Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Corrosion Resistance of Implant Alloys in Pseudo Physiological Solution and Role of Alloying Elements in Passive Films

The corrosion resistance of implant alloys was investigated by anodic polarization measurements in a pseudo physiological solution. Role of alloying elements in passive film formed on implant alloys by the anodic polarization was also examined with X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Passivity zones of SUS316L stainless steel and Co-Cr alloys are narrow, and a rapid increase in the current density is observed from a low potential as compared to Ti alloys. The passive current density of Ti-15%Zr-4%Nb-2%Ta-0.2%Pd alloy (mass%) is very low. Effects of protein and dissolved oxygen with 90%N 2 + 5%CO 2 + 5% O 2 gas bubbling on anodic polarization curves are not detected. The passive film formed on the Ti-6%Al-4% V extra low interstitial alloy consists mainly of TiO2, A1 2 O 3 and small amounts of V oxide. Passive films on the Ti-15%Zr-4%Nb-2%Ta-0.2%Pd and Ti-15% Sn-4%Nb-2%Ta-0.2%Pd alloys consist of TiO 2 , ZrO 2 , SnO 2 , Nb 2 O 5 , Ta 2 O 5 and PdO or Pd. XPS spectra from the Co-Cr alloy and SUS316L stainless steel show peaks of Cr2O3, CoO, Fe oxide, Mo oxide, Ni, Co, Fe, Mo and Cr. As Ni, V and Co are strong cytotoxic elements, it was found that biocompatibility of SUS 316L, Co-Cr, Ti-6%Al-4% V ELI alloys become lesser after a long time use in the living body. The thickness of the passive film on Ti alloys is thinner than that of Co-Cr alloy. Passive film formed on the Ti-15%Zr-4%Nb-2%Ta-0.2%Pd alloy is strong and stable.
Development of Cisplatin-loaded Liposome and Evaluation of Transport Properties Through Caco-2 Cell Line

Cisplatin is a potent anticancer drug for treating tumors, that has long been widely used. The therapeutic exploitation of cisplatin is limited by its toxicity toward healthy tissues. Liposomes can provide enhanced efficacy and/or reduced toxicity and these systems offer the potential to enhance the therapeutic index of anticancer agents. In this study, cisplatin liposomes were developed and characterized in vitro. The cytotoxicity test was used to determine Caco-2 cell viability and the IC50 values of free cisplatin was found 20 μg/mL. Release and transport studies of cisplatin through dialyse membrane and Caco-2 cells were investigated. The stability of liposomes was developed when stored at three different temperature for 3 months. The mean particle size and average zeta-potential of the cisplatin liposomes were approximately 285±0.052 nm and 2.45±0.65 mV, respectively. Cisplatin release from dialyse membrane and transport through Caco-2 cells were obtained as 53.9±2.71 % and 46.2±1.61 % respectively. Significant particle size increase and zeta potantial decrease were not observed in cisplatin liposomes after 3 months when stored at 4oC (p>0.01). Consequently cisplatin liposomes can be delivered orally and represent a potential therapeutic modality in the treatment of tumors.
BURIED GRAPHITE PILLARS IN SINGLE CRYSTAL CVD DIAMOND: SENSITIVITY TO ELECTRONS

The charge collection performance of a diamond-graphite detector is reported. Buried graphite pillars with high aspect ratio were formed inside a single crystal synthetic diamond slab by using a femtosecond IR laser with 200 kHz of repetition rate. Grouped in two series and connected by graphite strips on the surface, eight independent 3D electrodes were used to collect the charge carriers generated by energy deposited in the detector. Collimated 90 Sr,Y  -particles were used to test the charge collection in coincidence and self-triggering mode among pillars rows using different irradiation geometries. The charge collected by one pillar row saturates at 1.40 ±0.02 fC at ±0.67V/  m with electrons impinging orthogonally the rows demonstrating a high charge carrier
Principles of structure building in music, language and animal song

Human language, music and a variety of animal vocalizations constitute ways of sonic communication that exhibit remarkable structural complexity. While the complexities of language and possible parallels in animal communication have been discussed intensively, reflections on the complexity of music and animal song, and their comparisons, are underrepresented. In some ways, music and animal songs are more comparable to each other than to language as propositional semantics cannot be used as indicator of communicative success or wellformedness, and notions of grammaticality are less easily defined. This review brings together accounts of the principles of structure building in music and animal song. It relates them to corresponding models in formal language theory, the extended Chomsky hierarchy (CH), and their probabilistic counterparts. We further discuss common misunderstandings and shortcomings concerning the CH and suggest ways to move beyond. We discuss language, music and animal song in the context of their function and motivation and further integrate problems and issues that are less commonly addressed in the context of language, including continuous event spaces, features of sound and timbre, representation of temporality and interactions of multiple parallel feature streams. We discuss these aspects in the light of recent theoretical, cognitive, neuroscientific and modelling research in the domains of music, language and animal song.
SPP-Net: Deep Absolute Pose Regression with Synthetic Views

Image based localization is one of the important problems in computer vision due to its wide applicability in robotics, augmented reality, and autonomous systems. There is a rich set of methods described in the literature how to geometrically register a 2D image w.r. t. \ a 3D model. Recently, methods based on deep (and convolutional) feedforward networks (CNNs) became popular for pose regression. However, these CNN-based methods are still less accurate than geometry based methods despite being fast and memory efficient. In this work we design a deep neural network architecture based on sparse feature descriptors to estimate the absolute pose of an image. Our choice of using sparse feature descriptors has two major advantages: first, our network is significantly smaller than the CNNs proposed in the literature for this task---thereby making our approach more efficient and scalable. Second---and more importantly---, usage of sparse features allows to augment the training data with synthetic viewpoints, which leads to substantial improvements in the generalization performance to unseen poses. Thus, our proposed method aims to combine the best of the two worlds---feature-based localization and CNN-based pose regression--to achieve state-of-the-art performance in the absolute pose estimation. A detailed analysis of the proposed architecture and a rigorous evaluation on the existing datasets are provided to support our method.
Correlation Between Api 50 Ch and Multiplex Polymerase Chain Reaction for the Identification of Vaginal Lactobacilli in Isolates

Identification of Lactobacillus sp. strains by phenotypic methods may lead to doubtful results possibly interfering in the reliability of the epidemiological and probiotics studies. Therefore this study aimed to determine the best methodology for the identification of the large diversity of lactobacilli species found in the vagina by comparing two techniques, one based on their biochemical profile and other employing molecular biology. A carbohydrate fermentation test (API 50 CH) was compared with multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for the identification of species of vaginal lactobacilli from 135 healthy women. The kappa index was used to evaluate agreement between the methods. Using the molecular technique, L. crispatus (32.6%), L. jensenii (25%) and L. gasseri (20.6%) were the most frequent species. However, using the biochemical technique, the most frequent species were: L. acidophilus (34.8%), L. crispatus (27.2%) and L. fermentum (13%). Although L. acidophilus was the most frequent specie found by biochemical tests, no strain of this microorganism was detected by PCR. Agreement between the methods was low for identification of all the most common species. Although rates of L. crispatus detected were similar using both methods (32.6% and 27.2%), agreement between them was relatively low (kappa = 0.52). Conclusions: Our results confirmed the limitation of the biochemical method and the applicability of a previously published molecular method (Multiplex PCR) for the identification of lactobacilli in the vaginal tract, focusing on further necessity of its improvement for also targeting L. vaginalis and L. iners.
Reallocation and Technology: Evidence from the U.S. Steel Industry

We measure the impact of a drastic new technology for producing steel -- the minimill -- on the aggregate productivity of U.S. steel producers, using unique plant-level data between 1963 and 2002. We find that the sharp increase in the industry's productivity is linked to this new technology, and operates through two distinct mechanisms. First, minimills displaced the older technology, called vertically integrated production, and this reallocation of output was responsible for a third of the increase in the industry's productivity. Second, increased competition, due to the expansion of minimills, drove a substantial reallocation process within the group of vertically integrated producers, driving a resurgence in their productivity, and consequently of the industry's productivity as a whole.
Introduction to the special section on measuring cognitive products in research and practice.

This article introduces a special section of the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology titled "Measuring Cognitive Products in Research and Practice. " The practice of cognitive behavior therapies--and research on their effectiveness and the validity of the models of psychopathology and therapy associated with these treatments--requires valid assessment of cognition. Cognitive variables can be considered at several levels; the main focus of the articles in this special section is on techniques suited to measurement of cognitive products, thoughts, and images of which people are conscious.
Lentivirus-based genetic manipulations of cortical neurons and their optical and electrophysiological monitoring in vivo

It is becoming increasingly clear that single cortical neurons encode complex and behaviorally relevant signals, but efficient means to study gene functions in small networks and single neurons in vivo are still lacking. Here, we establish a method for genetic manipulation and subsequent phenotypic analysis of individual cortical neurons in vivo. First, lentiviral vectors are used for neuron-specific gene delivery from α-calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II or Synapsin I promoters, optionally in combination with gene knockdown by means of U6 promoter-driven expression of short-interfering RNAs. Second, the phenotypic analysis at the level of single cortical cells is carried out by using two-photon microscopy-based techniques: high-resolution two-photon time-lapse imaging is used to monitor structural dynamics of dendritic spines and axonal projections, whereas cellular response properties are analyzed electrophysiologically by two-photon microscopydirected whole-cell recordings. This approach is ideally suited for analysis of gene functions in individual neurons in the intact brain.
Music genre classification via Topology Preserving Non-Negative Tensor Factorization and sparse representations

Motivated by the rich, psycho-physiologically grounded properties of auditory cortical representations and the power of sparse representation-based classifiers, we propose a robust music genre classification framework. Its first pilar is a novel multilinear subspace analysis method that reduces the dimensionality of cortical representations of music signals, while preserving the topology of the cortical representations. Its second pilar is the sparse representation based classification, that models any test cortical representation as a sparse weighted sum of dictionary atoms, which stem from training cortical representations of known genre, by assuming that the representations of music recordings of the same genre are close enough in the tensor space they lie. Accordingly, the dimensionality reduction is made in a compatible manner to the working principle of the sparse-representation based classification. Music genre classification accuracy of 93.7% and 94.93% is reported on the GTZAN and the ISMIR2004 Genre datasets, respectively. Both accuracies outperform any accuracy ever reported for state of the art music genre classification algorithms applied to the aforementioned datasets.
Processing of frequency-modulated sounds in the cat's posterior auditory field.

Single-neuron activity was recorded from the posterior auditory field (PAF) in the cortex of gas-anesthetized cats. Tone bursts and broadband complex sounds were used for auditory stimulation. Responses to frequency-modulated (FM) sounds, in particular, were studied systematically. Linear FM sweeps were centered around the best frequency (BF) of a neuron and had an excursion large enough to cover its whole frequency tuning range. Rate and direction of change of the FM sweeps were varied. In the majority of PAF neurons (75%) the FM response seemed not to be linear, i.e., their best instantaneous frequency (BIF) varied by more than one octave at different FM rates (FMR). When the difference between BIF and BF at each FMR was used as a measure of linearity, it was within one-third octave only at five or fewer FMR in most PAF neurons (74%). The majority of PAF neurons (70%) preferred moderate FM rates (<200 Hz/ms). Fifty-four percent of all neurons in this area showed band-pass behavior with a clear preference in the middle range of FM rates in at least one direction. Overall, neurons with high-pass behavior in both directions made up only a minor portion (22%) of PAF neurons. When both directions of an FM sweep (low-to-high and high-to-low frequency) were tested, 50% of the neurons were clearly selective for one direction, i.e., the response to one FM direction was at least twice as large as that to the other direction. This selectivity was not necessarily present at the preferred FM rate. In general, FM direction selectivity was equally distributed over FM rates tested. The selectivity of PAF neurons for the rate and direction of FM sounds makes these neurons suitable for the detection and analysis of communication sounds, which often contain FM components with a moderate sweep rate in a particular direction.
Risk Prediction Score for Severe High Altitude Illness: A Cohort Study

Background Risk prediction of acute mountain sickness, high altitude (HA) pulmonary or cerebral edema is currently based on clinical assessment. Our objective was to develop a risk prediction score of Severe High Altitude Illness (SHAI) combining clinical and physiological factors. Study population was 1017 sea-level subjects who performed a hypoxia exercise test before a stay at HA. The outcome was the occurrence of SHAI during HA exposure. Two scores were built, according to the presence (PRE, n = 537) or absence (ABS, n = 480) of previous experience at HA, using multivariate logistic regression. Calibration was evaluated by Hosmer-Lemeshow chisquare test and discrimination by Area Under ROC Curve (AUC) and Net Reclassification Index (NRI). Results The score was a linear combination of history of SHAI, ventilatory and cardiac response to hypoxia at exercise, speed of ascent, desaturation during hypoxic exercise, history of migraine, geographical location, female sex, age under 46 and regular physical activity. In the PRE/ABS groups, the score ranged from 0 to 12/10, a cut-off of 5/5.5 gave a sensitivity of 87%/87% and a specificity of 82%/73%. Adding physiological variables via the hypoxic exercise test improved the discrimination ability of the models: AUC increased by 7% to 0.91 (95%CI: 0.87–0.93) and 17% to 0.89 (95%CI: 0.85–0.91), NRI was 30% and 54% in the PRE and ABS groups respectively. A score computed with ten clinical, environmental and physiological factors accurately predicted the risk of SHAI in a large cohort of sea-level residents visiting HA regions.
Mass spectrometric analysis of the kinetics of in vivo rhodopsin phosphorylation

On stimulation, rhodopsin, the light‐sensing protein in the rod cells of the retina, is phosphorylated at several sites on its C terminus as the first step in deactivation. We have developed a mass spectrometry–based method to quantify the kinetics of phosphorylation at each site in vivo. After exposing either a freshly dissected mouse retina or the eye of an anesthetized mouse to a flash of light, phosphorylation and dephosphorylation reactions are terminated by rapidly homogenizing the retina or enucleated eye in 8 M urea. The C‐terminal peptide containing all known phosphorylation sites is cleaved from rhodopsin, partially purified by ultracentrifugation, and analyzed by liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (LCMS). The mass spectrometer responds linearly to the peptide from 10 fmole to 100 pmole. The relative sensitivity to peptides with zero to five phosphates was determined using purified phosphopeptide standards. High pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (LCMS/MS) was used to distinguish the three primary sites of phosphorylation, Ser 334, Ser 338, and Ser 343. Peptides monophosphorylated on Ser 334 were separable from those monophosphorylated on Ser 338 and Ser 343 by reversed‐phase HPLC. Although peptides monophosphorylated at Ser 338 and Ser 343 normally coelute, the relative amounts of each species in the single peak could be determined by monitoring the ratio of specific daughter ions characteristic of each peptide. Doubly phosphorylated rhodopsin peptides with different sites of phosphorylation also were distinguished by LCMS/MS. The sensitivity of these methods was evaluated by using them to measure rhodopsin phosphorylation stimulated either by light flashes or by continuous illumination over a range of intensities.
Initial Development and Validation of a Novel Extraction Method for Quantitative Mining of the Formalin-Fixed, Paraffin-Embedded Tissue Proteome for Biomarker Investigations

Annotated formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue archives constitute a valuable resource for retrospective biomarker discovery. However, proteomic exploration of archival tissue is impeded by extensive formalin-induced covalent cross-linking. Robust methodology enabling proteomic profiling of archival resources is urgently needed. Recent work is beginning to support the feasibility of biomarker discovery in archival tissues, but further developments in extraction methods which are compatible with quantitative approaches are urgently needed. We report a cost-effective extraction methodology permitting quantitative proteomic analyses of small amounts of FFPE tissue for biomarker investigation. This surfactant/heat-based approach results in effective and reproducible protein extraction in FFPE tissue blocks. In combination with a liquid chromatography−mass spectrometry-based label-free quantitative proteomics methodology, the protocol enables the robust representative and quantitative analyses of the archival proteome. Preliminary validation studies in renal cancer tissues have identified typically 250−300 proteins per 500 ng of tissue with 1D LC−MS/MS with comparable extraction in FFPE and fresh frozen tissue blocks and preservation of tumor/normal differential expression patterns (205 proteins, r = 0.682; p < 10−15). The initial methodology presented here provides a quantitative approach for assessing the potential suitability of the vast FFPE tissue archives as an alternate resource for biomarker discovery and will allow exploration of methods to increase depth of coverage and investigate the impact of preanalytical factors.
Vitamin D as a Marker for Disease Severity in Chronic Urticaria and Its Possible Role in Pathogenesis

Background Chronic urticaria is defined as repeated episodes of wheals lasting for 6 weeks or longer. Nowadays, the role of vitamin D in various chronic diseases is a matter of great interest, but limited data is available on the vitamin D status in patients with chronic urticaria. Objective The goal of this study was to investigate the relationship between vitamin D status and clinical characteristics of chronic urticaria. Methods The clinical records of 72 patients with chronic urticaria, 26 with acute urticaria and 26 with atopic dermatitis, along with 72 healthy controls, were retrospectively reviewed. Results The serum 25-(OH)D3 level was found to be significantly reduced in patients with chronic urticaria compared to those in the other groups. In particular, the proportion of patients with critically low vitamin D levels (<10 ng/ml) was significantly higher in the chronic urticaria group than in the other groups. The serum vitamin D levels showed significant negative associations with urticaria activity score and disease duration. In addition, serum vitamin D levels were significantly lower in subjects with a positive autologous serum skin test than in subjects with a negative result. Conclusion In conclusion, the serum vitamin D level was more likely to be critically low in patients with chronic urticaria, and an inverse relationship with disease severity and disease duration was observed. These findings may open up the possibility of the clinical use of vitamin D as a contributing factor in the pathogenesis of chronic urticaria and a predictive marker for disease activity in chronic urticaria.
The Queen's Guard: A Secure Enforcement of Fine-grained Access Control In Distributed Data Analytics Platforms

Distributed data analytics platforms (i.e., Apache Spark, Hadoop) provide high-level APIs to programmatically write analytics tasks that are run distributedly in multiple computing nodes. The design of these frameworks was primarily motivated by performance and usability. Thus, the security takes a back seat. Consequently, they do not inherently support fine-grained access control or offer any plugin mechanism to enable it, making them risky to be used in multi-tier organizational settings. There have been attempts to build “add-on” solutions to enable fine-grained access control for distributed data analytics platforms. In this paper, first, we show that straightforward enforcement of “add-on” access control is insecure under adversarial code execution. Specifically, we show that an attacker can abuse platform-provided APIs to evade access controls without leaving any traces. Second, we designed a two-layered (i.e., proactive and reactive) defense system to protect against API abuses. On submission of a user code, our proactive security layer statically screens it to find potential attack signatures prior to its execution. The reactive security layer employs code instrumentation-based runtime checks and sandboxed execution to throttle any exploits at runtime. Next, we propose a new fine-grained access control framework with an enhanced policy language that supports map and filter primitives. Finally, we build a system named SecureDL with our new access control framework and defense system on top of Apache Spark, which ensures secure access control policy enforcement under adversaries capable of executing code. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first fine-grained attribute-based access control framework for distributed data analytics platforms that is secure against platform API abuse attacks. Performance evaluation showed that the overhead due to added security is low.