Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Estrogen receptor α protects pancreatic β-cells from apoptosis by preserving mitochondrial function and suppressing endoplasmic reticulum stress

Estrogen receptor α (ERα) action plays an important role in pancreatic β-cell function and survival; thus, it is considered a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of type 2 diabetes in women. However, the mechanisms underlying the protective effects of ERα remain unclear. Because ERα regulates mitochondrial metabolism in other cell types, we hypothesized that ERα may act to preserve insulin secretion and promote β-cell survival by regulating mitochondrial-endoplasmic reticulum (EndoRetic) function. We tested this hypothesis using pancreatic islet-specific ERα knockout (PERαKO) mice and Min6 β-cells in culture with Esr1 knockdown (KD). We found that Esr1-KD promoted reactive oxygen species production that associated with reduced fission/fusion dynamics and impaired mitophagy. Electron microscopy showed mitochondrial enlargement and a pro-fusion phenotype. Mitochondrial cristae and endoplasmic reticulum were dilated in Esr1-KD compared with ERα replete Min6 β-cells. Increased expression of Oma1 and Chop was paralleled by increased oxygen consumption and apoptosis susceptibility in ERα-KD cells. In contrast, ERα overexpression and ligand activation reduced both Chop and Oma1 expression, likely by ERα binding to consensus estrogen-response element sites in the Oma1 and Chop promoters. Together, our findings suggest that ERα promotes β-cell survival and insulin secretion through maintenance of mitochondrial fission/fusion-mitophagy dynamics and EndoRetic function, in part by Oma1 and Chop repression.
Reducing false arrhythmia alarms in the ICU using multimodal signals and robust QRS detection

This study developed algorithms to decrease the arrhythmia false alarms in the ICU by processing multimodal signals of photoplethysmography (PPG), arterial blood pressure (ABP), and two ECG signals. The goal was to detect the five critical arrhythmias comprising asystole (ASY), extreme bradycardia (EBR), extreme tachycardia (ETC), ventricular tachycardia (VTA), and ventricular flutter or fibrillation (VFB). The different characteristics of the arrhythmias suggested the application of individual signal processing for each alarm and the combination of the algorithms to enhance false alarm detection. Thus, different features and signal processing techniques were used for each arrhythmia type. The ECG signals were first processed to reduce the signal interference. Then, a Hilbert-transform based QRS detector algorithm was utilized to identify the QRS complexes, which were then processed to determine the instantaneous heart rate. The pulsatile signals (PPG and ABP) were processed to discover the pulse onset of beats which were then employed to measure the heart rate. The signal quality index (SQI) of the signals was implemented to verify the integrity of the heart rate information. The overall score obtained by our algorithms in the 2015 Computing in Cardiology Challenge was a score of 74.03% for retrospective and 69.92% for real-time analysis.
Compare Analysis for the Nanotoxicity Effects of Different Amounts of Endocytic Iron Oxide Nanoparticles at Single Cell Level

Developing methods that evaluate the cellular uptake of magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) and nanotoxicity effects at single-cellular level are needed. In this study, magnetophoresis combining fluorescence based cytotoxicity assay was proposed to assess the viability and the single-cellular MNPs uptake simultaneously. Malignant cells (SKHep-1, HepG2, HeLa) were incubated with 10 nm anionic iron oxide nanoparticles. Prussian blue stain was performed to visualize the distribution of magnetic nanoparticles. MTT and fluorescence based assay analyzed the cytotoxicity effects of the bulk cell population and single cell, respectively. DAPI/PI stained was applied to evaluate death mechanism. The number of intracellular MNPs was found to be strongly correlated with the cell death. Significant differences between cellular MNP uptake in living and dead cells were observed. The method could be useful for future study of the nanotoxicity induced by MNPs.
Diffusion Behaviour of Cryptographic Primitives in Feistel Networks

The concept of product encryption is resident in the majority of symmetric block ciphers. Along with product encryption, two properties were also defined by Shannon, namely diffusion and confusion. In a product cipher such as a Feistel Network (FN), or generally a Substitution Permutation Network (SPN), diffusion is dependent upon two types of primitives, the nonlinear transformation and the swapping scheme. Different approaches to diffusion analysis considered either the topology of a FN, or the nonlinear transformation. This paper describes a metric for diffusion in a way suitable for investigating the behaviour of the underlying primitives of a FN.
Gamma regularization based reconstruction for low dose CT

Reducing the radiation in computerized tomography is today a major concern in radiology. Low dose computerized tomography (LDCT) offers a sound way to deal with this problem. However, more severe noise in the reconstructed CT images is observed under low dose scan protocols (e.g. lowered tube current or voltage values). In this paper we propose a Gamma regularization based algorithm for LDCT image reconstruction. This solution is flexible and provides a good balance between the regularizations based on l0-norm and l1-norm. We evaluate the proposed approach using the projection data from simulated phantoms and scanned Catphan phantoms. Qualitative and quantitative results show that the Gamma regularization based reconstruction can perform better in both edge-preserving and noise suppression when compared with other norms.
Evaluation of microstructure of natural rubber/nano-calcium carbonate nanocomposites by solvent transport properties

The research on rubber reinforcement is a traditional but vitally essential topic. However, many issues in this aspect are presently still not well understood and explained. Moreover, when rubber reinforcement is obtained by using nanoparticles, it is even more difficult to clearly understand the relationship between the microstructure and properties. The special character of rubber, being a multicomponent system (rubber, vulcanising agent, accelerants, reinforcements, etc.), complicates even more the analysis of the parameters affecting the rubber/nanoparticle composite formation. Therefore, we believe the results obtained by means of transport experiments represent a good approach for understanding the reinforcing capability of nanofillers. The reinforcing capability of nano-CaCO3 in natural rubber (NR) was characterised by means of transport properties such as diffusion, sorption and permeability coefficients, swelling ratio, enthalpy, entropy and activation energy. Concentration of nano-CaCo3 in NR was varied from 0 to 20 parts per one hundred parts of rubber by weight (phr). Transport process of toluene by use of equilibrium weight swelling of the NR and nanofilled composites have been studied in details. The effects of nanofiller concentration and temperature on transport of toluene through nano-CaCO3 filled NR vulcanisates were studied. The microstructure of the nanocomposites was investigated by scanning electron microscopy. The diffusivity data of the systems have shown the dependence on the temperature and microstructure of nanocomposite. Generally, the concentration of nano-CaCO3 plays an important role in transport process.
Anti-nociceptive action of peripheral mu-opioid receptors by G-beta-gamma protein-mediated inhibition of TRPM3 channels

Opioids, agonists of µ-opioid receptors (µORs), are the strongest pain killers clinically available. Their action includes a strong central component, which also causes important adverse effects. However, µORs are also found on the peripheral endings of nociceptors and their activation there produces meaningful analgesia. The cellular mechanisms downstream of peripheral µORs are not well understood. Here, we show in neurons of murine dorsal root ganglia that pro-nociceptive TRPM3 channels, present in the peripheral parts of nociceptors, are strongly inhibited by µOR activation, much more than other TRP channels in the same compartment, like TRPV1 and TRPA1. Inhibition of TRPM3 channels occurs via a short signaling cascade involving Gβγ proteins, which form a complex with TRPM3. Accordingly, activation of peripheral µORs in vivo strongly attenuates TRPM3-dependent pain. Our data establish TRPM3 inhibition as important consequence of peripheral µOR activation indicating that pharmacologically antagonizing TRPM3 may be a useful analgesic strategy.
Corneal Viscoelastic Properties from Finite-Element Analysis of In Vivo Air-Puff Deformation

Biomechanical properties are an excellent health marker of biological tissues, however they are challenging to be measured in-vivo. Non-invasive approaches to assess tissue biomechanics have been suggested, but there is a clear need for more accurate techniques for diagnosis, surgical guidance and treatment evaluation. Recently air-puff systems have been developed to study the dynamic tissue response, nevertheless the experimental geometrical observations lack from an analysis that addresses specifically the inherent dynamic properties. In this study a viscoelastic finite element model was built that predicts the experimental corneal deformation response to an air-puff for different conditions. A sensitivity analysis reveals significant contributions to corneal deformation of intraocular pressure and corneal thickness, besides corneal biomechanical properties. The results show the capability of dynamic imaging to reveal inherent biomechanical properties in vivo. Estimates of corneal biomechanical parameters will contribute to the basic understanding of corneal structure, shape and integrity and increase the predictability of corneal surgery.
Supporting Timed CSP Operators in CSP++

CSP++ is an open-source code synthesis tool consisting of a translator for a subset of CSPm and a C++ run-time framework. Version 5.0 now supports Timed CSP operators—timed interrupt, timed timeout, and timed prefix—as well as untimed variants of interrupt and timeout, with only 1% additional execution and memory overhead, though using interrupts is more costly. We describe the implementation and performance of the new operators, illustrating their use with a robot-vacuum cleaner case study. The tool thus becomes more useful for specifying the behaviour of soft real-time systems, and generating a timing-enabled executable program from its formal model.
Fall Impact Evaluating of Reliability of Solder Joints in BGA Packages Based on Surface Strain of Printed Wiring Board

携帯機器に搭載するLSIパッケージのBGAはんだ接続部の落下衝撃信頼性評価技術を確立するたあ, 姿勢制御機構を設けた落下衝撃試験装置を試作し, 種々の条件下で落下試験を行い, 基板ひずみとはんだ接続部の断線発生寿命の関係を測定した。 その結果, 落下衝撃によるはんだ接続部の断線発生回数は, 実装基板厚が異なっても基板ひずみによって一義的に評価できることを明らかにした。 また, 信頼性評価に線形損傷則を適用することで最も厳しい試験である水平方向単独の試験で6面落下と等価になる信頼性試験が可能であることを示した。 今回評価に使用したFan-outタイプパッケージの落下衝撃信頼性は, はんだペースト材には依存しないが, はんだボール組成の影響は認められた。
Weld pool oscillation during pulsed GTA welding

This paper deals with weld pool oscillation during pulsed GTA welding and with the possibility to use this oscillation for in-process control of weld penetration. Welding experiments were carried out under different welding conditions. During welding the weld pool was triggered into oscillation by the normal welding pulses or by extra current pulses. The oscillation frequency was measured both during the pulse time and during the base time by analyzing the arc voltage variation using a Fast Fourier Transformation program. Optimal results are obtained when full penetration occurs during the pulse time and partial penetration during the base time. Under these conditions elliptical overlapping spot welds are formed. In the case of full penetration the weld pool oscillates in a low frequency mode (membrane oscillation), whereas in the case of partial penetration the weld pool oscillates in a high frequency mode (surface oscillation). Deviation from the optimal welding conditions occurs when high frequency oscillation is observed during both pulse time and base time (underpenetration) or when low frequency oscillation is observed during both pulse time and base time (overpenetration). In line with these results a penetration sensing system with feedback control was designed, based on the criterion that optimal weldmore » penetration is achieved when two peaks are observed in the frequency distribution. The feasibility of this sensing system for orbital tube welding was confirmed by the results of experiments carried out under various welding conditions. « less
Energy-Efficient Routing Schemes for Sensor Networks

Microsensors operate under severe energy constraints. The sensor nodes need to be deployed in large numbers without any preconfiguration. The nodes are thrown in the area of interest randomly and exact position of each node cannot be pre·specified. However, in some cases, manually placing the nodes in pre-specified position can be possible. In lhis paper, we analyze energy consumptions, optimal network configuration, and data-cenlric rouling schemes to minimize energy consumption for both random and manU'll placemenl of the nodes. We show that in a linear network, energy consumption is minimal when nodes are equally spaced. For a two dimensional network, energy consumptions for various manual uniform arrangements such as triangular, square, and hexagonal array of sensors are analyzed and compared. We show thai minimal spanning (ree is the optimal data aggregalion tree when nodes are randomly distributed. To minimize energy consumption in nelwork configuration phase, an algorithm, called nearest neighbor cree, that approximates minimal spanning tree, is developed. The simulation results show that it is a 2approximation algorithm.
Towards an Agent-Based and Context-Oriented Approach to Compose Web Services

We present an agent-based and context-oriented approach for the composition of Web services. A Web service is an accessible application that other applications and humans can discover and trigger to satisfy multiple needs (e.g., hotel booking). Because of the complexity that characterizes the composition of Web services, two concepts in this paper are put forward to reduce this complexity namely software agent and context. A software agent is an autonomous entity that acts on behalf of users, whereas context is any relevant information that characterizes a situation. During the composition process, software agents engage conversations with their peers to agree on which Web services will participate in this process. In these conversations, agents take into account the execution context of the Web services.
Lifelong Caloric Restriction Increases Working Memory in Mice

Caloric restriction (CR) is argued to positively affect general health, longevity and the normally occurring age-related reduction of cognition. This issue is well examined, but most studies investigated the effect of short-term periods of CR. Herein, 4 weeks old female mice were fed caloric restricted for 4, 20 and especially for 74 weeks. CR mice received 60% of food eaten by their ad libitum (AL) fed littermates, and all age-matched groups were behaviorally analyzed. The motor coordination, which was tested by rotarod/accelerod, decreased age-related, but was not influenced by the different periods of CR. In contrast, the age-related impairment of spontaneous locomotor activity and anxiety, both being evaluated by open field and by elevated plus maze test, was found aggravated by a lifelong CR. Measurement of cognitive performance with morris water maze showed that the working memory decreased age-related in AL mice, while a lifelong CR caused a better cognitive performance and resulted in a significantly better spatial memory upon 74 weeks CR feeding. However, a late-onset CR feeding in 66 weeks old mice did not ameliorate the working memory. Therefore, a lifelong CR seems to be necessary to improve working memory.
A Petrov-Galerkin Finite Element Method for Fractional Convection-Diffusion Equations

In this work, we develop variational formulations of Petrov--Galerkin type for one-dimensional fractional boundary value problems involving either a Riemann--Liouville or Caputo derivative of order $\alpha\in(3/2, 2)$ in the leading term and both convection and potential terms. They arise in the mathematical modeling of asymmetric superdiffusion processes in heterogeneous media. The well-posedness of the formulations and sharp regularity pickup of the variational solutions are established. A novel finite element method (FEM) is developed, which employs continuous piecewise linear finite elements and “shifted” fractional powers for the trial and test space, respectively. The new approach has a number of distinct features: it allows the derivation of optimal error estimates in both the $L^2(D)$ and $H^1(D)$ norms; and on a uniform mesh, the stiffness matrix of the leading term is diagonal and the resulting linear system is well conditioned. Further, in the Riemann--Liouville case, an enriched FEM is propose.
IMPACT OF DIAMETER TO THICKNESS RATIO ON THE SEISMIC BEHAVIOR OF REINFORCED CONCRETE FILLED STEEL TUBES

Reinforced concrete filled steel tubes (RCFSTs) are commonly used as bridge pipe piles in high seismic regions. The pipe-piles consist of reinforced concrete encased in a steel tube. The steel tube is used as a permanent casing which eases construction. The concrete is confined by the steel tube, increasing the compressive strength, and the concrete core prevents the steel tube from buckling inward. Tests were performed on twelve large scale RCFSTs, seven of which are reported here focusing on the effect of varying D/t ratio. The pipe-piles were subjected to reversed cyclic four-point bending with a constant moment region centered in the pile. The large scale specimens consisted of outer diameters of 20 to 24 inches and diameter-to-thickness ratios between 33 and 192. The effect of D/t ratio on the initiation of buckling and rupture, ductility, and hysteretic damping are presented.
Comparing Solid-Body with Point-Light Animations

The movement of faces provides useful information for a variety of tasks and is now an active area of research. We compare here two ways of presenting face motion in experiments: as solid-body animations and as point-light displays. In the first experiment solid-body and point-light animations, based on the same motion-captured marker data, produced similar levels of performance on a sex-judgment task. The trend was for an advantage for the point-light displays, probably in part because of residual spatial cues available in such stimuli. In the second experiment we compared spatially normalised point-light displays of marker data with solid-body animations and pseudorandom point-light animations. Performance with solid-body animations and normalised point-light displays was similar and above chance, while performance with the pseudorandom point-light stimuli was not above chance. We conclude that both relatively few well-placed points and solid-body animations provide useful information about facial motion, but that a greater number of randomly placed points does not support above-chance performance. Solid-body animations have the methodological advantages of reducing the importance of marker placement and are more effective in isolating motion information, even if they are subsequently rendered as point-light displays.
PCSK9 regulates expression of scavenger receptors and ox-LDL uptake in macrophages

Aims Proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) has been shown to influence macrophage biology and modulate atherogenesis. We conducted this study to examine the regulation of scavenger receptors (SRs) (LOX-1, SRA, and CD36) and oxidized liporoptein cholesterol (ox-LDL) uptake in macrophages by PCSK9. Methods and results Treatment of mouse peritoneal macrophages with tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) resulted in concentration-dependent modest, but significant, increase in PCSK9 expression. Importantly, treatment of TNF-α primed macrophages with recombinant murine PCSK9 increased the expression of LOX-1, SRA, and CD36 2-5 fold, and enhanced ox-LDL uptake by ≈five-fold. The increase in LOX-1 was much greater than in SRA or CD36. PCSK9 inhibition (by siRNA transfection or use of macrophages from PCSK9-/- mice) reduced the expression of SRs (LOX-1 ≫ SRA or CD36). Ox-LDL uptake in response to PCSK9 was also inhibited in macrophages from LOX-1-/- mice (P < 0.05 vs. macrophages from SRA-/- and CD36-/- mice). Upregulation of PCSK9 by cDNA transfection induced intense ox-LDL uptake which was inhibited by co-transfection of cells with siRNA LOX-1 (P < 0.05 vs. siRNA SRA or siRNA CD36). Further, TNF-α-mediated PCSK9 upregulation and subsequent expression of SRs and ox-LDL uptake were reduced in macrophages from gp91phox-/-, p47phox-/- and p22phox-/- mice (vs. macrophages from wild-type mice). Conclusions This study shows that in an inflammatory milieu, elevated levels of PCSK9 potently stimulate the expression of SRs (principally LOX-1) and ox-LDL uptake in macrophages, and thus contribute to the process of atherogenesis.
Copy number of pancreatic polypeptide receptor gene NPY4R correlates with body mass index and waist circumference

Multiple genetic studies have linked copy number variation (CNV) in different genes to body mass index (BMI) and obesity. A CNV on chromosome 10q11.22 has been associated with body weight. This CNV region spans NPY4R, the gene encoding the pancreatic polypeptide receptor Y4, which has been described as a satiety-stimulating receptor. We have investigated CNV of the NPY4R gene and analysed its relationship to BMI, waist circumference and self-reported dietary intake from 558 individuals (216 men and 342 women) representing a wide BMI range. The copy number for NPY4R ranged from 2 to 8 copies (average 4.6±0.8). Rather than the expected negative correlation, we observed a positive correlation between NPY4R copy number and BMI as well as waist circumference in women (Pearson’s r = 0.267, p = 2.65×10−7 and r = 0.256, p = 8×10−7, respectively). Each additional copy of NPY4R correlated with 2.6 kg/m2 increase in BMI and 5.67 cm increase in waist circumference (p = 2.8×10−5 and p = 6.2×10−5, respectively) for women. For men, there was no statistically significant correlation between CNV and BMI. Our results suggest that NPY4R genetic variation influences body weight in women, but the exact role of this receptor appears to be more complex than previously proposed.