Self-medication impacts both negatively and positively the health of people, which has become evident during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study aimed to assess the prevalence of self-medicated drugs used for respiratory symptoms, as COVID-19 preventive, for its symptoms or once tested positive. To determine the perception of symptom relief and demographic variables that promote self-medication in Peru. We performed a cross-sectional, analytical, multicenter study in 3792 study respondents on the use, the reason for use, and perception of relief after the use of six drugs during the quarantine period. An online questionnaire was developed, pretested and submitted to the general public. Multivariable logistic regression was used to ascertain factors that influence an individual's desire to self-medicate, associations were considered significant at p < 0.05 and using region (coast, mountain and jungle) as cluster group. The majority of respondents self-medicated with acetaminophen for respiratory symptoms and mainly because they had a cold or flu. It was observed that all the surveyed drugs (acetaminophen, ibuprofen, azithromycin, penicillin, antiretrovirals and hydroxychloroquine) were consumed for various symptoms including: fever, fatigue, cough, sneezing, muscle pain, nasal congestion, sore throat, headache and breathing difficulty. Over 90% of respondents perceived relief of at least one symptom. Multivariable logistic regression showed that older people have a higher frequency of antiretroviral self-medication, respondents who currently have a job had a higher frequency of penicillin self-medication, and that respondents from the Andes consumed less acetaminophen, while the ones from the rainforest consumed it more. There were significant percentages of self-medication, including drugs without sufficient scientific evidence. Age, region where one lived and job status were variables associated with self-medication frequency. Continuous awareness and sensitization about the risks of self-medication are warranted. / Revisión por pares

The purpose of this thesis is to investigate different control strategies on a differential drive vehicle. The vehicle should be able to drive in turns at high speed and slowly when it should park next to a charger. In both these cases, good precision in both orientation and distance to the path is important. A PID and an LQ controller have been implemented for this purpose. The two controllers were first implemented in a simulation environment. After implementing the controllers on the system itself, tests to evaluate the controllers were made to imitate real-life situations. This includes tests regarding driving with different speeds in different turns, tests with load distributions, and tests with stopping accuracy. The existing controller on the system was also tested and compared to the new controllers. After evaluating the controllers, it was stated that the existing controller was the most robust. It was not affected much by the load distribution compared to the new controllers. However, the LQ controller was slightly better in most cases, even though it was highly affected by the load distribution. The PID controller performed best regarding stopping accuracy but was the least robust controller by the three. Since the existing controller has a similar performance as the LQ controller but is more robust, the existing controller was chosen as the best one.

Objective: To determine the ameliorative effect of the ethanolic extract of Chuquiraga spinosa (ChS) on 7,12-Dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA)-induced breast cancer in rats. Methods: 36 female Holztman rats were divided into 6 groups. I) The negative control group received physiological saline (PS). II) ChS-200 group received 200 mg/kg of ChS. III) DMBA group was induced with DMBA (20 mg/Kg) dissolved in PS and administrated orally for 15 weeks. IV) DMBA + ChS-50 group, V) DMBA + ChS-250 group, and VI) DMBA + ChS-500 group, which received the extract orally for 15 weeks after DMBA induction. All data were expressed as mean and standard deviation. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by Dunnet test was carried out to compare the mean value of different groups Histopathological analysis was evaluated by using Image J software. Results: Hematology showed that the triglyceride level was significantly lowered (P< 0.01) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) level was significantly increased (P <0.01) in groups III, IV and V. Also, ChS extract significantly lowered the C reactive protein (CRP) level (P <0.01) and malondialdehyde level (P<0.05). There was a significant decrease in the frequency of DMBA-induced micronucleated polychromatic erythrocyte (P<0.01). Conclusions: Chuquiraga spinosa showed an ameliorative effect on DMBA-induced breast cancer in rats as well as antioxidant, antitumor and antigenotoxic properties. / Revisión por pares

AN ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION OFSaleh Aljurbua, for the Doctor of Philosophy degree in APPLIED MATHEMATICS, presented on January 27th, 2021, at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. TITLE: THE EXISTENCE OF SOLUTIONS FOR FRACTIONAL DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS FOR ORDER q ∈ (n − 1, n], n ∈ N, WITH ANTIPERIODIC BOUNDARY CONDITIONS MAJOR PROFESSOR: Dr. Mingqing Xiao Differential equations play a major role in natural science, physics and technology. Fractional differential equations (FDE) gained a lot of popularity in the past three decades and they became very important in economics, physics and chemistry. In fact, fractional integrals and derivatives became essential and made a significant contribution in dynamical systems which simulate it. They fill the gaps between the integer-types of integrations and derivatives in the classical settings. This work consists of four Chapters. The first Chapter will be covering background, preliminary and fundamental tools used in our dissertation topic. The second Chapter consists of the existence of solutions for nonlinear fractional differential equations of some specific orders with antiperiodic boundary conditions followed by the main topic which is the existence of solutions for nonlinear fractional differential equations of order q ∈ (n−1, n], n ∈ N with antiperiodic boundary conditions of a continuous function f(t, x(t)). Moreover, definitions, theorems and some lemmas will be provided. v In the third Chapter, we offer some examples to illustrate our approach in the main topic. Finally, the fourth Chapter includes the summary and perspective researches.

<p>Proučeno je oscilatorno kretanje i disipacija energije stuba napravljenog<br />od nekoliko krutih blokova, koji pri horizontalnom seizmičkom dejstvu<br />mogu da klize jedan po drugom. Pored međusobnog kontakta sa trenjem, koje je<br />modelirano neglatkom viševrednosnom funkcijom, veze između blokova<br />sadrže i viskoelastične elemente, čije konstitutivne relacije uključuju<br />frakcione izvode, kao i ograničenja na koeficijente koja slede iz<br />Klauzius-Dijemove nejednakosti. Postavljeni Košijev problem predstavlja<br />uopštenje klasičnog problema ponašanja konstrukcija pod dejstvom<br />seizmičkog opterećenja, jer objedinjuje izvode proizvoljnog realnog reda<br />sa teorijom neglatkih viševrednosnih funkcija. Predložena je numerička<br />procedura za rešavanje postavljenog problema.</p> / <p> Seismic response and energy dissipation of a column made of several rigid<br /> blocks, which can slide along each other, was considered. Besides friction<br /> contact, which was modeled by a set valued function, viscoelastic elements<br /> whose constitutive equations include fractional derivatives as well as restrictions<br /> on the coefficients that follow from Clausius-Duhem inequality are present in<br /> connections between blocks. The posed Caushy problem represents the<br /> generalization of a classical problem of seismic response because it merges<br /> fractional derivatives with the theory of set valued functions. The numerical<br /> procedure for solving the problem was suggested.</p>

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SUMMARY: Cancers represent one of the main causes of death worldwide. Together with surgery and radiotherapy, chemotherapy constitutes a main therapeutic tool in cancer treatment. However, combat remains challenging because of the intrinsic and/ or acquired resistance mechanisms displayed by cancers to these agents. In order to maintain their continuous growth, multiplication and dissemination, cancer cells display a number of biological hallmarks. Growing evidence of the remarkable association of the protein synthesis process with the onset and progression of cancer has led to extensive revision and research on the role of translation in this disease as well as its potential in therapy. Initiation of translation is especially dysregulated in cancer. Thus, strategies targeting different translation steps, ranging from upstream inhibitors - like mTOR inhibitors - to direct inhibition of specific translation initiation factors, represent potential and selective recent alternatives to conventional chemotherapies. In this work, we have investigated the antiproliferative effects of the previously synthetized harmine derivative CM16, with a particular emphasis on its effects on the protein synthesis of cancer cells. We confirmed CM16 cytostatic effects and showed its selectivity towards cancerous cells. The correlation of the growth inhibition profile of CM16 in the NCI 60-cell-line with those of other protein synthesis inhibitors led us to investigate such potential inhibition in vitro. CM16 induced inhibition of protein synthesis and it seems to specifically affect the initiation phase of translation, as it affected the organization of ribosome and polysomes. Phosphorylation on the initiation factor 2α (eIF2α) could be partly responsible for the inhibitory effect observed, as evidenced in this work. Also, the transcriptomic comparison of cell models displaying different levels of sensitivity to CM16 suggested that EIF1AX, EIF3E and EIF3H could drive, at least partly, their sensitivity to this compound. Proteomic study of glioma cells treated or not with CM16 was then conducted. Although the proteins of the genes mentioned above were not identified by this technic, we evidenced tiny but significant changes in Hs683 glioma cell proteomic profile through LC-MS shotgun approach. Thanks to 2-DE gel comparison, proteins differentially expressed in these conditions were identified, such as HspB1, Ebp1, BTF3, galectin, cofilin, dUTPase, PGAM1 and CK-18. These might be involved in the antiproliferative and protein synthesis inhibitory activities of CM16, particularly when considering their roles in cancer cell biology, bringing additional insights to the elucidation of the mechanism of action of this harmine derivative in cancer cells. / RÉSUMÉ: Les cancers figurent parmi les principales causes de mortalité dans le monde. Avec la chirurgie et la radiothérapie, la chimiothérapie reste une des principales manières de lutter contre le cancer. Néanmoins, en raison des mécanismes de résistance intrinsèques et / ou acquis à ces agents, le traitement du cancer reste difficile. Pour assurer leur prolifération, leur dissémination et le développement de la maladie, les cellules cancéreuses présentent certaines caractéristiques biologiques. La mise en évidence de liens remarquables entre la synthèse protéique et l'apparition et la progression du cancer a conduit à une révision et à une recherche plus approfondie de la dérégulation de la traduction au sein des cellules cancéreuses ainsi que de son potentiel en tant que cible thérapeutique. La phase d’initiation de la traduction est particulièrement dérégulée dans le cancer. Ainsi, les stratégies ciblant différentes étapes de la traduction, depuis l’inhibition des voies de signalisation en amont du processus - comme les inhibiteurs de mTOR - à l'inhibition directe des facteurs spécifiques d'initiation de la traduction, représentent de potentielles alternatives sélectives aux chimiothérapies actuelles. Dans le cadre de ce travail, nous avons étudié les effets antiprolifératifs du composé CM16, un dérivé de l'harmine préalablement synthétisé, et, en particulier, ses effets sur la synthèse des protéines des cellules cancéreuses. Nous avons confirmé les effets cytostatiques du composé CM16 et avons montré sa sélectivité vis-à-vis des cellules cancéreuses. Le profil de réponse des 60 lignées cellulaires cancéreuses du panel du NCI s’est avéré corréler avec ceux d'autres inhibiteurs connus de la synthèse protéique, ce qui nous a conduits à investiguer in vitro cette potentielle inhibition. Le CM16 inhibe la synthèse protéique et semble affecter spécifiquement la phase d'initiation de la traduction étant donné que nous avons observé une désorganisation des ribosomes et polysomes. L’induction de la phosphorylation du facteur d'initiation 2α (eIF2α) pourrait en partie être responsable de l'effet inhibiteur de la synthèse protéique. La comparaison transcriptomique des modèles du NCI présentant des degrés divers de sensibilité au CM16 suggère que EIF1AX, EIF3E et EIF3H puissent, au moins en partie, être impliquées dans la sensibilité des cellules cancéreuses au composé CM16. Nous avons ensuite réalisé une étude du profil protéomique des cellules de gliomes traitées ou non par le CM16. Bien que les cibles identifiées ci-dessus n’ont pu être identifiées par cette technique, de légères mais significatives différences dans le protéome des cellules de gliomes traitées avec le CM16 ont été mises en évidence par LC-MS shotgun. Grâce à étude comparative de gels en deux dimensions, des protéines différentiellement exprimées dans ces conditions ont été identifiées, telles que HspB1, Ebp1, BTF3, galectine 1, cofiline, dUTPase, PGAM1 et CK-18. Celles-ci pourraient être impliquées dans les effets antiprolifératifs et inhibiteurs sur la synthèse protéique induits par le CM16, notamment suite à leurs rôles dans la biologie tumorale, contribuant ainsi à l'élucidation du mécanisme d'action de ce dérivé harmine dans les cellules cancéreuses. / Doctorat en Sciences biomédicales et pharmaceutiques (Pharmacie) / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

There is a growing number of applications of machine learning and deep learning in quantitative and computational finance. In this thesis, we focus on two of them. In the first application, we employ machine learning and deep learning in derivative pricing. The models considering jumps or stochastic volatility are more complicated than the Black-Merton-Scholes model and the derivatives under these models are harder to be priced. The traditional pricing methods are computationally intensive, so machine learning and deep learning are employed for fast pricing. I n Chapter 2, we propose a method for pricing American options under the variance gamma model. We develop a new fast and accurate approximation method inspired by the quadratic approximation to get rid of the time steps required in finite difference and simulation methods, while reducing the error by making use of a machine learning technique on pre-calculated quantities. We compare the performance of our method with those of the existing methods and show that this method is efficient and accurate for practical use. In Chapters 3 and 4, we propose unsupervised deep learning methods for option pricing under Lévy process and stochastic volatility respectively, with a special focus on barrier options in Chapter 4. The unsupervised deep learning approach employs a neural network as the candidate option surface and trains the neural network to satisfy certain equations. By matching the equation and the boundary conditions, the neural network would yield an accurate solution. Special structures called singular terms are added to the neural networks to deal with the non-smooth and discontinuous payoff at the strike and barrier levels so that the neural networks can replicate the asymptotic behaviors of options at short maturities. Unlike supervised learning, this approach does not require any labels. Once trained, the neural network solution yields fast and accurate option values. The second application focuses on financial time series simulation utilizing deep learning techniques. Simulation extends the limited real data for training and evaluation of trading strategies. It is challenging because of the complex statistical properties of the real financial data. In Chapter 5, we introduce two generative adversarial networks, which utilize the convolutional networks with attention and the transformers, for financial time series simulation. The networks learn the statistical properties in a data-driven manner and the attention mechanism helps to replicate the long-range dependencies. The proposed models are tested on the S&P 500 index and its option data, examined by scores based on the stylized facts and are compared with the pure convolutional network, i.e. QuantGAN. The attention-based networks not only reproduce the stylized facts, including heavy tails, autocorrelation and cross-correlation, but also smooth the autocorrelation of returns.

This licentiate thesis investigates fiction writing and reading in up- per secondary school in Sweden. Inspired by fanfiction I created a teaching project of derivative writing in which the students in a se- cond-year social science class wrote short stories derived from 20th century novels. They also gave peer response, both orally and in writing. Finally they wrote a reflective text about the project. The main purpose of the study is to describe and analyse the teaching project. The primary material is the students’ short sto- ries. Drawing from theories of intertextuality, most notably Genette’s transtextuality theory and fanfiction theories, I analyse how the students make use of the source text. Theories of narratology have been used to analyse techniques of storytelling, mainly characterization and focalization. In the analysis of the stu- dents’ written comments on each other’s texts I draw from re- sponse theories. The results show that the students tend to stay close to the source texts. The most common subgenre is refocalization, that is to change the perspective to one of the secondary characters’ view. Refocalization seems to be an efficient way of deepening the under- standing of the main character of the source text; in many of the students’ stories the protagonist functions as the focalized object. Which novel the students read plays an important part in how fo- calization is expressed, however. Short stories based on novels with complex focalization tend to be focalized in a variety of ways whereas stories based on novels with fixed focalization mostly fol- low the pattern of the source text. Reading the short stories and, not least, the reflective texts it becomes evident that the characters  are extremely important in this kind of literature, more so than semiotic theories of characters have acknowledged; the characters are more than merely functions. In the chapter about peer response I argue that many students write analyses of the text they are about to respond to rather than give advice about how to proceed. It is difficult to see if the response is of any help to the writer. Thus, I question whether peer response has any other effect than strength- ening the social bonds between the group members. The study shows that creative writing could very well be an in- tegral part of the education in Swedish in upper secondary school. Derivative writing may function as an alternative to traditional lit- erary analyses. Refocalizing is a way of seeing the story from a dif- ferent viewpoint, which could enhance the students’ sense of empa- thy. Questions of focalization might also lead to discussions of power. Furthermore, creative writing may make the students more attentive as writers. In the new syllabus Gy 11, however, the op- portunities for working with creative writing are, unfortunately, limited.