Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Stepsize Restrictions for the Total-Variation-Diminishing Property in General Runge-Kutta Methods

Much attention has been paid in the literature to total-variation-diminishing (TVD) numerical processes in the solution of nonlinear hyperbolic differential equations. For special Runge--Kutta methods, conditions on the stepsize were derived that are sufficient for the TVD property; see, e.g., Shu and Osher [J. Comput. Phys., 77 (1988), pp. 439--471] and Gottlieb and Shu [ Math. Comp., 67 (1998), pp. 73--85]. Various basic questions are still open regarding the following issues: 1. the extension of the above conditions to more general Runge--Kutta methods; 2. simple restrictions on the stepsize which are not only sufficient but at the same time necessary for the TVD property; and 3. the determination of optimal Runge--Kutta methods with the TVD property.In this paper we propose a theory by means of which we are able to clarify the above questions. Moreover, by applying our theory, we settle analogous questions regarding the related strong-stability-preserving (SSP) property (see, e.g., Gottlieb, Shu, and .
A Thiazole Orange Derivative Targeting the Bacterial Protein FtsZ Shows Potent Antibacterial Activity

The prevalence of multidrug resistance among clinically significant bacteria calls for the urgent development of new antibiotics with novel mechanisms of action. In this study, a new small molecule exhibiting excellent inhibition of bacterial cell division with potent antibacterial activity was discovered through cell-based screening. The compound exhibits a broad spectrum of bactericidal activity, including the methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus and NDM-1 Escherichia coli. The in vitro and in vivo results suggested that this compound disrupts the dynamic assembly of FtsZ protein and Z-ring formation through stimulating FtsZ polymerization. Moreover, this compound exhibits no activity on mammalian tubulin polymerization and shows low cytotoxicity on mammalian cells. Taken together, these findings could provide a new chemotype for development of antibacterials with FtsZ as the target.
CLIMATIC ADAPTATION AND PHOTOPERIODIC RESPONSE IN THE BAND‐LEGGED GROUND CRICKET

Most insects in the temperate regions alternate between two physiological phases, development and diapause, in their life cycle. They are as a rule able to overwinter only in the diapause phase which supervenes at a definite stage of morphogenesis. They should therefore reach that stage before winter. This timing apparently depends on the rate of development and the onset of diapause. Here is a main target of climatic selection. Climatic factors vary more or less regularly from north to south. This would result in a geographic regularity of variation in physiological and morphological traits involved in the adjustment of the life cycle. For example, several univoltine species such as Teleogryllus emma and T. yezoemma show a common latitudinal tendency in adult size which conforms to the converse of Bergmann's rule, and this size trend is associated with variation in the development time of the nymph (Masaki, 1966, 1967). The northern small-sized populations mature earlier than the southern large-sized ones under the same conditions of temperature and photoperiod. Both overwinter as eggs and mature in autumn. Only those individuals which oviposit at the proper season before winter leave progeny. The duration of nymphal development would therefore be selected by the length of the growing season. Since adult size is closely correlated with development time, this selection would set the upper limit for adult size. Fecundity would be a factor which counteracts this selection. The larger the body size, the more eggs
An Investigation of the Socio-Economic Status of the Addicts in Lashar and Nikshahr County and Its Comparison With Ordinary People

The world today is threatened by great disasters and catastrophes and one of the greatest of them is addiction. Addiction is a disaster that threatens all age and sex groups. For instance, in our country more than 2% of people are addicted. In this study, two groups of addicted (170) and healthy (167) individuals that had been selected in the systematic random method, were investigated in terms of the socio-economic status. The data was collected through the questionnaire. The average age and education level were 34.8 and 4.22 respectively among the addicted and 31.27 and 6.3 respectively among the healthy individuals. 83.1% of the addicted and 74.7% of the healthy individuals were married. A significant difference was observed between the education level and addiction with the p=0 using the t-test. A significant relationship was observed between the existence of addiction in the family with the p=0 and addiction among friends and addiction with the p=0.0001 and between job and addiction with the p=0.0115 and between addiction and the level of income with the p=0.0065.
Wavelength conversion at 10 Gb/s by four-wave mixing over a 30-nm interval

We show that the use of a long semiconductor optical amplifier increases the error-free conversion interval of a four-wave mixing (FWM)-based wavelength converter. 30-nm wavelength down-conversion and 15-nm up-conversion have been obtained at 10 Gb/s. This result is a significant improvement over the previous best performance of a FWM-based wavelength converter and suggests that the full erbium-doped fiber amplifier bandwidth can be covered with FWM wavelength converters.
Comparative effects of different chlorhexidine mouth-rinse formulations on volatile sulphur compounds and salivary bacterial counts.

AIM To compare five different commercial mouth rinses with chlorhexidine (CHX) with respect to their anti-halitosis effect and anti-microbial activity on salivary bacterial counts, following a standardised research protocol. And secondly, to validate the study model proposed in the evaluation of patients suffering from halitosis. PATIENTS AND METHODS Ten volunteers, with a healthy oral status, were enrolled in a double-blind, cross-over design, using sterile saline as negative control and five CHX-containing mouth rinses: 0.12% CHX alone (CHX+NO), plus alcohol (CHX+ALC), plus 0.05% cetylpiridinium chloride (CHX+CPC), plus sodium fluoride (CHX+NaF), and 0.05% CHX plus 0.05% CPC, plus 0.14% zinc lactate (CHX+Zn). The levels of whole-mouth volatile sulphur compounds (VSCs) were measured by means of a sulphide monitor at baseline, 1 and 5 h after rinsing with the assigned product. Baseline measurements also included an organoleptic assessment and the recording of the tongue-coating index. Aerobic and anaerobic salivary bacterial counts were also obtained by collecting unstimulated saliva samples at the same evaluation times, and processed by culturing techniques. Analysis of variance was used to evaluate whether significant differences existed among groups, at each evaluation point, or in changes between evaluations. RESULTS No significant differences were detected at baseline, with VSC levels ranging between 190 and 227 parts per billion (p.p.b.) After rinsing, VSC levels were reduced with all products (except saline), after 1 h. Significant differences at 1 h were detected (p=0.04), corresponding to a lower amount of p.p.b. (109) in (CHX+Zn) as compared with the other groups (except CHX+NO). At 5 h, VSC levels were lower for CHX+CPC and CHX+Zn (155 and 169, respectively), while the other groups showed levels higher than 220 p.p.b. With respect to aerobic salivary bacterial counts, CHX+CPC demonstrated the lowest percentage of survival (6% after 1 h and 18% after 5 h). For anaerobic bacterial counts, again CHX+CPC demonstrated the lowest percentage of survival (10% at 1 h and 23% at 5 h), together with CHX+ALC (18% of survival at 5 h). However, salivary counts and VSCs were only significantly correlated at baseline, but not after treatment. CONCLUSION Important differences can be expected from different CHX formulations, in relation to both their anti-halitosis effect and anti-microbial activity in saliva. Formulations that combine CHX and CPC achieved the best results, and a formulation combining CHX with NaF resulted in the poorest.
On Stabilization of Stochastic Cohen-Grossberg Neural Networks With Mode-Dependent Mixed Time-Delays and Markovian Switching

The globally exponential stabilization problem is investigated for a general class of stochastic Cohen-Grossberg neural networks with both Markovian jumping parameters and mixed mode-dependent time-delays. The mixed time-delays consist of both discrete and distributed delays. This paper aims to design a memoryless state feedback controller such that the closed-loop system is stochastically exponentially stable in the mean square sense. By introducing a new Lyapunov-Krasovskii functional that accounts for the mode-dependent mixed delays, stochastic analysis is conducted in order to derive delay-dependent criteria for the exponential stabilization problem. Three numerical examples are carried out to demonstrate the feasibility of our delay-dependent stabilization criteria.
Characterization of PD-L1 Expression and Associated T-cell Infiltrates in Metastatic Melanoma Samples from Variable Anatomic Sites

Purpose: Programmed death ligand-1 (PD-L1) tumor expression represents a mechanism of immune escape for melanoma cells. Drugs blocking PD-L1 or its receptor have shown unprecedented activity in melanoma, and our purpose was to characterize tumor PD-L1 expression and associated T-cell infiltration in metastatic melanomas. Experimental Design: We used a tissue microarray (TMA) consisting of two cores from 95 metastatic melanomas characterized for clinical stage, outcome, and anatomic site of disease. We assessed PD-L1 expression and tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) content (total T cells and CD4/CD8 subsets) by quantitative immunofluorescence. Results: High PD-L1 expression was associated with improved survival (P = 0.02) and higher T-cell content (P = 0.0005). Higher T-cell content (total and CD8 cells) was independently associated with improved overall survival; PD-L1 expression was not independently prognostic. High TIL content in extracerebral metastases was associated with increased time to developing brain metastases (P = 0.03). Cerebral and dermal metastases had slightly lower PD-L1 expression than other sites, not statistically significant. Cerebral metastases had less T cells (P = 0.01). Conclusions: T-cell–infiltrated melanomas, particularly those with high CD8 T-cell content, are more likely to be associated with PD-L1 expression in tumor cells, an improved prognosis, and increased time to development of brain metastases. Studies of T-cell content and subsets should be incorporated into trials of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors to determine their predictive value. Furthermore, additional studies of anatomic sites with less PD-L1 expression and T-cell infiltrate are needed to determine if discordant responses to PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors are seen at those sites. Clin Cancer Res; 21(13); 3052–60. ©2015 AACR.
Developmental and heat stress-regulated expression of HsfA2 and small heat shock proteins in tomato anthers

The high sensitivity of male reproductive cells to high temperatures may be due to an inadequate heat stress response. The results of a comprehensive expression analysis of HsfA2 and Hsp17-CII, two important members of the heat stress system, in the developing anthers of a heat-tolerant tomato genotype are reported here. A transcriptional analysis at different developmental anther/pollen stages was performed using semi-quantitative and real-time PCR. The messengers were localized using in situ RNA hybridization, and protein accumulation was monitored using immunoblot analysis. Based on the analysis of the gene and protein expression profiles, HsfA2 and Hsp17-CII are finely regulated during anther development and are further induced under both short and prolonged heat stress conditions. These data suggest that HsfA2 may be directly involved in the activation of protection mechanisms in the tomato anther during heat stress and, thereby, may contribute to tomato fruit set under adverse temperatures.
Understanding Well-Being

The sites, signs, and sources of well-being across levels of ecology are explored in this colorful presentation by a leader in the field of community and educational well-being (CEW). Prilleltensky offers a framework for understanding the field, which is also important for understanding how materials in the CEW Archive (cewarchive.miami.edu) and glossary (cew.miami.edu) are organized. It encourages a holistic view of well-being for individuals, communities and societies while challenging the idea that we can achieve well-being by focusing on happiness alone.
On Learning with Integral Operators

A large number of learning algorithms, for example, spectral clustering, kernel Principal Components Analysis and many manifold methods are based on estimating eigenvalues and eigenfunctions of operators defined by a similarity function or a kernel, given empirical data. Thus for the analysis of algorithms, it is an important problem to be able to assess the quality of such approximations. The contribution of our paper is two-fold: 1. We use a technique based on a concentration inequality for Hilbert spaces to provide new much simplified proofs for a number of results in spectral approximation. 2. Using these methods we provide several new results for estimating spectral properties of the graph Laplacian operator extending and strengthening results from von Luxburg et al. (2008).
Ideological Consumerism in Colombian Elections, 2015: Links Between Political Ideology, Twitter Activity, and Electoral Results

Abstract Propagation of political ideologies in social networks has shown a substantial impact on voting behavior. Both the contents of the messages (the ideology) and the politicians' influence on their online audiences (their followers) have been associated with such an impact. In this study we evaluate which of these factors exerted a major role in deciding electoral results of the 2015 Colombian regional elections by evaluating the linguistic similarity of political ideologies and their influence on the Twitter sphere. The electoral results proved to be strongly associated with tweets and retweets and not with the linguistic content of their ideologies or politicians' followers in Twitter. Finally, suggestions for new ways to analyze electoral processes are discussed.
Identification of common structural features of binding sites in galactose‐specific proteins

Galactose‐binding proteins characterize an important subgroup of sugar‐binding proteins that are involved in a variety of biological processes. Structural studies have shown that the Gal‐specific proteins encompass a diverse range of primary and tertiary structures. The binding sites for galactose also seem to vary in different protein‐galactose complexes. No common binding site features that are shared by the Gal‐specific proteins to achieve ligand specificity are so far known. With the assumption that common recognition principles will exist for common substrate recognition, the present study was undertaken to identify and characterize any unique galactose‐binding site signature by analyzing the three‐dimensional (3D) structures of 18 protein‐galactose complexes. These proteins belong to 7 nonhomologous families; thus, there is no sequence or structural similarity across the families. Within each family, the binding site residues and their relative distances were well conserved, but there were no similarities across families. A novel, yet simple, approach was adopted to characterize the binding site residues by representing their relative spatial dispositions in polar coordinates. A combination of the deduced geometrical features with the structural characteristics, such as solvent accessibility and secondary structure type, furnished a potential galactose‐binding site signature. The signature was evaluated by incorporation into the program COTRAN to search for potential galactose‐binding sites in proteins that share the same fold as the known galactose‐binding proteins. COTRAN is able to detect galactose‐binding sites with a very high specificity and sensitivity. The deduced galactose‐binding site signature is strongly validated and can be used to search for galactose‐binding sites in proteins. PROSITE‐type signature sequences have also been inferred for galectin and C‐type animal lectin‐like fold families of Gal‐binding proteins. Proteins 2004;55:44–65. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Intrapatient Diversity and Its Correlation with Viral Setpoint in Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 CRF02_A/G-IbNG Infection

ABSTRACT The human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) viral setpoint during the disease-free interval has been strongly associated with future risk of disease progression. An awareness of the correlation between viral setpoint and HIV-1 genetic evolution over time is important in the understanding of viral dynamics and infection. We examined genetic diversity in HIV-1 CRF02_A/G-IbNG-infected seroincident women in Dakar, Senegal; determined whether a viral setpoint kinetic pattern existed for CRF02_A/G-IbNG during the disease-free interval; and correlated viral load level and diversity. Samples were drawn during the disease-free interval from consenting CRF02_A/G-IbNG-infected, antiretroviral therapy-naïve female commercial sex workers in Dakar, Senegal. Based on sequential plasma RNA values, low and high viral setpoint groups were established. Intrapatient diversity and divergence over time was determined from earlier and later time point DNA samples from each person. Most individuals followed the viral setpoint paradigm. For each 1|−|log10 copy/ml of plasma increase in viral load, intrapatient diversity increased by 1.4% (P = 0.028). A greater diversification rate was observed in the high viral setpoint group than in the low viral setpoint group (P = 0.01). Greater nucleotide (P = 0.015) and amino acid (P = 0.048) divergences and a greater nucleotide divergence rate (P = 0.03) were found in the high viral setpoint group. There was no difference between the groups in the ratio of the number of nonsynonymous substitutions per nonsynonymous site to the number of synonymous substitutions per synonymous site. The greater intrapatient diversity, divergence, and diversification rates observed in the high viral setpoint group supports the notion that diversity is driven by cycles of viral replication resulting in accumulated mutations. Recognizing diversity potential based on viral load levels in individuals may inform the design of vaccines and therapies.
The Endocannabinoid System: An Ancient Signaling Involved in the Control of Male Fertility

The effects of cannabinoids on human health have been known since the antiquities when the extract of the plant Cannabis sativa was used because of its psychoactivity. The scientific story of the cannabinoids started in the 1960s with the isolation and characterization of the active component of the plant. After the synthesis of cannabinoid analogues, the analysis of structure–effect relationships was implemented, and this had a similar effect to a positive “Pandora's box” opening. To date, numerous roles have been ascribed to the “endocannabinoid system. ” Here we describe its involvement in the control of male reproduction, taking into consideration possible evolutionary speculations. Indeed, the endocannabinoid system is a very ancient signaling system, being clearly present from the divergence of the protostomian/deuterostomian.
The Governance Landscape of Geospatial E-Services - The Belgian Case

Geospatial data and geospatial e-services require governance and coordination between different governmental organisations. This article aims to understand what governance, and specifically what coordination, is used in Belgium for geospatial e-services and data. The Belgian case, with a focus on the regions and federal administration, is researched by making use of a document analysis, interviews with key stakeholders and an online survey. In contrast to the federal and Walloon administration, the Flemish administration and the Brussels Capital Region administration have a clearly developed governance model. Flanders combines hierarchy with network governance, whereas the Brussels administration is known for its hierarchical way of working. The transposition of the INSPIRE Directive had a strong influence: The Brussels Capital Region became more network-oriented, and the Walloon Region developed a form of network governance. The federal level, however, struggles to make the connection between geospatial data and e-services. From an inter-organisational perspective, the coordination can be labelled as a weak form of network governance: Cooperation exists, but only in a few areas. Nevertheless, geospatial data are exchanged within and between regions and the federal level. Geospatial e-services are also developed but there is a clear influence of the degree of organisational coordination on the development of geospatial e-services.
Efficacy of targeted AKT inhibition in genetically engineered mouse models of PTEN-deficient prostate cancer

The PI3K/AKT pathway is frequently altered in advanced human prostate cancer mainly through the loss of functional PTEN, and presents as potential target for personalized therapy. Our aim was to determine the therapeutic potential of the pan-AKT inhibitor, AZD5363, in PTEN-deficient prostate cancer. Here we used a genetically engineered mouse (GEM) model of PTEN-deficient prostate cancer to evaluate the in vivo pharmacodynamic and antitumor activity of AZD5363 in castration-naïve and castration-resistant prostate cancer. An additional GEM model, based on the concomitant inactivation of PTEN and Trp53 (P53), was established as an aggressive model of advanced prostate cancer and was used to further evaluate clinically relevant endpoints after treatment with AZD5363. In vivo pharmacodynamic studies demonstrated that AZD5363 effectively inhibited downstream targets of AKT. AZD5363 monotherapy significantly reduced growth of tumors in castration-naïve and castration-resistant models of PTEN-deficient prostate cancer. More importantly, AZD5363 significantly delayed tumor growth and improved overall survival and progression-free survival in PTEN/P53 double knockout mice. Our findings demonstrate that AZD5363 is effective against GEM models of PTEN-deficient prostate cancer and provide lines of evidence to support further investigation into the development of treatment strategies targeting AKT for the treatment of PTEN-deficient prostate cancer.
Autoregulation Is Essential for Precise Temporal and Steady-State Regulation by the Bordetella BvgAS Phosphorelay

ABSTRACT The Bordetella BvgAS virulence control system is prototypical of phosphorelays that use a polydomain sensor and a response regulator to control gene expression in response to environmental cues. BvgAS controls the expression of at least three distinct phenotypic phases (Bvg−, Bvgi, and Bvg+) by differentially regulating the expression of at least four classes of genes. Among the loci regulated by BvgAS is bvgAS itself. We investigated the role of autoregulation in the ability of BvgAS to control multiple gene expression patterns in a temporal and steady-state manner by constructing Bordetella bronchiseptica strains in which the bvgAS promoter was replaced with constitutively active promoters. Our results show that positive autoregulation of bvgAS transcription is required for the temporal expression of multiple phenotypic phases that occurs in response to a shift from Bvg−-phase conditions to Bvg+-phase conditions. Autoregulation was also shown to contribute to steady-state regulation; it influences the sensitivity of the system in response to subtle differences in signal intensity. In addition, considered in relation to BvgA and BvgS activities demonstrated in vitro, our results provide insight into how BvgA and BvgS function mechanistically.