Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Host Susceptibility to the Attaching and Effacing Bacterial Pathogen Citrobacter rodentium

ABSTRACT Many studies have shown that genetic susceptibility plays a key role in determining whether bacterial pathogens successfully infect and cause disease in potential hosts. Surprisingly, whether host genetics influence the pathogenesis of attaching and effacing (A/E) bacteria such as enteropathogenic and enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli has not been examined. To address this issue, we infected various mouse strains with Citrobacter rodentium, a member of the A/E pathogen family. Of the strains tested, the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) nonresponder C3H/HeJ mouse strain experienced more rapid and extensive bacterial colonization than did other strains. Moreover, the high bacterial load in these mice was associated with accelerated crypt hyperplasia, mucosal ulceration, and bleeding, together with very high mortality rates. Interestingly, the basis for the increased susceptibility was not due to LPS hyporesponsiveness, as the genetically related but LPS-responsive C3H/HeOuJ and C3H/HeN mouse strains were also susceptible to infection. Analysis of the intestinal pathology in these susceptible strains revealed significant crypt epithelial cell apoptosis (terminal deoxynucleotidyltransferase-mediated dUTP-biotin nick end label staining) as well as bacterial translocation to the mesenteric lymph nodes. Further studies with infection of SCID (T- and B-lymphocyte-deficient) C3H/HeJ mice demonstrated that loss of lymphocytes had no effect on bacterial numbers but did reduce crypt cell apoptosis and delayed mortality. These studies thus identify the adaptive immune system, crypt cell apoptosis, and bacterial translocation but not LPS responsiveness as contributing to the tissue pathology and mortality seen during C. rodentium infection of highly susceptible mouse strains. Determining the basis for these strains' susceptibility to intestinal colonization by an A/E pathogen will be the focus of future studies.
Demonstration of fully functional 8Mb perpendicular STT-MRAM chips with sub-5ns writing for non-volatile embedded memories

We present major breakthroughs in MTJ design for STT-MRAM applications allowing reliable write for pulse lengths down to 1.5ns, data retention up to 125°C for 10 years and full compatibility with BEOL process up to 400°C for 1 hour. We have successfully integrated the novel structure onto an 8Mbit test chip. We demonstrate writing of every single cell in the array using sub-5ns pulses over a wide temperature range without using any error correction. We also show that sensing times of 4ns are sufficient to read every data cell. The inherent scalability of the design makes it a prime candidate for universal embedded non-volatile memories down to the 28nm node and beyond.
Chicken and Shrimp: Two Perspectives on Globalization: The Chicken Trail: Following Workers, Migrants, and Corporations across the Americas and Buoyancy on the Bayou: Shrimpers Face the Rising Tide of Globalization

American Ruins, Camilo José Vergara photographed the same sites frequently over a tenyear period, producing a time-lapse effect of once vibrant buildings decaying right before your eyes. Seeing this process illustrates the political neglect that enabled the production of vacant lots so ubiquitous around the city. It shows that empty spaces are not the outcome of natural causes. More broadly, films like Urbanized, and case studies of other countries, for example, Germany’s restructuring and transformation of mines and mills into cultural institutions (such as spaces for art installations, music venues, a mining museum) in the former industrial district of the Ruhr Valley, and the large-scale cooperatives at Mondragon in Spain, can engender alternative visions for responding to large-scale global forces. Documentaries can train the sociological imagination and empowers viewers to think of themselves as more than passive observers of a spectacle. The larger economic and political context that produced violence, job loss, and urban devastation lies beyond the scope of the films under review. Watching the films in the shadow of the bankruptcy proceedings raises the question of scale of the economic development projects featured in We Are Not Ghosts and the art installations in Detropia. Can urban gardens sustain the community? Are they meant as a replacement of the old manufacturing base? Will artists moving into the city do more than gentrify neighborhoods and encourage a few new cafes to locate in the city? What new jobs are envisioned for the future of the Motor City? Little is made of the possibility of larger worker-managed cooperatives. Moreover, celebrating the bright spots, such as the burgeoning urban agricultural movement, without acknowledging constraints and structural barriers minimizes the hard road ahead to foster long-term sustainable growth. Focusing on Detroit also leaves the impression that the issues facing Detroit can be solved at a city level. However, the politics of urban economic development will require regionalized political governance and a national urban agenda. For example, mass transit cannot succeed without support from suburban governments. Here in the Detroit Metropolitan area, residents must confront the troubled racial dynamics that contributed to urban decline and suburban development. Both films only hint at racial politics and long-term tensions that have made it difficult to establish coalitions across geographical as well as racial and class divides. Yet at their best, the films inspire positive action toward economic transformation on a small scale. Any city offers places and sites for ethnographic study and exploration, allowing us to diagnose a problem, see how it is produced, and identify possible solutions. Although Detropia and We Are Not Ghosts do not offer a blueprint for the way forward, they open new vistas for reimagining and reinventing the city of Detroit.
On the Development of a Digital Meteorological Model for Simulating Future Air Traffic Management Automation

Aviation Meteorology plays an essential role for the Air Traffic Management (ATM) automation. The availability of accurate estimates of atmosphere properties would largely increase safety and efficiency of air traffic operations. The work presented here looks forward to a net-centric serviceoriented ATM system architecture where available data, airground connectivity and modern computational resources and techniques are taken advantage of to attain a 4D predictive model of atmospheric properties specifically designed for real-time support to air vehicle operations in highly dense terminal manoeuvring areas. The effort, conducted as part of the ATLANTIDA project, consists of the development of a digital meteo model (DMET) that combines atmospheric data from several sources into a 4D predictive scenario that is made available to subscribers through periodic updates. Atmospheric data sources include forecasts from global and mesoscale weather models as well as live observations provided by ground stations and aircraft in the scene. The model produced consists of a 4D grid of pressure, temperature and wind data fields valid over an airspace cube of about 150 × 150 × 20 km, within a time interval of 2.5 hours. On top of this model, minimum time, minimum consumption and other interesting trajectories are simulated and shown, all being processed remotely in a supercomputing centre.
Augmentation of Streptokinase‐Induced Thrombolysis by Heparin and Prostacyclin

The ability of heparin and prostacyclin to improve streptokinase-induced recanalization was examined in open-chest dogs subjected to thrombotic occlusion of the left circumflex coronary artery. Vessel injury was produced by electrical stimulation of the intimai surface at the site of a noncircumferential fixed stenosis. Animals were divided into three treatment groups as follows: group 1 received intracoronary streptokinase alone (75,000 units/80 min starting 30 min postocclusion; n = 8); group 2 received streptokinase plus heparin (300 units/ kg i.v. at 20 min postocclusion; n = 7); group 3 received streptokinase plus heparin plus prostacyclin (500 ng/kg/ min, intracoronary, given intermittently during reperfusion; n = 7). Overall, the groups did not differ with respect to preocclusion coronary blood flow (27 ± 1 ml/ min; ±SEM), the duration of streptokinase infusion required to achieve reflow (15 ± 2 min), and the percentage of animals recanalized (85%). They did differ in the average rate of reflow, which was greater in group 2 (16 ± 2 ml/min) and group 3 (20 ± 4 ml/min) as compared with group I (6 ± 1 ml/min; p < 0.05). The intermittent reocclusions which persisted during reperfusion in group 1 and 2 dogs were diminished during the periodic infusions of prostacyclin. Thrombus mass at the site of injury was comparable among groups. In contrast, distal circumflex thrombi, about twice the weight of the proximal mass, were observed in all group 1 dogs and were undetectable in group 2 and 3 animals. Transient improvements in contractile force during reperfusion were observed only with groups 2 and 3. These data suggest that heparin and prostacyclin are effective in increasing antegrade flow during recanalization achieved with thrombolytic therapy.
Interannual variability of terrestrial net ecosystem productivity over China: regional contributions and climate attribution

China’s terrestrial ecosystems play an important role in the global carbon cycle. Regional contributions to the interannual variation (IAV) of China’s terrestrial carbon sink and the attributions to climate variations are not well understood. Here we have investigated how terrestrial ecosystems in the four climate zones with various climate variabilities contribute to the IAV in China’s terrestrial net ecosystem productivity (NEP) using modeled carbon fluxes data from six ecosystems models. Model results show that the monsoonal region of China dominates national NEP IAV with a contribution of 86% (69%–96%) on average. Yearly national NEP changes are mostly driven by gross primary productivity IAV and half of the annual variation results from NEP changes in summer. Regional contributions to NEP IAV in China are consistent with their contributions to the magnitude of national NEP. Rainfall variability dominates the NEP annual variability in China. Precipitation in the temperate monsoon climate zone makes the largest contribution (23%) to the IAV of NEP in China because of both the high sensitivity of terrestrial ecosystem carbon uptake to rainfall and the large fluctuation in the precipitation caused by the East Asian summer monsoon anomalies. Our results suggest that NEP IAV can be mainly attributed to ecosystems with larger productivity and response to precipitation, and highlight the importance of monsoon climate systems with high seasonal and interannual variability in driving internannual variation in the land carbon sink.
An Empirical Assessment of Optimal Government Size and Economic Growth in Light of the Armey Curve: A Panel Data Investigation

The indispensable role of government expenditure in dictating the economic growth performances in any economy cannot be overlooked. The need of greater resource mobilization through enhancement of government expenditure has also been acknowledged in the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development agenda. It has been specifically addressed as a key macroeconomic tool to ensure a couple of the crucial Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). However, the relationship between the optimal size of government expenditure and economic growth has displayed ambiguity in the empirical literature which questions the effectiveness of rapidly increasing the volume of government expenditure across the globe, without putting much emphasis on the country or region-specific disparities. This paper aims to bridge this gap in the empirical literature investigating the non-linear nexus between government size and economic growth in light of the Armey curve. This paper employed annual data stemming from 1980 to 2016 for a panel of 9 selected countries from South and Southeast Asia. For robustness check, the authors also considered subpanel investigations with respect to region-specific and lower-middle-income economies. In the core regression model, the economic growth rate was expressed as a function of government expenditure and other control variables. The fixed effects panel estimation methodology was the chosen estimation tool. The results provide statistical evidence in favor of the validity of the Armey Curve in context of the full panel and the Southeast Asian subpanel data. This paper also sheds light on the threshold optimal levels of government expenditure. In light of the estimated statistical evidence, the optimal government sizes in the context of the full panel and the Southeast Asian subpanel are estimated to be 148,627.5 and 57,765.7 million US dollars.
An Evaluation of the Accuracy of Classical Models for Computing the Membrane Potential and Extracellular Potential for Neurons

Two mathematical models are part of the foundation of Computational neurophysiology; (a) the Cable equation is used to compute the membrane potential of neurons, and, (b) volume-conductor theory describes the extracellular potential around neurons. In the standard procedure for computing extracellular potentials, the transmembrane currents are computed by means of (a) and the extracellular potentials are computed using an explicit sum over analytical point-current source solutions as prescribed by volume conductor theory. Both models are extremely useful as they allow huge simplifications of the computational efforts involved in computing extracellular potentials. However, there are more accurate, though computationally very expensive, models available where the potentials inside and outside the neurons are computed simultaneously in a self-consistent scheme. In the present work we explore the accuracy of the classical models (a) and (b) by comparing them to these more accurate schemes. The main assumption of (a) is that the ephaptic current can be ignored in the derivation of the Cable equation. We find, however, for our examples with stylized neurons, that the ephaptic current is comparable in magnitude to other currents involved in the computations, suggesting that it may be significant—at least in parts of the simulation. The magnitude of the error introduced in the membrane potential is several millivolts, and this error also translates into errors in the predicted extracellular potentials. While the error becomes negligible if we assume the extracellular conductivity to be very large, this assumption is, unfortunately, not easy to justify a priori for all situations of interest.
Profile of Aberrant CpG Island Methylation Along the Multistep Pathway of Gastric Carcinogenesis

To date, several reports on methylation of various genes in gastric cancer (GC) have been published. However, most of these studies focused on cancer tissues or a single gene only and gave no information about the methylation status of specific genes in the premalignant stages or about the concurrent methylation of other genes in specific lesions. We attempted to investigate methylation of multiple genes in a large sample collection of GC (n = 80), gastric adenoma (GA) (n = 79), intestinal metaplasia (IM) (n = 57), and chronic gastritis (CG) (n = 74). We determined the methylation frequency of 12 genes, including APC, COX-2, DAP-kinase, E-cadherin, GSTP1, hMLH1, MGMT, p16, p14, RASSF1A, THBS1, and TIMP3 by methylation-specific PCR. Five different classes of methylation behaviors were found: (1) genes methylated in GC only (GSTP1 and RASSF1A); (2) genes showing low methylation frequency (<12%) in CG, IM, and GA, but significantly higher methylation frequency in GC (COX-2, hMLH1, and p16); (3) a gene with low and similar methylation frequency (8.8–21.3%) in four-step lesions (MGMT); (4) genes with high and similar methylation frequency (53–85%) in four-step lesions (APC and E-cadherin); and (5) genes showing an increasing tendency with or without fluctuation of the methylation frequency along the progression (DAP-kinase, p14, THBS1, and TIMP3). The average number of methylated genes was 2.7, 3.6, 3.4, and 5.2 per 12 tested genes in CG, IM, GA, and GC, respectively. Our results suggest that tumor suppressor genes show a gene type–specific methylation profile and that aberrant CpG island methylation tends to accumulate along the pathway of multistep carcinogenesis.
Context based semantic scene classification and recognition used for a vision-based mobile robot

This paper presents a novel method using accelerated KAZE (AKAZE) and Gist for a context-based semantic classification and recognition of indoor scenes used for a vision-based mobile robot. Our method represents spatial relations among categories for mapping neighborhood units on category maps using counter propagation networks (CPNs) while maintaining sequential information of labels generated from adaptive resonance theory 2 (ART-2) networks. We evaluated the performance and accuracy of semantic categories using KTH-IDOL benchmark datasets. Compared with the earlier described method using scale-invariant feature transform (SIFT), accuracies of classification, recognition, and F-measure were improved to 2.9%, 3.4%, and 3.3% of our method using AKAZE. For analyzing results, confusion matrixes show that incorrect images between corridors and rooms are decreased in our method compared with the former method. We consider that our proposed feature representation method based on context and category formation, combined with ART-2 and CPNs, is useful for indoor scene classification and recognition for robot vision.
Correlation of self-assessed fatigue and alertness in multiple sclerosis

Background: Fatigue is the most common symptom in multiple sclerosis patients, but is difficult to measure; quantification thus relies on self-assessed questionnaires. Objective: To evaluate a battery of neuropsychological tests regarding their capacity to objectify self-reported fatigue. Methods: We assessed the correlation between age, gender, education, Kurtzke’s Expanded Disability Status Scale, depression, fatigue and neuropsychological testing using a cross-sectional approach in 110 multiple sclerosis patients. Fatigue was measured with the Fatigue Severity Scale. Cognition was measured using a series of neuropsychological tests including three subtests of the Test of Attentional Performance, the Brief Repeatable Battery of Neuropsychological Tests and the Faces Symbol Test. Results: According to the Fatigue Severity Scale 51.4% of the cohort were fatigued (scores ≥4). Age, education and depression showed a significant correlation with the Fatigue Severity Scale. Only 5.5% of the cohort exhibited cognitive impairment in the Brief Repeatable Battery of Neuropsychological Tests scores. After correction for age, education, Expanded Disability Status Scale and depression, Fatigue Severity Scale scores were an independent predictor of performance in the alertness subtest of the Test of Attentional Performance (standardized coefficient beta = 0.298, p = 0.014). Conclusion: The alertness subtest of the Test of Attentional Performance may offer an objective method of evaluating self-reported fatigue, and may therefore — in addition to the Fatigue Severity Scale — be a suitable tool for the assessment of multiple sclerosis patients complaining of fatigue.
The discrete weighted Lindley distribution

We have introduced the discrete analogue of the weighted Lindley distribution, namely the discrete weighted Lindley distribution. We present some of its mathematical properties; the probability mass function, distribution function, survival function, hazard rate function, probability generating function and moment generating function. In addition, the estimation of parameters for this distribution is discussed based on maximum likelihood method. The application to biological data which is the number of borers per hill of the European corn is presented. Moreover, the Anderson and Darling (AD) statistic for discrete distribution is used to compare among the proposed, Poisson, and negative binomial distributions.
Surgical Management of Regional Lymph Nodes in Patients with Melanoma Experience with 4682 Patients

Summary Background DataLarge retrospective studies suggest that ELND may improve the prognosis of patients with intermediate-thickness melanomas; however, that improvement has not been observed in two randomized prospective controlled trials. MethodsThe charts of 4682 patients treated at a single institution for localized or regional disease were reviewed individually. The median follow-up was 4.7 years, with 814 patients followed more than 10 years. The data were tabulated and evaluated with the aid of a computer data base system. ResultsAmong patients with nodal metastases, 10% of nodal metastases were to contralateral nodes, and 6% were to nodal basins that would not be predicted by classic models of lymphatic drainage; in 13% of patients, nodal metastases occurred to greater than one nodal basin (3% of the entire study group). For all thickness ranges, the incidence of nodal metastases was comparable to the incidence of distant metastases; intermediate-thickness lesions had no relative predilection for nodal metastases. At the initial evaluation, regional nodal basins were clinically negative in 3550 patients, of whom 911 (25.7%) underwent ELND. Stratified into five thickness groups (< 0.76 mm, 0.76 to 1.5 mm, 1.5 to 2.5 mm, 2.5 to 4 mm, and > 4 mm), pathologically positive nodes were identified in 0%, 5%, 16%, 24%, and 36%, respectively (16% overall). Among the 911 patients who underwent ELND, 214 (23%) had nodal metastases, 143 at the time of ELND and 71 at a later date. Of these 71 patients, 31 (44%) had nodal metastases in a previously dissected nodal basin, and 40 (56%) had them in basins not previously dissected. The survival of
Conserved region 3 of the adenovirus type 5 DNA-binding protein is important for interaction with single-stranded DNA

The adenovirus-encoded single-stranded DNA-binding protein (DBP) functions in viral DNA replication and several aspects of RNA metabolism. Previous studies (G. A. M. Neale and G. R. Kitchingman, J. Biol. Chem. 264:3153-3159, 1989) have defined three highly conserved regions in the carboxy-terminal domain of the protein (amino acids 178 to 186, 322 to 330, and 464 to 475) that may be involved in the binding of the protein to single-stranded DNA. We examined the role of conserved region 3 (464 to 475) by constructing nine classes of point mutants with from one to four amino acid changes. The point mutants were tested for their ability to assist adeno-associated virus DNA replication. All nine differed from wild-type DBP; seven were essentially nonfunctional, whereas two had 55 and 145%, respectively, of the wild-type DBP helper activity. Three of the mutants were found to be temperature sensitive, with significantly greater helper activity at 33 degrees C than at 37 degrees C. All nine mutants produced essentially wild-type levels of protein. One monoclonal antibody against the DBP, termed 2/4, did not immunoprecipitate the mutant DBPs as well as wild-type DBP, indicating either that the antibody recognized sequences around CR3 or that the conformation of the protein around the epitope recognized by 2/4 had changed. Two of the three temperature-sensitive DBP mutants bound to single-stranded DNA-cellulose with the same affinity as wild-type DBP at 4 degrees C; the remaining mutants all showed reduced affinity. These results demonstrated that many of the residues within conserved region 3 of the DBP are important for interaction of the protein with nucleic acid.