Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Normalized multi-dimensional parameter based affinity propagation clustering for cellular V2X

This paper introduces a novel Vehicular Ad Hoc Networks (VANET) clustering scheme, titled “Normalized MultiDimensional Parameter based Affinity Propagation Clustering (NMDP-APC). ” The similarity function of NMPD-APC consists of normalized multi-dimensional parameters in order to represent VANET's motion dynamics. This similarity function is the key in the Affinity Propagation Clustering (APC) scheme to adequately representing the homogeneity of traffic dynamics of VANET. In contrast to the previous research on APC scheme for VANET, our proposal does not associate any un-stable future prediction term. We also applied recently introduced Cellular V2X radio capability in this study, which significantly contributed to the reduction of communication latency. In conducting simulations, Gazis-Herman-Rothery (GHR) car following model was applied on the real sampled traffic data. The simulation resulted remarkable effects on the normalized multidimensional parameters along with successful VANET clustering. The simulation also demonstrated required minimum number of iterations for the clustering and controllability of clustering granularity in the proposed NMDP-APC scheme on the real traffic data.
CHL1 gene acts as a tumor suppressor in human neuroblastoma

Neuroblastoma is an aggressive, relapse-prone childhood tumor of the sympathetic nervous system that accounts for 15% of pediatric cancer deaths. A distal portion of human chromosome 3p is often deleted in neuroblastoma, this region may contain one or more putative tumor suppressor genes. A 2.54 Mb region at 3p26.3 encompassing the smallest region of deletion pinpointed CHL1 gene, the locus for neuronal cell adhesion molecule close homolog of L1. We found that low CHL1 expression predicted poor outcome in neuroblastoma patients. Here we have used two inducible cell models to analyze the impact of CHL1 on neuroblastoma biology. Over-expression of CHL1 induced neurite-like outgrowth and markers of neuronal differentiation in neuroblastoma cells, halted tumor progression, inhibited anchorage-independent colony formation, and suppressed the growth of human tumor xenografts. Conversely, knock-down of CHL1 induced neurite retraction and activation of Rho GTPases, enhanced cell proliferation and migration, triggered colony formation and anchorage-independent growth, accelerated growth in orthotopic xenografts mouse model. Our findings demonstrate unambiguously that CHL1 acts as a regulator of proliferation and differentiation of neuroblastoma cells through inhibition of the MAPKs and Akt pathways. CHL1 is a novel candidate tumor suppressor in neuroblastoma, and its associated pathways may represent a promising target for future therapeutic interventions.
Photonic Generation of Tunable Frequency-Multiplied Phase-Coded Microwave Waveforms

A novel photonic approach to generate frequency-multiplied phase-coded microwave waveforms with large frequency tunability is proposed and experimentally demonstrated. By using a dual-drive Mach–Zehnder modulator, biased at specially designed bias point, and a single-port photodetector, phase-coded microwave waveforms at the doubled or tripled frequency of the applied microwave reference signal are generated, with a large frequency tunable range limited by the bandwidth of the dual-drive Mach–Zehnder modulator. The proposed technique is experimentally verified. Phase-coded microwave waveforms at the doubled frequency from 16 to 30 GHz and the tripled frequency from 21 to 30 GHz are generated. The pulse compression performance of the generated phase-coded microwave waveforms is also studied.
Brucella abortus Traverses Brain Microvascular Endothelial Cells Using Infected Monocytes as a Trojan Horse

Neurobrucellosis is an inflammatory disease caused by the invasion of Brucella spp. to the central nervous system (CNS). The pathogenesis of the disease is not well characterized; however, for Brucella to gain access to the brain parenchyma, traversing of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) must take place. To understand the CNS determinants of the pathogenesis of B. abortus, we have used the in vitro BBB model of human brain microvascular endothelial cells (HBMEC) to study the interactions between B. abortus and brain endothelial cells. In this study, we showed that B. abortus is able to adhere and invade HBMEC which was dependent on microtubules, microfilaments, endosome acidification and de novo protein synthesis. After infection, B. abortus rapidly escapes the endosomal compartment of HBMEC and forms a replicative Brucella-containing vacuole that involves interactions with the endoplasmic reticulum. Despite the ability of B. abortus to invade and replicate in HBMEC, the bacterium was unable by itself to traverse HBMEC, but could traverse polarized HBMEC monolayers within infected monocytes. Importantly, infected monocytes that traversed the HBMEC monolayer were a bacterial source for de novo infection of glial cells. This is the first demonstration of the mechanism whereby B. abortus is able to traverse the BBB and infect cells of the CNS. These results may have important implications in our understanding of the pathogenesis of neurobrucellosis.
Evolution of Complex Asexual Reproductive Strategies in Jellyfish

Many living organisms in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems rely on multiple reproductive strategies to reduce the risk of extinction in variable environments. Examples are provided by the polyp stage of several bloom-forming jellyfish species, which can reproduce asexually using different budding strategies. These strategies broadly fall into three categories: (1) fast localized reproduction, (2) dormant cysts, or (3) motile and dispersing buds. Similar functional strategies are also present in other groups of species. However, mechanisms leading to the evolution of this rich reproductive diversity are yet to be clarified. Here we model how risk of local population extinction and differential fitness of alternative modes of asexual reproduction could drive the evolution of multiple reproductive modes as seen in jellyfish polyps. Depending on environmental parameters, we find that evolution leads to a unique evolutionarily stable strategy, wherein multiple reproductive strategies generally coexist. As the extinction risk increases, this strategy shifts from a pure budding mode to a dual strategy and finally to one characterized by allocation into all three modes. We identify relative fitness-dependent thresholds in extinction risk where these transitions can occur and discuss our predictions in light of observations on polyp reproduction in laboratory and natural systems.
Reexamination of Reversal Transition Records from the Tatoosh and the Agno Intrusions: Implications for the Reversal Process

Citation: Fuller M, Williams I (2015) Reexamination of Reversal Transition Records from the Tatoosh and the Agno Intrusions: Implications for the Reversal Process. Int J Earth Sci Geophys 1:003 Copyright: © 2015 Fuller M, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. *Corresponding author: Mike Fuller, University of California at Santa Barbara, California, USA, E-mail: mfu3961215@aol.com Received: September 17, 2015: Accepted: November 27, 2015: Published: November 30, 2015 VIBGYOR ISSN: 2631-5033
Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy for Evaluating the Effect of Pulsed Electromagnetic Fields on Marrow Adiposity in Postmenopausal Women With Osteopenia

Objective Pulsed electromagnetic fields (PEMFs) could promote osteogenic differentiation and suppress adipogenic differentiation in bone mesenchymal stem cells ex vivo. However, data on the effect of PEMF on marrow adiposity in humans remain elusive. We aimed to determine the in vivo effect of PEMF on marrow adiposity in postmenopausal women using magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Methods Sixty-one postmenopausal women with osteopenia, aged 53 to 85 years, were randomly assigned to receive either PEMF treatment or placebo. The session was performed 3 times per week for 6 months. All women received adequate dietary calcium and vitamin D. Bone mineral density (BMD) by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry, vertebral marrow fat content by magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and serum biomarkers were evaluated before and after 6 months of treatment. Results A total of 27 (87.1%) and 25 (83.3%) women completed the treatment schedule in the PEMF and placebo groups, respectively. After the 6-month treatment, lumbar spine and hip BMD increased by 1.46% to 2.04%, serum bone-specific alkaline phosphatase increased by 3.23%, and C-terminal telopeptides of type 1 collagen decreased by 9.12% in the PEMF group (P < 0.05), whereas the mean percentage changes in BMD and serum biomarkers were not significant in the placebo group. Pulsed electromagnetic field treatment significantly reduced marrow fat fraction by 4.81%. The treatment difference between the 2 groups was −4.43% (95% confidence interval, −3.70% to −5.65%; P = 0.009). Conclusions Pulsed electromagnetic field is an effective physiotherapy in postmenopausal women, and this effect may, at least in part, regulate the amount of fat within the bone marrow. Magnetic resonance spectroscopy may serve as a complementary imaging biomarker for monitoring response to therapy in osteoporosis.
Gender-related dimensions of childhood adversities in the general population

Objective: Childhood adversities (CAs) comprise a group of negative experiences individuals may suffer in their lifetimes. The goal of the present study was to investigate the cluster discrimination of CAs through psychometric determination of the common attributes of such experiences for men and women. Methods: Parental mental illness, substance misuse, criminality, death, divorce, other parental loss, family violence, physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, physical illness, and economic adversity were assessed in a general-population sample (n=5,037). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis determined gender-related dimensions of CA. The contribution of each individual adversity was explored through Rasch analysis. Results: Adversities were reported by 53.6% of the sample. A three-factor model of CA dimensions fit the data better for men, and a two-factor model for women. For both genders, the dimension of family maladjustment – encompassing physical abuse, neglect, parental mental disorders, and family violence – was the core cluster of CAs. Women endorsed more CAs than men. Rasch analysis found that sexual abuse, physical illness, parental criminal behavior, parental divorce, and economic adversity were difficult to report in face-to-face interviews. Conclusion: CAs embrace sensitive personal information, clustering of which differed by gender. Acknowledging CAs may have an impact on medical and psychiatric outcomes in adulthood.
Throughput Modeling and Analysis of Random Access in Narrowband Internet of Things

Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) is one of the most promising technologies for low-power, wide-area, and low-traffic applications. In NB-IoT, random access is implemented in media access control layer to resolve the channel contention conflict among multiple user equipments (UEs), and is crucial to the throughput performance of NB-IoT. Previous results in long-term evolution cannot be directly applied due to specification differences. In this paper, we take the first attempt to systematically analyze the performance of random access in NB-IoT. First, after extensively studying the backoff mechanism, we characterize the probability that a UE initiates random access, the probability that a packet is transmitted successfully and the probability that a channel is busy. Then, we define each UE’s buffer as a first-in-first-out queue. We employ Markov chain to model retransmission number caused by collisions and the length of the queue simultaneously. By exploiting the characteristic of the steady-state distribution of the Markov chain, the above three probabilities in steady state can be obtained explicitly. Based on these probabilities, we calculate the system throughput in terms of UE number, packet generation rate, retransmission number, and the length of the queue. Finally, we investigate the system throughput and conduct extensive simulations under various parameters, which validate our analysis.
Consistency-Aware Weather Disruption-Tolerant Routing in SDN-Based Wireless Mesh Networks

Wireless network solutions, a dominant enabling technology for the backhaul segment, are susceptible to weather disturbances that can substantially degrade network throughput and/or delay, compromising the stringent 5G requirements. These effects can be alleviated by centralized rerouting realized by software defined networking architecture. However, careless frequent reconfigurations can lead to inconsistencies in the network states due to asynchrony between different switches, which can create congestion and limit the rerouting gain. The aim of this paper is to minimize the total data loss during rain disturbance by proposing an algorithm that decides on the timing, the sequence, and the paths for rerouting of network flows considering the imposed congestion during reconfiguration. At each time sample, the central controller decides whether to adopt the optimal routes at a switching cost, defined as the imposed congestion, or to keep using existing, sub-optimal routes at a throughput loss. To find optimal solutions with minimal data loss in a static scenario, we formulate a dynamic programming problem that utilizes perfect knowledge of rain attenuation for the whole rain period. For dynamic scenarios with unknown future rain attenuation, we propose an online consistency-aware rerouting algorithm, called consistency-aware rerouting with prediction (CARP), which uses the temporal correlation of rain fading to estimate future rain attenuation. Simulation results on synthetic and real networks validate the efficiency of our CARP algorithm, substantially reducing data loss and increasing network throughput with a fewer number of rerouting actions compared to a greedy and a regular rerouting benchmarking approaches.
Impact of Genetic Polymorphism on LDL-C Response to Plant Stanol Ester Intake.

Background The high blood cholesterol level could be prevented by plant stanol ester (Staest) consumption. In addition, the genetic polymorphism of cholesterol transporters might be related with lipid profile and subsequently response to Staest intake. Objective To investigate the effect of single nucleotide polymorphism in ATP-binding cassette hetero-dimeric G5/G8 (ABCG5/G8) and Niemann-Pick C1 Like1 protein (NPC1L1) gene on LDL-C response subsequent to plant Staest intake in Thai Subjects. Material and Method The blood samples were collected from 113 subjects for genotyping. The single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of ABCG5/G8 positions; rs6720173 (Q604E), rs4148211 (C54Y), rs4148217 (T400K), rs3806471 (5’UTR-145), and NPC1L1; positon; rs2072183 (L272L) were analyzed by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) method. Results After Staest intake, the subjects with QE genotype (Q604E of ABCG5) showed a 4-fold significant decrease in LDL-C level (14.17±10.67%) compared to subjects with QQ genotype (3.50±10.65%) (p = 0.003). Moreover, the pronounced effect of Q604E polymorphism was observed in subjects after intake of Staest with meal. However, no significant difference in these markers was observed in subjects carrying other mutations. Conclusion Thus, it could be suggested that non-synonymous gene polymorphism resulted substitution of uncharged glutamine (Q) with negatively charged glutamic acid (E) at position 604, thereby possibly alter the function of transporter proteins. Besides, the genetic variation in these genes might be related with serum lipid profiles. Moreover, Q604E mutation of ABCG5 in each individual with meal effect could lead to particular response towards LDL-C level after Staest intervention.
Two-tier cellular system up-link based on space-frequency block codes and signal alignment

Accommodating the coverage and capacity requirements of wireless cellular communication systems evolved contemporary cellular architectures to comprise two tiers: A macro-cell overlay coverage tier encompassing a small-cell tier offloading user traffic in high traffic demand areas. While two-tier cellular architectures can effectively meet coverage and capacity requirements when operating on independent frequency bands, radio spectrum scarcity entails sharing spectrum by both tiers which substantially complicates interference management for such architectures. In order to address uplink interference in two-tier cellular architectures, this paper considers the joint application of dual space-frequency block codes (SFBC) and signal alignment (SA) enabled physical network coding (PNC). When compared to designs adopting interference alignment (IA) or PNC, the proposed joint dual-SFBC with SA-PNC design substantially reduces interference and enables connecting a larger number of users. Numerical results also verify that the proposed method outperforms the SA-PNC static method without any information exchange requirement between the two tiers while achieving close to optimal performance for macro-cells.
Non-coherent radar detection probability in compound sea clutter with correlated speckle

Robustly predicting target detection performance in temporally correlated clutter has proven to be a difficult problem. If the correlation is not accounted for in a radar model, the required signal to interference ratio for a given probability of de­tection will be incorrect, resulting in over-estimated performance. In this paper, we examine exact and approximate methods for calculating the probability of detection in compound clutter plus noise with correlated speckle. Inversion of the moment generating function by contour integration in the complex plane is found to be the best of the exact methods, being both fast and robust. Approximations based on an effective number of looks are found to be inaccurate in the tail of the interference distribution and therefore unsatisfactory for calculating the probability of false alarm. The effective looks approximation is reasonably accurate if the detection threshold is set using the saddlepoint approximation.
A Parallel Complex Coloring Algorithm for Scheduling of Input-Queued Switches

This paper explores the scheduling problem of input-queued switches, based on a new algebraic method of edge coloring called complex coloring. The proposed scheduling algorithm possesses three important features inherent from complex coloring: parallelizability, optimality and rearrangeability. Parallelizability makes the algorithm running very fast in a distributed manner, optimality ensures that the algorithm always returns a proper connection pattern with the minimum number of required colors, and rearrangeability allows partially re-scheduling the existing connection patterns if the traffic patterns only changes slightly. The amortized time complexity of the proposed parallel scheduling algorithm, in terms of the time to compute a matching in a timeslot, is <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$O({\log}N)$</tex-math><alternatives><inline-graphic xlink:href="ye-ieq1-2802523.gif"/> </alternatives></inline-formula>, where <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$N$</tex-math><alternatives> <inline-graphic xlink:href="ye-ieq2-2802523.gif"/></alternatives></inline-formula> is the switch size. As for the scalability of input-queued switches, due to its low complexity, our algorithm can achieve nearly 100 percent throughput and provide acceptable queuing delay when <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$N$</tex-math> <alternatives><inline-graphic xlink:href="ye-ieq3-2802523.gif"/></alternatives></inline-formula> is large. Furthermore, the complex coloring method naturally provides an adaptive solution to non-uniform input traffic pattern. Thus, the proposed parallel scheduling algorithm is highly robust in the face of traffic fluctuations.
PSMD4 is a novel therapeutic target in chemoresistant colorectal cancer activated by cytoplasmic localization of Nrf2

Nuclear Nrf2 (nNrf2) binding to the antioxidant response element may promote chemoresistance in colorectal cancer. However, the shuttling of Nrf2 between cytoplasm and nucleus in colon cancer cells has revealed the possibility that cytoplasmic location of Nrf2 (cNrf2) may play a specific role in chemoresistance. Transfection of a nuclear location sequence (NLS)-wild-type or NLS-mutated Nrf2 expression vector into a stable shNrf2 HCT116 clone using the MTT assay to examine whether chemoresistance induced by cNrf2 may be greater than nNrf2. Different specific inhibitors and small hairpin (sh)RNAs of targeting genes were used to verify the mechanistic action of cNrf2 in chemoresistance and further confirmed by an animal model. The association of cNrf2 with chemotherapeutic response in patients with colorectal cancer was statistically analyzed. The MTT assay indicated that cNrf2 may play a more important role than nNrf2 in conferring 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) and oxaliplatin resistance in HCT116 cells. Mechanistically, cNrf2-induced PSMD4 expression was responsible for chemoresistance in the NLS-mutated Nrf2-tranfected shNrf2HCT116 clone via the NF-κB/AKT/β-catenin/ZEB1 cascades. The tumor burden induced by the NLS-mutated Nrf2-transfected shNrf2HCT116 clone was completely suppressed by treatment with 5-FU in combination with carfilzomib. A higher prevalence of unfavorable chemotherapeutic response in colorectal cancer patients with cNrf2, PSMD4-positive, p-p65-positive, and nuclear β-catenin tumors was observed when compared to their counterparts. cNrf2 may play a more important role than nNrf2 in the chemoresistance of colorectal cancer. Activation of the NF-κB/AKT/β-catenin/ZEB1 cascade by PSMD4 may be responsible for cNrf2-mediated chemoresistance. Condensed abstract CNrf2 may play a more important role than nNrf2 in conferring 5-FU and oxaliplatin resistance. This observation in patients seemed to support the findings of the cell and animal models and suggested that PSMD4 may be responsible cNrf2-mediated chemoresistance via the NF-κB/AKT/β-catenin /ZEB1 cascades.
Voltage stability assessment using artificial neural network

In deregulated environment voltage stability has become very important factor for the purpose of analysis. In this paper some important features associated with voltage stability use in power system have discussed. Line Stability index is used for estimation of the maximum loadability and in other words index is used to recognise the weak bus in electrical power system. In this paper Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) are used for assessment of voltage stability or to confirm secure and insecure mode of the power system. The input data of neural network are yield from the Newton-Raphson (NR) load flow analysis in the platform of MATLAB R2015b. The result obtained from the N-R method also validates through Feed-Forward Back Propagation (FFBP) Layer Recurrent (LR) and Radial Basis Function Network (RBFN) in terms of accuracy to foresee the status of the power system. The effectiveness of the analyzed methods is validated through IEEE 14 test system and IEEE 30 test bus system, using Fast Voltage Stability Index (FVSI).