Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
CD26/DPP4 levels in peripheral blood and T cells in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

CONTEXT Dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (CD26/DPP4) is expressed on blood T cells and also circulates in a soluble form (sCD26/DPP4). OBJECTIVE We aimed to evaluate blood T cell and circulating CD26/DPP4 and its association with metabolic parameters in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). DESIGNS We measured CD26/DPP4 expression (percentage of CD26(+) cells using flow cytometry) on CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells, serum CD26/DPP4 level and activity, and various metabolic parameters in T2DM patients not on DPP4 inhibitor therapy (n = 148). Nondiabetic subjects (n = 50) were included as a control group. RESULTS Compared with the healthy controls, CD26/DPP4 expression on CD4(+) T cells and CD8(+) T cells was higher in T2DM patients. Serum CD26/DPP4 levels and enzymatic activities were also higher in patients with T2DM than in the control group only when metformin and/or thiazolidinedione-treated T2DM patients were excluded; metformin and/or thiazolidinedione-treated T2DM patients had lower values compared with other T2DM patients. Various parameters in T2DM patients were related to CD26/DPP4 expression on the T cells (hemoglobin A1c), serum sCD26/DPP4 (hemoglobin A1c and insulin resistance assessed by updated homeostasis model assessment), and serum CD26/DPP4 activity (insulin resistance assessed by updated homeostasis model assessment, γ-glutamyl transferase, and alanine aminotransferase) by multivariate analyses. After active glucose control for 12 weeks in drug-naive T2DM patients (n = 50), CD26/DPP4 expression on blood T cells was significantly decreased. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest that the CD26/DPP4 level on blood T cells was associated with glucose control status in patients with T2DM.
Human-like bot

The main goal of my thesis is to create a bot for Unreal Tournament 2004 whose behaviour will be as similar as possible to human controlled players. At the beginning, I measured game play data from both humans and bots. Then, I chose one initial bot and I did five iterations of comparing bot data with humans data, selecting one difference, improving the bot with the aim to eliminate the difference and measuring data again. The successful improvements I made were removing rotations during running, adding reactions on hit and better weapon switching. The improvements that did not make a difference were adding a camping and roaming objective and evade using visibility module. In the end, believability of the bot was tested during a study with human players. The bot will take part in a human-like bot competition named the 2K BotPrize.
Applicability of Different Antibodies for Immunohistochemical Localization of CFTR in Sweat Glands from Healthy Controls and from Patients with Cystic Fibrosis

The hereditary disease cystic fibrosis (CF) is caused by mutations in the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene. Understanding of the consequences of CFTR gene mutations is derived chiefly from in vitro studies on heterologous cell cultures and on cells hyperexpressing CFTR. Data from ex vivo studies on human tissue are scarce and contradictory, a fact which is in part explained by secondary tissue destruction in most affected organs. The purpose of this study was to establish conditions under which wild-type and mutated CFTR can be studied in affected human tissue. Sweat glands carry the basic defect underlying CF and are not affected by tissue destruction and inflammation. Therefore, we used this tissue to test a panel of eight different CFTR antibodies under various fixation techniques. The antibodies were tested on skin biopsy sections from healthy controls, from CF patients homozygous for the most common mutation, ΔF508, and from patients carrying two nonsense mutations. Of the eight CFTR antibodies, only three—M3A7, MATG 1104, and cc24—met the criteria necessary for immunolocalization of CFTR in sweat glands. The labeling pattern in the CF sweat glands was consistent with the postulated processing defect of ΔF508 CFTR. The antibodies exhibited different sensitivities for detecting ΔF508 CFTR.
A Live-Attenuated Listeria Vaccine (ANZ-100) and a Live-Attenuated Listeria Vaccine Expressing Mesothelin (CRS-207) for Advanced Cancers: Phase I Studies of Safety and Immune Induction

Purpose: Listeria monocytogenes (Lm)-based vaccines stimulate both innate and adaptive immunity. ANZ-100 is a live-attenuated Lm strain (Lm ΔactA/ΔinlB). Uptake by phagocytes in the liver results in local inflammatory responses and activation and recruitment of natural killer (NK) and T cells, in association with increased survival of mice bearing hepatic metastases. The Lm ΔactA/ΔinlB strain, engineered to express human mesothelin (CRS-207), a tumor-associated antigen expressed by a variety of tumors, induces mesothelin-specific T-cell responses against mesothelin-expressing murine tumors. These two phase I studies test ANZ-100 and CRS-207 in subjects with liver metastases and mesothelin-expressing cancers, respectively. Experimental Design: A single intravenous injection of ANZ-100 was evaluated in a dose escalation study in subjects with liver metastases. Nine subjects received 1 × 106, 3 × 107, or 3 × 108 colony-forming units (cfu). CRS-207 was evaluated in a dose-escalation study in subjects with mesothelioma, lung, pancreatic, or ovarian cancers. Seventeen subjects received up to 4 doses of 1 × 108, 3 × 108, 1 × 109, or 1 × 1010 cfu. Results: A single infusion of ANZ-100 was well tolerated to the maximum planned dose. Adverse events included transient laboratory abnormalities and symptoms associated with cytokine release. Multiple infusions of CRS-207 were well tolerated up to 1 × 109 cfu, the determined maximum tolerated dose. Immune activation was observed for both ANZ-100 and CRS-207 as measured by serum cytokine/chemokine levels and NK cell activation. In the CRS-207 study, listeriolysin O and mesothelin-specific T-cell responses were detected and 37% of subjects lived ≥15 months. Conclusions: ANZ-100 and CRS-207 administration was safe and resulted in immune activation. Clin Cancer Res; 18(3); 858–68. ©2011 AACR.
Evaluating sub-typing methods for pathogenic Yersinia enterocolitica to support outbreak investigations in New Zealand

Abstract Incidence of human yersiniosis in New Zealand has increased between 2013 and 2017. For surveillance and outbreak investigations it is essential that an appropriate level of discrimination between pathogenic Yersinia enterocolitica isolates is provided, in order to support epidemiological linking of connected cases. Subtyping of 227 Y. enterocolitica isolates was performed using a range of different typing methods, including biotyping, serotyping and seven loci multiple-locus variable-number tandem-repeat analysis (MLVA). In addition, core genome single-nucleotide polymorphism (core SNP) analysis and multi-locus sequence typing were performed on a subset of 69 isolates. Sixty-seven different MLVA types were identified. One MLVA profile was associated with an outbreak in the Bay of Plenty region, supported by epidemiological data. Core SNP analysis showed that all the outbreak-related isolates clustered together. The subtyping and epidemiological evidence suggests that the outbreak of yersiniosis in the Bay of Plenty region between October and December 2016 could be attributed to a point source. However, subtyping results further suggest that the same clone was isolated from several regions between August 2016 and March 2017. Core SNP analysis and MLVA typing failed to differentiate between Y. enterocolitica biotype 2 and biotype 3. For this reason, we propose that these biotypes should be reported as a single type namely: Y. enterocolitica biotype 2/3 and that the serotype should be prioritised as an indicator of prevalence.
A two-dimensional numerical study of spatial pattern formation in interacting Turing systems

For many years Turing systems have been proposed to account for spatial and spatiotemporal pattern formation in chemistry and biology. We extend the study of Turing systems to investigate the rôle of boundary conditions, domain shape, non-linearities, and coupling of such systems. We show that such modifications lead to a wide variety of patterns that bear a striking resemblance to pigmentation patterns in fish, particularly those involving stripes, spots and transitions between them. Using the Turing system as a metaphor for activator—inhibitor models we conclude that such a mechanism, with the aforementioned modifications, may play a rôle in fish patterning.
PBFMCSP: Prefix Based Fast Mining of Closed Sequential Patterns

In recent years, mining of sequential patterns has been studied extensively in various domains. Most of the existing algorithms find patterns in transactional databases by scanning the records whether they contain patterns or not. This paper proposes a novel algorithm to mine closed sequential patterns using an inverted matrix and prefix based sequence element matrix. Inverted matrix minimizes the search space for discovering various sequential patterns of different items. We use a prefix based sequence element matrix to minimize the scans required at levels k and k+1 in the mining process. Our experimental results show the performance improvement of the new algorithm over the previous work.
The phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitor vardenafil reduces oxidative stress while reversing pulmonary arterial hypertension.

AIMS Oxidative stress is implicated in the pathology of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Previously, we demonstrated that vardenafil, a phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitor, has potential as therapy for PAH, although the mechanism remained uncharacterized. Here, we aimed to determine baseline levels of oxidative stress in PAH and investigate whether vardenafil affects oxidative stress levels while improving PAH. METHODS AND RESULTS Sprague-Dawley rats with monocrotaline-induced PAH were administered oral vardenafil 1 mg kg⁻¹ day⁻¹ for 21 days (n = 12). Treatment-naive patients (n = 15) with PAH were treated with vardenafil 5 mg twice daily for 3 months. Haemodynamic data and plasma levels of nitrate/nitrite and products of oxidative damage were determined in rats and patients. Histopathology, immunohistochemistry, and assessments of oxidative/anti-oxidative enzyme expression were performed in rat lung tissue. Compared with baseline (patients) or untreated controls (rats), vardenafil significantly reduced pulmonary vascular resistance and increased cardiac output (CO). In rats, vardenafil suppressed proliferation and enhanced apoptosis of pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells, attenuating small pulmonary artery remodelling, and right ventricular hypertrophy. Vardenafil significantly reduced levels of oxidative stress biomarkers, such as 8-iso-prostaglandin-F2α and 3-nitrotyrosine, and significantly increased nitric oxide (NO) levels in rats and patients. Furthermore, vardenafil significantly increased endothelial NO synthase expression and superoxide dismutase activity, and down-regulated nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase expression in rat lung tissue. CONCLUSION Vardenafil reduces oxidative stress in rats and humans while improving PAH, warranting investigation of oxidative stress pathways as targets for PAH therapy.
Synthesis of Predictive Equivalent Consumption Minimization Strategy for Hybrid Electric Vehicles Based on Closed-Form Solution of Optimal Equivalence Factor

Previously, an equivalent consumption minimization strategy (ECMS) was developed that provides near-optimal performance of hybrid vehicles based on an adaptation of equivalence factor from state of charge feedback. However, under real-world driving conditions with uncertainties, such as hilly roads, ECMS requires a predictive scheme utilizing future driving information in order to prevent a loss of optimality. In this paper, we synthesize predictive ECMS in a feedforward way to adjust the equivalence factor based on its theoretical connection with future driving statistics, in a systematic manner. First, a useful noncausal adaptation strategy is extracted from dynamic programming results. Then, the inverse problem is formulated and solved to derive an explicit representation of the constant optimal equivalence factor with justified assumptions. Finally, a causal, predictive adaptation strategy using this closed-form solution is synthesized to mimic the noncausal one, and its effectiveness is evaluated for fuel cell hybrid electric vehicles. Results show that if the predicted statistical information reflects well the future driving conditions, the proposed strategy accurately estimates the constant optimal equivalence factor, including the jump behavior, thereby yielding less than 1.5% loss of fuel optimality. Moreover, this approach is extendible to other configurations.
Continuous higher order sliding mode control based on adaptive disturbance compensation

In this paper a new continuous adaptive r-th order sliding mode controller is proposed. It is built from two components: one which guarantees smooth finite time stabilization of the origin for the known nominal system, and one which represents a disturbance observer, based on a super-twisting structure, to guarantee robustness to a class of twice differentiable uncertainty. The observer has adaptive features which minimize the size of the gains, whilst still guaranteeing the existence of a sliding motion. The adaptive scheme has a dual-layer structure based on equivalent injection concepts. The paper provides computer simulations to validate the theory.
Association rules based algorithm for identifying outlier transactions in data stream

Most outlier detection algorithms are proposed to discover outlier patterns from static databases. Those algorithms are infeasible for instant identification of outlier patterns in data streams that continuously arriving and unbounded data serve as the data sources in many applications such as sensor data feeding. In this paper an association rules based method is proposed to find outlier patterns in data streams. The presented work segments transactions from data streams and then finds approximate frequent itemsets with single data scan instead of requiring multiple scans. Based on the derived association rules some transaction can be identified as outliers if their outlier degrees are higher than a predefined threshold. The proposed method not only just finds the outlier patterns but also identifies the most possible items that induce the abnormal transactions in the data streams. Efficiency comparisons with frequent itemsets-based work are also done to verify the effectiveness of the proposed framework.
Detecting Novel Option Model Pricing Misspecification Using Visual Exploratory Data Analysis

Options are amongst the most heavily transacted financial instruments in the world. Nevertheless, even the most sophisticated and accurate option pricing models are known to contain misspecifications. In this work, novel misspecifications are discovered using visual exploratory data analysis. These discoveries may help academics improve pricing models and practitioners better trade and hedge their option positions.
Experience–dependent modulation of tonotopic neural responses in human auditory cortex

Experience–dependent plasticity of receptive fields in the auditory cortex has been demonstrated by electrophysiological experiments in animals. In the present study we used PET neuroimaging to measure regional brain activity in volunteer human subjects during discriminatory classical conditioning of high (8000 Hz) or low (200 Hz) frequency tones by an aversive 100 dB white noise burst. Conditioning–related, frequency–specific modulation of tonotopic neural responses in the auditory cortex was observed. The modulated regions of the auditory cortex positively covaried with activity in the amygdala, basal forebrain and orbitofrontal cortex, and showed context–specific functional interactions with the medial geniculate nucleus. These results accord with animal single–unit data and support neurobiological models of auditory conditioning and value–dependent neural selection.
Persistence of the left superior caval vein: can it potentiate obstructive lesions of the left ventricle?

Abstract Recent evidence has suggested that persistence of the left superior caval vein is associated with a high incidence of obstructive lesions of the left heart. To shed more light on this issue 1085 patients with congenital heart disease were studied retrospectively, with the aim of estimating the prevalence of a persistent left superior caval vein and its associated anomalies, focusing attention on obstructive lesions in the left and right ventricles. Patients with isomerism of the atrial appendages, or hypoplastic left heart syndrome, were excluded. A persisting left superior caval vein was present in 57 patients (5.2%). The overall incidence of obstructive lesions of the left heart was higher in patients with than in those without a persistent left superior caval vein (31.6 versus 7.8%, p < 0.001). Relative hypoplasia of the left ventricle was also higher in patients with persistent left superior caval vein (14 versus 0.8%, p < 0.001). The obstructive lesions found in the left heart, compared with the number in those without a left caval vein, were: mitral stenosis, 5.2 versus 0.7%; subaortic stenosis, 5.3 versus 0.9%; aortic coarctation, 17.5 versus 5.8% (p < 0.01); all of these in association, 3.5 versus 0.4%. In contrast, the incidence of obstructive lesions of the right heart was similar in the two groups of patients. It is concluded that persistence of the left superior caval vein can perturb the normal development of the left ventricle, being strongly associated with obstructions to left ventricular inflow and outflow.
Robust Maximum Association Between Data Sets: The R Package ccaPP

An intuitive measure of association between two multivariate data sets can be defined as the maximal value that a bivariate association measure between any one-dimensional projections of each data set can attain. Rank correlation measures thereby have the advantage that they combine good robustness properties with good efficiency. The software package ccaPP provides fast implementations of such maximum association measures for the statistical computing environment R. We demonstrate how to use package ccaPP to compute the maximum association measures, as well as how to assess their significance via permutation tests.
Near Infrared Spectroscopy in Natural Products Analysis

Several medicinal and herbal plants properties are related to individual compounds such as essential oils, terpenoids, flavonoids, which are present in natural products in low concentrations (e. g., ppm or ppb). For many years, the use of classical separation and chromatographic and spectrometric techniques such as high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), gas chromatography (GC), liquid chromatography (LC) and mass spectrometry (MS) were initially used for the elucidation of isolated compounds from different plant matrices. Spectroscopic techniques in the infrared (IR) wavelength region of the electromagnetic spectrum have been used in the food industry to monitor and evaluate the composition of foods. Although Herschel discovered light in the near-infrared (NIR) region as early as 1800, most spectroscopists of the first half of the last century ignored it, in the belief that it lacked any analytical interest. However, during the last 40 years NIR spectroscopy has become one of the most attractive and used methods for analysis. This mini-review highlights recent applications of NIR spectroscopy to the qualitative and quantitative analysis of plant natural products.
Random Regression Forest Model using Technical Analysis Variables: An application on Turkish Banking Sector in Borsa Istanbul (BIST)

The purpose of this study is to explore the importance and ranking of technical analysis variables in Turkish banking sector. Random Forest method is used for determining importance scores of inputs for eight banks in Borsa Istanbul. Then two predictive models utilizing Random Forest (RF) and Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) are built for predicting BIST-100 index and bank closing prices. Results of the models are compared by three metrics namely Mean Absolute Error (MAE), Mean Square Error (MSE), Median Absolute Error (MedAE). Findings show that moving average (MAV-100) is the most important variable for both BIST -100 index and bank closing prices. Therefore, investors should follow this technical indicator with respect to Turkish banks. In addition ANN shows better performance for all metrics.
A comparison of the peri-implant bone stress generated by the preload with screw tightening between ‘bonded’ and ‘contact’ model

Abstract A number of finite element analyses (FEAs) for the dental implant were performed without regard for preload and with all interfaces ‘fixed-bonded’. The purpose of this study was comparing the stress distributions between the conventional FEA model with all contacting interfaces ‘fixed-bonded’ (bonded model) and the model with the interfaces of the components in ‘contact’ with friction simulated as a preloaded implant (contact model). We further verified the accuracy of the result of the FEA using model experiment. In the contact model, the stress was more widely distributed than in the bonded model. From the model study, the preload induced by screw tightening generated strain at the peri-implant bone, even before the application of external force. As a result, the bonded model could not reproduce the mechanical phenomena, whereas the contact model is considered to be appropriate for analysing mechanical problems.
The Preclotting of Porous Arterial Prostheses

A four-step preclotting method is presented for use with porous filamentous Dacron® prostheses in the fully-hcparinized patient. The method employs controlled fibrin formation within graft interstices, heparin neutralization of all thrombin remaining in the graft wall, and delay of systemic heparin neutralization until 15–20 minutes after clamp release. The resulting flow surface is impervious, smooth and hypothrombogenic. Experimental data are presented which support the rationale of this four-step preclotting method. Four years of clinical experience with the method arc summarized, involving 300 prosthesis limbs used in aortic bifurcation, aortofemoral, femorofemoral, axillary-femoral and femoropoplitcal positions in 192 patients. A clinical perspective of preclotting techniques is presented in which the proper use of this new method is suggested.
Optimization of Integrated Magnetic Field Sensors

Magnetic field sensors based on the Hall effect make use of the Lorentz force acting on charge carriers moving in the plane of the device in a direction perpendicular to the carrier velocity vector. Since electrons and holes move to opposite sides of the device they accumulate at the surfaces and build up a potential difference between those two surfaces, which is a measure for the magnetic field intensity (Fig. 1).
Devolution in England, the British Political Tradition and the Absence of Consultation, Consensus and Consideration

This article explores the nature of devolution unfolding in England following on from the September 2014 Scottish Referendum. It argues that the process of devolution can best be understood as one of elite co-option. Limited attention is being paid to the interest of citizens and the nature of the process to date reveals little evidence to suggest that the existing structures of power in the British political system are being challenged. These dynamics are explained through the conceptual lens offered by the British political tradition (BPT), which stresses the importance the Westminster class places on maintaining central power and control in the context of current devolutionary pressures. This is revealed by the absence from the devolutionary agenda of any meaningful, subsidiarity-informed democratic settlement. The article concludes by suggesting that what is unfolding is a process of economic and administrative rather than democratically informed devolution which will do little to arrest the rise of ‘anti-politics’.