Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Body Composition Analysis by Using Bioelectrical Impedance in a Young Healthy Chinese Population: Methodological Considerations

Objective: To develop a new bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) model for analyzing body composition by using isotope dilution, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) as the reference methods in young healthy Chinese populations. Methods: Thirty healthy participants were enrolled. Their body composition was analyzed using BIA and 3 reference methods. We established a model that uniformed data from 3 references methods (isotope, MRI, and DEXA) into 1 formula. This model was further validated with 209 participants. Results: The following BIA body composition adjustment model was developed: Y = 1.072 X e − ( k − 1.786 1.77 ) 2 + 0.3194 K 2 − 2.073 K + 3.713 , where X represents the impedance index; when K = 1, 2, and 3, Y represents total body water, fat mass, and bone mass, respectively. The prediction accuracy of this formula was 93.3%. By incorporating the data matrix, the protein mass was calculated using BIA: Protein = 1.01 × ( BW − FM − BM − TBW ) + 1.29 . In the verification part of this study, the lean body mass measured using DEXA and BIA was 43.02 ± 8.34 kg and 45.85 ± 8.81 kg, respectively. Analysis indicated that the model fit was extremely favorable (R2 = .9997, P < .001). Conclusions: The accuracy of BIA measurement on body composition and protein mass is significantly improved by our work.
Usability of Recycled Plastic Wastes for Particle Board Production as Construction Material

The aim of this study is to examine important physical and mechanical properties of particle boards which were produced by adding plastic waste grinded to a certain particle size into wood shavings and using urea formaldehyde glue. The following values were obtained from the samples which were prepared to have different mixture proportions: unit weight was 684-966 kg/m3, thickness increment after a 24 hour water exposure was 1% -12%, the amount of water absorption was 21% -85%, bending strength was 5.20- 17.94 MPa, perpendicular tensile strength was 0.15-1.32 MPa and heat conduction 0.128-0.160 W/mK. According to the results of the study, it was concluded that most of the characteristics of particle boards which are suggested under the related standards could be improved by reusing plastic waste for the production of particle boards, and that, in addition to this, negative environmental consequences caused by wastes could be minimized by utilizing plastic waste in this way.
Data-Driven Model Predictive Control of Autonomous Mobility-on-Demand Systems

The goal of this paper is to present an end-to-end, data-driven framework to control Autonomous Mobility-on-Demand systems (AMoD, i.e. fleets of self-driving vehicles). We first model the AMoD system using a time-expanded network, and present a formulation that computes the optimal rebalancing strategy (i.e., preemptive repositioning) and the minimum feasible fleet size for a given travel demand. Then, we adapt this formulation to devise a Model Predictive Control (MPC) algorithm that leverages short-term demand forecasts based on historical data to compute rebalancing strategies. Using simulations based on real customer data from DiDi Chuxing, we test the end-to-end performance of this controller with a state-of-the-art LSTM neural network to predict customer demand: we show that this approach scales very well for large systems (indeed, the computational complexity of the MPC algorithm does not depend on the number of customers and of vehicles in the system) and outperforms state-of-the-art rebalancing strategies by reducing the mean customer wait time by up to to 89.6 %.
Dynamic mechanical behavior of birch compared with methyl methacrylate impregnated birch for 90 to 475 k

The dynamic mechanical behavior provides insight as to the role of additive compounds in the lattice. In the present work the influence of water content and of radiation-polymerized monomer impregnation on the mechanical properties of birch were studied from 90°K to 475°K. Results obtained indicate that the dynamic mechanical behavior of birch is quite sensitive to residual water, especially at low temperatures. Impregnation with monomer resulted in sig nificantly increasing the elastic modulus of the wood. Impregnation further resulted in a dynamic mechanical spectrum having features in common with the dynamic mechanical properties of PMMA, as well as characteristics of birch alone. Possible explanations for some of the observed behavior have been presented.
A circadian clock gene, PER2, activates HIF‐1 as an effector molecule for recruitment of HIF‐1α to promoter regions of its downstream genes

Hypoxia‐inducible factor 1 (HIF‐1) is a transcription factor functioning in cellular adaptive responses to hypoxia. Recent studies have suggested that HIF‐1 activity is upregulated by one of the important circadian clock genes, period circadian clock 2 (PER2); however, its underlying mechanism remains unclear. Here, we show that PER2 functions as an effector protein for the recruitment of HIF‐1α to its cognate enhancer sequence, the hypoxia‐response element (HRE). We found that the forced expression of PER2 enhanced HIF‐1 activity without influencing expression levels of the regulatory subunit of HIF‐1, HIF‐1α, at either mRNA or protein levels. A series of coimmunoprecipitation‐based experiments revealed that PER2 interacted with HIF‐1α and facilitated the recruitment of HIF‐1α to HRE derived from vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) promoter. The PER2‐mediated activation of HIF‐1 was observed only when the asparagine residue at position 803 of HIF‐1α (HIF‐1α N803) was kept unhydroxylated by hypoxic stimulation, by introducing an N803A point mutation, or by an inhibitor of N803‐dioxygenase, deferoxamine. However, the extent of PER‐2‐HIF‐1α interaction was equivalent regardless of the N803 hydroxylation status. Taken together, these results suggest that, with the help of an unknown sensor molecule for the N803 hydroxylation status, PER2 functions as an effector molecule for the recruitment of HIF‐1 to promoter regions of its downstream genes. Our findings reveal a novel regulatory step in the activation of HIF‐1, which can be targeted to develop therapeutic strategies against HIF‐1‐related diseases, such as cancers.
HeurAA: Accurate and Fast Detection of Genetic Variations with a Novel Heuristic Amplicon Aligner Program for Next Generation Sequencing

Next generation sequencing (NGS) of PCR amplicons is a standard approach to detect genetic variations in personalized medicine such as cancer diagnostics. Computer programs used in the NGS community often miss insertions and deletions (indels) that constitute a large part of known human mutations. We have developed HeurAA, an open source, heuristic amplicon aligner program. We tested the program on simulated datasets as well as experimental data from multiplex sequencing of 40 amplicons in 12 oncogenes collected on a 454 Genome Sequencer from lung cancer cell lines. We found that HeurAA can accurately detect all indels, and is more than an order of magnitude faster than previous programs. HeurAA can compare reads and reference sequences up to several thousand base pairs in length, and it can evaluate data from complex mixtures containing reads of different gene-segments from different samples. HeurAA is written in C and Perl for Linux operating systems, the code and the documentation are available for research applications at http://sourceforge.net/projects/heuraa/
Long-term urban carbon dioxide observations reveal spatial and temporal dynamics related to urban characteristics and growth

Significance Recent efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions have focused on cities due to intensive emissions, viable policy levers, and interested stakeholders. Atmospheric observations can be used to independently evaluate emissions, but suitable networks are sparse. We present a unique decadal record of atmospheric CO2 from five sites with contrasting urban characteristics that show divergent trends in CO2 emissions across a city. Comparison with population growth reveals a nonlinear relationship that may reflect how urban form affects CO2 emissions. Four state-of-the-art global-scale emission inventories capture the nonlinear relationship with population density but not the divergent long-term trends across the city. This demonstrates that CO2 monitoring networks can provide insight into urban carbon cycle processes and provide policy-relevant information to urban stakeholders. Cities are concentrated areas of CO2 emissions and have become the foci of policies for mitigation actions. However, atmospheric measurement networks suitable for evaluating urban emissions over time are scarce. Here we present a unique long-term (decadal) record of CO2 mole fractions from five sites across Utah’s metropolitan Salt Lake Valley. We examine “excess” CO2 above background conditions resulting from local emissions and meteorological conditions. We ascribe CO2 trends to changes in emissions, since we did not find long-term trends in atmospheric mixing proxies. Three contrasting CO2 trends emerged across urban types: negative trends at a residential-industrial site, positive trends at a site surrounded by rapid suburban growth, and relatively constant CO2 over time at multiple sites in the established, residential, and commercial urban core. Analysis of population within the atmospheric footprints of the different sites reveals approximately equal increases in population influencing the observed CO2, implying a nonlinear relationship with CO2 emissions: Population growth in rural areas that experienced suburban development was associated with increasing emissions while population growth in the developed urban core was associated with stable emissions. Four state-of-the-art global-scale emission inventories also have a nonlinear relationship with population density across the city; however, in contrast to our observations, they all have nearly constant emissions over time. Our results indicate that decadal scale changes in urban CO2 emissions are detectable through monitoring networks and constitute a valuable approach to evaluate emission inventories and studies of urban carbon cycles.
Gene Flow and Hybridization between Numerically Imbalanced Populations of Two Duck Species on the Subantarctic Island of South Georgia

Hybridization is common between species of animals, particularly in waterfowl (Anatidae). One factor shown to promote hybridization is restricted mate choice, which can occur when 2 species occur in sympatry but one is rare. According to the Hubbs principle, or "desperation hypothesis," the rarer species is more likely to mate with heterospecifics. We report the second of 2 independent examples of hybridization between 2 species of ducks inhabiting island ecosystems in the Subantarctic and South Atlantic Ocean. Yellow-billed pintails (Anas georgica) and speckled teal (Anas flavirostris) are abundant in continental South America, where they are sympatric and coexist in mixed flocks. But on South Georgia, an isolated island in the Subantarctic, the pintail population of approximately 6000 pairs outnumbers a small breeding population of speckled teal 300∶1. Using 6 genetic loci (mtDNA and 5 nuclear introns) and Bayesian assignment tests coupled with coalescent analyses, we identified hybrid-origin speckled teal alleles in 2 pintails on South Georgia. While it is unclear whether introgression has also occurred into the speckled teal population, our data suggest that this hybridization was not a recent event, but occurred some time ago. We also failed to identify unequivocal evidence of introgression in a much larger sample of pintails and speckled teal from Argentina using a 3-population "Isolation-with-Migration" coalescent analysis. Combined with parallel findings of hybridization between these same 2 duck species in the Falkland Islands, where population ratios are reversed and pintails are outnumbered by speckled teal 1:10, our results provide further support for the desperation hypothesis, which predicts that scarcity in one population and abundance of another will often lead to hybridization. While the South Georgia pintail population appears to be thriving, it's possible that low density of conspecific mates and inverse density dependence (Allee effect) may be one factor limiting the reproductive output of the speckled teal population, and this situation may persist unless speckled teal increase in abundance on South Georgia.
Obesogens and male fertility

In the last decades, several studies evidenced a decrease in male fertility in developed countries. Although the aetiology of this trend in male reproductive health remains a matter of debate, environmental compounds that predispose to weight gain, namely obesogens, are appointed as contributors because of their action as endocrine disruptors. Obesogens favour adipogenesis by an imbalance of metabolic processes and can be found virtually everywhere. These compounds easily accumulate in tissues with high lipid content. Obesogens change the functioning of male reproductive axis, and, consequently, the testicular physiology and metabolism that are pivotal for spermatogenesis. The disruption of these tightly regulated metabolic pathways leads to adverse reproductive outcomes. Notably, adverse effects of obesogens may also promote disturbances in the metabolic performance of the following generations, through epigenetic modifications passed by male gametes. Thus, unveiling the molecular pathways by which obesogens induce toxicity that may end up in epigenetic modifications is imperative. Otherwise, a transgenerational susceptibility to metabolic diseases may be favoured. We present an up‐to‐date overview of the impact of obesogens on testicular physiology, with a particular focus on testicular metabolism. We also address the effects of obesogens on male reproductive parameters and the subsequent consequences for male fertility.
Modeling Thermal Performance of Nano-GNRFET Transistors Using Ballistic-Diffusive Equation

This paper inquires the phonon transport and temperature distribution in graphene nanoribbon field-effect transistor (GNRFET). We propose a modified Ballistic-diffusive equation model (BDE) to explore the phonon transport in GNRFET transistors. In addition, we have studied the effect of the channel length on thermal characteristics. Finite-element approximation used to study the temperature distribution in nano-GNRFET. The proposed model has been validated on the basis of available results from the literature. Our results shows that phonon transport predicted by the proposed BDE model is close to that obtained by Boltzmann transport equation. We found that the proposed model is able to estimate the thermal performance of GNRFET. The results prove also that the characteristic length of the GNR has no important role in the increasing of the temperature.
Energy Harvesting Communications Without Transmitter Channel State Information Using Layered Coding

In this paper, we optimize an energy harvesting transmitter, communicating over a slow fading channel, using layered coding. The transmitter has access to the channel statistics, but does not know the exact channel state. In layered coding, the codewords are first designed for a given finite set of channel states at different rates, and then the codewords are either time-multiplexed or superimposed before the transmission, leading to two transmission strategies. The receiver then decodes the information adaptively based on the realized channel state. The transmitter is equipped with a finite-capacity battery having non-zero internal resistance. In each of the transmission strategies, we first formulate and study an average rate maximization problem with non-causal knowledge of the harvested power variations. We also highlight the structural properties of the optimal solutions. Further, assuming statistical knowledge and causal information of the harvested power variations, we propose a sub-optimal algorithm, and compare it with the stochastic dynamic programming-based solution and a greedy policy. By numerical simulations, we demonstrate that the average rate decreases by approximately 20% when the internal resistance of the battery is increased from 0 <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">${\Omega }$ </tex-math></inline-formula> to 50 <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">${\Omega }$ </tex-math></inline-formula> in all the policies.
Quantification of energy expenditure of military loaded runs: what is the performance of laboratory-based equations when applied to the field environment?

Introduction Performance during army loaded runs provides a synthetic indicator of a soldier’s capacity to move while carrying loads and thereby remain able to execute a mission. The aim of this study was to estimate and compare the energy expenditure (EE) of army loaded runs, conducted in a field environment using laboratory-based equations and HR index (HRindex). Methods 45 Ranger recruits had HR monitored during three loaded runs (10, 15 and 20 km) in full military equipment in the field environment. EE was calculated using reference equations (EE-Eq) and estimates of oxygen consumption based on HRindex (EE-HRindex). Correspondence between EE-Eq and EE-HRindex estimates was evaluated using a two-way analysis of variance, correlation test and Bland-Altman analysis. Results EE-Eq relative to time and weight was significantly higher for the 10 km (0.175±0.016) compared with 15 and 20 km (0.163±0.016 and 0.160±0.013 kcal/kg/min, not different). The overall EE-Eq increased significantly with distance (1129±59, 1703±80 and 2250±115 kcal for 10, 15 and 20 km). EE-Eq was not different from and highly correlated with EE-HRindex, with a small and non-significant bias and good precision between methods. Conclusions Our study provides the first comprehensive data on HR and EE during long-distance loaded army runs, in full combat equipment, in actual field conditions. Equation-based estimates of EE during these heavy-intensity activities were not significantly different from and highly correlated with HR-based estimates. This corroborates the general applicability of the predictive equations in the field environment. Furthermore, our study suggests that time-resolved HR-based estimates of EE during army runs can be used to evaluate for the effects of context specificity, individual variability and fatigue in movement economy.
Consultation for Small-Sized Penis in the Egyptian Males

This study aimed to report penile dimensions in adult Egyptian males consulting for small-sized penis (SSP) and describe their demographics and andrological profile. A case control study was designed through retrospective data analysis of patients (n = 239) seeking advice for SSP and a control group (n = 59). This included sociodemographics, other andrological complaints, and penile dimensions (pendulous length [PL], penopubic or total length [TL], and circumference [CF]) at flaccid and erect states and the size of the prepubic fatty pad. The results reported that most patients were single, students, and smokers and had not completed a university education. Several patients reported falsely premature ejaculation (PE), penile curvature (PC), and small-sized testes. Most penile dimensions of the patients (mean, cm) were significantly lower than those of the controls, whether in flaccid (PL: 7.4 vs. 8.05, p = .008; CF: 8.7 vs. 8.98, p = .026) or erect state (PL: 11.8 vs. 13, p = .000; TL: 14.2 vs. 15, p = .000; CF: 11.3 vs. 11.8, p = .003). However, no patient presented with a pendulous penile length <4 cm in flaccid or <7 cm in erect state. In conclusion, Egyptian men consulting for SSP did not have true small organs, but their penile dimensions were slightly smaller than those of men without such complaint. The proper sexual education program is highly advisable in these situations to avoid the myths and misconceptions about sexuality.
A Machine Learning Approach for Power Allocation in HetNets Considering QoS

There is an increase in usage of smaller cells or femtocells to improve performance and coverage of nextgeneration heterogeneous wireless networks (HetNets). However, the interference caused by femtocells to neighboring cells is a limiting performance factor in dense HetNets. This interference is being managed via distributed resource allocation methods. However, as the density of the network increases so does the complexity of such resource allocation methods. Yet, unplanned deployment of femtocells requires an adaptable and self-organizing algorithm to make HetNets viable. As such, we propose to use a machine learning approach based on Q-learning to solve the resource allocation problem in such complex networks. By defining each base station as an agent, a cellular network is modeled as a multi-agent network. Subsequently, cooperative Q-learning can be applied as an efficient approach to manage the resources of a multi-agent network. Furthermore, the proposed approach considers the quality of service (QoS) for each user and fairness in the network. In comparison with prior work, the proposed approach can bring more than a four-fold increase in the number of supported femtocells while using cooperative Q-learning to reduce resource allocation overhead.
Prenatal neurogenesis induction therapy normalizes brain structure and function in Down syndrome mice

Significance Since Down syndrome (DS) is caused by trisomy of chromosome 21, prenatal diagnosis of DS is now possible. Nonetheless, parents of a fetus diagnosed with DS have only two choices: terminate the pregnancy or prepare to raise a child with a serious disability. We developed a new compound, ALGERNON (altered generation of neurons), to provide a third option to these parents. Treatment of pregnant dams with ALGERNON prevented morphological brain abnormalities including a thinned cortical plate. Remarkably, these offspring exhibited normal cognitive behavior compared with untreated offspring with DS. ALGERNON has therapeutic potential for treating not only DS, but also numerous neurodevelopmental disorders. Down syndrome (DS) caused by trisomy of chromosome 21 is the most common genetic cause of intellectual disability. Although the prenatal diagnosis of DS has become feasible, there are no therapies available for the rescue of DS-related neurocognitive impairment. A growth inducer newly identified in our screen of neural stem cells (NSCs) has potent inhibitory activity against dual-specificity tyrosine phosphorylation-regulated kinase 1A (DYRK1A) and was found to rescue proliferative deficits in Ts65Dn-derived neurospheres and human NSCs derived from individuals with DS. The oral administration of this compound, named ALGERNON (altered generation of neurons), restored NSC proliferation in murine models of DS and increased the number of newborn neurons. Moreover, administration of ALGERNON to pregnant dams rescued aberrant cortical formation in DS mouse embryos and prevented the development of abnormal behaviors in DS offspring. These data suggest that the neurogenic phenotype of DS can be prevented by ALGERNON prenatal therapy.