Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Modeling and analyses of thermo-elastic properties of radially grown carbon nanotubes-based woven fabric hybrid composite materials

ABSTRACT Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) may be useful due to their sound thermo-mechanical properties. The present work deals with the evaluation and analysis of elastic properties and coefficient of thermal expansions (CTEs) of a CNTs-based 2D plane woven fabric composite material system where the CNTs are radially grown on the surface of the carbon fiber. Detailed constructional features of the proposed trans-scale composite material system is explained in detail. The mathematical modeling for the material properties of each constituent or building block of the hybrid composite is developed. The mathematical model for the thermo-elastic properties of yarns is also formulated based on strength of material method whereas the thermo-elastic properties of representative unit cell is based on the unit cell method. Various numerical results have been obtained by varying the CNTs content, carbon fiber contents, and temperatures. Effects of different geometrical parameters (such as yarn thickness, yarn width, and the ratio of gap length to yarn width of the yarn) on the elastic properties as well as the CTEs are also investigated.
The validity of DSM‐5 severity specifiers for anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge‐eating disorder

OBJECTIVE The DSM-5 includes severity specifiers (i.e., mild, moderate, severe, extreme) for anorexia nervosa (AN), bulimia nervosa (BN), and binge-eating disorder (BED), which are determined by weight status (AN) and frequencies of binge-eating episodes (BED) or inappropriate compensatory behaviors (BN). Given limited data regarding the validity of eating disorder (ED) severity specifiers, this study examined the concurrent and predictive validity of severity specifiers in AN, BN, and BED. METHOD Adults with AN (n = 109), BN (n = 76), and BED (n = 216) were identified from previous datasets. Concurrent validity was assessed by measures of ED psychopathology, depression, anxiety, quality of life, and physical health. Predictive validity was assessed by ED symptoms at the end of the treatment in BN and BED. RESULTS Severity categories did not differ in baseline validators, though the mild AN group evidenced greater ED symptoms compared to the severe group. In BN, greater severity was related to greater end of treatment binge-eating and compensatory behaviors, and lower likelihood of abstinence; however, in BED, greater severity was related to lower ED symptoms at the end of the treatment. DISCUSSION Results demonstrated limited support for the validity of DSM-5 severity specifiers. Future research is warranted to explore additional validators and possible alternative indicators of severity in EDs.
Electrostatically Actuated Membranes of Cross-Linked Gold Nanoparticles: Novel Concepts for Electromechanical Gas Sensors

We report the preparation of freestanding membranes of cross-linked gold nanoparticles (GNPs) and demonstrate their application as electromechanical sensors for volatile organic compounds (VOCs). First, we show that the fundamental vibrational mode frequency of electrostatically excited GNP-membranes shifts significantly when exposing them to solvent vapors. We attribute this effect mainly to the reduction of the membranes’ pre-stress. Second, the relief in pre-stress upon analyte sorption can also be detected via quasi-static actuation of the membranes. In this case, the increase of the deflection amplitudes at constant bias voltages can be measured as the sensor signal and correlated to the analyte’s concentration. Additionally, we propose a facile route to the fabrication of such hybrid MEMS/NEMS sensors using layer-by-layer spin-coating and contact printing.
Molecular detection and phylogenetic relationship of wild-type strains of canine distemper virus in symptomatic dogs from Uberlândia , Minas Gerais

This study investigated the occurrence of canine distemper virus (CDV) by evaluating the presence of viral RNA within urine samples of dogs from Uberlândia, MG, with clinical manifestations suggestive of infection by CDV by targeting the CDV N gene. Of the clinical samples collected (n=33), CDV viruria was detected in 45.5%. Five dogs died spontaneously; all had characteristic CDV-associated histopathological alterations and demonstrated CDV viruria. Statistical analyses revealed that the age, gender, breed, or the organ system of the dog affected had no influence on the occurrence of canine distemper. Myoclonus and motor incoordination were the most significant neurological manifestations observed. A direct association was observed between keratoconjunctivitis and dogs with CDV viruria. These findings suggest that CDV viruria in symptomatic dogs might not be age related, and that symptomatic dogs can demonstrate clinical manifestations attributed to CDV without viruria identified by RT-PCR. Additionally, the results of the sequence identities analysed have suggested that all Brazilian wild-type strains of CDV currently identified are closely related and probably originated from the same lineage of CDV. Nevertheless, phylogenetic analyses suggest that there are different clusters of wild-type strains of CDV circulating within urban canine populations in Brazil.
Learning from Weak and Noisy Labels for Semantic Segmentation

A weakly supervised semantic segmentation (WSSS) method aims to learn a segmentation model from weak (image-level) as opposed to strong (pixel-level) labels. By avoiding the tedious pixel-level annotation process, it can exploit the unlimited supply of user-tagged images from media-sharing sites such as Flickr for large scale applications. However, these ‘free’ tags/labels are often noisy and few existing works address the problem of learning with both weak and noisy labels. In this work, we cast the WSSS problem into a label noise reduction problem. Specifically, after segmenting each image into a set of superpixels, the weak and potentially noisy image-level labels are propagated to the superpixel level resulting in highly noisy labels; the key to semantic segmentation is thus to identify and correct the superpixel noisy labels. To this end, a novel <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX"> $L_1$</tex-math><alternatives><inline-graphic xlink:href="xiang-ieq1-2552172.gif"/></alternatives></inline-formula> -optimisation based sparse learning model is formulated to directly and explicitly detect noisy labels. To solve the <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$L_1$</tex-math><alternatives> <inline-graphic xlink:href="xiang-ieq2-2552172.gif"/></alternatives></inline-formula>-optimisation problem, we further develop an efficient learning algorithm by introducing an intermediate labelling variable. Extensive experiments on three benchmark datasets show that our method yields state-of-the-art results given noise-free labels, whilst significantly outperforming the existing methods when the weak labels are also noisy.
Dietary Fiber Pectin Directly Blocks Toll-Like Receptor 2–1 and Prevents Doxorubicin-Induced Ileitis

Dietary carbohydrate fibers are known to prevent immunological diseases common in Western countries such as allergy and asthma but the underlying mechanisms are largely unknown. Until now beneficial effects of dietary fibers are mainly attributed to fermentation products of the fibers such as anti-inflammatory short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs). Here, we found and present a new mechanism by which dietary fibers can be anti-inflammatory: a commonly consumed fiber, pectin, blocks innate immune receptors. We show that pectin binds and inhibits, toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) and specifically inhibits the proinflammatory TLR2–TLR1 pathway while the tolerogenic TLR2–TLR6 pathway remains unaltered. This effect is most pronounced with pectins having a low degree of methyl esterification (DM). Low-DM pectin interacts with TLR2 through electrostatic forces between non-esterified galacturonic acids on the pectin and positive charges on the TLR2 ectodomain, as confirmed by testing pectin binding on mutated TLR2. The anti-inflammatory effect of low-DM pectins was first studied in human dendritic cells and mouse macrophages in vitro and was subsequently tested in vivo in TLR2-dependent ileitis in a mouse model. In these mice, ileitis was prevented by pectin administration. Protective effects were shown to be TLR2–TLR1 dependent and independent of the SCFAs produced by the gut microbiota. These data suggest that low-DM pectins as a source of dietary fiber can reduce inflammation through direct interaction with TLR2–TLR1 receptors.
Optimal Localist and Distributed Coding of Spatiotemporal Spike Patterns Through STDP and Coincidence Detection

Repeating spatiotemporal spike patterns exist and carry information. Here we investigated how a single spiking neuron can optimally respond to one given pattern (localist coding), or to either one of several patterns (distributed coding, i.e., the neuron's response is ambiguous but the identity of the pattern could be inferred from the response of multiple neurons), but not to random inputs. To do so, we extended a theory developed in a previous paper (Masquelier, 2017), which was limited to localist coding. More specifically, we computed analytically the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of a multi-pattern-detector neuron, using a threshold-free leaky integrate-and-fire (LIF) neuron model with non-plastic unitary synapses and homogeneous Poisson inputs. Surprisingly, when increasing the number of patterns, the SNR decreases slowly, and remains acceptable for several tens of independent patterns. In addition, we investigated whether spike-timing-dependent plasticity (STDP) could enable a neuron to reach the theoretical optimal SNR. To this aim, we simulated a LIF equipped with STDP, and repeatedly exposed it to multiple input spike patterns, embedded in equally dense Poisson spike trains. The LIF progressively became selective to every repeating pattern with no supervision, and stopped discharging during the Poisson spike trains. Furthermore, tuning certain STDP parameters, the resulting pattern detectors were optimal. Tens of independent patterns could be learned by a single neuron using a low adaptive threshold, in contrast with previous studies, in which higher thresholds led to localist coding only. Taken together these results suggest that coincidence detection and STDP are powerful mechanisms, fully compatible with distributed coding. Yet we acknowledge that our theory is limited to single neurons, and thus also applies to feed-forward networks, but not to recurrent ones.
MiR-339 and especially miR-766 reactivate the expression of tumor suppressor genes in colorectal cancer cell lines through DNA methyltransferase 3B gene inhibition

ABSTRACT It is observed that upregulation of DNMT3B enzyme in some cancers, including colon cancer, could lead to silencing of tumor suppressor genes. MiR-339 and miR-766 have been predicted to target 3′UTR of DNMT3B gene. Luciferase reporter assay validated that individual and co-transfection of miR-766 and miR-339 into the HEK293T cell reduced luciferase activity to 26% ± 0.41%, 43% ± 0.42 and 64% ± 0.52%, respectively, compared to the control (P < 0.05). Furthermore, transduction of miR-339 and miR-766 expressing viruses into colon cancer cell lines (SW480 and HCT116) decreased DNMT3B expression (1.5, 3-fold) and (3, 4-fold), respectively. In addition, DNA methylation of some tumor suppressor genes decreased. Expression of these genes such as SFRP1 (2 and 1.6-fold), SFRP2 (0.07 and 4-fold), WIF1 (0.05 and 4-fold), and DKK2 (2 and 4-fold) increased in SW-339 and SW-766 cell lines; besides, expression increments for these genes in HCT-339 and HCT-766 cell lines were (2.8, 4-fold), (0.005, 1.5-fold), (1.7 and 3-fold) and (0.04, 1.7-fold), respectively. Also, while in SW-766, cell proliferation reduced to 2.8% and 21.7% after 24 and 48 hours, respectively, SW-339 showed no reduced proliferation. Meanwhile, HCT-766 and HCT-339 showed (3.5%, 12.8%) and (18.8%, 33.9%) reduced proliferation after 24 and 48 hours, respectively. Finally, targeting DNMT3B by these miRs, decreased methylation of tumor suppressor genes such as SFRP1, SFRP2, WIF1 and DKK2 in the mentioned cell lines, and returned the expression of these tumor suppressor genes which can contribute to lethal effect on colon cancer cells and reducing tumorigenicity of these cells.
Gender-Specific Aspects in Patients with Multiple Myeloma Undergoing Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation: A Single-Center Experience

Objective: Limited data exist on gender-specific aspects in hematologic malignancies and have been obtained mostly in non-Hodgkin lymphomas. The objective of this study was to investigate gender-specific aspects in patients with multiple myeloma (MM) undergoing autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT). Methods: A retrospective data analysis of 191 patients with MM who underwent ASCT was performed. Data collected from clinical records included age, sex, stage, induction therapy, outcome of induction, kind of stem cell mobilization, response to induction therapy and ASCT, cytogenetic aberrations, progression-free survival, and overall survival. Results: Eighty-one patients (42%) were female, whereas 110 patients were male (58%). No differences between female and male patients could be observed according to the international staging system (ISS) (e.g., ISS III: 14.8 vs. 17.3%), type of paraprotein, and cytogenetic aberrations (e.g., Del(13q): 32.7 vs. 28.9%). Five-year overall survival rates, when calculated from time to ASCT until death, were 27.2 and 36.4% and, when calculated from time to diagnosis until death, were 34.6 and 44.5%, respectively, and did not differ between groups according to ISS subgroups. Conclusion: Prognosis and baseline characteristics were identical and no differences could be observed between female and male patients with MM undergoing ASCT.
Gonadal soma controls ovarian follicle proliferation through Gsdf in zebrafish

Background: Aberrant signaling between germ cells and somatic cells can lead to reproductive disease and depends on diffusible signals, including transforming growth factor‐beta (TGFB) ‐family proteins. The TGFB‐family protein Gsdf (gonadal soma derived factor) controls sex determination in some fish and is a candidate for mediating germ cell/soma signaling. Results: Zebrafish expressed gsdf in somatic cells of bipotential gonads and expression continued in ovarian granulosa cells and testicular Sertoli cells. Homozygous gsdf knockout mutants delayed leaving the bipotential gonad state, but then became a male or a female. Mutant females ovulated a few oocytes, then became sterile, accumulating immature follicles. Female mutants stored excess lipid and down‐regulated aromatase, gata4, insulin receptor, estrogen receptor, and genes for lipid metabolism, vitellogenin, and steroid biosynthesis. Mutant females contained less estrogen and more androgen than wild‐types. Mutant males were fertile. Genomic analysis suggests that Gsdf, Bmp15, and Gdf9, originated as paralogs in vertebrate genome duplication events. Conclusions: In zebrafish, gsdf regulates ovarian follicle maturation and expression of genes for steroid biosynthesis, obesity, diabetes, and female fertility, leading to ovarian and extra‐ovarian phenotypes that mimic human polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), suggesting a role for a related TGFB signaling molecule in the etiology of PCOS. Developmental Dynamics 246:925–945, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Recovery plan for laurel wilt of avocado, caused by Raffaelea lauricola

R. C. Ploetz, Tropical Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Homestead 33031; M. A. Hughes, School of Forest Resources and Conservation, University of Florida, Gainesville 32611; P. E. Kendra, USDA-ARS Subtropical Horticulture Research Station, Miami, FL 33158; S. W. Fraedrich, USDA Forest Service, Athens, GA 30602; D. Carrillo, Tropical Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Homestead 33031; L. L. Stelinski, Citrus Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Lake Alfred 33850; J. Hulcr, School of Forest Resources and Conservation and Department of Entomology and Nematology, University of Florida, Gainesville 32611; A. E. Mayfield, III, USDA Forest Service, Southern Research Station, Asheville, NC 28804; T. L. Dreaden, USDA-Forest Service, Southern Research Station, Forest Health Research and Education Center, Lexington, KY 40517; J. H. Crane, E. A. Evans, and B. A. Schaffer, Tropical Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Homestead 33031; and J. A. Rollins, Department of Plant Pathology, University of Florida, Gainesville 32611
Selectivity and Longevity of Peripheral-Nerve and Machine Interfaces: A Review

For those individuals with upper-extremity amputation, a daily normal living activity is no longer possible or it requires additional effort and time. With the aim of restoring their sensory and motor functions, theoretical and technological investigations have been carried out in the field of neuroprosthetic systems. For transmission of sensory feedback, several interfacing modalities including indirect (non-invasive), direct-to-peripheral-nerve (invasive), and cortical stimulation have been applied. Peripheral nerve interfaces demonstrate an edge over the cortical interfaces due to the sensitivity in attaining cortical brain signals. The peripheral nerve interfaces are highly dependent on interface designs and are required to be biocompatible with the nerves to achieve prolonged stability and longevity. Another criterion is the selection of nerves that allows minimal invasiveness and damages as well as high selectivity for a large number of nerve fascicles. In this paper, we review the nerve-machine interface modalities noted above with more focus on peripheral nerve interfaces, which are responsible for provision of sensory feedback. The invasive interfaces for recording and stimulation of electro-neurographic signals include intra-fascicular, regenerative-type interfaces that provide multiple contact channels to a group of axons inside the nerve and the extra-neural-cuff-type interfaces that enable interaction with many axons around the periphery of the nerve. Section Current Prosthetic Technology summarizes the advancements made to date in the field of neuroprosthetics toward the achievement of a bidirectional nerve-machine interface with more focus on sensory feedback. In the Discussion section, the authors propose a hybrid interface technique for achieving better selectivity and long-term stability using the available nerve interfacing techniques.
MemeTube: A Sentiment-based Audiovisual System for Analyzing and Displaying Microblog Messages

Micro-blogging services provide platforms for users to share their feelings and ideas on the move. In this paper, we present a search-based demonstration system, called MemeTube, to summarize the sentiments of microblog messages in an audiovisual manner. MemeTube provides three main functions: (1) recognizing the sentiments of messages (2) generating music melody automatically based on detected sentiments, and (3) produce an animation of real-time piano playing for audiovisual display. Our MemeTube system can be accessed via: http://mslab.csie. ntu.edu. tw/memetube/.
No impact of surviving sepsis campaign care bundles in reducing sepsis-associated acute kidney injury .

BACKGROUND The impact of Surviving Sepsis Campaign (SSC) care bundles in reducing sepsis-associated acute kidney injury (SA-AKI) was evaluated. METHODS We conducted an observational single-center cohort study. Accomplishment of SSC care bundles was registered in all patients with severe sepsis admitted to the critical care department of a university hospital during three different periods. The main outcome measured was SA-AKI incidence defined as any worsening of AKI stage within the first 7 days from onset of sepsis. RESULTS Among 260 patients with severe sepsis or septic shock finally meeting inclusion criteria, 82 (31.5%) patients developed SA-AKI. None of the SSC care tasks significantly decreased SA-AKI incidence, although a trend was observed with an initial better blood glucose control as well as with a more protective ventilation strategy. Hypotension requiring fluid challenge (hazard ratio (HR), 2.3; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.2 - 4.2) and the presence of an abdominal sepsis etiology (HR, 1.8; 95% CI, 1.1 - 3.1) were independently associated with SA-AKI. Patients who developed SA-AKI had a higher 90-day mortality rate (62.2 vs. 40.4%). CONCLUSION In a cohort of septic patients, none of the SSC care tasks significantly decreased SA-AKI incidence within the first week after onset of sepsis.
Influence of a propionic acid feed additive on performance of turkey poults with experimentally induced poult enteritis and mortality syndrome

Abstract Poult enteritis and mortality syndrome (PEMS) has multiple etiological agents associated with its occurrence, including two viruses and at least three Escherichia coli isolates. Myco Curb (MC) contains organic acids and is used as a feed additive to inhibit growth of many bacteria and toxin-producing molds but not viruses. Studies evaluating the influence of MC on BW, feed conversion, and mortality indicate that turkey poults tolerate MC at 1.25% but not 2.50%, but higher MC content in feed provides greater suppression of growth of bacterial isolates commonly associated with PEMS. In two PEMS experiments, 1.25% MC was blended into poult starter feed and was maintained in the feed for the duration of the 3-wk experiments. In these experiments, 1-d-old commercial poults were placed into battery brooders and were given turkey starter feed and water ad libitum. At 6 d posthatch, PEMS-designated poults were given a 1-mL oral gavage of a 10% suspension of feces from PEMS-infected poults. BW depression due to PEMS was not alleviated by MC, although there was less variation in mean BW of the MC-fed poults, and there was a highly significant reduction in mortality (68% in PEMS-exposed with MC vs. 32.5% in PEMS-exposed without MC). The reduction in mortality in the MC-fed poults was attributed to decreased bacterial content of the gut and to maintenance of packed cell volume and hemoglobin content. It was concluded that MC might be a potential nutritional intervention during PEMS.
Stretchable, Highly Durable Ternary Nanocomposite Strain Sensor for Structural Health Monitoring of Flexible Aircraft

Harmonious developments of electrical and mechanical performances are crucial for stretchable sensors in structural health monitoring (SHM) of flexible aircraft such as aerostats and morphing aircrafts. In this study, we prepared a highly durable ternary conductive nanocomposite made of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), carbon black (CB) and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) to fabricate stretchable strain sensors. The nanocomposite has excellent electrical and mechanical properties by intensively optimizing the weight percentage of conducting fillers as well as the ratio of PDMS pre-polymer and curing agent. It was found that the nanocomposite with homogeneous hybrid filler of 1.75 wt % CB and 3 wt % MWCNTs exhibits a highly strain sensitive characteristics of good linearity, high gauge factor (GF ~ 12.25) and excellent durability over 105 stretching-releasing cycles under a tensile strain up to 25% when the PDMS was prepared at the ratio of 12.5:1. A strain measurement of crack detection for the aerostats surface was also employed, demonstrating a great potential of such ternary nanocomposite used as stretchable strain sensor in SHM.