Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Transfected Aequorin in the Measurement of Cytosolic Ca2+ Concentration ([Ca2+]c)

Targeted recombinant aequorins represent to date the most specific means of monitoring [Ca2+] in subcellular organelles (Rizzuto, R., Simpson, A. W. M., Brini, M., and Pozzan, T. (1992) Nature 358, 325-328; Brini, M. , [Medline] Murgia, M. , Pasti, L. , Picard, D. , Pozzan, T. , and Rizzuto, R. (1993) EMBO J. 12, 4813-4819; Kendall, J. M. , Dormer, R. L. , and Campbell, A. K. (1992) Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 189, 1008-1016). Up until now, however, only limited attention has been paid to the use of recombinant photoproteins for measuring, in mammalian cells, the [Ca2+] in the cytoplasm, a compartment for which effective Ca2+probes are already available. Here we describe this approach in detail, highlighting the advantages, under various experimental conditions, of using recombinant cytosolic aequorin (cytAEQ) instead of classical fluorescent indicators. We demonstrate that cytAEQ is expressed recombinantly at high levels in transiently transfected cell lines and primary cultures as well as in stably transfected clones, and we describe a simple algorithm for converting aequorin luminescence data into [Ca2+] values. We show that although fluorescent indicators at the usual intracellular concentrations (50-100 μM) are associated with a significant buffering of the [Ca2+]ctransients, this problem is negligible with recombinantly expressed aequorin. The large dynamic range of the photoprotein also allows an accurate estimate of the large [Ca2+]cincreases that are observed in some cell types such as neurons. Finally, cytAEQ appears to be an invaluable tool for measuring [Ca2+]cin cotransfection experiments. In particular, we show that when cotransfected with an α1-adrenergic receptor (coupled to inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate generation), cytAEQ faithfully monitors the subpopulation of cells expressing the receptor, whereas the signal of fura-2, at the population level, is dominated largely by that of the untransfected cells.
An Adaptive Schedule Medium Access Control for Wireless Sensor Networks

Many media access control (MAC) protocols for wireless sensor networks (WSNs) such as sensor MAC (S-MAC) and carrier sense multiple access with minimum preamble sampling (CSMA-MPS) exploit listen/sleep cycles to conserve energy. The cycles of nodes influence the network performances such as energy efficiency, packet latency and throughput in WSNs. In this paper, an adaptive schedule medium access control (AS-MAC) for WSNs is presented. AS-MAC introduces the adaptation of the cycles in MAC layer to the data traffic. The effect of the protocol is that it can decrease the latency, improve the throughput and energy efficiency when traffic is dynamic. We also compare AS-MAC with S-MAC and CSMA-MPS through simulations and the results show it has better performances than the former protocols.
A High Performance Massively Parallel Approach for Real Time Deformable Body Physics Simulation

Single processor technology has been evolving across last decades, but due to physical limitations of chip manufacturing process, the industry is pursuing alternatives to sustain computational power growth,including the creation of multi-core systems. Parallel computing targets problems that are scalable and possibly distributed, dividing the problem into smaller pieces. This approach may be explored to satisfy real-time constraints required by real time physics simulation. This work introduces an optimal solution to implement accurate simulation of deformable bodies in real time. This is accomplished through the use of a meshless simulation technique, known as Point Based Animation, implemented using a parallel framework:the NVIDIA Compute Unified Device Architecture(CUDA). Our implementation showed significative improvements on performance in comparison to the former CPU one: impressive speedups around 20times could be achieved in the simulation of deformable bodies with 575 physical elements (phyxels) and53,504 surface elements (surfels).
The visual claustrum of the cat. III. Receptive field properties

The visual response properties of cells in the cat's dorsocaudal claustrum were studied physiologically. Quantitative observations were made of 55 cells, and qualitative observations were made on 228 others. The claustral cells formed a physiologically homogeneous population. The overwhelming majority were orientation selective, and most also showed a striking preference for long stimuli, their responses summating up to lengths of 40 degrees or more. Moving stimuli were always much more effective than stationary ones. In other respects, claustral cells were tolerant of wide variation in stimulus features. Their responses were about equally brisk to either direction of movement of a properly oriented stimulus, and the velocity of movement was likewise not critical. They appeared not to summate across the dimension of their receptive fields orthogonal to the preferred orientation so that narrow or broad slits, or edges, evoked similar responses. Dark slits on light backgrounds were as effective as light slits on dark backgrounds. Finally, a large majority of cells were driven equally well by either eye. These properties of claustral cells differ in several respects from those of their principal targets, cells in layer IV of visual cortex.
Nanofiber: Synthesis and biomedical applications

Electrospinning uses an electrical charge to draw very fine (typically on the micro or nano scale) fibers from a liquid. Electrospinning or electrostatic spinning shares characteristics of both electrospraying and conventional solution dry spinning of fibers. The method does not need the use of coagulation chemistry or high temperatures to produce solid threads from solution. This makes the process particularly suited for the production of fibers using large and complex molecules. Because the full potential of biomaterials being used in various applications, field of nanofibers have involved considerable interest in biotechnology and medicine and there has been fast development in this area in recent years.
Metastable vacua and complex deformations

We use the non-normalizable complex deformations to describe the stringy realizations of the metastable vacua in N=1, SU(N{sub c}) SUSY theories with N{sub f}>N{sub c} massive fundamental flavors. The consideration of the non-normalizable deformations requires a modified toric duality. The new approach considers the tachyon condensation between pairs of wrapped D5 branes and anti-D5 branes and the resulting mixing between some cycles in the geometry. We enlarge the class of metastable vacua to the case of branes-antibranes wrapped on cycles of deformed A{sub n} singularities.
Interactive pronunciation training

Improving the feedback quality of a computer-based system for pronunciation training requires rather detailed and precise knowledge about the place and the nature of actual mispronunciations in a student’s utterance. To be able to provide this kind of information, components for the automatic localisation and correction of pronunciation errors have been developed. This work was part of a project aimed at integrating state-of-the-art speech recognition technology into a pronunciation training environment for adult, intermediate level learners. Although the technologies described here are in principle valid for any language pairs, the current system focuses on Italian and German learners of English.
Simultaneous visualization of samples, features and multi-labels

Visualization helps us to understand single-label and multi-label classification problems. In this paper, we show several standard techniques for simultaneous visualization of samples, features and multi-classes on the basis of linear regression and matrix factorization. The experiment with two real-life multi-label datasets showed that such techniques are effective to know how labels are correlated to each other and how features are related to labels in a given multi-label classification problem.
Feedback Control Methods for Distributed Manipulation Systems that Involve Mechanical Contacts

In this paper we introduce feedback control methods for distributed manipulation systems thatmove objects via rolling and slipping point contacts. Because of the intermittent nature of these mechanical contacts, the governing mechanics of these systems are inherently nonsmooth. We first present a methodology to model these non-smooth mechanical effects in a manner that is tractable for non-smooth control analysis. Using these models, we show that when considerations of these non-smooth effects are taken into account, a class of traditional open-loop distributed manipulation control methods cannot stabilize objects near an equilibrium. However, stability can be achieved through the use of feedback, and we present non-smooth feedback laws with guaranteed stability properties. We then describe an experimental modular distributed manipulation test-bed upon which one can implement a variety of control schemes. Experiments with this test-bed confirm the validity of our control algorithms. Multimedia extensions include videos of these experiments.
INDEPENDENT COMPONENT ANALYSIS APPLIED TO FMRI DATA: A NATURAL MODEL AND ORDER SELECTION

We introduce a framework for the application of independent component analysis (ICA) to functional magnetic resonance (fMRI) data. We present a model for the task with two main sections: data generation (synthesis) and data processing (analysis) and give examples of how such a model can be utilized in fMRI analysis. We assume a generative model for the data involving 1) the signal being measured (hemodynamic response to neuronal activation) and 2) the instrument being used to measure this data (the fMRI scanner). Such a structure, as we show, can be useful in designing and evaluating the performance of the data analysis methods. In the analysis section, we incorporate a data reduction stage within the model such that information theoretic criteria can be used to estimate the number of effective brain sources. After describing the components of the model in detail, we give examples of its potential use. We compare principle component analysis to clustering and demonstrate that clustering may be a more natural approach than principle components analysis for data reduction in fMRI analysis and can improve source localization. We demonstrate simulated results and results from an fMRI experiment in which two task related waveforms are present.
Area and laser power scalability analysis in photonic networks-on-chip

In the last decade, the field of microprocessor architecture has seen the rise of multicore processors, which consist of the interconnection of a set of independent processing units or cores in the same chip. As the number of cores per multiprocessor increases, the bandwidth and energy requirements for their interconnection networks grow exponentially and it is expected that conventional on-chip wires will not be able to meet such demands. Alternatively, nanophotonics has been regarded as a strong candidate for chip communication since it could provide high bandwidth with low area and energy footprints. However, issues such as the unavailability of efficient on-chip light sources or the difficulty of implementing all-optical buffering or header processing hinder the development of scalable photonic on-chip networks. In this paper, the area and laser power of several photonic on-chip network proposals is analytically modeled and its scalability is evaluated. Also, a graphene-based hybrid wireless/optical-wired approach is presented, aiming at enabling end-to-end photonic on-chip networks to scale beyond thousands of cores.
Methods of body composition estimative of growing goats

The objective of this study was to compare methods for estimative of body composition of goats based on tritiated water space technique (TOH), specific gravity (SG) of carcass and 9-11 th ribs. Ten Toggenburg x Alpine intact male goat kids, from 5.3±0.4 to 25.9±1.3 kg of body weight (BW), were used to estimate body composition by: 1) direct method, 2) TOH method, 3) SG of the carcass and 4) SG of the 9-11 th whole ribs. In addition, update linear equations for predicting body composition were developed using data from direct method. The TOH space overestimated water body composition on average 31%. The SG of the carcass and 9-11 th ribs underestimated water empty body composition (%) on average 21 and 12%, respectively. In spite of its overestimate, the determination of TOH space can be used as a reliable field technique to study relative changes in body composition of growing goats. Specific gravity is practicable in most circumstances and does not require expensive equipment. However, the SG of the carcass and 9-11 th ribs has not a valid equation to predict body composition of growing goats.
Effect of imatinib therapy with and without turmeric powder on nitric oxide levels in chronic myeloid leukemia

Nitric oxide (NO) is involved in different stages of malignancies. Increased levels of NO have been reported in different leukemias. Imatinib is the preferred drug for the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). Turmeric powder contains curcumin which has anti-leukemic property and also decreases NO synthesis. This study was conducted on fifty patients of CML divided into two groups, group A receiving imatinib alone and group B receiving turmeric powder along with imatinib for six weeks. Nitric oxide levels were estimated in these patients before and after receiving therapy and were analyzed statistically. Nitric oxide levels were found to be significantly decreased in both the groups, but more significantly in group B after receiving the respective treatments. Thus, curcumin acts as an adjuvant to imatinib in decreasing the NO levels and may help in the treatment of CML patients.
A New Approach for Reduction of Supergaussian Noise Using Autoregressive Interpolation and Time-Frequency Masking

A new approach for noise reduction is presented. The method is capable of reducing noise of Gaussian, supergaussian and impulsive characteristics in degraded high-quality audio signals. The approach is based on classical autoregressive (AR) detection and interpolation, applied to the residual signal of a binary time-frequency (T-F) masking process. Analytic inspection allows for predicting the noise reduction level for white noise types and shows good accordance to simulation results. High reduction levels are achieved especially for supergaussian and impulsive disturbances having a higher sample kurtosis than Gaussian noise. The approach ensures high preservation of the underlying desired signal, satisfying the needs of high quality audio restoration. Furthermore, the approach is capable of reducing optical soundtrack noise of celluloid movie footage.
FMRFamides exert a unique modulation of rodent pancreatic polypeptide sensitive neuropeptide Y (NPY) receptors.

FMRFamide and related peptides (RFamides) were found to inhibit the association binding of iodinated human pancreatic polypeptide ([125I]hPP) to Y5-like neuropeptide Y (NPY) receptor in rodent tissues. An allosteric regulation of the activity of the rodent kidney PP-sensitive neuropeptide Y (NPY) receptor by RFamides was indicated by potency decrease with particle concentration in the inhibition of the association binding of 125I-labeled human pancreatic polypeptide (hPP) by RFamides at rabbit kidney membranes. The competition by C-terminal hexapeptide of hPP (LTRPRY.NH2) did not show such affinity change. The steady-state binding of hPP showed little sensitivity to any of the RFamides tested. The Y1-selective binding of [125I][Leu31,Pro34]hPYY (at 2 nM hPP) was much less sensitive to RFamides than the binding of [125I]hPP, albeit with some differences across tissue or cell types. The binding of Y2-selective agonist 125I-labeled human peptide YY (3-36) was quite insensitive to RFamides. The presence of a unique component in the inhibition of hPP binding by RFamides was further indicated by a degree of antagonism with phospholipase C inhibitor U-73122, and by an only limited cooperation with a N5-amiloride compound, and with alkylator chloroethylclonidine. Change of the chirality of individual residues in the FMRFamide molecule produced a significant reduction of inhibitory potency only with D-Phe in the C-terminal position. Substitution of the (C-3) L-Met by L-Leu greatly increased the inhibitory potency of RFamides relative to otherwise identical congeners. RFamides could act both as ligands of membrane neighbors of the PP receptor, and as competitors of Y5-like NPY receptor epitopes that accommodate the C-terminal aspects of agonist peptides.
Disruption of a horizontally transferred phytoene desaturase abolishes carotenoid accumulation and diapause in Tetranychus urticae

Significance In animals, carotenoid pigments fulfill a number of essential roles in vision, protection from stresses, and signaling. Although carotenoids are synthesized primarily by plants and some bacteria and fungi, carotenoid biosynthetic genes have been acquired by horizontal gene transfer in some insects and mites. In the two-spotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae, as well as in a related species, we show that a horizontally transferred carotenoid biosynthetic gene is required for normal pigmentation. Spider mites can therefore synthesize their own carotenoids. Further, in a T. urticae strain, the gene is required for the induction of diapause, a key for overwintering of this widespread and important agricultural pest. Carotenoids underlie many of the vibrant yellow, orange, and red colors in animals, and are involved in processes ranging from vision to protection from stresses. Most animals acquire carotenoids from their diets because de novo synthesis of carotenoids is primarily limited to plants and some bacteria and fungi. Recently, sequencing projects in aphids and adelgids, spider mites, and gall midges identified genes with homology to fungal sequences encoding de novo carotenoid biosynthetic proteins like phytoene desaturase. The finding of horizontal gene transfers of carotenoid biosynthetic genes to three arthropod lineages was unprecedented; however, the relevance of the transfers for the arthropods that acquired them has remained largely speculative, which is especially true for spider mites that feed on plant cell contents, a known source of carotenoids. Pigmentation in spider mites results solely from carotenoids. Using a combination of genetic approaches, we show that mutations in a single horizontally transferred phytoene desaturase result in complete albinism in the two-spotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae, as well as in the citrus red mite, Panonychus citri. Further, we show that phytoene desaturase activity is essential for photoperiodic induction of diapause in an overwintering strain of T. urticae, consistent with a role for this enzyme in provisioning provitamin A carotenoids required for light perception. Carotenoid biosynthetic genes of fungal origin have therefore enabled some mites to forgo dietary carotenoids, with endogenous synthesis underlying their intense pigmentation and ability to enter diapause, a key to the global distribution of major spider mite pests of agriculture.
Semantic Web Policies for Security , Trust Management and Privacy in Social Networks

The ability of defining privacy preferences in the current social platforms is very restricted. Typically, the user is provided with only some predefined options to select from. Semantic Web policies can be exploited in order to allow users to control privacy in social web applications. Such policies are generally considered statements that define the behavior of a system. However, although Semantic Web policies gained a lot of interest in recent years and policy languages became more and more complex, suitable and easy-to-use solutions for highly dynamic social platforms are still needed. This paper presents a Semantic Web policy framework that not only allows for a fine-grained policy language and access and privacy control, but which also addresses its easy specification by noncomputer experts and which explains both the policies and the decisions made when reasoning over them.
Fully dynamic algorithms for edge connectivity problems

We consider the problem of maintaining the 2-edgeconnected and the 3-edge-connected compoueutti of a graph undergoing repeated dynamic modifications, such as edgeinsertions and edgedeletions. We show how to test at any time whether two vertices belong to the same 2-edge-connected component, and how to insert and delete an edge in 0(m213) time in the worst case, where m is the current number of edges in the graph. This answers a question posed by Westbrook and Tarjan [18]. For planar graphs, we present algorithms that support all these operations in O(~n) worst-case time each, where n is the total number of vertices in the graph. Finally, we show how to answer whether two vertices belong to the same 3-edge-connected component of a connected graph that is undergoing only edge insertions, Any sequence of q query and updates on an n-vertex graph can be performed in O((n + q)a(q, n)) time.
Exploring visual culture : definitions, concepts, contexts

Introduction 1. Visual Culture and the Meanings of Culture 2. Definitions of Art and the Art World 3. Concepts of Craft 4. Design and Modern Culture 5. Fashion: Style, Identity and Meaning 6. Photography and Film 7. Architecture and Visual Culture 8. Representation and the Idea of Realism 9. Visual Rhetoric 10. The Rise and Fall and Rise of the Author 11. The Ideology of the Visual 12. Visual Practices in the Age of Industry 13. Technical Reproduction and Its Significance 14. From Mass Media to Cyberculture 15. Visual Culture and Its Institutions.
Efficient hole filling and depth enhancement based on texture image and depth map consistency

Structured-light RGB-D cameras are commonly used to capture depth images, which convey the per-pixel depth information in a scene. However, these cameras often produce regions with missing pixels. The missing pixel regions, which refer to holes, will not contain any depth information for the depth image. This reason would lead the performance to degrade seriously in modern-day three-dimensional (3D) video applications. Therefore, how to effectively utilize image information and depth maps become more and more important. In this paper, we propose adaptive texture-similarity-based hole filling (ATSHF) and adaptive texture-similarity-based depth enhancement (ATSDE). The proposed system, which is used for the enhancement of depth maps, is achieved by suppressing the noise, filling holes and sharpening object edges simultaneously. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method provides a superior performance, especially around the object boundary. Beside, we compare with the other state-of-the-art methods about the image and the depth map enhancement.
A key management solution for overlay-live-streaming

Confidential communication of live-generated multimedia data distributed via application level multicast (ALM) still remains a mostly unaddressed subject even though some important usage scenarios, e.g. paid subscription services or personal video-streaming, are anticipated to gain more widespread use as the Internet continues to evolve into the common transport platform for all kinds of services. In this article, we examine the specific requirements for key management schemes to be used in ALM-based distribution systems and analyze existing key management approaches with respect to these requirements [1, 2, 3]. Based on the results of this analysis, we design a new key management scheme that combines ideas of the Logical Key Hierarchy (LKH) protocol [4, 5] and the Iolus approach [6]. We compare the resulting scheme to a simple approach that is based on pairwise keys between neighboring nodes without further key-hierarchy based optimization and that serves as a benchmark. Our results of a comparative simulation study clearly indicate the suitability of our scheme for ALM-based livestreaming.