Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Variation in Biofilm Formation among Strains of Listeria monocytogenes

ABSTRACT Contamination of food by Listeria monocytogenes is thought to occur most frequently in food-processing environments where cells persist due to their ability to attach to stainless steel and other surfaces. Once attached these cells may produce multicellular biofilms that are resistant to disinfection and from which cells can become detached and contaminate food products. Because there is a correlation between virulence and serotype (and thus phylogenetic division) of L. monocytogenes, it is important to determine if there is a link between biofilm formation and disease incidence for L. monocytogenes. Eighty L. monocytogenes isolates were screened for biofilm formation to determine if there is a robust relationship between biofilm formation, phylogenic division, and persistence in the environment. Statistically significant differences were detected between phylogenetic divisions. Increased biofilm formation was observed in Division II strains (serotypes 1/2a and 1/2c), which are not normally associated with food-borne outbreaks. Differences in biofilm formation were also detected between persistent and nonpersistent strains isolated from bulk milk samples, with persistent strains showing increased biofilm formation relative to nonpersistent strains. There were no significant differences detected among serotypes. Exopolysaccharide production correlated with cell adherence for high-biofilm-producing strains. Scanning electron microscopy showed that a high-biofilm-forming strain produced a dense, three-dimensional structure, whereas a low-biofilm-forming strain produced a thin, patchy biofilm. These data are consistent with data on persistent strains forming biofilms but do not support a consistent relationship between enhanced biofilm formation and disease incidence.
Context-aware mobile assistant agents in software project management

Inter team communication within a software project team is currently cumbersome considering the globally distributed development nature of software projects. We have designed a novel approach based on mobile multi-agent technology that would assist the members of a project teams in effectively communicating within themselves in scheduling meetings and relay of other information among globally distributed teams. Modeled using the GAIA methodology, the system also allows for offline scheduling of meetings and automatic synchronization as and when connection is established. The prototypical system has also been designed using the JADE LEAP platform. The novelty of this approach gives us a better insight into the utility of agent technology as applied to personalized software project management systems.
Three is still a Party: An Experiment on Collusion and Entry

This paper presents an experiment to test effects of sequential entry on stability of collusion in oligopoly markets. Previous research suggests that the larger the number of firms, the harder it is to sustain collusion. We find that when groups start off small and the entrant is informed about the history of her group, collusion is easier to sustain than in groups starting large. Implicit coordination problems may be easier resolved in smaller groups and coordination, once established, can be transferred to enlarged groups by means of common codes of conduct. The results also suggest that entrants emulate group behavior.
Deep Sensing: Cooperative Spectrum Sensing Based on Convolutional Neural Networks

In this paper, we investigate cooperative spectrum sensing (CSS) in a cognitive radio network (CRN) where multiple secondary users (SUs) cooperate in order to detect a primary user (PU) which possibly occupies multiple bands simultaneously. Deep cooperative sensing (DCS), which constitutes the first CSS framework based on a convolutional neural network (CNN), is proposed. In DCS, instead of the explicit mathematical modeling of CSS which is hard to compute and also hard to use in practice, the strategy for combining the individual sensing results of the SUs is learned with a CNN using training sensing samples. Accordingly, an environment-specific CSS which considers both spectral and spatial correlation of individual sensing outcomes, is found in an adaptive manner regardless of whether the individual sensing results are quantized or not. Through simulation, we show that the performance of CSS can be improved by the proposed DCS with low complexity even when the number of training samples is moderate.
HOMAGE TO BATEMAN: SEX ROLES PREDICT SEX DIFFERENCES IN SEXUAL SELECTION

Classic sex role theory predicts that sexual selection should be stronger in males in taxa showing conventional sex roles and stronger in females in role reversed mating systems. To test this very central prediction and to assess the utility of different measures of sexual selection, we estimated sexual selection in both sexes in four seed beetle species with divergent sex roles using a novel experimental design. We found that sexual selection was sizeable in females and the strength of sexual selection was similar in females and males in role‐reversed species. Sexual selection was overall significantly stronger in males than in females and residual selection formed a substantial component of net selection in both sexes. Furthermore, sexual selection in females was stronger in role‐reversed species compared to species with conventional sex roles. Variance‐based measures of sexual selection (the Bateman gradient and selection opportunities) were better predictors of sexual dimorphism in reproductive behavior and morphology across species compared to trait‐based measures (selection differentials). Our results highlight the importance of using assays that incorporate components of fitness manifested after mating. We suggest that the Bateman gradient is generally the most informative measure of the strength of sexual selection in comparisons across sexes and/or species.
The Evolution of CONSTANS-Like Gene Families in Barley, Rice, and Arabidopsis1

The CO (CONSTANS) gene of Arabidopsis has an important role in the regulation of flowering by photoperiod. CO is part of a gene family with 17 members that are subdivided into three classes, termed Group I to III here. All members of the family have a CCT (CO,CO-like, TOC1) domain near the carboxy terminus. Group I genes, which include CO, have two zinc finger B-boxes near the amino terminus. Group II genes have one B-box, and Group III genes have one B-box and a second diverged zinc finger. Analysis of rice (Oryza sativa) genomic sequence identified 16 genes (OsA–OsP) that were also divided into these three groups, showing that their evolution predates monocot/dicot divergence. Eight Group I genes (HvCO1–HvCO8) were isolated from barley (Hordeum vulgare), of which two (HvCO1and HvCO2) were highly CO like.HvCO3 and its rice counterpart (OsB) had one B-box that was distantly related to Group II genes and was probably derived by internal deletion of a two B-box Group I gene. Sequence homology and comparative mapping showed that HvCO1 was the counterpart of OsA (Hd1), a major determinant of photoperiod sensitivity in rice. Major genes determining photoperiod response have been mapped in barley and wheat (Triticum aestivum), but none corresponded toCO-like genes. Thus, selection for variation in photoperiod response has affected different genes in rice and temperate cereals. The peptides of HvCO1, HvCO2(barley), and Hd1 (rice) show significant structural differences from CO, particularly amino acid changes that are predicted to abolish B-box2 function, suggesting an evolutionary trend toward a one-B-box structure in the most CO-like cereal genes.
Problems of sustainable tourism development in Strandzha Nature Park.

Strandzha Nature Park is the largest protected natural area in Bulgaria, established to preserve unique ecosystems and biodiversity, as well as the cultural heritage of the mountain. Strandzha Mountain is entirely on Bulgarian territory, being included in the five priority conservation areas in Central and Eastern Europe. It is situated on the second largest migratory path of birds in Europe Via Pontica. The total number of species habitats is 121 and in this indicator the park is foremost among the protected areas in Europe. During the last 15 years, many people in the area started to look for alternative sources of income and at present there are hundreds of tourism establishments that offer accommodation, food and sightseeing in the area. A regional trade mark has been developed and launched to distinguish those accommodation providers and other tourism services suppliers that cover certain requirements for sustainability, developed in a system of principles and concrete criteria, based on the concept of sustainable tourism development. The current status of tourism development in the park includes tourism supply and tourism demand, the potential and carrying capacity of resources, and some data on resource efficiency. Problems discussed are those of territorial development conflicts in territorial planning and management.
Impact of Employee Behavior and Organizational Support on Training Transfer Process

The extant study ascertains the impact of employee behavior, motivation and organizational support on training transfer process of government school employees in Pakistan. A sample of 217 teachers from the elementary and secondary school of Jhelum was used to investigate the impact of organizational support, motivation and employee behavior on training transfer process by employing simple random sampling. In order to evaluate the relationship between employee behavior, motivation, organizational support and training transfer process, correlation and regression techniques were used. It has been investigated from the aftermaths that the training transfer process of elementary and secondary school employees, depends on the organizational support, motivation and employee behavior. Furthermore, the present study explores that the organizational support, motivation and employee behavior has a positive and significant impact on training transfer process of the employees. Results demonstrate that when the organizational support and motivation of the employees is high and they have positive attitude they tend to transfer more training material to students.
Altered Transcription of Murine Genes Induced in the Small Bowel by Administration of Probiotic Strain Lactobacillus rhamnosus HN001

ABSTRACT Lactobacillus rhamnosus HN001 is a probiotic strain reported to increase resistance to epithelium-adherent and -invasive intestinal pathogens in experimental animals. To increase understanding of the relationship between strain HN001 and the bowel, transcription of selected genes in the mucosa of the murine small bowel was measured. Mice previously naive to lactobacilli (Lactobacillus-free mice) were examined after daily exposure to HN001 in drinking water. Comparisons were made to results from matched Lactobacillus-free mice. Infant and adult mice were investigated to provide a temporal view of gene expression in response to exposure to HN001. Genes sgk1, angptl4, and hspa1b, associated with the apoptosis pathway, were selected for investigation by reverse transcription-quantitative PCR on the basis of a preliminary duodenal DNA microarray screen. Normalized to gapdh gene transcription, these three genes were upregulated after 6 to 10 days exposure of adult mice to HN001. Angptl4 was shown by immunofluorescence to be upregulated in duodenal epithelial cells of mucosal samples. Epithelial cell migration was faster in HN001-exposed mice than in the Lactobacillus-free controls. Transcriptional responses in infant mice differed according to bowel region and age. For example, sgk1 was upregulated in duodenal, jejunal, and ileal mucosa of mice less than 25 days old, whereas angptl4 and hspa1b were upregulated at 10 days in the duodenum but downregulated in the jejunal mucosa until mice were 25 days old. Overall, the results provide links between a probiotic strain, mucosal gene expression, and host phenotype, which may be useful in delineating mechanisms of probiotic action.
An Optimized Sensing and Detection of Cognitive Radio Network using Monte Carlo Simulation

The Cognitive Radio Network is intelligent network, which has the capability to efficiently utilize the available spectrum using various spectrum-sensing techniques, in addition with the intelligent energy consumption and bandwidth allocation. In this paper we are simulating the cognitive radio network using Monte-Carlo simulation model. The proposed system is tested under Additive White Gaussian noise (AWGN) channel and Rayleigh Fading Channel environment. During simulation the probability of detection (Pd) is calculated for given signal to noise ratio (SNR) and false alarm rate (Pf). To enhance the system performance median filter is implemented which significantly enhances the performance of detection probability for given SNR and Pf.
An improved quasi-Z-source inverter for grid-connected photovoltaic system

An improved quasi-Z-source inverter for grid-connected photovoltaic system is proposed in this study. Two tapped-inductors are substituted for the inductors of quasi-Z-source inverter (qZSI) respectively. Compared with the classic topology, the proposed topology can not only arise the boost ability but also make the voltage stress be decreased. The operation principle and voltage stress of the proposed topology is analyzed theoretically and compared with that of qZSI and switched-inductor quasi-Z-source inverter (SL-qZSI). The results of simulations and experiments are shown to validate the feasibility of the proposed topology.
Sorcin Links Pancreatic β-Cell Lipotoxicity to ER Ca2+ Stores

Preserving β-cell function during the development of obesity and insulin resistance would limit the worldwide epidemic of type 2 diabetes. Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) calcium (Ca2+) depletion induced by saturated free fatty acids and cytokines causes β-cell ER stress and apoptosis, but the molecular mechanisms behind these phenomena are still poorly understood. Here, we demonstrate that palmitate-induced sorcin downregulation and subsequent increases in glucose-6-phosphatase catalytic subunit-2 (G6PC2) levels contribute to lipotoxicity. Sorcin is a calcium sensor protein involved in maintaining ER Ca2+ by inhibiting ryanodine receptor activity and playing a role in terminating Ca2+-induced Ca2+ release. G6PC2, a genome-wide association study gene associated with fasting blood glucose, is a negative regulator of glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS). High-fat feeding in mice and chronic exposure of human islets to palmitate decreases endogenous sorcin expression while levels of G6PC2 mRNA increase. Sorcin-null mice are glucose intolerant, with markedly impaired GSIS and increased expression of G6pc2. Under high-fat diet, mice overexpressing sorcin in the β-cell display improved glucose tolerance, fasting blood glucose, and GSIS, whereas G6PC2 levels are decreased and cytosolic and ER Ca2+ are increased in transgenic islets. Sorcin may thus provide a target for intervention in type 2 diabetes.
The ‘unified hypothesis’ of Geddes et al. is not supported by the data

Inflicted head injury to the developing brain frequently results in serious disability. The pathogenesis of the neuraxial and ocular findings in infants believed to have suffered inflicted head injury remains the subject of considerable debate. Recent neuropathology studies of fatal cases of inflicted head injury and of a foetal/perinatal non-traumatic model have led to the proposal that there is a ‘unified hypothesis’, the essential feature of which is hypoxic brain swelling secondary to cervicomedullary injury. It has been suggested that less than violent forces may be involved and even that some cases may not be due to trauma at all. The purpose of this paper is to provide a critical review of the data upon which these suppositions are based on a background of what is already known. It is submitted that there are serious flaws in the methodology; the conclusions reached cannot logically be drawn from the data; and the ‘unified hypothesis’ is not supported by the evidence. On the basis of the data presented, it is also difficult to sustain the secondary hypothesis purporting to describe a minority cohort with ‘infantile encephalopathy with subdural and retinal bleeding’ of non-traumatic causation.
Characteristics of Sindbis virus temperature-sensitive mutants in cultured BHK-21 and Aedes albopictus (Mosquito) cells

A number of the temperature-sensitive mutants of Sindbis virus originally isolated and characterized by Burge and Pfefferkorn (1966, 1968) were reexamined for their abilities to grow and complement one another in cultured BHK-21 and Aedes albopictus (mosquito) cells. The response of the mutants to conditions of high and low temperature was similar in cultured cells of both the vertebrate and invertebrate hosts. Complementation experiments in BHK-21 cells produced growth patterns similar to those described by Burge and Pfefferkorn for chicken embryo fibroblast cells (1966) and placed the mutants into six nonoverlapping complementation groups. When examined in the cultured mosquito cells, only three of the nine mutants used in this study demonstrated complementation under a variety of experimental conditions. Homologous interference experiments demonstrated that the unusual patterns of complementation obtained in the A. albopictus cells did not result from an inefficient infection of the invertebrate cells by the mutants.
Twenty‐four new cases of WT1 germline mutations and review of the literature: Genotype/phenotype correlations for Wilms tumor development

We report here 24 new Wilms tumor (WT) patients with germline WT1 alterations and a synopsis of our own previously described and literature cases in whom age of tumor‐onset, gender, and laterality were known. This combined database contains 282 patients, 117 patients with and 165 without WT1 germline alterations. Using this information we have determined the median age of tumor‐onset for patients with (12.5 months) and without WT1 gene alterations (36 months). The earliest onset was in patients with truncation (12 mo, 66 patients), followed by missense mutations (18 mo, 30 patients) and deletions (22 mo, 21 patients). Patients with the two most frequent nonsense mutations R362X and R390X and the Denys–Drash syndrome (DDS) hot spot mutation R394W/Q/L had a very early onset (9, 12, and 18 mo, respectively). The highest number of bilateral tumors was observed in the group of truncation mutations, with a higher percentage of bilateral tumors when truncations occurred in the 5′ half of the WT1 gene. In addition to genital tract anomalies (GU), early onset nephrotic syndrome with diffuse mesangial sclerosis and stromal‐predominant histology, tumor bilaterality, and early age of onset can now be added to the list of risk factors for carrying a germline WT1 mutation. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Supervised autonomous robotic soft tissue surgery

Supervised autonomous in vivo robotic surgery is possible on soft tissues and outperforms standard clinical techniques in a dynamic preclinical environment. Hands-free The operating room may someday be run by robots, with surgeons overseeing their moves. Shademan et al. designed a “Smart Tissue Autonomous Robot,” or STAR, which consists of tools for suturing as well as fluorescent and 3D imaging, force sensing, and submillimeter positioning. With all of these components, the authors were able to use STAR for soft tissue surgery—a difficult task for a robot given tissue deformity and mobility. Surgeons tested STAR against manual surgery, laparoscopy, and robot-assisted surgery for porcine intestinal anastomosis, and found that the supervised autonomous surgery offered by the STAR system was superior. The current paradigm of robot-assisted surgeries (RASs) depends entirely on an individual surgeon’s manual capability. Autonomous robotic surgery—removing the surgeon’s hands—promises enhanced efficacy, safety, and improved access to optimized surgical techniques. Surgeries involving soft tissue have not been performed autonomously because of technological limitations, including lack of vision systems that can distinguish and track the target tissues in dynamic surgical environments and lack of intelligent algorithms that can execute complex surgical tasks. We demonstrate in vivo supervised autonomous soft tissue surgery in an open surgical setting, enabled by a plenoptic three-dimensional and near-infrared fluorescent (NIRF) imaging system and an autonomous suturing algorithm. Inspired by the best human surgical practices, a computer program generates a plan to complete complex surgical tasks on deformable soft tissue, such as suturing and intestinal anastomosis. We compared metrics of anastomosis—including the consistency of suturing informed by the average suture spacing, the pressure at which the anastomosis leaked, the number of mistakes that required removing the needle from the tissue, completion time, and lumen reduction in intestinal anastomoses—between our supervised autonomous system, manual laparoscopic surgery, and clinically used RAS approaches. Despite dynamic scene changes and tissue movement during surgery, we demonstrate that the outcome of supervised autonomous procedures is superior to surgery performed by expert surgeons and RAS techniques in ex vivo porcine tissues and in living pigs. These results demonstrate the potential for autonomous robots to improve the efficacy, consistency, functional outcome, and accessibility of surgical techniques.
Adherence to the World Cancer Research Fund/American Institute for Cancer Research guidelines and risk of death in Europe: results from the European Prospective Investigation into Nutrition and Cancer cohort study1,4.

BACKGROUND In 2007, the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) and the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) issued recommendations on diet, physical activity, and weight management for cancer prevention on the basis of the most comprehensive collection of available evidence. OBJECTIVE We investigated whether concordance with WCRF/AICR recommendations is related to risk of death. DESIGN The current study included 378,864 participants from 9 European countries enrolled in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition study. At recruitment (1992-1998), dietary, anthropometric, and lifestyle information was collected. A WCRF/AICR score, which incorporated 6 of the WCRF/AICR recommendations for men [regarding body fatness, physical activity, foods and drinks that promote weight gain, plant foods, animal foods, and alcoholic drinks (score range: 0-6)] and 7 WCRF/AICR recommendations for women [plus breastfeeding (score range: 0-7)], was constructed. Higher scores indicated greater concordance with WCRF/AICR recommendations. Associations between the WCRF/AICR score and risks of total and cause-specific death were estimated by using Cox regression analysis. RESULTS After a median follow-up time of 12.8 y, 23,828 deaths were identified. Participants within the highest category of the WCRF/AICR score (5-6 points in men; 6-7 points in women) had a 34% lower hazard of death (95% CI: 0.59, 0.75) compared with participants within the lowest category of the WCRF/AICR score (0-2 points in men; 0-3 points in women). Significant inverse associations were observed in all countries. The WCRF/AICR score was also significantly associated with a lower hazard of dying from cancer, circulatory disease, and respiratory disease. CONCLUSION Results of this study suggest that following WCRF/AICR recommendations could significantly increase longevity.