Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The ribosome biogenesis factor yUtp23/hUTP23 coordinates key interactions in the yeast and human pre-40S particle and hUTP23 contains an essential PIN domain

Abstract Two proteins with PIN endonuclease domains, yUtp24(Fcf1)/hUTP24 and yUtp23/hUTP23 are essential for early pre-ribosomal (r)RNA cleavages at sites A0, A1/1 and A2/2a in yeast and humans. The yUtp24/hUTP24 PIN endonuclease is proposed to cleave at sites A1/1 and A2/2a, but the enzyme cleaving at site A0 is not known. Yeast yUtp23 contains a degenerate, non-essential PIN domain and functions together with the snR30 snoRNA, while human hUTP23 is associated with U17, the human snR30 counterpart. Using in vivo RNA–protein crosslinking and gel shift experiments, we reveal that yUtp23/hUTP23 makes direct contacts with expansion sequence 6 (ES6) in the 18S rRNA sequence and that yUtp23 interacts with the 3΄ half of the snR30 snoRNA. Protein–protein interaction studies further demonstrated that yeast yUtp23 and human hUTP23 directly interact with the H/ACA snoRNP protein yNhp2/hNHP2, the RNA helicase yRok1/hROK1(DDX52), the ribosome biogenesis factor yRrp7/hRRP7 and yUtp24/hUTP24. yUtp23/hUTP23 could therefore be central to the coordinated integration and release of ES6 binding factors and likely plays a pivotal role in remodeling this pre-rRNA region in both yeast and humans. Finally, studies using RNAi-rescue systems in human cells revealed that intact PIN domain and Zinc finger motifs in human hUTP23 are essential for 18S rRNA maturation.
A dynamic states reduction message passing algorithm for sparse code multiple access

Compared with existing systems, fifth generation (5G) mobile systems are expected to support diverse services and massive connectivity. Thus, multiple access schemes play a critical role. Recently, a codebook-based non-orthogonal access mode called sparse code multiple access (SCMA) has been proved to enable massive connectivity by allowing SCMA layer overloading. Message Passing Algorithm (MPA) can iteratively detect the multiplexed SCMA codewords. However, reducing MPA computation complexity is still a problem since the 5G ultra low latency and energy consumption targets. As the conditional channel probability (CCP) calculation takes up 60% computation of logarithm-domain MPA, reducing the CCP calculation is the tipping point of MPA optimization. In this paper, we proposed a dynamic shrunk square searching (DSSS) algorithm, based on the signal uncertainty theory, to dynamically shrink the state space before the CCP calculation. As the DSSS exploits both the structure of state space and noise characteristic, it could alleviate unnecessary CCP calculation while maintaining the near optimal decoding performance in block error (BLER) sense.
Reclaiming and redefining rights. ICPD+15: Status of sexual and reproductive health and rights in Asia.

A comprehensive monitoring report of 15 years of ICPD implementation in 12 Asian countries this report covers areas of womens empowerment reproductive health reproductive rights sexual health and sexual rights. This monitoring report on the status of sexual and reproductive health and rights in Asia paints a picture of uneven progress across 12 countries. Without full implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action it will not be possible to Achieve Goal 5: reducing maternal mortality and ensuring universal access to reproductive health; and other Milennium Goals that are inextricably linked to PoA.
The state and the non-governmental organisation sector in South Africa, 1994-2001: a case study of the relations between the National Development Agency, the Labour Research Service and the Institute for Democracy in South Africa

This research is an attempt to evaluate the nature of structural relations between the new democratic state and the Non-Governmental Organisations from 1994 up to 2001 in South Africa. Emerging from an apartheid past into a process of transformation and reconstruction, the role of all institutions in the South African society is crucial, particularly that of NGOs. The NGO sector is generally recognised as being better positioned than government to deal with development. However, in order to create a platform for cooperation between the government and NGOs’, certain key structural issues need to be addressed. The NDA, to a significant extent, has been strategically located to address some of these issues in order to synergise government efforts towards poverty eradication and policy dialogue between the state and the Civil Society Organisations (CSOs). The Labour Research Service (LRS) and the Institute for Democracy in South Africa (IDASA) formed part of this case study in order to illustrate the dynamics of structural relations. At the same time, the ability of the NDA to galvanise support of CSOs to participate in the fight against poverty and ensure their participation in government policymaking processes is crucial and this investigation has assessed these aspects. The impact of the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) and the Growth Employment And Redistribution (GEAR) have been considered in this investigatio n as key government policies that could contribute to the nature of structural relations. The reasoning behind this is that South Africa has a huge development backlog and these two key policies are specifically aimed at addressing the core of this problem. Conclusions drawn from the research findings suggest that the NDA still has an enormous function to perform firstly by addressing its own credibility issues and to make a greater attempt to be in
An intelligent method for classification of normal and aggressive actions from electromyography signals

In this paper an intelligent method called adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) is proposed for discriminating normal actions from aggressive actions using the features extracted from electromyography (EMG) signals. Classification of normal and aggressive actions are essential for diseases and prosthetic arm controls. But accurate classification of physical actions are sometimes not possible using raw EMG signals. To enhance the classification accuracy feature extraction is an essential criterion. Hence in this work wavelet analysis is used for feature extraction from EMG signals to provide a suitable pattern to the ANFIS based classifier. The EMG signals are decomposed using DB-4 wavelet up to level 5 and approximate coefficients are extracted. Approximate coefficients from the signals are taken as input to the ANFIS module to classify the physical actions. The proposed method is validated using various test cases and it is observed that accuracy of the proposed method is up to 98% from all the tested cases.
Short‐term field stimulation mimics synaptic maturation of hippocampal synapses

• During postnatal development there are changes in the fundamental properties of many, but not all, glutamatergic synapses in the brain. These changes include how readily glutamate is released and which glutamate receptors are at synapses. • Are these changes a consequence of a strict developmental programme or do they occur in response to neural activity? Because the hippocampus receives diverse synaptic inputs, it is difficult to control neural activity in vivo. Therefore, we tested whether neural activity in vitro could stimulate synapse maturation. • We found that maturation of synaptic properties, which usually occurs over 7 days, could be mimicked by 4 h of synaptic activity in slices from young mice. • This means that whether synapses have ‘mature’ properties is more a measure of recent neural activity than a consequence of strictly developmental changes and may bring about the diverse mix of synapses with ‘immature’ and ‘mature’ properties observed in adult brains.
Modal study of electrically small patch antennas on dielectric, magnetic and reactive impedance metamaterial substrates

A modal comparative study of patch antennas over a normal, high permittivity, high permeability and artificial substrates, respectively, is presented. It is based on the theory of characteristic modes. It is shown using some defined metrics that a magnetic substrate offers a significant bandwidth enlargement for the first active modes, and a dielectric substrate presents the opposite effect. This agrees with previously published works based on analytical approaches. An expression for the modal quality factor without defining particular excitation is presented and computed for the studied cases in order to approve these conclusions. Furthermore, numerical results demonstrate that a reactive impedance substrate presents a similar response to a conventional magnetic substrate when associated to a patch antenna near to the resonance. The modal currents are computed using a numerical method. Therefore, this analysis is suitable for electrically small antennas or structures presenting non canonical geometries and arbitrary shapes such as metamaterial inclusions.
Testing for non‐random mating: evidence for ancestry‐related assortative mating in the Framingham heart study

Population stratification leads to a predictable phenomenon—a reduction in the number of heterozygotes compared to that calculated assuming Hardy‐Weinberg Equilibrium (HWE). We show that population stratification results in another phenomenon—an excess in the proportion of spouse‐pairs with the same genotypes at all ancestrally informative markers, resulting in ancestrally related positive assortative mating. We use principal components analysis to show that there is evidence of population stratification within the Framingham Heart Study, and show that the first principal component correlates with a North‐South European cline. We then show that the first principal component is highly correlated between spouses (r = 0.58, p = 0.0013), demonstrating that there is ancestrally related positive assortative mating among the Framingham Caucasian population. We also show that the single nucleotide polymorphisms loading most heavily on the first principal component show an excess of homozygotes within the spouses, consistent with similar ancestry‐related assortative mating in the previous generation. This nonrandom mating likely affects genetic structure seen more generally in the North American population of European descent today, and decreases the rate of decay of linkage disequilibrium for ancestrally informative markers. Genet. Epidemiol. 34: 674‐679, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Comparative analysis of some mouthrinses on the production of volatile sulfur-containing compounds

Oral malodor is mainly caused by the presence of volatile sulfur-containing compounds (VSC) produced by proteolytic periodontopathic bacteria in the oral cavity. Different solutions have been used as mouthrinses, trying to reduce malodor, and a large number is on the market. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of three commercially available mouthrinses with a simple inexpensive solution of zinc (zinc acetate 0.1%) on the production of VSC in vivo. Two of the solutions contained triclosan, one of them with fluoride and the other with sodium bicarbonate, and the third one contained herbal components. Seven healthy subjects rinsed with cysteine to induce production of VSC at baseline. After halitosis induction and VSC measurements, the subjects rinsed with the test solution, and mouth air VSC analyses were then performed by means of gas chromatography subsequent to repeated cysteine rinses after 30, 60, and 120 min. The data were calculated as percentage reduction of VSC from baseline. The percentage reduction of VSC decreased over time for all experimental groups. Zinc acetate had clearly the highest percentage reduction, starting from 95.68% at 30 min and with 69.27% after 2 h. The three other mouthrinses produced a VSC reduction of 23.92%-49.86% after 30 min, decreasing to 13.06%-37.09% after 2 h. One-way ANOVA (P = 0.05) was applied, and comparisons showed no differences between the commercially available solutions, but zinc acetate was significantly better than these. It may be concluded that some commercial mouthrinses are markedly less effective than a simple and cheap solution of zinc acetate.
The effects of agglomeration and national property rights on digital confidentiality performance

In recent years, instances of organizations failing to maintain the confidentiality of proprietary, digital assets have greatly increased in frequency and monetary damage. While the global sourcing of activities in the development of digital assets is widespread, very little is known about how location-related factors may affect confidentiality outcomes. Addressing this, we empirically investigate two factors with rich theoretical bases and logical linkages to confidentiality: industrial agglomeration and national property rights protections. We conduct a large-scale, empirical study at the product level of analysis, and treat the confidentiality of a digital product as a performance outcome that is affected by the locations of the two key organizational entities involved in the product's development. We leverage modern, web-crawling methods to harvest secondary data from a major, illicit distribution channel for these products and combine these data with other secondary data involving legitimate commerce to derive a novel, secondary measure of confidentiality. We find interesting and robust results, and demonstrate strong practical significance of our findings through scenario analyses based on actual data from our sample. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Optical approximations for simulations of submillimeter systems

Propagation aspects of systems working in millimeter and submillimeter bands can be solved by quasioptical approaches including Gaussian beams. Reflections from rough surfaces nevertheless introduces complex problem. It can be very well solved by an approximation using methods from free space optics with incorporation of particular corrections of the pure optical approaches. The paper discusses the advantages and drawback of these simulation approaches, based on measurement and analyses of electromagnetic wave propagation.
Talking Our Way Around Expert Caution: A Rhetorical Analysis of Value-Added Modeling in Teacher Evaluation

Author(s): Tobiason, Glory | Advisor(s): Hansen, Mark | Abstract: This dissertation proceeds in two steps, a theoretical one followed by an empirical one. Considered together, they help us understand how persuasive language may be used to endorse or justify scientifically shaky policies.In the first step, I introduce and define a troubling phenomenon that may occur in public decision making, Audacious Use of an Information Tool (AUIT). AUIT is curious because it involves a decision not to defer to the scientific community on a question that solicits their expertise: whether a tool of science is methodologically capable doing what it is being asked to do. AUIT is potentially dangerous because it involves high-stakes decisions or plans based on possibly faulty information. I identify two cases of AUIT: the use of value-added modeling (VAM) in teacher evaluation and the use of predictive genetic testing to make personal health-care decisions.In the second step, I map the language of AUIT using a case-study design. I focus on the first example mentioned above, the use of VAM as a central component in high-stakes personnel decisions about individual teachers. My rhetorical analysis considers a corpus of texts from 2008 to 2015, drawn from popular media, advocacy discourse, and policy messaging from the Department of Education. I identify four rhetorical moves that rationalize the Audacious Use of VAM in teacher evaluation and conjecture about whether they are likely to be deployed in other cases of AUIT.
Predicting Severe Pneumonia Outcomes in Children

BACKGROUND: Substantial morbidity and excessive care variation are seen with pediatric pneumonia. Accurate risk-stratification tools to guide clinical decision-making are needed. METHODS: We developed risk models to predict severe pneumonia outcomes in children (<18 years) by using data from the Etiology of Pneumonia in the Community Study, a prospective study of community-acquired pneumonia hospitalizations conducted in 3 US cities from January 2010 to June 2012. In-hospital outcomes were organized into an ordinal severity scale encompassing severe (mechanical ventilation, shock, or death), moderate (intensive care admission only), and mild (non–intensive care hospitalization) outcomes. Twenty predictors, including patient, laboratory, and radiographic characteristics at presentation, were evaluated in 3 models: a full model included all 20 predictors, a reduced model included 10 predictors based on expert consensus, and an electronic health record (EHR) model included 9 predictors typically available as structured data within comprehensive EHRs. Ordinal regression was used for model development. Predictive accuracy was estimated by using discrimination (concordance index). RESULTS: Among the 2319 included children, 21% had a moderate or severe outcome (14% moderate, 7% severe). Each of the models accurately identified risk for moderate or severe pneumonia (concordance index across models 0.78–0.81). Age, vital signs, chest indrawing, and radiologic infiltrate pattern were the strongest predictors of severity. The reduced and EHR models retained most of the strongest predictors and performed as well as the full model. CONCLUSIONS: We created 3 risk models that accurately estimate risk for severe pneumonia in children. Their use holds the potential to improve care and outcomes.
The effects of degradable and undegradable intake protein on the performance of lactating first-calf heifers.

Two 60-d experiments were conducted to evaluate the effects of supplementing degradable (DIP) and(or) undegradable (UIP) intake protein on the performance of lactating first-calf heifers. Diets were formulated to meet the requirements for either DIP, metabolizable protein (MP), or both when diets contained low-quality grass hay and an efficiency of microbial protein synthesis estimate of 10%. In Exp. 1, 32 individually fed first-calf heifers (avg 395 kg) were allotted to a 2 x 2 factorial arrangement of treatments (main effects of DIP, MP, and DIP x MP interaction) 1 d after calving. Cows consumed a basal diet of chopped crested wheat grass hay (4.3% CP, 67% DIP) ad libitum. Supplemental DIP and UIP were supplied by varying the ratios of soybean meal (75% DIP) and a heat-treated, protected soybean meal (70% UIP). Cow weight gain was better (P < 0.01) when adequate DIP was supplied than when DIP was deficient. However, calf weight gain was not increased by supplementing the cow with DIP. Supplemental UIP did not (P > 0.40) improve cow or calf weight gain. Blood urea N levels were higher (P < 0.01) for cows receiving supplemental DIP and UIP. However, milk production estimates were similar among treatments, as were digestibilities of OM and ADF. Nitrogen digestibility was greater when supplemental DIP was fed, but providing additional UIP did not (P = 0.15) change N digestibilities. Experiment 2 evaluated similar supplements using the same experimental design to determine changes in cow and calf weight gain, body condition score, and pregnancy rate. Seventy-two first-calf heifers (avg 441 kg) were allotted to supplement treatments 1 d after calving and were fed grass hay (5% CP, 53% DIP, 10% microbial efficiency) for ad libitum consumption for 60 d. Supplements were individually fed three times/week. Varying the ratios of soybean meal, heat-treated soybean meal, and corn gluten meal provided additional DIP and UIP. Unlike in Exp. 1, supplemental UIP improved (P < 0.05) cow weight gain. Calves from dams supplemented with DIP gained 5 kg more weight after 60 d than calves from dams deficient in DIP. Pregnancy rates in the fall were similar (P = 0.90) among treatments. These data suggest that DIP was more limiting in Exp. 1 than was UIP. Supplementing UIP in Exp. 2 improved cow weight gains but did not improve calf gains. Data suggest that the efficiency of microbial protein synthesis for this forage-based diet was probably less than 10%.
Added value of hepatobiliary phase gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI for diagnosing hepatocellular carcinoma in high-risk patients.

AIM To determine the added value of hepatobiliary phase (HBP) gadoxetic acid-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in evaluating hepatic nodules in high-risk patients. METHODS The institutional review board approved this retrospective study and waived the requirement for informed consent. This study included 100 patients at high risk for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and 105 hepatic nodules that were larger than 1 cm. A blind review of two MR image sets was performed in a random order: set 1, unenhanced (T1- and T2-weighted) and dynamic images; and set 2, unenhanced, dynamic 20-min and HBP images. The diagnostic accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) were compared for the two image sets. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed on the MR characteristics utilized to diagnose HCC. RESULTS A total of 105 hepatic nodules were identified in 100 patients. Fifty-nine nodules were confirmed to be HCC. The diameter of the 59 HCCs ranged from 1 to 12 cm (mean: 1.9 cm). The remaining 46 nodules were benign (28 were of hepatocyte origin, nine were hepatic cysts, seven were hemangiomas, one was chronic inflammation, and one was focal fat infiltration). The diagnostic accuracy significantly increased with the addition of HBP images, from 88.7% in set 1 to 95.5% in set 2 (P = 0.002). In set 1 vs set 2, the sensitivity and NPV increased from 79.7% to 93.2% and from 78.9% to 91.8%, respectively, whereas the specificity and PPV were not significantly different. The hypointensity on the HBP images was the most sensitive (93.2%), and typical arterial enhancement followed by washout was the most specific (97.8%). The multivariate analysis revealed that typical arterial enhancement followed by washout, hyperintensity on T2-weighted images, and hypointensity on HBP images were statistically significant MRI findings that could diagnose HCC (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION The addition of HBP gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI statistically improved the diagnostic accuracy in HCCs larger than 1 cm. Typical arterial enhancement followed by washout and hypointensity on HBP images are useful for diagnosing HCC.
Discrete electric field mediated droplet splitting in microchannels: Fission, Cascade, and Rayleigh modes

Numerical simulations supplemented by experiments together uncovered that strategic integration of discrete electric fields in a non‐invasive manner could substantially miniaturize the droplets into smaller parts in a pressure driven oil‐water flow inside microchannels. The Maxwell's stress generated from the electric field at the oil–water interface could deform, stretch, neck, pin, and disintegrate a droplet into many miniaturized daughter droplets, which eventually ushered a one‐step method to form water‐in‐oil microemulsion employing microchannels. The interplay between electrostatic, inertial, capillary, and viscous forces led to various pathways of droplet breaking, namely, fission, cascade, or Rayleigh modes. While a localized electric field in the fission mode could split a droplet into a number of daughter droplets of smaller size, the cascade or the Rayleigh mode led to the formation of an array of miniaturized droplets when multiple electrodes generating different field intensities were ingeniously assembled around the microchannel. The droplets size and frequency could be tuned by varying the field intensity, channel diameter, electrode locations, interfacial tension, and flow ratio. The proposed methodology shows a simple methodology to transform a microdroplet into an array of miniaturized ones inside a straight microchannel for enhanced mass, energy, and momentum transfer, and higher throughput.