We performed a genome-wide siRNA screen to identify host factors that regulated pathogen load in human macrophages infected with a virulent strain of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Iterative rounds of confirmation, followed by validation, identified 275 such molecules that were all found to functionally associate with each other through a dense network of interactions. This network then yielded to a molecular description of the host cell functional modules that were both engaged and perturbed by the pathogen. Importantly, a subscreen against a panel of field isolates revealed that the molecular composition of the host interface varied with both genotype and the phenotypic properties of the pathogen. An analysis of these differences, however, permitted identification of those host factors that were invariantly involved, regardless of the diversification in adaptive mechanisms employed by the pathogen. Interestingly, these factors were found to predominantly function through the regulation of autophagy.

We study the problem of error-free multiple unicast over directed acyclic networks in a quantum setting. We provide a new information-theoretic proof of the known result that network coding does not achieve a larger quantum information flow than what can be achieved by routing for two-pair communication on the butterfly network. We then consider a k-pair multiple unicast problem and for all k ⩾ 2 we show that there exists a family of networks where quantum network coding achieves k-times larger quantum information flow than what can be achieved by routing. Finally, we specify a graph-theoretic sufficient condition for the quantum information flow of any multiple unicast problem to be bounded by the capacity of any sparsest multicut of the network.

Environmental compensation measures usually accompany energy projects. WillingnessTo-Pay (WTP) for five intangible benefits derived from afforested areas of a compensatory afforestation programme of National Thermal Power Corporation Dadri are estimated. Conventional Contingent Valuation shows the average WTP € 2.1 per respondent per month with more than 43 % of total WTP for 'soil conservation and remediation' and 'improvement in underground water level'. Logit model method depicts the same order of magnitude but differs significantly at 5 % level for all the benefits. More informed decisions upon energy projects and afforestation programs shall help in conserving forests and their ecosystem services. KEYWORDS:Contingent valuation, India, Intangible benefits, Logit model, WTP. Valoración de los beneficios intangibles de áreas forestadas:un caso de estudio en India RESUMEN: Las medidas de compensación ambiental suelen acompañar a los proyectos energéticos. Se estima la disposición a pagar (DAP) por cinco beneficios intangibles derivados de áreas forestadas del programa compensatorio de la Corporación Nacional de Energía Térmica Dadri. La valoración contingente muestra que la DAP es de 2,1 € por encuestado al mes, con más del 43 % para "conservación y regeneración del suelo" y "mejora del nivel del agua subterránea". El modelo Logit muestra el mismo orden de magnitud, pero difiere significativamente para todos los beneficios. Decisiones más informadas sobre los programas efectivos de forestación ayudarán a conservar los bosques.

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Background The prevalence of some immune-mediated diseases (IMDs) shows distinct differences between populations of different ethnicities. The aim of this study was to determine if the age at diagnosis of common IMDs also differed between different ethnic groups in the UK, suggestive of distinct influences of ethnicity on disease pathogenesis. Methods This was a population-based retrospective primary care study. Linear regression provided unadjusted and adjusted estimates of age at diagnosis for common IMDs within the following ethnic groups: White, South Asian, African-Caribbean and Mixed-race/Other. Potential disease risk confounders in the association between ethnicity and diagnosis age including sex, smoking, body mass index and social deprivation (Townsend quintiles) were adjusted for. The analysis was replicated using data from UK Biobank (UKB). Results After adjusting for risk confounders, we observed that individuals from South Asian, African-Caribbean and Mixed-race/Other ethnicities were diagnosed with IMDs at a significantly younger age than their White counterparts for almost all IMDs. The difference in the diagnosis age (ranging from 2 to 30 years earlier) varied for each disease and by ethnicity. For example, rheumatoid arthritis was diagnosed at age 49, 48 and 47 years in individuals of African-Caribbean, South Asian and Mixed-race/Other ethnicities respectively, compared to 56 years in White ethnicities. The earlier diagnosis of most IMDs observed was validated in UKB although with a smaller effect size. Conclusion Individuals from non-White ethnic groups in the UK had an earlier age at diagnosis for several IMDs than White adults.