Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Molecular Mechanisms of OPA1-Mediated Optic Atrophy in Drosophila Model and Prospects for Antioxidant Treatment

Mutations in optic atrophy 1 (OPA1), a nuclear gene encoding a mitochondrial protein, is the most common cause for autosomal dominant optic atrophy (DOA). The condition is characterized by gradual loss of vision, color vision defects, and temporal optic pallor. To understand the molecular mechanism by which OPA1 mutations cause optic atrophy and to facilitate the development of an effective therapeutic agent for optic atrophies, we analyzed phenotypes in the developing and adult Drosophila eyes produced by mutant dOpa1 (CG8479), a Drosophila ortholog of human OPA1. Heterozygous mutation of dOpa1 by a P-element or transposon insertions causes no discernable eye phenotype, whereas the homozygous mutation results in embryonic lethality. Using powerful Drosophila genetic techniques, we created eye-specific somatic clones. The somatic homozygous mutation of dOpa1 in the eyes caused rough (mispatterning) and glossy (decreased lens and pigment deposition) eye phenotypes in adult flies; this phenotype was reversible by precise excision of the inserted P-element. Furthermore, we show the rough eye phenotype is caused by the loss of hexagonal lattice cells in developing eyes, suggesting an increase in lattice cell apoptosis. In adult flies, the dOpa1 mutation caused an increase in reactive oxygen species (ROS) production as well as mitochondrial fragmentation associated with loss and damage of the cone and pigment cells. We show that superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1), Vitamin E, and genetically overexpressed human SOD1 (hSOD1) is able to reverse the glossy eye phenotype of dOPA1 mutant large clones, further suggesting that ROS play an important role in cone and pigment cell death. Our results show dOpa1 mutations cause cell loss by two distinct pathogenic pathways. This study provides novel insights into the pathogenesis of optic atrophy and demonstrates the promise of antioxidants as therapeutic agents for this condition.
A Wearable All‐Fabric Thermoelectric Generator

Wearable thermoelectric generators are a promising energy source for powering activity trackers and portable health monitors. However, known iterations of wearable generators have large form factors, contain expensive or toxic materials with low elemental abundance, and quickly reach thermal equilibrium with a human body, meaning that thermoelectric power can only be generated over a short period of wear. Here, an all‐fabric thermopile is created by vapor printing persistently p‐doped poly(3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT‐Cl) onto commercial cotton and this thermopile is integrated into a specially designed, wearable band that generates thermovoltages >20 mV when worn on the hand. It is shown that the reactive vapor coating process creates mechanically rugged fabric thermopiles that yield notably high thermoelectric power factors at low temperature differentials, as compared to solution‐processed counterparts. Further, best practices for naturally integrating thermopiles into garments are described, which allow for significant temperature gradients to be maintained across the thermopile despite continuous wear.
Aligning Sense Inventories in Wikipedia and WordNet

In this paper, we study the alignment of Wikipedia articles and WordNet synsets. Therefore, we propose a method to convert Wikipedia to a sense inventory. We show that an aligned sense inventory of both resources has two major benefits: the coverage of senses can be increased and enhanced information about aligned senses can be obtained. Our study and conclusions are based on human annotations of sense alignments.
Development of a sodium/iodide symporter (NIS)-transgenic mouse for imaging of cardiomyocyte-specific reporter gene expression.

UNLABELLED Development of a small animal imaging system for differentiated cell-specific reporter gene expression will enable us to image cellular differentiation in vivo. In this study, we developed a sodium/iodide symporter (NIS)-transgenic mouse in which NIS is constitutively expressed as an imaging reporter gene only in cardiomyocytes. METHODS To express NIS gene in cardiomyocytes, alpha-myosin heavy chain (alpha-MHC)-NIS was constructed and used for the production of NIS-transgenic mice. Twelve lines of positive founder were obtained. The adequacy of the transgenic mouse model was tested by in vivo scintigraphy, microPET, and a biodistribution study. RESULTS The myocardium of transgenic mice showed rapid and intense uptake of 131I, which was much higher than that of the thyroid, and also showed long retention by gamma-camera pinhole imaging. The relative uptake ratio of the heart of transgenic mice was 4.6 +/- 1.5, which was 3.8 +/- 1.2 times higher than that of control wild-type mice. The uptake of the heart was completely blocked by oral administration of KClO4, an NIS inhibitor. The heart of transgenic mouse was also clearly and intensely visualized on microPET using 124I. Biodistribution data of these mice showed the uptake of 40-160 %ID/g (percentage injected dose per gram of tissue) of (99m)Tc-pertechnetate in the heart compared with 40-60 %ID/g in the stomach, respectively. NIS expression in the myocardium was confirmed by immunohistochemistry using a NIS-specific antibody. CONCLUSION We developed a transgenic mouse model to image cardiomyocytes with a gamma-camera and microPET using an alpha-MHC promoter and NIS. The transgenic mouse can be used as an imaging model for cardiomyocyte-specific reporter gene expression and cellular differentiation into cardiomyocytes after cardiac stem or progenitor cell transplantation.
Lubricating Performance of Residual Zinc Phosphate Coating on Forged Specimen in Bowden-Leben Sliding Test

The lubricating performance of the zinc phosphate coating employed generally in cold forging is evaluated with Bowden-Leben sliding test by changing friction conditions such as the coating thickness, specimen temperature, the tool surface roughness, contact pressure and sliding speed. A specimen for the friction test is prepared from the inner surface of an extruded square cup and the residual thickness of the lubrication coating on the specimen is controlled by using the surface expansion in forward extrusion of the cup. Experimental results showed that the specimen temperature has the strongest influence on the friction coefficient. With an increase of the specimen temperature, the friction coefficient gradually decreases until 473K, and then increases sharply. With an increase of the tool surface roughness, the friction coefficient increases slightly. Friction coefficient is formulated as a function of the specimen temperature and the tool surface roughness. The anti-galling ability of the coating is affected by the residual thickness of lubrication coating, the specimen temperature and the tool surface roughness.
Product Innovations, Advertising and Stock Returns

Abstract Under increased scrutiny from top management and shareholders, marketing managers feel the need to measure and communicate the impact of their actions on shareholder returns. In particular, how do customer value creation (through product innovation) and customer value communication (through marketing investments) affect stock returns? This article examines, conceptually and empirically, how product innovations and marketing investments for such product innovations lift stock returns by improving the outlook on future cash flows. The authors address these questions with a large-scale econometric analysis of product innovation and associated marketing mix in the automobile industry. They find that adding such marketing actions to the established finance benchmark model greatly improves the explained variance in stock returns. In particular, investors react favorably to companies that launch pioneering innovations, that have higher perceived quality, that are backed by substantial advertising suppor.
Characterization of Intonation in Carnatic Music by Parametrizing Pitch Histograms

Intonation is an important concept in Carnatic music that is characteristic of a raaga, and intrinsic to the musical expression of a performer. In this paper we approach the description of intonation from a computational perspective, obtaining a compact representation of the pitch track of a recording. First, we extract pitch contours from automatically selected voice segments. Then, we obtain a a pitch histogram of its full pitch-range, normalized by the tonic frequency, from which each prominent peak is automatically labelled and parametrized. We validate such parametrization by considering an explorative classification task: three raagas are disambiguated using the characterization of a single peak (a task that would seriously challenge a more na¨ive parametrization). Results show consistent improvements for this particular task. Furthermore, we perform a qualitative assessment on a larger collection of raagas, showing the discriminative power of the entire representation. The proposed generic parametrization of the intonation histogram should be useful for musically relevant tasks such as performer and instrument characterization.
Population genetics of Mediterranean and Saharan olives: geographic patterns of differentiation and evidence for early generations of admixture.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS The olive (Olea europaea subsp. europaea) was domesticated in the Mediterranean area but its wild relatives are distributed over three continents, from the Mediterranean basin to South Africa and south-western Asia. Recent studies suggested that this crop originated in the Levant while a secondary diversification occurred in most westward areas. A possible contribution of the Saharan subspecies (subsp. laperrinei) has been highlighted, but the data available were too limited to draw definite conclusions. Here, patterns of genetic differentiation in the Mediterranean and Saharan olives are analysed to test for recent admixture between these taxa. METHODS Nuclear microsatellite and plastid DNA (ptDNA) data were compiled from previous studies and completed for a sample of 470 cultivars, 390 wild Mediterranean trees and 270 Saharan olives. A network was reconstructed for the ptDNA haplotypes, while a Bayesian clustering method was applied to identify the main gene pools in the data set and then simulate and test for early generations of admixture between Mediterranean and Saharan olives. KEY RESULTS Four lineages of ptDNA haplotypes are recognized: three from the Mediterranean basin and one from the Sahara. Only one haplotype, primarily distributed in the Sahara, is shared between laperrinei and europaea. This haplotype is detected once in 'Dhokar', a cultivar from the Maghreb. Nuclear microsatellites show geographic patterns of genetic differentiation in the Mediterranean olive that reflect the primary origins of cultivars in the Levant, and indicate a high genetic differentiation between europaea and laperrinei. No first-generation hybrid between europaea and laperrinei is detected, but recent, reciprocal admixture between Mediterranean and Saharan subspecies is found in a few accessions, including 'Dhokar'. CONCLUSIONS This study reports for the first time admixture between Mediterranean and Saharan olives. Although its contribution remains limited, Laperrine's olive has been involved in the diversification of cultivated olives.
A Note on the Comparison of a Class of Preconditioned Iterative Methods

The preconditioned iterative methods are mainly categorized into implicit preconditioned methods and explicit preconditioned methods. In this manuscript we review implicit preconditioned methods, based on incomplete and approximate factorization, and explicit preconditioned methods, based on sparse approximate inverses and explicit approximate inverses. Additionally we present the modified Moore-Penrose conditions and theoretical estimates on the iteration matrix of the explicit preconditioned method, based on explicit approximate inverses. Finally, the performance of the preconditioned iterative methods is illustrated by solving characteristic 2D elliptic problem and numerical results are given. The theoretical estimates were in qualitative agreement with the numerical results.
Accuracy of immunological criteria for identifying virological failure in children on antiretroviral therapy – The IeDEA Southern Africa Collaboration

Objectives To determine the diagnostic accuracy of World Health Organization (WHO) 2010 and 2006 as well as United States Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) 2008 definitions of immunological failure for identifying virological failure (VF) in children on antiretroviral therapy (ART).
The methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase C677T mutation induces cell‐specific changes in genomic DNA methylation and uracil misincorporation: A possible molecular basis for the site‐specific cancer risk modification

The C677T polymorphism in the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) gene is associated with a decreased risk of colon cancer although it may increase the risk of breast cancer. This polymorphism is associated with changes in intracellular folate cofactors, which may affect DNA methylation and synthesis via altered one‐carbon transfer reactions. We investigated the effect of this mutation on DNA methylation and uracil misincorporation and its interaction with exogenous folate in further modulating these biomarkers of one‐carbon transfer reactions in an in vitro model of the MTHFR 677T mutation in HCT116 colon and MDA‐MB‐435 breast adenocarcinoma cells. In HCT116 cells, the MTHFR 677T mutation was associated with significantly increased genomic DNA methylation when folate supply was adequate or high; however, in the setting of folate insufficiency, this mutation was associated with significantly decreased genomic DNA methylation. In contrast, in MDA‐MB‐435 cells, the MTHFR 677T mutation was associated with significantly decreased genomic DNA methylation when folate supply was adequate or high and with no effect when folate supply was low. The MTHFR 677T mutation was associated with a nonsignificant trend toward decreased and increased uracil misincorporation in HCT116 and MDA‐MB‐435 cells, respectively. Our data demonstrate for the first time a functional consequence of changes in intracellular folate cofactors resulting from the MTHFR 677T mutation in cells derived from the target organs of interest, thus providing a plausible cellular mechanism that may partly explain the site‐specific modification of colon and breast cancer risks associated with the MTHFR C677T mutation. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Social Cohesion and Embeddedness : A Hierarchical Conception of Social Groups

SFI WORKING PAPER: 2000-08-049 SFI Working Papers contain accounts of scientific work of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of the Santa Fe Institute. We accept papers intended for publication in peer-reviewed journals or proceedings volumes, but not papers that have already appeared in print. Except for papers by our external faculty, papers must be based on work done at SFI, inspired by an invited visit to or collaboration at SFI, or funded by an SFI grant. ©NOTICE: This working paper is included by permission of the contributing author(s) as a means to ensure timely distribution of the scholarly and technical work on a non-commercial basis. Copyright and all rights therein are maintained by the author(s). It is understood that all persons copying this information will adhere to the terms and constraints invoked by each author's copyright. These works may be reposted only with the explicit permission of the copyright holder. www.santafe. edu
CPR artifact removal from human ECG using optimal multichannel filtering

The purpose of this study was to assess whether the artifacts presented by precordial compressions during cardiopulmonary resuscitation could be removed from the human electrocardiogram (ECG) using a filtering approach. This would allow analysis and defibrillator charging during ongoing precordial compressions yielding a very important clinical improvement to the treatment of cardiac arrest patients. In this investigation the authors started with noise-free human ECGs with ventricular fibrillation (VF) and ventricular tachycardia (VT) records. To simulate a realistic resuscitation situation, they added a weighted artifact signal to the human ECG, where the weight factor was chosen to provide the desired signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) level. As artifact signals the authors used ECGs recorded from animals in asystole during precordial compressions at rates 60, 90, and 120 compressions/min. The compression depth and the thorax impedance was also recorded. In a real-life situation such reference signals are available and, using an adaptive multichannel Wiener filter, the authors construct an estimate of the artifact signal, which subsequently can be subtracted from the noisy human ECG signal. The success of the proposed method is demonstrated through graphic examples, SNR, and rhythm classification evaluations.
Quantum Interference and Superposition in Cognition: Development of a Theory for the Disjunction of Concepts

We elaborate a theory for the modeling of concepts using the mathematical structure of quantum mechanics. Concepts are represented by vectors in the complex Hilbert space of quantum mechanics and membership weights of items are modeled by quantum weights calculated following the quantum rules. We apply this theory to model the disjunction of concepts and show that experimental data of membership weights of items with respect to the disjunction of concepts can be modeled accurately. It is the quantum effects of interference and superposition, combined with an effect of context, that are at the origin of the effects of overextension and underextension observed as deviations from a classical use of the disjunction. We put forward a graphical explanation of the effects of overextension and underextension by interpreting the quantum model applied to the modeling of the disjunction of concepts.
Incidence of aetiological subtypes of stroke in a multi-ethnic population based study: the South London Stroke Register

Background Stroke risk is higher in black ethnic groups compared with white. Although risk factors for stroke are known to differ between these populations, few population studies have reported on the risk of aetiological stroke subtypes in black ethnic populations. Methods Ethnic group differences in incidence of first ever ischaemic stroke by aetiological subtype were investigated with the South London Stroke Register (SLSR). The SLSR is a population based stroke register covering a multi-ethnic inner city population of 271 871 inhabitants comprising 63% white, 28% black and 9% other ethnic group. A modified pathophysiological Trial of ORG 10172 in Acute Stroke Treatment (TOAST) classification of stroke was used to estimate patterns of aetiological subtype and stroke was subtyped into large artery atherosclerosis (LAA), cardioembolism (CE), small vessel occlusion (SVO), other aetiology (OTH), undetermined (UND) and multiple possible or concurrent aetiologies (CONC). Results Between September 1999 and August 2006, 1181 patients with first ever ischaemic stroke were included in the study. Mean age was 71.4 years, 51% were female and 71% were white patients, 20% were black patients, 6% were other and 3% were of unknown ethnic group. The distribution of the aetiological subtypes was as follows: LAA, 109 (9.3%); CE, 325 (27.8%); SVO, 316 (27.0%); OTH, 40 (3.4%); UND, 283 (24.2%) and CONC, 96 (8.2%). The annual age adjusted incidence rate per 100 000 was for total ischaemic stroke 101.2 (95% CI 82.4 to 122.9) in men and 75.1 (95% CI 59.1 to 94.1) in women; for LAA 10.4 (95% CI 5.1 to 18.9) in men and 6.8 (95% CI 2.7 to 14.2) in women; for CE 23.0 (95% CI 14.6 to 34.5) in men and 21.5 (95% CI 13.4 to 32.8) in women; and for SVO 30.3 (95% CI 20.5 to 43.2) in men and 20.3 (95% CI 12.5 to 31.3) in women. The overall incidence rate ratio (IRR) for black patients was 1.25 (1.07 to 1.46), for black Caribbean (BC) patients 1.31 (1.09 to 1.58), for black African (BA) patients 1.22 (0.93 to 1.61) and for other ethnic groups 1.24 (0.96 to 1.61). IRRs for black ethnic groups as well as for BA and BC were significantly higher for SVO in both sexes, for OTH in black patients for females and in BA for males and females compared with the white ethnic group; IRRs for other ethnic groups compared with white patients were higher for SVO in females and for UND in males. Interpretation Independent important differences in risk of stroke between different ethnic populations strengthen the evidence base for studying genetic susceptibility and environmental influences in ethnic groups separately.
Precision and Agreement of Corneal Power Measurements Obtained Using a New Corneal Topographer OphthaTOP

Purpose To evaluate repeatability and reproducibility of anterior corneal power measurements obtained with a new corneal topographer OphthaTOP (Hummel AG, Germany) and agreement with measurements by a rotating Scheimpflug camera (Pentacam HR, Oculus, Germany) and an automated keratometer (IOLMaster, Carl Zeiss Meditec, Germany). Methods The right eyes of 79 healthy subjects were prospectively measured three times with all three devices. Another examiner performed three additional scans with the OphthaTOP in the same session. Within one week, the first examiner repeated the measurements using the OphthaTOP. The flat simulated keratometry (Kf), steep K (Ks), mean K (Km), J0, and J45 were noted. Repeatability and reproducibility of measurements were assessed by within-subject standard deviation (Sw), repeatability (2.77 Sw), coefficient of variation (CoV), and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Agreement between devices was assessed using 95% limits of agreement (LoA). Results Intraobserver repeatability and interobserver and intersession reproducibility of all measured parameters showed a 2.77 Sw of 0.29 diopter or less, a CoV of less than 0.24%, and an ICC of more than 0.906. Statistically significant differences (P<0.001) were found between the parameters analyzed by the three devices, except J0 and J45. The mean differences between OphthaTOP and the other two devices were small, and the 95% LoA was narrow for all results. Conclusions The OphthaTOP showed excellent intraobserver repeatability and interobserver and intersession reproducibility of corneal power measurements. Good agreements with the other two devices in these parameters were found in healthy eyes.