Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Efficient RSS Feed Generation from html Pages

: Although RSS demonstrates a promising solution to track and personalize the flow of new Web information, many of the current Web sites are not yet enabled with RSS feeds. The availability of convenient approaches to “RSSify” existing suitable Web contents has become a stringent necessity. This paper presents EHTML2RSS, an efficient system that translates semi-structured HTML pages to structured RSS feeds, which proposes different approaches based on various features of HTML pages. For the information items with release time, the system provides an automatic approach based on time pattern discovery. Another automatic approach based on repeated tag pattern discovery is applied to convert the regular pages without the time pattern. A semi-automatic approach based on labelling is available to process the irregular pages or specific sections in Web pages according to the user’s requirements. Experimental results show that our system is efficient and effective in facilitating the RSS feed generation.
Human Enterovirus 71 DNA Vaccine Constructs Containing 5’UTR with Complete Internal Ribosome Entry Site Sequence Stimulated Improved Anti-Human Enterovirus 71 Neutralizing Immune Responses

Recent improvement in the technologies for efficient delivery of DNA vaccines has renewed interest in the DNA-based vaccines. Several DNA-based vaccines against human enterovirus 71 (EV71), the causative agent for hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) have been developed. Here we examined the potential of improving the vaccines by inserting the EV71 5’ untranslated region (5’ UTR) containing the full length internal ribosome entry site (IRES) sequence to the EV71 VP1-based DNA vaccine constructs. Four vaccine constructs designated as 5’ UTR-VP1/EGFP, VP1/EGFP, 5’ UTR-VP1/pVAX and VP1/pVAX, were designed using the pEGFP-N1 and pVAX-1 expression vectors, respectively. Transfection of Vero cells with the vaccine constructs with the 5’-UTR (5’-UTR-VP1/EGFP and 5’ UTR-VP1/pVAX) resulted in higher percentages of cells expressing the recombinant protein in comparison to cells transfected with vectors without the 5’-UTR (67% and 57%, respectively). Higher IgG responses (29%) were obtained from mice immunized with the DNA vaccine construct with the full length 5’ UTR. The same group of mice when challenged with life EV71 produced significantly higher neutralizing antibody (NAb) titers (>5-fold). These results suggest that insertion of the EV71 5’ UTR sequence consisting of the full length IRES to the EV71 DNA vaccine constructs improved the efficacy of the constructs with enhanced elicitation of the neutralizing antibody responses.
Profiling and targeting HER2-positive breast cancer using trastuzumab emtansine

Purpose This article reviews the mechanism of action of trastuzumab emtansine (T-DM1), existing clinical data relating to its use for human growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive breast cancer, potential pathways of resistance, and ongoing studies evaluating this novel agent. Background The development of HER2-targeted therapies has dramatically improved clinical outcomes for patients with any stage of HER2-positive breast cancer. Although the positive effect of these treatments cannot be overstated, treatment resistance develops in the vast majority of those diagnosed with stage IV HER2-positive breast cancer. Moreover, HER2-directed therapies are most effective when combined with cytotoxic chemotherapy. The need for chemotherapy leads to significant adverse effects and a clear decrease in quality of life for those dealing with a chronic incurable disease. T-DM1 is a recently developed, novel antibody–drug conjugate in which highly potent maytanisinoid chemotherapy is stably linked to the HER2-targeted monoclonal antibody, trastuzumab. Results Preclinical and phase 1–3 clinical data support the significant antitumor activity of T-DM1. Importantly, several randomized studies also now demonstrate its clear superiority in terms of tolerability compared with standard chemotherapy-containing regimens. Its role in the treatment of trastuzumab-resistant metastatic breast cancer has now been established on the basis of the results of two phase 3 randomized studies, EMILIA (An Open-label Study of Trastuzumab Emtansine (T-DM1) vs Capecitabine + Lapatinib in Patients With HER2-positive Locally Advanced or Metastatic Breast Cancer) and TH3RESA (A Study of Trastuzumab Emtansine in Comparison With Treatment of Physician’s Choice in Patients With HER2-positive Breast Cancer Who Have Received at Least Two Prior Regimens of HER2-directed Therapy). The most common toxicities seen with T-DM1 are thrombocytopenia and an elevation in liver transaminases. Significant cardiac toxicity has not been demonstrated. Both in vitro cell line–based studies as well as exploratory analyses of archived tumor samples from the clinical trials are seeking to understand potential mechanisms of resistance to T-DM1. Ongoing studies are also evaluating the use of T-DM1 in the first-line metastatic, neoadjuvant, and adjuvant settings, as well as in combination with other targeted therapies. Conclusion T-DM1 represents the first successfully developed antibody drug conjugate for the treatment of HER2-positive advanced breast cancer.
Factors affecting the periapical healing process of endodontically treated teeth

Abstract Tissue repair is an essential process that reestablishes tissue integrity and regular function. Nevertheless, different therapeutic factors and clinical conditions may interfere in this process of periapical healing. This review aims to discuss the important therapeutic factors associated with the clinical protocol used during root canal treatment and to highlight the systemic conditions associated with the periapical healing process of endodontically treated teeth. The antibacterial strategies indicated in the conventional treatment of an inflamed and infected pulp and the modulation of the host's immune response may assist in tissue repair, if wound healing has been hindered by infection. Systemic conditions, such as diabetes mellitus and hypertension, can also inhibit wound healing. The success of root canal treatment is affected by the correct choice of clinical protocol. These factors are dependent on the sanitization process (instrumentation, irrigant solution, irrigating strategies, and intracanal dressing), the apical limit of the root canal preparation and obturation, and the quality of the sealer. The challenges affecting the healing process of endodontically treated teeth include control of the inflammation of pulp or infectious processes and simultaneous neutralization of unpredictable provocations to the periapical tissue. Along with these factors, one must understand the local and general clinical conditions (systemic health of the patient) that affect the outcome of root canal treatment prediction.
Is there variation in the effects of primate size as seed dispersers?: Seed and seedling performance after gut simulation treatments in hydrochloric acid

Primates are reliable seed dispersers due to their foraging patterns and ability to transport seeds several hundred kilometers away from the parent tree. It has been observed in the wild that seeds defecated by primates with longer digestive tracts have more successful seed germination. Within the primate stomach, hydrochloric acid (HCl) is a major gastric acid that helps digest and breakdown foods. Hydrochloric acid may also be beneficial to plants as well; the acid provides corrosion of the seed coat to reduce the time a seed spends dormant. Therefore organisms that swallow seeds indirectly treat seeds with HCl acid baths and provide beneficial seed modifications. In this study, seeds were treated with HCl for two hour intervals to determine the effect on germination and growth to stimulate varying time in the gut of various primate species with varying gut lengths. We found that larger primates (i.e., those with longer digestive tracts) may be more effective seed dispersers as seeds germinated earlier and seedlings performed better the longer the time they spent in the acid (i.e., stimulated gut), although they were also more susceptible to herbivory. These findings demonstrate the positive effects of primates on seedling germination and their potential as seed dispersers.
Human vaccination against Plasmodium vivax Duffy-binding protein induces strain-transcending antibodies

BACKGROUND. Plasmodium vivax is the most widespread human malaria geographically; however, no effective vaccine exists. Red blood cell invasion by the P. vivax merozoite depends on an interaction between the Duffy antigen receptor for chemokines (DARC) and region II of the parasite’s Duffy-binding protein (PvDBP_RII). Naturally acquired binding-inhibitory antibodies against this interaction associate with clinical immunity, but it is unknown whether these responses can be induced by human vaccination. METHODS. Safety and immunogenicity of replication-deficient chimpanzee adenovirus serotype 63 (ChAd63) and modified vaccinia virus Ankara (MVA) viral vectored vaccines targeting PvDBP_RII (Salvador I strain) were assessed in an open-label dose-escalation phase Ia study in 24 healthy UK adults. Vaccines were delivered by the intramuscular route in a ChAd63-MVA heterologous prime-boost regimen using an 8-week interval. RESULTS. Both vaccines were well tolerated and demonstrated a favorable safety profile in malaria-naive adults. PvDBP_RII–specific ex-vivo IFN-γ T cell, antibody-secreting cell, memory B cell, and serum IgG responses were observed after the MVA boost immunization. Vaccine-induced antibodies inhibited the binding of vaccine homologous and heterologous variants of recombinant PvDBP_RII to the DARC receptor, with median 50% binding-inhibition titers greater than 1:100. CONCLUSION. We have demonstrated for the first time to our knowledge that strain-transcending antibodies can be induced against the PvDBP_RII antigen by vaccination in humans. These vaccine candidates warrant further clinical evaluation of efficacy against the blood-stage P. vivax parasite. TRIAL REGISTRATION. Clinicaltrials.gov NCT01816113. FUNDING. Support was provided by the UK Medical Research Council, UK National Institute of Health Research Oxford Biomedical Research Centre, and the Wellcome Trust.
Predator-baiting experiments for the conservation of rock-wallabies in Western Australia: a 25-year review with recent advances

Predation is widely believed to be the main threatening process for many native vertebrates in Australia. For 25 years, predator-baiting experiments have been used in the Western Australian Central Wheatbelt to control red fox predation on rock-wallabies and other endangered marsupial prey elsewhere. We review here the history of a series of baiting experiments designed to protect rock-wallaby colonies by controlling red foxes with 1080 poison baits. We continue to support the conclusion that red foxes can reduce or exterminate rock-wallaby populations in Western Australia. Research trials from 1990 to 2008 have uniformly shown a dramatic recovery of rock-wallaby populations once red foxes are baited. Baiting experiments are often black boxes and their success should not blind us to their weaknesses. Ideally, what we would like to measure are the functional responses of predators to prey abundance directly. As a contribution towards this goal, we describe new technology that enables one to determine which predator killed which prey, at exactly what time, with improved research and management outcomes.
Propolis from Northern California and Oregon: Chemical Composition, Botanical Origin, and Content of Allergens

Propolis is a beehive product that bees manufacture by mixing their own wax with vegetable resins collected from different species of trees and bushes. The chemical composition of propolis is very variable because it depends on the flora locally available, and specimens from different geographical and climatic areas display unique properties. In this paper, the results of the chemical characterization of some propolis specimens collected in northern California and in Oregon are presented. Their chemical compositions show that all specimens contain resins from poplars of the Tacamahaca section (balsam poplars) - characteristic of the western part of the North American continent. Nevertheless, some of the specimens are of mixed origin because they also contain resins from poplars of the Aigeiros section (cottonwoods) - also present in this part of the world. Propolis causes allergies in sensitive human individuals, which are due to the presence of certain esters. The contents of known propolis allergenic esters - phenylethyl caffeate, 1,1-dimethylallyl caffeate, benzyl cinnamate, and benzyl salicylate - have been investigated in these specimens and found to depend on the botanical origin.
Reputation Effects and Equilibrium Degeneracy in Continuous-Time Games

We study a class of continuous-time reputation games between a large player and a population of small players in which the actions of the large player are imperfectly observable. The large player is either a normal type, who behaves strategically, or a behavioral type, who is committed to playing a certain strategy. We provide a complete characterization of the set of sequential equilibrium payoffs of the large player using an ordinary differential equation. In addition, we identify a sufficient condition for the sequential equilibrium to be unique and Markovian in the small players' posterior belief. An implication of our characterization is that when the small players are certain that they are facing the normal type, intertemporal incentives are trivial: the set of equilibrium payoffs of the large player coincides with the convex hull of the set of static Nash equilibrium payoffs.
Mortality in patients coinfected with hepatitis B virus and HIV: could antiretroviral therapy make a difference?

risk of mortality attributable to HIV-HBV coinfection and the impact of coinfection on HIV disease progression. In the combined analysis of 12,382 patients, they found an excess risk of all-cause mortality attributable to the effect of HIV-HBV coinfection (pooled effect estimate, 1.36; 95% CI, 1.12‐1.64). They did not, however, find an increased risk of AIDS progression or decreased efficacy of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) among patients who had hepatitis B surface antigen detected. The limitations of their analysis include the addition of publications from Asia, in which the mode of transmission (vertical or childhood) and type of HBV genotypes (genotype B and C) are very different from those in Western countries [9]. Differences in the duration of infection and HBV genotype may present a risk of death that varies from that in Western countries [10]. However, the authors did perform a sensitivity analysis to examine the impact of specific publications on overall risk. Another limitation of the meta-analysis is the lack of HBV load data, which makes it difficult to determine if individuals with high HBV loads were at increased risk of liver disease progression, compared with those with low HBV loads or inactive carriers who may not have been at risk at all. Additionally, it is unknown what proportion of the HIV-HBV‐coinfected population also was infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV) or had diabetes or other comorbidities that might have affected risk of death. Regardless of the study’s limitations, these findings are important because they establish that HBV, which is a vaccinepreventable disease, is associated with an excess risk of all-cause mortality. In light of these findings, there needs to be a renewed focus on the prevention of HBV infection in adults. The incidence of acute
Thecniques in Renal-Cell Carcinoma

Over 64000 new renal-cell carcinomas (RCC) are annually detected in the United States, and 13000 people will die from the disease. Most RCC are discovered incidentally on medical imaging and a great percentage of them may be treated by surgery, but one third of patients will present either with locally advanced tumor or with metastases[1]. In addition, another third of patients may develop metastatic disease after initial treatment.
Relationship between Skin Speckle, Soluble Solids Content and Transpiration Rate in Nectarines

Summary A study was conducted to assess the relationship between skin speckle, soluble solids content, stomata, lenticels and transpiration rate of nectarine fruit (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch) of two cultivars ‘Snowqueen’ and ‘Fairlane’. Fruit soluble solids content and transpiration rate per fruit and surface area were measured on tissue samples taken from fruit parts with and without skin speckles. Soluble solids content and transpiration rate varied for a fruit and were higher in fruit parts with skin speckles than in fruit parts without skin speckles. Results reflected a positive association between skin speckle, soluble solids content and transpiration rate. This positive association provides a challenge for breeders, which is to produce fruits without skin speckles while not adversely affecting sugar levels.
Behavioral / Systems / Cognitive Functional Dissociation in Frontal and Striatal Areas for Processing of Positive and Negative Reward Information

Reward-seeking behavior depends critically on processing of positive and negative information at various stages such as reward anticipation , outcome monitoring, and choice evaluation. Behavioral and neuropsychological evidence suggests that processing of positive (e.g., gain) and negative (e.g., loss) reward information may be dissociable and individually disrupted. However, it remains uncertain whether different stages of reward processing share certain neural circuitry in frontal and striatal areas, and whether distinct but interactive systems in these areas are recruited for positive and negative reward processing. To explore these issues, we used a monetary decision-making task to investigate the roles of frontal and striatal areas at all three stages of reward processing in the same event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging experiment. Participants were instructed to choose whether to bet or bank a certain number of chips. If they decided to bank or if they lost a bet, they started over betting one chip. If they won a bet, the wager was doubled in the next round. Positive reward anticipation, winning outcome, and evaluation of right choices activated the striatum and medial/middle orbito-frontal cortex, whereas negative reward anticipation, losing outcome, and evaluation of wrong choices activated the lateral orbitofrontal cortex, anterior insula, superior temporal pole, and dorsomedial frontal cortex. These findings suggest that the valence of reward information and counterfactual comparison more strongly predict a functional dissociation in frontal and striatal areas than do various stages of reward processing. These distinct but interactive systems may serve to guide human's reward-seeking behavior.
Minimum Mean-Square Error Equalization for Second-Order Volterra Systems

In this paper, a novel nonlinear Volterra equalizer is presented. We define a framework for nonlinear second-order Volterra models, which is applicable to different applications in engineering. We use this framework to define the channel and to model the equalizer. We then solve the minimum mean-square error (MMSE) problem explicitly for the tandem connection of the two second-order Volterra systems. Optimal solutions for a simplified, linear version of the MMSE equalizer are also presented. The novel equalizer was tested when applied to a nonlinear ultra-wideband transmitted reference receiver front end. As a comparison, a least mean squares (LMS) equalizer with a training sequence has been used to verify the performance of the newly proposed equalizer. The simulation results show that the LMS equalizer is only able to attain the proposed MMSE equalizer after very long training, which might not be desirable in a communication system.
Reinforcement of Uncured and Cured Rubber Composites and Its Relationship to Dispersive Mixing—An Interpretation of Cure Meter Rheographs of Carbon Black Loaded SBR and Cis-Polybutadiene Compounds

Abstract A new approach has been proposed to characterize the state of mixing of carbon black-loaded SBR and cis-polybutadiene compounds. The basic concept is that carbon black aggregates, present when the dispersion is imperfect, affect the modulus of the uncured compound more than that of the cured compound. From cure meter curves, the torque values before and after curing can be related to moduli which can, in turn, be analyzed to give information on the state of aggregation of the carbon black. An equation is proposed which correlates the relative modulus values with volume fraction of carbon black, morphology (packing or state of aggregation) of carbon black, and polymer-carbon black interaction.
Study of the Rheological, Thermal and Mechanical Properties of Polypropylene/ Organoclay Composites and Fibres

In this paper, the spinning of polypropylene (PP)/montmorillonite (MMT) composites, as well as the structure and selected mechanical properties of composite fibres are presented. In the experimental work the commercially available organically modified montmorillonites Cloisite 15A (C15A) and Cloisite 30B (C30B) were used. The organoclays were incorporated into the matrix of PP fibres in the form of concentrated PP/organoclay dispersion before spinning. The rheological properties of concentrated PP and PP/organoclay dispersion were investigated to estimate the melt mixing of these components and spinning conditions. A positive effect of both organoclays on the geometrical and structural non-uniformity of PP composite fibres was found. MMT acts as a nucleating agent in PP and can affect the crystallisation rate and supermolecular structure of PP fibres. PP composite fibres formed at a maximum draw ratio showed a higher tensile strength (tenacity) and Young’s modulus in comparison with unmodified fibres.
Recognition by natural killer cells of N6‐isopentenyladenosine‐treated human glioma cell lines

Cancer cell stress induced by cytotoxic agents promotes antitumor immune response. Here, we observed that N6‐isopentenyladenosine (iPA), an isoprenoid modified adenosine with a well established anticancer activity, was able to induce a significant upregulation of cell surface expression of natural killer (NK) cell activating receptor NK Group 2 member D (NKG2D) ligands on glioma cells in vitro and xenografted in vivo. Specifically suboptimal doses of iPA (0.1 and 1 µM) control the selective upregulation of UL16‐binding protein 2 on p53wt‐expressing U343MG and that of MICA/B on p53mut‐expressing U251MG cells. This event made the glioblastoma cells a potent target for NK cell‐mediated recognition through a NKG2D restricted mechanism. p53 siRNA‐mediated knock‐down and pharmacological inhibition (pifithrin‐α), profoundly prevented the iPA action in restoring the immunogenicity of U343MG cells through a mechanism that is dependent upon p53 status of malignancy. Furthermore, accordingly to the preferential recognition of senescent cells by NK cells, we found that iPA treatment was critical for glioma cells entry in premature senescence through the induction of S and G2/M phase arrest.