Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Photo- and Reduction-Responsive Polymersomes for Programmed Release of Small and Macromolecular Payloads.

We report on the preparation of photo- and reduction-responsive diblock copolymers through reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization of a coumarin-based disulfide-containing monomer (i.e., CSSMA) using a poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO)-based macroRAFT agent. The resulting amphiphilic PEO- b-PCSSMA copolymers self-assembled into polymersomes with hydrophilic PEO shielding coronas and hydrophobic bilayer membranes. Upon irradiating the polymersomes with visible light (e.g., 430 nm), the coumarin moieties within the bilayer membranes were cleaved with the generation of primary amine groups, which spontaneously underwent inter/intrachain amidation reactions with the ester moieties, thereby tracelessly cross-linking and permeating the bilayer membranes. Notably, this process only gave rise to the release of small molecule payloads (e.g., doxorubicin hydrochloride, DOX) while large molecule encapsulants (e.g., Texas red-labeled dextran, TR-dextran) were retained within the cross-linked polymersomes due to the preservation of the integrity of the vesicular nanostructures. However, cross-linked polymersomes undergo further structural disintegration upon incubation with glutathione (GSH) due to the scission of disulfide linkages, resulting in the release of macromolecular payloads. Thus, dual-stimuli responsive polymersomes with tracelessly cross-linkable characteristics enable sequential release of payloads with spatiotemporal precision, which could be of promising applications in synergistic loading and programmed release of therapeutics.
Trusted SLA Monitoring for Billing System in Public Cloud computing Environment

: This paper presents about a secure and non-obstructive billing system using the concept THEMIS. The main objective of this system is to provide a full-fledged trusted, billing system tailored from a cloud computing environment. The SLA (Service Level Agreement) sharing is done between user and CSPs (Cloud Service Provider). S-Mon forgery-resistive SLA monitoring mechanism is devised by TPM (Trusted Platform Module).
Open Access Rheumatology: Research and Reviews Dovepress the Pain-relieving Qualities of Exercise in Knee Osteoarthritis

The purpose of this review article is to explore the role of therapeutic exercise in managing the pain associated with knee osteoarthritis (OA). Therapeutic exercise is often recommended as a first-line conservative treatment for knee OA, and current evidence supports exercise as an effective pain-relieving intervention. We explore the current state of evidence for exercise as a pain-relieving intervention for knee OA. Next, the mechanisms by which knee OA pain occurs and the potential ways in which exercise may act on those mechanisms are discussed. Clinical applicability and future research directions are suggested. Although evidence demonstrates that exercise reduces knee OA pain, optimal exercise mode and dosage have not been determined. In addition, it is not clearly understood whether exercise provides pain relief via peripheral or central mechanisms or a combination of both. Published clinical trials have explored a variety of interventions, but these interventions have not been specifically designed to target pain pathways. Current evidence strongly supports exercise as a pain-relieving option for those with knee OA. Future research needs to illuminate the mechanisms by which exercise reduces the pain associated with knee OA and the development of therapeutic exercise interventions to specifically target these mechanisms.
Still armed after domestication? Impacts of domestication and agronomic selection on silicon defences in cereals

Functional Ecology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of British Ecological Society. Plant phenotypes reflect trade-offs between competing resource-intensive physiological processes. A shift in resource allocation, away from anti-herbivore defences and towards growth and reproduction, is predicted through plant domestication, such that crops are faster growing and higher yielding than their wild ancestors. These changes are hypothesized to have come at the cost of defence investment, leaving crops “disarmed by domestication”. Silicon is the principal anti-herbivore defence in grasses, including many of our most important staple cereal crops, but the impact of domestication on silicon-based defences is unknown. We measured the effects of both domestication and modern agronomic selection on growth rate and a suite of anti-herbivore defences, specifically leaf toughness, silicon and phenolic concentrations. Our comparison of wild, landrace and modern cultivated cereals spanned multiple cereal species, including wheat, barley and maize, sampling eight independent domestication events and five examples of modern agronomic selection. Leaf silicon concentration showed a small, but significant, 10% reduction through domestication, but there was no effect of modern agronomic selection, and phenolic concentration was not affected by either factor. Silicon concentration correlated positively with leaf tensile strength, but negatively with foliar phenolic concentrations, suggesting a trade-off between chemical and physical defences. Size-standardized growth rate was independent of domestication status, and did not trade-off with silicon or phenolic defences. However, modelling showed that relative growth rate slowed more with increasing size in plants with higher silicon levels, so that they reached a smaller final size, implying a cost of silicon-based defence. We found the opposite pattern for phenolic-based defence, with increasing phenolic concentrations associated with a greater plant size at maturity, and faster maximum relative growth rates. Silicon-based defences have been reduced in cereals through domestication, consistent with our predicted costs of these defences to growth. However, modern agronomic selection has not influenced silicon defences in cereal crops and the small decrease in silicon concentration associated with domestication is unlikely to have a major effect on the ability of cereals to withstand a range of abiotic and biotic stresses. These findings have broad implications for crop protection and our understanding of plant trade-offs. A plain language summary is available for this article. (http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2435.12935/suppinfo).
Quest for haller cells: A digital orthopantomography study

Aims: Haller Cells refer to the ethmoidal pneumatization and are the extensions of anterior ethmoid sinus into the floor of the orbit and superior aspect of the maxillary sinus, basically an anatomic variation. They may be associated with orofacial pain, sinusitis, nasal obstruction, impaired nasal breathing, headache, chronic cough, and mucocele. The aim of the present study was to identify, determine the prevalence and characteristics of Haller's cells on Digital orthopantomographs in patient's reporting to a dental institution in Chennai. Settings and Design: This was a retrospective, cross-sectional study. Subjects and Methods: The study group comprised 600 radiographs inclusive of both genders (379 females and 221 males) with an age range of 20–80 years. Retrospectively panoramic radiograph for each of the patients was viewed and interpreted for the presence of Haller's cells. The data collected was subjected to statistical analysis: frequencies/percentages, descriptive statistics to obtain the results. Statistical Analysis Used: Frequencies/percentages, descriptive statistics using SPSS for Windows Version 20 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA), to obtain the results. Results: Haller's cells were noted in patients, accounting for a prevalence of 23.61%. The majority of the cells were circular, ovoid, and irregular in shape. Conclusions: This study has attempted to explore the characteristics of Haller's cells on panoramic radiographs. A description of Haller's cells on these radiographs may prove vital in enumerating the differential diagnosis for patients afflicted with intractable orofacial pain and reduce the risk of untoward intraoperative complications during endonasal procedures.
Developmental Exposure to Aluminum Chloride Irreversibly Affects Postnatal Hippocampal Neurogenesis Involving Multiple Functions in Mice

Abstract Aluminum (Al) is neurotoxic to adults and also to infants. In this study, we investigated the developmental exposure effect of AlCl3 on postnatal hippocampal neurogenesis. Pregnant mice were administered 0-, 900-, or 1800-ppm AlCl3 via drinking water from gestational day 6 to postnatal day (PND) 21, with their offspring examined on PND 21 and PND 77. On PND 21, GFAP-immunoreactive (+) neural stem cells (NSCs) and p21Cip1/Waf1+ cells were decreased in number in the subgranular zone at 900 and ≥900 ppm, respectively. Pcna transcript level examined at 1800 ppm was decreased in the dentate gyrus. These results suggest induction of compromised cell quiescence that caused impaired self-renewal capacity of NSCs accompanying slowing down of cell cycling, which ultimately resulted in exhaustion of the NSC pool. At 1800 ppm, Reelin+ hilar GABAergic interneurons were also decreased, suggesting a contribution to the NSC reduction. At this dose, TBR2+ or DCX+ progenitor and immature granule cells and PVALB+ interneurons were increased. Moreover, COX-2+ granule cells were increased at ≥900 ppm. These results suggest facilitation of transient progenitor cell proliferation and differentiation during exposure. Moreover, TUNEL+ or Morin-stained granule cells were increased, together with Casp12 transcript upregulation, suggesting induction of Al accumulation-related endoplasmic reticulum stress-mediated granule cell apoptosis. Transcript expression changes on cholinergic and glutamatergic signals and synaptic plasticity suggested contribution to disruptive neurogenesis. The NSC-targeting effects sustained through the adult stage despite no sustained Al-accumulation. These results suggest that developmental AlCl3-exposure irreversibly affects postnatal hippocampal neurogenesis involving multiple functions in mice.
Patellar taping, patellofemoral pain syndrome, lower extremity kinematics, and dynamic postural control.

CONTEXT Patellar taping has been a part of intervention for treatment of patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS). However, research on the efficacy of patellar taping on lower extremity kinematics and dynamic postural control is limited. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effects of patellar taping on sagittal-plane hip and knee kinematics, reach distance, and perceived pain level during the Star Excursion Balance Test (SEBT) in individuals with and without PFPS. DESIGN Repeated-measures design with 2 within-subjects factors and 1 between-subjects factor. SETTING The University of Toledo Athletic Training Research Laboratory. PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS Twenty participants with PFPS and 20 healthy participants between the ages of 18 and 29 years. INTERVENTION(S) The participants performed 3 reaches of the SEBT in the anterior direction under tape and no-tape conditions on both legs. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S) The participants' hip and knee sagittal-plane kinematics were measured using the electromagnetic tracking system. Reach distance was recorded by hand and was normalized by dividing the distance by the participants' leg length (%MAXD). After each taping condition on each leg, the participants rated the perceived pain level using the 10-cm visual analog scale. RESULTS The participants with PFPS had a reduction in pain level with patellar tape application compared with the no-tape condition (P = .005). Additionally, participants with PFPS demonstrated increased %MAXD under the tape condition compared with the no-tape condition, whereas the healthy participants demonstrated decreased %MAXD with tape versus no tape (P = .028). No statistically significant differences were noted in hip flexion and knee flexion angles. CONCLUSIONS Although patellar taping seemed to reduce pain and improve SEBT performance of participants with PFPS, the exact mechanisms of these phenomena cannot be explained in this study. Further research is warranted to investigate the effect of patellar taping on neuromuscular control during dynamic postural control.
Deep Learning For Computer Vision Tasks: A review

Deep learning has recently become one of the most popular sub-fields of machine learning owing to its distributed data representation with multiple levels of abstraction. A diverse range of deep learning algorithms are being employed to solve conventional artificial intelligence problems. This paper gives an overview of some of the most widely used deep learning algorithms applied in the field of computer vision. It first inspects the various approaches of deep learning algorithms, followed by a description of their applications in image classification, object identification, image extraction and semantic segmentation in the presence of noise. The paper concludes with the discussion of the future scope and challenges for construction and training of deep neural networks.
Center for By-Products Utilization HIGH-DURABILITY CONCRETE USING HIGH- CARBON FLY ASH AND PULP MILL RESIDUALS

ii LIST OF FIGURES . iv LIST OF TABLES . v INTRODUCTION . 1 1.1 Background and Objectives . 1 CHAPTER 2 SCOPE OF WORK . 3 2.1 Description of Testing Work . 3 CHAPTER 3 MATERIALS . 4 3.1 Portland Cement. 4 3.2 Fine and Coarse Aggregates . 5 3.3 High-Carbon Fly Ash and Spent Sorbent . 5 3.4 Fibrous Residual . 7 3.5 Water-Reducing and High-Range Water-Reducing Admixtures . 7 CHAPTER 4 SPECIMEN PREPARATION AND TEST METHODS . 9 4.1 Mixing . 9 4.2 Tests Conducted and Curing of Specimens . 9 CHAPTER 5 INITIAL MIXTURES . 10 CHAPTER 6 FINAL MIXTURES . 14 6.1 Presque Isle Sorbent – Final Mixtures . 14 6.2 Valley High-Carbon Fly Ash – Final Mixtures . 17 CHAPTER 7 SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS. 21 CHAPTER 8 REFERENCES . 23
Updating geographical knowledge: principles of coherence and inertia.

In 2 experiments, the authors investigated how representations of global geography are updated when people learn new location information about individual cities. Participants estimated the latitude of cities in North America (Experiment 1) and in the Old and New Worlds (Experiment 2). After making their first estimates, participants were given information about the latitudes of 2 cities and asked to make a second set of estimates. Both the first and second estimates revealed evidence for psychologically distinct geographical subregions that were coordinated, in an ordinal sense, across the Atlantic Ocean. Further, the second estimates were affected by the nature of the physical adjacency between regions (e.g., the southern U.S. and Mexico) and by accurate location information about distant, but coordinated, subregions (e.g., the southern U.S. and Mediterranean Europe). The data provide support for a framework for making geographical estimates in which people strike a balance between 2 principles: the need to keep their knowledge base coherent, and the inertial tendency to resist changing the knowledge base unless it is necessary to maintain coherence.
Relationship between islet autoantibody status and the clinical characteristics of children and adults with incident type 1 diabetes in a UK cohort

Objectives To describe the characteristics of children and adults with incident type 1 diabetes in contemporary, multiethnic UK, focusing on differences between the islet autoantibody negative and positive. Design Observational cohort study. Setting 146 mainly secondary care centres across England and Wales. Participants 3312 people aged ≥5 years were recruited within 6 months of a clinical diagnosis of type 1 diabetes via the National Institute for Health Research Clinical Research Network. 3021 were of white European ethnicity and 291 (9%) were non-white. There was a small male predominance (57%). Young people <17 years comprised 59%. Main outcome measures Autoantibody status and characteristics at presentation. Results The majority presented with classical osmotic symptoms, weight loss and fatigue. Ketoacidosis was common (42%), especially in adults, and irrespective of ethnicity. 35% were overweight or obese. Of the 1778 participants who donated a blood sample, 85% were positive for one or more autoantibodies against glutamate decarboxylase, islet antigen-2 and zinc transporter 8. Presenting symptoms were similar in the autoantibody-positive and autoantibody-negative participants, as was the frequency of ketoacidosis (43%vs40%, P=0.3). Autoantibody positivity was less common with increasing age (P=0.0001), in males compared with females (82%vs90%, P<0.0001) and in people of non-white compared with white ethnicity (73%vs86%, P<0.0001). Body mass index was higher in autoantibody-negative adults than autoantibody-positive adults (median, IQR 25.5, 23.1–29.2vs23.9, 21.4–26.7 kg/m2; P=0.0001). Autoantibody-negative participants were more likely to have a parent with diabetes (28%vs16%, P<0.0001) and less likely to have another autoimmune disease (4%vs8%, P=0.01). Conclusions Most people assigned a diagnosis of type 1 diabetes presented with classical clinical features and islet autoantibodies. Although indistinguishable at an individual level, autoantibody-negative participants as a group demonstrated features more typically associated with other diabetes subtypes. Trial registration number ISRCTN66496918; Pre-results.
Millimeter-Wave Channel Estimation Based on 2-D Beamspace MUSIC Method

Due to the spatial sparsity caused by severe propagation loss, mm-wave channel estimation can be performed by estimating the directions and gains of the paths that have significant power. In this paper, we apply the beamspace 2-D multiple signal classification (MUSIC) method to estimate the path directions (the angles of departure and arrival) and use the least-squares method to estimate the path gains. Different from its element-space counterpart, the beamspace MUSIC method may exhibit spectrum ambiguity caused by the beamformers. In this paper, we therefore analyze the sufficient conditions on the beamformers under which the MUSIC spectrum has no ambiguity which also leads to the maximum number of resolvable path directions. Moreover, based on the uniform linear array with half-wavelength spacing, we show that the discrete Fourier transform beamformers, which are naturally analog and often employed in the mm-wave communication systems with hybrid precoding structure, can avoid the spectrum ambiguity and maximize the number of resolvable path directions. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed 2-D beamspace MUSIC mm-wave channel estimator significantly outperforms existing estimators that are based on beam training and sparse recovery; and in the meantime, it requires much less training slots than these existing methods.
Grain refinement of secondary aluminium-silicon casting alloys

Secondary aluminium. alloy castings generally have inferior ductility compared to primary alloy castings as the higher level of impurities form brittle intermetallic phases. It is possible to reduce the detrimental effect of impurities by grain refinement thus reducing the size of these brittle phases. However, these impurities may complicate the process of grain refinement. This work investigates the effect of Cu and impurities typically found in secondary alloys on the grain size of the primary aluminium-silicon alloy A356. The addition of 3wt% Cu to grain refined A356 alloy had little or no effect on grain size. However, a combined addition of Cu plus Fe, Cr, Zn and Mn to A356 to make a pseudo secondary 319 alloy significantly increased the gain size. When the impurity elements Fe, Cr, Mn and Zn were added individually, Fe and Cr were identified as the main elements responsible for the increased grain size.
Membrane transport by murine lymphocytes. I. A rapid sampling technique as applied to the adenosine and thymidine systems

We have developed a rapid sampling technique for animal cells in suspension for the purpose of measuring membrane transport in lymphocytes. The method involves rapid centrifugation of cells through a layer of silicone oil into perchloric acid after incubation periods as short as 4 s. Using this method we have described the uptake of thymidine and the uptake and transport systems of adenosine by murine bulk nonadherent spleen cells. The two uptake systems are markedly different. Adenosine was shown to be taken up by classical carrier- mediated diffusion, while thymidine was not. In addition we have explored the metabolism of the two nucleosides under the conditions we employed for measuring transport or uptake; Both nucleosides are phosphorylated extensively. We also investigated the uptake and metabolism of thymidine over a 2-h interval the standard time used to measure DNA synthesis in lymphocytes. Unless cells were separated from medium by centrifugation through oil before TCA addition, the TCA precipitable counts exceeded the total radioactive uptake. Hence the standard method for measuring thymidine utilization yields estimates under these conditions which can be as much as 100% too high.
Neighborhood Effects in Temporal Perspective

Theory suggests that neighborhood effects depend not only on where individuals live today, but also on where they lived in the past. Previous research, however, usually measures neighborhood context only once and does not account for length of residence, thereby understating the detrimental effects of long-term neighborhood disadvantage. This study investigates effects of duration of exposure to disadvantaged neighborhoods on high school graduation. It follows 4,154 children in the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, measuring neighborhood context once per year from age 1 to 17. The analysis overcomes the problem of dynamic neighborhood selection by adapting novel methods of causal inference for time-varying treatments. In contrast to previous analyses, these methods do not “control away” the effect of neighborhood context operating indirectly through time-varying characteristics of the family; thus, they capture the full impact of a lifetime of neighborhood disadvantage. We find that sustained exposure to disadvantaged neighborhoods has a severe impact on high school graduation that is considerably larger than effects reported in prior research. We estimate that growing up in the most (compared to the least) disadvantaged quintile of neighborhoods reduces the probability of graduation from 96 to 76 percent for black children, and from 95 to 87 percent for nonblack children.
Benzothiadiazole and its π-extended, heteroannulated derivatives: useful acceptor building blocks for high-performance donor–acceptor polymers in organic electronics

The past five years have witnessed significant achievements in the field of flexible, stretchable, and printable organic electronics, especially polymer-based organic photovoltaics (OPVs) and organic field-effect transistors (OFETs), which have become competitive to their inorganic counterparts. One of the main driving forces attributed to this remarkable progress is the rapid development of semiconducting polymeric materials. Therefore, the design and synthesis of new building blocks for efficient polymer semiconductors have attracted increasing attention from both the academic and industrial communities. This review attempts to critically summarize the recent advances with respect to the electron-deficient building blocks based on benzothiadiazole and its π-extended, heteroannulated derivatives, which have been mostly developed over the past five years for constructing π-conjugated polymers, particularly donor–acceptor (D–A) polymers. Semiconducting polymers containing these building blocks have demonstrated interesting properties and promising performances as active layers in OPVs and OFETs. The structural implications related to the performances of organic electronic devices are discussed.