Synthesis of Oligosaccharide Structures from the Lipopolysaccharide of Moraxella catarrhalis

The synthesis of the octasaccharide [p-(trifluoroacetamido)phenyl]ethyl 4-O-[2-O-(2-acetamido-2-deoxy-alpha-D-glucopyranosyl)-beta-D-glucopyranosyl]-6-O-[2-O-[4-O-(4-O-alpha-D-galactopyranosyl-beta-D-galactopyranosyl)-alpha-D-glucopyranosyl]-beta-D-glucopyranosyl]-3-O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-alpha-D-glucopyranoside, representing the outer part of the lipooligosaccharide from Moraxella catarrhalis serotype A, is described, together with a hepta-, a hexa-, and a pentasaccaride, composing parts thereof with shorter oligosaccharide chains substituted in the 6-position of the central 3,4,6-branched glucose moiety. The versatility of the use of thioglycosides in oligosaccharide synthesis is shown, since throughout the synthesis thioglycosides are used as glycosyl donor precursors, either directly in dimethyl(methylthio)sulfonium triflate (DMTST)-promoted coupling reactions or after conversion to the corresponding glycosyl bromide in silver triflate-promoted couplings. The effects of different protecting groups, anomeric leaving groups, and solvents used in the various coupling reactions are often substantial, which necessitates the use of easily convertible intermediates.     

Asymptotic stability analysis in uncertain multi-delayed state neural networks via Lyapunov–Krasovskii theory

This paper presents a new approach to the analysis of asymptotic stability of artificial neural networks (ANN) with multiple time-varying delays subject to polytope-bounded uncertainties. This approach is based on the Lyapunov–Krasovskii stability theory for functional differential equations and the linear matrix inequality (LMI) technique with the use of a recent Leibniz–Newton model based transformation without including any additional dynamics.Three examples with numerical simulations are used to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method. The first example considers the neural network with multiple time-varying delays, which may be seen as a particular case of the second example where it is subject to uncertainties and multiple time-varying delays. Finally, the third example analyzes the stability of the neural network with higher numbers of neurons subject to a single time-delay. The Hopf bifurcation theory is used to verify the stability of the system when the origin falls into instability in the bifurcation point.     

Decision making in a fuzzy environment and its application to multicriteria power engineering problems

This paper presents results of research into the use of the Bellman–Zadeh approach to decision making in a fuzzy environment for solving multicriteria optimization problems. Its application conforms to the principle of guaranteed result and provides constructive lines in obtaining harmonious solutions on the basis of analyzing associated maxmin problems. The use of the Bellman–Zadeh approach has served as a basis for solving a problem of multicriteria allocation of resources (or their shortages) and developing a corresponding adaptive interactive decision making system (AIDMS1). AIDMS1 includes procedures for considering linguistic variables to reflect conditions that are difficult to formalize as well as procedures for constructing and correcting vectors of importance factors for goals. The use of these procedures permits one to realize an adaptive approach to processing information of a decision maker to provide successive improvment in solution quality. The results of the paper are universally applicable and are already being used to solve power engineering problems. It is illustrated by considering problems of multicriteria power and energy shortage allocation and multicriteria power system operation.     

A comparative study of the dissociation of protons into low-mass pπ+π− systems in coherent and incoherent proton-nucleus collisions at 18.6 GeV/c

A decay angular moments analysis has been performed on 8500 pπ⁺π^? events produced by the interaction of high-energy protons with nuclear targets. The analysis was carried out separately for the low-t, coherent events and high-t, incoherent events. The moments of the two samples show significant differences and possible reasons for such differences are discussed.     

Soft π−p and pp elastic scattering in the energy range 30 to 345 GeV

Differential cross sections for π^?p and pp elastic scattering have been measured at incident momenta ranging from 30 to 345 GeV and in the t range 0.002 (GeV/c)² ? |t| ? 0.04 (GeV/c)². From the analysis of the data, the ratio ? (t = 0) of the real to the imaginary parts of the forward scattering amplitude was determined together with the logarithmic slope b of the diffraction cone.The results on the real parts confirm the validity of the forward dispersion relations at high energies. Using the dispersion relations, it was shown that the experimental data on ?_{π?p(t = 0)} require a continuous rise of the total πp cross sections, at least up to the energy of 2000 GeV, thus revealing a close similarity in high-energy behaviour of πp and pp interactions.The results on the slope parameters from this experiment together with the analysis of the available world data demonstrate that the existing experimental data are consistent with the hypothesis of a universal shrinkage of the hadronic diffraction cone at high energies. The value of the asymptotic shrinkage parameter α_p^′ was found to be independent of the kind of the incident hadron and of the momentum transfer in the t range |t| ? 0.2 (GeV/c)² : 2α_{p^′ = ± 3 (GeV/c)^?2}.     

Application of a refined theory of torsional vibrations to the calculation of natural frequencies and damping coefficients of orthotropic composite cantilever rods

For calculating the natural complex frequencies of torsional vibrations of rectangular orthotropic composite cantilever rods, a theory taking into account the normal stresses and inertial forces acting in the axial direction is employed. The results obtained are compared with those found by using the classical theory of torsional vibrations of rods, the theory of vibrations of thin orthotropic plates, and the FEM. It is found that the difference between the natural frequencies given by the classical and refined theories depends on relations between geometrical sizes of a rod and between its axial elastic modulus and shear moduli, and on the number of the mode of torsional vibrations.     

Multicriteria analysis in decision making under information uncertainty

This paper presents results of research related to multicriteria decision making under information uncertainty. The Bellman–Zadeh approach to decision making in a fuzzy environment is utilized for analyzing multicriteria optimization models (X,M models) under deterministic information. Its application conforms to the principle of guaranteed result and provides constructive lines in obtaining harmonious solutions on the basis of analyzing associated maxmin problems. This circumstance permits one to generalize the classic approach to considering the uncertainty of quantitative information (based on constructing and analyzing payoff matrices reflecting effects which can be obtained for different combinations of solution alternatives and the so-called states of nature) in monocriteria decision making to multicriteria problems. Considering that the uncertainty of information can produce considerable decision uncertainty regions, the resolving capacity of this generalization does not always permit one to obtain unique solutions. Taking this into account, a proposed general scheme of multicriteria decision making under information uncertainty also includes the construction and analysis of the so-called X,R models (which contain fuzzy preference relations as criteria of optimality) as a means for the subsequent contraction of the decision uncertainty regions. The paper results are of a universal character and are illustrated by a simple example.     

Evaluation of Digital Image Recognition Methods for Mass Spectrometry Imaging Data Analysis

Analyzing mass spectrometry imaging data can be laborious and time consuming, and as the size and complexity of datasets grow, so does the need for robust automated processing methods. We here present a method for comprehensive, semi-targeted discovery of molecular distributions of interest from mass spectrometry imaging data, using widely available image similarity scoring algorithms to rank images by spatial correlation. A fast and powerful batch search method using a MATLAB implementation of structural similarity (SSIM) index scoring with a pre-selected reference distribution is demonstrated for two sample imaging datasets, a plant metabolite study using Artemisia annua leaf, and a drug distribution study using maraviroc-dosed macaque tissue.

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Discrete optimization algorithms and problems of decision making in a fuzzy environment

An approach to solving optimization problems with fuzzy coefficients is described. It consists in formulating and analyzing one and the same problem within the framework of mutually related models by constructing equivalent analogs with fuzzy coefficients in objective functions alone. Since the approach is applied within the context of fuzzy discrete optimization problems, modified algorithms of discrete optimization are discussed. These algorithms are based on a combination of formal and heuristic procedures and allow one to obtain quasi-optimal solutions after a small number of steps, thus overcoming the computational complexity posed by the NP-completeness of discrete optimization problems. The subsequent contraction of the decision uncertainty regions is associated with reduction of the problem to multiobjective decision making in a fuzzy environment using techniques based on fuzzy preference relations. The results of the paper are of a universal character and are already being used to solve practical problems in several fields.     

Resonance methods for determining the complex shear moduli of orthotropic composites

A survey of various methods for determining the complex elasticity and shear moduli from the resonant frequencies of flexural and torsional vibrations of rectangular rods cut out from a plate of an orthotropic composite is presented. The errors in the computed values of dynamic shear moduli caused by inaccuracies in the experimental determination of resonance frequencies are examined. A new variant of the resonance method is developed, which permits one to find three complex shear moduli of a composite from the resonant frequencies and the damping of torsional vibrations of three rods oriented along three symmetry axes of the material. For computing the moduli in the case of an overdetermined system, an algorithm of nonlinear optimization based on the least-squares method is recommended. From the results obtained it follows that, for determining the interlaminar shear moduli with a necessary accuracy, the rods must be sufficiently thick. It is shown that a good agreement alone between calculated and experimental frequencies of flexural and torsional vibrations of rods does not ensure a reliable determination of the moduli of interlaminar shear if experiments are carried out on wide test specimens cut out from a thin plate. Recommendations are given for the choice of geometrical sizes of test specimens for resonance experiments. __________ Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 43, No. 6, pp. 721–744, November–December, 2007.