Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Faint-Source-Star Planetary Microlensing: The Discovery of the Cold Gas-Giant Planet OGLE-2014-BLG-0676Lb

We report the discovery of a planet – OGLE-2014-BLG-0676Lb– via gravitational microlensing. Observations for the lensing event were made by the following groups: Microlensing Observations in Astrophysics; Optical Gravitational Lensing Experiment; Wise Observatory; RoboNET/Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope; Microlensing Network for the Detection of Small Terrestrial Exoplanets; and μ-FUN. All analyses of the light-curve data favour a lens system comprising a planetary mass orbiting a host star. The most-favoured binary lens model has a mass ratio between the two lens masses of (4.78 ± 0.13) × 10−3. Subject to some important assumptions, a Bayesian probability density analysis suggests the lens system comprises a 3.09^(+1.02)_(−1.12) MJ planet orbiting a 0.62^(+0.20)_(−0.22) M_⊙ host star at a deprojected orbital separation of 4.40^(+2.16)_(−1.46) au. The distance to the lens system is 2.22^(+0.96)_(−0.83) kpc. Planet OGLE-2014-BLG-0676Lb provides additional data to the growing number of cool planets discovered using gravitational microlensing against which planetary formation theories may be tested. Most of the light in the baseline of this event is expected to come from the lens and thus high-resolution imaging observations could confirm our planetary model interpretation.
Effects of the Prostaglandin Analogue Misoprostol on TNF-alpha Release by Activated Equine Leukocytes.

BUCHHEIT, TERESA MARIE. Effects of the Prostaglandin Analogue Misoprostol on TNFAlpha Release by Activated Equine Leukocytes. (Under the direction of Dr. Samuel Jones). The magnitude of LPS-induced equine health problems cannot be over-estimated since endotoxemia is intimately involved in the pathogenesis of gastrointestinal disorders that cause colic, the leading cause of death in adult horses, and bacterial septicemia, the major killer of foals less than 7 days of age. These diseases lead to huge economic losses to the horse industry. The morbidity and mortality associated with sepsis in horses are primary attributable to the endogenous mediators released during the host’s response to bacterial LPS. Antimicrobials do not mitigate the effects of endotoxin and many current pharmacological therapies, such as non-steroidal inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), only affect part of the inflammatory cascade, making this a difficult condition to manage effectively. The optimal therapy likely involves methods to alter the generation of inflammatory mediators. The capacity to neutralize TNF-α production remains a critical goal for investigating novel drugs for use in diseases associated with systemic inflammation. In other species, the prostaglandin analogue misoprostol has been shown to inhibit LPS-induced TNF-α synthesis due to its ability to increase cAMP levels within leukocytes. Given the capacity of misoprostol to inhibit TNF-α release from immune cells in other species and its clinical use in horses for protection against NSAID-induced gastrointestinal ulcers, the objective of the study reported here was to evaluate the effects of misoprostol on production of TNF-α by LPS-stimulated equine leukocytes. The hypothesis of this study was that misoprostol would suppress LPS-induced secretion of TNF-α by equine peripheral blood leukocytes. The results presented in this study show that addition of LPS to equine leukocytes induced TNF-α secretion and misoprostol effectively blunted this response. Thus, misoprostol may be useful as an immunomodulator of inflammatory cytokine production in SIRS/sepsis. Further in vivo investigation is warranted.
LMI's control using a system of three power generators based on differential algebraic model

This document presents a robust control H∞ based in Linear Matrix Inequalities applied to a power multimachine interconnected system, which is expressed such as Differential and Algebraic linear model. The strategy permits to damp oscillations generated by changes in operation point of each subsystem and input perturbations in mechanic power. The strategy only uses minimal available information in output static feedback form. The feedback variables are local and remote for each machine. The control law is probed in a matlab/simulink simulated three machines benchmark. The simulations and the results are showed at the end of paper.
Electrocortical correlates of human level-ground, slope, and stair walking

This study investigated electrocortical dynamics of human walking across different unconstrained walking conditions (i.e., level ground (LW), ramp ascent (RA), and stair ascent (SA)). Non-invasive active-electrode scalp electroencephalography (EEG) signals were recorded and a systematic EEG processing method was implemented to reduce artifacts. Source localization combined with independent component analysis and k-means clustering revealed the involvement of four clusters in the brain during the walking tasks: Left and Right Occipital Lobe (LOL, ROL), Posterior Parietal Cortex (PPC), and Central Sensorimotor Cortex (SMC). Results showed that the changes of spectral power in the PPC and SMC clusters were associated with the level of motor task demands. Specifically, we observed α and β suppression at the beginning of the gait cycle in both SA and RA walking (relative to LW) in the SMC. Additionally, we observed significant β rebound (synchronization) at the initial swing phase of the gait cycle, which may be indicative of active cortical signaling involved in maintaining the current locomotor state. An increase of low γ band power in this cluster was also found in SA walking. In the PPC, the low γ band power increased with the level of task demands (from LW to RA and SA). Additionally, our results provide evidence that electrocortical amplitude modulations (relative to average gait cycle) are correlated with the level of difficulty in locomotion tasks. Specifically, the modulations in the PPC shifted to higher frequency bands when the subjects walked in RA and SA conditions. Moreover, low γ modulations in the central sensorimotor area were observed in the LW walking and shifted to lower frequency bands in RA and SA walking. These findings extend our understanding of cortical dynamics of human walking at different level of locomotion task demands and reinforces the growing body of literature supporting a shared-control paradigm between spinal and cortical networks during locomotion.
Comparative study of van der Waals corrections to the bulk properties of graphite

Graphite is a stack of honeycomb (graphene) layers bound together by nonlocal, long-range van der Waals (vdW) forces, which are poorly described by density functional theory (DFT) within local or semilocal exchange-correlation functionals. Several approximations have been proposed to add a vdW correction to the DFT total energies (Stefan Grimme (D2 and D3) with different damping functions (D3-BJ), Tkatchenko–Scheffler (TS) without and with self-consistent screening (TS + SCS) effects). Those corrections have remarkly improved the agreement between our results and experiment for the interlayer distance (from 3.8 to 0.1%) and high-level random-phase approximation (RPA) calculations for interlayer binding energy (from 56.2 to 0.6%). We report a systematic investigation of various structural, energetic and electron properties with the aforementioned vdW corrections followed by comparison with experimental and theoretical RPA data. Comparison between the resulting relative errors shows that the TS + SCS correction provides the best results; the other corrections yield significantly larger errors for at least one of the studied properties. If considerations of computational costs or convergence problems rule out the TS + SCS approach, we recommend the D3-BJ correction. Comparison between the computed πzΓ ? >-splitting and experimental results shows disagreements of 10% or more with all vdW corrections. Even the computationally more expensive hybrid PBE0 has proved unable to improve the agreement with the measured splitting. Our results indicate that improvements of the exchange-correlation functionals beyond the vdW corrections are necessary to accurately describe the band structure of graphite.
A fast numerical technique for the determination of electrical properties of materials

This paper presents a numerical technique particularly suited for the determination of the dielectric properties of unknown materials. The technique is based on the Boundary Integral-Resonant Mode Expansion (BI-RME) method combined with a segmentation technique. The circuit under test is subdivided into homogeneously-filled building blocks. Due to the particular pole-expansion representation of the admittance matrix of each building blocks, where the complex dielectric constant appears explicitly, the iterative identification of the unknown electrical characteristics of the material does not require repeated full-wave analyses. A computational example based on a simple yet meaningful canonical shape is reported, to demonstrate the accuracy of the proposed technique. Moreover, the algorithm for the automatic identification of the material characteristics in case of general shapes is discussed.
Doppler Radar Observations of Mesoscale Wind Divergence in Regions of Tropical Convection

Abstract A simple new analysis method for large single-Doppler radar datasets is presented, using data from several tropical field experiments. A cylindrical grid is chosen, to respect both the geophysical importance of altitude and the radar importance of range and azimuth. Horizontal and temporal fine structure are sacrificed, by compiling data as hourly histograms in 12 × 24 × 36 spatial grid cells of 15° azimuth × 8 km horizontal range × 500 m height, respectively. Mean Doppler radial velocity in each region is automatically unfolded (dealiased) using a simple histogram method, and fed into a velocity–azimuth display (VAD) analysis. The result is a set of hourly horizontal wind and wind divergence profiles, with associated error estimates, for circles of different radii centered on the radar. These divergence profiles contain useful heating profile information in many weather situations, not just occasional cases of uniform widespread rainfall. Consistency of independent estimates for concentric circl.
Myocutaneous flap reconstruction of the pelvis after abdominoperineal excision

Objective Perineal wound complications after abdominoperineal excision (APE) for anorectal cancer represent a considerable source of morbidity for patients. Strategies to improve wound healing include reconstruction with myocutaneous flaps. This is an evidence‐based review of reconstruction of pelvic defects after APE, using rectus abdominus (RAM), gracilis and gluteus maximus flaps.
PrkC-mediated Phosphorylation of Overexpressed YvcK Protein Regulates PBP1 Protein Localization in Bacillus subtilis mreB Mutant Cells*

Background: The YvcK protein is essential for Bacillus subtilis growth on gluconeogenic conditions; its overproduction rescues an mreB mutant. Results: PrkC phosphorylates YvcK; this phosphorylation is not required for growth on gluconeogenic conditions but is necessary for mreB rescue. Conclusion: YvcK phosphorylation is specifically involved in B. subtilis morphogenesis. Significance: This phosphorylation-based regulatory mechanism could be widespread in bacteria. The YvcK protein has been shown to be necessary for growth under gluconeogenic conditions in Bacillus subtilis. Amazingly, its overproduction rescues growth and morphology defects of the actin-like protein MreB deletion mutant by restoration of PBP1 localization. In this work, we observed that YvcK was phosphorylated at Thr-304 by the protein kinase PrkC and that phosphorylated YvcK was dephosphorylated by the cognate phosphatase PrpC. We show that neither substitution of this threonine with a constitutively phosphorylated mimicking glutamic acid residue or a phosphorylation-dead mimicking alanine residue nor deletion of prkC or prpC altered the ability of B. subtilis to grow under gluconeogenic conditions. However, we observed that a prpC mutant and a yvcK mutant were more sensitive to bacitracin compared with the WT strain. In addition, the bacitracin sensitivity of strains in which YvcK Thr-304 was replaced with either an alanine or a glutamic acid residue was also affected. We also analyzed rescue of the mreB mutant strain by overproduction of YvcK in which the phosphorylation site was substituted. We show that YvcK T304A overproduction did not rescue the mreB mutant aberrant morphology due to PBP1 mislocalization. The same observation was made in an mreB prkC double mutant overproducing YvcK. Altogether, these data show that YvcK may have two distinct functions: 1) in carbon source utilization independent of its phosphorylation level and 2) in cell wall biosynthesis and morphogenesis through its phosphorylation state.
Ferrocene Molecular Architectures Grafted on Si(111): A Theoretical Calculation of the Standard Oxidation Potentials and Electron Transfer Rate Constant

The standard oxidation potential and the electron transfer (ET) rate constants of two silicon-based hybrid interfaces, Si(111)/organic-spacer/Ferrocene, are theoretically calculated and assessed. The dynamics of the electrochemical driven ET process is modeled in terms of the classical donor/acceptor scheme within the framework of “Marcus theory”. The ET rate constants, kET, are determined following calculation of the electron transfer matrix element, VRP, together with the knowledge of the energy of the neutral and charge separated systems. The recently introduced Constrained Density Functional Theory (CDFT) method is exploited to optimize the structure and determine the energy of the charge separated species. Calculated ET rate constants are kET=77.8 s−1 and kET=1.3×10−9 s−1, in the case of the short and long organic-spacer, respectively.
Performance in sports – With specific emphasis on the effect of intensified training

Performance in most sports is determined by the athlete's technical, tactical, physiological and psychological/social characteristics. In the present article, the physical aspect will be evaluated with a focus on what limits performance, and how training can be conducted to improve performance. Specifically how intensified training, i.e., increasing the amount of aerobic high‐intensity and speed endurance training, affects physiological adaptations and performance of trained subjects. Periods of speed endurance training do improve performance in events lasting 30 s–4 min, and when combined with aerobic high‐intensity sessions, also performance during longer events. Athletes in team sports involving intense exercise actions and endurance aspects, such as soccer and basketball, can also benefit from intensified training. Speed endurance training does reduce energy expenditure and increase expression of muscle Na+, K+ pump α subunits, which may preserve muscle cell excitability and delay fatigue development during intense exercise. When various types of training are conducted in the same period (concurrent training), as done in a number of sports, one type of training may blunt the effect of other types of training. It is not, however, clear how various training modalities are affecting each other, and this issue should be addressed in future studies.
Hepatitis C viral load, genotype 3 and interleukin-28B CC genotype predict mortality in HIV and hepatitis C-coinfected individuals

Objective:We hypothesized that hepatitis C virus (HCV) load and genotype may influence all-cause mortality in HIV-HCV-coinfected individuals. Design and methods:Observational prospective cohort study. Mortality rates were compared in a time-updated multivariate Poisson regression analysis. Results:We included 264 consecutive HIV-HCV-coinfected individuals. During 1143 person years at risk (PYR) 118 individuals died [overall mortality rate 10 (95% confidence interval; 8, 12)/100 PYR]. In multivariate analysis, a 1 log increase in HCV viral load was associated with a 30% higher mortality risk [adjusted mortality rate ratio (aMRR): 1.30 (1.10,1.54)] when adjusted for sex, age, HIV exposure group, CD4 cell count, HIV RNA, HCV genotype and interleukin (IL)-28B genotype. Further, HCV genotype 3 vs. 1 [aMRR: 1.83 (1.12, 2.98)] and HIV RNA [aMRR: 3.14 (1.37,7.17) for undetectable vs. just detectable HIV RNA] were independent predictors of mortality, whereas a higher CD4 cell count was associated with a 41% reduction in mortality rate per 50 cell increase between 0 and 200 cells/&mgr;l [aMRR: 0.59 (0.48, 0.72)] and a 10% reduction for increases above 200 cells/&mgr;l [aMRR: 0.90 (0.82–0.98)]. IL28B) CC genotype was associated with 54% higher mortality risk [aMRR: 1.54 (0.89, 3.82] compared to TT genotype. Conclusion:High-HCV viral load, HCV genotype 3 and IL28B genotype CC had a significant influence on the risk of all-cause mortality among individuals coinfected with HIV-1. This may have consequences for the management of HIV-HCV-coinfected individuals.
The comparison of the negative effect of autoclaving and pasteurization on bone healing.

OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to compare the effects of autoclaving and pasteurization on bone healing. METHODS Twenty-five full-grown male rabbits were included in the study; all 25 had bone blocks resected and reimplanted. In group 1, bone blocks were autoclaved; in group 2, bone blocks were pasteurized; and in group 3 (controls), resected bone blocks were reimplanted without sterilization. RESULTS Heiple scores of the proximal parts of the fusion surfaces in group 1, group 2, and group 3 were 12.8±0.4, 6.8±1.2, and 10.2±1.9, respectively. Heiple scores of the distal parts of the fusion surfaces in group 1, group 2, and group 3 were 10.8±0.8, 6.0±1.1, and 9.8±1.5, respectively. Differences in radiologic scores were not statistically significant between the groups for proximal or distal fusion surfaces at 3 and 6 weeks. CONCLUSION In conclusion, pasteurization has a less negative effect on bone healing than autoclaving, and can be considered for bone sterilization in certain circumstances.
Novel radio resource management schemes for best-effort service in OFDMA systems

In this paper, we propose a complete radio resource management procedure for best-effort (BE) service in OFDMA systems, which improves the system fairness with graceful throughput degradation compared to the derived analytical upper bound of the system throughput. By the proposed bandwidth and power allocation algorithms, the user in the worst channel environment has almost the same probability of accessing the system as the user in the best channel environment. Furthermore, a novel sub-channel allocation algorithm is proposed, to exploit frequency selectivity and multi-user diversity gains simultaneously in OFDMA systems. The proposed sub-channel allocation algorithm shows favorable throughput enhancement over the conventional algorithms in frequency-selective fading channel.
Pollination by the locally endangered island flying fox (Pteropus hypomelanus) enhances fruit production of the economically important durian (Durio zibethinus)

Abstract Fruit bats provide valuable pollination services to humans through a unique coevolutionary relationship with chiropterophilous plants. However, chiropterophily in the Old World and the pollination roles of large bats, such as flying foxes (Pteropus spp., Acerodon spp., Desmalopex spp.), are still poorly understood and require further elucidation. Efforts to protect these bats have been hampered by a lack of basic quantitative information on their role as ecosystem service providers. Here, we investigate the role of the locally endangered island flying fox Pteropus hypomelanus in the pollination ecology of durian (Durio zibethinus), an economically important crop in Southeast Asia. On Tioman Island, Peninsular Malaysia, we deployed 19 stations of paired infrared camera and video traps across varying heights at four individual flowering trees in a durian orchard. We detected at least nine species of animal visitors, but only bats had mutualistic interactions with durian flowers. There was a clear vertical stratification in the feeding niches of flying foxes and nectar bats, with flying foxes feeding at greater heights in the trees. Flying foxes had a positive effect on mature fruit set and therefore serve as important pollinators for durian trees. As such, semi‐wild durian trees—particularly tall ones—may be dependent on flying foxes for enhancing reproductive success. Our study is the first to quantify the role of flying foxes in durian pollination, demonstrating that these giant fruit bats may have far more important ecological, evolutionary, and economic roles than previously thought. This has important implications and can aid efforts to promote flying fox conservation, especially in Southeast Asian countries.
Effects on Energy Metabolism of Two Guanidine Molecules, (Boc)2‐Creatine and Metformin

Several enzymes are involved in the energy production, becoming a possible target for new anti‐cancer drugs. In this paper, we used biochemical and in silico studies to evaluate the effects of two guanidine molecules, (Boc)2‐creatine and metformin, on creatine kinase, an enzyme involved in the regulation of intracellular energy levels. Our results show that both drugs inhibit creatine kinase activity; however, (Boc)2‐creatine displays a competitive inhibition, while metformin acts with a non‐competitive mechanism. Moreover, (Boc)2‐creatine is able to inhibit the activity of hexokinase with a non‐competitive mechanism. Considering that creatine kinase and hexokinase are involved in energy metabolism, we evaluated the effects of (Boc)2‐creatine and metformin on the ATP/AMP ratio and on cellular proliferation in healthy fibroblasts, human breast cancer cells (MDA‐MB‐468), a human neuroblastoma cell line (SH‐SY5Y), a human Hodgkin lymphoma cell line (KMH2). We found that healthy fibroblasts were only partially affected by (Boc)2‐creatine, while both ATP/AMP ratio and viability of the three cancer cell lines were significantly decreased. By inhibiting both creatine kinase and hexokinase, (Boc)2‐creatine appears as a promising new agent in anticancer treatment. Further research is needed to understand what types of cancer cells are most suitable to treatment by this new compound. J. Cell. Biochem. 118: 2700–2711, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Flight Activity of Two Sympatric Termite Species, Macrotermes gilvus and Macrotermes carbonarius (Termitidae: Macrotermitinae)

ABSTRACT Flight activities of two sympatric termite species, Macrotermes gilvus (Hagen) and Macrotermes carbonarius (Hagen), were studied in Penang Island, Malaysia. Herein, we present the first documentation of chronological reproductive isolation of M. gilvus and M. carbonarius. Flights of M. gilvus were recorded over a remarkably long 7-mo period from March to September, whereas swarming of M. carbonarius took place from November to January. Swarming events of M. gilvus and M. carbonarius occurred under atmospheric pressures of 1,005–1,011 and 1,006–1,010 hPa, respectively. Most flights of M. gilvus occurred on days with rain, whereas M. carbonarius avoided rain. Flight activity of M. gilvus was correlated significantly with atmospheric pressure and rainfall. The threshold temperature and relative humidity of M. gilvus flights were between 23 and 26°C and 83 and 98% RH, respectively; M. carbonarius swarmed between 25 and 30°C and 72 and 83% RH, respectively. The flight activity of M. gilvus concentrated in the warmer and humid months with a monthly total rainfall of 228 mm. Both species swarmed at distinct times of day during the limited field observations: Flights of M. gilvus began between 0300 and 0430 hours (light intensity <1 Lx), and flights of M. carbonarius lasted for only 4–10 min between 1900 and 1910 hours (at dusk; light intensity: 20–200 Lx). Windless conditions were preferred for the flights of both species.