Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Spectral Regression Based Fault Feature Extraction for Bearing Accelerometer Sensor Signals

Bearings are not only the most important element but also a common source of failures in rotary machinery. Bearing fault prognosis technology has been receiving more and more attention recently, in particular because it plays an increasingly important role in avoiding the occurrence of accidents. Therein, fault feature extraction (FFE) of bearing accelerometer sensor signals is essential to highlight representative features of bearing conditions for machinery fault diagnosis and prognosis. This paper proposes a spectral regression (SR)-based approach for fault feature extraction from original features including time, frequency and time-frequency domain features of bearing accelerometer sensor signals. SR is a novel regression framework for efficient regularized subspace learning and feature extraction technology, and it uses the least squares method to obtain the best projection direction, rather than computing the density matrix of features, so it also has the advantage in dimensionality reduction. The effectiveness of the SR-based method is validated experimentally by applying the acquired vibration signals data to bearings. The experimental results indicate that SR can reduce the computation cost and preserve more structure information about different bearing faults and severities, and it is demonstrated that the proposed feature extraction scheme has an advantage over other similar approaches.
ULTRASONIC PULSE ATTENUATION AS A MEASURE OF DAMAGE GROWTH DURING CYCLIC LOADING OF CONCRETE

The paper presents experimental results of damage growth during cyclic loading of concrete. The damage growth is inferred from the reduction in amplitude of ultrasonic waveforms transmitted through the specimen during the test. The amplitude of the waveform, by virtue of its higher sensitivity to the extent of cracking, is found to be a better indicator of crack growth than the more often used pulse velocity technique. A continuous recording of pulse transmission throughout the tests is obtained by using a pulse generator, a digital oscilloscope, and a microcomputer. A specially constructed frame is used to hold the transducers in contact with the specimen during the test. The damage accumulation during cyclic loading as inferred from the attenuation results is presented by several mix proportions.
Activation and Transfer of the Chromosomal Phage Resistance Mechanism AbiV in Lactococcus lactis

ABSTRACT AbiV is a chromosomally encoded phage resistance mechanism that is silent in the wild-type phage-sensitive strain Lactococcus lactis subsp. cremoris MG1363. Spontaneous phage-resistant mutants of L. lactis MG1363 were analyzed by reverse transcriptase PCR and shown to express AbiV. This expression was related to a reorganization in the upstream region of abiV. Transfer of abiV between two lactococcal strains, most likely by conjugation, was also demonstrated. To our knowledge, this is the first report of natural transfer of a chromosomally encoded phage resistance mechanism.
Coupling Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress to the Cell Death Program

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is the site of assembly of polypeptide chains destined for secretion or routing into various subcellular compartments. It also regulates cellular responses to stress and intracellular Ca2+ levels. A variety of toxic insults can result in ER stress that ultimately leads to apoptosis. Apoptosis is initiated by the activation of members of the caspase family and serves as a central mechanism in the cell death process. The present study was carried out to determine the role of caspases in triggering ER stress-induced cell death. Treatment of cells with ER stress inducers such as brefeldin-A or thapsigargin induces the expression of caspase-12 protein and also leads to translocation of cytosolic caspase-7 to the ER surface. Caspase-12, like most other members of the caspase family, requires cleavage of the prodomain to activate its proapoptotic form. Caspase-7 associates with caspase-12 and cleaves the prodomain to generate active caspase-12, resulting in increased cell death. We propose that any cellular insult that causes prolonged ER stress may induce apoptosis through caspase-7-mediated caspase-12 activation. The data underscore the involvement of ER and caspases associated with it in the ER stress-induced apoptotic process.
An analytic solution to discrete Bayesian reinforcement learning

Reinforcement learning (RL) was originally proposed as a framework to allow agents to learn in an online fashion as they interact with their environment. Existing RL algorithms come short of achieving this goal because the amount of exploration required is often too costly and/or too time consuming for online learning. As a result, RL is mostly used for offline learning in simulated environments. We propose a new algorithm, called BEETLE, for effective online learning that is computationally efficient while minimizing the amount of exploration. We take a Bayesian model-based approach, framing RL as a partially observable Markov decision process. Our two main contributions are the analytical derivation that the optimal value function is the upper envelope of a set of multivariate polynomials, and an efficient point-based value iteration algorithm that exploits this simple parameterization.
Quantification of white spot lesions around orthodontic brackets with image analysis.

OBJECTIVE To investigate the use of image analysis for diagnosis and quantification of artificial white spot lesions on digital photographs before and after removal of orthodontic brackets. MATERIALS AND METHODS Enamel demineralization was artificially induced on the labial surface of 20 teeth bonded with orthodontic brackets. Standardized digital photographs were taken at angles of 90 degrees and 110 degrees to the labial surface, before and after bracket removal. All images were analyzed by two observers using image-processing software, and the area of the white spot lesion was calculated. Reproducibility was assessed by the Pearson correlation coefficient for interobserver reliability and by the paired t-test for differences between observers. Differences between the known and the measured demineralization area were tested using the t-test. Differences between both stages and angles were assessed by application of the paired t-test. RESULTS Reproducibility was very good for all measurements. For the photographs taken at an angle of 110 degrees , there was a statistically significant but clinically irrelevant difference between the observers. The difference between the surface measured and the true surface was dependent on the stages and angles but was always <1 mm2. CONCLUSION Image analysis is a reproducible and reliable method for quantification of artificial enamel demineralization around orthodontic brackets.
Variations Between Countries in Outcome After Stroke in the International Stroke Trial (IST)

Background and Purpose— This study describes the large variations in outcome after stroke between countries that participated in the International Stroke Trial and seeks to define whether they could be explained by variations in case mix or by other factors. Methods— We analyzed data from the 15 116 patients recruited in Argentina, Australia, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. We compared crude case fatality and the proportion of patients dead or dependent at 6 months; we used logistic regression to adjust for age, sex, atrial fibrillation, systolic blood pressure, level of consciousness, and number of neurological deficits. We used the frequency of prerandomization head CT scan and prescription of aspirin at discharge to indicate quality of care. Results— The differences in outcome (all treatment groups combined) between the “best” and “worst” countries were very large for death (171 cases per 1000 patients) and for death or dependency (375 cases per 1000 patients). The differences were somewhat smaller after adjustment for case mix (160 and 311 cases per 1000 patients, respectively). Process of care may have accounted for some but not all of the residual variation in outcome. Conclusions— Adjustment for case mix explained only some of the variation in outcome between countries. The residual differences in outcome were too large to be explained by variations in care and most likely reflect differences in unmeasured baseline factors. These findings demonstrate the need to achieve balance of treatment and control within each country in multinational randomized controlled stroke trials and the need for caution in the interpretation of nonrandomized comparisons of outcome after stroke between countries.
Autonomic function tests during pre and post menstrual phases in young women.

Women undergo many types of behavioral and hormonal changes especially during reproductive life. Besides reproductive changes there are cyclical fluctuations in various functions of body systems. Autonomic Nervous System provides physiological adaptive background for these changes. The main aim of this study is to carry out standard autonomic function tests during various phases of menstrual cycle and also to assess significance of autonomic function tests . This study was carried out in two different phases of menstrual cycle viz. premenstrual phase ( late luteal phase-LL) and post menstrual phase (early follicular phase–EF). In the present study, responses to various sympathetic tests were significantly altered in premenstrual phase as compare to that of postmenstrual phase reflecting the significant increase in the sympathetic activity . These changes may be due to gonadal steroids imbalance during post menstrual phase (EF) and premenstrual phase (LL) of menstrual cycle which in turn affects Hypothalamo Pituitary axis and ANS significantly. Significant increased sympathetic activity responses indicate an augmented stress system.
Influence of Isoflurane on Immediate-Early Gene Expression

Background: Anterograde amnesia is a hallmark effect of volatile anesthetics. Isoflurane is known to affect both the translation and transcription of plasticity-associated genes required for normal memory formation in many brain regions. What is not known is whether isoflurane anesthesia prevents the initiation of transcription or whether it halts transcription already in progress. We tested the hypothesis that general anesthesia with isoflurane prevents learning-induced initiation of transcription of several memory-associated immediate-early genes (IEGs) correlated with amnesia; we also assessed whether it stops transcription initiated prior to anesthetic administration. Methods: Using a Tone Fear Conditioning paradigm, rats were trained to associate a tone with foot-shock. Animals received either no anesthesia, anesthesia immediately after training, or anesthesia before, during, and after training. Animals were either sacrificed after training or tested 24 h later for long-term memory. Using Cellular Compartment Analysis of Temporal Activity by Fluorescence in situ Hybridization (catFISH), we examined the percentage of neurons expressing the IEGs Arc/Arg3.1 and Zif268/Egr1/Ngfi-A/Krox-24 in the dorsal hippocampus, primary somatosensory cortex, and primary auditory cortex. Results: On a cellular level, isoflurane administered at high doses (general anesthesia) prevented initiation of transcription, but did not stop transcription of Arc and Zif268 mRNA initiated prior to anesthesia. On a behavioral level, the same level of isoflurane anesthesia produced anterograde amnesia for fear conditioning when administered before and during training, but did not produce retrograde amnesia when administered immediately after training. Conclusion: General anesthesia with isoflurane prevents initiation of learning-related transcription but does not stop ongoing transcription of two plasticity-related IEGs, Arc and Zif268, a pattern of disruption that parallels the effects of isoflurane on memory formation. Combined with published research on the effects of volatile anesthetics on memory in behaving animals, our data suggests that different levels of anesthesia affect memory via different mechanisms: general anesthesia prevents elevation of mRNA levels of Arc and Zif268 which are necessary for normal memory formation, while anesthesia at lower doses affects the strength of memory by affecting levels of plasticity-related proteins.
Antibodies targeting p63 react specifically in the cytoplasm of breast epithelial cells exhibiting secretory differentiation

Aims : The nuclear detection of p63 in myoepithelial cells of the breast has been useful in identifying possibly invasive carcinomas. While examining myoepithelial cells for p63 a very strong cytoplasmic reaction product was noted in secretory cells. The aim was to determine whether this reaction is specific for p63 and indicative of all breast secretory cells.
Series – Biogenesis and Physiological Adaptation of Mitochondria Response of skeletal muscle mitochondria to hypoxia

The series of reviews in this issue considers mitochondria, their structure and function as well as the molecular aspects of mitochondrial plasticity. The focus on mitochondria neglects the fact that for the dominant function of mitochondria, aerobic ATP re-synthesis, the mitochondrial organelle cannot function independently. It is embedded, at least in animal phyla, in a systems physiological context. Mitochondria house the final biochemical steps in the production of reducing equivalents that react at the terminal oxidases of the respiratory chain with molecular oxygen provided by the respiratory system from the environment. In mitochondria, O2 finally disappears and oxygen partial pressure goes to zero (Fig. 1). Mitochondria thus are an effective oxygen sink and this allows organisms to use all of the available oxygen partial pressure of the actual environment to drive the respiratory cascade from lungs through circulation to the mitochondria (Taylor & Weibel, 1981). Considering, as is the focus of this review, the response of skeletal muscle mitochondria to a lowered environmental oxygen partial pressure (Pi,J), would therefore require an understanding of the exact interdependence of environmental oxygen availability and mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation in the entire animal. This understanding is currently incomplete. What is known is that isolated mitochondria do not need more than a few torr of O2 partial pressure for full function (Gayeski & Honig, 1997). Similarly, it is generally acknowledged that assessing mitochondrial function in hypoxia in cultured cells requires the lowering of the oxygen pressure at the cell surface to values between 0.5 and 5 Torr, values completely incompatible with the survival of all but a few highly specialized species (Boutilier & St Pierre, 2002).
Glutamate oxidation in astrocytes: Roles of glutamate dehydrogenase and aminotransferases

The cellular distribution of transporters and enzymes related to glutamate metabolism led to the concept of the glutamate–glutamine cycle. Glutamate is released as a neurotransmitter and taken up primarily by astrocytes ensheathing the synapses. The glutamate carbon skeleton is transferred back to the presynaptic neurons as the nonexcitatory amino acid glutamine. The cycle was initially thought to function with a 1:1 ratio between glutamate released and glutamine taken up by neurons. However, studies of glutamate metabolism in astrocytes have shown that a considerable proportion of glutamate undergoes oxidative degradation; thus, quantitative formation of glutamine from the glutamate taken up is not possible. Oxidation of glutamate is initiated by transamination catalyzed by an aminotransferase, or oxidative deamination catalyzed by glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH). We discuss methods available to elucidate the enzymes that mediate this conversion. Methods include pharmacological tools such as the transaminase inhibitor aminooxyacetic acid, studies using GDH knockout mice, and siRNA‐mediated knockdown of GDH in astrocytes. Studies in brain slices incubated with [15N]glutamate demonstrated activity of GDH in astrocytes in situ. These results, in conjunction with reports in the literature, support the conclusion that GDH is active in astrocytes both in culture and in vivo and that this enzyme plays a significant role in glutamate oxidation. Oxidative metabolism of glutamate, primarily mediated by GDH, but also by transamination by aspartate aminotransferase, provides considerably more energy than is required to maintain the activity of the high‐affinity glutamate transporters needed for efficient removal of glutamate from the synaptic cleft. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Downregulation of Carbon Monoxide as well as Nitric Oxide Contributes to Peripheral Chemoreflex Hypersensitivity in Heart Failure Rabbits

Peripheral chemoreflex sensitivity (PCS) is potentiated in both clinical and experimental chronic heart failure (CHF). Downregulation of carotid body (CB) nitric oxide (NO) synthase contributes to this effect. However, it remains poorly understood whether carbon monoxide (CO) also contributes to the altered PCS in CHF. This work highlights the effect of NO and CO on renal sympathetic nerve activity (RSNA) in response to graded hypoxia in conscious rabbits. RSNA responses to graded hypoxia were enhanced in CHF rabbits compared with that in sham rabbits. The NO donor (S‐nitroso‐N‐acetylpenicillamine, SNAP, 1.2 μg/kg/min) or CO donor (tricarbonyl‐dichlororuthenium (II) dimmer, [Ru(CO) 3Cl2] 2, 3.0 μg/kg/min) alone attenuated hypoxia‐induced increases of RSNA in CHF rabbits (P<0.05) but no additive effect was found in SNAP plus [Ru(CO) 3Cl2] 2. Conversely, NO synthase (NOS) inhibitor (Nω‐nitro‐L‐arginine methyl ester, LNAME, 30mg/kg) or the heme oxygenases (HO) blocker (Cr (III) mesoporphyrin IX chloride, CrMP, 0.5 mg/kg) alone augmented RSNA response to hypoxia in sham rabbits but LNAME plus CrMP didn't induce an additive effect. In addition, protein expressions of nNOS (0.18±0.08) and HO‐2 (0.11±0.03) in carotid bodies from CHF are lower than those from sham rabbits (0.64±0.06 and 0.28±0.02, respectively). These results suggest that a deficiency of both NO and CO in the carotid body augments PCS to hypoxia in CHF.
Neurogenic and intact or apoptotic non‐neurogenic areas of adult brain release diffusible molecules that differentially modulate the development of subventricular zone cell cultures

In the adult mammalian brain, neurogenic activity is maintained in the subventricular zone (SVZ). Damage to non‐neurogenic areas can stimulate SVZ cell proliferation and trigger addition of new neurons in the affected areas. We therefore examined the possible control exerted by specific microenvironment cues on SVZ neurogenic activity. To this end, neonatal SVZ neurospheres were maintained in the presence of diffusible signals derived from the adult neurogenic SVZ or from the non‐neurogenic cerebral cortex either previously treated (apoptotic cortex) or not (untreated cortex) with staurosporine, a known apoptosis inducer. To restrict interactions to soluble signals, the explants were separated from the SVZ neurospheres by a microporous membrane. The results indicated that molecules released by the SVZ itself promoted the expansion of SVZ cell population through increased proliferation and reduced apoptosis. In contrast, untreated cortex factors reduced the expansion of SVZ cell population by decreasing proliferation. In addition, SVZ or untreated cortex factors, respectively, promoted or inhibited neuronal differentiation. Following apoptotic damage, cortex factors no longer inhibited and instead promoted the expansion of the SVZ cell population by increasing proliferation. These effects on cell numbers were replicated following use of culture media conditioned with the different explants but were no longer present following heat inactivation, which indicates that proteins were involved. These findings indicate that the neurogenic SVZ delivers autocrine/paracrine signals that promote neurogenesis whereas the non‐neurogenic cerebral cortex releases signals that inhibit proliferation and neuronal differentiation. Interestingly, this constitutive growth inhibitory effect of the cerebral cortex is inverted following apoptotic lesion.
Structure and Biosynthesis of Heat-Stable Antifungal Factor (HSAF), a Broad-Spectrum Antimycotic with a Novel Mode of Action

ABSTRACT A screen for antifungal compounds from Lysobacter enzymogenes strain C3, a bacterial biological control agent of fungal diseases, has previously led to the isolation of heat-stable antifungal factor (HSAF). HSAF exhibits inhibitory activities against a wide range of fungal species and shows a novel mode of antifungal action by disrupting the biosynthesis of a distinct group of sphingolipids. We have now determined the chemical structure of HSAF, which is identical to that of dihydromaltophilin, an antifungal metabolite with a unique macrocyclic lactam system containing a tetramic acid moiety and a 5,5,6-tricyclic skeleton. We have also identified the genetic locus responsible for the biosynthesis of HSAF in strain C3. DNA sequencing of this locus revealed genes for a hybrid polyketide synthase-nonribosomal peptide synthetase (PKS-NRPS), a sterol desaturase, a ferredoxin reductase, and an arginase. The disruption of the PKS-NRPS gene generated C3 mutants that lost the ability to produce HSAF and to inhibit fungal growth, demonstrating a hybrid PKS-NRPS that catalyzed the biosynthesis of the unique macrolactam system that is found in many biologically active natural products isolated from marine organisms. In addition, we have generated mutants with disrupted sterol desaturase, ferredoxin reductase, and arginase and examined the metabolites produced in these mutants. The work represents the first study of the genetic basis for the biosynthesis of the tetramic acid-containing macrolactams. The elucidation of the chemical structure of HSAF and the identification of the genetic locus for its biosynthesis establish the foundation for future exploitation of this group of compounds as new fungicides or antifungal drugs.
E-Commerce Capability: An Assessment of the Facilitators by Chinese Firms

Drawing upon IT (Information Technology) diffusion theory, this study developed a research model for studying e-commerce capability at firm level, incorporating 6 factors. The model examined the influence of the six factors and two control variables on e-commerce capability measured as aggregation of function-based business processes implemented electronically in value chain from a business process perspective. Data gathered from 236 traditional brick-and-mortar firms in China were employed to validate the model using statistical analysis approach. Hypotheses were designed and tested, and facilitators and their contributions to e-commerce capability were identified. The results suggested that four factors and two control variables tended to be the facilitators shaping e-commerce capability, while production size did not appear to influence e-commerce capability significantly. The results and findings help to facilitate e-commerce deployment, and provide theoretical foundations for future research.
Cross-lingual Information Retrieval Using Hidden Markov Models

This paper presents empirical results in cross-lingual information retrieval using English queries to access Chinese documents (TREC-5 and TREC-6) and Spanish documents (TREC-4). Since our interest is in languages where resources may be minimal, we use an integrated probabilistic model that requires only a bilingual dictionary as a resource. We explore how a combined probability model of term translation and retrieval can reduce the effect of translation ambiguity. In addition, we estimate an upper bound on performance, if translation ambiguity were a solved problem. We also measure performance as a function of bilingual dictionary size.