Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Solution To Multi-Depot Vehicle Routing Problem Using Genetic Algorithms - TI Journals

Abstract: The Multi-Depot Vehicle Routing Problem (MDVRP), an extension of classical VRP, is a NP-hard problem for simultaneously determining the routes for several vehicles from multiple depots to a set of customers and then return to the same depot. The objective of the problem is to find routes for vehicles to service all the customers at a minimal cost in terms of number of routes and total travel distance, without violating the capacity and travel time constraints of the vehicles. The solution to the MDVRP, in this paper, is obtained through Genetic Algorithm (GA). The customers are grouped based on distance to their nearest depots and then routed with Clarke and Wright saving method. Further the routes are scheduled and optimized using GA. A set of five different Cordeau’s benchmark instances (p01, p02, p03, p04, p06) from the online resource of University of Malaga, Spain were experimented using MATLAB R2008b software. The results were evaluated in terms of depot’s route length, optimal route, optimal distance, computational time, average distance, and number of vehicles. Comparison of the experimental results with state-of-the-art techniques shows that the performance of GA is feasible and effective for solving the multi-depot vehicle routing problem.
Cloned multipotential precursors from the mouse cerebrum require FGF-2, whereas glial restricted precursors are stimulated with either FGF-2 or EGF

Fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF-2) and epidermal growth factor (EGF) have both been reported to stimulate precursors in the developing CNS. To clarify these effects, we used clonal analysis to determine the lineage potential of precursors stimulated with each factor, at two stages of development. It was found that in cells isolated from the cerebrum of embryonic day 17 (E17) mice, FGF-2 stimulated both a multipotential precursor, which gave rise to neurons and astrocytes, and a committed glial precursor. In contrast, EGF only stimulated the glial restricted precursor. Thus, it appears that the multipotential cell, previously identified to be present at E10, remains selectively responsive to FGF-2, and that the EGF responsiveness observed at E17 reflects the presence of a new restricted class of precursors, rather than a switch in factor specificity of the multipotential cell.
Increased Levels of Serum Interleukin-17 in Patients with Hashimoto's Thyroiditis

Background: CD4+ T-cells play important roles in the pathogenesis of Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT). However, there is limited data about characteristics and function of the newly interleukin (IL)-17–producing T-helper cells in this common autoimmune thyroid disorder. Aim: The purpose of this study was to assess the levels of T-helper 17-related cytokines in sera of patients with HT. Materials and Methods: Cytokine concentrations were measured in 48 patients with overt (n = 23) and subclinical hypothyroidism (25) and 35 healthy controls using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results: The serum levels of IL-17 were significantly higher in patients than controls (P = 0.001) while no differences were observed with regard to levels of IL-22 and IL-23 between patients and normal controls. Conclusion: These results suggest that IL-17 could play some role in the pathogenesis of HT.
Bistate Frequency Selective Surfaces Made of Intertwined Slot Arrays

Novel arrangements of active frequency selective surfaces (AFSSs) with integrated voltage control wiring are proposed for bistate (transparency/reflectance) operation at specified frequencies. The AFSSs are comprised of passive arrays of intertwined patterns of slots in a conductor screen and an active dipole array with p-i-n diodes placed on either the same or opposite sides of a thin dielectric substrate. Simulation and measurement results show that such AFSSs exhibit good isolation (~15 dB) between the translucency and reflection states at normal incidence that slightly decreases at oblique incidence. The proposed AFSSs maintain the high angular and polarization stability over broad fractional bandwidths inherent to the constituent periodic arrays of intertwined conductor patterns with substantially subwavelength unit cells. The merits of these AFSS arrangements also include resilience to parasitic effects of real switches, whose insertion loss in the ON state only enhances the AFSS ON/OFF isolation. Such AFSSs are essential elements for reconfiguring and controlling the electromagnetic architecture of buildings.
RNAs synthesized using photocleavable biotinylated nucleotides have dramatically improved catalytic efficiency

Obtaining homogeneous population of natively folded RNAs is a crippling problem encountered when preparing RNAs for structural or enzymatic studies. Most of the traditional methods that are employed to prepare large quantities of RNAs involve procedures that partially denature the RNA. Here, we present a simple strategy using ‘click’ chemistry to couple biotin to a ‘caged’ photocleavable (PC) guanosine monophosphate (GMP) in high yield. This biotin-PC GMP, accepted by T7 RNA polymerase, has been used to transcribe RNAs ranging in size from 27 to 527 nt. Furthermore we show, using an in-gel fluorescence assay, that natively prepared 160 and 175 kDa minimal group II intron ribozymes have enhanced catalytic activity over the same RNAs, purified via denaturing conditions and refolded. We conclude that large complex RNAs prepared by non-denaturing means form a homogeneous population and are catalytically more active than those prepared by denaturing methods and subsequent refolding; this facile approach for native RNA preparation should benefit synthesis of RNAs for biophysical and therapeutic applications.
Prenatal exposure to morphine alters kinetic properties of NMDA receptor‐mediated synaptic currents in the hippocampus of rat offspring

Whole‐cell patch‐clamp recordings of pharmacologically isolated N‐methyl‐D‐asparate (NMDA) receptor‐mediated evoked excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSCs) were made, to study whether prenatal exposure to morphine affected functional properties of synaptic NMDA receptors in hippocampal slices of 2‐week‐old rat offspring from morphine‐addicted mothers. The saturated amplitude of synaptic NMDA receptor‐mediated EPSCs from morphine‐treated offspring was about twofold larger than that from vehicle‐control offspring. The apparent dissociation constant (Kd) values of NMDA receptors for Mg2+ at 0 mV were 7.5 ± 1.4 and 7.9 ± 1.3 mM in slices from vehicle‐control and morphine‐treated offspring, respectively. In addition, no distinguishable changes in the voltage‐dependent nature and the reversal potential of NMDA receptors occurred in morphine‐treated offspring, suggesting no alterations of Mg2+ blockade and ion selectivity to NMDA receptors. The 10–90% rise times of NMDA receptor‐mediated EPSCs in morphine‐treated offspring became longer than those in vehicle‐control offspring. The decay of NMDA receptor‐mediated EPSCs in both morphine‐treated and vehicle‐control offspring could be described by the sum of a fast and a slow exponential function. The slow, but not fast, decay times of synaptic NMDA receptor‐mediated currents in morphine‐treated offspring became slower than those in vehicle‐control offspring. Collectively, these results suggest that prenatal exposure to morphine altered kinetic properties of synaptic NMDA receptors in hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neurons of rat offspring during early life. The extended duration of synaptic NMDA receptor‐mediated currents presumably provided more Ca2+ entry through NMDA receptors in morphine‐treated offspring, and its further prolongation by depolarization in such young offspring strengthened NMDA receptor‐dependent functions. Thus, in light of pathophysiological implications within the central nervous system of morphine‐treated offspring during early life, the present study may provide important insights and serve as a basis for therapeutic intervention in conditions under which NMDA receptors become abnormal. Hippocampus 2000;10:654–662. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Disruption of Interdomain Interactions in the Glutamate Binding Pocket Affects Differentially Agonist Affinity and Efficacy of N-methyl-d-aspartate Receptor Activation*

In ionotropic glutamate receptors, agonist binding occurs in a conserved clam shell-like domain composed of the two lobes D1 and D2. Docking of glutamate into the binding cleft promotes rotation in the hinge region of the two lobes, resulting in closure of the binding pocket, which is thought to represent a prerequisite for channel gating. Here, we disrupted D1D2 interlobe interactions in the NR2A subunit of N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptors through systematic mutation of individual residues and studied the influence on the activation kinetics of currents from NR1/NR2 NMDA receptors heterologously expressed in HEK cells. We show that the mutations affect differentially glutamate binding and channel gating, depending on their location within the binding domain, mainly by altering koff and kcl, respectively. Whereas impaired stability of glutamate in its binding site is the only effect of mutations on one side of the ligand binding pocket, close to the hinge region, alterations in gating are the predominant consequence of mutations on the opposite side, at the entrance of the binding pocket. A mutation increasing D1D2 interaction at the entrance of the pocket resulted in an NMDA receptor with an increased open probability as demonstrated by single channel and whole cell kinetic analysis. Thus, the results indicate that agonist-induced binding domain closure is itself a complex process, certain aspects of which are coupled either to binding or to gating. Specifically, we propose that late steps of domain closure, in kinetic terms, represent part of channel gating.
Safety and Feasibility of a Minimally Fluoroscopic Approach for Ventricular Tachycardia Ablation in Patients With Structural Heart Disease: Influence of the Ventricular Tachycardia Substrate

Background—We sought to evaluate the safety and feasibility of a minimally fluoroscopic approach using the CARTOUNIVU module during scar-related ventricular tachycardia (VT) ablation. Methods and Results—Consecutive patients with structural heart disease undergoing VT ablation using the CARTOUNIVU module were prospectively included and classified depending on their VT substrate: (1) ischemic VT (IVT) and (2) nonischemic VT and depending on the presence of an epicardial access. Radiation exposure parameters and major and minor procedure-related complications were registered. A near-zero fluoroscopy exposure was defined as those procedures with an effective dose ⩽1 mSv. A total of 44 VT ablation procedures were performed in 41 patients (22 IVT and 19 nonischemic VT). The use of the CARTOUNIVU module resulted in low levels of radiation exposure: median total fluoroscopy time and effective dose of 6.08 (1.51–12.36) minutes and 2.15 (0.58–8.22) mSv, respectively. Patients with IVT had lower radiation exposure than patients with nonischemic VT (total fluoroscopy time, 2.53 [1.22–11.22] versus 8.51 [5.55–17.34] minutes; P=0.016). Epicardial access was associated with significantly higher levels of radiation exposure. Complications occurred in 4.9% patients, none of them being related to the use of the image integration tool. A near-zero fluoroscopy ablation could be performed in 14 of 44 procedures (32%), 43% of IVT procedures, and 50% of procedures with endocardial access only. Conclusions—The use of the CARTOUNIVU module during scar-related VT ablation resulted in low levels of radiation exposure. A near-zero fluoroscopy approach can be achieved in up to half of the procedures, especially in IVT patients with endocardial ablation.
QUANTIFIED INTUITIONISTIC LOGIC OVER METRIZABLE SPACES

Abstract In the topological semantics, quantified intuitionistic logic, QH, is known to be strongly complete not only for the class of all topological spaces but also for some particular topological spaces — for example, for the irrational line, ${\Bbb P}$, and for the rational line, ${\Bbb Q}$, in each case with a constant countable domain for the quantifiers. Each of ${\Bbb P}$ and ${\Bbb Q}$ is a separable zero-dimensional dense-in-itself metrizable space. The main result of the current article generalizes these known results: QH is strongly complete for any zero-dimensional dense-in-itself metrizable space with a constant domain of cardinality ≤ the space’s weight; consequently, QH is strongly complete for any separable zero-dimensional dense-in-itself metrizable space with a constant countable domain. We also prove a result that follows from earlier work of Moerdijk: if we allow varying domains for the quantifiers, then QH is strongly complete for any dense-in-itself metrizable space with countable domains.
On 'A Kalman Filter-Based Algorithm for IMU-Camera Calibration: Observability Analysis and Performance Evaluation'

The above-mentioned work [1] in IEEE-TR'08 presented an extended Kalman filter for calibrating the misalignment between a camera and an IMU. As one of the main contributions, the locally weakly observable analysis was carried out using Lie derivatives. The seminal paper [1] is undoubtedly the cornerstone of current observability work in SLAM and a number of real SLAM systems have been developed on the observability result of this paper, such as [2, 3]. However, the main observability result of this paper [1] is founded on an incorrect proof and actually cannot be acquired using the local observability technique therein, a fact that is apparently not noticed by the SLAM community over a number of years.
Dark matter annihilation or unresolved astrophysical sources? Anisotropy probe of the origin of the cosmic gamma-ray background

The origin of the cosmic gamma-ray background (CGB) is a longstanding mystery in high-energy astrophysics. Possible candidates include ordinary astrophysical objects such as unresolved blazars, as well as more exotic processes such as dark matter annihilation. While it would be difficult to distinguish them from the mean intensity data alone, one can use anisotropy data instead. We investigate the CGB anisotropy both from unresolved blazars and dark matter annihilation (including contributions from dark matter substructures), and we find that the angular power spectra from these sources are very different. We then focus on detectability of dark matter annihilation signals using the anisotropy data by treating the unresolved blazar component as a known background. We find that the dark matter signature should be detectable in the angular power spectrum of the CGB from two-year all-sky observations with the Gamma Ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST), as long as the dark matter annihilation contributes to a reasonable fraction, e.g., >~0.3, of the CGB at around 10 GeV. We conclude that the anisotropy measurement of the CGB with GLAST should be a powerful tool for revealing the CGB origin, and potentially for the first detection of dark matter annihilation.
Efficient Seed Utilization for Reseeding based Compression *

1 One of the main drawbacks of the conventional reseeding architecture is the limited seed efficiency due to the variance in the number of specified bits per vector. This paper proposes a new LFSR reseeding architecture that essentially solves this problem, resulting in a significant compression ratio. The compression ratio is very close to the entropy in terms of #total bits / #specified bits. The technique is applied on two industrial designs resulting in a compression ratio of 33x (with a seed efficiency of 95%), whereas the conventional reseeding architecture resulted in only 2x (with a seed efficiency of only 50%).
PlantMiRNAPred: efficient classification of real and pseudo plant pre-miRNAs

MOTIVATION MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a set of short (21-24 nt) non-coding RNAs that play significant roles as post-transcriptional regulators in animals and plants. While some existing methods use comparative genomic approaches to identify plant precursor miRNAs (pre-miRNAs), others are based on the complementarity characteristics between miRNAs and their target mRNAs sequences. However, they can only identify the homologous miRNAs or the limited complementary miRNAs. Furthermore, since the plant pre-miRNAs are quite different from the animal pre-miRNAs, all the ab initio methods for animals cannot be applied to plants. Therefore, it is essential to develop a method based on machine learning to classify real plant pre-miRNAs and pseudo genome hairpins. RESULTS A novel classification method based on support vector machine (SVM) is proposed specifically for predicting plant pre-miRNAs. To make efficient prediction, we extract the pseudo hairpin sequences from the protein coding sequences of Arabidopsis thaliana and Glycine max, respectively. These pseudo pre-miRNAs are extracted in this study for the first time. A set of informative features are selected to improve the classification accuracy. The training samples are selected according to their distributions in the high-dimensional sample space. Our classifier PlantMiRNAPred achieves >90% accuracy on the plant datasets from eight plant species, including A.thaliana, Oryza sativa, Populus trichocarpa, Physcomitrella patens, Medicago truncatula, Sorghum bicolor, Zea mays and G.max. The superior performance of the proposed classifier can be attributed to the extracted plant pseudo pre-miRNAs, the selected training dataset and the carefully selected features. The ability of PlantMiRNAPred to discern real and pseudo pre-miRNAs provides a viable method for discovering new non-homologous plant pre-miRNAs.
Structural Snapshots of Heparin Depolymerization by Heparin Lyase I*

Heparin lyase I (heparinase I) specifically depolymerizes heparin, cleaving the glycosidic linkage next to iduronic acid. Here, we show the crystal structures of heparinase I from Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron at various stages of the reaction with heparin oligosaccharides before and just after cleavage and product disaccharide. The heparinase I structure is comprised of a β-jellyroll domain harboring a long and deep substrate binding groove and an unusual thumb-resembling extension. This thumb, decorated with many basic residues, is of particular importance in activity especially on short heparin oligosaccharides. Unexpected structural similarity of the active site to that of heparinase II with an (α/α)6 fold is observed. Mutational studies and kinetic analysis of this enzyme provide insights into the catalytic mechanism, the substrate recognition, and processivity.
Angiosperm-like pollen and Afropollis from the Middle Triassic (Anisian) of the Germanic Basin (Northern Switzerland)

Here we report on angiosperm-like pollen and Afropollis from the Anisian (Middle Triassic, 247.2–242.0 Ma) of a mid-latitudinal site in Northern Switzerland. Small monosulcate pollen grains with typical reticulate (semitectate) sculpture, columellate structure of the sexine and thin nexine show close similarities to early angiosperm pollen known from the Early Cretaceous. However, they differ in their extremely thin inner layer (nexine). Six different pollen types (I–VI) are differentiated based on size, reticulation pattern, and exine structure. The described pollen grains show all the essential features of angiosperm pollen. However, considering the lack of a continuous record throughout the lower part of the Mesozoic and the comparison with the oldest Cretaceous finds we suggest an affinity to an angiosperm stem group. Together with the previously published records from the Middle Triassic of the Barents Sea area the angiosperm-like pollen grains reflect a considerable diversity of the parent plants during the Middle Triassic. Sedimentological evidence and associated palynofloras also suggest a remarkable ecological range for these plants. Associated with these grains we found pollen comparable to the genus Afropollis. Representatives of this genus are commonly recorded in Lower Cretaceous sediments of low latitudes, but until now had no record from the lower part of the Mesozoic.
Photodegradation of ciprofloxacin in water using photocatalyst of zinc oxide nanowires doped with copper and cerium oxides

Antibiotic pollution via wastewaters has led to many environmental problems. In this work, to remove ciprofloxacin which is an antibiotic from water, foil photocatalyst of zinc oxide nanowires doped with copper and cerium oxides was applied under UV light irradiation. An empirical model was developed to determine the photocatalyst activity using response surface methodology. The independent variables were the concentrations of precursors, copper and cerium nitrates in the coating solution. The F‐value and p‐value of the model showed the accuracy of the model. The statistical analysis indicated that copper oxide had larger effect on the response than cerium oxide. The optimized catalyst was determined and characterized using ICP, XRD, SEM and MIP techniques. The results of this work which are comparable to those of the previous studies have the advantage of easy separation of the photocatalyst from water without using a centrifuge.
Basal carcinoma of the breast revisited: an old entity with new interpretations

The introduction of global gene expression analysis in breast cancer research has focused attention onto a repeatedly described subgroup of invasive breast cancer, the basal-like carcinomas. This subgroup is characterised by the expression of high-molecular weight cytokeratins 5, 14 and 17; using immunohistochemical diagnosis, it represents approximately 7–20% of invasive breast cancers. Some of these tumours fulfil the criteria of grade 3 invasive ductal carcinoma, the so-called triple negative carcinomas. However, other rare subgroups of metaplastic, medullary and myoepithelial carcinomas also belong to this entity. Even though the initial clinical prognostic relevance of basal-like breast cancers may have been overestimated, its distinctive biology generates many questions regarding the pathogenesis, chemosensitivity and optimal clinical management of this subgroup. Physiological progenitor cells within the normal female breast share essential immunohistochemical features with basal-like breast cancers. Although the exact relationship between subgroups of normal breast cells and their respective malignant counterparts is still under investigation, the major hallmarks of physiological progenitor cells are either maintained or reactivated by distinct genetic changes in basal breast cancer cells. This review will discuss the impact of these findings on our global understanding of breast cancer pathogenesis, especially from the perspective of its potential histogenesis. Clinical consequences and potential future research directions driven by the definition of basal breast cancers will also be discussed.
Gnothi: Separating Data and Metadata for Efficient and Available Storage Replication

This paper describes Gnothi, a block replication system that separates data from metadata to provide efficient and available storage replication. Separating data from metadata allows Gnothi to execute disk accesses on subsets of replicas while using fully replicated metadata to ensure that requests are executed correctly and to speed up recovery of slow or failed replicas. Performance evaluation shows that Gnothi can achieve 40-64% higher write throughput than previous work and significantly save storage space. Furthermore, while a failed replica recovers, Gnothi can provide about 100- 200% higher throughput, while still retaining the same recovery time and while guaranteeing that recovery eventually completes.