Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Word Based Chinese Semantic Role Labeling with Semantic Chunking

Recently, with the development of Chinese semantically annotated corpora, e.g. the Chinese Proposition Bank, the Chinese semantic role labeling (SRL) has been boosted. However, the Chinese SRL researchers now focus on the transplant of existing statistical machine learning methods which have been proven to be effective on English. In this paper, we have established a word based Chinese SRL system, which is quite different from the previous parsing based ones. We use "semantic chunking" to represent our new method. Semantic chunking is named because of its similarity with syntactic chunking. The difference is that semantic chunking is used to identify and classify the semantic chunks, i.e. the semantic roles, only with the word-level information. Based on semantic chunking, the process of SRL is changed from "parsing — semantic role identification — semantic role classification", to "semantic chunk identification — semantic chunk classification". With the elimination of the parsing stage, the SRL task can get rid of the dependency on parsing, which is the bottleneck both of speed and precision. The experiments have shown that the semantic chunking based method outperforms previously best-reported results on Chinese SRL, if the word segmentation and part-of-speech (POS) tagging are both correct. On the automatic word segmentation and POS tagging, our method decreases a little. The greatest advantage of semantic chunking method is that it saves a large amount of time. Besides these, we also carry out some experiments only for semantic role classification. These experiments have shown that only with the word-level features, the performance of semantic role classification can still be very high, which proves that the syntactic structural information is not indispensable.
Whole-Heart Dipyridamole Stress First-Pass Myocardial Perfusion MRI for the Detection of Coronary Artery Disease

A whole-heart coverage MRI sequence, which employes a hybrid of fast gradient echo and echo planar acquisition imaging (FastCard EchoTrain), has recently been developed. Using this sequence, a first-pass myocardial perfusion MRI was shown to be a good noninvasive modality for detecting coronary artery disease (CAD) in a clinical setting. In addition, the clinical usefulness of delayed enhanced MRI has recently been reported. The objectives of this study were (1) to investigate the accuracy of dipyridamole stress first-pass myocardial perfusion MRI for diagnosing CAD (> 50% stenosis) and (2) to clarify whether additional delayed enhancement MRI has any clinical significance. We performed first-pass myocardial perfusion MRI in 102 consecutive patients (66 ± 9 years old) suspected to have CAD or new lesions in patients with well-documented prior myocardial infarction (MI). Using a 1.5 T cardiac MR imager (GE CV/i), eight short axis MR images of the left ventricle were acquired by injecting gadolinium (0.1 mmol/kg) under dipyridamole infusion stress (0.56 mg/kg). Fifteen minutes later, aminophylline (250 mg) was injected and first-pass perfusion MRI was repeated in the resting state in order to evaluate both the presence of perfusion defect and delayed enhancement. The presence of perfusion defect and delayed enhancement was determined based on a visual qualitative analysis by the agreement of two separate readers who were blinded to any clinical information. Based on the stress and rest findings, no defect, reversible defect, or fixed defect with or without delayed enhancement was recorded in any patient. The MR findings revealed 76 CAD patients, including 24 MI patients with new lesions and 26 patients without CAD on coronary angiography. The presence of stress perfusion defect had a 93% sensitivity and an 85% specificity for diagnosing CAD. A fixed defect showed an 86% sensitivity and a 66% specificity for diagnosing a prior MI. Patients with a fixed defect with delayed enhancement had more significant stenosis in the infarct related artery than in those without any enhancement (11/26 vs 15/20, P < 0.05). Dipyridamole stress first-pass myocardial perfusion MRI using the FastCard EchoTrain was found to be a clinically useful and accurate modality for diagnosing CAD.
Understanding expression simplification

We give the first formal definition of the concept of simplification for general expressions in the context of Computer Algebra Systems. The main mathematical tool is an adaptation of the theory of Minimum Description Length, which is closely related to various theories of complexity, such as Kolmogorov Complexity and Algorithmic Information Theory. In particular, we show how this theory can justify the use of various "magic constants" for deciding between some equivalent representations of an expression, as found in implementations of simplification routines.
FKBP14 is an essential gene that regulates Presenilin protein levels and Notch signaling in Drosophila

Presenilins were identified as causative factors in familial Alzheimer's disease and also play an essential role in Notch signaling during development. We previously identified FKBP14, a member of the family of FK506-binding proteins (FKBPs), as a modifier of Presenilin in Drosophila. FKBPs are highly conserved peptidyl-prolyl cis-trans isomerases that play integral roles in protein folding, assembly and trafficking. Although FKBPs have been implicated in a broad range of biological processes, they are non-essential in yeast and their role in the development of multicellular organisms remains unclear. We show that FKBP14 is an essential gene in Drosophila and that loss of FKBP14 gives rise to specific defects in eye, bristle and wing development. FKBP14 mutants genetically interact with components of the Notch pathway, indicating that these phenotypes are associated, at least in part, with dysregulation of Notch signaling. We show that whereas Notch trafficking to the membrane is unaffected in FKBP14 mutants, levels of Notch target genes are reduced, suggesting that FKBP14 acts downstream of Notch activation at the membrane. Consistent with this model, we find that Presenilin protein levels and γ-secretase activity are reduced in FKBP14 null mutants. Altogether, our data demonstrate that FKBP14 plays an essential role in development, one aspect of which includes regulating members of the Notch signaling pathway.
Soy isoflavones improves endometrial barrier through tight junction gene expression.

Contamination with bacterial endotoxin causes the disruption of the tight junction (TJ) barrier. We investigated the ameliorative effect of dietary flavonoids genistein (Ge) and daidzein (Di) in normal or lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced disruption of epithelial barrier function of the endometrium. Using the immortalized porcine glandular endometrial epithelial cells (PEG), transepithelial electrical resistance (TER) and FITC-dextran flux (FD-4) across the monolayer were measured. The mRNA expression of TJ proteins, zona occludens-1 (ZO1), and claudin-1, -3, -4, -7 and -8 was evaluated by real-time RT-PCR for coinciding effect of Ge or Di occurred at the gene transcription level. The results revealed that Ge and Di altered the TER, depending on times and concentrations. Low concentration (10(-10) M) of both compounds decreased the TER, whereas higher concentrations (10(-8) and 10(-6) M) increased the TER which was not related to the FD-4 flux. The increased TER by Ge or Di was parallel to the induction of claudin-3 and -4 or -8 mRNA expression respectively. With LPS inoculation, all isoflavone treatments inhibited the decreased TER induced by LPS, but only Ge (10(-8) or 10(-6) M) or Di (10(-10) or 10(-6) M) was coincidence with the decreased FD-4 flux. Under this LPS-stimulated condition, some or all examined TJ gene expressions appeared to be promoted by specific concentration of Ge or Di respectively. Our findings suggest that the soy isoflavones treatment could promote and restore the impaired endometrial barrier function caused by LPS contamination.
Security in embedded systems: Design challenges

Many modern electronic systems---including personal computers, PDAs, cell phones, network routers, smart cards, and networked sensors to name a few---need to access, store, manipulate, or communicate sensitive information, making security a serious concern in their design. Embedded systems, which account for a wide range of products from the electronics, semiconductor, telecommunications, and networking industries, face some of the most demanding security concerns---on the one hand, they are often highly resource constrained, while on the other hand, they frequently need to operate in physically insecure environments.Security has been the subject of intensive research in the context of general-purpose computing and communications systems. However, security is often misconstrued by embedded system designers as the addition of features, such as specific cryptographic algorithms and security protocols, to the system. In reality, it is a new dimension that designers should consider throughout the design process, along with other metrics such as cost, performance, and power.The challenges unique to embedded systems require new approaches to security covering all aspects of embedded system design from architecture to implementation. Security processing, which refers to the computations that must be performed in a system for the purpose of security, can easily overwhelm the computational capabilities of processors in both low- and high-end embedded systems. This challenge, which we refer to as the "security processing gap," is compounded by increases in the amounts of data manipulated and the data rates that need to be achieved. Equally daunting is the "battery gap" in battery-powered embedded systems, which is caused by the disparity between rapidly increasing energy requirements for secure operation and slow improvements in battery technology. The final challenge is the "assurance gap," which relates to the gap between functional security measures (e.g., security services, protocols, and their constituent cryptographic algorithms) and actual secure implementations. This paper provides an introduction to the challenges involved in secure embedded system design, discusses recent advances in addressing them, and identifies opportunities for future research.
Turnover of information technology professionals: the effects of internal labor market strategies

Retaining information technology (IT) professionals is important for organizations, given the challenges in sourcing for IT talent. Prior research has largely focused on understanding employee turnover from an intra-individual perspective. In this study we examine employee turnover from a structural perspective. We investigate the impact on IT turnover of organizations' Internal Labor Market (ILM) strategies. ILM strategies include human resource rules, practices, and policies including hiring and promotion criteria, job ladders, wage systems and training procedures. We collect data on ILM strategies and turnover rates for eight major IT jobs across forty-one organizations and analyze the data using confirmatory agglomerative hierarchical clustering techniques. Our results show that organizations adopt distinct ILM strategies for different IT jobs, and that these strategies relate to differential turnover rates. Specifically, technically-oriented IT jobs cluster in craft ILM strategies that are associated with higher turnover, whereas managerially-oriented IT jobs cluster in industrial ILM strategies that are associated with lower turnover. Further, depending on their contingencies of goal orientation (not-for-profit versus for-profit), IT focus (IT producer versus user), and information intensity (IT critical versus support), organizations adopt an industrial ILM strategy for their technically-oriented IT jobs to dampen turnover. Not-for-profit and IT user organizations where IT is critical adopt industrial ILM strategies for their technically-oriented IT jobs to attenuate turnover and improve the predictability of their IT workforce. IT producers and IT users where IT plays a supporting role adopt craft ILM strategies that engender higher turnover to remain timely and flexible in IT skills acquisition.
Neurotransmitter-mediated control of neurogenesis in the adult vertebrate brain

It was long thought that no new neurons are added to the adult brain. Similarly, neurotransmitter signaling was primarily associated with communication between differentiated neurons. Both of these ideas have been challenged, and a crosstalk between neurogenesis and neurotransmitter signaling is beginning to emerge. In this Review, we discuss neurotransmitter signaling as it functions at the intersection of stem cell research and regenerative medicine, exploring how it may regulate the formation of new functional neurons and outlining interactions with other signaling pathways. We consider evolutionary and cross-species comparative aspects, and integrate available results in the context of normal physiological versus pathological conditions. We also discuss the potential role of neurotransmitters in brain size regulation and implications for cell replacement therapies.
High glucose concentrations per se do not adversely affect human sperm function in vitro.

Diabetes mellitus (DM) represents one of the greatest concerns to global health and it is associated with diverse clinical complications, including reproductive dysfunction. Given the multifactorial nature of DM, the mechanisms that underlie reproductive dysfunction remain unclear. Considering that hyperglycemia has been described as a major effector of the disease pathophysiology, we used an in vitro approach to address the isolated effect of high glucose conditions on human sperm function, thus avoiding other in vivo confounding players. We performed a complete and integrated analysis by measuring a variety of important indicators of spermatozoa functionality (such as motility, viability, capacitation status, acrosomal integrity, mitochondrial superoxide production and membrane potential) in human sperm samples after incubation with d- and l-glucose (5, 25, or 50 mM) for 24 and 48 h. No direct effects promoted by 25 or 50 mM d-glucose were found for any of the parameters assessed (P>0.05), except for the acrosome reaction, which was potentiated after 48 h of exposure to 50 mM d-glucose (P<0.05). Interestingly, non-metabolizable l-glucose drastically increased superoxide production (P<0.05) and suppressed sperm motility (P<0.05) and capacitation (P<0.05) after 24 h of treatment, whereas mitochondrial membrane potential (P<0.05), acrosomal integrity (P<0.01) and viability (P<0.05) were later decreased. The overall results suggest that high glucose levels per se do not influence human sperm function in vitro, which stresses the importance of other factors involved in DM pathology. Nevertheless, the absence of metabolizable glucose contributes to a severe impairment of sperm function and thus compromises male fertility.
Event threading within news topics

With the overwhelming volume of online news available today, there is an increasing need for automatic techniques to analyze and present news to the user in a meaningful and efficient manner. Previous research focused only on organizing news stories by their topics into a flat hierarchy. We believe viewing a news topic as a flat collection of stories is too restrictive and inefficient for a user to understand the topic quickly. In this work, we attempt to capture the rich structure of events and their dependencies in a news topic through our event models. We call the process of recognizing events and their dependencies <i>event threading</i>. We believe our perspective of modeling the structure of a topic is more effective in capturing its semantics than a flat list of on-topic stories. We formally define the novel problem, suggest evaluation metrics and present a few techniques for solving the problem. Besides the standard word based features, our approaches take into account novel features such as temporal locality of stories for event recognition and time-ordering for capturing dependencies. Our experiments on a manually labeled data sets show that our models effectively identify the events and capture dependencies among them.
Reply to “Letter to the editor: ‘Prevention of ischemia-reperfusion injury in mice kidneys by low-dose whole body irradiation preconditioning’”

reply: The letter written by Drs. Pathak and Khanduja ([5][1]) suggested that low-dose whole body irradiation (LD-WBI) is a more reasonable approach to the modulation of pathological disorders than high-dose regimens. We respect and agree with Drs. Pathak and Khanduja's assertion that there is a
A replication-dependent passive mechanism modulates DNA demethylation in mouse primordial germ cells

Germline cells reprogramme extensive epigenetic modifications to ensure the cellular totipotency of subsequent generations and to prevent the accumulation of epimutations. Notably, primordial germ cells (PGCs) erase genome-wide DNA methylation and H3K9 dimethylation marks in a stepwise manner during migration and gonadal periods. In this study, we profiled DNA and histone methylation on transposable elements during PGC development, and examined the role of DNA replication in DNA demethylation in gonadal PGCs. CpGs in short interspersed nuclear elements (SINEs) B1 and B2 were substantially demethylated in migrating PGCs, whereas CpGs in long interspersed nuclear elements (LINEs), such as LINE-1, were resistant to early demethylation. By contrast, CpGs in both LINE-1 and SINEs were rapidly demethylated in gonadal PGCs. Four major modifiers of DNA and histone methylation, Dnmt3a, Dnmt3b, Glp and Uhrf1, were actively repressed at distinct stages of PGC development. DNMT1 was localised at replication foci in nascent PGCs, whereas the efficiency of recruitment of DNMT1 into replication foci was severely impaired in gonadal PGCs. Hairpin bisulphite sequencing analysis showed that strand-specific hemi-methylated CpGs on LINE-1 were predominant in gonadal PGCs. Furthermore, DNA demethylation in SINEs and LINE-1 was impaired in Cbx3-deficient PGCs, indicating abnormalities in G1 to S phase progression. We propose that PGCs employ active and passive mechanisms for efficient and widespread erasure of genomic DNA methylation.
Atividade colinesterásica em tireóide de ratos: resposta a uma sobrecarga de iodo

A utilizacao do iodo antes de cirurgias de tireoide visa a reducao do fluxo sanguineo para a glândula e melhora da hemostasia. Para tentar elucidar o mecanismo pelo qual a vasoconstriccao se instala, foi determinada a atividade colinesterasica em tireoides de ratos Wistar machos (240-250g de peso corporal), submetidos a uma sobrecarga oral de iodo pela oferta de solucao aquosa de iodato de potassio (KIO3 3mg/ml) como agua de beber, por 3 e 7 dias; o grupo controle recebeu agua durante o mesmo periodo. Ao final do tratamento os animais foram sacrificados e suas tireoides retiradas, limpas e pesadas; o rim direito e o lobo direito do figado foram usados como controles da atividade colinesterasica. Foram preparados homogeneizados em tampao fosfato (pH=8,0), contendo 0,32M de sacarose, na concentracao de 40mg de tecido/ml. Os ratos que receberam KIO3 por 7 dias tiveram diminuicao no peso da tireoide quando comparados aos controles (p<0,05), o mesmo nao acontecendo aos 3 dias de tratamento. Aos 3 dias de tratamento, a atividade colinesterasica tireoidea foi de 5,38±0,36 nmol/min.mg para o grupo controle (n=12) e de 5,43±0,98 nmol/min.mg para o grupo tratado (n=11) (NS); valores bastante similares foram tambem encontrados com o tratamento de 7 dias (controles: 5,42±0,27 nmol/min.mg (n=8) e tratados: 5,63±0,88 nmol/min.mg (n=8); NS). Nossos resultados sugerem que, a despeito da vasoconstriccao, nao ha alteracao da atividade colinesterasica na tireoide em resposta a sobrecarga oral de iodo.
Numb family proteins are essential for cardiac morphogenesis and progenitor differentiation

Numb family proteins (NFPs), including Numb and numb-like (Numbl), are cell fate determinants for multiple progenitor cell types. Their functions in cardiac progenitor differentiation and cardiac morphogenesis are unknown. To avoid early embryonic lethality and study NFP function in later cardiac development, Numb and Numbl were deleted specifically in heart to generate myocardial double-knockout (MDKO) mice. MDKOs were embryonic lethal and displayed a variety of defects in cardiac progenitor differentiation, cardiomyocyte proliferation, outflow tract (OFT) and atrioventricular septation, and OFT alignment. By ablating NFPs in different cardiac populations followed by lineage tracing, we determined that NFPs in the second heart field (SHF) are required for OFT and atrioventricular septation and OFT alignment. MDKOs displayed an SHF progenitor cell differentiation defect, as revealed by a variety of methods including mRNA deep sequencing. Numb regulated cardiac progenitor cell differentiation in an endocytosis-dependent manner. Studies including the use of a transgenic Notch reporter line showed that Notch signaling was upregulated in the MDKO. Suppression of Notch1 signaling in MDKOs rescued defects in p57 expression, proliferation and trabecular thickness. Further studies showed that Numb inhibits Notch1 signaling by promoting the degradation of the Notch1 intracellular domain in cardiomyocytes. This study reveals that NFPs regulate trabecular thickness by inhibiting Notch1 signaling, control cardiac morphogenesis in a Notch1-independent manner, and regulate cardiac progenitor cell differentiation in an endocytosis-dependent manner. The function of NFPs in cardiac progenitor differentiation and cardiac morphogenesis suggests that NFPs might be potential therapeutic candidates for cardiac regeneration and congenital heart diseases.
Variações da artéria hepática: estudo anatômico em cadáveres

OBJECTIVES: to demonstrate the minutiae of hepatic arterial system, the incidence of anatomical variations and to compare data obtained from the literature, thus contributing with students and professionals working in this area. METHODS: We prepared 45 corpses at the Department of Anatomy of the Pontifical Catholic University of Parana, between July 2010 and April 2011, of which group 30 displayed integrity of structures. We analyzed the anatomical variations of the hepatic arteries, their main characteristics, such as origin, course, length and diameter. The overall result was expressed as frequency and percentage of cadavers with anatomic variations of the hepatic arterial system. The estimative of this percentage was done by constructing a confidence interval of 95%. RESULTS: There was some kind of anatomical variation in 40% (n = 12) of cadavers. We found 02 variations in the common hepatic artery, 03 in the gastroduodenal artery, 03 in the right hepatic artery, 01 in the left hepatic artery, 01 in the right gastric artery, and 02 in cystic artery. As for the celiac artery, there were variations in length, diameter and height in its origin, which was common on the aorta. The variation of right hepatic artery originating from the superior mesenteric artery was found in 10% (n = 3) of the specimens studied and it was considered the most prevalent type of variation in this study. CONCLUSION: Changes in hepatic arteries are frequently found and in this study their incidence was 40%, similar to the literature. The most significant change, observed in 10% (3 cases), was the right hepatic artery with its origin in the superior mesenteric artery.