Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Assessing Zinc Levels: Is It The Hour Of Need?

Zinc is an essential mineral playing a pivotal role in numerous aspects of cellular metabolism. Zinc deficiency affects all age groups, but the effect on growing children is very severe. Zinc deficiency is known to cause stunted growth and development in children. However, there are no reliable biomarkers of zinc status to assess health risk. Without a specific, sensitive biomarker to determine the zinc nutritional status, zinc intervention program is a struggle. Sensitive and specific analysis of zinc status is hence cardinal to defining optimal zinc status and setting evidence-based reference intake level. Given the lack of an accurate, sensitive zinc biomarker that reflects zinc nutrition across various populations and situations, research is needed to identify new biomarkers. Presently, the biochemical marker for measuring the zinc status is analyzing the plasma zinc. However, zinc homeostasis depends on many factors complicating the detection of marginal zinc deficiency. Key words: Zinc; homeostasis; markers; under nutrition; deficiency
The Limitations of No-Arbitrage Arguments for Real Options

We consider an option c which is contingent on an underlying (tilde S) that is not a traded asset. This situation typically arises in the context of real options. We investigate the situation when there is a "surrogate" traded asset S whose price process is highly correlated with that of (tilde S). An illustration would be the cases where S and (tilde S) model two different brands of crude oil. The main result of the paper shows that in this case one cannot draw any non-trivial conclusions on the price of the option by only using no arbitrage arguments. In a second step we try to isolate hedging strategies on the traded asset S which minimize the variance of the hedging error. We show in particular, that the naive strategy of simply replacing (tilde S) by S fails to be optimal and we are able to quantify how far it is from being optimal. (author's abstract)
Optimal global conformal surface parameterization

All orientable metric surfaces are Riemann surfaces and admit global conformal parameterizations. Riemann surface structure is a fundamental structure and governs many natural physical phenomena, such as heat diffusion and electro-magnetic fields on the surface. A good parameterization is crucial for simulation and visualization. This paper provides an explicit method for finding optimal global conformal parameterizations of arbitrary surfaces. It relies on certain holomorphic differential forms and conformal mappings from differential geometry and Riemann surface theories. Algorithms are developed to modify topology, locate zero points, and determine cohomology types of differential forms. The implementation is based on a finite dimensional optimization method. The optimal parameterization is intrinsic to the geometry, preserves angular structure, and can play an important role in various applications including texture mapping, remeshing, morphing and simulation. The method is demonstrated by visualizing the Riemann surface structure of real surfaces represented as triangle meshes.
Automated microaneurysm detection method based on double ring filter in retinal fundus images

The presence of microaneurysms in the eye is one of the early signs of diabetic retinopathy, which is one of the leading causes of vision loss. We have been investigating a computerized method for the detection of microaneurysms on retinal fundus images, which were obtained from the Retinopathy Online Challenge (ROC) database. The ROC provides 50 training cases, in which "gold standard" locations of microaneurysms are provided, and 50 test cases without the gold standard locations. In this study, the computerized scheme was developed by using the training cases. Although the results for the test cases are also included, this paper mainly discusses the results for the training cases because the "gold standard" for the test cases is not known. After image preprocessing, candidate regions for microaneurysms were detected using a double-ring filter. Any potential false positives located in the regions corresponding to blood vessels were removed by automatic extraction of blood vessels from the images. Twelve image features were determined, and the candidate lesions were classified into microaneurysms or false positives using the rule-based method and an artificial neural network. The true positive fraction of the proposed method was 0.45 at 27 false positives per image. Forty-two percent of microaneurysms in the 50 training cases were considered invisible by the consensus of two co-investigators. When the method was evaluated for visible microaneurysms, the sensitivity for detecting microaneurysms was 65% at 27 false positives per image. Our computerized detection scheme could be improved for helping ophthalmologists in the early diagnosis of diabetic retinopathy.
Myocardial T1 mapping: Application to patients with acute and chronic myocardial infarction

T1 maps obtained with modified Look‐Locker inversion recovery (MOLLI) can be used to measure myocardial T1. We aimed to evaluate the potential of MOLLI T1 mapping for the assessment of acute and chronic myocardial infarction (MI). A total of 24 patients with a first MI underwent MRI within 8 days and after 6 months. T1 mapping was performed at baseline and at selected intervals between 2–20 min following administration of gadopentetate dimeglumine (Gd‐DTPA). Delayed‐enhancement (DE) imaging served as the reference standard for delineation of the infarct zone. On T1 maps the myocardial T1 relaxation time was assessed in hyperenhanced areas, hypoenhanced infarct cores, and remote myocardium. The planimetric size of myocardial areas with standardized T1 threshold values was measured. Acute and chronic MI exhibited different T1 changes. Precontrast threshold T1 maps detected segmental abnormalities caused by acute MI with 96% sensitivity and 91% specificity. Agreement between measurements of infarct size from T1 mapping and DE imaging was higher in chronic than in acute infarcts. Precontrast T1 maps enable the detection of acute MI. Acute and chronic MI show different patterns of T1 changes. Standardized T1 thresholds provide the potential to dichotomously identify areas of infarction. Magn Reson Med 58:34–40, 2007. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
The fifth component of complement (C5) in the mouse. Analysis of the molecular basis for deficiency

C5-deficient mice differed from C5-sufficient mice both quantitatively and qualitatively in C5 protein, C5 mRNA, and the C5 gene. C5-deficient protein was present as decreased amounts of an unprocessed, single- chain precursor. C5-deficient mRNA was decreased in amount and present in two forms, the smaller of which was the same as the single form in normal cells. Nuclei from both normal and deficient cells contained the larger form of C5 mRNA, and C5-deficient DNA demonstrated differences from the normal pattern on Southern analysis for two restriction enzymes. These data suggest that the primary transcript of the C5- deficient gene is abnormal, retarding the processing of the C5 mRNA, and that the C5-deficient mRNA codes for an abnormal protein.
Engineering tyrosine electron transfer pathways decreases oxidative toxicity in hemoglobin: implications for blood substitute design

Hemoglobin (Hb)-based oxygen carriers (HBOC) have been engineered to replace or augment the oxygen-carrying capacity of erythrocytes. However, clinical results have generally been disappointing due to adverse side effects linked to intrinsic heme-mediated oxidative toxicity and nitric oxide (NO) scavenging. Redox-active tyrosine residues can facilitate electron transfer between endogenous antioxidants and oxidative ferryl heme species. A suitable residue is present in the α-subunit (Y42) of Hb, but absent from the homologous position in the β-subunit (F41). We therefore replaced this residue with a tyrosine (βF41Y, Hb Mequon). The βF41Y mutation had no effect on the intrinsic rate of lipid peroxidation as measured by conjugated diene and singlet oxygen formation following the addition of ferric(met) Hb to liposomes. However, βF41Y significantly decreased these rates in the presence of physiological levels of ascorbate. Additionally, heme damage in the β-subunit following the addition of the lipid peroxide hydroperoxyoctadecadieoic acid was five-fold slower in βF41Y. NO bioavailability was enhanced in βF41Y by a combination of a 20% decrease in NO dioxygenase activity and a doubling of the rate of nitrite reductase activity. The intrinsic rate of heme loss from methemoglobin was doubled in the β-subunit, but unchanged in the α-subunit. We conclude that the addition of a redox-active tyrosine mutation in Hb able to transfer electrons from plasma antioxidants decreases heme-mediated oxidative reactivity and enhances NO bioavailability. This class of mutations has the potential to decrease adverse side effects as one component of a HBOC product.
Practice guide: A Combined Approach to Political Economy and Power Analysis Discussion Note Prepared for the Swiss Development Cooperation

The purpose of political economy and power analyses (PEPA) is to explain power relations and political dynamics in the formulation, adoption and implementation of development initiatives. Despite having different backgrounds and methodologies, both frameworks share the common objective of unpacking the visible, invisible and hidden relationships between key actors involved in producing (or blocking) meaningful changes.
Effective features for artery-vein classification in digital fundus images

In this paper we present an analysis of image features used to discriminate arteries and veins in digital fundus images. Methods proposed in the literature to analyze the vasculature of the retina and compute diagnostic indicators like the Arteriolar to Venular ratio (AVR), use, in fact, different approaches for this classification task, extracting different color features and exploiting different additional information. We concentrate our analysis on finding optimal features for the vessel classification, considering not only simple color features, but also spatial location and vessel size and testing different supervised labeling approaches. The results obtained show that best results are obtained mixing features related with color values and contrast inside and outside the vessels and positional information. Furthermore, the discriminative power of the features changes with the image resolution and best results are not obtained at the finest one. Our experiments demonstrate that using a good set of descriptors it is possible to achieve very good classification performances even without using vascular connectivity information.
Cumulative Scheduling with Task Intervals

This paper presents a set of propagation rules to solve cumulative constraints. As in our previous paper on jobshop scheduling [8], our goal is to propose to the CLP community techniques that allow a constraint satisfaction program to obtain performances which are competitive with ad-hoc approaches. The rules that we propose are a mix of an extension of the concept of task intervals to the cumulative case and the use of a traditional resource histogram. We also explain how to use a branching scheme inherited from operations research to address complex multi-resources problems (similar to the use of edge-finding for jobshop scheduling). We show that the complex propagation patterns associated with our rules make a strong arguments for using logic programming. We also identify a phenomenon of phase transition in our examples that illustrates why cumulative scheduling is hard.
Real-time detection and continuous monitoring of ER stress in vitro and in vivo by ES-TRAP: evidence for systemic, transient ER stress during endotoxemia

Activity of secreted alkaline phosphatase (SEAP) produced by transfected cells is rapidly down-regulated by endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress independent of transcriptional regulation. This phenomenon was observed in a wide range of cell types triggered by various ER stress inducers. The magnitude of the decrease in SEAP was proportional to the extent of ER stress and inversely correlated with the induction of endogenous ER stress markers grp78 and grp94. In contrast to SEAP, activity of secreted luciferase was less susceptible to ER stress. The decrease in SEAP activity by ER stress was caused by abnormal post-translational modification, accelerated degradation and reduced secretion of SEAP protein. In transgenic mice constitutively producing SEAP, systemic induction of ER stress led to reduction in serum SEAP. In these mice, administration with lipopolysaccharide caused rapid, transient decrease in serum SEAP activity, and it was correlated with up-regulation of grp78 in several organs including the spleen, lung, kidney, liver and heart. These results elucidated for the first time a possible involvement of transient, systemic ER stress in endotoxemia and provided evidence for usefulness of ER stress responsive alkaline phosphatase for real-time monitoring of ER stress in vitro and in vivo.
An EM Algorithm for Path Delay and Complex Gain Estimation of Slowly Varying Fading Channel for CPM Signals

This paper addresses the joint path delay and time-varying complex gain estimation for continuous phase modulation (CPM) over a time-selective slowly varying flat Rayleigh fading channel. We propose an expectation-maximization (EM) algorithm for path delay estimation in a Kalman smoother framework. The time-varying complex gain is modeled by a first order autoregressive (AR) process. Such a modeling yields to the representation of the problem by a dynamic bayesian system in a state-space form that allows the application of EM algorithm in the context of unobserved data for obtaining an estimate of the path delay. This is used with Kalman smoother for state estimation. We derive analytically a closed-form expression of the modified hybrid Cramer-Rao bound (MHCRB) for path delay and complex gain parameters. Finally, some numerical examples are presented to illustrate the performance of the proposed algorithm compared to the conventional generalized correlation method and to the MHCRB.
The Vital Role of Task Teams: The Total Quality Management Approach on Restructuring Organizations.

Teams are an important element of restructuring organizations because much of the work of the organization is being done in small units, the microcosms of organizations. Total Quality Management (TQM) is one way to analyze the importance of teamwork during restructuring. This paper describes the basic principles and tools of TQM and considers its use in the business and higher educational sector. Some essential issues regarding teams and teamwork in TQM are reviewed, and some conclusions are drawn based on research into TQM and well-functioning teams. A basic TQM tenet is that managers and supervisors must cease to be managers and become leaders who create an environment in which people can develop and apply their collective potential while working around their individual weaknesses. The success of the total quality and continuous improvement initiatives is based on the success of team members with regard to fulfilling their individual and group missions. (Contains 10 references.) (SLD) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. Running head: Total Quality Management in Higher Education
Photoconductive response correction for detectors of terahertz radiation

Photoconductive detectors are convenient devices for detecting pulsed terahertz radiation. We have optimized Fe+ ion-damaged InP materials for photoconductive detector signal to noise performance using dual-energy doses in the range from 2.5×1012 to 1.0×1016 cm−2. Ion implantation allowed the production of semiconducting materials with free-carrier lifetimes between 0.5 and 2.1 ps, which were measured by optical pump terahertz probe spectroscopy. The time resolved photoconductivity of the detector substrates was acquired as a function of time after excitation by 2 nJ pulses from a laser oscillator. These data, when combined with a deconvolution algorithm, provide an excellent spectral response correction to the raw photocurrent signal recorded by the photoconductive detectors.
Maximal Orders in the Design of Dense Space-Time Lattice Codes

In this paper, we construct explicit rate-one, full-diversity, geometrically dense matrix lattices with large, nonvanishing determinants (NVDs) for four transmit antenna multiple-input-single-output (MISO) space-time (ST) applications. The constructions are based on the theory of rings of algebraic integers and related subrings of the Hamiltonian quaternions and can be extended to a larger number of Tx antennas. The usage of ideals guarantees an NVD larger than one and an easy way to present the exact proofs for the minimum determinants. The idea of finding denser sublattices within a given division algebra is then generalized to a multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) case with an arbitrary number of Tx antennas by using the theory of cyclic division algebras (CDAs) and maximal orders. It is also shown that the explicit constructions in this paper all have a simple decoding method based on sphere decoding. Related to the decoding complexity, the notion of sensitivity is introduced, and experimental evidence indicating a connection between sensitivity, decoding complexity, and performance is provided. Simulations in a quasi-static Rayleigh fading channel show that our dense quaternionic constructions outperform both the earlier rectangular lattices and the rotated quasi-orthogonal ABBA lattice as well as the diagonal algebraic space-time (DAST) lattice. We also show that our quaternionic lattice is better than the DAST lattice in terms of the diversity-multiplexing gain tradeoff (DMT).
A Flexible Optimization Procedure for Mechanical ComponentDesign Based on Genetic Adaptive

A exible algorithm for solving nonlinear engineering design optimization problems involving zero-one, discrete, and continuous variables is presented. The algorithm restricts its search only to the permissible values of the variables, thereby reducing the search eeort in converging near the optimum solution. The eeciency and ease of application of the proposed method is demonstrated by solving four diierent mechanical design problems chosen from the optimization literature. These results are encouraging and suggest the use of the technique to other more complex engineering design problems.
Describing rainfall in northern Australia using multiple climate indices

Abstract. Savanna landscapes are globally extensive and highly sensitive to climate change, yet the physical processes and climate phenomena which affect them remain poorly understood and therefore poorly represented in climate models. Both human populations and natural ecosystems are highly susceptible to precipitation variation in these regions due to the effects on water and food availability and atmosphere–biosphere energy fluxes. Here we quantify the relationship between climate phenomena and historical rainfall variability in Australian savannas and, in particular, how these relationships changed across a strong rainfall gradient, namely the North Australian Tropical Transect (NATT). Climate phenomena were described by 16 relevant climate indices and correlated against precipitation from 1900 to 2010 to determine the relative importance of each climate index on seasonal, annual and decadal timescales. Precipitation trends, climate index trends and wet season characteristics have also been investigated using linear statistical methods. In general, climate index–rainfall correlations were stronger in the north of the NATT where annual rainfall variability was lower and a high proportion of rainfall fell during the wet season. This is consistent with a decreased influence of the Indian–Australian monsoon from the north to the south. Seasonal variation was most strongly correlated with the Australian Monsoon Index, whereas yearly variability was related to a greater number of climate indices, predominately the Tasman Sea and Indonesian sea surface temperature indices (both of which experienced a linear increase over the duration of the study) and the El Nino–Southern Oscillation indices. These findings highlight the importance of understanding the climatic processes driving variability and, subsequently, the importance of understanding the relationships between rainfall and climatic phenomena in the Northern Territory in order to project future rainfall patterns in the region.
The Effects of Maternal Attitude Toward Child's Emotional Expressiveness and Maternal Emotional Expressiveness on Preschoolers' Emotional Regulation Strategies

This study examined effects on children's emotional expressiveness and regulation strategies or maternal attitudes and emotional expressiveness. Participants were 180 children(88 girls) age 3-5, their mothers, and 20 teachers. Results showed boys used more aggressive and girls used more positive coping strategies. Younger children used more aggressive and non-expressive strategies. When mothers had more Permissive and Accepting attitudes, children used more positive coping strategies. When mothers had more Restrictive or Controlling attitudes, children used more aggressive strategies. When mothers expressed positive emotions, children used fewer aggressive and venting strategies. When mothers expressed negative emotions, children used more aggressive and fewer positive coping and non-expressive strategies. Negative maternal emotional expressiveness was an especially influential factor on children's emotional regulation strategies.
Stretching and Heating Single DNA Molecules with Optically Trapped Gold–Silica Janus Particles

Self-propelled micro- and nanoscale motors are capable of autonomous motion typically by inducing local concentration gradients or thermal gradients in their surrounding medium. This is a result of the heterogeneous surface of the self-propelled structures that consist of materials with different chemical or physical properties. Here we present a self-thermophoretically driven Au–silica Janus particle that can simultaneously stretch and partially melt a single double-stranded DNA molecule. We show that the effective force acting on the DNA molecule is in the ∼pN range, well suited to probe the entropic stretching regime of DNA, and we demonstrate that the local temperature enhancement around the gold side of the particle produces partial DNA dehybridization.
Simultaneous Diagonalization With Similarity Transformation for Non-Defective Matrices

The problem of joint eigenstructure estimation for the non-defective matrices is addressed. A procedure revealing the joint eigenstructure by simultaneous diagonalization with unitary and non-unitary similarity transformations alternately is proposed to overcome the convergence difficulties of previous methods based on simultaneous Schur form and unitary transformations. It can be proved that its asymptotic convergence rate is ultimately quadratic. Numerical experiments are conducted in a multi-dimensional harmonic retrieval application and suggest that the method presented here converges considerably faster than the methods based on only unitary transformation for matrices which are not near to normality