Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Microsaccade Rate Varies with Subjective Visibility during Motion-Induced Blindness

Motion-induced blindness (MIB) occurs when a dot embedded in a motion field subjectively vanishes. Here we report the first psychophysical data concerning effects of microsaccade/eyeblink rate upon perceptual switches during MIB. We find that the rate of microsaccades/eyeblink rises before and after perceptual transitions from not seeing to seeing the dot, and decreases before perceptual transitions from seeing it to not seeing it. In addition, event-related fMRI data reveal that, when a dot subjectively reappears during MIB, the blood oxygen-level dependent (BOLD) signal increases in V1v and V2v and decreases in contralateral hMT+. These BOLD signal changes observed upon perceptual state changes in MIB could be driven by the change of perceptual states and/or a confounding factor, such as the microsaccade/eyeblink rate.
Microinjection Molding of Carbon Filled Polymer Composites

There has been increasing demand for microparts in the areas of electronics, automotive, biomedical and micro-electro-mechanical systems. Microinjection molding (μIM) is becoming an important technology to fabricate miniature products or components to satisfy the everincreasing needs of the above industries. Polymers and polymeric composites are ubiquitously adopted as molding materials due to their weight advantage, good processability and excellent resistance to corrosion. Earlier studies have been primarily focused on the μIM of unfilled thermoplastics; however, microparts with multi-functionalities, such as electrical, thermal and mechanical properties are always accommodated by using multi-functional filler loaded polymer composites. Recently, μIM of carbon nanotubes (CNT) filled polymer composites has received much attention due to its commercialization potential. However, a comprehensive study is necessary to understand the properties of carbon filled micromoldings. Thus, it is important to understand the effects of the extreme shearing and cooling conditions which are common features of μIM, due to the very high molding temperatures and molding pressures as well as injection velocities involved and the very large surface area to volume ratio of microparts. These characteristics of the μIM process significantly determine the microstructure of the parts, thereby affecting the properties of final micromoldings. In the present research, the influence of process parameters (i.e. melt temperature, mold temperature, backpressure and injection velocity), the types of carbon fillers (i.e. CNT, carbon black, graphite nanoplatelets and graphite) and the host polymer matrices (i.e. polypropylene, polystyrene, polyamide 6 and polycarbonate), the adoption of CNT filled immiscible polymer blends, and the hybrid carbon fillers loading on the electrical and morphological properties of carbon-containing microparts was systematically investigated. To this end, a rectangular mold insert which has three consecutive zones with step decreases in thickness along the melt flow direction was used to explore the effect of abrupt changes in mold geometry on the distribution of carbon fillers within subsequent moldings. To facilitate characterizations, the microparts were divided into three sections based on part thickness, namely thick section, middle section
Production of Plant Growth-Regulating Substances by the Vesicular-Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungus Glomus mosseae

Glomus mosseae, a representative species of Endogonaceae (Phycomycetes) able to form vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhiza, was investigated for phytohormone production. Spores of G. mosseae were axenically germinated in water, and the resultant mycelial growth was assayed by standard procedures for extracting plant hormones from microbial cultures. Paper partition chromatography and specific bioassays were used to separate and identify plant growth-regulating substances. The microorganism synthesized at least two gibberellin-like substances, one with Rf corresponding in position to authentic gibberellic acid, and four substances with the properties of cytokinins.
Accurate catadioptric calibration for real-time pose estimation in room-size environments

Omnidirectional video cameras are becoming increasingly popular in computer vision. One family of these cameras uses a catadioptric system with a paraboloidal mirror and an orthographic lens to produce an omnidirectional image with a single center-of-projection. In this paper, we develop a novel calibration model that we combine with a beacon-based pose estimation algorithm. Our approach relaxes the assumption of an ideal paraboloidal catadioptric system and achieves an order of magnitude improvement in pose estimation accuracy compared to calibration with an ideal camera model. Our complete standalone system, placed on a radio-controlled motorized cart, moves in a room-size environment, capturing high-resolution frames to disk and recovering camera pose with an average error of 0.56% in a region 15 feet in diameter.
Antibacterial Effects of Chitosan Powder: Mechanisms of Action

Chitosan, the deacetylated derivative of chitin, is a natural D-glucosamine polymer that can be extracted from the shells of seafood such as prawns crabs and lobsters. It can be used as a flocculent, plant disease resistant promoter, anti-cancer agent, wound healing promotion agent and antimicrobial agent. The aim of this paper is the study of the interaction between chitosan powder and various kinds of pathogen microorganisms potentially present in water. First of all, physico-chemical characterisations of chitin and chitosan powder were performed. The deacetylation yields were 35 %, 60 % and 80 ± 10 %. The experimental studies focused on the measurements of the mortality constant rate for various bacterial strains, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Enterococcus faecalis and Staphylococcus saprophyticus. An explanation of the antibacterial mechanisms is proposed involving the cell wall disruption due to free amino groups present in chitosan.
Fetal MRI-Calculated Total Lung Volumes in the Prediction of Short-Term Outcome in Giant Omphalocele: Preliminary Findings

Objective: To determine the value of fetal MRI-calculated total lung volumes (TLV) in the prediction of short-term outcome in patients with giant omphalocele (GO). Material and Methods: We reviewed all cases of GO undergoing fetal MRI after 21 weeks’ gestation and receiving postnatal care at our institution between 2003 and 2010. Observed/expected (O/E) TLV was calculated using age-matched TLV normograms [Radiology 2001;219:236–241]. Postnatal outcomes were stratified based on O/E TLV above or below 50% of expected. Results: Seventeen GO cases fulfilled the entry criteria. The mean age at fetal MRI evaluation was 25.8 ± 4.8 weeks’ gestation. The mean GO TLV (21.0 ± 13.2) was lower than age-matched population norms (p < 0.001), resulting in a mean O/E TLV of 52.3 ± 16.8%. The mean gestational age at delivery was 36.8 ± 1.6 weeks. Overall survival was 94%. Fourteen (88%) infants underwent staged reduction, and 2 underwent silver sulfadiazine treatment and delayed repair. Infants with ≤50% of predicted O/E TLV (n = 11, 65%) had lower Apgar scores at birth (p = 0.03), prolonged ventilatory support (p = 0.004), delayed oral intake (p = 0.03), and longer hospitalization (p = 0.03) compared to patients with ≥50% of expected O/E TLV. Two infants (both O/E TLV <50%) required tracheostomy placement. Conclusion: In the assessment of GO fetuses, MRI-based O/E TLV of <50% was predictive of increased postnatal morbidity.
Intraplaque Hemorrhage and the Plaque Surface in Carotid Atherosclerosis: The Plaque At RISK Study (PARISK)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: An important characteristic of vulnerable plaque, intraplaque hemorrhage, may predict plaque rupture. Plaque rupture can be visible on noninvasive imaging as a disruption of the plaque surface. We investigated the association between intraplaque hemorrhage and disruption of the plaque surface. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We selected the first 100 patients of the Plaque At RISK study, an ongoing prospective noninvasive plaque imaging study in patients with mild-to-moderate atherosclerotic lesions in the carotid artery. In carotid artery plaques, disruption of the plaque surface (defined as ulcerated plaques and/or fissured fibrous cap) and intraplaque hemorrhage were assessed by using MDCTA and 3T MR imaging, respectively. We used a χ2 test and multivariable logistic regression to assess the association between intraplaque hemorrhage and disrupted plaque surface. RESULTS: One hundred forty-nine carotid arteries in 78 patients could be used for the current analyses. Intraplaque hemorrhage and plaque ulcerations were more prevalent in symptomatic compared with contralateral vessels (hemorrhage, 38% versus 11%; P < .001; and ulcerations, 27% versus 7%; P = .001). Fissured fibrous cap was more prevalent in symptomatic compared with contralateral vessels (13% versus 4%; P = .06). After adjustment for age, sex, diabetes mellitus, and degree of stenosis, intraplaque hemorrhage was associated with disrupted plaque surface (OR, 3.13; 95% CI, 1.25–7.84) in all vessels. CONCLUSIONS: Intraplaque hemorrhage is associated with disruption of the plaque surface in patients with a carotid artery stenosis of <70%. Serial studies are needed to investigate whether intraplaque hemorrhage indeed increases the risk of plaque rupture and subsequent ischemic stroke during follow-up.
Retrieval of Chlorophyll-a and Total Suspended Solids Using Iterative Stepwise Elimination Partial Least Squares (ISE-PLS) Regression Based on Field Hyperspectral Measurements in Irrigation Ponds in Higashihiroshima, Japan

Concentrations of chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) and total suspended solids (TSS) are significant parameters used to assess water quality. The objective of this study is to establish a quantitative model for estimating the Chl-a and the TSS concentrations in irrigation ponds in Higashihiroshima, Japan, using field hyperspectral measurements and statistical analysis. Field experiments were conducted in six ponds and spectral readings for Chl-a and TSS were obtained from six field observations in 2014. For statistical approaches, we used two spectral indices, the ratio spectral index (RSI) and the normalized difference spectral index (NDSI), and a partial least squares (PLS) regression. The predictive abilities were compared using the coefficient of determination (R2), the root mean squared error of cross validation (RMSECV) and the residual predictive deviation (RPD). Overall, iterative stepwise elimination based on PLS (ISE–PLS), using the first derivative reflectance (FDR), showed the best predictive accuracy, for both Chl-a (R2 = 0.98, RMSECV = 6.15, RPD = 7.44) and TSS (R2 = 0.97, RMSECV = 1.91, RPD = 6.64). The important wavebands for estimating Chl-a (16.97% of all wavebands) and TSS (8.38% of all wavebands) were selected by ISE–PLS from all 501 wavebands over the 400–900 nm range. These findings suggest that ISE–PLS based on field hyperspectral measurements can be used to estimate water Chl-a and TSS concentrations in irrigation ponds.
Single‐step fabrication of an anode supported planar single‐chamber solid oxide fuel cell

We present single-step-co-sintering manufacture of a planar single-chamber solid oxide fuel cell (SC-SOFC) with porous multilayer structures consisting of NiO/CGO, CGO and CGO-LSCF as anode, electrolyte, and cathode, respectively. Their green tapes were casted with 20 μm thickness and stacked into layers of anode, electrolyte, and cathode (10:2:2), then hot-pressed at 2 MPa and 60°C for 5 minutes (deemed optimal). Subsequently, hot laminated layers were cut into 40 × 40 mm cells and co-sintered up to 1200°C via different sintering profiles. Shrinkage behavior and curvature developments of cells were characterized, determining the best sintering profile. Hence, anode-supported SC-SOFCs were fabricated via a single-step co-sintering process, albeit with curvature formation at edges. Subsequently, anode thickness was increased to 800 μm and electrolyte reduced to 20 μm to obtain SOFCs with drastically reduced curvature with the help of a porous alumina cover plate.
Interplay of Developmentally Regulated Gene Expression and Heterochromatic Silencing in Trans in Drosophila

The brownDominant (bwD) allele of Drosophila contains a heterochromatic block that causes the locus to interact with centric heterochromatin. This association silences bw+ in heterozygotes (trans-inactivation) and is dependent on nuclear organizational changes later in development, suggesting that trans-inactivation may not be possible until later in development. To study this, a P element containing an upstream activating sequence (UAS)–GFP reporter was inserted 5 kb from the bwD insertion site. Seven different GAL4 driver lines were used and GFP fluorescence was compared in the presence or the absence of bwD. We measured silencing in different tissues and stages of development and found variable silencing of GFP expression driven by the same driver. When UAS–GFP was not expressed until differentiation in the eye imaginal disc it was more easily trans-inactivated than when it was expressed earlier in undifferentiated cells. In contrast to some studies by other workers on silencing in cis, we did not find consistent correlation of silencing with level of expression or evidence of relaxation of silencing with terminal differentiation. We suggest that such contrasting results may be attributed to a potentially different role played by nuclear organization in cis and trans position-effect variegation.
Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus Latent Gene vFLIP Inhibits Viral Lytic Replication through NF-κB-Mediated Suppression of the AP-1 Pathway: a Novel Mechanism of Virus Control of Latency

ABSTRACT Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) latency is central to the evasion of host immune surveillances and induction of KSHV-related malignancies. The mechanism of KSHV latency remains unclear. Here, we show that the KSHV latent gene vFLIP promotes viral latency by inhibiting viral lytic replication. vFLIP suppresses the AP-1 pathway, which is essential for KSHV lytic replication, by activating the NF-κB pathway. Thus, by manipulating two convergent cellular pathways, vFLIP regulates both cell survival and KSHV lytic replication to promote viral latency. These results also indicate that the effect of the NF-κB pathway on KSHV replication is determined by the status of the AP-1 pathway and hence provide a mechanistic explanation for the contradictory role of the NF-κB pathway in KSHV replication. Since the NF-κB pathway is commonly activated during infection of gammaherpesviruses, these findings might have general implications for the control of gammaherpesviral latency.
Ground water arsenic contamination in West Bengal, India: A risk of sub-clinical toxicity in cattle as evident by correlation between arsenic exposure, excretion and deposition

Arsenic contamination of ground water in West Bengal, India, is a great concern for both human and livestock populations. Our study investigated and correlated the arsenic concentration in the drinking water, urinary excretion and deposition of total arsenic in hair of cattle at an arsenic contaminated zone in West Bengal. The results of our study indicated that the average concentration of arsenic in tube well water in contaminated villages ranged from 0.042 to 0.251 ppm and a statistical significant (p < 0.01) difference was seen when compared to samples from a non-contaminated zone. The arsenic concentration in urine and hair of cattle ranged between 0.245—0.691 ppm and 0.461—0.984 ppm, respectively. A close relationship was found between the total arsenic in drinking water urinary excretion (r2 = 0.03664, p < 0.05) and the arsenic concentration in hair (r2 = 0.03668, p < 0.05). Our findings indicate that quantification of arsenic concentration in cattle urine and hair can serve as biomarkers for both present and past exposure in cattle population.
On the Usability of Spoken Dialogue Systems

This paper reports on the ESPRIT OVID1 project. It describes the objectives behind the project, and the results up till now. The OVID project deals with the task of phone based home banking services. The findings of the requirements capture process are reported in detail. Most notably a number of requirement interviews uncovered that almost identical requirements exist for all the OVID banks. This was the case even though the banks have very different profiles and market strategies. This observation suggests that the conclusions may be extended to cover voice controlled home banking services in general.
Second-Trimester Histopathological Placental Findings in Maternal-Fetal Inflammatory Response Syndrome

Immature delivery is frequently associated with a maternal-fetal inflammatory response at the placental level. The aims of this study were to determine the prevalence, staging, and grading of histological findings (associated with acute maternal-fetal inflammatory response syndrome) in placentas of immature fetuses and to establish the relationship between maternal and fetal responses and its frequency distribution by fetal weight. The studied placentas corresponded to fetuses with weights ranging between 12 g and 625 g. The inflammatory response was classified according to the criteria published by the Perinatal Section of the Society for Pediatric Pathology. Of the 354 placentas analyzed, 231 (65.3%) showed acute inflammatory response. In 98.7% of the cases, inflammation was classified as maternal inflammatory response (MIR) and in 49.8% as fetal inflammatory response (FIR). In 49.1% of the cases, MIR was accompanied by FIR, whereas only 3 cases of FIR did not show MIR. As their stages increased, fetal response rates and the severity of MIR and FIR grew at higher stages of maternal response. Although the frequency of MIR was similar in different fetal weight groups, that of FIR increased with weight and gestational age.
Effects of transcranial direct current stimulation in combination with motor practice on dexterous grasping and manipulation in healthy older adults

Transcranial anodal stimulation (tDCS) over primary motor cortex (M1) improves dexterous manipulation in healthy older adults. However, the beneficial effects of anodal tDCS in combination with motor practice on natural and clinically relevant functional manual tasks, and the associated changes in the digit contact forces are not known. To this end, we studied the effects of 20 min of tDCS applied over M1 for the dominant hand combined with motor practice (MP) in a sham‐controlled crossover study. We monitored the forces applied to an object that healthy elderly individuals grasped and manipulated, and their performances on the Grooved Pegboard Test and the Key‐slot task. Practice improved performance on the Pegboard test, and anodal tDCS + MP improved retention of this performance gain when tested 35 min later, whereas similar performance gains degraded in the sham group after 35 min. Interestingly, grip force variability on an isometric precision grip task performed with visual feedback of precision force increased following anodal tDCS + MP, but not sham tDCS + MP. This finding suggests that anodal tDCS over M1 might alter the descending drive to spinal motor neurons involved in the performance of isometric precision grip task under visual feedback leading to increased fluctuations in the grip force exerted on the object. Our results demonstrate that anodal stimulation in combination with motor practice helps older adults to retain their improved performance on a functionally relevant manual task in healthy older adults.
Pharmacokinetic interaction between metoprolol and SP-8203 in rats: competitive inhibition for the metabolism of metoprolol by SP-8203 via hepatic CYP2D subfamily

The occurrence of cerebral ischemia is prevalent in patients with hypertension and the combination drug therapy is needed. Thus, the pharmacokinetic interaction between metoprolol (anti-hypertension drug) and SP-8203 (a new drug candidate for cerebral ischemia) with respect to the metabolism via CYP isozymes was evaluated. Metoprolol and SP-8203 were administered intravenously or orally to rats. Concentrations (I) of each drug in the liver and intestine in in vivo studies, the disappearance and apparent Ki of each drug in in vitro microsomes and [I]/Ki ratios for each drug were determined. In addition, the disappearance of each drug via CYPs in rat and human microsomes were measured. The AUC and CLNR of intravenously administered metoprolol with SP-8203 were significantly greater and slower, respectively, than without SP-8203. However, pharmacokinetic parameters of oral metoprolol and intravenous/oral SP-8203 were not altered. The hepatic metabolism of metoprolol via CYP2D was inhibited by SP-8203 in a competitive manner. However, the intestinal metabolism of metoprolol was not influenced by SP-8203. SP-8203 was not metabolized via CYP isozymes in rats and then co-administration of metoprolol did not affect the metabolism of SP-8203.
The potential of Chlorella vulgaris for wastewater treatment and biodiesel production.

The release of municipal wastewater from various sources can cause contamination of water bodies and algal blooms. In this study isolated strain of chlorella vulgaris was used for treatment of municipal wastewater and biodiesel production. Initially Chlorella culture was prepared in artificial media then it was inoculated in transparent and covered, glass ponds containing wastewater to investigate its treatment efficiency. A lab scale biological wastewater treatment design was also made using chlorella vulgaris. Harvested biomass was transesterified to biodiesel using sodium metal as a catalyst. Percent reduction of COD (chemical oxygen demand), BOD (biochemical oxygen demand), NO3, PO4 and TC (total coliforms) was almost similar in all types of transparent and covered ponds after treatment with chlorella vulgaris. Analysis of selected parameters was carried out at each step of biological treatment design and maximum reduction percentage of COD (99.9%), BOD (100%), NO3 (99.98%), PO4 (99.96%) and TC (100%), was observed by applying chlorella vulgaris. Biodiesel produced by direct transesterification of dried algal biomass was analyzed and compared with ASTM (American Standard Test Method) standards. Results showed that biodiesel produced was of good quality and it can be used as a fuel in vehicles.
SiC MPS Devices: One Step Closer to the Ideal Diode

We report on the development of a new generation of SiC Schottky rectifier devices employing a Molybdenum based barrier metal system and a new stripe cell design for field shielding and optimized area utilization. The Schottky barrier height is reduced and thus the conduction losses are decreased significantly. The balance between forward conduction and reverse leakage losses as well as the homogeneity and stability of the new barrier system are investigated carefully.