Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Sirt6 deficiency results in progression of glomerular injury in the kidney

Aging is associated with an increased incidence and prevalence of renal glomerular diseases. Sirtuin (Sirt) 6, a nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD)-dependent histone deacetylase, has been shown to protect against multiple age-associated phenotypes; however it is unknown whether Sirt6 has a direct pathophysiologic role in the kidney. In the present study, we demonstrate that Sirt6 is expressed in the kidney and aging Sirt6-deficient mice exhibit renal hypertrophy with glomerular enlargement. Sirt6 deletion induces podocyte injury, including decreases in slit diaphragm proteins, foot process effacement, and cellular loss, resulting in proteinuria. Knockdown of Sirt6 in cultured primary murine podocytes induces shape changes with loss of process formation and cell apoptosis. Moreover, Sirt6 deficiency results in progressive renal inflammation and fibrosis. Collectively, these data provide compelling evidence that Sirt6 is important for podocyte homeostasis and maintenance of glomerular function, and warrant further investigation into the role of Sirt6 in age-associated kidney dysfunction.
Evaluating the perceived quality of infrastructure-less VoIP

Voice over IP (VoIP) is one of the most popular Internet applications. Many VoIP protocols (e.g. SIP) are based on a central-server scheme in which a caller needs to query the central server first for the callee's information (e.g. IP address) before it can connect to them. However, such a centralized architecture has some drawbacks, such as an unbalanced load and a single point of the failure. As a result, some researchers have proposed the use of peer-to-peer (P2P) techniques for VoIP communication. However, compared to a centralized approach, setting up a VoIP connection over multiple hops could potentially take a longer time and might discourage users from utilizing this service. In this paper, we set out to study the performance of existing P2P protocols for VoIP applications in a more realistic setting based on traces collected from the Skype network. The Skype traces are used as an input to model the VoIP network topology. We evaluated the performance of three types of distribute hash table(DHT) protocols, namely, flat DHT, hierarchical DHT and proximity DHT, in terms of their lookup latency for the connection setup phase of VoIP applications. In addition, to understand the feasibility of using infrastructure-less VoIP in the real world, we adopted pair comparison techniques to evaluate the quality of the user experience. Finally, we proposed a new hybrid protocol for the infrastructure-less VoIP communication. We concluded that current P2P protocols for VoIP are not satisfactory as compared to the traditional centralized approach and there is still a lot of room for improvement.
Genome-Wide Analysis of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Norway

Background Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a highly heritable neuropsychiatric condition, but it has been difficult to identify genes underlying this disorder. This study aimed to explore genetics of ADHD in an ethnically homogeneous Norwegian population by means of a genome-wide association (GWA) analysis followed by examination of candidate loci. Materials and Methods Participants were recruited through Norwegian medical and birth registries as well as the general population. Presence of ADHD was defined according to DSM-IV criteria. Genotyping was performed using Illumina Human OmniExpress-12v1 microarrays. Statistical analyses were divided into several steps: (1) genome-wide association in the form of logistic regression in PLINK and follow-up pathway analyses performed in DAPPLE and INRICH softwares, (2) SNP-heritability calculated using genome-wide complex trait analysis (GCTA) tool, (3) gene-based association tests carried out in JAG software, and (4) evaluation of previously reported genome-wide signals and candidate genes of ADHD. Results In total, 1.358 individuals (478 cases and 880 controls) and 598.384 autosomal SNPs were subjected to GWA analysis. No single polymorphism reached genome-wide significance. The strongest signal was observed at rs9949006 in the ENSG00000263745 gene (OR=1.51, 95% CI 1.28–1.79, p=1.38E-06). Pathway analyses of the top SNPs implicated genes involved in the regulation of gene expression, cell adhesion and inflammation. Among previously identified ADHD candidate genes, prominent association signals were observed for SLC9A9 (rs1393072, OR=1.46, 95% CI = 1.21–1.77, p=9.95E-05) and TPH2 (rs17110690, OR = 1.38, 95% CI = 1.14–1.66, p=8.31E-04). Conclusion This study confirms the complexity and heterogeneity of ADHD etiology. Taken together with previous findings, our results point to a spectrum of biological mechanisms underlying the symptoms of ADHD, providing targets for further genetic exploration of this complex disorder.
Acquired brain injury

Some of the causes include: alcohol or drugs – which can poison the brain disease – such as AIDS, Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, multiple sclerosis or Parkinson’s disease lack of oxygen – called anoxic brain injury (for example, injury caused by a near drowning) physical injury – such as an impact (or blow) to the head, which may occur in vehicle or sporting accidents, fights or falls stroke – when a blood vessel inside the brain breaks or is blocked, destroying the local brain tissue. How ABI affects a person
Al18F-Labeling Of Heat-Sensitive Biomolecules for Positron Emission Tomography Imaging

Positron emission tomography (PET) using radiolabeled biomolecules is a translational molecular imaging technology that is increasingly used in support of drug development. Current methods for radiolabeling biomolecules with fluorine-18 are laborious and require multistep procedures with moderate labeling yields. The Al18F-labeling strategy involves chelation in aqueous medium of aluminum mono[18F]fluoride ({Al18F}2+) by a suitable chelator conjugated to a biomolecule. However, the need for elevated temperatures (100-120 °C) required for the chelation reaction limits its widespread use. Therefore, we designed a new restrained complexing agent (RESCA) for application of the AlF strategy at room temperature. Methods. The new chelator RESCA was conjugated to three relevant biologicals and the constructs were labeled with {Al18F}2+ to evaluate the generic applicability of the one-step Al18F-RESCA-method. Results. We successfully labeled human serum albumin with excellent radiochemical yields in less than 30 minutes and confirmed in vivo stability of the Al18F-labeled protein in rats. In addition, we efficiently labeled nanobodies targeting the Kupffer cell marker CRIg, and performed µPET studies in healthy and CRIg deficient mice to demonstrate that the proposed radiolabeling method does not affect the functional integrity of the protein. Finally, an affibody targeting HER2 (PEP04314) was labeled site-specifically, and the distribution profile of (±)-[18F]AlF(RESCA)-PEP04314 in a rhesus monkey was compared with that of [18F]AlF(NOTA)-PEP04314 using whole-body PET/CT. Conclusion. This generic radiolabeling method has the potential to be a kit-based fluorine-18 labeling strategy, and could have a large impact on PET radiochemical space, potentially enabling the development of many new fluorine-18 labeled protein-based radiotracers.
A Fast Map Merging Algorithm in the Field of Multirobot SLAM

In recent years, the research on single-robot simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) has made a great success. However, multirobot SLAM faces many challenging problems, including unknown robot poses, unshared map, and unstable communication. In this paper, a map merging algorithm based on virtual robot motion is proposed for multi-robot SLAM. The thinning algorithm is used to construct the skeleton of the grid map's empty area, and a mobile robot is simulated in one map. The simulated data is used as information sources in the other map to do partial map Monte Carlo localization; if localization succeeds, the relative pose hypotheses between the two maps can be computed easily. We verify these hypotheses using the rendezvous technique and use them as initial values to optimize the estimation by a heuristic random search algorithm.
Quantitative Fitness Analysis Shows That NMD Proteins and Many Other Protein Complexes Suppress or Enhance Distinct Telomere Cap Defects

To better understand telomere biology in budding yeast, we have performed systematic suppressor/enhancer analyses on yeast strains containing a point mutation in the essential telomere capping gene CDC13 (cdc13-1) or containing a null mutation in the DNA damage response and telomere capping gene YKU70 (yku70Δ). We performed Quantitative Fitness Analysis (QFA) on thousands of yeast strains containing mutations affecting telomere-capping proteins in combination with a library of systematic gene deletion mutations. To perform QFA, we typically inoculate 384 separate cultures onto solid agar plates and monitor growth of each culture by photography over time. The data are fitted to a logistic population growth model; and growth parameters, such as maximum growth rate and maximum doubling potential, are deduced. QFA reveals that as many as 5% of systematic gene deletions, affecting numerous functional classes, strongly interact with telomere capping defects. We show that, while Cdc13 and Yku70 perform complementary roles in telomere capping, their genetic interaction profiles differ significantly. At least 19 different classes of functionally or physically related proteins can be identified as interacting with cdc13-1, yku70Δ, or both. Each specific genetic interaction informs the roles of individual gene products in telomere biology. One striking example is with genes of the nonsense-mediated RNA decay (NMD) pathway which, when disabled, suppress the conditional cdc13-1 mutation but enhance the null yku70Δ mutation. We show that the suppressing/enhancing role of the NMD pathway at uncapped telomeres is mediated through the levels of Stn1, an essential telomere capping protein, which interacts with Cdc13 and recruitment of telomerase to telomeres. We show that increased Stn1 levels affect growth of cells with telomere capping defects due to cdc13-1 and yku70Δ. QFA is a sensitive, high-throughput method that will also be useful to understand other aspects of microbial cell biology.
Design and analysis of Brushless Doubly Fed Reluctance Machines

Brushless Doubly Fed Reluctance Machines (BDFRM) are a class of machine that may be controlled using a power converter that has a rating lower than the total power rating of the machine. The attractive properties of these machines have, in the past, been offset by low power density and efficiency when compared to other types of machine. Recent advances have shown that when well designed, these machines are in fact capable of operation at high torque density and efficiency. However, little guidance on how to design these machines is available in the literature. This paper presents analytical approaches to design a BDFRM with desirable qualities and the use of time stepped FEA to validate the results of the design process.
BioSonics: sensual explorations of a complex system

Complex systems abound in nature and are becoming increasingly important in artificial systems. The understanding and controlling of such systems is a major challenge. This paper tries to take a fresh approach to these issues by describing an interactive art project that involves cross-modal interaction with a complex system. By combining sound and vision, the temporal and spatial dynamics of the system are conveyed simultaneously. Users can influence its dynamics in real time by using acoustics. Preliminary experiments with this system show that the combination of sound and vision can help users to obtain an intuitive understanding of the system's behavior. In addition, usability profits from the fact that the same modality is employed for both interaction and feedback.
Modeling Selectional Preferences of Verbs and Nouns in String-to-Tree Machine Translation

We address the problem of mistranslated predicate-argument structures in syntax-based machine translation. This paper explores whether knowledge about semantic afﬁnities between the target predicates and their argument ﬁllers is useful for translating ambiguous predicates and arguments. We propose a selectional preference feature based on the selectional association measure of Resnik (1996) and integrate it in a string-to-tree decoder. The feature models selectional preferences of verbs for their core and prepositional arguments as well as selectional preferences of nouns for their prepositional arguments. We compare our features with a variant of the neural relational dependency language model (RDLM) (Sennrich, 2015) and ﬁnd that neither of the features improves automatic evaluation metrics. We conclude that mistranslated verbs, errors in the target syntactic trees produced by the de-coder and underspeciﬁed syntactic relations are negatively impacting these features.
Video text detection based on filters and edge features

Text detection plays a vital role in retrieving and browsing video data efficiently and accurately. In this paper, we propose a method for detecting both graphics and scene text in video images by proposing initial text block identification, text portion segmentation and new edge features for false positive elimination. The heuristic rules based on filters and edge analysis are formed to identify the initial text block and to segment the complete text portion from the image. The new edge features such as straightness and cursiveness are explored to eliminate false positives. To evaluate the performance of the proposed method, we introduce misdetection rate and processing time in addition to detection rate and false positive rate. The experimental results show that the proposed method outperforms existing methods in terms of the above metrics.
Hand Gesture Tracking using Particle Filter with Multiple Features

Hand gesture tracking is one of core method in the field of Human Computer Interaction. In this paper we proposed a tracking method based on Particle Filter framework. Particle Filter algorithm provides a powerful open framework for target tracking and can efficiently deal with motion estimation under the non-linear and non- Gaussian environments. The novelty of our method is in the combination of color cue and LBP cue for the representation of the target hand under the particle filter framework. The LBP cue mainly focus on the detail information of the hand gesture, which can effectively cope with clutters due to possible skin-colored objects from the background. Experimental result shows that the proposed tracking method is robust and could track hand gesture satisfactorily. Index Terms—hand gesture tracking, Particle Filter, color cue, LBP cue, hand gesture recognition
Studying team evolution during software testing

Software development teams are one of the most dynamic entities of any software development project. While the individuals are assigned planned roles at the start of any project, during the course of the project, the team constitution, structure, relationships and roles change. Such changes are often spontaneous and constitute the evolution of the team along different phases of the software development lifecycle. As software development is a team effort, these dynamics may have a significant effect on the development lifecycle itself. This work is aimed at studying the evolution of project teams and gathering insights that can be correlated with project health and outcomes. In this study we apply social network analysis techniques to investigate team evolution in a project in its testing phase. While the questions and insights that we investigate in this paper are valid and useful for all phases of the software development lifecycle, we have focused on software testing phase as it one of the most critical phases in the lifecycle. Our work aims to provide insights in the changes in team interactions and individual roles as the testing process continues and can help find if the same is aligned to the planned and desired project behavior.
Formal Verification of Runtime Compensation of Web Service Compositions: A Refinement and Proof Based Proposal with Event-B

One of the key interests in web services is the ability to compose them in order to build more powerful and complex ones running in an interoperable and distributed setting. Several languages, like BPEL, that describe such services have been proposed. Similarly to traditional complex systems, web service compositions may exhibit inappropriate behaviors in the presence of failures. Compensation mechanisms are available to express running services recovery in case of failures. This paper addresses the problem of the correct design of web service compositions in case of failures. It presents a novel correct-by-construction formal approach based on refinement using the Event-B method. The proposed approach defines a compensation mechanism to repair failed services at runtime. It addresses not only behavioral aspects but also, functional ones through the introduction of repairing invariants whose persistence is enforced during compensation at runtime. The proposal is illustrated relying on a case study.
Improved result for the refractive index of human hemoglobin solutions by Kramers-Kronig relations

Applying Kramers-Kronig relations we compute the real part of the refractive index of aqueous solutions of human hemoglobin from its absorption spectra in the range 250 nm-1100 nm. Since the solution's absorption is not limited to this spectral range, strong ultraviolet (UV) and infrared absorbance of the water have been considered in previous investigations. We improve these results regarding the concentration-dependent absorption of water, the UV absorbance of hemoglobin's peptide-backbone, and by fixing the remaining unknown parameters via a global fit.
Loudspeakers and Rooms for Sound Reproduction-A Scientific Review

The physical measures by which acousticians evaluate the performance of rooms have evolved in large performance spaces—concert halls. They rely on assumptions that become progressively less valid as spaces get smaller and more acoustically absorptive. In listening rooms the loudspeakers and the rooms interact differently below and above a transition region around 300 Hz, similar to the Schroeder frequency in large rooms. Above this transition we need to understand our reactions to reflected sounds; below it the modal behavior of the space is the dominant factor. A review of the scientific literature reveals that natural reflections in small rooms are at levels where they are perceptible, and their subjectively judged effects range from neutral to positive. At low frequencies the long-standing problem of room resonances can be alleviated substantially through the use of multiple subwoofers, thereby providing similarly good bass to several listeners in a room. A provocative observation has to do with human adaptation to the complexities of reflective rooms, and the extent to which it allows us to localize sounds correctly in direction and distance, and to hear much of the true timbral nature of sound sources. In the case of loudspeakers, an analysis of comprehensive anechoic data is found to be sufficient to provide a good prediction of sound quality, above the low-bass frequencies, as subjectively judged in a normal room. Although the interactions of loudspeakers and listeners in small rooms are becoming clearer, there are still gaps in our understanding. A number of these are identified and are good opportunities for future research.
Enhanced Adsorption of Trivalent Arsenic from Water by Functionalized Diatom Silica Shells

The potential of porous diatom silica shells as a naturally abundant low-cost sorbent for the removal of arsenic in aqueous solutions was investigated in a batch study. The objective of this work was to chemically modify the silica shells of a diatom Melosira sp. with bifunctional (thiol and amino) groups to effectively remove arsenic in its toxic As(III) form (arsenite) predominant in the aquatic environment. Sorption experiments with this novel sorbent were conducted under varying conditions of pH, time, dosage, and As(III) concentration. A maximum adsorption capacity of 10.99 mg g-1 was achieved within 26 h for a solution containing 12 mg L-1 As(III) at pH 4 and sorbent dosage of 2 g L-1. The functionalized diatom silica shells had a surface morphological change which was accompanied by increased pore size at the expense of reduced specific surface area and total pore volume. As(III) adsorption was best fitted with the Langmuir-Freundlich model, and the adsorption kinetic data using pore surface diffusion model showed that both the external (film) and internal (intraparticle) diffusion can be rate-determining for As(III) adsorption. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) indicated that the thiol and amino groups potentially responsible for As(III) adsorption were grafted on the surface of diatom silica shells. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) further verified that this unique sorbent proceeded via a chemisorption mechanism through the exchange between oxygen-containing groups of neutral As(III) and thiol groups, and through the surface complexation between As(III) and protonated nitrogen and hydroxyl groups. Results indicate that this functionalized bioadsorbent with a high As(III) adsorption capacity holds promise for the treatment of As(III) containing wastewater.
Recent Advances in Antisense Oligonucleotide Therapy in Genetic Neuromuscular Diseases

Genetic neuromuscular diseases are caused by defective expression of nuclear or mitochondrial genes. Mutant genes may reduce expression of wild-type proteins, and strategies to activate expression of the wild-type proteins might provide therapeutic benefits. Also, a toxic mutant protein may cause cell death, and strategies that reduce mutant gene expression may provide therapeutic benefit. Synthetic antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) can recognize cellular RNA and control gene expression. In recent years, advances in ASO chemistry, creation of designer ASO molecules to enhance their safety and target delivery, and scientific controlled clinical trials to ascertain their therapeutic safety and efficacy have led to an era of plausible application of ASO technology to treat currently incurable neuromuscular diseases. Over the past 1 year, for the first time, the United States Food and Drug Administration has approved two ASO therapies in genetic neuromuscular diseases. This overview summarizes the recent advances in ASO technology, evolution and use of synthetic ASOs as a therapeutic platform, and the mechanism of ASO action by exon-skipping in Duchenne muscular dystrophy and exon-inclusion in spinal muscular atrophy, with comments on their advantages and limitations.
Global ICC-based eddy current correction in diffusion weighted imaging

In diffusion weighted echo planar imaging, eddy current distortion is a common reason for deformation of diffusion weighted imaging, which will affect the calculation result of diffusion tensors. A global ICC-based correction method is proposed for the eddy current distortion of the MRI weighted images, which combines the CSF-Mask-ICC registration with a global error correction. It can eliminate the influence of contrast differences at the cerebrospinal fluid area under high b-value. The registration accuracies between the adjacent slices are considered in order to obtain the global optimal registration parameters. Compared with the existing methods, the proposed method can effectively improve the accuracy of the eddy current correction.