Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Association of tumor necrosis factor alpha gene polymorphism G-308A with pseudoexfoliative glaucoma in the Pakistani population

Purpose The purpose of the present study was to determine the role of the tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) gene polymorphism G-308A and total serum immunoglobulin E (TsIgE) levels in the onset of pseudoexfoliation glaucoma (PEXG) in Pakistani patients. Methods The TNF-α polymorphism G-308A was analyzed in 122 patients with PEXG and 126 healthy unrelated controls by using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP). TsIgE levels were determined by solid-phase enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results The AA and GA genotypes were strongly associated with PEXG (p<0.001), with an odds ratio (OR) of 0.07 (95% confidence interval [CI]=0.02-0.27) and 0.24 (95% CI=0.12-0.51), respectively, while the GG genotype was found at a higher frequency in controls as compared to patients (p<0.001) OR=8.95 (95% CI=4.55–17.81). No significant difference was found in TsIgE levels of both patients and controls (p=0.86). Conclusion The present study concludes that the TNF-α polymorphism G-308A is strongly associated with PEXG. To our knowledge this is the first study in southeast Asia which demonstrates a strong association of a TNF-α polymorphism with PEXG.
The similarity metric

A new class of distances appropriate for measuring similarity relations between sequences, say one type of similarity per distance, is studied. We propose a new "normalized information distance," based on the noncomputable notion of Kolmogorov complexity, and show that it is in this class and it minorizes every computable distance in the class (that is, it is universal in that it discovers all computable similarities). We demonstrate that it is a metric and call it the similarity metric . This theory forms the foundation for a new practical tool. To evidence generality and robustness, we give two distinctive applications in widely divergent areas using standard compression programs like gzip and GenCompress. First, we compare whole mitochondrial genomes and infer their evolutionary history. This results in a first completely automatic computed whole mitochondrial phylogeny tree. Secondly, we fully automatically compute the language tree of 52 different languages.
Automated Dimension Determination for NMF-based Incremental Collaborative Filtering

The nonnegative matrix factorization (NMF) based collaborative ﬁltering t e chniques h a ve a c hieved great success in product recommendations. It is well known that in NMF, the dimensions of the factor matrices have to be determined in advance. Moreover, data is growing fast; thus in some cases, the dimensions need to be changed to reduce the approximation error. The recommender systems should be capable of updating new data in a timely manner without sacriﬁcing the prediction accuracy. In this paper, we propose an NMF based data update approach with automated dimension determination for collaborative ﬁltering purposes. The approach can determine the dimensions of the factor matrices and update them automatically. It exploits the nearest neighborhood based clustering algorithm to cluster users and items according to their auxiliary information, and uses the clusters as the constraints in NMF. The dimensions of the factor matrices are associated with the cluster quantities. When new data becomes available, the incremental clustering algorithm determines whether to increase the number of clusters or merge the existing clusters. Experiments on three di ﬀ erent datasets (MovieLens, Sushi, and LibimSeTi) were conducted to examine the proposed approach. The results show that our approach can update the data quickly and provide encouraging prediction accuracy.
Macrostructural Alterations of Subcortical Grey Matter in Psychogenic Erectile Dysfunction

Psychogenic erectile dysfunction (ED) has been defined as the persistent inability to attain and maintain an erection sufficient to permit sexual performance. It shows a high incidence and prevalence among men, with a significant impact on the quality of life. Few neuroimaging studies have investigated the cerebral basis of erectile dysfunctions observing the role played by prefrontal, cingulate, and parietal cortices during erotic stimulation. In spite of the well-known involvement of subcortical regions such as hypothalamus and caudate nucleus in male sexual response, and the key role of nucleus accumbens in pleasure and reward, poor attention was paid to their role in male sexual dysfunction. In this study, we determined the presence of grey matter (GM) atrophy patterns in subcortical structures such as amygdala, hippocampus, nucleus accumbens, caudate nucleus, putamen, pallidum, thalamus, and hypothalamus in patients with psychogenic ED and healthy men. After Rigiscan evaluation, urological, general medical, metabolic and hormonal, psychological and psychiatric assessment, 17 outpatients with psychogenic ED and 25 healthy controls were recruited for structural MRI session. Significant GM atrophy of nucleus accumbens was observed bilaterally in patients with respect to controls. Shape analysis showed that this atrophy was located in the left medial-anterior and posterior portion of accumbens. Left nucleus accumbens volumes in patients correlated with low erectile functioning as measured by IIEF-5 (International Index of Erectile Function). In addition, a GM atrophy of left hypothalamus was also observed. Our results suggest that atrophy of nucleus accumbens plays an important role in psychogenic erectile dysfunction. We believe that this change can influence the motivation-related component of sexual behavior. Our findings help to elucidate a neural basis of psychogenic erectile dysfunction.
Coexistence of Flexibility and Stability of Proteins: An Equation of State

We consider a recently suggested “equation of state” for natively folded proteins, and verify its validity for a set of about 5800 proteins. The equation is based on a fractal viewpoint of proteins, on a generalization of the Landau-Peierls instability, and on a marginal stability criterion. The latter allows for coexistence of stability and flexibility of proteins, which is required for their proper function. The equation of state relates the protein fractal dimension , its spectral dimension , and the number of amino acids N. Using structural data from the protein data bank (PDB) and the Gaussian network model (GNM), we compute and for the entire set and demonstrate that the equation of state is well obeyed. Addressing the fractal properties and making use of the equation of state may help to engineer biologically inspired catalysts.
Readily Available Sources of Long-Chain Omega-3 Oils: Is Farmed Australian Seafood a Better Source of the Good Oil than Wild-Caught Seafood?

Seafood consumption enhances intake of omega-3 long-chain (≥C20) polyunsaturated fatty acids (termed LC omega-3 oils). Humans biosynthesize only small amounts of LC-omega-3, so they are considered semi-essential nutrients in our diet. Concern has been raised that farmed fish now contain lower LC omega-3 content than wild-harvested seafood due to the use of oil blending in diets fed to farmed fish. However, we observed that two major Australian farmed finfish species, Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) and barramundi (Lates calcifer), have higher oil and LC omega-3 content than the same or other species from the wild, and remain an excellent means to achieve substantial intake of LC omega-3 oils. Notwithstanding, LC omega-3 oil content has decreased in these two farmed species, due largely to replacing dietary fish oil with poultry oil. For Atlantic salmon, LC omega-3 content decreased ~30%–50% between 2002 and 2013, and the omega-3/omega-6 ratio also decreased (>5:1 to <1:1). Australian consumers increasingly seek their LC omega-3 from supplements, therefore a range of supplement products were compared. The development and future application of oilseeds containing LC omega-3 oils and their incorporation in aquafeeds would allow these health-benefitting oils to be maximized in farmed Australian seafood. Such advances can assist with preventative health care, fisheries management, aquaculture nutrition, an innovative feed/food industry and ultimately towards improved consumer health.
Tonotopic organization of the hyperpolarization-activated current (Ih) in the mammalian medial superior olive

Neuronal membrane properties can largely vary even within distinct morphological cell classes. The mechanisms and functional consequences of this diversity, however, are little explored. In the medial superior olive (MSO), a brainstem nucleus that performs binaural coincidence detection, membrane properties at rest are largely governed by the hyperpolarization-activated inward current (Ih) which enables the temporally precise integration of excitatory and inhibitory inputs. Here, we report that Ih density varies along the putative tonotopic axis of the MSO with Ih being largest in ventral, high-frequency (HF) processing neurons. Also Ih half-maximal activation voltage and time constant are differentially distributed such that Ih of the putative HF processing neurons activate faster and at more depolarized levels. Intracellular application of saturating concentrations of cyclic AMP removed the regional difference in hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide gated (HCN) channel activation, but not Ih density. Experimental data in conjunction with a computational model suggest that increased Ih levels are helpful in counteracting temporal summation of phase-locked inhibitory inputs which is particularly prominent in HF neurons.
Development and Sensing Properties Study of Underwater Assembled Water Depth-Inclination Sensors for a Multi-Component Mooring System, Using a Self-Contained Technique

Prototype monitoring techniques play an important role in the safety guarantee of mooring systems in marine engineering. In general, the complexities of harsh ocean environmental conditions bring difficulties to the traditional monitoring methods of application, implementation and maintenance. Large amounts of existing mooring systems still lack valid monitoring strategies. In this paper, an underwater monitoring method which may be used to achieve the mechanical responses of a multi-point catenary mooring system, is present. A novel self-contained assembled water depth-inclination (D-I) sensor is designed and manufactured. Several advanced technologies, such as standalone, low power consumption and synchronism, are considered to satisfy the long-term implementation requirements with low cost during the design process. The design scheme of the water resistance barrel and installation clamp, which satisfies the diver installation, are also provided in the paper. An on-site test has previously been carried out on a production semisubmersible platform in the South China Sea. The prototype data analyses, including the D-I value in the time domain (including the data recorded during the mooring retraction and release process) and spectral characteristics, are presented to reveal the accuracy, feasibility and stability of the sensor in terms of fitting for the prototype monitoring of catenary mooring systems, especially for in-service aging platforms.
Challenges with the design of cost effective series DC collection network for offshore wind farm

This article summarizes a current PhD research project at Chalmers University of Technology financed by the Swedish Energy Agency and with the contribution of RISE Research Institutes of Sweden. The aim is to study the size of a high-power DC/DC converter which is fit into a container outside a wind turbine for direct integration of an offshore DC series connected wind power plant. This becomes possible using an isolation transformer having a medium frequency high voltage withstand as well as a very high HVDC insulation level. Both obtainable voltage strength levels, as well as life-time of the insulation system are issues that are going to be investigated carefully. KeywordsPower transformer insulation; Solid state transformer; Series HVDC grid integration; High frequency insulation; High power isolated DC-DC converters; Medium frequency high power transformer.
2007) “Prices and Portfolio Choices in Financial Markets: Theory

Many tests of asset-pricing models address only the pricing predictions, but these pricing predictions rest on portfolio choice predictions that seem obviously wrong. This paper suggests a new approach to asset pricing and portfolio choices based on unobserved heterogeneity. This approach yields the standard pricing conclusions of classical models but is consistent with very different portfolio choices. Novel econometric tests link the price and portfolio predictions and take into account the general equilibrium effects of sample-size bias. This paper works through the approach in detail for the case of the classical capital asset pricing model (CAPM), producing a model called CAPM + . When these econometric tests are applied to data generated by large-scale laboratory asset markets that reveal both prices and portfolio choices, CAPM+ is not rejected.
Pattern-Based Genetic Model Refinements in MDA

We explore the application of genetic algorithms in model transformations that can be understood as pattern-based refinements. In MDA (Model Driven Architecture), such transformations can be exploited for deriving a PIM model from a elM model. The approach uses design patterns as the basis of mutations and exploits various quality metrics for deriving a fitness function. A genetic representation of models and their transformations is proposed, and the genetic transformation process is studied experimentally. The results suggest that genetic algorithms provide a feasible vehicle for model transformations, leading to convergent and reasonably fast transformation process. However, more work is needed to improve the quality of the individual models produced by the technique.
Maximizing investment value of small-scale PV in a smart grid environment

Determining the optimal size and orientation of small-scale residential based PV arrays will become increasingly complex in the future smart grid environment with the introduction of smart meters and dynamic tariffs. However consumers can leverage the availability of smart meter data to conduct a more detailed exploration of PV investment options for their particular circumstances. In this paper, an optimization method for PV orientation and sizing is proposed whereby maximizing the PV investment value is set as the defining objective. Solar insolation and PV array models are described to form the basis of the PV array optimization strategy. A constrained particle swarm optimization algorithm is selected due to its strong performance in non-linear applications. The optimization algorithm is applied to real-world metered data to quantify the possible investment value of a PV installation under different energy retailers and tariff structures. The arrangement with the highest value is determined to enable prospective small-scale PV investors to select the most cost-effective system.
Optimum power allocation of parallel concatenated convolution turbo code using flower pollination algorithm

Efficient and reliable data transmission and storage are the challenging issues in modern communication system. Reproduction of reliable data has been achieved by controlling the errors in a noisy environment. To control this errors data has been coded properly by considering different coding techniques. Turbo Code (TC) is considered as one of the high-performance forward error correcting coding schemes which approaches to the Shannon limit. Here, a novel Parallel Concatenated Convolution Turbo code (PCCTC) has been proposed to improve the Bit Error Rate (BER) performance portentously by allocating optimized power in systematic and parity bits. BER performance of the system has been improved by using two symmetrical convolutional encoders. Through the simulation result, it is observed that the proposed Flower Pollination Algorithm (FPA) optimized Parallel Concatenated Convolution Turbo Code (PCCTC) provides better error performance over Uniform Power Allocation (UPA) based PCCTC as well as Harmony-Search (HS), Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) and Genetic Algorithm (GA) optimized PCCTC.
Directed Pancreatic Acinar Differentiation of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells via Embryonic Signalling Molecules and Exocrine Transcription Factors

Pluripotent embryonic stem cells (ESC) are a promising cellular system for generating an unlimited source of tissue for the treatment of chronic diseases and valuable in vitro differentiation models for drug testing. Our aim was to direct differentiation of mouse ESC into pancreatic acinar cells, which play key roles in pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer. To that end, ESC were first differentiated as embryoid bodies and sequentially incubated with activin A, inhibitors of Sonic hedgehog (Shh) and bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) pathways, fibroblast growth factors (FGF) and retinoic acid (RA) in order to achieve a stepwise increase in the expression of mRNA transcripts encoding for endodermal and pancreatic progenitor markers. Subsequent plating in Matrigel® and concomitant modulation of FGF, glucocorticoid, and folllistatin signalling pathways involved in exocrine differentiation resulted in a significant increase of mRNAs encoding secretory enzymes and in the number of cells co-expressing their protein products. Also, pancreatic endocrine marker expression was down-regulated and accompanied by a significant reduction in the number of hormone-expressing cells with a limited presence of hepatic marker expressing-cells. These findings suggest a selective activation of the acinar differentiation program. The newly differentiated cells were able to release α-amylase and this feature was greatly improved by lentiviral-mediated expression of Rbpjl and Ptf1a, two transcription factors involved in the maximal production of digestive enzymes. This study provides a novel method to produce functional pancreatic exocrine cells from ESC.
Patients' treatment beliefs in low back pain: development and validation of a questionnaire in primary care

Abstract Choosing the most appropriate treatment for individual patients with low back pain (LBP) can be challenging, and clinical guidelines recommend taking into account patients' preferences. However, no tools exist to assess or compare patients' views about LBP treatments. We report the development and validation of the Low Back Pain Treatment Beliefs Questionnaire (LBP-TBQ) for use across different treatments in clinical practice and research. Using qualitative data, we developed a pool of items assessing perceived credibility, effectiveness, concerns about, and individual “fit” of specific treatments. These items were included in a survey completed by 429 primary care patients with LBP, of whom 115 completed it again 1 to 2 weeks later. We performed psychometric analyses using nonparametric item response theory and classical test theory. The 4 subscales of the resulting 16-item LBP-TBQ showed good homogeneity (H = 0.46-0.76), internal consistency (&agr; = 0.73-0.94), and stability (r = 0.63-0.83), confirmed most convergent and discriminant validity hypotheses, and had acceptable structural validity for 4 guideline-recommended treatments: pain medication, exercise, manual therapy, and acupuncture. Participants with stronger positive treatment beliefs were more likely to rank that treatment as their first choice, indicating good criterion validity (t values = 3.11-9.80, all P < 0.01, except pain medication effectiveness beliefs, t(339) = 1.35; P = 0.18). A short 4-item version also displayed good homogeneity (H = 0.43-0.66), internal consistency (&agr; = 0.70-0.86), and stability (r = 0.82-0.85) and was significantly related to treatment choice (t values = 4.33-9.25, all P < 0.01). The LBP-TBQ can be used to assess treatment beliefs in primary care patients with LBP and to investigate the effects of treatment beliefs on treatment uptake and adherence.
Indeterminate Cell Tumor: A Rare Dendritic Neoplasm

Indeterminate cell tumor (ICT) is a rare neoplastic dendritic cell disorder that has been poorly defined due to its rarity and poorly understood histogenesis and pathogenesis. It is characterized by a proliferation of dendritic cells, which mimic Langerhans cells immunophenotypically (positive for CD1a and S-100 protein), but lack Birbeck granules characteristic of Langerhans cells. The clinical, morphologic, immunophenotypic, and ultrastructural features of 5 ICT cases are reported in an attempt to further define ICT and to examine the postulated relationship between indeterminate cells and Langerhans cells. Four of 5 patients were females, and 4 of 5 were older than 68 years. Three of 5 patients had cutaneous lesions, whereas 2 presented with cervical lymph node involvement. Two patients had a possible association with lymphoma: first patient had a history of progressive follicular lymphoma that led to patient's demise and the second patient had unexplained systemic lymphadenopathy and died 1 week after the biopsy. All 5 ICT cases expressed CD1a and S-100 protein, but lacked Langerin expression and Birbeck granules ultrastructurally. Interestingly, a t(14;18) was detected by fluorescence in situ hybridization in the ICT cells of the patient with previous follicular lymphoma and a monoclonal κ light chain gene rearrangement was detected by polymerase chain reaction in the patient with systemic lymphadenopathy. In both cases, there was no morphologic or immunophenotypic evidence of a concurrent B-cell lymphoma. In conclusion, ICT is a rare neoplasm that can occur de novo or in association with a B-cell lymphoma, possibly as a result of B-cell dedifferentiation caused by relatively unknown mechanisms. Finally, Langerin immunostaining may be used as a surrogate marker for the ultrastructural demonstration of Birbeck granules, the absence of which represents a strong diagnostic criterion for ICT.
Balloons and Stents in the Endovascular Treatment of Cerebral Aneurysms: Vascular Anatomy Remodeled

Wide-neck intracranial aneurysms were originally thought to be either untreatable or very challenging to treat by endovascular means because of the risk of coil protrusion into the parent vessel. The introduction of the balloon remodeling technique (BRT) and later stents specifically designed for intracranial use has progressively allowed these lesions to be endovascularly treated. BRT and stent-assisted coiling technique (SACT) were first designed to treat sidewall aneurysms but, with gained experience and further technical refinement, bifurcation complex-shaped wide-neck aneurysms have been treated by coiling enhanced by BRT and SACT. In this article, we will review and describe the inherent benefits and drawbacks of BRT as well as SACT.