Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The cellular and molecular mechanisms of vertebrate lens development

The ocular lens is a model system for understanding important aspects of embryonic development, such as cell specification and the spatiotemporally controlled formation of a three-dimensional structure. The lens, which is characterized by transparency, refraction and elasticity, is composed of a bulk mass of fiber cells attached to a sheet of lens epithelium. Although lens induction has been studied for over 100 years, recent findings have revealed a myriad of extracellular signaling pathways and gene regulatory networks, integrated and executed by the transcription factor Pax6, that are required for lens formation in vertebrates. This Review summarizes recent progress in the field, emphasizing the interplay between the diverse regulatory mechanisms employed to form lens progenitor and precursor cells and highlighting novel opportunities to fill gaps in our understanding of lens tissue morphogenesis.
Implementing Interactive 3D Segmentation on CUDA Using Graph-Cuts and Watershed Transformation

In this paper we present a novel scheme for a very fast implementation of volumetric segmentation using graph cuts. The main benefit of this work is our approach to non-grid region adjacency processing on CUDA which to our knowledge has not been done yet in any efficient way. The watershed transform radically reduces the number of vertices for graph processing. Everything starting from watershed transformation and ending with graph cut was parallelized and is performed directly on the
A Flexible Pragmatics-Driven Language Generator for Animated Agents

This paper describes the NECA MNLG; a fully implemented Multimodal Natural Language Generation module. The MNLG is deployed as part of the NECA system which generates dialogues between animated agents. The generation module supports the seamless integration of full grammar rules, templates and canned text. The generator takes input which allows for the specification of syntactic, semantic and pragmatic constraints on the output.
Adaptive Switching for Multi-Mode MIMO Transmission in Broadband Wireless Networks

In this paper, we present a practical adaptive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) transmission approach for broadband wireless multiuser systems. The proposed scheme adaptively switches between open-loop and closed-loop MIMO modes, depending on the users' channel conditions and required rates, as a means to enhance the system throughput and performance. Each mode is a combination of a MIMO transmission technique (space-time block coding and/or spatial multiplexing or beamforming) and a modulation/coding scheme. We first evaluate the spectral efficiency of each mode and provide a simple way to select adaptively the best mode among the open-loop and closed-loop available transmission modes in a Rayleigh/composite fading environment. Based on these results, we propose a simple and practical switching criterion that is shown to yield significant spectral efficiency improvements over independent adaptive open-loop or closed-loop schemes for typical multiuser system scenarios. Simulations in an IEEE 802.16e framework illustrate significant improvements in throughput performance.
Arabidopsis DNA Encoding Two Desiccation-Responsive rd29 Genes

During drought or water-deficit conditions, plants undergo a number of physiological and developmental responses. Recently, many genes have been shown to be responsive to water deficiency at the transcriptional level. Most of the genes that have been studied to date are also induced by the plant hormone ABA (Skriver and Mundy, 1990; Bray, 1991). To analyze signal transduction pathways between drought stress and gene expression, we have cloned and characterized nine independent cDNAs (named RD) whose corresponding genes are responsive to desiccation stress in Arabidopsis thaliana (Yamaguchi-Shinozaki et al., 1992). One of the RD clones, RD29, is induced by drought stress very quickly and strongly, and this induction is a two-phase process (Yamaguchi-Shinozaki et al., 1992; Yamaguchi-Shinozaki and Shinozaki, 1992). The first, quick induction, occurred within 20 min and the second, slow induction, was observed within 3 h. Exogenous ABA induced RD29 mRNA, but the quick induction of the RD29 gene, found during the desiccation treatment, was not observed after ABA treatment (Yamaguchi-Shinozaki and Shinozaki, 1992). These observations suggest that the RD29 gene is induced by ABA, but its quick induction within 20 min by desiccation is not mediated by ABA. There seem to be ABA-independent as well as ABAmediated signal transduction pathways between water stress and the induction of the RD29 gene. Genomic Southem analysis revealed that there are severa1 genes for the RD29 cDNA on the Arabidopsis genome (Yamaguchi-Shinozaki and Shinozaki, 1992). We isolated two genes corresponding to the RD29 clone, and these two genes are tandemly located in an 8-kb region of the Arabidopsis genomeWe designated these two genes rd29A and rd29B. The characteristics of the two genes and their flanking regions are summarized in Table I. The coding region of rd29A was determined on the basis of the sequence of RD29 cDNA. The coding region of rd29B was determined by comparing the nucleotide sequence of rd29B with that of rd29A. Both rd29A and rd29B genes contain three introns at the same positions.
Functional polarity of dendrites and axons of primate A1 amacrine cells

The A1 cell is an axon-bearing amacrine cell of the primate retina with a diffusely stratified, moderately branched dendritic tree (∼400 μm diameter). Axons arise from proximal dendrites forming a second concentric, larger arborization (>4 mm diameter) of thin processes with bouton-like swellings along their length. A1 cells are ON-OFF transient cells that fire a brief high frequency burst of action potentials in response to light (Stafford & Dacey, 1997). It has been hypothesized that A1 cells receive local input to their dendrites, with action potentials propagating output via the axons across the retina, serving a global inhibitory function. To explore this hypothesis we recorded intracellularly from A1 cells in an in vitro macaque monkey retina preparation. A1 cells have an antagonistic center-surround receptive field structure for the ON and OFF components of the light response. Blocking the ON pathway with L-AP4 eliminated ON center responses but not OFF center responses or ON or OFF surround responses. Blocking GABAergic inhibition with picrotoxin increased response amplitudes without affecting receptive field structure. TTX abolished action potentials, with little effect on the sub-threshold light response or basic receptive field structure. We also used multi-photon laser scanning microscopy to record light-induced calcium transients in morphologically identified dendrites and axons of A1 cells. TTX completely abolished such calcium transients in the axons but not in the dendrites. Together these results support the current model of A1 function, whereby the dendritic tree receives synaptic input that determines the center-surround receptive field; and action potentials arise in the axons, which propagate away from the dendritic field across the retina.
Analysis and Reduction of Electromagnetic Field Leakage through Loaded Apertures: A Numerical Study

This paper presents the novel use of resistive sheets to reduce electromagnetic penetration through apertures. The resistive material is applied in several configurations that will be discussed in this paper. Significant reduction of electromagnetic leakage is possible by using loading techniques inspired by a transmission line interpretation of the field distribution within the aperture at or beyond its fundamental resonant frequency. By using the configurations proposed in this work, it is possible to achieve appreciable reduction in the near and far field aperture radiation without affecting the total area needed for airflow and heat transfer. Numerical results are presented using a commercial finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) algorithm to demonstrate the effectiveness of our new approach.
Vitamin D Deficiency—Prognostic Marker or Mortality Risk Factor in End Stage Renal Disease Patients with Diabetes Mellitus Treated with Hemodialysis—A Prospective Multicenter Study

Background End stage renal disease (ESRD) patients on renal replacement therapy (RRT) with diabetes mellitus (DM) have a higher mortality rate and an increase prevalence of vitamin D deficiency compared to those without DM. It is still debated if vitamin D deficiency is a risk factor or a prognostic marker for mortality in these patients. This study investigated the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and its impact on all-cause mortality in HD patients with DM. Methods Our prospective non-interventional cohort study included 600 patients on hemodialysis therapy (HD) (median aged 56, interquartile range (19) years, 332 (55.3%) males) recruited from 7 HD centers, from all main geographical regions of Romania. The prevalence of DM was 15.3%. They were then followed regarding: dialysis duration, dialysis efficiency, renal anemia, CKD-MBD, inflammatory status and comorbidities: coronary artery disease (CAD), peripheral vascular disease (PVD) and stroke. The deficiency of 25-OH vitamin D was defined as a value lower than12 ng/mL. Results Patients were followed for 3 years. The overall 3 year mortality was 25.5% (153 individuals), being higher in patients with DM as compared to those without DM (33.7% vs. 24.0%; P = 0.049). The time-related prognosis was also influenced by the presence of DM, at the survival analysis resulting in a HR of 1.52 [1.03 to 2.26] 95% CI, P = 0.037, for death in dialyzed patients with DM. In DM patients, 25-OH vitamin D deficiency was significantly higher (37.0% compared to 24.0%, P = 0.009). Furthermore, in patients with DM we observed a shorter dialysis duration (2 vs. 3 years, P<0.001) and a lower intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH) (258.0 pg/ml vs. 441.9 pg/ml, P = 0.002). Regarding the presence of comorbidities at the inclusion in the study, the presence of diabetes in dialyzed patients was associated with increased prevalence of CAD (87.0% vs. 58.1%, P<0.001), PVD (67.4% vs. 17.3%, P<0.001) and history of stroke (29.3% vs. 14.0%, P<0.001). In patients with DM the presence of 25-OH vitamin D deficiency increased the probability of death (50.0% vs. 24.1%; P = 0.011). In multiple Cox proportional hazards analysis, vitamin D deficiency remained an independent predictor for mortality in dialysis patients with DM (HR = 1.71, 95% CI 1.21 to 2.43, P = 0.003). In the same time, multiple Cox proportional hazards analysis showed that age (HR = 1.02 per one year increase, P = 0.004), CAD (HR = 1.55, P = 0.046) and PVD (HR = 1.50, P = 0.029) were independent predictors for mortality in dialysis patients with DM. Conclusions ESRD patients with DM treated with HD have a higher overall mortality than non-DM patients. Vitamin D deficiency is significantly more prevalent in HD patients with DM. Low 25-OH vitamin D levels were associated with increased all-cause mortality in these patients. According to our data, in HD patients with DM, screening for vitamin D deficiency (and its correction) should be mandatory for an optimal risk reduction strategy.
Lizards from Urban Areas Are More Asymmetric: Using Fluctuating Asymmetry to Evaluate Environmental Disturbance

The increase in human activities that leads to wildlife decline and species extinction poses an urgent need for simple indicators of environmental stress in animal populations. Several studies have suggested that fluctuating asymmetry (FA) can be an easy, direct measure of developmental instability because it is associated to environmental stress and, as such, it can be a useful indicator of population disturbance. We examined three different morphological traits in urban and rural populations of the common wall lizard (Podarcis muralis) to test whether anthropogenic disturbance causes an increase in FA. Compared to rural populations, urban ones showed higher levels of FA in all analyzed traits, thus providing evidence that FA can respond to anthropogenic disturbance. However, we also found significant differences in FA among traits, where femoral pores and subdigital lamellae, traits with a functional relevance, were more stable developmentally compared to supracilliar granules which have no evident function. Unsigned FA [abs(right-left)] exhibited significant, but weak, positive correlations among traits, indicating that developmental noise does not have a uniform effect across characters and thus questioning the view of developmental stability as an organism-wide property. The degree of signed FA (right-left) was more similar between structurally associated traits, possibly as an outcome of morphological integration. In conclusion, our results demonstrate that FA can be a reliable indicator of disturbance provided that it is analyzed on multiple traits simultaneously and examined at the population level.
Cryptographic Hardware and Embedded Systems - CHES 2005

What do you do to start reading cryptographic hardware and embedded systems ches 2005 7th international workshop edinburgh uk august 29 september 1 2005 proceedings computer science security and cryptology? Searching the book that you love to read first or find an interesting book that will make you want to read? Everybody has difference with their reason of reading a book. Actuary, reading habit must be from earlier. Many people may be love to read, but not a book. It's not fault. Someone will be bored to open the thick book with small words to read. In more, this is the real condition. So do happen probably with this cryptographic hardware and embedded systems ches 2005 7th international workshop edinburgh uk august 29 september 1 2005 proceedings computer science security and cryptology.
Cold filaments in galaxy clusters: effects of heat conduction

We determine the critical size l crit of a filament of cold (T ∼ 10 4 K) gas that is in radiative equilibrium with X-ray emitting gas at temperatures T out ∼ 10 6 -10 8 K. Filaments smaller than l crit will be rapidly evaporated, while longer ones will induce the condensation of the ambient medium. At fixed pressure P, l crit increases as T 11/4 out, while at fixed Tout, it scales as P -1 . It scales as f 1/2 , where f is the factor by which the magnetic field depresses the thermal conductivity below Spitzer's benchmark value. For plausible values off, l crit is similar to the lengths of observed filaments. In a cluster such as Perseus, the value of l crit increases by over an order of magnitude between the centre and a radius of 100 kpc. If the spectrum of seed filament lengths I is strongly falling with l, as is natural, then these results explain why filaments are only seen within a few kiloparsecs of the centres of clusters, and are not seen in clusters that have no cooling flow. We calculate the differential emission measure as a function of temperature for the interface between filaments and ambient gas of various temperatures. We discuss the implications of our results for the origin of the galaxy luminosity function.
Mutations in a novel serine protease PRSS56 in families with nanophthalmos

Purpose Nanophthalmos is a rare genetic ocular disorder in which the eyes of affected individuals are abnormally small. Patients suffer from severe hyperopia as a result of their markedly reduced axial lengths, but otherwise are capable of seeing well unlike other more general forms of microphthalmia. To date one gene for nanophthalmos has been identified, encoding the membrane-type frizzled related protein MFRP. Identification of additional genes for nanophthalmos will improve our understanding of normal developmental regulation of eye growth. Methods We ascertained a cohort of families from eastern Canada and Mexico with familial nanophthalmos. We performed high density microsatellite and high density single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotyping to identify potential chromosomal regions of linkage. We sequenced coding regions of genes in the linked interval by traditional PCR-based Sanger capillary electrophoresis methods. We cloned and sequenced a novel cDNA from a putative causal gene to verify gene structure. Results We identified a linked locus on chromosome 2q37 with a peak logarithm (base 10) of odds (LOD) score of 4.7. Sequencing of coding exons of all genes in the region identified multiple segregating variants in one gene, recently annotated as serine protease gene (PRSS56), coding for a predicted trypsin serine protease-like protein. One of our families was homozygous for a predicted pathogenic missense mutation, one family was compound heterozygous for two predicted pathogenic missense mutations, and one family was compound heterozygous for a predicted pathogenic missense mutation plus a frameshift leading to obligatory truncation of the predicted protein. The PRSS56 gene structure in public databases is based on a virtual transcript assembled from overlapping incomplete cDNA clones; we have now validated the structure of a full-length transcript from embryonic mouse brain RNA. Conclusions PRSS56 is a good candidate for the causal gene for nanophthalmos in our families.
Locally Aggressive Benign Odontogenic Neoplasms-A Review

Odontogenic neoplasms encompass a group of lesions with a varied clinical picture and biological behavior ranging from indolent hamartomatous proliferation to locally aggressive benign tumors and their very aggressive malignant counterparts. The benign neoplasms are normally slow growing, indolent with no invasive potential. However, there exists a few locally aggressive benign odontogenic tumors that have a tendency to invade and deform the surrounding structures. The exact reason for the aggressiveness of these benign neoplasms remained an enigma until recently but with the ongoing research and the tremendous progress in the molecular biology of tumors, great strides have now been made in our understanding of their molecular pathogenesis. Their biology and clinical expression can often be destructive and ominous. An appropriate treatment protocol needs to be followed to combat the high recurrence rate and aggressiveness of these entities. This review aims to give an understanding of the locally aggressive benign odontogenic neoplasms, their biologic behaviour and the therapy strategies employed to treat them. Keywords: Locally aggressive lesions, Odontogenic neoplasms, Treatment
Cellulose microfibril orientation of Picea abies and its variability at the micron-level determined by Raman imaging

The functional characteristics of plant cell walls depend on the composition of the cell wall polymers, as well as on their highly ordered architecture at scales from a few nanometres to several microns. Raman spectra of wood acquired with linear polarized laser light include information about polymer composition as well as the alignment of cellulose microfibrils with respect to the fibre axis (microfibril angle). By changing the laser polarization direction in 3° steps, the dependency between cellulose and laser orientation direction was investigated. Orientation-dependent changes of band height ratios and spectra were described by quadratic linear regression and partial least square regressions, respectively. Using the models and regressions with high coefficients of determination (R2 > 0.99) microfibril orientation was predicted in the S1 and S2 layers distinguished by the Raman imaging approach in cross-sections of spruce normal, opposite, and compression wood. The determined microfibril angle (MFA) in the different S2 layers ranged from 0° to 49.9° and was in coincidence with X-ray diffraction determination. With the prerequisite of geometric sample and laser alignment, exact MFA prediction can complete the picture of the chemical cell wall design gained by the Raman imaging approach at the micron level in all plant tissues.
A simpler unified analysis of budget perceptrons

The kernel Perceptron is an appealing online learning algorithm that has a drawback: whenever it makes an error it must increase its support set, which slows training and testing if the number of errors is large. The Forgetron and the Randomized Budget Perceptron algorithms overcome this problem by restricting the number of support vectors the Perceptron is allowed to have. These algorithms have regret bounds whose proofs are dissimilar. In this paper we propose a unified analysis of both of these algorithms by observing that the way in which they remove support vectors can be seen as types of L2-regularization. By casting these algorithms as instances of online convex optimization problems and applying a variant of Zinkevich's theorem for noisy and incorrect gradient, we can bound the regret of these algorithms more easily than before. Our bounds are similar to the existing ones, but the proofs are less technical.
A scenario probability based method to solve unit commitment of large scale energy storage system and thermal generation in high wind power penetration level system

Massive scenarios of wind power generation make the solving of unit commitment more complex and time-consuming. In this paper, a revised binary particle swarm optimization (RBPSO) to solve scenario probability based unit commitment is proposed. The RBPSO is used to generate the starting/stop state of units in out layer, and in inner layer a revised lambda iteration method (RLIM) is used to give economic dispatch which considers scenario probability, wind power curtailment, load shedding. The RBPSO simplify the iteration process and significantly shorten solving times. Latin hypercube sampling (LHS) is employed to generate scenarios and K-mean cluster technique is developed to realize scenario reduction and scenario probability calculation. The methodology is verified by a 10 units with 24h demand horizon.
Multicell Interference Mitigation with Joint Beamforming and Common Message Decoding

Conventional wireless cellular systems treat out-of-cell interference as noise. This paper proposes methods and examines the benefit of designing decodable interference signals, whereby a transmitter may split its message into a common and a private part, and the common message may be decoded and subtracted by users in adjacent cells. This paper considers a downlink scenario, where the base-stations are equipped with multiple antennas, the mobile users are equipped with a single antenna, and multiple users are active simultaneously via spatial multiplexing. The network optimization problem consists of jointly determining the appropriate users in adjacent cells for rate splitting, the optimal transmit beamformers for common and private messages, and the optimal common-private rates to maximize the minimum achievable rate across the users. This paper shows that for fixed user selection and fixed common-private rate splitting, the optimization of transmit beamformers can be solved using a semidefinite programming (SDP) relaxation approach. Further, it is shown that for the case where the network consists of two message-splitting pairs, SDP relaxation is tight, i.e., beamforming is optimal. Finally, this paper proposes a heuristic user-selection and rate splitting strategy to characterize the performance improvement for cell-edge users due to common-message decoding.