Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
HtrA1 Downregulation Induces Cisplatin Resistance in Lung Adenocarcinoma by Promoting Cancer Stem Cell‐Like Properties

Cisplatin (CDDP) resistance usually develops during lung adenocarcinoma (LAC) therapy. However, the comprehensive mechanisms remain largely unclear. In this study, we first established a CDDP‐resistant LAC cell line‐A549/CDDP from its parental cell line‐A549. The results showed that CDDP resistance in A549/CDDP cells correlates with acquirement of cancer stem cell‐like properties (increased percentage of CD133‐expressing subpopulation, sphere formation and levels of some pluripotency‐associated markers). HtrA1 expression at both mRNA and protein levels was reduced in CDDP‐resistant A549/CDDP cells compared with that in A549 cells. Ectopic expression of HtrA1 in A549/CDDP cells reversed cancer stem cell‐like properties and CDDP resistance. In A549 cells, stable knockdown of HtrA1 expression promoted cancer stem cell‐like properties and CDDP insensitivity, however, these effects were blocked by inhibition of PI3K/Akt pathway using LY294002. Furthermore, HtrA1 knockdown could significantly stimulate PI3K/Akt signaling in A549 cells. In vivo studies, HtrA1 knockdown promoted tumorigenesis and conferred CDDP resistance in xenograft A549 tumors, which were reversed by intraperitoneal injection of LY294002. In conclusion, these results indicate that HtrA1 downregulation confers CDDP resistance by inducing cancer stem cell‐like properties via PI3K/Akt‐dependent pathway in A549 cells. Therefore, HtrA1 may be a potential target for overcoming CDDP resistance in LAC. J. Cell. Biochem. 115: 1112–1121, 2014. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
A quantitative assessment of thread-level speculation techniques

Speculative thread-level parallelism has been recently proposed as an alternative source of parallelism that can boost the performance for applications where independent threads are hard to find. Several schemes to exploit thread level parallelism have been proposed and significant performance gains have been reported. However, the sources of the performance gains are poorly understood as well as the impact of some design choices. In this work, the advantages of different thread speculation techniques are analyzed as are the impact of some critical issues including the value predictor, the branch predictor, the thread initialization overhead and the connectivity among thread units.
Monetary Policy and the Financial Accelerator in a Monetary Union

In this paper, we consider the effect of a monetary union in a model with a significant role for financial market imperfections. We do so by introducing a financial accelerator into a stochastic general equilibrium macro model of a two country economy. We show that financial market imperfections introduce important cross-country transmission mechanisms to asymmetric shocks to supply and demand. Within this framework, we study the likely costs and benefits of monetary union. We also consider the effects of cross-country heterogeneity in financial markets. Both the presence of financial frictions and the use of a single currency have significant impacts on the international propagation of exogenous shocks. The introduction of asymmetries in the financial contract widens the differences in cyclical behavior of national economies in a monetary union, but financial integration compensates the loss of policy instruments.
Reasoning in Vector Space: An Exploratory Study of Question Answering

Question answering tasks have shown remarkable progress with distributed vector representation. In this paper, we investigate the recently proposed Facebook bAbI tasks which consist of twenty different categories of questions that require complex reasoning. Because the previous work on bAbI are all end-to-end models, errors could come from either an imperfect understanding of semantics or in certain steps of the reasoning. For clearer analysis, we propose two vector space models inspired by Tensor Product Representation (TPR) to perform knowledge encoding and logical reasoning based on common-sense inference. They together achieve near-perfect accuracy on all categories including positional reasoning and path finding that have proved difficult for most of the previous approaches. We hypothesize that the difficulties in these categories are due to the multi-relations in contrast to uni-relational characteristic of other categories. Our exploration sheds light on designing more sophisticated dataset and moving one step toward integrating transparent and interpretable formalism of TPR into existing learning paradigms.
Automatic generation of observers from MARTE/CCSL

The UML (Unified Modeling Language) Profile for Modeling and Analysis of Real-Time and Embedded (MARTE) systems promises a general modeling framework to design and analyze embedded systems. Lots of works have been published on the modeling capabilities offered by MARTE, much less on verification techniques supported. The Clock Constraint Specification Language (CCSL) has been defined in an annex of MARTE precisely to address semantic issues on time and causal aspects in relation with MARTE models. In the context of System-on-Chip design, some early work was proposed to use CCSL as a high-level specification language from which an observation network could be built. That observation network was used to observe early prototype implementations of the system under design and verify its compliance with respect to the CCSL specification. The proposed approach consisted in manually building a library of observer nodes for each CCSL operator and defining a generic mechanism to compose these nodes. This paper introduces a technique to generate a complete observer directly from a CCSL specification without requiring the manual construction of a library. The technique relies on a new state-based semantics given to a selected subset of CCSL operators. The study focuses specifically on boundedness issues with some CCSL operators that were previously artificially bounded to allow for exhaustive analyses.
The Role of Wnt Signaling in Physiological and Pathological Angiogenesis

Early stages of vascular development include endothelial cell differentiation in a network of arteries, veins, and lymphatics. Subsequently, to respond to the specific needs of the organs, endothelial cells acquire specialized properties such as permeability control, expression of specific transcellular transport systems, membrane adhesive molecules, and others. Endothelial cell differentiation depends on communication between the surrounding tissues, which is mediated by growth and differentiation factors able to activate specific gene expression programs. Recent reports underline the important role of the Wnt system in vascular morphogenesis in the embryo and in organ-specific endothelial differentiation. Wnt signaling regulates fundamental aspects of development, including cell fate specification, proliferation, and survival, and may use different receptors and signaling pathways. Both loss- and gain-of-function experiments of members of the Wnt signaling pathway were found to cause marked alterations of vascular development and endothelial cell specification. Furthermore, altered Wnt signaling in the endothelium may contribute to pathological conditions such as retinopathies, pulmonary arterial hypertension, stroke, and others. Continued progress in this field holds the potential to identify novel therapeutics for the treatment of these diseases.
The “Critical Mass Hypothesis”: Morphosynatx Development among Typically Developing Child and a Child with Developmental Language Disorder

Mass Critical Hypothesis is a new concept in the study of child language and/or developmental language disorder. The hypothesis states that the morphosyntax of children can develop only if they have acquired (or can produce) a certain amount of different words. The goal of the present research was to test the generalizability and reliability of the hypothesis. For this, one typically developing child and one child with developmental language disorder from Child Language Data Exchange System/CHILDES (MacWhinney, 2000) were taken. The CHAT file was non-elicited and non-directed spontaneous speech. Computerized Language Analysis (CLAN) v.30 for Windows was employed to analyze the non-elicited spontaneous speech of the typically developing child and the child with developmental language disorder. For both cases, Mean Length of Utterance (MLU) and Pearson product moment correlation coefficient (r) were calculated. Based on observed range of number of types of morpheme produced, the present study supports the notion of ‘Mass Critical Hypothesis’ existence in both typically developing child and the child with developmental language disorder.
Mutants and Linkage in Mormoniella.

HE research of various workers has resulted in the accumulation of a large T number of mutant stocks of Mormoniella vitripennis (WALKER). Some of these mutants have been described by WHITING (1951); more recently, many others have arisen spontaneously or as the result of radiation studies conducted by KAYHART (1956) and SAUL (1955). Many of the mutants are a t the complex locus which WHITING (1951) has named the R locus, but mutations a t other loci have also been found. Because of the increasing use of Mormoniella as research material, it is desirable to describe these mutants, and to summarize their linkage relationships. It would further be desirable to have available a linkage map corresponding to the five chromosomes of Mormoniella; this study is a contribution toward that goal.
Assessing Bat Detectability and Occupancy with Multiple Automated Echolocation Detectors

Abstract Occupancy analysis and its ability to account for differential detection probabilities is important for studies in which detecting echolocation calls is used as a measure of bat occurrence and activity. We examined the feasibility of remotely acquiring bat encounter histories to estimate detection probability and occupancy. We used echolocation detectors coupled to digital recorders operating at a series of proximate sites on consecutive nights in 2 trial surveys for the Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus semotus). Our results confirmed that the technique is readily amenable for use in occupancy analysis. We also conducted a simulation exercise to assess the effects of sampling effort on parameter estimation. The results indicated that the precision and bias of parameter estimation were often more influenced by the number of sites sampled than number of visits. Acceptable accuracy often was not attained until at least 15 sites or 15 visits were used to estimate detection probability and occupancy. The method has significant potential for use in monitoring trends in bat activity and in comparative studies of habitat use.
Validity and Reliability of the Self-reporting Questionnaire 20 Items in Vietnam

Objective: The demand for inclusion of mental health measures in general health and wellbeing community-based surveys in developing countries is increasing. In a previous survey of child well- being in Vietnam, a measure of maternal mental health was included. This was the first use of the Self-reporting Questionnaire 20 items in Vietnam, and tested the validity and reliability. The objective of this study was to determine the sensitivity and specificity of the Self-reporting Questionnaire 20 items in Vietnam, to identify a cut-off point to determine cases, and to assess the inter-rater reliability. Patients and Methods: Double-blind assessment was conducted for 66 rural women, half of whom had been identified as patients with mental ill health by the Self-reporting Questionnaire 20 items in a community-based survey in 2002 and half were controls. In-depth Vietnamese psychiatric appraisal and the Self-reporting Questionnaire 20 items were used for all the women. Repeat interviews were performed with the Self-reporting Questionnaire 20 items by 3 different interviewers within 24 hours. Results: Using a cut off of 7/8, sensitivity was 73% and specificity was 82%. Inter-rater reliability combined κ was 0.79. Conclusions: This study validated the first reliable, cheap, and easy-to-use, community-based measure of mental health for Vietnam.
Calabi flow and projective embeddings

Let X ⊂ ℂℙN be a smooth subvariety. We study a flow, called balancing flow, on the space of projectively equivalent embeddings of X which attempts to deform the given embedding into a balanced one. If L → X is an ample line bundle, considering embeddings via H 0(Lk) gives a sequence of balancing flows. We prove that, provided these flows are started at appropriate points, they converge to Calabi flow for as long as it exists. This result is the parabolic analogue of Donaldson's theorem relating balanced embeddings to metrics with constant scalar curvature [12]. In our proof we combine Donaldson's techniques with an asymptotic result of Liu and Ma [17] which, as we explain, describes the asymptotic behavior of the derivative of the map FS o Hilb whose fixed points are balanced metrics.
Feasibility Study of IL-11 and Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor After Myelosuppressive Chemotherapy to Mobilize Peripheral Blood Stem Cells From Heavily Pretreated Patients

Purpose Pediatric patients with solid tumors treated with prolonged dose-intensive chemoradiotherapy are poor mobilizers of peripheral blood stem cells (PBSC). We have conducted a pilot study to mobilize PBSC in eight pediatric patients with relapsed solid tumors using ifosfamide, carboplatin, and etoposide (ICE) followed-up by IL-11 plus granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF). Patients and Methods Patients received ifosfamide 1.8 g/m 2 per day for 5 days, carboplatin 400 mg/m 2 per day for 2 days, and etoposide 100 mg/m 2 per day for 5 days. After completion of ICE chemotherapy, patients received daily subcutaneous injections of G-CSF (5 &mgr;g/kg per day) and IL-11 (50–100 &mgr;g/kg per day) until peripheral stem cell apheresis. Results The median age was 11 years. Diagnosis included three relapsed Hodgkin disease, three relapsed central nervous system tumors, one relapsed Wilms tumor, and one relapsed rhabdomyosarcoma. The median number of apheresis procedures required to obtain 5 × 10 6 CD34 + cells/kg was one. The mean ± standard error of mean (SEM) total CD34 + cells collected was 14.0 ± 2.7 × 10 6 /kg. The mean ± SEM total CD34 + /CD41 + cells collected was 4.6 ± 1.9 × 10 6 /kg. Seven of the eight patients have subsequently undergone myeloablative chemotherapy with autologous PBSC transplantation and have reconstituted hematopoiesis with a median time to neutrophil recovery of 10 days and platelet recovery of 15.5 days. Conclusions We conclude that the regimen of ICE/IL-11 plus G-CSF is successful in mobilizing large numbers of CD34 + PBSC cells with a limited number (one) of apheresis collections in patients that have previously been heavily pretreated with chemotherapy/radiotherapy.
The FII Model as an Investment in Patience: Exploring Time Preferences in Medellin, Colombia

The motivation for this research is to explore the success behind the Oakland based Family Independence Initiative (FII) as a model for poverty alleviation. During the period of June-December 2012, nearly 200 small business owners in Medellin, Colombia participated in a field experiment intended to replicate the FII model by randomizing the treatments of setting goals, receiving conditional payments, and participating in self-help groups, as well as the combinations thereof. The data shows that the subjects in the full FII treatment group achieve more goals and have significantly higher monthly sales than those subjects in any other treatment or control group. Given its success, this research explores the merits of a change in subjects' time preferences as a mechanism explaining the changes in behavior caused by participation in the FII program. The subjects' time preferences were measured via survey using a combination of the binary choice and fill-in-the-blank methods on three different occasions throughout the experiment. The data indicates that participating in the FII experiment does indeed change subject's time preferences, suggesting they become more patient and less present- biased over time. Examining how time preferences can change over time is particularly useful when discussing poverty alleviation, as inter-temporal choices affect a range of behaviors such as saving, borrowing, and various types of investment, all of which affect economic well-being.
Safety of a Hybrid Closed-Loop Insulin Delivery System in Patients With Type 1 Diabetes.

Safety of a Hybrid Closed-Loop Insulin Delivery System in Patients With Type 1 Diabetes Closed-loopartificialpancreastechnologyusesacontrolalgorithm to automatically adjust insulin delivery based on subcutaneous sensor data to improve diabetes management. Currently available systems stop insulin in response to existing1 or predicted2 low sensor glucose values, whereas hybrid closed-loop systems combine user-delivered premeal boluses with automatic interprandial insulin delivery.3 This study investigated the safety of a hybrid closed-loop system in patients with type 1 diabetes.
Cold-Active Serine Alkaline Protease from the Psychrotrophic Bacterium Shewanella Strain Ac10: Gene Cloning and Enzyme Purification and Characterization

ABSTRACT The gene encoding serine alkaline protease (SapSh) of the psychrotrophic bacterium Shewanella strain Ac10 was cloned in Escherichia coli. The amino acid sequence deduced from the 2,442-bp nucleotide sequence revealed that the protein was 814 amino acids long and had an estimated molecular weight of 85,113. SapSh exhibited sequence similarities with members of the subtilisin family of proteases, and there was a high level of conservation in the regions around a putative catalytic triad consisting of Asp-30, His-65, and Ser-369. The amino acid sequence contained the following regions which were assigned on the basis of homology to previously described sequences: a signal peptide (26 residues), a propeptide (117 residues), and an extension up to the C terminus (about 250 residues). Another feature of SapSh is the fact that the space between His-65 and Ser-369 is approximately 150 residues longer than the corresponding spaces in other proteases belonging to the subtilisin family. SapSh was purified to homogeneity from the culture supernatant of E. colirecombinant cells by affinity chromatography with a bacitracin-Sepharose column. The recombinant SapSh (rSapSh) was found to have a molecular weight of about 44,000 and to be highly active in the alkaline region (optimum pH, around 9.0) when azocasein and synthetic peptides were used as substrates. rSapSh was characterized by its high levels of activity at low temperatures; it was five times more active than subtilisin Carlsberg at temperatures ranging from 5 to 15°C. The activation energy for hydrolysis of azocasein by rSapSh was much lower than the activation energy for hydrolysis of azocasein by the subtilisin. However, rSapSh was far less stable than the subtilisin.
A Receptor-Based Explanation for Tsetse Fly Catch Distribution between Coloured Cloth Panels and Flanking Nets

Tsetse flies transmit trypanosomes that cause nagana in cattle, and sleeping sickness in humans. Therefore, optimising visual baits to control tsetse is an important priority. Tsetse are intercepted at visual baits due to their initial attraction to the bait, and their subsequent contact with it due to landing or accidental collision. Attraction is proposed to be driven in part by a chromatic mechanism to which a UV-blue photoreceptor contributes positively, and a UV and a green photoreceptor contribute negatively. Landing responses are elicited by stimuli with low luminance, but many studies also find apparently strong landing responses when stimuli have high UV reflectivity, which would imply that UV wavelengths contribute negatively to attraction at a distance, but positively to landing responses at close range. The strength of landing responses is often judged using the number of tsetse sampled at a cloth panel expressed as a proportion of the combined catch of the cloth panel and a flanking net that samples circling flies. I modelled these data from two previously published field studies, using calculated fly photoreceptor excitations as predictors. I found that the proportion of tsetse caught on the cloth panel increased with an index representing the chromatic mechanism driving attraction, as would be expected if the same mechanism underlay both long- and close-range attraction. However, the proportion of tsetse caught on the cloth panel also increased with excitation of the UV-sensitive R7p photoreceptor, in an apparently separate but interacting behavioural mechanism. This R7p-driven effect resembles the fly open-space response which is believed to underlie their dispersal towards areas of open sky. As such, the proportion of tsetse that contact a cloth panel likely reflects a combination of deliberate landings by potentially host-seeking tsetse, and accidental collisions by those seeking to disperse, with a separate visual mechanism underlying each behaviour.
A Stochastic Model for Simulating the Availability of Electric Vehicles for Services to the Power Grid

Since private passenger cars drive on average less than 2 hours per day, each electric vehicle could potentially provide capacities for grid services during more than 22 hours per day. The presented stochastic model, which bases on more than 167,000 data points from a mobility survey, simulates the driving behavior of private passenger cars. The article estimates the availability of electric vehicles for grid balancing services using the generated profiles from a stochastic model. Three basic ("zero-intelligence") charging strategies were applied.In conclusion, more than 90% of all vehicles are parked at any given point in time. Thereof, more than 25% are parked at home at any given time. Moreover, the simulation results show the urgent need for intelligent charging strategies in order to avoid additional peak loads during the evening hours and to make the service potential of electric vehicles available to the grid.
The more the merrier: comparative analysis of microarray studies on cell cycle‐regulated genes in fission yeast

The last two years have seen the publication of three genome‐wide gene expression studies of the fission yeast cell cycle. While these microarray papers largely agree on the main patterns of cell cycle‐regulated transcription and its control, there are discrepancies with regard to the identity and numbers of periodically expressed genes. We present benchmark and reproducibility analyses showing that the main discrepancies do not reflect differences in the data themselves (microarray or synchronization methods seem to lead only to minor biases) but rather in the interpretation of the data. Our reanalysis of the three datasets reveals that combining all independent information leads to an improved identification of periodically expressed genes. These evaluations suggest that the available microarray data do not allow reliable identification of more than about 500 cell cycle‐regulated genes. The temporal expression pattern of the top 500 periodically expressed genes is generally consistent across experiments and the three studies, together with our integrated analysis, provide a coherent and rich source of information on cell cycle‐regulated gene expression in Schizosaccharomyces pombe. The reanalysed datasets and other supplementary information are available from an accompanying website: http://www.cbs. dtu.dk/cellcycle/. We hope that this paper will resolve the apparent discrepancies between the previous studies and be useful both for wet‐lab biologists and for theoretical scientists who wish to take advantage of the data for follow‐up work. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.