Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cell-associated oligosaccharides of Bradyrhizobium spp

We report the initial characterization of the cell-associated oligosaccharides produced by four Bradyrhizobium strains: Bradyrhizobium japonicum USDA 110, USDA 94, and ATCC 10324 and Bradyrhizobium sp. strain 32H1. The cell-associated oligosaccharides of these strains were found to be composed solely of glucose and were predominantly smaller than the cyclic beta-1,2-glucans produced by Agrobacterium and Rhizobium species. Linkage studies and nuclear magnetic resonance analyses demonstrated that the bradyrhizobial glucans are linked primarily by beta-1,6 and beta-1,3 glycosidic bonds. Thus, the bradyrhizobia appear to synthesize cell-associated oligosaccharides of structural character substantially different from that of the cyclic beta-1,2-glucans produced by Agrobacterium and Rhizobium species.
Patient selection and volume in the era surrounding implementation of Medicare conditions of participation for transplant programs.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate evidence of practice changes affecting kidney transplant program volumes, and donor, recipient and candidate selection in the era surrounding the introduction of Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) conditions of participation (CoPs) for organ transplant programs. DATA Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients; CMS ESRD and Medicare claims databases. DESIGN Retrospective analysis of national registry data. METHODS A Cox proportional hazards model of 1-year graft survival was used to derive risks associated with deceased-donor kidney transplants performed from 2001 to 2010. FINDINGS Among programs with ongoing noncompliance with the CoPs, kidney transplant volumes declined by 38 percent (n = 766) from 2006 to 2011, including a 55 percent drop in expanded criteria donor transplants. Volume increased by 6 percent (n = 638) among programs remaining in compliance. Aggregate risk of 1-year graft failure increased over time due to increasing recipient age and obesity, and longer ESRD duration. CONCLUSIONS Although trends in aggregate risk of 1-year kidney graft loss do not indicate that the introduction of the CoPs has systematically reduced opportunities for marginal candidates or that there has been a systematic shift away from utilization of higher risk deceased donor kidneys, total volume and expanded criteria donor utilization decreased overall among programs with ongoing noncompliance.
The Potential Impact of Vertical Sampling Uncertainty on ICESat-2/ATLAS Terrain and Canopy Height Retrievals for Multiple Ecosystems

With a planned launch no later than September 2018, the Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) will provide a global distribution of geodetic elevation measurements for both the terrain surface and relative canopy heights. The Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System (ATLAS) instrument on-board ICESat-2 is a LiDAR system sensitive to the photon level. The photon-counting technology has many advantages for space-based altimetry, but also has challenges, particularly with delineating the signal from background noise. As such, a current unknown facing the ecosystem community is the performance of ICESat-2 for terrain and canopy height retrievals. This paper aims to provide the science user community of ICESat-2 land/vegetation data products with a realistic understanding of the performance characteristics and potential uncertainties related to the vertical sampling error, which includes the error in the perceived height value and the measurement precision. Terrain and canopy heights from simulated ICESat-2 data are evaluated against the airborne LiDAR ground truth values to provide a baseline performance uncertainty for multiple ecosystems. Simulation results for wooded savanna and boreal forest result in a mean bias error and error uncertainty (precision) for terrain height retrievals at 0.06 m (0.24 m RMSE) and −0.13 m (0.77 m RMSE). In contrast, results over ecosystems with dense vegetation show terrain errors of 1.93 m (1.66 m RMSE) and 2.52 m (3.18 m RMSE), indicating problems extracting terrain height due to diminished ground returns. Simulated top of canopy heights from ICESat-2 underestimated true top of canopy returns for all types analyzed with errors ranging from 0.28 m (1.39 m RMSE) to 1.25 m (2.63 m RMSE). These results comprise a first step in a comprehensive evaluation of ICESat-2 anticipated performance. Future steps will include solar noise impact analysis and investigation into performance discrepancy between visible and near-infrared wavelengths.
Symmetric dynamic programming stereo using block matching guidance

In this paper, three stereo matching algorithms are investigated: Block Matching Stereo (BMS) represents local area matching techniques, Symmetric Dynamic Programming Stereo (SDPS) represents semi-global matching, and Graph Cuts Stereo (GCS) represents global matching. Both local and semiglobal methods are relatively fast and feasible for parallel implementation. On the other hand, global GCS obtains a higher stereo matching accuracy but it is very computationally expensive. Thus, we propose a technique that guides SDPS using pre-computed Local-based BMS's result which both restricts and guides the Dynamic Programming search for optimal profile related to BMS's signals. The technique is not only parallel-able for a faster processing speed but also self-repeatable for an enhancement of the 3D reconstruction. Our experimental results show that this proposed technique is superior to the Global Graph Cuts Stereo (GCS) in both speed and accuracy. As well as reconstructing relatively accurate results from the infamous Middlebury datasets, this method is also demonstrated to be fast, robust, and reliable in reconstructing high quality 3D scenes from real-life stereo images.
Glycolipids of the mouse peritoneal macrophage. Alterations in amount and surface exposure of specific glycolipid species occur in response to inflammation and tumoricidal activation

We have characterized the major glycolipid constituents of the mouse peritoneal macrophage, and have demonstrated that alterations in the amount and in the accessibility of specific glycolipid species to galactose oxidase/NaB3H4 labeling, an indicator of glycolipid surface exposure, occur in response to inflammation and as a consequence of activation to a tumoricidal state. The key findings are: (a) Asialo GM1, a major neutral glycolipid constituent of all macrophage populations examined, is accessible to galactose oxidase/NaB3H4 labeling on the surface of TG-elicited and BCG-activated macrophages but not on resident macrophages; (b) GM1 is the predominant ganglioside constituent of the mouse macrophage. Resident macrophages contain two distinct GM1 species, as determined by cholera toxin binding, while TG- elicited and BCG-activated macrophages contain an additional GM1 species. Differences in the relative amounts of these GM1 species, as well as in their accessibility to galactose oxidase/NaB3H4 labeling, exist among the macrophage populations. These observations suggest that both a chemical and spatial reorganization of surface glycolipids occurs in response to inflammation and tumoricidal activation.
BYKdb: the Bacterial protein tYrosine Kinase database

Bacterial tyrosine-kinases share no resemblance with their eukaryotic counterparts and they have been unified in a new protein family named BY-kinases. These enzymes have been shown to control several biological functions in the bacterial cells. In recent years biochemical studies, sequence analyses and structure resolutions allowed the deciphering of a common signature. However, BY-kinase sequence annotations in primary databases remain incomplete. This prompted us to develop a specialized database of computer-annotated BY-kinase sequences: the Bacterial protein tyrosine-kinase database (BYKdb). BY-kinase sequences are first identified, thanks to a workflow developed in a previous work. A second workflow annotates the UniProtKB entries in order to provide the BYKdb entries. The database can be accessed through a web interface that allows static and dynamic queries and offers integrated sequence analysis tools. BYKdb can be found at http://bykdb.ibcp. fr.
Integrating Cognitive Factors and Eye Movement Data in Reading Predictive Models for Children with Dyslexia and ADHD-I

This study reports on several specific neurocognitive processes and eye-tracking predictors of reading outcomes for a sample of children with Developmental Dyslexia (DD) and At-tention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder – inattentive subtype (ADHD-I) compared to typical readers. Participants included 19 typical readers, 21 children diagnosed with ADHD-I and 19 children with DD. All participants were attending 4 th grade and had a mean age of 9.08 years. The psycholinguistic profile of each group was assessed using a battery of neuropsychological and linguistic tests. Participants were submitted to a silent reading task with lexical manipulation of the text. Multinomial logistic regression was conducted to evaluate the predictive capability of developing dyslexia or ADHD-I based on the following measures: (a) a linguistic model that included measures of phonological awareness, rapid naming, and reading fluency and accuracy; (b) a cognitive neuropsychological model that included measures of memory, attention, visual processes, and cognitive or intellectual functioning, and (c) an additive model of lexical word properties with manipulation of word-frequency and word-length effects through eye-tracking. The additive model in conjunction with the neuropsychological model classification improved the prediction of who develops dyslexia or ADHD-I having as baseline normal readers. Several of the neuropsychological and eye-tracking variables have power to predict the degree of reading outcomes in children with learning disabilities.
UvA-DARE (

We introduce a statistical test for comparing the predictive accuracy of competing copula speciﬁcations in multivariate density forecasts, based on the Kullback-Leibler Information Criterion (KLIC). The test is valid under general conditions on the competing copulas: in particular it allows for parameter estimation uncertainty and for the copulas to be nested or non-nested. Monte Carlo simulations demonstrate that the proposed test has satisfactory size and power properties in ﬁnite samples. Applying the test to daily exchange rate returns of several major currencies against the US dollar we ﬁnd that the Student-t copula is favored over Gaussian, Gumbel and Clayton copulas.
On Minimum-Variance Event-Triggered Control

We study the problem of minimum-variance event-triggered output-feedback control of linear time-invariant processes driven by white Gaussian noise. We show that the optimal event generation is separated from the controller configuration and can be determined by solving an optimal stopping problem. Then, for the case of integrator processes, we extend the Lebesgue sampling result of Åström and Bernhardsson in two directions: 1) we show that it applies to systems with measurement noise and limited control effort and 2) we prove that in the scalar case this control strategy is optimal, in a sense that no other causal event-triggered sampled-data controller with the same average sampling rate can outperform it.
of a

Objectives: Effective health care systems require high quality research to guide evidence-based interventions and strategic planning. In low-and middle-income countries, especially those emerging from violent conflict, research capacity often lags behind other aspects of health systems development. Here we aim to bibliometrically review health-related research output in Somaliland, a post-conflict self-declared autonomous nation on the Horn of Africa, as a means of assessing research capacity. Methods: We reviewed articles on health-related research conducted in Somaliland between 1991 and 2013 that included a description of the experimental design as evidenced by a methods and re-sults section, and were published in either a peer-reviewed journal or as part of a scholarly program receiving formal review. We did not include policy or social science research that did not enroll or interact with subjects from Somaliland. Using online databases, all studies meeting minimum eligibility criteria were reviewed in regards to Somaliland-based co-authorship,
Perceptron Learning, Generalization, Model Selection, Fault Tolerance, and Role in the Deep Learning Era

: The single-layer perceptron, introduced by Rosenblatt in 1958, is one of the earliest and simplest neural network models. However, it is incapable of classifying linearly inseparable patterns. A new era of neural network research started in 1986, when the backpropagation (BP) algorithm was rediscovered for training the multilayer perceptron (MLP) model. An MLP with a large number of hidden nodes can function as a universal approximator. To date, the MLP model is the most fundamental and important neural network model. It is also the most investigated neural network model. Even in this AI or deep learning era, the MLP is still among the few most investigated and used neural network models. Numerous new results have been obtained in the past three decades. This survey paper gives a comprehensive and state-of-the-art introduction to the perceptron model, with emphasis on learning, generalization, model selection and fault tolerance. The role of the perceptron model in the deep learning era is also described. This paper provides a concluding survey of perceptron learning, and it covers all the major achievements in the past seven decades. It also serves a tutorial for perceptron learning.
Increased synaptic dopamine in the putamen in restless legs syndrome.

STUDY OBJECTIVES Prior studies using positron emission tomography (PET) or single-photon emission computed tomography techniques have reported inconsistent findings regarding differences between patients with restless legs syndrome (RLS) and control patients in the striatal dopamine-2 receptor (D2R) binding potentials (BP). D2R-BP does reflect receptor-ligand interactions such as receptor affinity (K(d)) and density (β(max)) or neurotransmitter synaptic concentrations. Thus, differences in D2R-BP reflect changes in these primary factors. PET techniques are currently available to estimate D2R β(max) and K(d). DESIGN Separate morning and evening PET scans were performed. The D2R-BP were measured in basal ganglia using [(11)C]raclopride. SETTING Academic medical center. PATIENTS OR PARTICIPANTS Thirty-one patients with primary RLS and 36 age- and sex-matched control patients completed the study. MEASURES AND RESULTS Patients with RLS had lower D2R-BP in putamen and caudate but not the ventral striatum. A subgroups analysis of those RLS patients who had not previously taken dopaminergic medications continued to show a significantly lower D2R-BP in the posterior putamen. D2R-BP did not differ between night and day for either group. D2R β(max) and K(d) did not differ significantly between patients with RLS and control patients but did show a strong and significant increase at night in the ventral striatum. Primary and secondary clinical measures of disease status failed to show any relation to D2R in any brain region. CONCLUSIONS Given the lack of any difference in either β(max) or K(d) and the prior studies supporting an increase in presynaptic dopaminergic activity, the current changes found in D2R-BP likely reflect an increase in synaptic dopamine.
Pedunculopontine Nucleus Stimulation: Where are We Now and What Needs to be Done to Move the Field Forward?

Falls and gait impairment in Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality, significantly impacting quality of life and contributing heavily to disability. Thus far axial symptoms, such as postural instability and gait freezing, have been refractory to current treatment approaches and remain a critical unmet need. There has been increased excitement surrounding the surgical targeting of the pedunculopontine nucleus (PPN) for addressing axial symptoms in PD. The PPN and cuneate nucleus comprise the mesencephalic locomotor region, and electrophysiologic studies in animal models and human imaging studies have revealed a key role for the PPN in gait and postural control, underscoring a potential role for DBS surgery. Previous limited studies of PPN deep brain stimulation (DBS) in treating gait symptoms have had mixed clinical outcomes, likely reflect targeting variability and the inherent challenges of targeting a small brainstem structure that is both anatomically and neurochemically heterogeneous. Diffusion tractography shows promise for more accurate targeting and standardization of results. Due to the limited experience with PPN DBS, several unresolved questions remain about targeting and programing. At present, it is unclear if there is incremental benefit with bilateral versus unilateral targeting of PPN or whether PPN targeting should be performed as an adjunct to one of the more traditional targets. The PPN also modulates non-motor functions including REM sleep, cognition, mood, attention, arousal, and these observations will require long-term monitoring to fully characterize potential side effects and benefits. Surgical targeting of the PPN is feasible and shows promise for addressing axial symptoms in PD but may require further refinements in targeting, improved imaging, and better lead design to fully realize benefits. This review summarizes the current knowledge of PPN as a DBS target and areas that need to be addressed to advance the field.
Vote-Buying and Reciprocity

While vote-buying is common, little is known about how politicians determine who to target. We argue that vote-buying can be sustained by an internalized norm of reciprocity. Receiving money engenders feelings of obligation. Combining survey data on vote-buying with an experiment-based measure of reciprocity, we show that politicians target reciprocal individuals. Overall, our findings highlight the importance of social preferences in determining political behavior.
Wave-breaking and generic singularities of nonlinear hyperbolic equations

Wave-breaking is studied analytically first and the results are compared with accurate numerical simulations of 3D wave-breaking. We focus on the time dependence of various quantities becoming singular at the onset of breaking. The power laws derived from general arguments and the singular behaviour of solutions of nonlinear hyperbolic differential equations are in excellent agreement with the numerical results. This shows the power of the analysis by methods using generic concepts of nonlinear science.
The Impact of Service Refusal to the Supply-Demand Equilibrium in Taxicab Market

Service refusal is a significant problem in taxicab market, especially in developing countries where policies and regulations have not been well developed against this unpleasant phenomenon. Understanding the disturbance of service refusal to the demand-supply equilibrium is essential for the governing authorities to develop effective pricing policies and regulations to tackle the issue. This paper analyzes the impacts of service refusal to the demand-supply equilibrium in both monopoly and competitive markets. The interrelation between the fleet size, congestion based pricing, and passenger demand is well evaluated with consideration of the presence of service refusal. The property of the mathematical analysis is demonstrated by a case study which uses the data collected from Beijing, China
Regional Differentiation of Retinoic Acid-Induced Human Pluripotent Embryonic Carcinoma Stem Cell Neurons

The NTERA2 cl D1 (NT2) cell line, derived from human teratocarcinoma, exhibits similar properties as embryonic stem (ES) cells or very early neuroepitheial progenitors. NT2 cells can be induced to become postmitotic central nervous system neurons (NT2N) with retinoic acid. Although neurons derived from pluripotent cells, such as NT2N, have been characterized for their neurotransmitter phenotypes, their potential suitability as a donor source for neural transplantation also depends on their ability to respond to localized environmental cues from a specific region of the CNS. Therefore, our study aimed to characterize the regional transcription factors that define the rostocaudal and dorsoventral identity of NT2N derived from a monolayer differentiation paradigm using quantitative PCR (qPCR). Purified NT2N mainly expressed both GABAergic and glutamatergic phenotypes and were electrically active but did not form functional synapses. The presence of immature astrocytes and possible radial glial cells was noted. The NT2N expressed a regional transcription factor code consistent with forebrain, hindbrain and spinal cord neural progenitors but showed minimal expression of midbrain phenotypes. In the dorsoventral plane NT2N expressed both dorsal and ventral neural progenitors. Of major interest was that even under the influence of retinoic acid, a known caudalization factor, the NT2N population maintained a rostral phenotype subpopulation which expressed cortical regional transcription factors. It is proposed that understanding the regional differentiation bias of neurons derived from pluripotent stem cells will facilitate their successful integration into existing neuronal networks within the CNS.
Customer satisfaction with supermarket retail shopping

We investigated the customer ratings of importance of several attributes associated with supermarket shopping. We then reviewed the satisfaction ratings of the attributes. The aim was to rank the factors and to relate the importance rankings to customer satisfaction. The findings have implications in that a retailer is able to assess how well they meet their customers’ needs on important attributes. The results suggested that since retail formats have become very standardised, corporate reputation is rated high and may be a source of sustainable competitive advantage. Accessibility was considered important, as was quality of service especially the friendliness and efficiency of checkout personnel. The results suggested the retail chain has largely been able to align its efforts to the areas considered important by customers. However, the satisfaction scores are rather low suggesting the retailer might be susceptible to an attack by a competitor prepared to deliver superior value to the customers.
Implementation of MOSFETs in a closed loop H-Bridge motor driver using charge pumps

An efficient modeling of motor drivers using an H Bridge configuration driven by charge pumps controlled by embedded components is presented. N-channel MOSFETs and charge pumps together eliminate the problems of Dead time of MOSFETs and High values of RDS (ON). The embedded system using an ATMEL microcontroller drives the load and monitors the load voltages and input PWM to establish a closed loop system by comparing it with the stored threshold state space parameters of the motor, also in turn preventing MOSFET damage by synchronized control over the gates. Charge pump readings have been reported along with feedback readings for the microcontroller. Results obtained are in range with expected outputs.