Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Presence of UG-Repeat Sequences in the 3′-UTRs of Reporter Luciferase mRNAs Mediates Circadian Expression and Can Determine Acrophase in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL RHYTHMS, Vol. 22 No. 3, June 2007 275-277 DOI: 10.1177/0748730407301053 © 2007 Sage Publications The RNA-binding protein CHLAMY1 from the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii was shown to interact specifically and strongly with UG≥7-repeat sequences that are situated in the 3′-UTRs of several mRNAs (Mittag, 1996; Waltenberger et al., 2001). Some of these encode proteins of nitrogen metabolism such as plastidic glutamine synthetase2 (GS2), argininosuccinate lyase (ASL, arg7 gene), and nitrite reductase1 (NII1). Binding of CHLAMY1 to the UG≥7-repeats of these mRNAs was examined at the beginning of the night. Using the 3′-UTR of the luciferin-binding protein mRNA from a dinoflagellate as a target, it was previously shown that the binding activity of CHLAMY1 is controlled by the circadian clock (Mittag, 1996). In that study, the lowest binding activity was detected between the beginning and middle of the subjective day. In the present study, the effect of CHLAMY1 on mRNAs of C. reinhardtii containing different UG≥7repeats was analyzed using a reporter gene assay. The reporter gene consists of the zeocin resistance gene ble fused to the codon-adapted Renilla reniformis luciferase gene (crluc; Fuhrmann et al., 2004). The fusion gene is under control of the strong hsp70A/rbcS2 tandem promoter (Sizova et al., 2001). As a control, the rbcS2 3′-UTR was used that is known to have a negligible effect on gene expression (Lumbreras et al., 1998). Three slightly different cis-acting elements, which derive from the gs2, arg7, and nii1 mRNAs, were tested for their ability to mediate circadian rhythmicity. The UG-repeat regions that have previously been used for mobility shifts (Waltenberger et al., 2001) were cloned exactly at the beginning of the rbcS2 3′-UTR. All 4 chimeric constructs were transformed into wild-type C. reinhardtii. Transformed strains deriving from each construct were positively verified for cRLUC activity and expression of the fusion protein with the correct size of 52 kDa (data not shown). Since measurement of cRLUC activity is more sensitive and can be quantified more accurately (Fuhrmann et al., 2004), it was used to further determine whether the transformed strains show a circadian rhythm of cRLUC expression (Fig. 1). The control strains showed no significant rhythm of cRLUC activity (Fig. 1 A,B). Only in one strain (Fig. 1A), a slight increase toward the end of the day phase with a change in amplitude of ca. 1.5 was observed. The tandem promoter had not been analyzed with regard to circadian expression before. But rbcS2 mRNA was found to be under circadian control in macroarray studies with a maximum at the end of day phase (Kucho et al., 2005). Therefore, the minor increase at this time point might be due to a weak circadian control of the tandem promoter. However, the changes in cRLUC activity are so low LETTER
Vers une BCI utilisable en dehors du milieu clinique

Une interface cerveau-ordinateur (BCI: Brain-Computer Interface) est un systeme permettant la communication directe entre un individu et un ordinateur sans aucune activite mus-culaire. Dans une BCI, l'activite cerebrale de l'utilisateur est enregistree, analysee et traduite en commandes destinees a l'ordinateur. Nous presentons ici quelques unes des nom-breuses techniques de communication palliative BCI qui ont ete decrites dans la litterature depuis quelques annees, en faisant la distinction entre les interfaces qualiees de syn-chrones et celles qualiees d'asynchrones. Ensuite, nous ex-posons un bref etat de l'art de la recherche sur les BCI, no-tamment au niveau europeen et francais. Nous decrivons les choix technologiques faits par notre equipe an de constituer une plate-forme d'interface cerveau-ordinateur qui soit a la fois aisement transportable et utilisable en dehors du milieu clinique. Enn, nous terminons par une presentation des premiers resultats obtenus sur la base d'un paradigme de type P300 speller .
Toll‐like receptor 6‐independent signaling by diacylated lipopeptides

Bacterial lipopeptides are strong immune modulators that activate early host responses after infection as well as initiating adjuvant effects on the adaptive immune system. These lipopeptides induce signaling in cells of the immune system through Toll‐like receptor 2 (TLR2)–TLR1 or TLR2–TLR6 heteromers. So far it has been thought that triacylated lipopeptides, such as the synthetic N‐palmitoyl‐S‐[2,3‐bis(palmitoyloxy)‐(2RS)‐propyl]‐(R)‐cysteine (Pam3)‐CSK4, signal through TLR2–TLR1 heteromers, whereas diacylated lipopeptides, like the macrophage‐activating lipopeptide from Mycoplasma fermentans (MALP2) or S‐[2,3‐bis(palmitoyloxy)‐(2RS)‐propyl]‐(R)‐cysteine (Pam2)‐CGNNDESNISFKEK, induce signaling through TLR2–TLR6 heteromers. Using new synthetic lipopeptide derivatives we addressed the contribution of the lipid and, in particular, the peptide moieties with respect to TLR2 heteromer usage. In contrast to the current model of receptor usage, not only triacylated lipopeptides, but also diacylated lipopeptides like Pam2CSK4 and the elongated MALP2 analog Pam2CGNNDESNISFKEK‐SK4 (MALP2‐SK4) induced B lymphocyte proliferation and TNF‐α secretion in macrophages in a TLR6‐independent manner as determined with cells from TLR6‐deficient mice. Our results indicate that both the lipid and the N‐terminal peptides of lipoproteins contribute to the specificity of recognition by TLR2 heteromers and are responsible for the ligand–receptor interaction on host cells.
Design of a 3 kW primary power supply unit for inductive charging systems optimized for the compatibility to receiving units with 20 kw rated power

This paper presents a power unit for use in the primary side of 3 kW rated inductive charging system. The objective is the design of 3 kW rated primary sides which are compatible to 20 kW rated secondary side receiving units inside electric vehicles. The motivation arises from the consideration that 3 kW and 20 kW charging stations should be kept compatible. Compatible especially in the way that vehicles with 20 kW rated receiving units should be able to use 3 kW charging stations. The basis for the design of the 3 kW system is a series-compensated secondary receiving coil without an additional DC/DC-converter stage between a B4 rectifier and battery with a rated power of 20 kW. The absence of a DC/DC stage allows lower weight and installation space in the vehicle, but the possibility for impedance matching is missing. The system behavior is investigated analytically, so that all currents and voltages, as well as the reactive power in both compensation networks can be calculated depending on the given systems parameter, such as the inductance of the secondary coil, the coupling factor, the operation frequency and the transferred power. It is shown that the operation point with the lowest reactive power, and thus least losses in the coils and compensation capacitors, strongly depends on the design of the receiving unit. Since the receiving unit is designed for a transferred power of 20 kW, an operation with 3 kW will result in a significantly lower efficiency. Therefore a solution is presented, to shift the ideal operation point of the secondary side system from 20 kW to a much lower value. That way, the 3 kW system is able to operate very close to the shifted ideal operation point.
Toward Improving Solar Panel Efficiency using Reinforcement Learning

Solar energy offers a pollution free and sustainable means of harvesting energy directly from the sun. Considerable effort has been directed toward maximizing the efficiency of end-to-end solar systems, including the design of photovoltaic cells [15, 26], engineering new photovoltaic architectures and materials [24], and solar tracking systems [4]. Solar tracking is especially important for maximizing performance of solar panels [8, 38, 21]. Given the proper sensors and hardware, a tracking algorithm can compute the relative location of the sun in the sky throughout the day, and a controller can orient the panel to point at the sun, illustrated in Figure 1. Its goal is to minimize the angle of incidence between incoming solar radiant energy and the grid of photovoltaic cells, as in Eke and Senturk [8], Benghanem [3], King et al. [21] and Kalogirou [17].
The osteocyte as a therapeutic target in the treatment of osteoporosis

Osteoporosis is characterized by a low bone-mineral density associated with skeletal fractures. The decrease in bone-mineral density is the consequence of an unbalanced bone-remodeling process, with higher bone resorption than bone formation. The orchestration of the bone-remodeling process is under the control of the most abundant cell in bone, the osteocyte. Functioning as an endocrine cell, osteocytes are also a source of soluble factors that not only target cells on the bone surface, but also target distant organs. Therefore, any drugs targeting the osteocyte functions and signaling pathways will have a major impact on the bone-remodeling process. This review discusses potential advances in drug therapy for osteoporosis, including novel osteocyte-related antiresorptive and anabolic agents that may become available in the coming years.
Discordance in Pena–Shokeir phenotype/fetal akinesia deformation sequence in a monoamniotic twin

We here report the first case of discordant Pena–Shokeir phenotype observed in monoamniotic twins. A 34‐year‐old woman, pregnant with twins, was referred at 10 weeks' gestation because one of the twins had increased nuchal translucency. Serial ultrasonographic examinations suggested that twin A may have had several other abnormalities, including pleural effusion at 21 weeks' gestation, decreased movement and contracted limbs at 24 weeks, and fetal growth restriction at 26 weeks. No abnormalities were observed in twin B. At 34 weeks of gestation, the twins were delivered by cesarean section. There were cord entanglements, and although the resuscitation of twin A was attempted, it proved difficult due to lockjaw. Twin A died during the second hour of life, and autopsy findings were consistent with the diagnosis of Pena–Shokeir phenotype. We suggest that cord entanglement during early gestation is a possible cause for the occurrence of Pena–Shokeir phenotype through an anoxic‐ischemic mechanism.
Fluorescence immunohistochemistry in combination with DIC and transmission images of confocal LSM for studies of semi-ultrathin specimens of epoxy resin-embedded samples

We have developed a technique, using a combination of immunofluorescence staining of semi-ultrathin sections of epoxy resin-embedded samples and the corresponding differential interference contrast (DIC) images and images in transmission mode obtained by confocal laser-scanning microscopy (LSM), that provides detailed information about the immunolocalization of antigens and histological and cellular structures. To demonstrate the effectiveness of our method, we examined the immunofluorescence of immuno-stained keratin 13 (K13) and keratin 14 (K14) and type II (CII) and type III (CIII) collagens and the corresponding DIC and transmission images during the morphogenesis of filiform papillae on the lingual epithelium of rat fetuses and juveniles. We have also demonstrated the differences in the distribution of two markers of taste cells, α-gustducin and neural cell adhesion molecule (NCAM).
The bile acid receptor TGR5 (Gpbar‐1) acts as a neurosteroid receptor in brain

TGR5 (Gpbar‐1) is a membrane‐bound bile acid receptor in the gastrointestinal tract and immune cells with pleiotropic actions. As shown in the present study, TGR5 is also expressed in astrocytes and neurons. Here, TGR5 may act as a neurosteroid receptor, which is activated by nanomolar concentrations of 5β‐pregnan‐3α‐ol‐20‐one and micromolar concentrations of 5β‐pregnan‐3α‐17α‐21‐triol‐20‐one and 5α‐pregnan‐3α‐ol‐20‐one (allopregnanolone). TGR5 stimulation in astrocytes and neurons is coupled to adenylate cyclase activation, elevation of intracellular Ca2+ and the generation of reactive oxygen species. In cultured rat astrocytes, TGR5 mRNA is downregulated in the presence of neurosteroids and ammonia already at concentrations of 0.5 mmol L−1. Furthermore, TGR5 protein levels are significantly reduced in isolated rat astrocytes after incubation with ammonia. A marked downregulation of TGR5 mRNA is also found in cerebral cortex from cirrhotic patients dying with hepatic encephalopathy (HE) when compared with brains from noncirrhotic control subjects. It is concluded that TGR5 is a novel neurosteroid receptor in brain with implications for the pathogenesis of HE. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Concept Drift Detection with Hierarchical Hypothesis Testing

When using statistical models (such as a classifier) in a streaming environment, there is often a need to detect and adapt to concept drifts to mitigate any deterioration in the model’s predictive performance over time. Unfortunately, the ability of popular concept drift approaches in detecting these drifts in the relationship of the response and predictor variable is often dependent on the distribution characteristics of the data streams, as well as its sensitivity on parameter tuning. This paper presents Hierarchical Linear Four Rates (HLFR), a framework that detects concept drifts for different data stream distributions (including imbalanced data) by leveraging a hierarchical set of hypothesis tests in an online setting. The performance of HLFR is compared to benchmark approaches using both simulated and real-world datasets spanning the breadth of concept drift types. HLFR significantly outperforms benchmark approaches in terms of accuracy, G-mean, recall, delay in detection and adaptability across the various datasets.
Spherical Harmonic Smoothing for Localizing Coherent Sound Sources

Correlated or coherent sources can cause the localization performance of subspace-based beamformers to deteriorate. To solve this problem, various smoothing techniques have been proposed for the localization of multiple coherent sound sources. A common principle of smoothing techniques is to increase the rank of a covariance matrix by constructing multiple subarrays in the space, time, or frequency domain. The construction of such subarrays, however, requires the satisfaction of strong assumptions regarding the microphone positions or the temporal/spectral structures of the signals. In this paper, we propose a spherical harmonic smoothing technique that can perform smoothing in terms of spherical harmonic coefficients only. Unlike other smoothing techniques, the proposed technique constructs subarrays of spherical harmonic coefficients and uses them to increase the number of linearly independent observations in a signal subspace. Subarray construction in the spherical harmonics domain enables the accurate localization of multiple coherent sources even at a single frequency. The proposed technique can be applied to an arbitrary microphone array as long as the spherical harmonic coefficients can be measured up to a finite order.
Open Access and Dynamic Efficiency

In our model, production of a final good requires access to an excludable resource owned by an integrated firm. The quality of the resource depends on an investment by the owner and impacts the downstream demand curve. Under open access, the owner must share the resource with downstream competitors at a regulated tariff. We show that quality exceeds the monopoly level, and increases with the number of competitors, if the access tariff is set according to a principle we call revenue neutrality. Our results contradict the notion that dynamic efficiency must be sacrificed for gains in static (allocative) efficiency. (JEL D21, D43, D45, L24, O34)
UTILIZAÇÃO DO CICLO PDCA ASSOCIADO AO DIAGRAMA DE ISHIKAWA COMO FERRAMENTAS DE GESTÃO EM UMA ORGANIZAÇÃO NÃO GOVERNAMENTAL

A necessidade de utilizar ferramentas de gestao para alcancar a excelencia durante a gestao de uma empresa e de extrema importância, porem muitas vezes falta conhecimento tecnico dos gestores em relacao as ferramentas disponiveis. Neste intuito o trabalho objetivou o estudo das diversas ferramentas da qualidade e sua aplicacao como uma ferramenta de gestao em uma organizacao do terceiro setor. Para tanto, realizou-se uma extensiva capacitacao dentro das ferramentas da qualidade mais difundidas na literatura e apresentadas aos gestores de uma organizacao do terceiro setor local. Apos capacitacao do corpo executivo desta organizacao em relacao as ferramentas, foi possivel aplicar o Diagrama de Ishikawa como ferramenta de identificacao de erros e analise das causas fundamentais recorrentes aos insucessos da organizacao. Como resultado desta analise, foi possivel identificar as causas raizes para um indicador especifico e a formalizacao de um plano de acao gerido pelo PDCA para sua execucao e controle.
Analysis of bistatic tracking accuracy in passive radar

In the paper, an analysis of bistatic tracking accuracy in passive radar is presented. The influence of parameters such as integration time, probability of false alarm, signal-to-noise ratio and spectral density of process noise is investigated. Simulations are performed for three popular types of illuminators of opportunity: FM, DAB and DVB-T.
Biological and Electrophysiologic Effects of Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) on Regenerating Peripheral Nerve Fibers

Background: Uninjured peripheral nerves in upper-limb amputees represent attractive sites for connectivity with neuroprostheses because their predictable internal topography allows for precise sorting of motor and sensory signals. The inclusion of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) reduces impedance and improves charge transfer at the biotic-abiotic interface. This study evaluates the in vivo performance of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)–coated interpositional decellularized nerve grafts across a critical nerve conduction gap, and examines the long-term effects of two different poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) formulations on regenerating peripheral nerve fibers. Methods: In 48 rats, a 15-mm gap in the common peroneal nerve was repaired using a nerve graft of equivalent length, including (1) decellularized nerve chemically polymerized with poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (dry); (2) decellularized nerve electrochemically polymerized with poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (wet); (3) intact nerve; (4) autogenous nerve graft; (5) decellularized nerve alone; and (6) unrepaired nerve gap controls. All groups underwent electrophysiologic characterization at 3 months, and nerves were harvested for histomorphometric analysis. Results: Conduction velocity was significantly faster in the dry poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) group compared with the sham, decellularized nerve, and wet poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) groups. Maximum specific force for the dry poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) group was more similar to sham than were decellularized nerve controls. Evident neural regeneration was demonstrated in both dry and wet poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) groups by the presence of normal regenerating axons on histologic cross-section. Conclusions: Both poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) formulations were compatible with peripheral nerve regeneration at 3 months. This study supports poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) as a promising adjunct for peripheral nerve interfaces for prosthetic control and other biomedical applications because of its recognized ionic-to-electronic coupling potential.
A comparison of measurements of lean body mass derived by bioelectrical impedance, skinfold thickness and total body potassium. A study in obese and non-obese normal subjects.

The measurement of body composition is an important part of metabolic and epidemiological research, but most currently available methods are complex and expensive. We have, therefore, compared measurements of fat mass (FM) and lean body mass (LBM), obtained using a commercially available bioelectrical impedance monitor (The Holtain Body Composition Monitor) (IMP), and by measuring skinfold thickness (SFT), with values obtained by measuring total body potassium (TBK). Twenty subjects, 10 with a body mass index (BMI) less than 30 (kg m-2), (non-obese) and 10 with BMI greater than or equal to 30 (obese) took part in the study. There was a strongly significant linear relationship between LBM calculated from TBK and that calculated from impedance (IMP), in both non-obese and obese groups analysed separately (non-obese: r = 0.92; p less than 0.001 and obese: r = 0.92; p less than 0.001) and together (all: r = 0.89; p less than 0.001). LBM calculated from TBK was strongly linearly correlated with values derived from SFT for non-obese (r = 0.91; p less than 0.001) but not for obese subjects. Mean values of LBM of non-obese subjects derived by each method were not significantly different (TBK: 51.3 +/- 10.40 kg; IMP: 53.18 +/- 10.37 kg; SFT: 48.87 +/- 9.48 kg), but significant differences existed when the subjects were obese (TBK: 51.86 +/- 9.65 kg; IMP: 58.69 +/- 8.55 kg; SFT: 67.61 +/- 8.14 kg; p less than 0.01). (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Phosphatidylinositol 3′-Kinase and p70s6k Are Required for Insulin but Not Bisperoxovanadium 1,10-Phenanthroline (bpV(phen)) Inhibition of Insulin-like Growth Factor Binding Protein Gene Expression

The hormonal regulation of insulin-like growth factor binding protein (IGFBP)-1 and −4 mRNA was compared in serum-free primary rat hepatocyte cultures. The combination of dexamethasone and glucagon (Dex/Gluc) strongly increased IGFBP-1 and IGFBP-4 mRNA levels. Insulin suppressed Dex/Gluc-stimulated IGFBP-1 but not IGFBP-4 mRNA levels. In contrast, the peroxovanadium compound, bisperoxovanadium 1,10-phenanthroline (bpV(phen)), completely abrogated Dex/Gluc induction of both IGFBP mRNA species. Wortmannin and rapamycin blocked the inhibitory effect of insulin but not that of bpV(phen) on Dex/Gluc-stimulated IGFBP mRNA. Thus, although phosphatidylinositol 3′-kinase and p70s6k are necessary for insulin-mediated transcriptional inhibition of the IGFBP-1 gene, a signaling pathway, independent of phosphatidyloinositol 3′-kinase and p70s6k, is activated by bpV(phen) and mediates IGFBP-1 as well as IGFBP-4 mRNA inhibition. Mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase activity induced by insulin was suppressed to below basal levels in the presence of Dex/Gluc, whereas in response to bpV(phen), MAP kinase activity was high and unaffected by Dex/Gluc, consistent with a role of MAP kinases in bpV(phen)-mediated inhibition of IGFBP mRNA. The specific MAP kinase kinase (MEK) inhibitor, PD98059, inhibited insulin but not bpV(phen)-stimulated MAP kinase activity, suggesting that MAP kinases can be activated in a MEK-independent fashion. Peroxovanadium compounds are strong inhibitors of tyrosine phosphatases, which may inhibit specific tyrosine/threonine phosphatases involved in the negative regulation of MAP kinases.
Global Vs Local: A Comparison of Two Approaches to Perform Diagnosis in Networks of Mechatronic Agents

Natural systems often exhibit, at a macro level, a tendency to order that emerges from simple and local interactions between the system components. This idea that the whole can denote a consistent behavior that is more than the sum of individual components has inspired the design and development of many artificial systems. Recently, with the pervasiveness of IT in the automation domain the application of such principles became interesting as a mean to developed seamlessly plug gable, robust and fault-tolerant mechatronic systems. These concepts, however, have been mainly applied from a control perspective. This paper argues the regulatory significance of diagnosis in such complex systems and discusses two strategies (fully centralized with global information and fully decentralized with local information) to perform a diagnostic analysis that explores the network dimension of future mechatronic systems.