Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Prenatal Restraint Stress Generates Two Distinct Behavioral and Neurochemical Profiles in Male and Female Rats

Prenatal Restraint Stress (PRS) in rats is a validated model of early stress resulting in permanent behavioral and neurobiological outcomes. Although sexual dimorphism in the effects of PRS has been hypothesized for more than 30 years, few studies in this long period have directly addressed the issue. Our group has uncovered a pronounced gender difference in the effects of PRS (stress delivered to the mothers 3 times per day during the last 10 days of pregnancy) on anxiety, spatial learning, and a series of neurobiological parameters classically associated with hippocampus-dependent behaviors. Adult male rats subjected to PRS (“PRS rats”) showed increased anxiety-like behavior in the elevated plus maze (EPM), a reduction in the survival of newborn cells in the dentate gyrus, a reduction in the activity of mGlu1/5 metabotropic glutamate receptors in the ventral hippocampus, and an increase in the levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and pro-BDNF in the hippocampus. In contrast, female PRS rats displayed reduced anxiety in the EPM, improved learning in the Morris water maze, an increase in the activity of mGlu1/5 receptors in the ventral and dorsal hippocampus, and no changes in hippocampal neurogenesis or BDNF levels. The direction of the changes in neurogenesis, BDNF levels and mGlu receptor function in PRS animals was not consistent with the behavioral changes, suggesting that PRS perturbs the interdependency of these particular parameters and their relation to hippocampus-dependent behavior. Our data suggest that the epigenetic changes in hippocampal neuroplasticity induced by early environmental challenges are critically sex-dependent and that the behavioral outcome may diverge in males and females.
Antioxidative Potential of Aqueous Extract of Ocimum americanum L. Leaves: An in vitro and in vivo Evaluation

Authors : Bukola Tola Aluko, Omotade Ibidun Oloyede Abstract : Ocimum americanum L. (Lamiaceae) is an annual herb that is native to tropical Africa. The in vitro and in vivo antioxidant activity of its aqueous extract was carefully investigated by assessing the DPPH radical scavenging activity, ABTS radical scavenging activity and hydrogen peroxide radical scavenging activity. The reducing power, total phenol, total flavonoids and flavonols content of the extract were also evaluated. The data obtained revealed that the extract is rich in polyphenolic compounds and scavenged the radicals in a concentration-dependent manner. This was done in comparison with the standard antioxidants such as BHT and Vitamin C. Also, the induction of oxidative damage with paracetamol (2000 mg/kg) resulted in the elevation of lipid peroxides and significant (P < 0.05) decrease in activities of superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase, glutathione reductase and catalase in the liver and kidney of rats. However, the pretreatment of rats with aqueous extract of O. americanum leaves (200 and 400 mg/kg), and silymarin (100 mg/kg) caused a significant (P < 0.05) reduction in the values of lipid peroxides and restored the levels of antioxidant parameters in these organs. These findings suggest that the leaves of O. americanum have potent antioxidant properties which may be responsible for its acclaimed folkloric uses.
Differentiation of Dopamine Overflow and Uptake Processes in the Extracellular Fluid of the Rat Caudate Nucleus with Fast‐Scan In Vivo Voltammetry

Abstract: Stimulated overflow of dopamine (DA) into the extracellular fluid of the rat caudate nucleus was measured with fast‐scan cyclic voltammetry. DA concentrations were sampled in less than 10 ms at 100‐ms intervals with a Na‐fion‐coated, carbon‐fiber microelectrode. Overflow of DA was induced by electrical stimulation of the medial fore‐brain bundle with 300–μA pulses of various duration and frequency. Stimulated overflow was measured as a function of stimulus duration before and after administration of benztropine, bupropion, and amphetamine. These results were correlated with simulated curves based on a simple uptake/overflow model. The observed overflow was assumed to be a function of [DA]P, the concentration of DA which overflows per stimulus pulse, and the kinetics of cellular uptake of DA. Correlation of experimental with simulated results was obtained at the 95% confidence limit for the duration studies; however, it was not possible to distinguish between the effects of pharmacological agents on uptake and overflow. In contrast, modulation of stimulus frequency did permit such distinction. Simulations of an increase in [DA]P fit results following dihydroxyphenyl‐alanine methyl ester at 95% confidence limits, whereas an equivalent change in the apparent Km did not fit. An increase in the apparent value of Km correlated with results obtained at different frequencies following nomifensine and bupropion administration at the 95% confidence limit, whereas an equivalent increase in [DA]P did not fit. The effects of GBR 12909 best correlated with an increase in the DA available for overflow.
Choice of Words in Doctor–Patient Communication: An Analysis of Health-Related Internet Sites

As more and more doctor–patient communication is happening online, it is important to know how doctors adapt to their patients' knowledge level and ensure that they make themselves understood in this medium. This article examined question–answer sets from health archives to see whether medical experts adapted their answers to the way laypersons verbalized their concerns. The authors analyzed word use and further stylistic variables in question–answer pairs to test 2 hypotheses: (a) the lexical entrainment hypothesis predicting that experts would entrain to patients' word use; and (b) the linguistic copresence hypothesis predicting that the more medical terminology used by the patient, the more demanding experts' answers would be. Results provided evidence that the patients' choice of words impacts the experts' answers. Practical implications are discussed for improving mutual understanding in online health advice.
Towards Vertical Alignment of Process Models-A Collection of Mismatches

Process models are created to answer a specific purpose. Multiple models created in the context of the same scenario, but for different purposes, differ with respect to their level of abstraction. However, it is a common observation that differences between these models related not only to the applied abstraction level. Aspects that are of no relevance regarding the purpose of the model are neglected, whereas other aspects that are relevant to answer the purpose are added. These mismatches violate existing consistency notions between models of different abstraction levels, as these notions focus on strict refinement relations between models. We argue that these models are not wrong. On the contrary, the mismatches are a natural result of the different focus of these models. In this paper, we present a categorisation and informal description of these mismatches.
Title Energy-Efficient Acceleration of OpenCV SaliencyComputation Using Soft Vector Processors

Soft vector processors in embedded FPGA platforms such as the VectorBlox MXP engine can match the performance and exceed the energy-efficiency of commercial off-the-shelf embedded SoCs with SIMD or GPU accelerators for OpenCV applications such as Saliency detection. We are also able to beat spatial hardware designs built from high-level synthesis while requiring significantly lower programming effort. These improvements are possible through careful scheduling of DMA operations to the vector engine, extensive use of line-buffering to enhance data reuse on the FPGA and limited use of scalar fallback for nonvectorizable code. The driving principle is to keep data and computation on the FPGA for as long as possible to exploit parallelism, data locality and lower the energy requirements of communication. Using our approach, we outperform all platforms in our architecture comparison while needing less energy. At 640⇥480 image resolution, our implementation of MXP soft vector processor on the Xilinx Zedboard exceeds the performance of the Jetson TK1-GPU by 1.5⇥ while needing 1.6⇥ less energy, Beaglebone Black by 4.7⇥ at 2.3⇥ less energy, Raspberry Pi by 9⇥ at 4⇥ less energy, and Intel Galileo by 28⇥ at 16⇥ less energy. Our vector implementation also outperforms Vivado HLS generated OpenCV library implementation by 1.5⇥.
Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli O104:H4: a New Challenge for Microbiology

ABSTRACT In 2011, Germany experienced the largest outbreak with a Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) strain ever recorded. A series of environmental and trace-back and trace-forward investigations linked sprout consumption with the disease, but fecal-oral transmission was also documented. The genome sequences of the pathogen revealed a clonal outbreak with enteroaggregative E. coli (EAEC). Some EAEC virulence factors are carried on the virulence plasmid pAA. From an unknown source, the epidemic strains acquired a lambdoid prophage carrying the gene for the Shiga toxin. The resulting strains therefore possess two different mobile elements, a phage and a plasmid, contributing essential virulence genes. Shiga toxin is released by decaying bacteria in the gut, migrates through the intestinal barrier, and is transported via the blood to target organs, like the kidney. In a mouse model, probiotic bifidobacteria interfered with transport of the toxin through the gut mucosa. Researchers explored bacteriophages, bacteriocins, and low-molecular-weight inhibitors against STEC. Randomized controlled clinical trials of enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC)-associated hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) patients found none of the interventions superior to supportive therapy alone. Antibodies against one subtype of Shiga toxin protected pigs against fatal neurological infection, while treatment with a toxin receptor decoy showed no effect in a clinical trial. Likewise, a monoclonal antibody directed against a complement protein led to mixed results. Plasma exchange and IgG immunoadsoprtion ameliorated the condition in small uncontrolled trials. The epidemic O104:H4 strains were resistant to all penicillins and cephalosporins but susceptible to carbapenems, which were recommended for treatment.
Advances in Brief Effects of the Multidrug Transporter P-Glycoprotein on Cellular Responses to Ionizing Radiation 1

Ionizing radiation induces apoptosis, mitotic catastrophe, and senescencelike terminal proliferation arrest in tumor cells. We investigated the effect of the MDR1 P-glycoprotein (Pgp), recently shown to inhibit caspase-mediated apoptosis, on cellular responses to radiation. Pgp strongly inhibited radiationinduced apoptosis in a HeLa-derived cell line with inducibleMDR1 expression and in NIH 3T3 cells transduced with aMDR1-expressing retroviral vector. The inhibition of apoptosis by Pgp was associated, however, with increases in radiation-induced mitotic catastrophe and senescence and produced only a marginal change in the survival of irradiated cells. Pgp had no effect on radiation responses in apoptosis-resistant HT1080 cells. These results indicate that Pgp inhibits radiation-induced apoptosis, but this effect of Pgp provides no substantial increase in radiation resistance of the tested cell lines because apoptosis-resistant cells die from mitotic catastrophe or undergo senescence-like terminal proliferation arrest.
Study of the rare decays of B 0 s and B 0 into muon pairs from data collected during 2015 and 2016 with the ATLAS detector The ATLAS Collaboration

A study of the decays B0 s → μ+μ− and B0 → μ+μ− has been performed using 26.3 fb−1 of 13 TeV LHC proton–proton collisions collected with the ATLAS detector in 2015 and 2016. For B0 s , the branching fraction B(B0 s → μ+μ−) = ( 3.2+1.1 −1.0 ) × 10−9 is measured. For the B0, an upper limit on the branching fraction is set at B(B0 → μ+μ−) < 4.3 × 10−10 at 95% confidence level. The result is combined with the full Run 1 ATLAS result, yielding B(B0 s → μ+μ−) = ( 2.8+0.8 −0.7 ) ×10−9 and B(B0 → μ+μ−) < 2.1×10−10. The combined result is consistent with the Standard Model within 2.4 standard deviations.
EMPIRICAL DETERMINATION OF EINSTEIN A-COEFFICIENT RATIOS OF BRIGHT [Fe ii] LINES

The Einstein spontaneous rates (A-coefficients) of Fe+ lines have been computed by several authors with results that differ from each other by up to 40%. Consequently, models for line emissivities suffer from uncertainties that in turn affect the determination of the physical conditions at the base of line excitation. We provide an empirical determination of the A-coefficient ratios of bright [Fe ii] lines that would represent both a valid benchmark for theoretical computations and a reference for the physical interpretation of the observed lines. With the ESO–Very Large Telescope X-shooter instrument between 3000 Å and 24700 Å, we obtained a spectrum of the bright Herbig–Haro object HH 1. We detect around 100 [Fe ii] lines, some of which with a signal-to-noise ratios ⩾100. Among these latter lines, we selected those emitted by the same level, whose dereddened intensity ratios are direct functions of the Einstein A-coefficient ratios. From the same X-shooter spectrum, we got an accurate estimate of the extinction toward HH 1 through intensity ratios of atomic species, H i recombination lines and H2 ro-vibrational transitions. We provide seven reliable A-coefficient ratios between bright [Fe ii] lines, which are compared with the literature determinations. In particular, the A-coefficient ratios involving the brightest near-infrared lines (λ12570/λ16440 and λ13209/λ16440) are in better agreement with the predictions by the Quinet et al. relativistic Hartree–Fock model. However, none of the theoretical models predict A-coefficient ratios in agreement with all of our determinations. We also show that literature data of near-infrared intensity ratios better agree with our determinations than with theoretical expectations.
Retinal Thickness in Eyes of Older Normal Individuals and its Implication for the Diagnosis of Glaucoma

PurposeRetinal thickness (RT) is a useful measurement for describing diseases that affect the thickness of the retina, such as glaucoma. Existing normative data are derived from relatively young individuals; however, glaucoma is most prevalent in older individuals. We therefore studied the RT in older normal individuals. Patients and MethodsParticipants of the Baltimore Eye Study, persons accompanying patients, and staff were recruited and underwent visual field testing and a comprehensive eye examination by a glaucoma specialist. RT was measured with the retinal thickness analyzer (RTA, Talia Technology) and RT values in specific regions were derived using a custom-designed MatLab program. ResultsOne hundred and three eyes of sixty-two individuals were studied. Mean age was 61 years. Sixty-six percent were female and 82% were of European descent. The average mean deviation on visual field testing was 0.03 dB and the average pattern SD was 1.51 dB. The mean RT of the entire macula was 159±16 μm, and was lowest in the foveal pit and highest in the parafoveal annulus. The average distance from the foveal pit to the thickest point in the parafoveal annulus was 1240±138 μm. The mean RT of the entire macula was slightly less in older individuals (slope=−5.7 μm/10 y, P=0.02) but the height of the parafoveal annulus relative to the foveal pit, which is determined by the combined thickness of the parafoveal nerve fibers, ganglion cells, inner plexiform layer, and inner nuclear layer, did not vary with age (P=0.62). ConclusionsAlthough the average RT of the entire macula was slightly thinner with increasing age, the height of the parafoveal annulus relative to the foveal pit did not change with age and would therefore seem to be a better marker of neuronal tissue health than the average RT of the entire macula.
Foundations of Complex Event Processing

Complex Event Processing (CEP) has emerged as the unifying field for technologies that require processing and correlating heterogeneous distributed data sources in real-time. CEP finds applications in diverse domains, which has resulted in a large number of proposals for expressing and processing complex events. However, existing CEP frameworks are based on ad-hoc solutions that do not rely on solid theoretical ground, making them hard to understand, extend or generalize. Moreover, they are usually presented as application programming interfaces documented by examples, and using each of them requires learning a different set of skills. In this paper we embark on the task of giving a rigorous framework to CEP. As a starting point, we propose a formal language for specifying complex events, called CEPL, that contains the common features used in the literature and has a simple and denotational semantics. We also formalize the so-called selection strategies, which are the cornerstone of CEP and had only been presented as by-design extensions to existing frameworks. With a well-defined semantics at hand, we study how to efficiently evaluate CEPL for processing complex events. We provide optimization results based on rewriting formulas to a normal form that simplifies the evaluation of filters. Furthermore, we introduce a formal computational model for CEP based on transducers and symbolic automata, called match automata, that captures the regular core of CEPL, i.e. formulas with unary predicates. By using rewriting techniques and automata-based translations, we show that formulas in the regular core of CEPL can be evaluated using constant time per event followed by constant-delay enumeration of the output (under data complexity). By gathering these results together, we propose a framework for efficiently evaluating CEPL, establishing solid foundations for future CEP systems.
Sooner than Expected: Hitting the Wall of Complexity in Evolution

In evolutionary robotics an encoding of the control software, which maps sensor data (input) to motor control values (output), is shaped by stochastic optimization methods to complete a predefined task. This approach is assumed to be beneficial compared to standard methods of controller design in those cases where no a-priori model is available that could help to optimize performance. Also for robots that have to operate in unpredictable environments, an evolutionary robotics approach is favorable. We demonstrate here that such a model-free approach is not a free lunch, as already simple tasks can represent unsolvable barriers for fully open-ended uninformed evolutionary computation techniques. We propose here the 'Wankelmut' task as an objective for an evolutionary approach that starts from scratch without pre-shaped controller software or any other informed approach that would force the behavior to be evolved in a desired way. Our focal claim is that 'Wankelmut' represents the simplest set of problems that makes plain-vanilla evolutionary computation fail. We demonstrate this by a series of simple standard evolutionary approaches using different fitness functions and standard artificial neural networks as well as continuous-time recurrent neural networks. All our tested approaches failed. We claim that any other evolutionary approach will also fail that does per-se not favor or enforce modularity and does not freeze or protect already evolved functionalities. Thus we propose a hard-to-pass benchmark and make a strong statement for self-complexifying and generative approaches in evolutionary computation. We anticipate that defining such a 'simplest task to fail' is a valuable benchmark for promoting future development in the field of artificial intelligence, evolutionary robotics and artificial life.
Trans-natural antisense transcripts including noncoding RNAs in 10 species: implications for expression regulation

Natural antisense transcripts are at least partially complementary to their sense transcripts. Cis-Sense/Antisense pairs (cis-SAs) have been extensively characterized and known to play diverse regulatory roles, whereas trans-Sense/Antisense pairs (trans-SAs) in animals are poorly studied. We identified long trans-SAs in human and nine other animals, using ESTs to increase coverage significantly over previous studies. The percentage of transcriptional units (TUs) involved in trans-SAs among all TUs was as high as 4.13%. Particularly 2896 human TUs (or 2.89% of all human TUs) were involved in 3327 trans-SAs. Sequence complementarities over multiple segments with predicted RNA hybridization indicated that some trans-SAs might have sophisticated RNA–RNA pairing patterns. One-fourth of human trans-SAs involved noncoding TUs, suggesting that many noncoding RNAs may function by a trans-acting antisense mechanism. TUs in trans-SAs were statistically significantly enriched in nucleic acid binding, ion/protein binding and transport and signal transduction functions and pathways; a significant number of human trans-SAs showed concordant or reciprocal expression pattern; a significant number of human trans-SAs were conserved in mouse. This evidence suggests important regulatory functions of trans-SAs. In 30 cases, trans-SAs were related to cis-SAs through paralogues, suggesting a possible mechanism for the origin of trans-SAs. All trans-SAs are available at http://trans.cbi. pku.edu. cn/.
Quick-and-easy nutritional screening tools to detect disease-related undernutrition in hospital in-and outpatient settings : A systematic review of sensitivity and specificity

Academic Medical Center Amsterdam, Department of Dietetics/F4-135, Meibergdreef 9, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, The Netherlands Academic Medical Center Amsterdam, Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Amsterdam, The Netherlands Academic Medical Center Amsterdam, Department of Cardiac Thoracic Surgery, Amsterdam, The Netherlands VU University Medical Center Amsterdam, Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Efficacy of leukocyte‐ and platelet‐rich plasma gel (L‐PRP gel) in treating osteomyelitis in a rabbit model

Leukocyte‐ and platelet‐rich plasma gel (L‐PRP gel), a new autologous product which was previously utilized in several surgical procedures to enhance tissue healing, is now increasingly used as a promising treatment method for infections. In this study, we investigated the antibacterial property of L‐PRP gel against Methicillin‐resistive Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA, ATCC 43300) in a rabbit model of osteomyelitis. Tibial osteomyelitis was induced in 40 New Zealand white rabbits using the MRSA strain. Three weeks after induction, the rabbits with tibial osteomyelitis were randomly divided into four groups: Control group (no treatment); Van group (debridement and parenteral treatment with vancomycin alone); L‐PRP gel + Van group (debridement and local L‐PRP gel injection, plus parenteral treatment with vancomycin); L‐PRP gel group (debridement and local L‐PRP gel injection). All rabbits were sacrificed 6 weeks after debridement. The antibacterial efficacy was evaluated by radiological, microbiological, and histological examinations. Newly formed bone was also quantified. The best therapeutic efficacy, including infection elimination and bone defect repair, was observed in the L‐PRP gel + Van group. Although not comparable to vancomycin, L‐PRP gel also exibited antimicrobial efficacy in vivo. We believe that a combination of L‐PRP gel and antibiotics could be a favorable alternative for the treatment of osteomyelitis. © 2012 Orthopaedic Research Society. Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Orthop Res 31: 949–956, 2013