LLukas22/scidocs huggingface dataset:
Low-cost and eco-friendly green synthesis of silver nanoparticles using Feronia elephantum (Rutaceae) against Culex quinquefasciatus, Anopheles stephensi, and Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae)

Mosquitoes transmit serious human diseases, causing millions of deaths every year. The use of synthetic insecticides to control vector mosquitoes has caused physiological resistance and adverse environmental effects in addition to high operational cost. Insecticides of synthesized natural products for vector control have been a priority in this area. In the present study, the larvicidal activity of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) synthesized using Feronia elephantum plant leaf extract against late third-instar larvae of Anopheles stephensi, Aedes aegypti, and Culex quinquefasciatus was determined. The range of concentrations of synthesized AgNPs (5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 μg mL−1) and aqueous leaf extract (25, 50, 75, 100, and 125 μg mL−1) were tested against the larvae of A. stephensi, A. aegypti, and C. quinquefasciatus. Larvae were exposed to varying concentrations of aqueous crude extract and synthesized AgNPs for 24 h. Considerable mortality was evident after the treatment of F. elephantum for all three important vector mosquitoes. The synthesized AgNPs from F. elephantum were highly toxic than crude leaf aqueous extract to three important vector mosquito species. The results were recorded from UV–visible spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy analysis (EDX). Synthesized AgNPs against the vector mosquitoes A. stephensi, A. aegypti, and C. quinquefasciatus had the following LC50 and LC90 values: A. stephensi had LC50 and LC90 values of 11.56 and 20.56 μg mL−1; A. aegypti had LC50 and LC90 values of 13.13 and 23.12 μg mL−1; and C. quinquefasciatus had LC50 and LC90 values of 14.19 and 24.30 μg mL−1. No mortality was observed in the control. These results suggest that the green synthesis of silver nanoparticles using F. elephantum has the potential to be used as an ideal eco-friendly approach for the control of A. stephensi, A. aegypti, and C. quinquefasciatus. This is the first report on the mosquito larvicidal activity of the plant extracts and synthesized nanoparticles.
The longest common extension problem revisited and applications to approximate string searching

The Longest Common Extension (LCE) problem considers a string s and computes, for each pair (i, j), the longest substring of s that starts at both i and j. It appears as a subproblem in many fundamental string problems and can be solved by linear-time preprocessing of the string that allows (worst-case) constant-time computation for each pair. The two known approaches use powerful algorithms: either constant-time computation of the Lowest Common Ancestor in trees or constant-time computation of Range Minimum Queries in arrays. We show here that, from practical point of view, such complicated approaches are not needed. We give two very simple algorithms for this problem that require no preprocessing. The first is 5 times faster than the best previous algorithms on the average whereas the second is faster on virtually all inputs. As an application, we modify the Landau-Vishkin algorithm for approximate matching to use our simplest LCE algorithm. The obtained algorithm is 13 to 20 times faster than the original. We compare it with the more widely used Ukkonen’s cutoff algorithm and show that it behaves better for a significant range of error thresholds. A preliminary version of this paper has been presented at SPIRE’09; see [8]. Research supported in part by NSERC. Corresponding author; e-mail: ilie@csd.uwo.ca Research supported in part by Millennium Institute for Cell Dynamics and Biotechnology (ICDB), Grant ICM P05-001-F, Mideplan, Chile
Development of Novel Microemulsion-Based Topical Formulations of Acyclovir for the Treatment of Cutaneous Herpetic Infections

The present investigation aims at developing microemulsion-based formulations for topical delivery of acyclovir. Various microemulsions were developed using isopropyl myristate/Captex 355/Labrafac as an oil phase, Tween 20 as surfactant, Span 20 as cosurfactant, and water/dimethylsulfoxide (1:3) as an aqueous phase. Transcutol, eucalyptus oil, and peppermint oil were used as permeation enhancers. In vitro permeation studies through laca mice skin were performed using Franz diffusion cells. The optimum formulation containing 2.5% Transcutol as the penetration enhancer showed 1.7-fold enhancement in flux and permeation coefficient as compared to marketed cream and ointment formulation. In vivo antiviral studies were performed in female Balb/c mice against induced herpes simplex virus I infection. A single application of microemulsion formulation containing 2.5% Transcutol given 24 h post-injection resulted in complete suppression of development of herpetic skin lesions.
MVN : An R Package for Assessing Multivariate Normality

The MVN package contains functions in the S3 class to assess multivariate normality. This package is the updated version of the MVN package [1]. The data to be analyzed should be given in the "data.frame" or "matrix" class. In this example, we will work with the famous Iris data set. These data are from a multivariate data set introduced by Fisher (1936) as an application of linear discriminant analysis [2]. It is also called Anderson’s Iris data set because Edgar Anderson collected the data to measure the morphologic variation of Iris flowers of three related species [3]. First of all, the MVN library should be loaded in order to use related functions.
Mirror neurons: from discovery to autism

In the winter of 1991 I (GR) sent to Nature a report on a surprising set of neurons that we (Giuseppe Di Pellegrino, Luciano Fadiga, Leonardo Fogassi, Vittorio Gallese) had found in the ventral premotor cortex of the monkey. The fundamental characteristic of these neurons was that they discharged both when the monkey performed a certain motor act (e.g., grasping an object) and when it observed another individual (monkey or human) performing that or a similar motor act (Di Pellegrino et al. 1992). These neurons are now known as mirror neurons (Fig. 1). Nature rejected our paper for its “lack of general interest” and suggested publication in a specialized journal. At this point I called Prof. Otto Creutzfeld, the then Coordinating Editor of Experimental Brain Research. I told him that I thought we found something really interesting and asked him to read our manuscript before sending it to the referees. After a few days he called me back saying that indeed our Wndings were, according to him, of extraordinary interest. Our article appeared in Experimental Brain Research a few months later. The idea of sending our report on mirror neurons to Experimental Brain Research, rather than to another neuroscience journal, was motivated by a previous positive experience with that journal. A few years earlier, Experimental Brain Research accepted an article in which we presented (Rizzolatti et al. 1988) a new view (something that typically referees did not like) on the organization of the ventral premotor cortex of the monkey and reported the Wndings that paved the way for the discovery of mirror neurons. In that article we described how, in the ventral premotor cortex (area F5) of the monkey, there are neurons that respond both when the monkey performs a motor act (e.g., grasping or holding) and when it observes an object whose physical features Wt the type of grip coded by that neuron (e.g., precision grip/small objects; whole hand/large objects). These neurons (now known as “canonical neurons”, Murata et al. 1997) and neurons with similar properties, described by Sakata et al. (1995) in the parietal cortex are now universally considered the neural substrate of the mechanism through which object aVordances are translated into motor acts (see Jeannerod et al. 1995). We performed the experiments on the motor properties of F5 in 1988 using an approach that should almost necessarily lead to the discovery of mirror neurons if these neurons existed in area F5. In order to test the F5 neurons with objects that may interest the monkeys, we used pieces of food of diVerent size and shape. To give the monkey some food, we had, of course, to grasp it. To our surprise we found that some F5 neurons discharged not when the monkey looked at the food, but when the experimenter grasped it. The mirror mechanism was discovered. The next important role of Experimental Brain Research in the discovery of mirror neurons was its acceptance in G. Rizzolatti (&) · M. Fabbri-Destro Dipartimento di Neuroscienze, Sezione Fisiologia, Università di Parma, via Volturno, 39, 43100 Parma, Italy e-mail: giacomo.rizzolatti@unipr.it
5690 France ’ s Almost Public Private Schools

This paper characterizes the determinants and implications of private schooling in a large and detailed set of French data. Empirical models detect negative selection into private schooling on observable and unobservable ability, while State-provided education appears more suitable to students with culturally privileged family backgrounds and high observed ability. The estimated effects are small, as private schools are tightly regulated, but statistically significant and of some interest in a country that supplies abundant public funding to regulated private schools. JEL-Codes: I220, I240.
Optimal investments for risk- and ambiguity-averse preferences: a duality approach

Ambiguity, also called Knightian or model uncertainty, is a key feature in financial modeling. A recent paper by Maccheroni et al. (2004) characterizes investor preferences under aversion against both risk and ambiguity. Their result shows that these preferences can be numerically represented in terms of convex risk measures. In this paper we study the corresponding problem of optimal investment over a given time horizon, using a duality approach and building upon the results by Kramkov and Schachermayer (1999, 2001).
Signals and Systems using MATLAB: an integrated suite of applications for exploring and teaching media signal processing

Effectively teaching introductory media signal processing (MSP) to students requires a means of communicating complex concepts without advanced mathematics. At the Media Arts and Technology program at UCSB we are teaching graduate media arts students concepts of MSP. These students, while interested in learning how their digital tools work, have an incredibly tough time working through the material the way traditional engineering students do. To address this we have used MATLAB to build a comprehensive suite of exploratory demonstrations and applications tailored to illustrate sophisticated concepts, and to inspire students that may not possess a strong background in mathematics. Our application, "Signals and Systems using MATLAB" (SSUM), is presented here, and its use in a course designed to teach MSP to media arts students is discussed. Its usefulness extends beyond media arts to engineering and computer science curriculum. SSUM can be obtained for free from http://www.mat.ucsb.edu/tildeb.sturm
5-Fluorouracil incorporation into RNA and DNA in relation to thymidylate synthase inhibition of human colorectal cancers.

BACKGROUND
The mechanism of action of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) has been associated with inhibition of thymidylate synthase (TS) and incorporation of 5-FU into RNA and DNA, but limited data are available in human tumor tissue for the latter. We therefore measured incorporation in human tumor biopsy specimens after administration of a test dose of 5-FU alone or with leucovorin.


PATIENTS AND METHODS
Patients received 5-FU (500 mg/m(2)) with or without high-dose leucovorin, low-dose leucovorin or l-leucovorin, and biopsy specimens were taken after approximately 2, 24 or 48 h. Tissues were pulverized and extracted for nucleic acids. 5-FU incorporation was measured using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry after complete degradation to bases of isolated RNA and DNA.


RESULTS
Maximal incorporation into RNA (1.0 pmol/micrograms RNA) and DNA (127 fmol/micrograms DNA) of 59 and 46 biopsy specimens, respectively, was found at 24 h after 5-FU administration. Incorporation into RNA but not DNA was significantly correlated with intratumoral 5-FU levels. However, DNA incorporation was significantly correlated with the RNA incorporation. Primary tumor tissue, liver metastasis and normal mucosa did not show significant differences, while leucovorin had no effect. Neither for RNA (30 patients) nor DNA (24 patients) incorporation was a significant correlation with response to 5-FU therapy found. However, in the same group of patients, response was significantly correlated to TS inhibition (mean TS in responding and non-responding groups 45 and 231 pmol/h/mg protein, respectively; P=0.001).


CONCLUSIONS
5-FU is incorporated at detectable levels into RNA and DNA of human tumor tissue, but no relation between the efficacy of 5-FU treatment and incorporation was found, in contrast to TS.
Reinforcing Recommendation Using Implicit Negative Feedback

Recommender systems have explored a range of implicit feedback approaches to capture users’ current interests and preferences without intervention of users’ work. However, the problem of implicit feedback elicit negative feedback, because users mainly target information they want. Therefore, there have been few studies to test how effective negative implicit feedback is to personalize information. In this paper, we assess whether implicit negative feedback can be used to improve recommendation quality.
Screening Yield of HIV Antigen/Antibody Combination and Pooled HIV RNA Testing for Acute HIV Infection in a High-Prevalence Population.

IMPORTANCE
Although acute HIV infection contributes disproportionately to onward HIV transmission, HIV testing has not routinely included screening for acute HIV infection.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the performance of an HIV antigen/antibody (Ag/Ab) combination assay to detect acute HIV infection compared with pooled HIV RNA testing.


DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS
Multisite, prospective, within-individual comparison study conducted between September 2011 and October 2013 in 7 sexually transmitted infection clinics and 5 community-based programs in New York, California, and North Carolina. Participants were 12 years or older and seeking HIV testing, without known HIV infection.


EXPOSURES
All participants with a negative rapid HIV test result were screened for acute HIV infection with an HIV Ag/Ab combination assay (index test) and pooled human immunodeficiency virus 1 (HIV-1) RNA testing. HIV RNA testing was the reference standard, with positive reference standard result defined as detectable HIV-1 RNA on an individual RNA test.


MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES
Number and proportion with acute HIV infections detected.


RESULTS
Among 86,836 participants with complete test results (median age, 29 years; 75.0% men; 51.8% men who have sex with men), established HIV infection was diagnosed in 1158 participants (1.33%) and acute HIV infection was diagnosed in 168 participants (0.19%). Acute HIV infection was detected in 134 participants with HIV Ag/Ab combination testing (0.15% [95% CI, 0.13%-0.18%]; sensitivity, 79.8% [95% CI, 72.9%-85.6%]; specificity, 99.9% [95% CI, 99.9%-99.9%]; positive predictive value, 59.0% [95% CI, 52.3%-65.5%]) and in 164 participants with pooled HIV RNA testing (0.19% [95% CI, 0.16%-0.22%]; sensitivity, 97.6% [95% CI, 94.0%-99.4%]; specificity, 100% [95% CI, 100%-100%]; positive predictive value, 96.5% [95% CI, 92.5%-98.7%]; sensitivity comparison, P < .001). Overall HIV Ag/Ab combination testing detected 82% of acute HIV infections detectable by pooled HIV RNA testing. Compared with rapid HIV testing alone, HIV Ag/Ab combination testing increased the relative HIV diagnostic yield (both established and acute HIV infections) by 10.4% (95% CI, 8.8%-12.2%) and pooled HIV RNA testing increased the relative HIV diagnostic yield by 12.4% (95% CI, 10.7%-14.3%).


CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE
In a high-prevalence population, HIV screening using an HIV Ag/Ab combination assay following a negative rapid test detected 82% of acute HIV infections detectable by pooled HIV RNA testing, with a positive predictive value of 59%. Further research is needed to evaluate this strategy in lower-prevalence populations and in persons using preexposure prophylaxis for HIV prevention.
Building a unified framework for the practice of experience design

This workshop challenges design practitioners and researchers to begin creating a unified framework for the practice of experience design.
Introducing FIRESTARTER: A processor stress test utility

Processor stress test utilities are important tools for a number of different use cases. In particular, cooling systems need to be tested at maximum load in order to ensure that they fulfill their specifications. Additionally, a test system characterization in terms of idle and maximum power consumption is often a prerequisite for energy efficiency research. This creates the need for a simple yet versatile tool that generates near-peak power consumption of compute nodes. While in different research areas tools such as LINPACK and Prime95 are commonly used, these tools are just highly optimized and compute intense routines that solve specific computational problems. As stress test utilities they are unnecessarily hard to use and in many cases unreliable in terms of power consumption maximization. We propose FIRESTARTER, an Open Source tool that is specifically designed to create near-peak power consumption. Our experiments show that this task cannot be achieved with generic high-level language code. We therefore use highly optimized assembly routines that take the specific properties of a given processor microarchitecture into account. A study on four compute nodes with current or last generation x86_64 processors shows that we reliably exceed the power consumption of other stress tests and create very steady power consumption patterns.
Disproportionate Contribution of Right Middle Lobe to Emphysema and Gas Trapping on Computed Tomography

RATIONALE
Given that the diagnosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) relies on demonstrating airflow limitation by spirometry, which is known to be poorly sensitive to early disease, and to regional differences in emphysema, we sought to evaluate individual lobar contributions to global spirometric measures.


METHODS
Subjects with COPD were compared with smokers without airflow obstruction, and non-smokers. Emphysema (% low attenuation area, LAAinsp<-950 HU, at end-inspiration) and gas trapping (%LAAexp<-856 HU at end-expiration) on CT were quantified using density mask analyses for the whole lung and for individual lobes, and distribution across lobes and strength of correlation with spirometry were compared.


RESULTS
The right middle lobe had the highest %LAAinsp<-950 HU in smokers and controls, and the highest %LAAexp<-856 HU in all three groups. While RML contributed to emphysema and gas trapping disproportionately to its relatively small size, it also showed the least correlation with spirometry. There was no change in correlation of whole lung CT metrics with spirometry when the middle lobe was excluded from analyses. Similarly, RML had the highest %LAAexp<-856 HU while having the least correlation with spirometry.


CONCLUSIONS
Because of the right middle lobe's disproportionate contribution to CT-based emphysema measurements, and low contribution to spirometry, longitudinal studies of emphysema progression may benefit from independent analysis of the middle lobe in whole lung quantitative CT assessments. Our findings may also have implications for heterogeneity assessments and target lobe selection for lung volume reduction.


CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION
ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00608764.
Engineering analytics through explainable deep learning

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Comparison of iron chelation effects of deferoxamine, deferasirox, and combination of deferoxamine and deferiprone on liver and cardiac T2* MRI in thalassemia maior

BACKGROUND
Cardiac complications due to iron overload are the most common cause of death in patients with thalassemia major. The aim of this study was to compare iron chelation effects of deferoxamine, deferasirox, and combination of deferoxamine and deferiprone on cardiac and liver iron load measured by T2* MRI.


METHODS
In this study, 108 patients with thalassemia major aged over 10 years who had iron overload in cardiac T2* MRI were studied in terms of iron chelators efficacy on the reduction of myocardial siderosis. The first group received deferoxamine, the second group only deferasirox, and the third group, a combination of deferoxamine and deferiprone. Myocardial iron was measured at baseline and 12 months later through T2* MRI technique.


RESULTS
The three groups were similar in terms of age, gender, ferritin level, and mean myocardial T2* at baseline. In the deferoxamine group, myocardial T2* was increased from 12.0±4.1 ms at baseline to 13.5±8.4 ms at 12 months (p=0.10). Significant improvement was observed in myocardial T2* of the deferasirox group (p<0.001). In the combined treatment group, myocardial T2* was significantly increased (p<0.001). These differences among the three groups were not significant at the 12 months. A significant improvement was observed in liver T2* at 12 months compared to baseline in the deferasirox and the combination group.


CONCLUSION
In comparison to deferoxamine monotherapy, combination therapy and deferasirox monotherapy have a significant impact on reducing iron overload and improvement of myocardial and liver T2* MRI.
A review of dynamic vehicle routing problems

A number of technological advances have led to a renewed interest on dynamic vehicle routing problems. This survey classifies routing problems from the perspective of information quality and evolution. After presenting a general description of dynamic routing, we introduce the notion of degree of dynamism, and present a comprehensive review of applications and solution methods for dynamic vehicle routing problems. ∗Corresponding author: gueret@mines-nantes.fr