Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The temporal and nasal retinal arteriolar and venular angles in preterm infants

Aim To determine the angle between the temporal or nasal retinal vessels in preterm infants and to determine the relationship of these angles to birthweight (BW), gestational age (GA) and retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) status. Methods Colour digital images were acquired during ROP screening examinations in infants born with a range of BWs and GAs between 33 and 42 weeks postmenstrual age. Four retinal vessel angles were measured: temporal venular angle, temporal arteriolar angle (tAA), nasal venular angle and nasal arteriolar angle. Measurements were performed by Computer-Aided Image Analysis of the Retina, a validated semi-automated computer software program. The relationship of each of four angles to BW and also to GA was determined using Mann–Whitney test and Spearman's rho, respectively. Results tAA was significantly narrower in infants with ROP and correlated positively with BW and GA. The other vessel angles, temporal venular angle, nasal arteriolar angle and nasal venular angle, showed no significant correlation with BW, GA or ROP status. Conclusion The retinal vessel angles can be quantified in a simple repeatable manner. tAA correlated positively with BW and GA, and was significantly narrower in infants with stage 3 ROP than in those without ROP or with mild disease.
Ventilatory muscles during exercise in air and oxygen in normal men.

To determine whether normal ventilatory muscles fatigue during short-term high-intensity exercise, we measured diaphragmatic electromyogram (EMG, esophageal electrode), and pleural (Ppl), gastric (Pga), and transdiaphragmatic (Pdi) pressures in seven normal young men. On separate days, the subjects performed exercise to exhaustion at a constant work load (80% maximum power output) inspiring air or 40% O2. Before and after exercise, Pdimax and maximum expiratory pressure at the mouth (PEmax) were measured. At 0.5-2 min postexercise, there was a decrease in Pdimax in both air (P less than 0.02) and O2 studies (P less than 0.05). There was some recovery in Pdimax from 2-5 min postexercise in air (P less than 0.05) and complete recovery 2-5 min postexercise in O2. PEmax did not change postexercise. During exercise in air, the EMG predicted diaphragmatic fatigue in five subjects using a 20% fall of the ratio of high-frequency (150-350 Hz) to low-frequency) (20-46 Hz) power (H/L) as the criterion. Further evidence of diaphragmatic fatigue during exercise in air in two subjects was the decrease in end-inspiratory Pdi toward end exercise. There was an increase in exercise time with O2 (P less than 0.05). The improved performance in O2 was associated with a delay in the fall in H/L and the absence of the decrease in end-inspiratory Pdi in those subjects in whom such changes were observed in air. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Differential Regulation of the Two Ferrochelatase Paralogues in Shewanella loihica PV-4 in Response to Environmental Stresses

ABSTRACT Determining the function and regulation of paralogues is important in understanding microbial functional genomics and environmental adaptation. Heme homeostasis is crucial for the survival of environmental microorganisms. Most Shewanella species encode two paralogues of ferrochelatase, the terminal enzyme in the heme biosynthesis pathway. The function and transcriptional regulation of two ferrochelatase genes, hemH1 and hemH2, were investigated in Shewanella loihica PV-4. The disruption of hemH1 but not hemH2 resulted in a significant accumulation of extracellular protoporphyrin IX (PPIX), the precursor to heme, and decreased intracellular heme levels. hemH1 was constitutively expressed, and the expression of hemH2 increased when hemH1 was disrupted. The transcription of hemH1 was regulated by the housekeeping sigma factor RpoD and potentially regulated by OxyR, while hemH2 appeared to be regulated by the oxidative stress-associated sigma factor RpoE2. When an oxidative stress condition was mimicked by adding H2O2 to the medium or exposing the culture to light, PPIX accumulation was suppressed in the ΔhemH1 mutant. Consistently, transcriptome analysis indicated enhanced iron uptake and suppressed heme synthesis in the ΔhemH1 mutant. These data indicate that the two paralogues are functional in the heme synthesis pathway but regulated by environmental conditions, providing insights into the understanding of bacterial response to environmental stresses and a great potential to commercially produce porphyrin compounds. IMPORTANCE Shewanella is capable of utilizing a variety of electron acceptors for anaerobic respiration because of the existence of multiple c-type cytochromes in which heme is an essential component. The cytochrome-mediated electron transfer across cellular membranes could potentially be used for biotechnological purposes, such as electricity generation in microbial fuel cells and dye decolorization. However, the mechanism underlying the regulation of biosynthesis of heme and cytochromes is poorly understood. Our study has demonstrated that two ferrochelatase genes involved in heme biosynthesis are differentially regulated in response to environmental stresses, including light and reactive oxygen species. This is an excellent example showing how bacteria have evolved to maintain cellular heme homeostasis. More interestingly, the high yields of extracellular protoporphyrin IX by the Shewanella loihica PV-4 mutants could be utilized for commercial production of this valuable chemical via bacterial fermentation.
Capacity limits of LoRaWAN technology for smart metering applications

In this paper we analyze and discuss the capacity limits of LoRaWAN technology for smart metering applications using a real LoRa network simulator including uplink and downlink. First, we present the modeling of the network simulator. Then results for a critical case in the center of Paris show that, with meters all located deep indoor, the capacity of a network covering a dense urban area of 17 km2 with 19 gateways distant from 1 km, considering only UL emissions, could be enough for an average targeted QoS of 98 % as soon as there is no other traffic in the considered band. But we also show that we could very quickly reach the limits when considering that meters will not be the only LoRa devices communicating and above all considering the important impact of DL emissions on capacity.
Fracture Tests Of Polysilicon Film

A new test approach is presented to measure the fracture toughness of thin films. The polysilicon specimen is a center-cracked panel that is 3.5 {micro}m thick and 3 mm wide with a 100 {micro}m long slot in the center. It is subjected to tensile loading, and the crack-opening displacement is measured by interferometry. The average toughness is 1.4 {+-} 0.65 MPa-m{sup 1/2}.
Therapeutic hypothermia for comatose survivors after cardiac arrest.

BACKGROUND Unconscious adults with spontaneous circulation after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest should be cooled to 32-34 degrees C (ILCOR recommendations, 2003) when the initial rhythm is ventricular fibrillation. OBJECTIVES To assess the technique, safety and efficacy of mild induced hypothermia in patients after OHCA due to VF. METHODS Patients were cooled using the MTRE CritiCool external cooling system. Cold intravenous fluids were added to achieve faster cooling in 17 patients. Data were collected prospectively and patients were analyzed according to their neurological outcome on discharge, defined by their cerebral performance category. RESULTS From February 2002 to September 2006, 51 comatose VF patients with OHCA underwent MIH. Treatment was discontinued early in five because of hemodynamic instability; goal temperature was reached in 98% and maintained for an average of 19.5 hours; 61% had a favorable outcome (CPC 1-2) and 37% died. Improved outcome was observed with longer hypothermia time and possibly when time from collapse to return of spontaneous circulation was < 25 minutes. CONCLUSIONS MIH, using an external cooling system, is simple and feasible, reduces mortality and protects neurological function. Four major factors seem to influence outcome: age, co-morbidities, duration of hypothermia, and possibly the length of time from collapse to return of spontaneous circulation.
Florfenicol As a Modulator Enhancing Antimicrobial Activity: Example Using Combination with Thiamphenicol against Pasteurella multocida

Synergistic effects between the same class of antibiotics are rarely reported. Our previous study found synergistic-like interaction between florfenicol (FFC) and thiamphenicol (TAP) against Staphylococcus aureus. Here, the enhanced antimicrobial activity was evaluated in 97 clinical isolates of both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria. Susceptible strains were initially identified by checkerboard microdilution assay (fractional inhibitory concentration index [FICI] ≤ 0.625), followed by confirmation of synergism using the time-kill methodology (≥2 log10 CFU/ml reduction). In all, 43% of Pasteurella multocida tested were susceptible to the enhanced bactericidal effect. In chicken fowl cholera models, FFC and TAP combination at much lower dosage that is correspondent to their MIC deduction provided maximum protection in vivo. Furthermore, synergistic combination of FFC with oxytetracycline (OTC) against Pseudomonas aeruginosa in vitro was also demonstrated. Based on the enhanced uptake of TAP and OTC, FFC presumably elicits enhanced antimicrobial activity in an orderly manner through alteration of bacterial membrane permeability or efflux systems and subsequent increase of intracellular concentration of the antibiotics used in combination. Results of ethidium bromide accumulation assay and RNA-seq showed little evidence for the involvement of efflux pumps in the synergy but further investigation is required. This study suggests the potentiality of a novel combination regimen involving FFC as an initiating modulator effective against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria depending on the antibiotics that are combined. The observed improvement of bacteriostatic effect to bactericidal, and the extended effectiveness against FFC-resistant bacterial strains warrant further studies.
Efficacy of MRI and mammography for breast-cancer screening in women with a familial or genetic predisposition.

BACKGROUND The value of regular surveillance for breast cancer in women with a genetic or familial predisposition to breast cancer is currently unproven. We compared the efficacy of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with that of mammography for screening in this group of high-risk women. METHODS Women who had a cumulative lifetime risk of breast cancer of 15 percent or more were screened every six months with a clinical breast examination and once a year by mammography and MRI, with independent readings. The characteristics of the cancers that were detected were compared with the characteristics of those in two different age-matched control groups. RESULTS We screened 1909 eligible women, including 358 carriers of germ-line mutations. Within a median follow-up period of 2.9 years, 51 tumors (44 invasive cancers, 6 ductal carcinomas in situ, and 1 lymphoma) and 1 lobular carcinoma in situ were detected. The sensitivity of clinical breast examination, mammography, and MRI for detecting invasive breast cancer was 17.9 percent, 33.3 percent, and 79.5 percent, respectively, and the specificity was 98.1 percent, 95.0 percent, and 89.8 percent, respectively. The overall discriminating capacity of MRI was significantly better than that of mammography (P<0.05). The proportion of invasive tumors that were 10 mm or less in diameter was significantly greater in our surveillance group (43.2 percent) than in either control group (14.0 percent [P<0.001] and 12.5 percent [P=0.04], respectively). The combined incidence of positive axillary nodes and micrometastases in invasive cancers in our study was 21.4 percent, as compared with 52.4 percent (P<0.001) and 56.4 percent (P=0.001) in the two control groups. CONCLUSIONS MRI appears to be more sensitive than mammography in detecting tumors in women with an inherited susceptibility to breast cancer.
Analysis of arm trajectories of everyday tasks for the development of an upper-limb orthosis.

Spatiotemporal arm and body movements of able-bodied subjects performing nine everyday tasks were recorded for the purpose of guiding the development of an upper-limb orthosis. To provide a user the opportunity to carry out these tasks with natural movements, the orthosis should allow replication of the measured trajectories. We outline the orthosis architecture, which supports the user's upper arm and forearm, and analyze the movement data to obtain orthosis design specifications. Trajectories were obtained using six-degree-of-freedom magnetic position sensors affixed to the wrist, elbow, shoulder, trunk and head. Elbow trajectory data were decomposed into ranges along the principle Cartesian axes to provide a generally useful envelope measure. The smallest Cartesian parallel-piped that contained the elbow trajectories for most tasks was approximately 30 cm front/back, 15 cm side/side, and 17 cm up/down. A rough lower bound estimate obtained by asking subjects to repeat the tasks while minimizing elbow movement substantially reduced movement in the up/down and side/side dimensions. Elbow angles were generally in the range 50 degrees-150 degrees, and the angle of the forearm with respect to vertical was 10 degrees-110 degrees. Raw trajectory data may be downloaded from www://asel.udel. edu/robotics/orthosis/range.h tml.
RTSenv: An experimental environment for real-time strategy games

Today, Real-Time Strategy (RTS) games entertain tens of millions of players world-wide. This growing population expects new game designs and more scalable games every year. However, few tools and environments exist for game designers and implementers; of these, even fewer are available to researchers and game communities. In this work, we introduce RTSenv, an environment and associated set of tools for RTS games. Our environment can configure and manage the main aspects of RTS games, such as maps, computer-controlled units, and game scenarios. RTSenv leverages multi-cluster systems and reactive fault tolerance mechanisms to perform robust, multi-machine, and multi-instance game experiments. Using our reference implementation of RTSenv in DAS-4, a real multi-cluster system, and Amazon EC2, a commercial cloud, we show that our approach can be used in a variety of scenarios. Our results give evidence that several common assumptions made by researchers about game workloads do not hold in general for RTS games and thus warrant a more detailed investigation.
Ant colony optimization: a new meta-heuristic

Recently, a number of algorithms inspired by the foraging behavior of ant colonies have been applied to the solution of difficult discrete optimization problems. We put these algorithms in a common framework by defining the Ant Colony Optimization (ACO) meta-heuristic. A couple of paradigmatic examples of applications of these novel meta-heuristic are given, as well as a brief overview of existing applications.
KED: A Deontic Theorem Prover

Deontic logic (DL) is increasingly recognized as an indispensable tool in such application areas as formal representation of legal knowledge and reasoning, formal specification of computer systems and formal analysis of database integrity constraints. Despite this acknowledgement, there have been few attempts to provide computationally tractable inference mechanisms for DL. In this paper we shall be concerned with providing a computationally oriented proof method for standard DL (SDL), i.e., normal systems of modal logic with the usual possible-worlds semantics. Because of the natural and easily implementable style of proof construction it uses, this method seems particularly well-suited for applications in the AI and Law field, and though in the present version it works for SDL only, it forms an appropriate basis for developing efficient proof methods for more expressive and sophisticated extensions of SDL.
Personal Goals and Subjective Well-Being in Later Life

With a sentence completion technique, 708 elderly participants (65 to 90 years of age) expressed 15,027 personal aspirations. These goals were classified according to their motivational content in ten major categories and their relationships with various aspects of subjective well-being were studied. Two goal profiles emerged from this analysis. Aspirations centered on self-preservation were associated with poor self-rated physical health, being burden by difficulties, lack of meaning to life, dissatisfaction with life, and negative expectations for the future. Aspirations of self-development and interest in the well-being of others were associated with feelings of well-being in later life. Development of meaningful personal goals was discussed as a new intervention approach with the elders.
Physics of the Earth's rotation instabilities

This paper generalizes the results of investigations on the instabilities of the Earth's rotation and related geophysical processes. Long series of observations of the Earth's orientation parameters are demonstrated. The tidal variations in the length of the day are described. The temporal variations in the atmospheric angular momentum and their contribution to the instabilities of the Earth's rotation are studied. The mechanisms of seasonal variations in the length of the day and polar motion are discussed. The probable geophysical processes responsible for the decades-long (2–100 years) instability of the Earth's rotation are discussed.
Spectrums of Opportunistic Infections and Malignancies in HIV-Infected Patients in Tertiary Care Hospital, China

Background HIV-related opportunistic infections (OIs) and malignancies continued to cause morbidity and mortality in Chinese HIV-infected individuals. The objective for this study is to elucidate the prevalence and spectrums of OIs and malignancies in HIV-infected patients in the Beijing Ditan Hospital. Methods The evaluation of the prevalence and spectrums of OIs and malignancies was conducted by using the clinical data of 834 HIV-infected patients admitted in the Beijing Ditan hospital from January 1, 2009, to November 30, 2012. Results The prevalence and spectrums of OIs and malignancies varied contingent on geographic region, transmission routes, and CD4 levels. We found that tuberculosis was most common OI and prevalence was 32.5%, followed by candidiasis(29.3%), Pneumocystis pneumonia(PCP)(22.4%), cytomegalovirus(CMV) infection(21.7%), other fungal infections(16.2%), mycobacterium avium complex(MAC)(11.3%), cryptococcosis(8.0%), progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy(PML)(4.4%), Cerebral Toxoplasmosis(3.5%) and Penicillium marneffei infection(1.4%); while Lymphoma(2.9%), Kaposi’s sarcoma(0.8%) and cervix carcinoma(0.3%) were emerged as common AIDS-defining malignancies. Pulmonary OI infections were the most prevalent morbidity and mortality in patients in the AIDS stage including pulmonary tuberculosis (26.6%) and PCP (22.4%). CMV infection(21.7%) was most common viral infection; Fungal OIs were one of most prevalent morbidity in patients in the AIDS stage, including oral candidiasis (29.3%), other fungal infection (16.2%), Cryptococcosis (8.0%) and Penicillium marneffei infection (1.4%). We found the low prevalence of AIDS-defining illnesses in central neural system in this study, including progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (4.4%), cerebral toxoplasmosis (3.5%), tuberculosis meningitis (3.2%), cryptococcal meningitis (2.4%) and CMV encephalitis (1.1%). In-hospital mortality rate was 4.3 per 100 person-years due to severe OIs, malignancies, and medical cost constraints. Conclusions The prevalence and spectrums of OIs, malignancies and co-infections were discussed in this study. It would help increase the awareness for physicians to make a diagnosis and empirical treatment sooner and plan good management strategies, especially in resource limited regions.
Assessing the Effects of Light on Differentiation and Virulence of the Plant Pathogen Botrytis cinerea: Characterization of the White Collar Complex

Organisms are exposed to a tough environment, where acute daily challenges, like light, can strongly affect several aspects of an individual's physiology, including pathogenesis. While several fungal models have been widely employed to understand the physiological and molecular events associated with light perception, various other agricultural-relevant fungi still remain, in terms of their responsiveness to light, in the dark. The fungus Botrytis cinerea is an aggressive pathogen able to cause disease on a wide range of plant species. Natural B. cinerea isolates exhibit a high degree of diversity in their predominant mode of reproduction. Thus, the majority of naturally occurring strains are known to reproduce asexually via conidia and sclerotia, and sexually via apothecia. Studies from the 1970′s reported on specific developmental responses to treatments with near-UV, blue, red and far-red light. To unravel the signaling machinery triggering development – and possibly also connected with virulence – we initiated the functional characterization of the transcription factor/photoreceptor BcWCL1 and its partner BcWCL2, that form the White Collar Complex (WCC) in B. cinerea. Using mutants either abolished in or exhibiting enhanced WCC signaling (overexpression of both bcwcl1 and bcwcl2), we demonstrate that the WCC is an integral part of the mentioned machinery by mediating transcriptional responses to white light and the inhibition of conidiation in response to this stimulus. Furthermore, the WCC is required for coping with excessive light, oxidative stress and also to achieve full virulence. Although several transcriptional responses are abolished in the absence of bcwcl1, the expression of some genes is still light induced and a distinct conidiation pattern in response to daily light oscillations is enhanced, revealing a complex underlying photobiology. Though overlaps with well-studied fungal systems exist, the light-associated machinery of B. cinerea appears more complex than those of Neurospora crassa and Aspergillus nidulans.
Mutation of N-linked glycosylation at Asn548 in CD133 decreases its ability to promote hepatoma cell growth

The membrane glycoprotein CD133 is a popular marker for cancer stem cells and contributes to cancer initiation and invasion in a number of tumor types. CD133 promotes tumorigenesis partly through an interaction between its phosphorylated Y828 residue and the PI3K regulatory subunit p85, and the interaction with β-catenin. Although CD133 glycosylation is supposed to be associated with its function, the contribution of N-glycosylation to its functions remains unclear. Here we analyzed the exact site(s) of N-glycosylation in CD133 by mass spectrometry and found that all eight potential N-glycosylation sites of CD133 could be indeed occupied by N-glycans. Loss of individual N-glycosylation sites had no effect on the level of expression or membrane localization of CD133. However, mutation at glycosylation site Asn548 significantly decreased the ability of CD133 to promote hepatoma cell growth. Furthermore, mutation of Asn548 reduced the interaction between CD133 and β-catenin and inhibited the activation of β-catenin signaling by CD133 overexpression. Our results identified the characteristics and function of CD133 glycosylation sites. These data could potentially shed light on molecular regulation of CD133 by glycosylation and enhance our understanding of the utility of glycosylated CD133 as a target for cancer therapies.