Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Verifying Validity of the Household Dietary Diversity Score

Background: The Household Dietary Diversity Score (HDDS) was developed to measure household food access, one of the levels of food security. Previous research has shown dietary diversity is related to food security. However, the validity of the HDDS in the form developed by the Food and Nutrition Technical Assistance (FANTA) project—12 food groups, 24-hour recall—and most frequently used by development organizations and nongovernmental organizations has never been verified. Objective: To verify the construct validity of the HDDS. Methods: A Rasch model was used to test the extent to which the HDDS meets the criteria required for interval scale measurement, using data from 1015 households in Colombia and Ecuador. Results: Different dietary patterns between Colombia and Ecuador and 2 cultural groups within Ecuador required data to be split into 3 subgroups. For each subgroup, the food groups meeting the criteria and their difficulty ranking were different. Refined indices, containing only those food groups meeting the criteria, contained 7 items in Colombia, 10 for Kichwa households in Ecuador, and 9 for migrant households. Conclusion: The indicator in its current form does not meet all criteria. Even when analyzing culturally homogenous subgroups within a small region, the components of the indicator do not form a reliable way of measuring household-level food access.
Clinicopathological Characteristics and Effect of Late Acute Rejection on Renal Transplant Outcomes

Background Late acute rejection (LAR) has been associated with inferior kidney allograft outcomes. Methods We retrospectively evaluated 355 episodes of biopsy-confirmed LAR in a cohort of 5758 kidney transplants performed between 1998 and 2008. Estimated glomerular filtration rate was obtained before, at, and after each LAR episode as well as histology and treatment. Associations of LAR with subsequent death or graft loss were estimated with Cox proportional regression analysis. Results A total of 215 patients had 1 episode, 57 had 2 episodes, and 13 had 3 episodes of LAR. Rates of LAR-free survival were 97.4% at 1 year and 93.7% at 5 years. Estimated glomerular filtration rate decreased after each episode of LAR (56±21 vs. 44±18 vs. 36±11 mL/min/1.73 m2, P<0.01). The majority of rejections were Banff IA or less, but the chronicity scores as well as plasma cell infiltrates increased after each LAR. All patients requiring dialysis lost their grafts. In a multivariable analysis, the severity of histological score (risk ratio [RR], 3.5; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.58–7.87; P<0.001), the need for dialysis at LAR (RR, 3.31; 95% CI, 1.44–7.59; P<0.001), and treatment with methylprednisolone (RR, 2.31; 95% CI, 1.07–4.94; P=0.03) were independently associated with graft loss at 5 years, whereas tacrolimus and mycophenolate use was associated with reduced risk (RR, 0.46; 95% CI, 0.25–0.87; P<0.001). Conclusions The prevalence and recurrence of LAR are considerable and associated with increased incidence of graft loss. Patients who need dialysis during LAR should be carefully evaluated owing to the high prevalence of graft failure.
Object-Oriented Mechanisms for Interoperability between Proof Systems. (Mécanismes Orientés-Objets pour l'Interopérabilité entre Systèmes de Preuve)

Dedukti is a Logical Framework resulting from the combination of dependent typing and rewriting. It can be used to encode many logical systems using shallow embeddings preserving their notion of reduction. These translations of logical systems in a common format are a necessary first step for exchanging proofs between systems. This objective of interoperability of proof systems is the main motivation of this thesis. To achieve it, we take inspiration from the world of programming languages and more specifically from object-oriented languages because they feature advanced mechanisms for encapsulation, modularity, and default definitions. For this reason we start by a shallow translation of an object calculus to Dedukti. The most interesting point in this translation is the treatment of subtyping. Unfortunately, it seems very hard to incorporate logic in this object calculus. To proceed, object-oriented mechanisms should be restricted to static ones which seem enough for interoperability. Such a combination of static object-oriented mechanisms and logic is already present in the FoCaLiZe environment so we propose a shallow embedding of FoCaLiZe in Dedukti. The main difficulties arise from the integration of FoCaLiZe automatic theorem prover Zenon and from the translation of FoCaLiZe functional implementation language featuring two constructs which have no simple counterparts in Dedukti: local pattern matching and recursion. We then demonstrate how this embedding of FoCaLiZe to Dedukti can be used in practice for achieving interoperability of proof systems through FoCaLiZe, Zenon, and Dedukti. In order to avoid strengthening to much the theory in which the final proof is expressed, we use Dedukti as a meta-language for eliminating unnecessary axioms.
Agonist-dependent Repression Mediated by Mutant Estrogen Receptor α That Lacks the Activation Function 2 Core Domain*

Nuclear receptor corepressor (N-CoR) and silencing mediator of retinoid and thyroid hormone receptors (SMRT) form heterogeneous complexes with various histone deacetylases (HDACs). In this report, we found that ERα-ΔAF2, a mutant estrogen receptor α (ERα) deleted for the C-terminal activation function 2 (AF2) core domain, directs estradiol (E2)-dependent repression and impairs E2-induced transactivation by wild type ERα. This repression required coexpressed BRG1 in SW-13 cells that lack BRG1, the ATPase constituent of the chromatin-remodeling SWI·SNF complex, and was abolished by HDAC inhibitor trichostatin A. We further demonstrated that ERα-ΔAF2 constitutively associates with SMRT but binds DNA in an E2-dependent manner in vivo. These results suggest that ERα-ΔAF2 and similar mutant receptors recently found associated with certain tumors may actively perturb the normal E2 signaling via SWI/SNF, N-CoR/SMRT, and HDAC.
Reactive oxygen species modify reflex cardiovascular responses to static contraction.

Reactive oxygen species can reflexly activate the cardiovascular system through stimulation of abdominal visceral afferents. The mechanism appears to involve hydroxyl radicals. We tested the hypothesis that reactive oxygen species contribute to the reflex cardiovascular response to static muscle contraction (i.e., the exercise pressor reflex). Thus blood pressure and heart rate responses to 5 min of intermittent electrically stimulated static contraction of the triceps surae muscles (15 s on, 15 s off) in anesthetized cats were compared before and after intravenous administration of the free radical scavengers dimethylthiourea (DMTU; 10 mg/kg; n = 8) or deferoxamine (Def; 10 mg/kg; n = 15). The contraction-induced pressor response was augmented from 51 +/- 6 to 61 +/- 7 mmHg after treatment with DMTU (P < 0.05) and from 44 +/- 8 to 58 +/- 8 mmHg after administration of Def (P < 0.05). Corresponding heart rate responses were not affected by either drug. Because this DMTU- or Def-induced augmentation of the exercise pressor reflex may have been due to a reduction in free radical-evoked vasodilation in the contracting skeletal muscle, popliteal artery blood velocity was measured with a Doppler flow transducer before and during contraction in the absence and presence of Def (n = 8). Blood velocity during contraction was not altered by Def (16 +/- 5 vs. 24 +/- 6 cm/s). These data suggest that reactive oxygen species exert an inhibitory effect on the exercise pressor reflex that is not associated with their local vasodilator properties. This response is opposite to that observed during stimulation of visceral afferents by reactive oxygen species.
Synthesis, in‐vitro cytotoxic activity and DNA interactions of new dicarboxylatoplatinum(II) complexes with 2‐hydroxymethylbenzimidazole as carrier ligands

The aim of this study was to investigate the in‐vitro cytotoxic activity of new platinum(II) complexes on the human HeLa (ER−), MCF‐7 (ER+) and MDA‐MB 231 (ER−) cell lines. Furthermore, we investigated plasmid DNA interactions and inhibition of BamHI and HindIII restriction enzyme activity of the complex 1–4,7.
Investment Behaviour of German Equity Fund Managers - an Exploratory Analysis of Survey Data

In order to shed light on the "black box" of institutional equity investing in a systematic manner, I conducted a broadly based questionnaire which received a large response from German mutual fund companies. The survey asked fund managers for their basic views and practices and for insights into their company's performance-measurement and compensation incentives. It was possible to identify three core types of investors, labelled fundamentalists, tacticians and methodologists, in the data on investment behaviour. Common to all types is the primary aim of achieving above-average returns on investment with due allowance being made for sluggishness in the reaction of market prices to new information. Another universal feature of institutional equity investing turns out to be a heavy reliance on information sources which offer a means of confirmation and through which the contagions of fear and exuberance may be transmitted. In general fund managers exhibit a pronounced preference for "winner-type" and "spotlight" stocks as well. All investor groups recognise, in the first instance, underlying economic information as a source of superior value. However, a potential for exaggerated market dynamics is suggested by the fact that the mere arrival of news from corporations or analysts' earnings revisions is generally thought to impart as strong a market impulse as the perceived mispricing of stocks relative to the market or sector as such. Furthermore, those who appear to be best suited to conduct fundamental arbitrage are nevertheless likely to be constrained, to a significant extent, by time horizons and the fear of market movements. Besides investment focus and basic attitudes towards market efficiency, agency problems are shown to have a bearing on equity fund managers' investment behaviour.
A 3DTV Broadcasting Scheme for High-Quality Stereoscopic Content Over a Hybrid Network

Various methods are used to provide three-dimensional television (3DTV) services over a terrestrial broadcasting network. However, these services cannot provide high-quality 3D content to consumers. It is because current terrestrial broadcast networks are allocated with limited bandwidths to transmit 3D content while 3D content requires larger bandwidth compared to that of 2D content. To overcome this limitation, this paper proposes a hybrid 3DTV broadcasting system, which utilizes both a terrestrial broadcast network and a broadband network. In the proposed system, two elementary streams of left and right views for a stereoscopic video service are transmitted over a terrestrial broadcasting network and a broadband network, respectively. In addition, the proposed system suggests a new mechanism for synchronization between these two elementary streams. The proposed scheme can provide high-quality 3DTV service regardless of bandwidth of the terrestrial broadcast network while maintaining backward compatibility with a 2D DTV broadcasting service.
Half-life extension using serum albumin-binding DARPin® domains

A long systemic half-life is key for therapeutic proteins. To that end we have generated serum albumin-binding designed ankyrin repeat domains. These domains bind serum albumin of different species with nanomolar affinities, and have significantly improved pharmacokinetic properties both in mouse and cynomolgus monkey compared to non-serum albumin-binding DARPin® domains. In addition, they exhibit high thermal stability and long storage stability, which is an essential feature for their use in drug development. Covalently linking a serum albumin-binding DARPin® domain to domains with other target specificities results in improvements of multiple orders of magnitude in exposure and terminal half-life, both in mouse and cynomolgus monkey. Pharmacokinetic assessment of such constructs revealed terminal half-life values ranging from 27 h to 80 h in mouse, and from 2.6 days to 20 days in cynomolgus monkey. Extrapolation by allometric scaling on these findings suggests terminal half-life values of 5-50 days in human, indicating that pharmacokinetic properties in the range of monoclonal antibodies can be achieved with DARPin® drug candidates. Such serum albumin-binding DARPin® domains are thus valuable tools for the generation of multi-functional drugs with an extended in vivo half-life.
Overview of Liquid Handling Instrumentation for High‐Throughput Screening Applications

Liquid handling in the laboratory has unique challenges specific to the types of research being performed. The devices employed for purposes of performing liquid handling can be broken down into three general categories: bulk reagent dispensers, transfer devices, and plate washers. An overview of these types of liquid handlers, as well as common features and relevance to high‐throughput applications, are discussed in this article. Important topics such as sterility, ease of use, cost, and instrument design advantages and disadvantages are also covered. Curr. Protoc. Chem Biol. 1:43‐54. © 2009 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Influence of genotype on protein and oil concentration of soybean seeds

Com o objetivo de avaliar a influencia do genotipo sobre as concentracoes de proteina e oleo, sementes imaturas das cultivares de soja CD 202 e CD 206 foram retiradas da planta mae no estadio R5, cultivadas in vitro em meio de cultura liquido por oito dias, contendo 20, 40 e 60 mM de glutamina. Depois disso, as concentracoes de oleo e proteina foram comparadas com as das sementes que continuaram seu desenvolvimento in vivo. Com a maior disponibilidade de glutamina para a semente, houve um aumento do conteudo proteico nas sementes. Quanto as concentracoes de proteina, os genotipos foram estatisticamente diferentes, levando a afirmar a sua influencia na concentracao de proteina na semente. As concentracoes de proteina e oleo foram inversamente relacionadas quando variou a concentracao de glutamina.
X.509 Extensions for IP Addresses and AS Identifiers

This document defines two X.509 v3 certificate extensions. The first binds a list of IP address blocks, or prefixes, to the subject of a certificate. The second binds a list of autonomous system identifiers to the subject of a certificate. These extensions may be used to convey the authorization of the subject to use the IP addresses and autonomous system identifiers contained in the extensions. [STANDARDS- TRACK]
Consistent 3 D Modeling from Multiple Widely Separated Images

In this paper we present a new method for reconstructing the s cene geometry from a small collection of calibrated images taken from widely separated viewpoints. The scene to be modeled will be represented as a set of colored depth maps, one per input image. We formulate the scene reconstruction p roblem in a probabilistic framework which leads to an energy minimization method. In this framework, the hidden visibility variables are introduced to deal with occlusion, specular reflection and image noise based on a prior of consistent transform ation in the geometrical sense. In addition, the hidden consistency variables are de veloped to smooth and integrate the depth maps while ensuring consistencies betwee n diff rent depth maps and allowing discontinuities based on a prior of gradients o f the estimated images. An Expectation Maximization (EM) optimization strategy is adopted to achieve the optimization of the wanted colored depth maps, which has bee n efficiently implemented in a coarse-to-fine resolution scheme. Tests on both r eal data and synthetical ones were performed to examine the efficiency and limitat ions of the proposed method.
DISTINGUISHING POLYPOIDAL CHOROIDAL VASCULOPATHY FROM TYPICAL NEOVASCULAR AGE-RELATED MACULAR DEGENERATION BASED ON SPECTRAL DOMAIN OPTICAL COHERENCE TOMOGRAPHY

Purpose: To investigate the sensitivity and specificity of spectral domain optical coherence tomography in distinguishing polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV) from typical neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD). Methods: One hundred and eighty-eight eyes in 156 patients with active PCV or typical nAMD were enrolled prospectively. Three spectral domain optical coherence tomography manifestations, pigment epithelium detachment, double-layer sign, and thumb-like polyps were estimated in all the eyes. A diagnostic test to differentiate PCV from nAMD based on spectral domain optical coherence tomography was performed. Furthermore, the sensitivity and specificity was validated in a retrospective series of patients. Results: Pigment epithelium detachment, double-layer sign, and thumb-like polyps were more common in PCV eyes than in nAMD eyes. When the cutoff point was set as at least 2 positive signs out of 3 in the diagnostic test, the sensitivity was 89.4% and specificity was 85.3%. The results of the validation test further confirmed the strategy, with satisfying sensitivity (87.5%) and specificity (86.2%). Conclusion: Spectral domain optical coherence tomography is sensitive and specific in distinguishing PCV from nAMD. From these results, the presence of at least two out three signs (pigment epithelium detachment, double-layer sign, and thumb-like polyps) indicates a positive test and is therefore suggested to be the screening strategy for PCV.
Declarative Process Mining on the Cloud Master

This thesis provides an overview of the Declare language and declarative process mining algorithms, followed by the description of currently available tools for a declarative process mining. This thesis provides the availability of all the discussed tools on a cloud platform and introduces two new tools. One provides the event monitoring capabilities and and the other one generates a verbal representation of a Declare model. All the described process mining tools are implemented as bundles of the cloud platform RuM. Afterwards, the new user interface and functionalities of the tools are described. The evaluation part of the thesis presents, the mining tools on the cloud and the capabilities of the live event monitoring tool.
A microRNA regulates the response of corals to thermal stress

Coral reefs are diverse ecosystems of great ecological and economic importance. However, corals are vulnerable to a variety of stressors, including rising seawater temperatures, and yet little is known about the genetic mechanisms underlying their survival and adaptation to stress. Like other animals, corals possess genes for key members of the microRNA (miRNA) machinery. miRNAs are short RNAs that regulate diverse cellular processes, including organismal stress response, through post‐transcriptional repression of gene transcripts. Through small RNA sequencing, we identified 26 miRNAs in the coral, Acropora digitifera. Many of the identified miRNAs are novel, while eight are conserved with miRNAs previously identified in other cnidarians. One of the identified miRNAs is differentially expressed in coral tissues exposed to acute thermal stress. This thermally responsive miRNA putatively regulates multiple pathways of the organismal stress response, DNA/RNA expression regulation, repair mechanisms, tissue morphogenesis, and signalling. We propose a model by which miRNA regulation allows the coral to mount a robust stress response through sequestration of a pool of nontranslated transcripts encoding stress response proteins. Release of miRNA‐mediated repression under stress conditions may result in rapid and abundant translation of proteins that help the coral maintain cellular homoeostasis. These findings highlight the potential importance of miRNAs in the thermal resilience of corals.
Flow Cytometry and Environmental Microbiology

This survey unit discusses many of the issues involved for flow cytometry in the field of microbiology, particularly the preparative procedures, which are far more stringent than many other procedures using larger cells. For instance, it is often necessary to filter laboratory agents multiple times to obtain the true particle‐free solutions needed for flow cytometry of microbes. It is difficult enough to recognize bacteria in cell extracts from soil, sediment, or sludge given the background of same‐size particles. This unit provides an excellent overview of a potentially large application area in flow cytometry and is written by one of the most respected scientists in the field.
Heart Rate Variability in Responders and Non- Responders to Live-Moderate, Train-Low Altitude Training

The aim of this study was to compare the effects of an altitude training camp on heart rate variability and performance in elite triathletes. Ten athletes completed 20 days of live-high, train-low training at 1650m. Athletes underwent pre and post 800-m swim time trials at sea-level, and two heart rate variability tests at 1650m on the first and last day of the training camp. Based on their time trial results, athletes were divided into responders and non-responders. Relative to the non-responders, the responders sympathetic-to- parasympathetic ratio decreased substantially after 20 days of altitude training (-0.68 ± 1.08 and -1.2 ± 0.96, mean ± 90% confidence interval for supine and standing respectively). In addition, sympathetic activity while standing was also substantially lower post-altitude in the responders compared to the non-responders (-1869 ± 4764 ms 2 ). Results indicate that responders demonstrated a change to more vagal predominance compared to non-responders. Keywords—parasympathetic predominance, poor performance, triathlon, 800-m swim
Synaptic Activity Augments Muscarinic Acetylcholine Receptor-stimulated Inositol 1,4,5-Trisphosphate Production to Facilitate Ca2+ Release in Hippocampal Neurons*

Intracellular Ca2+ store release contributes to activity-dependent synaptic plasticity in the central nervous system by modulating the amplitude, propagation, and temporal dynamics of cytoplasmic Ca2+ changes. However, neuronal Ca2+ stores can be relatively insensitive to increases in the store-mobilizing messenger inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP3). Using a fluorescent biosensor we have visualized M1 muscarinic acetylcholine (mACh) receptor signaling in individual hippocampal neurons and observed increased IP3 production in the absence of concurrent Ca2+ store release. However, coincident glutamate-mediated synaptic activity elicited enhanced and oscillatory IP3 production that was dependent upon ongoing mACh receptor stimulation and S-α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoazolepropionic acid receptor activation of Ca2+ entry. Moreover, the enhanced levels of IP3 now mobilized Ca2+ from intracellular stores that were refractory to the activation of mACh receptors alone. We conclude that convergent ionotropic and metabotropic receptor inputs can facilitate Ca2+ signaling by enhancing IP3 production as well as augmenting release by Ca2+-induced Ca2+ release.
Design of A Low-power, High Speed Op-amp for 10bit 300Msps Parallel Pipeline ADCs

This paper presents a low-power operational amplifier suitable for the sample-and-hold (S/H) circuit with the architecture of switched-capacitor circuit . The op-amp plays an important role in the front-rank sampling module and the MDAC (multiplying D/A converter) module for the 10 bit, 300 MHz sampling rate, 4-channel parallel pipeline ADC. This paper presents a design based on optimized time-interleaved technique. By optimizing the channel sampling clock which means there is more time for the op-amp to settle up, the op-amp has a superior performance. With 3.3 V power supply, using the CSM 0.35 mum CMOS process technology, the HSPICE simulation shows that, the open-loop gain of the op-amp is 106 dB with the unity gain bandwidth of 402 MHz and the settling time is 8.8 ns, which is qualified for the requirement of the single channel sampling rate (75 MHz). The power consumption of this op-amp is only 8.57 mW, which significantly reduces the whole power of the parallel pipeline ADC.