Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Snake presynaptic neurotoxins with phospholipase A2 activity induce punctate swellings of neurites and exocytosis of synaptic vesicles

The mechanisms of action of four snake presynaptic phospholipase A2 neurotoxins were investigated in cultured neurons isolated from various parts of the rat brain. Strikingly, physiological concentrations of notexin, β-bungarotoxin, taipoxin or textilotoxin induced a dose-dependent formation of discrete bulges at various sites of neuronal projections. Neuronal bulging was paralleled by the redistribution of the two synaptic vesicle markers synaptophysin I (SypI) and vesicle-attached membrane protein 2 (VAMP2) to the bulges, and by the exposure of the luminal domain of synaptotagmin on the cell surface. These neurotoxins induced glutamate release from cultured neurons similarly to the known evoked release of acetylcholine from neuromuscular junctions. In addition, partial fragmentation of F-actin and neurofilaments was observed in neurons, but not in astrocytes. These findings indicate that these snake presynaptic neurotoxins act with by same mechanism and that the observed phenotype results from the fusion of synaptic vesicles with the plasma membrane not balanced by an adequate membrane retrieval. These changes closely resemble those occurring at neuromuscular junctions of intoxicated animals and fully qualify these primary neuronal cultures as pertinent models for studying the molecular mode of action of these neurotoxins.
Design of Ćuk-Derived Transformerless Common-Grounded PV Microinverter in CCM

Photovoltaic (PV) microinverters dispense with the line frequency transformer, however at the cost of system grounding and ground leakage current problems. These have been erstwhile resolved by the topologies derived from buck, boost, buck–boost, Zeta, Watkins–Johnson, and Ćuk converters, or combinations of these. The Ćuk derived inverters, employing second-order input and output filters, offer the most efficient, lightweight, and economical solution in the class. This paper presents design and detailed operation of a Ćuk derived, common-ground PV microinverter in continuous conduction mode operation. The inverter is shown to be compatible with both linear and nonlinear loads, in stand-alone and grid-connected modes of operation. Optimal design rules of passive components are rigorously derived to ensure attenuation of input voltage ripples arising from the twin effects of switching and double-frequency output power oscillation. Additionally, the design rules also incorporate considerations of efficiency maximization and some aspects of easing control complexity. Inverter performance is experimentally validated with a 300 VA, 110 V, and 50/60 Hz laboratory prototype.
Impact Fragmentation and the Development of the Deep Lunar Megaregolith

The megaregolith of the Moon is the upper region of the crust, which has been extensively fractured by intense impact bombardment. Little is known about the formation and evolution of the lunar megaregolith. Here we implement the Grady‐Kipp model for dynamic fragmentation into the iSALE shock physics code. This implementation allows us to directly simulate tensile in situ impact fragmentation of the lunar crust. We find that fragment sizes are weakly dependent on impactor size and impact velocity. For impactors 1 km in diameter or smaller, a hemispherical zone centered on the point of impact contains meter‐scale fragments. For an impactor 1 km in diameter this zone extends to depths of 20 km. At larger impactor sizes, overburden pressure inhibits fragmentation and only a near‐surface zone is fragmented. For a 10‐km‐diameter impactor, this surface zone extends to a depth of ~20 km and lateral distances ~300 km from the point of impact. This suggests that impactors from 1 to 10 km in diameter can efficiently fragment the entire lunar crust to depths of ~20 km, implying that much of the modern day megaregolith can be created by single impacts rather than by multiple large impact events.
Volatile Markers of Breast Cancer in the Breath

Abstract: Breast cancer is accompanied by increased oxidative stress and induction of polymorphic cytochrome P‐450 mixed oxidase enzymes (CYP). Both processes affect the abundance of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the breath because oxidative stress causes lipid peroxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids in membranes, producing alkanes and methylalkanes which are catabolized by CYP. We performed a pilot study of breath VOCs, a potential new marker of disease in women with breast cancer. This was a combined case‐control and cross‐sectional study of women with abnormal mammograms scheduled for a breast biopsy. Breath samples were analyzed by gas chromatography and mass spectroscopy in order to determine the breath methylated alkane contour (BMAC), a three‐dimensional display of the alveolar gradients (abundance in breath minus abundance in room air) of C4–C20 alkanes and monomethylated alkanes. BMACs in women with and without breast cancer were compared using forward stepwise discriminant analysis. Two hundred one breath samples were obtained from women with abnormal mammograms and biopsies read by two pathologists. There were 51 cases of breast cancer in 198 concordant biopsies. The breath test distinguished between women with breast cancer and healthy volunteers with a sensitivity of 94.1% (48/51) and a specificity of 73.8% (31/42) (cross‐validated sensitivity 88.2% (45/51), specificity 73.8% (31/42)). Compared to women with abnormal mammograms and no cancer on biopsy, the breath test identified breast cancer with a sensitivity of 62.7% (32/51) and a specificity of 84.0% (42/50) (cross‐validated sensitivity of 60.8% (31/51), specificity of 82.0% (41/50)). The negative predictive value (NPV) of a screening breath test for breast cancer was superior to a screening mammogram (99.93% versus 99.89%); the positive predictive value (PPV) of a screening mammogram was superior to a screening breath test (4.63% versus 1.29%). A breath test for markers of oxidative stress accurately identified women with breast cancer, with an NPV superior to a screening mammogram. This breath test could potentially be employed as a primary screen for breast cancer. Confirmatory studies in larger groups are required.
A Dynamic Model of Brand Choice When Price and Advertising Signal Product Quality

In this paper, we develop a structural model of household behavior in an environment where there is uncertainty about brand attributes and both prices and advertising signal brand quality. Four quality signaling mechanisms are at work: 1 price signals quality, 2 advertising frequency signals quality, 3 advertising content provides direct but noisy information about quality, and 4 use experience provides direct but noisy information about quality. We estimate our proposed model using scanner panel data on ketchup. If price is important as a signal of brand quality, then frequent price promotion may have the unintended consequence of reducing brand equity. We use our estimated model to measure the importance of such effects. Our results imply that price is an important quality-signaling mechanism and that frequent price cuts can have significant adverse effects on brand equity. The role of advertising frequency in signaling quality is also significant, but it is less quantitatively important than price. In the printed version of Marketing Science, Vol. 27, No. 6, Erdem et al. 2008 was mistakenly identified as a Research Note. It is a regular article and has been corrected here and in the online table of contents.
3D thermal mapping of building interiors using an RGB-D and thermal camera

The building sector is the dominant consumer of energy and therefore a major contributor to anthropomorphic climate change. The rapid generation of photorealistic, 3D environment models with incorporated surface temperature data has the potential to improve thermographic monitoring of building energy efficiency. In pursuit of this goal, we propose a system which combines a range sensor with a thermal-infrared camera. Our proposed system can generate dense 3D models of environments with both appearance and temperature information, and is the first such system to be developed using a low-cost RGB-D camera. The proposed pipeline processes depth maps successively, forming an ongoing pose estimate of the depth camera and optimizing a voxel occupancy map. Voxels are assigned 4 channels representing estimates of their true RGB and thermal-infrared intensity values. Poses corresponding to each RGB and thermal-infrared image are estimated through a combination of timestamp-based interpolation and a predetermined knowledge of the extrinsic calibration of the system. Raycasting is then used to color the voxels to represent both visual appearance using RGB, and an estimate of the surface temperature. The output of the system is a dense 3D model which can simultaneously represent both RGB and thermal-infrared data using one of two alternative representation schemes. Experimental results demonstrate that the system is capable of accurately mapping difficult environments, even in complete darkness.
Bax Inactivation in Lurcher Mutants Rescues Cerebellar Granule Cells But Not Purkinje Cells or Inferior Olivary Neurons

Lurcher is a gain-of-function mutation in the δ2 glutamate receptor gene (Grid2) that turns the receptor into a leaky ion channel. The expression of the Lurcher gene in heterozygous (Grid2Lc/+ ) mutants induces the death of almost all Purkinje cells starting from the second postnatal week. Ninety percent of the granule cells and 60–75% of the inferior olivary neurons die because of the loss of their target neurons, the Purkinje cells. The apoptotic nature of the neurodegeneration has been demonstrated previously by the presence of activated caspase-3 and DNA fragmentation. Bax, a pro-apoptotic gene of the Bcl-2 family, has been shown to be involved in developmental neuronal death. To study the role of Bax inGrid2Lc/+ neurodegeneration, double mutants with Grid2Lc/ + mice and Baxknock-out mice (Bax−/−) were generated.Bax deletion had no effect on the death of Purkinje cells and inferior olivary neurons, although a temporary rescue of some Purkinje cells could be detected in P15Grid2Lc/ +;Bax−/− animals. From postnatal day 15 (P15) to P60, the number of granule cells inGrid2Lc/ +;Bax−/−mice did not significantly change and was significantly increased compared with the number found in Grid2Lc/ +;Bax+/+ mice. Granule cell number in P60 Grid2Lc/ +;Bax−/− mice corresponded to 70% of the number found in wild-type mice. Our results show that Bax inactivation inGrid2Lc/+ mice does not rescue intrinsic Purkinje cell death or the target-related cell death of olivary neurons, but Bax inactivation does inhibit persistently target-related cell death in cerebellar granule cells.
Further characterization of transfusion-related acute lung injury: demographics, clinical and laboratory features, and morbidity

According to Food and Drug Administration data, transfusion-related acute lung injury (TRALI) is the third most frequent cause of transfusion-associated death in the United States and is characterized by an acute respiratory distress syndrome-like clinical picture following transfusion of plasma-containing blood components. It may be underdiagnosed due to unfamiliarity of clinicians with the syndrome. This report describes the largest series to date, 46 cases, occurring between 1992 and 1998. The male-to-female ratio was approximately 1:1. The mean age at diagnosis was 54 years. The most frequent presenting symptom or signs were acute respiratory distress, hypotension, and hypertension. Antibodies to human leukocyte antigens or granulocytes were identified in 61 percent of cases, with 50 percent associated with antibodies in a donor whose blood had been transfused to a patient developing TRALI. Clinical recovery occurred in 87 percent of patients, but TRALI contributed to deaths in 13 percent. Clinicians need to recognize and diagnose this syndrome in order to respond with appropriate interventions. Immunohematology 2000;16:157–159.
Missing the forest for the trees? Deficient memory for linguistic gist in obsessive–compulsive disorder

Background. Patients with obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) exhibit recall deficits on word learning tasks, mediated by their failure to detect semantic connections among the words. Methods. In the present experiment, using methods devised by Bransford & Franks (1971), we tested whether this encoding problem impairs their extraction of gist from complex linguistic material. Results. Consistent with our hypothesis, OCD patients extracted less gist from related sentences than did healthy participants. The groups did not differ in recognition memory for individual sentences or in criterion for affirming previously encountered sentences as ‘old’, as evinced by signal detection indices of memory sensitivity (d′) and response bias (β), or in recognition memory confidence. Conclusions. These data provide further evidence that OCD patients exhibit less reliance on organizational strategies than do healthy control participants. These data are consistent with neuropsychological research suggestive of prefrontal executive problems in OCD.
Statistical properties of community structure in large social and information networks

A large body of work has been devoted to identifying community structure in networks. A community is often though of as a set of nodes that has more connections between its members than to the remainder of the network. In this paper, we characterize as a function of size the statistical and structural properties of such sets of nodes. We define the network community profile plot, which characterizes the "best" possible community - according to the conductance measure - over a wide range of size scales, and we study over 70 large sparse real-world networks taken from a wide range of application domains. Our results suggest a significantly more refined picture of community structure in large real-world networks than has been appreciated previously. Our most striking finding is that in nearly every network dataset we examined, we observe tight but almost trivial communities at very small scales, and at larger size scales, the best possible communities gradually "blend in" with the rest of the network and thus become less "community-like. " This behavior is not explained, even at a qualitative level, by any of the commonly-used network generation models. Moreover, this behavior is exactly the opposite of what one would expect based on experience with and intuition from expander graphs, from graphs that are well-embeddable in a low-dimensional structure, and from small social networks that have served as testbeds of community detection algorithms. We have found, however, that a generative model, in which new edges are added via an iterative "forest fire" burning process, is able to produce graphs exhibiting a network community structure similar to our observations.
Dose-volumetric parameters for predicting hypothyroidism after radiotherapy for head and neck cancer.

OBJECTIVE To investigate predictors affecting the development of hypothyroidism after radiotherapy for head and neck cancer, focusing on radiation dose-volumetric parameters, and to determine the appropriate radiation dose-volumetric threshold of radiation-induced hypothyroidism. METHODS A total of 114 patients with head and neck cancer whose radiotherapy fields included the thyroid gland were analysed. The purpose of the radiotherapy was either definitive (n = 81) or post-operative (n = 33). Thyroid function was monitored before starting radiotherapy and after completion of radiotherapy at 1 month, 6 months, 1 year and 2 years. A diagnosis of hypothyroidism was based on a thyroid stimulating hormone value greater than the maximum value of laboratory range, regardless of symptoms. In all patients, dose volumetric parameters were analysed. RESULTS Median follow-up duration was 25 months (range; 6-38). Forty-six percent of the patients were diagnosed as hypothyroidism after a median time of 8 months (range; 1-24). There were no significant differences in the distribution of age, gender, surgery, radiotherapy technique and chemotherapy between the euthyroid group and the hypothyroid group. In univariate analysis, the mean dose and V35-V50 results were significantly associated with hypothyroidism. The V45 is the only variable that independently contributes to the prediction of hypothyroidism in multivariate analysis and V45 of 50% was a threshold value. If V45 was <50%, the cumulative incidence of hypothyroidism at 1 year was 22.8%, whereas the incidence was 56.1% if V45 was ≥50% (P = 0.034). CONCLUSIONS The V45 may predict risk of developing hypothyroidism after radiotherapy for head and neck cancer, and a V45 of 50% can be a useful dose-volumetric threshold of radiation-induced hypothyroidism.
Cloud computing

As with any new trend in the IT world, enterprises must figure out the benefits and risks of cloud computing and the best way to use this technology. The buzz around cloud computing has reached a fever pitch. Some believe it is a disruptive trend representing the next stage in the evolution of the internet. Others believe it is hype, as it uses long established computing technologies. One thing is clear: The industry needs an objective, straightforward conversation about how this new computing paradigm will impact organizations, how it can be used with existing technologies, and the potential pitfalls of proprietary technologies that can lead to lock-in and limited choice. This document is intended to initiate a conversation that will bring together the emerging cloud computing community (both cloud users and cloud vendors) around a core set of principles. We believe that these core principles are rooted in the belief that cloud computing should be as open as all other IT technologies. This document does not intend to define a final taxonomy of cloud computing or to charter a new standards effort. Nor does it try to be an exhaustive thesis on cloud architecture and design. Rather, this document speaks to CIOs and other business leaders who intend to use cloud computing and to establish a set of core principles for cloud vendors. Cloud computing is still in its early stages, with much to learn and more experimentation to come. However, the time is right for the members of the emerging cloud computing community to come together around the notion of an open cloud.
Dual Growth Arrest Pathways in Astrocytes and Astrocytic Tumors in Response to Raf-1 Activation*

Normal human fibroblasts have been shown to undergo a p16Ink4a-associated senescence-like growth arrest in response to sustained activation of the Ras/Raf/MEK/ERK pathway. We noted a similar p16Ink4a-associated, senescence-like arrest in normal human astrocytes in response to expression of a conditional form of Raf-1. While HPV16 E7-mediated functional inactivation of the p16Ink4a/pRb pathway in astrocytes blocked the p16Ink4a-associated growth arrest in response to activation of Raf-1, it also revealed a second p21Cip1-associated, senescence-associated, β-galactosidase-independent growth arrest pathway. Importantly, the p21Cip1-associated pathway was present not only in normal astrocytes but also in p53-, p14ARF-, and p16Ink4a/pRb-deficient high grade glioma cells that lacked the p16Ink4a-dependent arrest mechanism. These results suggest that normal human cells have redundant arrest pathways, which can be activated by Raf-1, and that even tumors that have dismantled p16Ink4a-dependent growth arrest pathways are potentially regulated by a second p21Cip1-dependent growth arrest pathway.
Forthcoming, Journal of Economic Literature FROM STATE TO MARKET: A SURVEY OF EMPIRICAL STUDIES ON PRIVATIZATION

This paper was developed with financial support from the SBF Bourse de Paris and the New York Stock Exchange, and the assistance of George Sofianos, Bill Tschirhart, and Didier Davidoff is gratefully acknowledged. We appreciate comments received on this paper from Anthony Boardman, Bernardo Bortolotti, Narjess Boubakri, JeanClaude Cosset, Kathy Dewenter, Alexander Dyck, Ivan Ivanov, Ranko Jelic, Claude Laurin, Marc Lipson, Luis Lopez-Calva, John McMillan (the editor), Harold Mulherin, Rob Nash, John Nellis, David Newberry, David Parker, Enrico Perotti, Annette Poulsen, Ravi Ramamurti, Susan Rose-Ackerman, Nemat Shafik, Mary Shirley, Aidan Vining and three anonymous referees. Additionally, we appreciate comments received from participants at the NYSE/Paris Bourse Global Equity Markets conference (Paris, December 1998), the Harvard Institute for International Development Privatization Workshop (June 2000), the International Federation of Stock Exchanges’ Third Global Emerging Markets Conference (Istanbul, April 2000), four World Bank and/or International Finance Corporation meetings, two OECD conferences (Paris and Beijing), the 1999 Conference on Privatization and the Kuwaiti Economy in the Next Century, the 1998 Financial Management Association meeting, the 1999 European Financial Management Association meeting, the Fondazione ENI Enrico Mattei (FFEM), the Swiss Banking Institute and Credit Suisse, and seminars at the City University Business School (London), London Guildhall University and the University of Oklahoma. All remaining errors are the authors’ alone. Please address correspondence to:
Catching Hipo's: Screening, Wages and Unemployment

In this paper, I study the wage a firm sets to attract high abilityworkers (hipo's) in situationsof unemployment. I show that the higher unemployment, the larger afirm's incentives to sorthigh and low ability workers. Moreover, workers will signal their(high) ability in situationsof (high) unemployment only if a job offers a high enough wage. Themain result, therefore,says that a firm sets higher wages, the higher unemployment. As themodel is applicable tothe upper segment of the labour market, the result is in line withthe empirical fact thatincome inequality increases when more people are unemployed.
Optimized multi-electrode stimulation increases focality and intensity at target

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) provides a non-invasive tool to elicit neuromodulation by delivering current through electrodes placed on the scalp. The present clinical paradigm uses two relatively large electrodes to inject current through the head resulting in electric fields that are broadly distributed over large regions of the brain. In this paper, we present a method that uses multiple small electrodes (i.e. 1.2 cm diameter) and systematically optimize the applied currents to achieve effective and targeted stimulation while ensuring safety of stimulation. We found a fundamental trade-off between achievable intensity (at the target) and focality, and algorithms to optimize both measures are presented. When compared with large pad-electrodes (approximated here by a set of small electrodes covering 25cm2), the proposed approach achieves electric fields which exhibit simultaneously greater focality (80% improvement) and higher target intensity (98% improvement) at cortical targets using the same total current applied. These improvements illustrate the previously unrecognized and non-trivial dependence of the optimal electrode configuration on the desired electric field orientation and the maximum total current (due to safety). Similarly, by exploiting idiosyncratic details of brain anatomy, the optimization approach significantly improves upon prior un-optimized approaches using small electrodes. The analysis also reveals the optimal use of conventional bipolar montages: maximally intense tangential fields are attained with the two electrodes placed at a considerable distance from the target along the direction of the desired field; when radial fields are desired, the maximum-intensity configuration consists of an electrode placed directly over the target with a distant return electrode. To summarize, if a target location and stimulation orientation can be defined by the clinician, then the proposed technique is superior in terms of both focality and intensity as compared to previous solutions and is thus expected to translate into improved patient safety and increased clinical efficacy.