Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Rôle de la dysfonction mitochondriale dans deux maladies neurodégénératives, la Maladie de Huntington et la Maladie de Parkinson

Un dysfonctionnement mitochondrial est implique dans plusieurs maladies neurodegeneratives, correle avec une augmentation des niveaux de stress oxydant. Les anomalies mitochondriales observees dans les tissus des patients, les modeles animaux et cellulaires des maladies de Huntington et de Parkinson, suggerent l'implication de la mitochondrie dans leur pathogenie.Les deux projets discutes dans ce manuscrit se focalisent sur le role des aspects particuliers de la physiologie mitochondriale au cours des deux maladies.
MPEG-7 Texture Descriptors

A texture description is useful in many applications including similarity based image search and browsing. We present here three texture descriptors that are being considered for the final committee draft of the ISO/MPEG-7 standard. A comprehensive overview of the syntax and semantics of these texture descriptors is provided. The Homogeneous Texture Descriptor (HTD) and the Edge Histogram Descriptor (EHD) are useful in similarity search. The HTD characterizes homogeneous texture regions and is also useful in texture classification and recognition. The EHD is applicable when the underlying texture is not homogeneous and can also be used in sketch based retrieval. In addition, a compact descriptor that facilitates browsing applications is also defined. These descriptors are selected after a highly competitive test and evaluation phase within the MPEG group and we briefly summarize the evaluation criteria, the datasets used and the experimental results.
Effect of Synchronized Intermittent Mandatory Ventilation on Respiratory Workload in Infants after Cardiac Surgery

BackgroundSynchronized intermittent mandatory ventilation (SIMV) is commonly used in infants and adults. However, few investigations have examined how SIMV reduces respiratory workload in infants. The authors evaluated how infants’ changing respiratory patterns when reducing SIMV rate increased respiratory load. The authors also investigated whether SIMV reduces infant respiratory workload in proportion to the rate of mandatory breaths and which rate of SIMV provides respiratory workloads similar to those after tracheal extubation. MethodsWhen 11 post–cardiac surgery infants aged 2–11 months were to be weaned with SIMV, the authors randomly applied five levels of mandatory breathing: 0, 5, 10, 15, and 20 breaths/min. All patients underwent ventilation with SIMV mode: pressure control ventilation, 16 cm H2O; inspiratory time, 0.8 s; triggering sensitivity, 0.6 l/min; and positive end-expiratory pressure, 3 cm H2O. After establishing steady-state conditions at each SIMV rate, arterial blood gases were analyzed, and esophageal pressure, airway pressure, and airflow were measured. Inspiratory work of breathing, pressure–time products, and the negative deflection of esophageal pressure were calculated separately for assisted breaths, for spontaneous breaths, and for total breaths per minute. Measurements were repeated after extubation. ResultsAs the SIMV rate decreased, although minute ventilation and arterial carbon dioxide tension were maintained at constant values, spontaneous breathing rate and tidal volume increased. Work of breathing, pressure–time products, and negative deflection of esophageal pressure increased as the SIMV rate decreased. Work of breathing and pressure–time products after extubation were intermediate between those at a SIMV rate of 5 breaths/min and those at 0 breaths/min. ConclusionWhen the load to breathing was increased progressively by decreasing the SIMV rate in post–cardiac surgery infants, tidal volume and spontaneous respiratory rate both increased. In addition, work of breathing and pressure–time products were increased depending on the SIMV rate.
Feedback Mechanisms for Cardiac-Specific MicroRNAs and cAMP Signaling in Electrical Remodeling

Background—Loss of transient outward K+ current (Ito) is well documented in cardiac hypertrophy and failure both in animal models and in humans. Electrical remodeling contributes to prolonged action potential duration and increased incidence of arrhythmias. Furthermore, there is a growing body of evidence linking microRNA (miR) dysregulation to the progression of both conditions. In this study, we examined the mechanistic basis underlying miR dysregulation in electrical remodeling and revealed a novel interaction with the adrenergic signaling pathway. Methods and Results—We first used a tissue-specific knockout model of Dicer1 in cardiomyocytes to reveal the overall regulatory effect of miRs on the ionic currents and action potentials. We then validated the inducible cAMP early repressor as a target of miR-1 and took advantage of a clinically relevant model of post myocardial infarction and miR delivery to probe the mechanistic basis of miR dysregulation in electrical remodeling. These experiments revealed the role of inducible cAMP early repressor as a repressor of miR-1 and Ito, leading to prolonged action potential duration post myocardial infarction. In addition, delivery of miR-1 and miR-133a suppressed inducible cAMP early repressor expression and prevented both electrical remodeling and hypertrophy. Conclusions—Taken together, our results illuminate the mechanistic links between miRs, adrenergic signaling, and electrical remodeling. They also serve as a proof-of-concept for the therapeutic potential of miR delivery post myocardial infarction.
The Factors that Affect the Implementation Success of IS

How to implement an IS (information system) successfully remains a problem. To address this, drawing on information processing theory, this study proposes an integrated model that delineates the relationships among two design variables, risk resolution strategy, and software development success. Experimental design was conducted to test the model. Our results show that risk resolution strategy has a positive effect on software success. As expected, software projects with low goal conflict exhibit better performance of risk resolution strategy, productivity, and process satisfaction than projects with high goal conflict. In addition, organic coordination strategy demonstrates better achievement of risk management, productivity, and process satisfaction than those with mechanistic coordination strategy. Regarding the interaction effect, surprisingly, the findings show the effects on both risk management and process satisfaction are insignificant. Further, as expected the interaction effect on productivity is significant. Implications and discussions are provided.
1.55-/spl mu/m optically pumped wafer-fused tunable VCSELs with 32-nm tuning range

We demonstrate widely tunable InAlGaAs-InP-AlGaAs-GaAs optically pumped vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers operating in the 1.55-/spl mu/m waveband. The tuning range of 32 nm is achieved by applying a low tuning voltage of 4 V. Maximum single-mode output power of 2 mW with less than 1.5-dB power variation over the whole tuning range and side-mode suppression ratio in excess of 30 dB have been obtained.
Personality, Sex and Systemic Inflammation

Objective: Certain personality traits have been associated with increased risk of chronic systemic inflammation. Since the expression of personality traits differs by sex, this factor may also influence the associations between personality and inflammation. The objective of this study was to investigate the association between the five dimensions of personality and high-sensitivity interleukin-6 (IL6) in a healthy population, and to determine whether these relationships were different in men and women. Methods: IL6 was measured in 91 medically healthy participants, and per-sonality was assessed using the Five-Factor Model (FFM) of personality. Physical activity was also measured using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), since physical activity is known to influence inflammation. Multivariable regression models were estimated for each sex, including personality domains and level of physical activity, controlling for age and body mass index (BMI). Results: Higher ratings in the dimension of Openness to Experience predicted higherIL6 values in men only, after adjusting for age and BMI, variables known to affect inflammation (p
Stenting for symptomatic vertebral artery stenosis

Objective: To compare in the Vertebral Artery Ischaemia Stenting Trial (VIST) the risks and benefits of vertebral angioplasty and stenting with best medical treatment (BMT) alone for symptomatic vertebral artery stenosis. Methods: VIST was a prospective, randomized, open-blinded endpoint clinical trial performed in 14 hospitals in the United Kingdom. Participants with symptomatic vertebral stenosis ≥50% were randomly assigned (1:1) to vertebral angioplasty/stenting plus BMT or to BMT alone with randomization stratified by site of stenosis (extracranial vs intracranial). Because of slow recruitment and cessation of funding, recruitment was stopped after 182 participants. Follow-up was a minimum of ≥1 year for each participant. Results: Three patients did not contribute any follow-up data and were excluded, leaving 91 patients in the stent group and 88 in the medical group. Mean follow-up was 3.5 (interquartile range 2.1–4.7) years. Of 61 patients who were stented, stenosis was extracranial in 48 (78.7%) and intracranial in 13 (21.3%). No periprocedural complications occurred with extracranial stenting; 2 strokes occurred during intracranial stenting. The primary endpoint of fatal or nonfatal stroke occurred in 5 patients in the stent group vs 12 in the medical group (hazard ratio 0.40, 95% confidence interval 0.14–1.13, p = 0.08), with an absolute risk reduction of 25 strokes per 1,000 person-years. The hazard ratio for stroke or TIA was 0.50 (p = 0.05). Conclusions: Stenting in extracranial stenosis appears safe with low complication rates. Large phase 3 trials are required to determine whether stenting reduces stroke risk. ISRCTN.com identifier: ISRCTN95212240. Classification of evidence: This study provides Class I evidence that for patients with symptomatic vertebral stenosis, angioplasty with stenting does not reduce the risk of stroke. However, the study lacked the precision to exclude a benefit from stenting.
A microdeletion in Xp11.3 accounts for co‐segregation of retinitis pigmentosa and mental retardation in a large kindred

In a previous report, Aldred et al. [ 1994 ] described a 5‐generation family in which severe retinitis pigmentosa (RP) co‐segregates with mild–moderate mental retardation as an X‐linked recessive phenotype mapping to the broad interval between Xp21‐q21. We re‐examined this family, initially analyzing RP2, a gene in the disease interval that was identified as a cause of RP after the initial report of this family. We found that the male propositus lacked the 5′ three exons of RP2 and that RP2 marks the centromeric boundary of a 1.27 Mb deletion that includes two other annotated genes (SLC9A7, CHST7), one predicted transcript encoding a zinc finger protein (FLJ20344) and two highly conserved miRNAs (mir221, mir222). We conclude that this family is segregating a contiguous gene deletion and that the absence of a functional RP2 accounts, at least in part, for the retinal degeneration while deletion of one or more of the other genes is likely responsible for the mental retardation phenotype. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Metagenomic 16S rRNA Sequencing Analysis of Pacific Oyster (Crassostrea gigas) Microbiota from the Puget Sound Region in the United States

ABSTRACT This is the first study analyzing Pacific oyster microbiota in the Puget Sound estuarine system using a next-generation sequencing method. Taxonomic analysis indicated that Tenericutes, Chlamydiae, Proteobacteria, and Firmicutes were the most abundant phyla. Small numbers of operational taxonomic units (OTUs) belonging to the Vibrio genus were detected in all the oyster microbiome samples.
Paths to Leisure Physical Activity among Adults with Intellectual Disabilities: Self-Efficacy and Social Support

Purpose. This study tested a path model that included perceptions of social support and self-efficacy for leisure physical activity and leisure physical activity participation among adults with intellectual disabilities. Design. A cross-sectional design was used. Data was collected via oral interview. Setting. Community-based group, supported-living settings in one Midwestern state. Sample. A total of 152 adults with mild to moderate intellectual disabilities, which provided a 39% response rate. Measures. Self-efficacy and social support (from family, residential staff, and peers with disabilities) for leisure physical activity were assessed using self-reported scales. Leisure physical activity participation was measured with a self-reported checklist of the frequency of leisure physical activity participation. Analysis. Path analysis was conducted for the entire sample and was repeated for younger and older age groups. Results. The hypothesized model fit the data from each group. Social support and self-efficacy predicted physical activity participation, and self-efficacy served as a mediator between social support and physical activity. Significant sources of social support differed between groups; among younger participants, social support from family predicted physical activity, whereas, for the older group, social support from staff and peers predicted physical activity. Conclusion. Self-efficacy and social support for leisure physical activity are related to leisure physical activity participation among adults with intellectual disabilities who are receiving supported-living services. The results provide information to guide health promotion programs for this group.
Identification of a New Structural Variant of Human Apolipoprotein E , E 2 ( Lys , 46 , Gln ) , in a Type III Hyperlipoproteinemic Subject with the E 3 / 2 Phenotype

Address all correspondence to Dr. R. W. Mahley, The Gladstone Foundation Laboratories, P. 0. Box 40608, San Francisco, CA 94140. Received for publication 26 April 1983 and in revised form 22 June 1983. subject; similar subfractions could be obtained from each subject and were shown to have a similar ability to stimulate cholesteryl ester accumulation in mouse peritoneal macrophages. The new apo E2 variant has also been detected in a second type III hyperlipoproteinemic subject.
Africa in crisis: new challenges and possibilities

1. Tunde Zack-Williams, University of Central Lancashire, Introduction: 'Why is Africa in This Mess? ' 2. Ankie Hoogvelt, University of Sheffield, 'Globalisation, Imperialism and Exclusion: The case of Sub-Saharan Africa. ' 3. Paul Richards, University College London & Wageningen University, Holland. 4. Lionel Cliffe, University of Leeds, 'African Renaissance? ' 5. Rob Dixon, University of Wales Aberystwyth, 'The Colonisation of Political Consciousness: States and Civil Society in Africa' 6. Bruce Baker, Coventry University, 'The Unaccountable State' 7. Julie Hearn, London School of Economics, 'The US Democratic Experiment in Ghana. ' 8. Donna Pankhurst, University of Bradford, 'Globalisation and Democracy: International Donors and Civil Society in Zimbabwe. ' 9. Claire Melamed, Christian Aid, 'Cotton, Food and Work: Contract Farming, Food Security and the Labour Market in Northern Mozambique' 10. Asteris C. Huliaras, 'Continuity and Change in French foreign Policy Toward Africa', 11. Jimmy D. Kandeh, University of Richmond, Virginia, 'Subaltern Terror in Sierra Leone' 12. Christopher Clapham, Lancaster University, 'Problems of Peace Enforcement: Lessons To Be Drawn From Multinational Peacekeeping Operations in On-going conflicts in Africa Index
Portrait of a Privacy Invasion

Abstract The popularity of online social networks has changed the way in which we share personal thoughts, political views, and pictures. Pictures have a particularly important role in the privacy of users, as they can convey substantial information (e.g., a person was attending an event, or has met with another person). Moreover, because of the nature of social networks, it has become increasingly difficult to control who has access to which content. Therefore, when a substantial amount of pictures are accessible to one party, there is a very serious potential for violations of the privacy of users. In this paper, we demonstrate a novel technique that, given a large corpus of pictures shared on a social network, automatically determines who is dating whom, with reasonable precision. More specifically, our approach combines facial recognition, spatial analysis, and machine learning techniques to determine pairs that are dating. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first privacy attack of this kind performed on social networks. We implemented our approach in a tool, called Creepic, and evaluated it on two real-world datasets. The results show that it is possible to automatically extract non-obvious, and nondisclosed, relationships between people represented in a group of pictures, even when the people involved are not directly part of a connected social clique.
LearningPinocchio: adaptive information extraction for real world applications

The new frontier of research on Information Extraction from texts is portability without any knowledge of Natural Language Processing. The market potential is very large in principle, provided that a suitable easy-to-use and effective methodology is provided. In this paper we describe LearningPinocchio, a system for adaptive Information Extraction from texts that is having good commercial and scientific success. Real world applications have been built and evaluation licenses have been released to external companies for application development. In this paper we outline the basic algorithm behind the scenes and present a number of applications developed with LearningPinocchio. Then we report about an evaluation performed by an independent company. Finally, we discuss the general suitability of this IE technology for real world applications and draw some conclusion.
Ajustement biologique du mélèze aux variations environnementales le long d’un gradient altitudinal : approche microdensitométrique de la réponse au climat

La forte variation climatique, notamment de la temperature qui est associee a la distribution altitudinale de certains peuplements d’arbres forestiers peut induire des pressions de selection divergentes favorisant l’expression de phenotypes differents en fonction de l’altitude. Cette these a pour objectif de determiner si des adaptations locales existent et peuvent etre mises en evidence dans un peuplement de meleze (Larix decidua Mill.) distribue le long d’un gradient altitudinal situe dans les Alpes francaises, a proximite de Briancon. Quatre placettes d’environ 200 melezes ont ete delimitees a 2300 m, 2000 m, 1700 m et 1350 m d’altitude le long de ce gradient. Une variabilite phenotypique significative a ete observee entre ces niveaux altitudinaux pour la plupart des caracteres etudies : circonference, hauteur de l’arbre, pourcentage d’aubier ainsi que pour toutes les variables microdensitometriques de cernes sauf une (la largeur de cerne). Une analyse de genetique des populations utilisant des marqueurs microsatellites a mis en evidence une faible influence de la derive genetique sur la diversite genetique et une forte intensite de flux de genes entre les differents niveaux altitudinaux etudies. La differenciation genetique inter-altitudes a ete estimee a l’aide d’une approche in-situ basee sur les donnees phenotypiques seules (PST) et comparee a la differenciation observee a l’aide des marqueurs microsatellites (FST). Cette analyse indique que l’hypothese d’adaptations locales avec l’altitude peut etre raisonnablement avancee pour les caracteres de hauteur, circonference, pourcentage d’aubier et densite du bois initial. Au contraire, l’adaptation locale n’apparait pas comme une hypothese acceptable pour les caracteres de largeur de cerne, surface de cerne, largeur du bois final et densite du bois final.
A tripartite HIV‐1 tat‐env‐rev fusion protein.

A 26 kd protein reactive with antiserum to the transactivator tat of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 (HIV‐1) has been detected in virus producing cells. The 26 kd protein is shown to be a tripartite fusion protein including coding sequences of the tat, envelope (env) and regulator of virion expression (rev) genes. Fusion of these coding sequences occurs by use of a previously undescribed exon within env. This 26 kd protein, designated tnv, has tat but no rev activity detectable with the assay used. The existence of other less abundant tat and rev related proteins in HIV‐1 producing cells is also noted.
Change in reflective functioning during psychotherapy—A single-case study

Abstract It has been suggested that deficits in mentalization are a core problem of borderline personality disorder and that enhancement of mentalization represents a central mechanism of change in psychotherapy with this group of patients. The present single-case study investigates changes in mentalization measured by the Reflective Functioning Scale on the Adult Attachment Interview and its relationship with clinical measures of psychopathology during a long-term psychotherapy. The usefulness of evaluating RF along three subdimensions, the object, content and process of RF, is underlined. Furthermore, it is argued that there is a complex interaction between RF and symptomatology that becomes evident when evaluating RF along the different subdimensions. Areas for future research clarifying the relationship between mentalization, psychotherapy and psychopathology are suggested.
Mutations in the SURF1 gene associated with Leigh syndrome and cytochrome c oxidase deficiency

Cytochrome c oxidase (COX) deficiency is one of the major causes of Leigh Syndrome (LS), a fatal encephalopathy of infancy or childhood, characterized by symmetrical lesions in the basal ganglia and brainstem. Mutations in the nuclear genes encoding COX subunits have not been found in patients with LS and COX deficiency, but mutations have been identified in SURF1. SURF1 encodes a factor involved in COX biogenesis. To date, 30 different mutations have been reported in 40 unrelated patients. We aim to provide an overview of all known mutations in SURF1, and to propose a common nomenclature. Twelve of the mutations were insertion/deletion mutations in exons 1, 4, 6, 8, and 9; 10 were missense/nonsense mutations in exons 2, 4, 5, 7, and 8; and eight were detected at splicing sites in introns 3 to 7. The most frequent mutation was 312_321del 311_312insAT which was found in 12 patients out of 40. Twenty mutations have been described only once. We also list all polymorphisms discovered to date. Hum Mutat 17:374–381, 2001. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Angular Dependence of Coercivity and Bit Error Rate Estimation for Shingled Magnetic Recording With ECC Media

Shingled magnetic recording (SMR) with exchange-coupled composite media provides a feasible way by enhancing the writing capability and reducing the media switching field for achieving ultrahigh areal density of magnetic storage. However, the media switching field is dependent on the angle between the easy axis and the applied field. The adjacent track encroachment induced by this angular disturbance may happen, which could increase recording noise and lead to measurable erasure. This problem is highlighted in SMR system because of the enlarged stray field. A trapezoidal shingled writing head is modeled to explore the spatial field distribution and how the writing performance is affected by the angular dependence of media coercivity. The results show that a larger easy axis deviation and a smaller anisotropy energy density ratio of hard region will be helpful for reducing switching field to improve writing capability. The analysis also suggests that, if properly arranged, the adjacent bits can suffer minimized encroachment caused by variation of angularly induced switching field and attain a satisfactory bit error rate of as low as <;5×10-4.