Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Perineuronal Nets Play a Role in Regulating Striatal Function in the Mouse

The striatum is the primary input nucleus of the basal ganglia, a collection of nuclei that play important roles in motor control and associative learning. We have previously reported that perineuronal nets (PNNs), aggregations of chondroitin-sulfate proteoglycans (CSPGs), form in the matrix compartment of the mouse striatum during the second postnatal week. This period overlaps with important developmental changes, including the attainment of an adult-like gait. Here, we investigate the identity of the cells encapsulated by PNNs, characterize their topographical distribution and determine their function by assessing the impact of enzymatic digestion of PNNs on two striatum-dependent behaviors: ambulation and goal-directed spatial learning. We show PNNs are more numerous caudally, and that a substantial fraction (41%) of these structures surrounds parvalbumin positive (PV+) interneurons, while approximately 51% of PV+ cells are ensheathed by PNNs. The colocalization of these structures is greatest in dorsal, lateral and caudal regions of the striatum. Bilateral digestion of striatal PNNs led to an increase in both the width and variability of hind limb gait. Intriguingly, this also resulted in an improvement in the acquisition rate of the Morris water maze. Together, these data show that PNNs are associated with specific elements of striatal circuits and play a key role in regulating the function of this important structure in the mouse.
Discrimination in a Low-Wage Labor Market

Decades of racial progress have led some researchers and policymakers to doubt that discrimination remains an important cause of economic inequality. To study contemporary discrimination, we conducted a field experiment in the low-wage labor market of New York City, recruiting white, black, and Latino job applicants who were matched on demographic characteristics and interpersonal skills. These applicants were given equivalent résumés and sent to apply in tandem for hundreds of entry-level jobs. Our results show that black applicants were half as likely as equally qualified whites to receive a callback or job offer. In fact, black and Latino applicants with clean backgrounds fared no better than white applicants just released from prison. Additional qualitative evidence from our applicants' experiences further illustrates the multiple points at which employment trajectories can be deflected by various forms of racial bias. These results point to the subtle yet systematic forms of discrimination that continue to shape employment opportunities for low-wage workers.
Regional cerebral blood volume during acute transient rises of the intracranial pressure (plateau waves).

T is a well-known fact that progressive intracranial hypertension during one stage of its development is characterized by intermittent, sometimes paroxysmal symptoms. Continuous recording of the ventricular fluid pressure (VFP) in patients with expanding intracranial lesions has shown that such intermittent symptoms coincide with acute temporary rises of the VFP level? 8 The corresponding VFP curve usually follows a specific pattern, characterized by a steep rise to a high level (60-100 mm Hg) and, following some minutes, an often equally steep fall. This gives the curve a plateau-like appearance (Figs. 1-3). The plateau waves have been subjected to extensive clinical studies? ~,13,~s-21 Variations of the VFP curve similar to plateau waves could be provoked by increasing the pressure in the ventricles at ventriculography or by exerting pressure on the region of a skull defect. It was inferred that an induced or spontaneous increase of the intracranial pressure may cause dilatation of cerebral vessels which in turn causes the intracranial pressure to rise further? s By means of simultaneous recording of the cerebral blood flow ~7 and the ventricular fluid pressure combined with cerebral angiography, it was shown that the plateau waves are accompanied by dilatation of cerebral arteries and, at the same time, a decrease of the cerebral blood flow? 9 These findings indicate that during the plateau waves there is an increase of the intracranial blood volume. In general, the studies quoted suggest that the plateau waves may appear indepen
Reporting of consistency of blood pressure control in randomized controlled trials of antihypertensive drugs: a systematic review of 1372 trial reports

Objective: Hypertension is a powerful treatable risk factor for stroke. Reports of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of antihypertensive drugs rightly concentrate on clinical outcomes, but control of blood pressure (BP) during follow-up is also important, particularly given that inconsistent control is associated with a high risk of stroke and that antihypertensive drug classes differ in this regard. Methods: We performed a systematic review of reporting of BP control in RCTs of antihypertensive drugs. We searched bibliographic databases (1950–2009) for systematic reviews of RCTs of BP-lowering and identified the main report of all trials. Results: We identified 94 larger trials (>100 participants/arm, >1-year follow-up) and 1278 smaller/shorter trials. Ninety-one (96.8%) larger trials reported some data on mean BP during follow-up, but none reported effects on the consistency of control of BP over time. Although 81 (86.2%) larger trials reported group distribution of BP at baseline (usually SD), only 22 (23.4%) reported such data at any follow-up visit. Eleven (11.7%) larger trials reported group distribution of the change in BP from baseline to follow-up, but 61 (64.9%) reported no data at all on group distribution of BP at follow-up. Thirty-nine (41.5%) trials reported the proportion of patients reaching some BP target during follow-up, but no trial reported data on the consistency of control to target within individuals over time. Similar proportions were observed in the 1278 smaller/short trials. Conclusion: Reporting of BP control is limited in RCTs of BP-lowering drugs. We suggest reporting guidelines.
Modal analysis of the Uruguayan power system incorporating large-scale wind generation

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the small signal stability of the Uruguayan power system on a short to medium term according to the scenarios for the years 2013-2017, in which the transmission network will undergo major changes: first, the inclusion of large quantities of wind power and secondly, the implementation of major infrastructure projects including the construction of the 500kV line from San Carlos - Melo 500kV and 150kV lines Artigas - Rivera and Tacuarembó - Melo of 150kV. In order to understand the global role that will play the integration of wind power in the small signal stability of power system, Uruguayan scenarios of maximum and minimum demand for the years 2013 and 2017 will be analyzed, considering and without considering the incorporation of wind power.
Quantifying inefficiency in cost-sharing mechanisms

In a cost-sharing problem, several participants with unknown preferences vie to receive some good or service, and each possible outcome has a known cost. A cost-sharing mechanism is a protocol that decides which participants are allocated a good and at what prices. Three desirable properties of a cost-sharing mechanism are: incentive-compatibility, meaning that participants are motivated to bid their true private value for receiving the good; budget-balance, meaning that the mechanism recovers its incurred cost with the prices charged; and economic efficiency, meaning that the cost incurred and the value to the participants are traded off in an optimal way. These three goals have been known to be mutually incompatible for thirty years. Nearly all the work on cost-sharing mechanism design by the economics and computer science communities has focused on achieving two of these goals while completely ignoring the third. We introduce novel measures for quantifying efficiency loss in cost-sharing mechanisms and prove simultaneous approximate budget-balance and approximate efficiency guarantees for mechanisms for a wide range of cost-sharing problems, including all submodular and Steiner tree problems. Our key technical tool is an exact characterization of worst-case efficiency loss in Moulin mechanisms, the dominant paradigm in cost-sharing mechanism design.
Sequences of Cycles and Transitions to Chaos in a Modified Goodwin's Growth Cycle Model

The model introduced by Goodwin [1967] in "A Growth Cycle" represents a milestone in the nonlinear modeling of economic dynamics. On the basis of a few simple assumptions, the Goodwin Model (GM) is formulated exactly as the well-known Lotka–Volterra system, in terms of the two variables "wage share" and "employment rate". A number of extensions have been proposed with the aim to make the model more robust, in particular, to obtain structural stability, lacking in GM original formulation. We propose a new extension that: (a) removes the limiting hypothesis of "Harrod-neutral" technical progress: (b) on the line of Lotka–Volterra models with adaptation, introduces the concept of "memory", which plays a relevant role in the dynamics of economic systems. As a consequence, an additional equation appears, the validity of the model is substantially extended and a rich phenomenology is obtained, in particular, transition to chaotic behavior via period-doubling bifurcations.
Assessment of ${\rm Lu}_{1.8}{\rm Gd}_{0.2}{\rm SiO}_{5}$ (LGSO) Scintillators With APD Readout for PET/SPECT/CT Detectors

Fusion of functional PET or SPECT images and anatomical X-ray CT images would ideally be performed using data recorded concurrently with the same detection system under all three modalities to avoid inaccurate co-registration due to patient movements and normal physiological processes like respiratory motion. One possible approach to achieve this goal is to use an avalanche photodiode (APD) based scintillation detection system. Requirements on scintillators for such an application are high density and high timing resolution for PET, good energy resolution for SPECT, large light output and fast scintillation decay time for counting mode X-ray CT. The purpose of this work is to investigate new Lu1.8Gd0. 2SiO5:Ce (LGSO) scintillators with improved performance developed purposely for PET applications, but having suitable characteristics for SPECT and CT detection. LGSO with 90% Lu content has high density (7.3 g/cc), large light output (90-120% of Nal), good energy resolution (~10 - 12% @ 511 keV), and fast decay time that can be adjusted from 34 to 45 ns by varying Ce concentration. In this work, LGSO with 0.025, 0.15 and 0.75 mol% Ce was assessed with APD readout for PET/SPECT/CT applications by measuring energy spectra at 511 keV (PET), 140 keV (SPECT) and 60 keV (CT), and timing resolution in reference to a fast plastic scintillator. LGSO-APD detectors can be considered as promising candidates for combined multimodality imaging scanners.
Discourse analysis: A reference approach to investigating a good speech script

The purpose of this study was to investigate a good speech script by examining the types and functions of references in Joe Biden’s victory speech using Hasan and Halliday’s theory. The use of references is crucial for avoiding misunderstandings and effectively conveying information from sentences. This study used content analysis as a descriptive-qualitative method. The data used in this study consisted of Joe Biden’s speech script as president of the United States of America. According to Halliday and Hasan’s theory, there are three types of references: personal, demonstrative and comparative. Anaphora and cataphora are the two types of reference functions. The researchers followed Creswell’s concept in collecting and analyzing the data. Identification of the references used in Joe Biden's victory speech, classification of the references' types, data analysis (marking each reference that appears in the video), classification of terms that contain reference words in the video, assignment of codes to each reference category (personal, demonstrative and reference) and finally an explanation of the purposes of the references used in Joe Biden's victory speech were all aspects of the process. The results revealed that the speech script contained 395 instances of references including 236 instances (60%) of personal pronouns, 152 instances (38.5%) of demonstrative references, 7 instances (1.5%) of comparative references and 198 instances of reference functions with 128 instances (64.5%) being anaphora and 70 instances (35.5%) being cataphora. It is intended that this research will serve as a guide for others to use while speaking in order to reduce misunderstandings and improve the effectiveness of information.
Interaction of Classical Swine Fever Virus with Membrane-Associated Heparan Sulfate: Role for Virus Replication In Vivo and Virulence

ABSTRACT Passage of native classical swine fever virus (CSFV) in cultured swine kidney cells (SK6 cells) selects virus variants that attach to the surface of cells by interaction with membrane-associated heparan sulfate (HS). A Ser-to-Arg change in the C terminus of envelope glycoprotein Erns (amino acid 476 in the open reading frame of CSFV) is responsible for selection of these HS-binding virus variants (M. M. Hulst, H. G. P. van Gennip, and R. J. M. Moormann, J. Virol. 74:9553–9561, 2000). In this investigation we studied the role of binding of CSFV to HS in vivo. Using reverse genetics, an HS-independent recombinant virus (S-ST virus) with Ser476 and an HS-dependent recombinant virus (S-RT virus) with Arg476 were constructed. Animal experiments indicated that this adaptive Ser-to-Arg mutation had no effect on the virulence of CSFV. Analysis of viruses reisolated from pigs infected with these recombinant viruses indicated that replication in vivo introduced no mutations in the genes of the envelope proteins Erns, E1, and E2. However, the blood of one of the three pigs infected with the S-RT virus contained also a low level of virus particles that, when grown under a methylcellulose overlay, produced relative large plaques, characteristic of an HS-independent virus. Sequence analysis of such a large-plaque phenotype showed that Arg476 was mutated back to Ser476. Removal of HS from the cell surface and addition of heparin to the medium inhibited infection of cultured (SK6) and primary swine kidney cells with S-ST virus reisolated from pigs by about 70% whereas infection with the administered S-ST recombinant virus produced in SK6 cells was not affected. Furthermore, Erns S-ST protein, produced in insect cells, could bind to immobilized heparin and to HS chains on the surface of SK6 cells. These results indicated that S-ST virus generated in pigs is able to infect cells by an HS-dependent mechanism. Binding of concanavalin A (ConA) to virus particles stimulated the infection of SK6 cells with S-ST virus produced in these cells by 12-fold; in contrast, ConA stimulated infection with S-ST virus generated in pigs no more than 3-fold. This suggests that the surface properties of S-ST virus reisolated from pigs are distinct from those of S-ST virus produced in cell culture. We postulate that due to these surface properties, in vivo-generated CSFV is able to infect cells by an HS-dependent mechanism. Infection studies with the HS-dependent S-RT virus, however, indicated that interaction with HS did not mediate infection of lung macrophages, indicating that alternative receptors are also involved in the attachment of CSFV to cells.
Disease course and outcome of 15 monocentrically treated natalizumab-associated progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy patients

Objective Although the prognosis of natalizumab-associated progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) seems to be better than HIV-associated PML, little is known about the long-term functional outcome in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients and the subsequent return of MS disease activity. We evaluated retrospectively 15 patients with natalizumab-associated PML treated at our centre. Patients and methods Fifteen MS-PML patients (nine women, six men) were referred to us from adjacent local centres. The patients had a median natalizumab exposure of 34 months at PML diagnosis. They received standardised treatment as described in previous work. Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) and Karnofsky score in the year pre-PML, at PML-diagnosis (pre-immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS)) and post-PML were determined in 3–6 monthly intervals. Results The median follow-up of these 15 patients was 21.5 months. None of the 15 patients died. Three patients had a Karnofsky score of 80 or higher, nine patients between 50–70 and three patients of 40 or lower at latest examination. Eight of the 15 patients developed seizures during acute PML phase. Fifty percent of those patients were not seizure-free one year post PML, despite continuation of antiepileptic treatment. The median EDSS in the year pre-PML was 2.5, 4.5 at PML diagnosis, 6.5 post-IRIS and 5.5 at latest examination. CSF became virus-free in eight of the 15 patients after a median time of 4.5 months. In nine patients, disease reappeared after a median time of seven months from PML diagnosis. Conclusions Although the clinical outcome of natalizumab-treated PML patients is much better than in patients with HIV-associated PML, this may be further improved by treatment at reference centres using standardised therapy regimens and transient intensive care if needed. Systematic studies of appropriate MS immunotherapies after PML are critically needed.
Agent-Based Models of Financial Markets: A Comparison with Experimental Markets

We construct a computer simulation of a repeated double-auction market, designed to match those in experimental-market settings with human subjects, to model complex interactions among artificially-intelligent traders endowed with varying degrees of learning capabilities. In the course of six different experimental designs, we investigate a number of features of our agent-based model: the price efficiency of the market, the speed at which prices converge to the rational expectations equilibrium price, the dynamics of the distribution of wealth among the different types of AI-agents, trading volume, bid/ask spreads, and other aspects of market dynamics. We are able to replicate several endings of human-based experimental markets, however, we also and intriguing differences between agent-based and human-based experiments.
Do You See What I See? Using Visual Framing to Support the Protection and Preservation of Antarctica and the Southern Ocean

Research on the meta-communication concept of ‘framing’ has demonstrated that people can respond very differently to ideas, policies or even identical data when it is framed in different ways. To date most research on framing has focused on language. The primary objectives of this research were to explore whether visual imagery presented in combination with powerful written stimulus had any impact on: a) the degree to which people believed Antarctica and the Southern Ocean were regions that should be preserved and protected from irreversible damage (salience), and b) their propensity to financially support well-known, notfor-profit (NFP) organisations that aim to protect and preserve Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. Secondary objectives included whether visual framing influenced perceptions of: 1) specific threats to these regions, 2) mitigation priorities, and 3) the effectiveness of taking various actions to protect and preserve Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. To examine these questions, we constructed five self-complete, on-line surveys that were emailed to 15,929 currently inactive World Wide Fund for Nature (Australia) financial supporters. Approximately 2% (n=307) were completed and returned. Results from this study showed no statistically significant differences on the primary or secondary measures. Whether this was due to the sample size being too small, the lack of variation across the sample in key measures, bias or moderating factors being at play, or whether the visual frames devised for this research were not potent enough, is unclear. Further research using different visual frames, or the same visual frames to more people or a broader, potentially less biased segment of the community is recommended. Do you see what I see? Using visual framing to support the preservation and protection of Antarctica and the Southern Ocean A REPORT COMPILED BY HEATHER KILEY AS PART OF THE COURSE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE POST-GRADUATE CERTIFICATE IN ANTARCTIC STUDIES, UNIVERSITY OF CANTERBURY, 2014. Report compiled by: Heather Kiley as part of the course requirements for the Post-graduate Certificate in Antarctic Studies, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, NZ. Acknowledgments: Thanks are extended to Doug Gimesy (The Framing Effect), Daniela Liggett (University of Canterbury) and Gary Steel (Lincoln University) for their valuable guidance and assistance in the planning and preparation of this research project. The author gratefully acknowledges the support of Stuart Vawser (Vawser & Associates), World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and SMP survey software for advice, and facilitation of the data collection and analysis. Submitted March 7, 2014.
Systematic design of an extractive distillation for maximum‐boiling azeotropes with heavy entrainers

Extractive distillation is one of the most attractive approaches for separating azeotropic mixtures. Few contributions have been reported to design an extractive distillation for separating maximum-boiling azeotropes and no systematic approaches for entrainer screening have been presented. A systematic approach to design of two-column extractive distillation for separating azeotropes with heavy entrainers has been proposed. A thermodynamic feasibility analysis for azeotropes with potential heavy entrainers was first conducted. Then, five important properties are selected for entrainer evaluation. Fuzzy logic and develop membership functions to calculate attribute values of selected properties have been used. An overall indicator for entrainer evaluation is proposed and a ranking list is generated. Finally, the top five entrainers from the ranking list have been selected and use process optimization techniques to further evaluate selected entrainers and generate an optimal design. The capability of the proposed method is illustrated using the separation of acetone–chloroform azeotropes with five potential entrainers.
Autographa californica Multiple Nucleopolyhedrovirus Core Gene ac96 Encodes a Per Os Infectivity Factor (pif-4)

ABSTRACT Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV) ac96 is a core gene, but its role in virus replication is still unknown. To determine its role in the baculovirus life cycle, we used the AcMNPV bacmid system to generate an ac96-null virus (vAc96null). Our analyses showed that the absence of ac96 does not affect budded virus (BV) production or viral DNA replication in infected Sf9 cells. Western blotting and confocal immunofluorescence analysis showed that AC96 is expressed in both the cytoplasm and the nucleus throughout infection. In addition, AC96 was detected in the envelope fractions of both BV and occlusion-derived virus. Injection of vAc96null BV into the hemocoel killed Trichoplusia ni larvae as efficiently as repaired and control viruses; however, vAc96null was unable to infect the midgut tissue of Trichoplusia ni larvae when inoculated per os. Therefore, the results of this study show that ac96 encodes a new per os infectivity factor (PIF-4).