and coarse-grained deposits and finally the over-pumping seem to contribute to the creation of the ground fissures.

In June 2018 a geophysical campaign begun from the Department of Geology and Geoenvironment at the departmental excavation of Plasi Marathon. The geophysical survey focused on the northern part of the area, where the first excavation trenches of 2017 and 2018 revealed architectural remains of the late Classical and Hellenistic period. The main aim of the research was the investigation of the existence and spatial extent of the architectural remains in the unexcavated parts. Taking into consideration the revealed remains of the excavated parts and the geoenvironmental conditions of the area, the geoelectromagnetic method of Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) and the high resolution geoelectrical tomography (ERT) technique, were selected to be applied. Simultaneously, a topographic ‘reference base’ was established in the area in order to record the location of the geophysical measurements with real-time dGPS measurements. From the combinational evaluation of the processed geophysical data, we adumbrate the areas of possible archaeological ‘targets’, covered with post-alpine river deposits. Future excavation trenches at the indicated areas will confirm the existence or not of the covered architectural remains.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) affect more than 320 million people worldwide, which is more than HIV, tuberculosis (TB) and malaria combined. Elimination of HBV and HCV will, therefore, produce substantial public health and economic benefits and, most importantly, the prevention of 1.2 million deaths per year. In 2016, member states of the World Health Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution declaring that viral hepatitis should be eliminated by 2030. Currently, few countries have elimination programmes in place and even though the tools to achieve elimination are available, the right resources, commitments and allocations are lacking. During the fifth International Viral Hepatitis Elimination Meeting (IVHEM), 7-8 December 2018, Amsterdam, the Netherlands, an expert panel of clinicians, virologists and public health specialists discussed the current status of viral hepatitis elimination programmes across multiple countries, challenges in achieving elimination and the core indicators for monitoring progress, approaches that have failed and successful elimination plans.

Chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a global public health challenge on the same scale as tuberculosis, HIV, and malaria. The International Coalition to Eliminate HBV (ICE-HBV) is a coalition of experts dedicated to accelerating the discovery of a cure for chronic hepatitis B. Following extensive consultation with more than 50 scientists from across the globe, as well as key stakeholders including people affected by HBV, we have identified gaps in our current knowledge and new strategies and tools that are required to achieve HBV cure. We believe that research must focus on the discovery of interventional strategies that will permanently reduce the number of productively infected cells or permanently silence the covalently closed circular DNA in those cells, and that will stimulate HBV-specific host immune responses which mimic spontaneous resolution of HBV infection. There is also a pressing need for the establishment of repositories of standardised HBV reagents and protocols that can be accessed by all HBV researchers throughout the world. The HBV cure research agenda outlined in this position paper will contribute markedly to the goal of eliminating HBV infection worldwide.

Nonalcoholic beverages such as juices and juice beverages, soft drinks, energy drinks, milk, and soy beverages provide a variety of health benefits. Many of them contain water-soluble nutrients, which consist of great resources of antioxidants, minerals, and vitamins. The consumption of these products comprises a significant part of the daily diet as from freshly squeezed juice to processed fortified beverages. One of the most important nutrients of these beverages are vitamins either fat-soluble (A, D) or water-soluble (B-complex, C) that are essential for human life and for normal body function. Nowadays, the food industry is interested in nutritionally rich foods and beverages with vitamins in order to replace the losses during storage and processing or to enable a nutritional label claim on the product. At the same time, consumers choose fresh, fortified beverages enhancing their diet and their health. This chapter is an effort to classify the vitamins in fresh and processed nonalcoholic beverages and their nutritional importance. Several analytical methodologies for their determination in different food matrices (fruits, vegetables, and their products), mainly chromatographic methods, are presented. Because of their instability, it is necessary to focus on the extraction procedure that will not cause their degradation.

In these days, the agro-food economy is focused on the consumer demands regarding safety, quality, and security of food. Traceability of wine can be defined as a method through which anybody in the wine supply chain can be able to verify the origin and composition of wines and its conditions of storage. Traceability ensures the registration on specific documents of all manipulations of basic materials, ingredients, and final products. They are created to allow a rapid identification of the product history. The wine supply chain requires traceability from grape production to processing and wine distribution. Authenticity of wine has been extensively examined as wine is an easily adulterated product because it has high alcohol content and low pH and also is available worldwide. Responsible and continuous controls are required to maintain the quality of wine. Usually volatile compounds are used to characterize varieties, whereas minerals are used for geographical differentiation. Amino acids as well as phenolic compounds evaluation are used for both. The growth of advanced techniques for wines authentication is a challenge, which currently is given a special focus. Wine adulteration for both variety and origin has been very extensive. Therefore, apart from novel experimental techniques (gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, inductively coupled plasma MS, 13C nuclear magnetic resonance, Fourier transform infrared and DNA, and among others), it is also used as multivariate analysis comprising principal component analysis, discriminant analysis, canonical analysis, and cluster analysis.

Stage of lactation (SOL) is a major factor affecting several characteristics of milk such as fatty acids content and composition, protein and main minerals content. These variations may have important quantitative and qualitative consequences on the characteristics of cheese. The aim objective of this study was to analyse the effect of lactation stage on the fat and fatty acids composition of the artisanal camembert type-cheese made from cow’s milk collected in Mostaganem region (Algeria) and provided from three stages of lactation (early, mid and late). In this study and for each stage of lactation, the fat and fatty acid composition of camembert type-cheese were analysedand evaluated. Results showed that the total lipids were related to the stageof lactation (p<0.05), ranging from 14.6% for the 3rd SOL to 23% for the 1stSOL. The fatty acids composition of Camembert-type cheese showed a highpolyunsaturated fatty acids percentage dominated by ω6 and ω3 fatty acidsrepresented by linoleic and α-linolenic acids. Indeed, they recorded maximum values of 2.53% and 0.6% respectively, for the Camembert made withthe milk of the 1st SOL (p<0.05). Concerning monounsaturated fatty acidsclass, oleic acid is found to be the most important fatty acid with a maximumpercentage (26.1%) in Camembert of the 1st SOL (p<0.05). Finally, this studyconcluded that the stage of lactation plays a determining role on the biochemical composition of the camembert type-cheese, particularly on lipidsand essential fatty acids.

Mediterranean Temporary Ponds (MTPs) are shallow water bodies which are characterized from a short wet period and their small size (Zacharias et al., 2007). MTPs of Europe have are under an effective protection status, as a result of their identification as a priority habitat (Annex I code 3170*) in the EU Directive 92/43/EEC (Habitats' Directive). These ponds are very delicate ecosystems regarding their hydrological and geochemical characteristics. Due to their small size, they are open to random destruction or other unpredictable dangers. Although small in size, MTPs are complex ecosystems where topography, soil, water and hydrological conditions and microorganisms are closely connected (Zacharias et al., 2007; Stamatakis et al., 2015). The conservation and restoration of such ecosystems is very difficult because of their unique characteristics. The most common threats for MTPs include destruction of the hosting area through human and animal pressures, hydrological disturbance, fire and generally changes in ecological conditions resulting in an increase of competitive plants, nutrition influx, toxic contaminants and wastes, sedimentary deposit filling, exotic-invasive fauna and flora and negative effects from domesticated or hunted fauna (Dimitriou et al., 2006).

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype and subtype distribution differs according to geographic origin and transmission risk category. Previous molecular epidemiology studies suggest the presence of multiple subtypes among Cypriot subjects. To investigate HCV genotype- and subtype-specific dissemination patterns, origins, and transmission in Cyprus, we analyzed HCV sequences encoding partial Core-E1 and NS5B regions. Analyzed populations comprised the general population and high-risk cohorts in Cyprus and a globally sampled dataset. Maximum-likelihood phylogeny reconstruction with bootstrap evaluation, character reconstruction using parsimony, and bootstrap trees estimated by ML were performed to identify the geographic origin of HCV subtypes and statistically significant dispersal pathways among geographic regions. Phylogeographic analyses traced the origin of subtypes in the general population and among PWID in Cyprus to unique and overlapping globally distributed regions. Phylogenetic analysis in Core-E1 revealed that most sequences from incarcerated populations in Cyprus clustered with the general population and PWID. We estimate that HCV infections in Cyprus originate from multiple global sources while most HCV transmissions among incarcerated individuals occur locally. This analysis is one of a few studies tracing HCV dispersal patterns using global datasets, and these practices and findings should inform how HCV epidemics are targeted by future prevention policies.

BACKGROUND: Population movements have been increasing over the past years in Europe due to socioeconomic factors, global turbulence and conflicts, especially in the area of Middle East. The presence of migrant populations in Europe challenges health systems due to increased requirements for health care provision. However, to date there is limited published data on the burden of disease among this population (in Greece and elsewhere). Our objective was to record burden of disease of undocumented migrants hosted in a Detention Center and therefore generate data for migrant and public health planning. METHODS: Epidemiological data have been collected for 4756 male migrants hosted in a Detention Center from mid 2013 to mid 2015. Of them, 1427 have used health services in the Center, which maintained a detailed record of their medical history and tests. RESULTS: The majority of the study population was aged between 18 and 40 years old. Among those who used health services, most suffered from respiratory (45.6%) and digestive (30.1%) diseases. Injury, poisoning and other external causes accounted for 19.6% of service use, diseases of the skin and subcutaneous tissue for 18.7%, and factors affecting health status and contact with health services for 16.7%. Prevalence of communicable diseases was 15.9% amongst migrants randomly tested. CONCLUSION: Systematic screening and monitoring of diseases and use of health services by migrants in detention centers allows for an evidence based understanding of the burden of disease related to these populations and the investment required to effectively manage it, thus providing critical input to appropriate health planning. Surveillance for communicable diseases amongst migrants in detention centers would also allow for a true picture of the impact of their presence on public health indicators and help address related prejudices and stigma.

This study examines the conditional correlation and the resulting optimal hedge ratios between the Credit Default Swap (CDS) spreads of the U.S. metal and mining industries, and the prices of copper, platinum, silver and gold using the daily date from December 14, 2007 to August 18, 2018. It compares volatility and conditional correlation of the CDSs and the metal prices by employing multivariate GARCH family models which capture distinct characteristics of financial time series. It utilizes rolling window estimation techniques and constructs the one-step-ahead out-of-sample forecasts for the dynamic conditional correlations and thereafter the optimal hedge ratios. In general, our results show that copper provides the best possible hedge for dealing with the U.S. metals and mining industries’ credit risks. Our results are robust under alternate model specifications, choice of model refits and distributional assumptions.

People who inject drugs (PWID) comprise one of the major transmission risk groups for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV). In 2011, Athens experienced a large HIV outbreak among PWID. Significant public health interventions were implemented in response to the HIV outbreak. The aims of this study were to estimate the indirect effects of the HIV interventions on HCV infection and to evaluate the concept of the association between HCV and HIV infections in the case of Athens. A dynamic, stochastic, individual-based model was developed to simulate HCV transmission among PWID. We calibrated the model to reproduce the observed HCV prevalence among PWID in Greece. Two years prior to the HIV outbreak, an undetected HCV outbreak has occurred. In 2009, the incidence of HCV infection increased from 640 (495, 842) cases in 2008 to 1260 (1060, 1500). The mean time from initiation of injecting drug use to HCV acquisition decreased from 29 months in 2008 to 13 months in 2009. After HIV interventions, HCV incidence declined by 64.8% in 2012, compared to 2009. The averted HCV incidence cases attributed to the HIV-implemented interventions were 2200 (1950, 2480), during 2012-2015. The cumulative number incident HCV cases in Athens during 2002-2015 was about 9900 (7800, 12 100). Our results highlight that before the 2011 HIV outbreak in Athens, an HCV outbreak occurred in 2009. Prevention measures for HIV that took place in the Athens metropolitan area in 2012 reduced significantly the incidence of HCV.

People who inject drugs (PWID) comprise one of the major transmission risk groups for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV). In 2011, Athens experienced a large HIV outbreak among PWID. Significant public health interventions were implemented in response to the HIV outbreak. The aims of this study were to estimate the indirect effects of the HIV interventions on HCV infection and to evaluate the concept of the association between HCV and HIV infections in the case of Athens. A dynamic, stochastic, individual-based model was developed to simulate HCV transmission among PWID. We calibrated the model to reproduce the observed HCV prevalence among PWID in Greece. Two years prior to the HIV outbreak, an undetected HCV outbreak has occurred. In 2009, the incidence of HCV infection increased from 640 (495, 842) cases in 2008 to 1260 (1060, 1500). The mean time from initiation of injecting drug use to HCV acquisition decreased from 29 months in 2008 to 13 months in 2009. After HIV interventions, HCV incidence declined by 64.8% in 2012, compared to 2009. The averted HCV incidence cases attributed to the HIV-implemented interventions were 2200 (1950, 2480), during 2012-2015. The cumulative number incident HCV cases in Athens during 2002-2015 was about 9900 (7800, 12 100). Our results highlight that before the 2011 HIV outbreak in Athens, an HCV outbreak occurred in 2009. Prevention measures for HIV that took place in the Athens metropolitan area in 2012 reduced significantly the incidence of HCV.

Data availability is severely limited in high-altitude regions (Shea et al., 2015) mainly due to the remoteness and difficulty in accessing the sites. However, high mountain ecosystems are among the most sensitive environments to changes in climatic conditions occurring on global, regional and local scales (Ruiz et al., 2008). Due to significant warming observed globally during the recent century, the international scientific community has focused more attention to understand the cause and effect interaction on the ecosystems and their individual components to climate changes (Borgaonkar et al., 2011). In many mountain regions of the world, high altitudes appear to experience a stronger warming than the surrounding lowlands (Vuille, 2011) and that the warming is more closely related to an increase in daily minimum temperature than a change in the daily maximum (Diaz and Bradley, 1997; Beniston, 2006; Giambelluca et al., 2008). The main objective of this study is to evaluate the variability of meteorological parameters measured by two high altitude meteorological stations (OITI and KALLIDROMO) that have never been analyzed before, located in two mountainous Natura 2000 sites of Central Greece, in the Region of Sterea Ellada (Figure 1). The stations were settled in the framework of the Project: Conservation of priority forests and forest openings in "Ethnikos Drymos Oitis" and "Oros Kallidromo" of Sterea Ellada. The data sets recorded in the meteorological stations cover the periods 2014-2018.

Optomagnonic cavities have recently been emerging as promising candidates for implementing coherent photon-magnon interactions, for applications in quantum memories and devices, and next generation quantum networks. A key challenge in the design of such cavities is the attainment of high magnon-mediated optical-to-optical conversion efficiencies, which could, e.g., be exploited for efficient optical interfacing of superconducting qubits, as well as the practicality of the final designs, which ideally should be planar and amenable to on-chip integration. Here, on the basis of a novel time-Floquet scattering-matrix approach, we report on the design and optimization of a planar, multilayer optomagnonic cavity, incorporating a cerium-substituted yttrium iron garnet thin film, magnetized in-plane, and operating in the triple-resonant inelastic light scattering regime. This architecture allows for magnon-mediated optical-to-optical conversion efficiencies of about 5% under realistic conditions, which is orders of magnitude higher than that attained in alternative optomagnonic designs. Our results suggest a viable way forward for realizing practical information inter-conversion, with high efficiencies, between microwaves, strongly coupled to magnons, and optical photons, as well as a platform for fundamental studies of classical and quantum dynamics in magnetic solids and for the implementation of futuristic quantum devices.

Motivated by the observation of a > 290 TeV muon neutrino by IceCube, coincident with a 6 month-long γ-ray flare of the blazar TXS 0506+056, and an archival search which revealed 13 ± 5 further, lower-energy neutrinos in the direction of the source in 2014-2015 we discuss the likely contribution of blazars to the diffuse high-energy neutrino intensity, the implications for neutrino emission from TXS 0506+056 based on multi-wavelength observations of the source, and a multi-zone model that allows for sufficient neutrino emission so as to reconcile the multi-wavelength cascade constraints with the neutrino emission seen by IceCube in the direction of TXS 0506+056.

We discuss the scientific potentials of gamma-ray polarimetry including the theoretical implications, and observational technology advances being made. We explore the primary scientific opportunities and wealth of information expected from synergy of multi-wavelength polarimetry that will be brought to multi-messenger astronomy.

Young rifts are shaped by combined tectonic and surface processes and climate, yet few records exist to evaluate the interplay of these processes over an extended period of early rift-basin development. Here, we present the longest and highest resolution record of sediment flux and paleoenvironmental changes when a young rift connects to the global oceans. New results from International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 381 in the Corinth Rift show 10s–100s of kyr cyclic variations in basin paleoenvironment as eustatic sea level fluctuated with respect to sills bounding this semi-isolated basin, and reveal substantial corresponding changes in the volume and character of sediment delivered into the rift. During interglacials, when the basin was marine, sedimentation rates were lower (excepting the Holocene), and bioturbation and organic carbon concentration higher. During glacials, the basin was isolated from the ocean, and sedimentation rates were higher (~2–7 times those in interglacials). We infer that reduced vegetation cover during glacials drove higher sediment flux from the rift flanks. These orbital-timescale changes in rate and type of basin infill will likely influence early rift sedimentary and faulting processes, potentially including syn-rift stratigraphy, sediment burial rates, and organic carbon flux and preservation on deep continental margins worldwide.

BACKGROUND: Knowledge of HIV-1 molecular transmission clusters (MTCs) is important, especially in large-scale datasets, for designing prevention programmes and public health intervention strategies. We used a large-scale HIV-1 sequence dataset from nine European HIV cohorts and one Canadian, to identify MTCs and investigate factors associated with the probability of belonging to MTCs. METHODS: To identify MTCs, we applied maximum likelihood inferences on partial pol sequences from 8955 HIV-positive individuals linked to demographic and clinical data. MTCs were defined using two different criteria: clusters with bootstrap support >75% (phylogenetic confidence criterion) and clusters consisting of sequences from a specific region at a proportion of >75% (geographic criterion) compared to the total number of sequences within the network. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to assess factors associated with MTC clustering. RESULTS: Although 3700 (41%) sequences belonged to MTCs, proportions differed substantially by country and subtype, ranging from 7% among UK subtype C sequences to 63% among German subtype B sequences. The probability of belonging to an MTC was independently less likely for women than men (OR = 0.66; P < 0.001), older individuals (OR = 0.79 per 10-year increase in age; P < 0.001) and people of non-white ethnicity (OR = 0.44; P < 0.001 and OR = 0.70; P = 0.002 for black and 'other' versus white, respectively). It was also more likely among men who have sex with men (MSM) than other risk groups (OR = 0.62; P < 0.001 and OR = 0.69; P = 0.002 for people who inject drugs, and sex between men and women, respectively), subtype B (ORs 0.36-0.70 for A, C, CRF01 and CRF02 versus B; all P < 0.05), having a well-estimated date of seroconversion (OR = 1.44; P < 0.001), a later calendar year of sampling (ORs 2.01-2.61 for all post-2002 periods versus pre-2002; all P < 0.01), and being naïve to antiretroviral therapy at sampling (OR = 1.19; P = 0.010). CONCLUSIONS: A high proportion (>40%) of individuals belonged to MTCs. Notably, the HIV epidemic dispersal appears to be driven by subtype B viruses spread within MSM networks. Expansion of regional epidemics seems mainly associated with recent MTCs, rather than the growth of older, established ones. This information is important for designing prevention and public health intervention strategies.

In this paper, we focus on the southeastern coastal zone of the island of Samos (east-central Aegean Sea), in order to reconstruct the evolution of coastal landscapes and the relative sea-level changes during the late Holocene. We use geomorphological mapping, sedimentological and palaeontological proxies of late Holocene coastal deposits from two lagoon environments. We further compare our results with previously published sea-level data and we show that the southeastern part of Samos was characterized by a subsidence trend at least during the late Holocene, with RSL rise rates of ∼0.8 mm/yr. Our study additionally highlights that local-scale tectonics is responsible for the evolution of the coastal zone of Samos.

We present the discovery of HD 221416 b, the first transiting planet identified by the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) for which asteroseismology of the host star is possible. HD 221416 b (HIP 116158, TOI-197) is a bright (V = 8.2 mag), spectroscopically classified subgiant that oscillates with an average frequency of about 430 μHz and displays a clear signature of mixed modes. The oscillation amplitude confirms that the redder TESS bandpass compared to Kepler has a small effect on the oscillations, supporting the expected yield of thousands of solar-like oscillators with TESS 2 minute cadence observations. Asteroseismic modeling yields a robust determination of the host star radius (R ⋆ = 2.943 ± 0.064 R ⊙), mass (M ⋆ = 1.212 ± 0.074 M ⊙), and age (4.9 ± 1.1 Gyr), and demonstrates that it has just started ascending the red-giant branch. Combining asteroseismology with transit modeling and radial-velocity observations, we show that the planet is a “hot Saturn” (R p = 9.17 ± 0.33 R ⊕) with an orbital period of ∼14.3 days, irradiance of F = 343 ± 24 F ⊕, and moderate mass (M p = 60.5 ± 5.7 M ⊕) and density (ρ p = 0.431 ± 0.062 g cm-3). The properties of HD 221416 b show that the host-star metallicity-planet mass correlation found in sub-Saturns (4-8 R ⊕) does not extend to larger radii, indicating that planets in the transition between sub-Saturns and Jupiters follow a relatively narrow range of densities. With a density measured to ∼15%, HD 221416 b is one of the best characterized Saturn-size planets to date, augmenting the small number of known transiting planets around evolved stars and demonstrating the power of TESS to characterize exoplanets and their host stars using asteroseismology.

Students’ knowledge about the criteria for an upcoming test is a crucial component of assessment quality. Grounded in self-determination theory, we investigated whether knowledge about the criteria for an upcoming test related to students’ situational motivation and experienced anxiety during physical education (PE). We also examined whether these relations were: (a) mediated by need-based experiences; and (b) moderated by teachers’ motivating style. Participants were 659 students (55.54% boys, 44.46% girls, mean age 14.72 years, standard deviation = 0.94) out of 40 classes from 32 schools taught by 39 different PE teachers. Analyses through multilevel structural equation modeling showed that students with more knowledge about the criteria for an upcoming test valued and enjoyed the lesson more (i.e. autonomous motivation), and felt less aloof (i.e. amotivation). Relations between knowledge about the criteria and students’ situational motivation were mediated by experienced need satisfaction. Specifically, students who had more knowledge about the criteria for an upcoming test felt more in charge of their learning process (i.e. autonomy satisfaction), felt more effective in reaching their goals (i.e. competence satisfaction) and felt more connected to the teacher (i.e. relatedness satisfaction). Although relations between knowledge about the criteria and students’ motivation were not moderated by teachers’ motivating style, teachers’ motivating style displayed independent relations with students’ motivation. Implications for assessment quality and students’ motivation in PE are discussed.

OBJECTIVES: Human papillomavirus-related oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (HPV+ OPSCC) is increasing in incidence. Although HPV+ OPSCC has favorable prognosis, 10 to 25% of HPV+ OPSCCs eventually recur. We sought to evaluate the feasibility of detection of HPV16 E6/E7 expression in Circulating Tumor Cells (CTCs) and its utility as a prognostic tool in HPV16-associated OPSCC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We developed a highly sensitive RT-qPCR assay for HPV mRNA expression in EpCAM(+) CTCs. In 22 patients with early stage and locally advanced OPSCC we evaluated HPV16 E6/E7 expression in the EpCAM(+) CTC fraction at baseline and at the end of concurrent chemoradiotherapy. HPV status in pre-therapy formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tumor biopsies was assessed by p16 immunohistochemistry and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and double positives were subjected to Real-time qPCR assay for detection of HPV16, 18 and 31 types. RESULTS: Fourteen of 22 OPSCC (63.6%) were HPV DNA+/p16+. Among HPV+/p16+ patients, 10 patients (71.4%) were HPV16 DNA+. HPV16 E6/E7(+) CTCs were detected in 3 of 10 patients (30%) at baseline and 4 of 9 patients (44.4%) at the end-of-treatment, all of which were p16+/HPV16 DNA+. Survival analysis showed a significantly higher risk for disease relapse (p = 0.001) and death (p = 0.005) in patients with HPV16 E6/E7(+) baseline CTCs. CONCLUSION: Detection of HPV E6/E7(+) CTCs might be a useful noninvasive test in liquid biopsy samples for determination of a clinically relevant HPV infection in HPV+ OPSCC. Combined interpretation of HPV E6/E7(+) CTCs with UICC staging data may lead to alteration of risk definition of patient subsets, with improved risk discrimination in early-stage disease.

OBJECTIVES: Human papillomavirus-related oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (HPV+ OPSCC) is increasing in incidence. Although HPV+ OPSCC has favorable prognosis, 10 to 25% of HPV+ OPSCCs eventually recur. We sought to evaluate the feasibility of detection of HPV16 E6/E7 expression in Circulating Tumor Cells (CTCs) and its utility as a prognostic tool in HPV16-associated OPSCC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We developed a highly sensitive RT-qPCR assay for HPV mRNA expression in EpCAM(+) CTCs. In 22 patients with early stage and locally advanced OPSCC we evaluated HPV16 E6/E7 expression in the EpCAM(+) CTC fraction at baseline and at the end of concurrent chemoradiotherapy. HPV status in pre-therapy formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tumor biopsies was assessed by p16 immunohistochemistry and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and double positives were subjected to Real-time qPCR assay for detection of HPV16, 18 and 31 types. RESULTS: Fourteen of 22 OPSCC (63.6%) were HPV DNA+/p16+. Among HPV+/p16+ patients, 10 patients (71.4%) were HPV16 DNA+. HPV16 E6/E7(+) CTCs were detected in 3 of 10 patients (30%) at baseline and 4 of 9 patients (44.4%) at the end-of-treatment, all of which were p16+/HPV16 DNA+. Survival analysis showed a significantly higher risk for disease relapse (p = 0.001) and death (p = 0.005) in patients with HPV16 E6/E7(+) baseline CTCs. CONCLUSION: Detection of HPV E6/E7(+) CTCs might be a useful noninvasive test in liquid biopsy samples for determination of a clinically relevant HPV infection in HPV+ OPSCC. Combined interpretation of HPV E6/E7(+) CTCs with UICC staging data may lead to alteration of risk definition of patient subsets, with improved risk discrimination in early-stage disease

Studies of the massive star population in galaxies beyond the Local Group are the key to understanding the link between their numbers and modes of star formation in different environments. We present the analysis of the massive star population of the galaxies NGC 1326A, NGC 1425, and NGC 4548 using archival images obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 in the F555W and F814W filters. Through high-precision point spread function fitting photometry for all sources in the three fields, we identified 7640 candidate blue supergiants, 2314 candidate yellow supergiants, and 4270 candidate red supergiants. We provide an estimate of the ratio of blue to red supergiants for each field as a function of galactocentric radius. Using Modules for Experiments in Stellar Astrophysics (MESA) at solar metallicity, we defined the luminosity function and estimated the star formation history of each galaxy. We carried out a variability search in the V and I filters using three variability indexes: the median absolute deviation, the interquartile range, and the inverse von Neumann ratio. This analysis yielded 243 new variable candidates with absolute magnitudes ranging from MV = -4 to -10 mag. We classified the variable stars based on their absolute magnitude and their position on the color-magnitude diagram using the MESA evolutionary tracks at solar metallicity. Our analysis yielded 8 candidate variable blue supergiants, 12 candidate variable yellow supergiants, 21 candidate variable red supergiants, and 4 candidate periodic variables. Full Tables 1, 2, 3, and Tables 6-10 are only available at the CDS via anonymous ftp to http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (ftp://130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/qcat?J/A+A/629/A3

The Hubble Source Catalog (HSC) combines lists of sources detected on images obtained with the WFPC2, ACS and WFC3 instruments aboard the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and now available in the Hubble Legacy Archive. The catalogue contains time-domain information for about two million of its sources detected using the same instrument and filter on at least five HST visits. The Hubble Catalog of Variables (HCV) aims to identify HSC sources showing significant brightness variations. A magnitude-dependent threshold in the median absolute deviation of photometric measurements (an outlier-resistant measure of light-curve scatter) is adopted as the variability detection statistic. It is supplemented with a cut in χred2 that removes sources with large photometric errors. A pre-processing procedure involving bad image identification, outlier rejection and computation of local magnitude zero-point corrections is applied to the HSC light-curves before computing the variability detection statistics. About 52 000 HSC sources have been identified as candidate variables, among which 7,800 show variability in more than one filter. Visual inspection suggests that ~70% of the candidates detected in multiple filters are true variables, while the remaining ~30% are sources with aperture photometry corrupted by blending, imaging artefacts or image processing anomalies. The candidate variables have AB magnitudes in the range 15-27m, with a median of 22m. Among them are the stars in our own and nearby galaxies, and active galactic nuclei.

Aims: Over its lifetime and despite not being a survey telescope, the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) has obtained multi-epoch observations by multiple, diverse observing programs, providing the opportunity for a comprehensive variability search aiming to uncover new variables. We have therefore undertaken the task of creating a catalog of variable sources based on archival HST photometry. In particular, we have used version 3 of the Hubble Source Catalog (HSC), which relies on publicly available images obtained with the WFPC2, ACS, and WFC3 instruments onboard the HST. Methods: We adopted magnitude-dependent thresholding in median absolute deviation (a robust measure of light curve scatter) combined with sophisticated preprocessing techniques and visual quality control to identify and validate variable sources observed by Hubble with the same instrument and filter combination five or more times. Results: The Hubble Catalog of Variables (HCV) includes 84 428 candidate variable sources (out of 3.7 million HSC sources that were searched for variability) with V ≤ 27 mag; for 11 115 of them the variability is detected in more than one filter. The data points in the light curves of the variables in the HCV catalog range from five to 120 points (typically having less than ten points); the time baseline ranges from under a day to over 15 years; while ˜8% of all variables have amplitudes in excess of 1 mag. Visual inspection performed on a subset of the candidate variables suggests that at least 80% of the candidate variables that passed our automated quality control are true variable sources rather than spurious detections resulting from blending, residual cosmic rays, and calibration errors. Conclusion. The HCV is the first, homogeneous catalog of variable sources created from the highly diverse, archival HST data and currently is the deepest catalog of variables available. The catalog includes variable stars in our Galaxy and nearby galaxies, as well as transients and variable active galactic nuclei. We expect that the catalog will be a valuable resource for the community. Possible uses include searches for new variable objects of a particular type for population analysis, detection of unique objects worthy of follow-up studies, identification of sources observed at other wavelengths, and photometric characterization of candidate progenitors of supernovae and other transients in nearby galaxies. The catalog is available to the community from the ESA Hubble Science Archive (eHST) at the European Space Astronomy Centre (ESAC) and the Mikulski Archive for Space Telescopes (MAST) at Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI). Full Tables B.2 and B.3 are only available at the CDS via anonymous ftp to http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (ftp://130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/cat/J/A+A/630/A92

Identifying and linking people to care soon after HIV infection could limit viral transmission and protect their health. This work aims at describing the continuum of care among recently HIV-infected people who inject drugs (PWID) and participated in an intervention in the context of an HIV outbreak in Athens, Greece. The Transmission Reduction Intervention Project (TRIP) conducted risk network-based contact tracing and screened people for recent HIV infection. A comprehensive approach with a case management component that aimed to remove barriers to accessing care was adopted. Follow-up data on antiretroviral treatment (ART) and HIV-RNA levels were obtained from HIV clinics. TRIP enrolled 45 recently HIV-infected PWID (80% male) with a median viral load at recruitment of 5.43 log(10) copies/mL. Of the recently infected persons in TRIP, 87% were linked to care; of these, 77% started ART; and of those on ART, 89% achieved viral load <200 copies/mL. TRIP and its public health allies managed to get most of the recently HIV-infected PWID who were identified by the program into care and many of them onto ART. This resulted in very low HIV-RNA levels. Treatment as prevention can work if individuals are aided in overcoming difficulties in entry to, or attrition from care.

For several years, Greece has set as a priority the strengthening of maritime tourism, such as the tourism of yachts for which tourist marinas have been created. The most important marinas of the country include the “Glyfada Marina”, whose works began on the coastal front after 1960, thus changing the area’s shape and planning. The main objective of the present work is to investigate the improvement measures and prospects for the development of the “Glyfada Marina” consisting of four basins, being one of the most beautiful and developed marinas in the country since it is an important attraction for tourist yachts.

For several years, Greece has set as a priority the strengthening of maritime tourism, such as the tourism of yachts for which tourist marinas have been created. The most important marinas of the country include the “Glyfada Marina”, whose works began on the coastal front after 1960, thus changing the area’s shape and planning. The main objective of the present work is to investigate the improvement measures and prospects for the development of the “Glyfada Marina” consisting of four basins, being one of the most beautiful and developed marinas in the country since it is an important attraction for tourist yachts. For this reason, on-site visits to the port area were carried out, both on the sea and on the coastal part of the coastal zone, in order to record the current situation, so as to reach as accurately as possible the characteristics and the range of the internal port works and facilities of the aforementioned tourist port. Furthermore, any deficiencies or failures that need improvement are presented, labeled and classified in order to continue unhindered activities in the marina area. Finally, improvement and upgrading measures are proposed that can contribute positively to the tourist and economic development of the port and the municipality of Glyfada in general. 

Expedition 381 scientists Donna J. Shillington Co-Chief Scientist Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory Columbia University USA Lisa C. McNeill Co-Chief Scientist Ocean and Earth Science University of Southampton National Oceanography Centre Southampton UK Gareth D.O. CarterExpedition Project Manager British Geological Survey The Lyell Centre UKJeremy (Jez) Everest Expedition Project Manager British Geological Survey The Lyell Centre UKErwan Le BerPetrophysics Staff Scientist School of Geography, Geology and the Environment University of Leicester UK Richard Collier Sedimentologist Basin Structure Group School of Earth and Environment University of Leeds UK Aleksandra Cvetkoska Micropaleontologist (diatoms) Department of Animal Ecology and Systematics Justus Liebig University Germany Gino De Gelder Structural Geologist Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris Sorbonne Paris Cité Université Paris Diderot France Paula Diz FerreiroMicropaleontologist (foraminifers) Departamento Geociencias Marinas y Ordenación del Territorio Facultad de Ciencias del Mar Universidad de Vigo Spain Mai-Linh Doan Petrophysicist (physical properties) Université Grenoble Alpes Université Savoie Mont Blanc CNRS, IRD, IFSTTAR, and ISTerre France Mary Ford Structural Geologist/Sedimentologist CRPG UMR 7358 France Also at Université de Lorraine ENSG INP France Robert GawthorpeSedimentologist Department of Earth Science University of Bergen Norway Maria Geraga Micropaleontologist (foraminifers) Department of Geology University of Patras Greece Jack Gillespie Structural Geologist/Sedimentologist Center for Tectonics, Resources, and Exploration (TRaX) Department of Earth Sciences School of Physical Sciences University of Adelaide AustraliaRomain Hemelsdaël Sedimentologist Géosciences Montpellier Université de Montpellier France Emilio Herrero-Bervera Paleomagnetist University of Hawaii at Manoa Hawaii Institute of Geophysics and Planetology USAMohammad Ismaiel Petrophysicist (physical properties) University Centre for Earth and Space Sciences University of Hyderabad India Liliane Janikian Sedimentologist Departamento de Ciências do Mar Universidade Federal de São Paulo BrazilKaterina Kouli Micropaleontologist (palynology) Department of Geology and Geoenvironment National and Kapodistrian University of Athens Greece Shunli Li Sedimentologist School of Energy Resources China University of Geosciences (Beijing) China Malka Leah Machlus Petrophysicist (physical properties) Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory Columbia University USA Also at Department of Physical Sciences Kingsborough Community College City University of New York USA Marco MaffionePaleomagnetist School of Geography Earth and Environmental Sciences University of Birmingham UK Carol Mahoney Inorganic Geochemist School of Earth and Environment The University of Leeds UK Georgios Michas Petrophysicist (physical properties) Laboratory of Geophysics and Seismology Technological Educational Institute of Crete Greece Clint Miller Inorganic Geochemist Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences Rice University USA Casey Nixon Structural Geologist Department of Earth Science University of Bergen NorwaySabire Asli Oflaz Micropaleontologist (foraminifers) Graduate School “Human Development in Landscapes” Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel Germany Abah Philip Omale Petrophysicist (physical properties) Department of Geology and Geophysics Louisiana State University USAKostas Panagiotopoulos Micropaleontologist (palynology) Institute of Geology and Mineralogy University of Cologne Germany Sofia Pechlivanidou Sedimentologist Department of Earth Science University of Bergen Norway Marcie Phillips Micropaleontologist (nannofossils/diatoms) Institute for Geophysics University of Texas at Austin USA Simone Sauer Inorganic Geochemist Ifremer Department of Marine Geosciences Centre Bretagne France Joana Seguin Organic Geochemist Institute for Ecosystem Research Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel GermanySpyros Sergiou Sedimentologist Laboratory of Marine Geology and Physical Oceanography Department of Geology University of Patras Greece Natalia Zakharova Core-Log-Seismic Integration Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences Central Michigan University USA

Taking as a point of departure Lord Byron’s reflections on the meaning of the ruined Parthenon, this essay traverses the long legacy of ruin-thinking in the Anglo-American imagination, and argues for its relevance to the present day. Referencing earlier and recent strands in the rich scholarship on the trope of the ruin, the authors contextualize the essays of the volume; particular emphasis is laid on the volume’s especial focus on the ruin as metaphor and as a historical materiality, as these are probed in individual chapters that discuss ruin and ruination across British and American literature, continental theory and philosophy.

Introduction to vol. 23/1  NARRATIVES OF RELIGIOUS CONVERSION FROM THE ENLIGHTENMENT TO THE PRESENT, ed. by L. Kostova nad E. Mitsi

Inverse Compton-pair cascades are initiated when gamma-rays are absorbed on an ambient soft photon field to produce relativistic pairs, which in turn up-scatter the same soft photons to produce more gamma-rays. If the Compton scatterings take place in the deep Klein-Nishina regime, then triplet pair production (e{γ }b\to {{ee}}+{e}-) becomes relevant and may even regulate the development of the cascade. We investigate the properties of pair-Compton cascades with triplet pair production in accelerating gaps, i.e., regions with an unscreened electric field. Using the method of transport equations for the particle evolution, we compute the growth rate of the pair cascade as a function of the accelerating electric field in the presence of blackbody and power-law ambient photon fields. Informed by the numerical results, we derive simple analytical expressions for the peak growth rate and the corresponding electric field. We show that for certain parameters, which can be realized in the vicinity of accreting supermassive black holes at the centers of active galactic nuclei, the pair cascade may well be regulated by inverse Compton scattering in the deep Klein-Nishina regime and triplet pair production. We present indicative examples of the escaping gamma-ray radiation from the gap, and discuss our results in application to the TeV observations of radio galaxy M87.

Inverse Compton-pair cascades are initiated when gamma-rays are absorbed on an ambient soft photon field to produce relativistic pairs, which in turn up-scatter the same soft photons to produce more gamma-rays. If the Compton scatterings take place in the deep Klein-Nishina regime, then triplet pair production (e{γ }b\to {{ee}}+{e}-) becomes relevant and may even regulate the development of the cascade. We investigate the properties of pair-Compton cascades with triplet pair production in accelerating gaps, i.e., regions with an unscreened electric field. Using the method of transport equations for the particle evolution, we compute the growth rate of the pair cascade as a function of the accelerating electric field in the presence of blackbody and power-law ambient photon fields. Informed by the numerical results, we derive simple analytical expressions for the peak growth rate and the corresponding electric field. We show that for certain parameters, which can be realized in the vicinity of accreting supermassive black holes at the centers of active galactic nuclei, the pair cascade may well be regulated by inverse Compton scattering in the deep Klein-Nishina regime and triplet pair production. We present indicative examples of the escaping gamma-ray radiation from the gap, and discuss our results in application to the TeV observations of radio galaxy M87.

“Jazz mapping" is a multi-layered analytical approach to jazz improvisation. It is based on hierarchical segmentation and categorization of segments, or constituents, according to their function in the overall improvisation. The approach aims at identifying higher-level semantics oftranscribed and recorded jazz solos. At these initial stages, analytical decisions are rather exploratory and rely on the input of one of the authors and experienced jazz performer. We apply the method to two well-known solos, by Sonny Rollins and Charlie Parker, and discuss how improvisations resemble story-telling, employing a broad range of structural, expressive and technical tools, usually associated with linguistic production, experience, and meaning. We elucidate the implicit choices of experienced jazz improvisers, who have developed a strong command over the language and can communicate expressive intent, elicit emotional responses, and unfoldmusical “stories” that are memorable and enjoyable tofellow musicians and listeners. We also comment on potentialartificial intelligence applications of this work to music research and performance.

On July 20, 2017 22:31 UTC, a strong Mwþinspace}=þinspace}6.6 earthquake occurred at shallow depth between Kos Island (Greece) and Bodrum (Turkey). We derive a co-seismic fault model from joint inversion of geodetic data (GNSS and InSAR) assuming that the earthquake can be modelled by the slip of a rectangular fault buried in an elastic and homogeneous half-space. The GNSS observations constrain well most of the model parameters but do not permit to discriminate between south- and north-dipping planes. However, the interferograms, produced from C-band ESA Sentinel 1 data, give a clear preference to the north-dipping plane. We also map surface motion away from the satellite along the Turkish coast (from Bodrum towards the east) which reached about 17 cm onshore islet Karaada. The best-fit model is obtained with a 37° north-dipping, N283°E striking normal fault, in agreement with the published moment tensor solutions. The resolved slip vector is dominantly normal with a slight component of left-lateral motion (15°). The surface projection of the seismic fault outcrops in the Gökova ridge area, a well-developed bathymetric feature inside the western Gulf of Gökova. Our geodetic model fits the pattern of the shallow, north-dipping aftershocks obtained from rigorous relocation of all available recordings in the region (about 1120 events; relocated mainshock is at 36.955°N, 27.448°E; depth at 9.2 kmþinspace}±þinspace}0.5 km). The relocated aftershocks also indicate clustering at both ends of the rupture and seismicity triggering mainly towards the east and the north, within 2 weeks following the mainshock. We also analysed regional GPS data (interseismic velocities) and obtained an extension rate of 3.2 mm/yr across the Gökova rift, along a direction N165°E.

The objective of this study is to analyze the kinetic and kinematic changes of the osteoarthritic knee after a mobile bearing total knee arthroplasty. Kinematic and kinetic gait analysis of level walking was performed in 15 patients (eight female and seven male) with knee ostoarthritis. All patients were free of any neurological diseases that could affect their normal gait. Mean age was 68.6 ± 5.2 years, mean height 159.8 ± 6.9 cm, and mean weight was 78.5 ± 10.1 kg. Full body gait analysis was performed using the BioKin three-dimensional (3D) motion analysis system preoperatively and 9 months after total knee arthroplasty. A single-step ascending kinetic analysis and a plantar pressure distribution analysis were also performed in all patients. An increased average cadence (mean 99.39 step/min preoperatively and 104.64 step/min postoperatively;  = 0.152), step length (0.44 m preoperatively and 0.52 m postoperatively;  < 0.001), stride length (0.89 m preoperatively and 1.0 m postoperatively;  < 0.007), and walking velocity (0.73 m/sec preoperatively and 0.90 m/sec postoperatively;  = 0.005) were noted postoperatively and postoperatively. A decrease in the stance duration percentage and the knee adduction moment was also reported postoperatively. All patients showed a significant improvement of knee kinetics and kinematics after a mobile bearing total knee arthroplasty. Statistically significant differences were found in the step length, stride length, and walk velocity postoperatively. The knee adduction moment was also significantly reduced. Further research is warranted to determine the clinical relevance of these findings. This study is a prospective comparative one and reflects level II evidence.

© 2019, The International Urogynecological Association. Introduction and hypothesis: Fractional CO2 and vaginal erbium lasers have emerged as potential treatment options for genitourinary syndrome of menopause (GSM) in breast cancer (BC) survivors. Methods: We conducted a systematic review of the literature to ascertain whether available evidence supports the efficacy and safety of laser treatment for GSM in BC patients. MEDLINE, Scopus and Cochrane Library databases were systematically searched from inception until March 2019 for studies on laser treatment for GSM in BC patients. Results: We yielded six observational studies meeting the inclusion criteria. The studies were of moderate quality. Taken together, the studies suggest that laser treatment may significantly alleviate or resolve the GSM-related symptoms and improve sexual function. Furthermore, a significant increase of the vaginal health index was reported. Positive effect was maintained up to 12 months. The safety and tolerability profile is encouraging, given that no adverse effects were reported, while only few patients discontinued laser treatment, owing to reported discomfort. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that lasers appear to be effective and practical treatment options in BC survivors suffering from GSM. Evidence concerning long-term effects is lacking. The rationale for repeated treatment remains uncertain. Randomized controlled trials that collate different frequencies, intensities and durations are warranted to ascertain a dose-response relationship and adherence.

Different types of sea-level markers have been used in the Eastern Mediterranean in order to assess Late Quaternary coastal evolution and relative sea-level (RSL) changes. RSL reconstructions are useful for various researches, ranging from the investigation of crustal movements to the calibration of earth rheology models and ice sheet reconstructions. GIA models have often been employed to identify stableand unstable areas and deduce tectonic rates through comparisons with observational data. It is generally assumed that most Cycladic islands (Aegean Sea, Greece) are affected by a gradual subsidence, ascribed to the thinning of the local earth crust and to isostatic processes that accompanied the post-glacial rise in sea level. The absence of morphological coastal features indicative of uplift, such as marine terraces or benches, elevated beachrocks, marine notches, or raised Quaternary coastal deposits, are often interpreted as an absence of local uplift.Although Paros Island presents great interest in terms of geoarchaeology, the evolution of its shoreline and RSL changes have not been studied in detail. The Island lies in the center of the Aegean Sea, in central Cyclades. In order to elucidate the RSL changes in the area and place an improved chronological constrain for the Late Holocene, we present new RSL index points, derived from sediment cores fromParos Island in combination with published geomorphological and sedimentological data from Paros and Naxos Island. Our results are further compared with sea-level predictions from two different GIA models in an attempt to better quantify the tectonic regime of the wider study area.

A fully dynamic theoretical approach to layered optomagnonic structures, based on a time Floquet scattering-matrix method, is developed. Its applicability is demonstrated on a simple design of a dual photonic-magnonic cavity, formed by sandwiching a magnetic garnet thin film between two dielectric Bragg mirrors, subject to continuous excitation of a perpendicular standing spin wave. Some remarkable phenomena, including nonlinear photon-magnon interaction effects and enhanced inelastic light scattering in the strong-coupling regime, fulfilling a triple-resonance condition, are analyzed and the limitations of the quasistatic adiabatic approximation are established.

The joint detection of gravitational waves (GWs) and γ-rays from a binary neutron star (NS) merger provided a unique view of off-axis gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) and an independent measurement of the NS merger rate. Comparing the observations of GRB170817 with those of the regular population of short GRBs (sGRBs), we show that an order unity fraction of NS mergers result in sGRB jets that breakout of the surrounding ejecta. We argue that the luminosity function of sGRBs, peaking at {≈ } 2× 10^{52} erg s^{-1}, is likely an intrinsic property of the sGRB central engine and that sGRB jets are typically narrow with opening angles θ0 ≈ 0.1. We perform Monte Carlo simulations to examine models for the structure and efficiency of the prompt emission in off-axis sGRBs. We find that only a small fraction (∼0.01-0.1) of NS mergers detectable by LIGO/VIRGO in GWs is expected to be also detected in prompt γ-rays and that GW170817-like events are very rare. For an NS merger rate of ∼1500 Gpc-3 yr-1, as inferred from GW170817, we expect within the next decade up to ∼12 joint detections with off-axis GRBs for structured-jet models and just ∼1 for quasi-spherical cocoon models where γ-rays are the result of shock breakout. Given several joint detections and the rates of their discoveries, the different structure models can be distinguished. In addition the existence of a cocoon with a reservoir of thermal energy may be observed directly in the ultraviolet, given a sufficiently rapid localization of the GW source.

We analyze the finite lifetimes of the topologically protected electrons in the surface state of Bi2Te3 and Bi2Se3 due to elastic scattering off surface vacancies and as a function of energy. The scattering rates are decomposed into surface-to-surface and surface-to-bulk contributions, giving us new fundamental insights into the scattering properties of the topological surface states (TSS). If the number of possible final bulk states is much larger than the number of final surface states, then the surface-to-bulk contribution is of importance, otherwise the surface-to-surface contribution dominates. Additionally, we find defect resonances that have a significant impact on the scattering properties of the TSS. They can strongly change the lifetime of the surface state to vary between tens of fs to ps at surface defect concentrations of 1 at%. We also see that the effective scattering angle shows a strong dependence on the Fermi surface warping. Our results compare fairly well with available experiments.

We report on the effect of lithium doping of zinc oxide used as electron-transport layer in organic solar cells based on both fullerene and non-fullerene acceptors. The experimental and theoretical results indicate that lithium ions intercalated within the ZnO lattice as dopants replace interstitial zinc defects that act as trap states and give rise to a higher electron conductivity without significantly altering work function and valence band edge. The enhanced electron carrier extraction/collection efficiency, the suppressed bimolecular and interface trap-assisted recombination losses and the higher electron mobility of the photoactive blend synergistically contribute to the superior performance of PTB7-Th:PC71BM-based fullerene devices utilizing doped ZnO layers with an optimized lithium concentration of 5 wt %. Such devices increased their maximum PCE from 8.59% (average 8.05%) to 10.05% (average 9.53%) while, simultaneously, boosting their long-term stability. Moreover, non-fullerene solar cells based on the PTB7-Th:IT-4F blend exhibited PCEs up to 8.96% and maintained more than 80% of their initial efficiency after 1000 h storage in the dark upon using the lithium modified ZnO electron transport layer. © 2019 American Chemical Society.

In Act 2 Scene 2 of Richard II, Bushy advises the Queen against ‘looking awry’ upon the King’s departure, comparing her gaze first to a perspective glass and then to a perspective picture that appears distorted unless viewed at an angle. I rely on this metaphor of anamorphosis to examine two recent productions of Richard II in Athens, both of which ‘distort’ the text and situate it in a bleak context. Viewed from the angle of the current political discontent, the 2014 and 2016 adaptations, directed by Elli Papakonstantinou and Efi Birba respectively, assume distinct meaning for the Athenian audience.

Systematic monitoring of specific targets in the optical regime was historically applied on a very narrow sample of known variable stars. The discovery of blazars in the 20th century brought to the foreground the need for new global sky surveys, covering the entire sky and fainter sources. Full-sky surveys are conducted more easily from space observatories, while radio telescopes perform follow up observations from the ground. Blazars are detected in a wide range of energies, while they exhibit strong variability in various wavelengths from γ-rays and X-rays to the optical and radio domain. This results in a detailed classification, according to their emission properties in each region. The rapid variability in optical domain makes blazars interesting targets for optical sky surveys, offering a new opportunity to study their variability in the time domain. Digital sky surveys in optical and near-IR found a fertile ground with the aid of sensitive sensors. Only a few dedicated programs are focusing on blazar variability, a trend which evolved rapidly in the last decade. Modern techniques, in combination with dedicated sky survey programs lead towards a new era of long-term monitoring of blazars, aiming towards the search or variability on various time scales. In this work, an overview of blazar optical surveys and monitoring projects is given, addressing the major points of each one, and highlighting the constraints that the long-term study of blazars will bring through future international campaigns.

This paper offers a comparative study of land use and demographic development in northern and southern Greece from the Neolithic to the Byzantine period. Results from summed probability densities (SPD) of archaeological radiocarbon dates and settlement numbers derived from archaeological site surveys are combined with results from cluster-based analysis of published pollen core assemblages to offer an integrated view of human pressure on the Greek landscape through time. We demonstrate that SPDs offer a useful approach to outline differences between regions and a useful complement to archaeological site surveys, evaluated here especially for the onset of the Neolithic and for the Final Neolithic (FN)/Early Bronze Age (EBA) transition. Pollen analysis highlight differences in vegetation between the two sub-regions, but also several parallel changes. The comparison of land cover dynamics between two sub-regions of Greece further demonstrates the significance of the bioclimatic conditions of core locations and that apparent oppositions between regions may in fact be two sides of the same coin in terms of socio-ecological trajectories. We also assess the balance between anthropogenic and climate-related impacts on vegetation and suggest that climatic variability was as an important factor for vegetation regrowth. Finally, our evidence suggests that the impact of humans on land cover is amplified from the Late Bronze Age (LBA) onwards as more extensive herding and agricultural practices are introduced.

Context. The tenuous nitrogen (N2) atmosphere on Pluto undergoes strong seasonal effects due to high obliquity and orbital eccentricity, and has recently (July 2015) been observed by the New Horizons spacecraft. Aims: The main goals of this study are (i) to construct a well calibrated record of the seasonal evolution of surface pressure on Pluto and (ii) to constrain the structure of the lower atmosphere using a central flash observed in 2015. Methods: Eleven stellar occultations by Pluto observed between 2002 and 2016 are used to retrieve atmospheric profiles (density, pressure, temperature) between altitude levels of ~5 and ~380 km (i.e. pressures from ~ 10 μbar to 10 nbar). Results: (i) Pressure has suffered a monotonic increase from 1988 to 2016, that is compared to a seasonal volatile transport model, from which tight constraints on a combination of albedo and emissivity of N2 ice are derived. (ii) A central flash observed on 2015 June 29 is consistent with New Horizons REX profiles, provided that (a) large diurnal temperature variations (not expected by current models) occur over Sputnik Planitia; and/or (b) hazes with tangential optical depth of ~0.3 are present at 4-7 km altitude levels; and/or (c) the nominal REX density values are overestimated by an implausibly large factor of ~20%; and/or (d) higher terrains block part of the flash in the Charon facing hemisphere.

Genome-wide studies in tumor cells have indicated that chromatin-modifying proteins are commonly mutated in human cancers. The lysine-specific methyltransferase 2C (KMT2C/MLL3) is a putative tumor suppressor in several epithelia and in myeloid cells. Here, we show that downregulation of KMT2C in bladder cancer cells leads to extensive changes in the epigenetic status and the expression of DNA damage response and DNA repair genes. More specifically, cells with low KMT2C activity are deficient in homologous recombination-mediated double-strand break DNA repair. Consequently, these cells suffer from substantially higher endogenous DNA damage and genomic instability. Finally, these cells seem to rely heavily on PARP1/2 for DNA repair, and treatment with the PARP1/2 inhibitor olaparib leads to synthetic lethality, suggesting that cancer cells with low KMT2C expression are attractive targets for therapies with PARP1/2 inhibitors.

This is a group white paper of 100 authors (each with explicit permission via email) from 51 institutions on the topic of magnetic reconnection which is relevant to 6 thematic areas. Grand challenges and research opportunities are described in observations, numerical modeling and laboratory experiments in the upcoming decade.

The current study aims to clarify the hydrogeological regime of the deltaic valley of Pinios river (Thessaly, Greece). Its purpose is to map the existing aquifers below the deltaic plain, but also to assess the quality of their water (detect possible seawater intrusion), through the combined application of VES and TEM soundings. The results of the geophysical data processing revealed that the shallow (phreatic) aquifer is not detected throughout the entire deltaic plain, but only in the central and northern parts of the region, with thickness of 5–10 meters. Additionally, a deeper aquifer has been detected, with a maximum thickness equal to 100 meters. The interpretation of the geophysical soundings indicated that great part of the deeper aquifer has been affected by a saline intrusion that has also been noticed by hydrochemical data. Based on the fact that Pinios deltaic plain is a highly productive agricultural area, the irrigation system has to be reevaluated in order to constrain the extension of the seawater intrusion.

 

Past research has shown that, while psychological control increases the risk for adolescents’ antisocial behavior, maternal knowledge of adolescents’ activities decreases this risk. Yet, research is somewhat inconclusive about the role of psychologically controlling parenting in parental knowledge. Also, the role of both predictors in prosocial behavior remains largely unknown. In this 1-year, multi-informant, prospective study, we investigated these issues by recruiting a sample of Turkish early adolescents (N = 229, Mage = 11.89 years, SD = 0.32, 47.0% boys) and their mothers. After controlling for baseline adolescent-reported maternal knowledge, we found mother-reported psychological control to negatively predict adolescent-reported maternal knowledge 1 year later. In turn, maternal knowledge related negatively to antisocial behavior and positively to altruistic prosocial behavior (but not to instrumental prosocial behavior). These findings highlight the key role that maternal psychological control and knowledge can have in adolescents’ social functioning.