Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Vancomycin-modified Fe3O4@SiO2@Ag microflowers as effective antimicrobial agents

Nanomaterials combined with antibiotics exhibit synergistic effects and have gained increasing interest as promising antimicrobial agents. In this study, vancomycin-modified magnetic-based silver microflowers (Van/Fe3O4@SiO2@Ag microflowers) were rationally designed and prepared to achieve strong bactericidal ability, a wide antimicrobial spectrum, and good recyclability. High-performance Fe3O4@SiO2@Ag microflowers served as a multifunction-supporting matrix and exhibited sufficient magnetic response property due to their 200 nm Fe3O4 core. The microflowers also possessed a highly branched flower-like Ag shell that provided a large surface area for effective Ag ion release and bacterial contact. The modified-vancomycin layer was effectively bound to the cell wall of bacteria to increase the permeability of the cell membrane and facilitate the entry of the Ag ions into the bacterium, resulting in cell death. As such, the fabricated Van/Fe3O4@SiO2@Ag microflowers were predicted to be an effective and environment-friendly antibacterial agent. This hypothesis was verified through sterilization of Gram-negative Escherichia coli and Gram-positive methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, with minimum inhibitory concentrations of 10 and 20 μg mL−1, respectively. The microflowers also showed enhanced effect compared with bare Fe3O4@SiO2@Ag microflowers and free-form vancomycin, confirming the synergistic effects of the combination of the two components. Moreover, the antimicrobial effect was maintained at more than 90% after five cycling assays, indicating the high stability of the product. These findings reveal that Van/Fe3O4@SiO2@Ag microflowers exhibit promising applications in the antibacterial fields.
Vision Therapy in Adults with Convergence Insufficiency: Clinical and Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Measures

Purpose. This research quantified clinical measurements and functional neural changes associated with vision therapy in subjects with convergence insufficiency (CI). Methods. Convergence and divergence 4° step responses were compared between 13 control adult subjects with normal binocular vision and four CI adult subjects. All CI subjects participated in 18 h of vision therapy. Clinical parameters quantified throughout the therapy included: nearpoint of convergence, recovery point of convergence, positive fusional vergence at near, near dissociated phoria, and eye movements that were quantified using peak velocity. Neural correlates of the CI subjects were quantified with functional magnetic resonance imaging scans comparing random vs. predictable vergence movements using a block design before and after vision therapy. Images were quantified by measuring the spatial extent of activation and the average correlation within five regions of interests (ROI). The ROIs were the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, a portion of the frontal lobe, part of the parietal lobe, the cerebellum, and the brain stem. All measurements were repeated 4 months to 1 year post-therapy in three of the CI subjects. Results. Convergence average peak velocities to step stimuli were significantly slower (p = 0.016) in CI subjects compared with controls; however, significant differences in average peak velocities were not observed for divergence step responses (p = 0.30). The investigation of CI subjects participating in vision therapy showed that the nearpoint of convergence, recovery point of convergence, and near dissociated phoria significantly decreased. Furthermore, the positive fusional vergence, average peak velocity from 4° convergence steps, and the amount of functional activity within the frontal areas, cerebellum, and brain stem significantly increased. Several clinical and cortical parameters were significantly correlated. Conclusions. Convergence peak velocity was significantly slower in CI subjects compared with controls, which may result in asthenopic complaints reported by the CI subjects. Vision therapy was associated with and may have evoked clinical and cortical activity changes.
Retrieve Scalable Image Contents over Image Contents Network by Efficient Caching Algorithms

Recently how to retrieve Web contents efficiently over the Internet has been an important issue, because large-sized contents (such as image and video) always take heavy load to the end users. Scalable (layered) format is considered as one of appropriate solutions for the above problem because of its better flexibility and functionality. However, the corresponding caching method for scalable format has not been resolved. Therefore, this paper is to talk about the caching algorithms to retrieve and deliver scalable Web image contents over the Internet. We compare several caching methods and give a conclusion on how to further improve the Web performance by assigning efficient caching algorithms.
Homeostatic and tendency-based CPU load predictions

The dynamic nature of a resource-sharing environment means that applications must be able to adapt their behavior in response to changes in system status. Predictions of future system performance can be used to guide such adaptations. In this paper, we present and evaluate several new one-step-ahead and low-overhead time series prediction strategies that track recent trends by giving more weight to recent data. We present results that show that a dynamic tendency prediction model with different ascending and descending behavior performs best among all strategies studied. A comparative study conducted on a set of 38 machine load traces shows that this new predictor achieves average prediction errors that are between 2% and 55% less (36% less on average) than those incurred by the predictors used within the popular Network Weather Service system.
Role of Homeostasis in Learning Sparse Representations

Neurons in the input layer of primary visual cortex in primates develop edge-like receptive fields. One approach to understanding the emergence of this response is to state that neural activity has to efficiently represent sensory data with respect to the statistics of natural scenes. Furthermore, it is believed that such an efficient coding is achieved using a competition across neurons so as to generate a sparse representation, that is, where a relatively small number of neurons are simultaneously active. Indeed, different models of sparse coding, coupled with Hebbian learning and homeostasis, have been proposed that successfully match the observed emergent response. However, the specific role of homeostasis in learning such sparse representations is still largely unknown. By quantitatively assessing the efficiency of the neural representation during learning, we derive a cooperative homeostasis mechanism that optimally tunes the competition between neurons within the sparse coding algorithm. We apply this homeostasis while learning small patches taken from natural images and compare its efficiency with state-of-the-art algorithms. Results show that while different sparse coding algorithms give similar coding results, the homeostasis provides an optimal balance for the representation of natural images within the population of neurons. Competition in sparse coding is optimized when it is fair. By contributing to optimizing statistical competition across neurons, homeostasis is crucial in providing a more efficient solution to the emergence of independent components.
A common gradient in multi-agent reinforcement learning

This article shows that seemingly diverse implementations of multi-agent reinforcement learning share the same basic building block in their learning dynamics: a mathematical term that is closely related to the gradient of the expected reward. Specifically, two independent branches of multi-agent learning research can be distinguished based on their respective assumptions and premises. The first branch assumes that the value function of the game is known to all players, which is then used to update the learning policy based on Gradient Ascent. Notable algorithms in this branch include Infinitesimal Gradient Ascent (IGA) [7], the variation Win or Learn Fast IGA (WoLF) [3] and the Weighted Policy Learner [1]. The second branch of multi-agent learning is concerned with learning in unknown environments, using interaction-based Reinforcement Learning, and contains those algorithms which have been shown to be formally connected to the replicator equations of Evolutionary Game Theory. In this case, the learning agent updates its policy based on a sequence of pairs that indicate the quality of the actions taken. Notable algorithms include Cross Learning (CL) [4], Regret Minimization (RM) [6], and Frequency Adjusted Q-learning (FAQ) [5]. This article demonstrates inherent similarities between these diverse families of algorithms by comparing their underlying learning dynamics, derived as the continuous time limit of their policy updates. These dynamics have already been investigated for algorithms from each family separately [1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7], however, they have not yet been discussed in context of the relation to each other, and the origin of their similarity has not been discussed satisfactorily. In addition to the formal derivation, directional field plots of the learning dynamics in representative classes of two-player two-action games illustrate the similarities and strengthen the theoretical findings.
Finite element approximation of an H1 gradient flow of a double-well potential with bending energy

In this paper we consider the discretization error in space and time of an H 1 gradient flow for an energy integral where the energy density is given by the sum of a double-well potential term and a bending energy term. We show that the problem is equivalent to a nonlinear heat equation with nonlocal nonlinearity and adapt the standard error analysis theory developed for nonlinear heat equations to our case. In doing so we bound the discretization error in terms of the mesh size and time step as well as energy parameters. In particular, we carefully track how the size of the bending energy affects the error bounds.
Open Access Research Article Transcription Profiling Provides Insights into Gene Pathways Involved in Horn and Scurs Development in Cattle

article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Abstract Background: Two types of horns are evident in cattle-fixed horns attached to the skull and a variation called scurs, which refers to small loosely attached horns. Cattle lacking horns are referred to as polled. Although both the Poll and Scurs loci have been mapped to BTA1 and 19 respectively, the underlying genetic basis of these phenotypes is unknown, and so far, no candidate genes regulating these developmental processes have been described. This study is the first reported attempt at transcript profiling to identify genes and pathways contributing to horn and scurs development in Brahman cattle, relative to polled counterparts. Results: Expression patterns in polled, horned and scurs tissues were obtained using the Agilent 44 k bovine array. The most notable feature when comparing transcriptional profiles of developing horn tissues against polled was the down regulation of genes coding for elements of the cadherin junction as well as those involved in epidermal development. We hypothesize this as a key event involved in keratinocyte migration and subsequent horn development. In the polled-scurs comparison, the most prevalent differentially expressed transcripts code for genes involved in extracellular matrix remodelling, which were up regulated in scurs tissues relative to polled. Conclusion: For this first time we describe networks of genes involved in horn and scurs development. Interestingly, we did not observe differential expression in any of the genes present on the fine mapped region of BTA1 known to contain the Poll locus. Background Three genes are believed to control the development of horn phenotypes, namely Poll, African horn and Scurs [1]. The Poll gene, which results in the absence of horns, was mapped to the centromeric region of bovine chromosome 1 (BTA1) by Georges et al. [2] and has been confirmed by several groups [3-5]. Using 20 microsatellites, the Poll locus has been restricted to a 1 Mb interval between the microsatellite markers RP42-218J17_MS1 and BM6438 in the centromeric region of BTA1 [6]. A report of the location of the Scurs locus responsible for producing a loose or "wobbly horn" to BTA19 [7] has not been confirmed [8]. The postulated African horn locus has not been mapped to a chromosome [9].
Endocardial Endothelial Dysfunction Progressively Disrupts Initially Anti then Pro-Thrombotic Pathways in Heart Failure Mice

Objective An experimental model of endocardial thrombosis has not been developed and endocardial endothelial dysfunction in heart failure (HF) is understudied. We sought to determine whether disruption of the endothelial anti-coagulant activated protein C (APC) pathway in CREBA133 HF mice promotes endocardial thrombosis in the acute decompensated phase of the disease, and whether alterations in von Willebrand factor (vWF) secretion from HF endocardium reduces thrombus formation as HF stabilizes. Approach and results Echocardiography was used to follow HF development and to detect endocardial thrombi in CREBA133 mice. Endocardial thrombi incidence was confirmed with immunohistochemistry and histology. In early and acute decompensated phases of HF, CREBA133 mice had the highest incidence of endocardial thrombi and these mice also had a shorter tail-bleeding index consistent with a pro-thrombotic milieu. Both APC generation, and expression of receptors that promote APC function (thrombomodulin, endothelial protein C receptor, protein S), were suppressed in the endocardium of acute decompensated HF mice. However, in stable compensated HF mice, an attenuation occurred for vWF protein content and secretion from endocardial endothelial cells, vWF-dependent platelet agglutination (by ristocetin), and thrombin generation on the endocardial surface. Conclusions CREBA133 mice develop HF and endocardial endothelial dysfunction. Attenuation of the anti-coagulant APC pathway promotes endocardial thrombosis in early and acute decompensated phases of HF. However, in stable compensated HF mice, disruptions in endothelial vWF expression and extrusion may actually reduce the incidence of endocardial thrombosis.
Configuring a Powered Knee and Ankle Prosthesis for Transfemoral Amputees within Five Specific Ambulation Modes

Lower limb prostheses that can generate net positive mechanical work may restore more ambulation modes to amputees. However, configuration of these devices imposes an additional burden on clinicians relative to conventional prostheses; devices for transfemoral amputees that require configuration of both a knee and an ankle joint are especially challenging. In this paper, we present an approach to configuring such powered devices. We developed modified intrinsic control strategies—which mimic the behavior of biological joints, depend on instantaneous loads within the prosthesis, or set impedance based on values from previous states, as well as a set of starting configuration parameters. We developed tables that include a list of desired clinical gait kinematics and the parameter modifications necessary to alter them. Our approach was implemented for a powered knee and ankle prosthesis in five ambulation modes (level-ground walking, ramp ascent/descent, and stair ascent/descent). The strategies and set of starting configuration parameters were developed using data from three individuals with unilateral transfemoral amputations who had previous experience using the device; this approach was then tested on three novice unilateral transfemoral amputees. Only 17% of the total number of parameters (i.e., 24 of the 140) had to be independently adjusted for each novice user to achieve all five ambulation modes and the initial accommodation period (i.e., time to configure the device for all modes) was reduced by 56%, to 5 hours or less. This approach and subsequent reduction in configuration time may help translate powered prostheses into a viable clinical option where amputees can more quickly appreciate the benefits such devices can provide.
Analyzing gene expression profiles in dilated cardiomyopathy via bioinformatics methods

Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is characterized by ventricular dilatation, and it is a common cause of heart failure and cardiac transplantation. This study aimed to explore potential DCM-related genes and their underlying regulatory mechanism using methods of bioinformatics. The gene expression profiles of GSE3586 were downloaded from Gene Expression Omnibus database, including 15 normal samples and 13 DCM samples. The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified between normal and DCM samples using Limma package in R language. Pathway enrichment analysis of DEGs was then performed. Meanwhile, the potential transcription factors (TFs) and microRNAs (miRNAs) of these DEGs were predicted based on their binding sequences. In addition, DEGs were mapped to the cMap database to find the potential small molecule drugs. A total of 4777 genes were identified as DEGs by comparing gene expression profiles between DCM and control samples. DEGs were significantly enriched in 26 pathways, such as lymphocyte TarBase pathway and androgen receptor signaling pathway. Furthermore, potential TFs (SP1, LEF1, and NFAT) were identified, as well as potential miRNAs (miR-9, miR-200 family, and miR-30 family). Additionally, small molecules like isoflupredone and trihexyphenidyl were found to be potential therapeutic drugs for DCM. The identified DEGs (PRSS12 and FOXG1), potential TFs, as well as potential miRNAs, might be involved in DCM.
A deeper X‐ray study of the core of the Perseus galaxy cluster: the power of sound waves and the distribution of metals and cosmic rays

We make a further study of the very deep Chandra observation of the X-ray brightest galaxy cluster, A 426 in Perseus. We examine the radial distribution of energy flux inferred by the quasi-concentric ripples in surface brightness, assuming they are due to sound waves, and show that it is a significant fraction of the energy lost by radiative cooling within the inner 75‐ 100 kpc, where the cooling time is 4‐5 Gyr, respectively. The wave flux decreases outward with radius, consistent with energy being dissipated. Some newly discovered large ripples beyond 100 kpc, and a possible intact bubble at 170 kpc radius, may indicate a larger level of activity by the nucleus a few 100 Myr ago. The distribution of metals in the intracluster gas peaks at a radius of about 40 kpc and is significantly clumpy on scales of 5 kpc. The temperature distribution of the soft X-ray filaments and the hard X-ray emission component found within the inner 50 kpc are analysed in detail. The pressure due to the non-thermal electrons, responsible for a spectral component interpreted as inverse Compton emission, is high within 40 kpc of the centre and boosts the power in sound waves there; it drops steeply beyond 40 kpc. We find no thermal emission from the radio bubbles; in order for any thermal gas to have a filling factor within the bubbles exceeding 50 per cent, the temperature of that gas has to exceed 50 keV.
Activity patterns in health care: identifying building blocks for the CPR

Concerning the development and adoption of the computer-based patient record (CPR), an unsolved problem is still the approach that should be taken to construct a highly configurable, generic CPR. The first step in finding such an approach, is the identification of generic activity patterns. These are considered to be helpful in the identification of components. We identified twelve generic activity patterns in the interaction between a patient and a care-cluster.
Bayesian generalized double Pareto shrinkage

We propose a generalized double Pareto prior for shrinkage estimation in linear models. The prior can be obtained via a scale mixture of Laplace or normal distributions, while forming a bridge between the Laplace and Normal-Jeffreys’ priors. While it has a spike at zero like the Laplace density, it also has a Student-t-like tail behavior. We show strong consistency of the posterior in regression models with a diverging number of parameters, providing a template to be used for other priors in similar settings. Bayesian computation is straightforward via a simple Gibbs sampling algorithm. We also investigate the properties of the maximum a posteriori estimator and reveal connections with some well-established regularization procedures. The performance of the new prior is tested through simulations.
Energy-efficient elastic scheduling in heterogeneous computing systems

Reducing energy consumption has become a major goal in designing modern heterogeneous computing systems. Conventional energy-efficient scheduling strategies developed on this kind of systems mainly focus on energy saving, lacking of the consideration of users' expectations such as expected finish time. Again, the system elasticity is not sufficiently taken into account while making scheduling decisions. In this paper, we develop a novel scheduling strategy named energy-efficient elastic (3E) scheduling for aperiodic, and independent tasks on DVS-enabled heterogeneous computing systems. The 3E strategy concentrates on adjusting tasks' supply voltages according to the system workload, thereby making the best trade-offs between energy conservation and users' expected finish times. Experimental results demonstrate that our 3E significantly improves the scheduling quality of the others, and is able to effectively enhance the system elasticity.
Universal Free School Breakfast: A Qualitative Process Evaluation According to the Perspectives of Senior Stakeholders

In the last decade, the provision of school breakfast has increased significantly in the UK. However, there is an absence of knowledge regarding senior stakeholder views on the processes and potential outcomes on different groups, within the communities served by school breakfast programs. The purpose of this study was to examine the views and experiences of senior level stakeholders and thereby provide an original qualitative contribution to the research. A sample of senior level stakeholders was recruited, including senior officers, directors, and elected members, from within a Local Authority (LA) involved in the leadership, implementation and delivery of a council-wide universal free school breakfast (UFSB) program, and from the senior staff body of mainstream primary and special schools, participating in the program. A grounded theory analysis of the data collected identified issues encountered in the implementation and delivery, and views on the funding and future of a USFB program, in addition to perceived outcomes for children, parents, families, schools, and the wider community. The results refer to both positive and negative issues and implications associated with the program, according to the perspectives of senior level stakeholders. Perceived positive outcomes included benefits to children, families, schools, and the community. For instance, alleviating hunger, improving health outcomes, and conferring financial benefits, with the potential to cumulate in overall improvements in educational, social, and behavioral outcomes. Reported negative implications included the absence of an effective communication strategy in implementing the USFB program; in addition to concerns about the impacts of “double-breakfasting” on obesity levels among children, particularly in less deprived communities. Findings were validated using theoretical sampling and saturation, triangulation methods, member checks, and inter-rater reliability measures. In presenting these findings, this paper provides a unique qualitative insight into the processes, issues and outcomes of a council-wide UFSB program within a socioeconomically deprived community, according to the perceptions of senior level stakeholders.