Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Anti-Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV) Soluble Factor(s) Produced from Antigen-Stimulated Feline CD8+ T Lymphocytes Suppresses FIV Replication

ABSTRACT Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) causes AIDS-like symptoms in infected cats. Concanavalin A (ConA)-stimulated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from chronically FIV strain PPR-infected cats readily expressed FIV. In contrast, when PBMC from these animals were stimulated with irradiated, autologous antigen-presenting cells (APC), at least a 10-fold drop in viral production was observed. In addition to FIV-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes, anti-FIV activity was demonstrated in the cell-free supernatants of effector T lymphocytes stimulated with APC. The FIV-suppressive activity was induced from APC-stimulated PBMC of either FIV-infected or uninfected cats but not from ConA-stimulated PBMC. Suppression of FIV strain PPR replication was observed for both autologous and heterologous feline PBMC, was dose dependent, and demonstrated cross-reactivity and cell specificity. It was also demonstrated that the anti-FIV activity originated from CD8+ T lymphocytes and was mediated by a noncytolytic mechanism.
Synthesis and Pharmacological Evaluation of New (Indol-3-yl)Alkylamides and Alkylamines Acting as Potential Serotonin Uptake Inhibitors

Summary A series of new indolylalkylamides 3-18 and alkylamines 19-26 has been prepared in the search of novel 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) uptake inhibitors. Synthesis of N-2,3 or 4-pyridinyl-(indol-3-yl) acetamides and propionamides 3-10 was achieved starting from the corresponding Ph3P/BrCC13 or DCC-activated acids. Reduction of the pyridine nucleus led to the N-piperidinylalkylamides 15-18 via the tetrahydropyridinyl derivatives 11-14, and LiAlH4 reduction afforded the desired amines 19-26. The affinity of these compounds for 5-HT and also dopamine (DA) and noradrenaline (NA) uptake sites was measured. Among the 16 studied amides only N-(methylpiperidin-3-yl)-(indol-3-yl) propionamide 16 exhibited a moderate 5-HT uptake inhibitory effect: 38% at 10 µmol/l. In contrast, the N-pyridinyl-(indol-3-yl)alkylamines 19-26 exerted high inhibition at this concentration and two of them, 23 and 24, remained very efficient at 0.1 µmol/l. Optimal activity was observed in the 4- pyridinyl subseries and was compatible with variation (n = 1, 2) of the length of the interspacing alkylamino chain. Although 23 and 24 were about 17-fold less active than indalpine as 5-HT uptake inhibitors, they demonstrated, like indalpine, excellent selectivity for the 5-HT uptake site versus the DA uptake site. Both amines inhibited tetrabenazine-induced hypothermia and potentiated 5-HTP- induced behavioural effects in mice. The absence of 3,4-dioxyphenylalanine (dopa)-induced behavioural effects with compound 24 suggests possible antidepressant activity through selective inhibition of central neuronal serotonin uptake and/or increased monoamine release.
Generating dense depth maps using a patch cloud and local planar surface models

Patch cloud based multi-view stereo methods have proven to be an accurate and scalable approach for scene reconstruction. Their applicability, however, is limited due to the semi-dense nature of their reconstruction. We propose a method to generate a dense depth map from a patch cloud by assuming a planar surface model for non-reconstructed areas. We use local evidence to estimate the best fitting plane around missing areas. We then apply a graph cut optimization to select the best plane for each pixel. We demonstrate our approach with a challenging scene containing planar and non-planar surfaces.
Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis in Mice Deficient in Phagocyte Oxidase or Inducible Nitric Oxide Synthase

ABSTRACT Mice deficient in phox (gp91phox−/−) or NOS2 (NOS2−/−) were infected with the agent of human granulocytic ehrlichiosis (HGE) to evaluate the importance of these pathways in the eradication of HGE bacteria. NOS2−/− mice had delayed clearance of the HGE agent in comparison to control or gp91phox−/− mice, suggesting that reactive nitrogen intermediates play a role in the early control of HGE.
National Academy of Clinical Biochemistry Standards of Laboratory Practice: recommendations for the use of cardiac markers in coronary artery diseases.

The Sixth Conference on the "Standards of Laboratory Practice Series", sponsored by the National Academy of Clinical Biochemistry (NACB), was held on August 4-5, 1998, at the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Clinical Chemistry, in Chicago, IL. An expert committee was assembled to write recommendations on the use of cardiac markers in coronary artery diseases. The NACB Committee prepared a preliminary draft of the guidelines, made them available on the World Wide Web (www.nacb.org), and distributed them before the presentations. The recommendations were divided into four areas: the use of markers in the triage of patients with chest pain, acute coronary syndromes, clinical applications other than acute myocardial infarction and research, and assay platforms and markers of acute myocardial infarction. The recommendations were revised and subsequently re-presented in part at the "Biomarkers in Acute Cardiac Syndromes Conference", sponsored by the Jewish Hospital Heart and Lung Institute, Louisville KY, on October 16-17, 1998. This report lists each recommendation, its scientific justification, and a summary of discussions from conference participants and reviewers. Approximately 100 individuals responded to various versions of these recommendations via direct correspondences, telephone calls to Committee members, electronic mail correspondence to the Committee Chairman, or oral questions and comments raised during one of the two conference presentations. Some of the recommendations were changed to reflect the consensus opinion. In cases in which there was no consensus, the Committee included pertinent discussion without necessarily changing the original recommendations. At times, the Committee members felt that although a particular recommendation might not be the current standard of care today, they anticipate that it likely will be adopted in the near future.
Murine complement C4 is not required for experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis

In vitro studies have demonstrated that myelin and myelin‐derived proteins activate both the classical and alternative complement pathways. More recently, studies have shown that mice deficient in factor B, a protein required for activation of the alternative pathway, have attenuated experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), the animal model for multiple sclerosis. The relative contribution of the classical pathway to the pathogenesis of EAE has remained unexplored. To address this question, we performed EAE using mice deficient in C4 (C4−/−), a protein required for full activation of the classical pathway. We found that deletion of the C4 gene does not significantly change either the time of onset or the severity and tempo of myelin oligodendrocyte‐induced EAE compared with controls with a fully intact complement system. We observed similar levels of cellular infiltration (CD11b+ macrophages and CD3+ T cells) and demyelination in the two kinds of mice. Despite this, ribonuclease protection assays demonstrated a two‐ to fourfold increase in several pro‐inflammatory cytokines in C4−/− mice with EAE, including interleukin‐β (IL‐1β), IL‐18, tumor necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α), IP‐10, and RANTES. These results support the conclusion that the contribution of murine complement to the pathogenesis of demyelinating disease is realized via the alternative pathway. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Voltage regulation in the electrical network using reactive power control strategy of WPP based DFIG wind turbine

With the considerable increasing integration into the power grids, the wind farms have to be able to contribute to the grid voltage stability. In this paper, a reactive power control strategy that allows getting the number of units within the wind power plant based doubly fed induction generator wind turbine that take part in the reactive power support during a voltage variation at the point of common coupling is presented. Simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed strategy.
Identification of type B-specific and cross-reactive cytotoxic T-lymphocyte responses to Epstein-Barr virus

Persistent Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection is primarily controlled by HLA class I-restricted memory cytotoxic T-cell (CTL) responses which can be reactivated in vitro by stimulation of peripheral blood lymphocytes with autologous lymphoblastoid cell lines. During an investigation of a donor infected by both type A and type B EBV, CTL specific for type B EBV were isolated. The CTL were found to recognize an epitope encoded by the EBNA-6B gene. The minimal epitope sequence was identified as QNGALAINTF, corresponding to residues 213 to 222 in the EBNA-6B protein, and presentation of this epitope was shown to be via HLA B62 (B15). This is the first report of the characterization of an epitope that is EBV type B specific. CTL recognizing sequences common to type A and type B EBV were identified as well. A cross-reactive epitope recognized by these CTL was encoded within the EBNA-6 gene of both type A and type B. This minimal sequence for this epitope was LLDFVRFMGV (residues 284 to 293 in both types), and the epitope was restricted through HLA A*0201. This second epitope sequence overlaps with a published EBV B44-restricted epitope (EENLLDFVRF). The implications of these findings are discussed with respect to the design and efficacy of epitope-based vaccines.
Immigrant Bilingualism in Spain: An Asset or a Liability? 1

This study contributes to the ongoing debate about bilingual advantage and examines whether bilingual immigrant youths fare better, as well as, or worse academically than the matching group of monolinguals. Using data from Spain, where close to half of immigrants speak Spanish as their native language, we found no evidence of costs of bilingualism: bilingual youths did benefit from their linguistic skills. Their advantage, however, manifested itself not uniformly across discrete outcomes, but in a direct trajectory toward higher educational attainment. Bilingualism neutralized the possible negative effect of ethnic origins and extended the positive effect of high parental ambition. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.
Microwave Assisted Peptide Synthesis as a New Gold Standard in Solid Phase Peptide Synthesis: Phospholamban as an Example

In this study, we report the microwave assisted synthesis of Phospholamban protein (WT-PLB) as a new gold standard in solid phase peptide synthesis. Microwave energy offers benefits for both the coupling and deprotection reactions during peptide synthesis. The use of microwave energy for both the coupling and deprotection steps makes the microwave peptide synthesizers the most versatile and powerful systems available. It produces high yield and fast synthesis when compared to conventional peptide synthesizers.
Expression of pregnancy-associated glycoprotein 1 and 2 genes in in vivo, in vitro and parthenogenetically derived preimplantation pig embryos

The objective of this study was to determine whether porcine PAG (poPAG) genes are expressed in embryos as they develop from the 1-cell stage to expanded blastocysts, and whether expression differed according to how embryos had been derived. Embryos at various preimplantation stages were assayed after in vivo fertilisation, after in vitro fertilisation of in vitro-matured oocytes, or following parthenogenetic activation of in vitro-matured oocytes. The presence of PAG transcripts was determined at the1-, 2-, and 4-cell, compact morula and blastocyst stages by reverse transcription-PCR procedures with PAG 1- and PAG 2-specific primers, followed by Southern blotting. The mRNAs for poPAG 1 and 2 were detected in in vitro-derived, in vivo-derived and parthenogenetically derived blastocyst stage embryos. In some replications poPAG 1 could be detected as early as the compact morula stage and poPAG 2 could be detected as early as the 4-cell stage. Our study revealed that poPAG 1 and 2 genes are expressed as early as the compact morula stage and 4-cell stage, respectively, in normal embryos and in parthenogenetically derived blastocysts. Thus it appears that the poPAGs are not maternally imprinted and they may be useful as potential candidates for markers of developmental competence.
Three-dimensional computational holographic imaging and recognition using independent component analysis

We present computational holographic three-dimensional imaging and automated object recognition based on independent component analysis (ICA). Three-dimensional sensing of the scene is performed by computational holographic imaging of the objects using phase-shifting digital holography. We used principal components analysis to reduce data dimension and ICA to recognize the three-dimensional objects. In this paper, kurtosis maximization-based algorithm is used. To the best of our knowledge, this paper is the first to report using ICA in three-dimensional imaging technology.
Augmented reality-guided neurosurgery: accuracy and intraoperative application of an image projection technique.

OBJECT An augmented reality system has been developed for image-guided neurosurgery to project images with regions of interest onto the patient's head, skull, or brain surface in real time. The aim of this study was to evaluate system accuracy and to perform the first intraoperative application. METHODS Images of segmented brain tumors in different localizations and sizes were created in 10 cases and were projected to a head phantom using a video projector. Registration was performed using 5 fiducial markers. After each registration, the distance of the 5 fiducial markers from the visualized tumor borders was measured on the virtual image and on the phantom. The difference was considered a projection error. Moreover, the image projection technique was intraoperatively applied in 5 patients and was compared with a standard navigation system. RESULTS Augmented reality visualization of the tumors succeeded in all cases. The mean time for registration was 3.8 minutes (range 2-7 minutes). The mean projection error was 0.8 ± 0.25 mm. There were no significant differences in accuracy according to the localization and size of the tumor. Clinical feasibility and reliability of the augmented reality system could be proved intraoperatively in 5 patients (projection error 1.2 ± 0.54 mm). CONCLUSIONS The augmented reality system is accurate and reliable for the intraoperative projection of images to the head, skull, and brain surface. The ergonomic advantage of this technique improves the planning of neurosurgical procedures and enables the surgeon to use direct visualization for image-guided neurosurgery.
Dielectronic recombination from the ground state of heliumlike carbon ions.

The cross section for dielectronic recombination of C[sup 4+] ions in the 1[ital s][sup 2] ground state has been measured with an energy resolution of [approx]2 eV at the heavy-ion storage ring TSR (at Heidelberg) up to the 1[ital s]2[ital s]([sup 1,3][ital S]) and 1[ital s]2[ital p]([sup 1,3][ital P]) excitation thresholds just below 310 eV. Resonance energies and absolute cross sections are found to be well reproduced by theoretical calculations except in a region extending [approx]5 eV below the almost degenerate excitation thresholds 1[ital s]2[ital s]([sup 1][ital S]) and 1[ital s]2[ital p]([sup 3][ital P]). These discrepancies imply that theory overestimates the cross section, energy-integrated over all dielectronic resonances, by [approx]10%.
Elbow Flexion and Extension Rehabilitation Exercise System Using Marker-less Kinect-based Method

This paper presents the elbow flexion and extension rehabilitation exercise system using marker-less Kinect-based method. The proposed exercise system is developed for the upper limb rehabilitation application that utilizes a low cost depth sensor. In this study, the Kinect skeleton tracking method is used to detect and track the joints of upper limb and then measure the angle of the elbow joint. The users perform the exercise in front of the Kinect sensor and the computer monitor. At the same time, they can see the results that displayed on the screen in real-time. The measurement of elbow joint angles are recorded automatically and has been compared to the reference values for the analysis and validation. These reference values are obtained from the normal range of motion (ROM) of the elbow. The results show the average flexion angle of the elbow joint that achieved by the normal user is 139.1° for the right hand and 139.2° for the left hand. Meanwhile, the average extension angle is 1.72° for the right hand and 2.0° for the left. These measurements are almost similar to the standard range of motion (ROM) reference values. The skeleton tracking works well and able to follow the movement of the upper arm and forearm in real-time.
Fiber optics sensor monitoring moisture transport in oil in an operating transformer

Moisture and temperature are the two most important factors controlling the life of the transformer. Together, they could accelerate the aging of the mineral oil and the insulating cellulose paper. For every 10 °C rise in temperature, the expected life of the transformer can be reduced by a half; moisture has a similar effect. A standard moisture transport model currently used by the industry assumed that the temperature of the recirculating oil stays the same at both the top and the bottom. This has been proven to be incorrect. Since the solubility of moisture in oil is temperature and load dependent; if we can measure the trace moisture directly on the cellulose paper and the pressboard, we might be able to understand the true picture and then perform measures to optimize transformer's life. This challenge is now solved by fiber optics moisture and temperature sensor. This type of sensor is immune to high voltages and strong electromagnetic field yet has a working life of 25 years. This paper will describe technology behind the sensor and how these sensors are packaged and installed inside the transformer. We will also discuss a successful field test with cooperation with a large transformer manufacturer.
Dynamic Stability Improvement of Four Parallel-Operated PMSG-Based Offshore Wind Turbine Generators Fed to a Power System Using a STATCOM

This paper presents the stability-improvement results of four parallel-operated offshore wind turbine generators (WTGs) connected to an onshore power system using a static synchronous compensator (STATCOM). The operating characteristics of each of the four WTGs are simulated by a 5-MW wind permanent-magnet synchronous generator while the onshore power system is simulated by a synchronous generator (SG) fed to an infinite bus through two parallel transmission lines. A damping controller of the proposed STATCOM is designed by using a pole-assignment approach to render adequate damping to the dominant modes of the studied SG. A frequency-domain approach based on a linearized system model using eigenvalue analysis is performed while a time-domain scheme based on a nonlinear system model subject to disturbances is also carried out. It can be concluded from the simulation results that the proposed STATCOM joined with the designed damping controller can effectively improve the stability of the studied SG-based onshore power system under various disturbance conditions.
Analysis of an Operators' Performance Time and Its Application to a Human Reliability Analysis in Nuclear Power Plants

With a scarcity of empirical data, much of the input regarding a human reliability analysis (HRA) is dependent on an analysts' subjective judgment, which is one of the major causes of a high uncertainty in the results of an HRA. When considering that risk-informed activities require the probabilistic safety assessment (PSA) quality to be as high as possible, an HRA should be performed by using a systematic method with realistic plant specific data to meet the established requirements for risk-informed applications. In order to obtain more objective HRA results, data extracted from real experiences or simulators is essential. This paper presents a human performance analysis of the emergency tasks for nuclear power plants (NPPs) to support an HRA. Using the full-scope simulator of a reference plant, more than 110 simulator records with six emergency scenarios were gathered and analyzed to generate an operators' performance time such as the time taken to diagnose what event has occurred, and the time to execute a procedural step or a task. A sensitivity analysis for an HRA has also been performed by using an operators' performance time.
The Effect of Aquaporin 1-Inhibition on Vasculogenic Mimicry in Malignant Mesothelioma

Malignant mesothelioma (MM) is an aggressive malignancy of the serosal membranes, with poor overall survival and quality of life. Limited targeted treatment strategies exist due to restricted knowledge of pathogenic pathways. Vasculogenic mimicry (VM) is a newly described phenomenon associated with increased aggressiveness in other malignancies, and has been characterized in MM. Normal mesothelium expresses aquaporin 1 (AQP1) and retained expression has been associated with improved survival in MM. AQP1 is expressed by normal vascular endothelium and is involved in mediating MM cell motility and proliferation. We investigated the role of AQP1 in VM, and its interaction with the pro-angiogenic factor vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA), which is variably expressed in MM. Matrigel VM assays were performed using NCI-H226 and NCI-H28 MM cell lines and primary cells in hypoxia and normoxia. The synthetic blocker AqB050 and siRNA were used to inhibit AQP1, and bevacizumab was used to inhibit VEGF. Inhibition of AQP1 resulted in increased VEGFA secretion by MM cells and reduced VM in MM cell lines in hypoxia but not normoxia. No change in VM was seen in MM primary cells. Combined inhibition of AQP1 and VEGF had no effect on VM in normoxia. In a heterotopic xenograft mouse model, AqB050 treatment did not alter vessel formation. AQP1 may interact with VEGFA and play a role in VM, especially under hypoxic conditions, but the heterogeneity of MM cells may result in different dominant pathways between patients.
Computer vision for high content screening

Abstract High Content Screening (HCS) technologies that combine automated fluorescence microscopy with high throughput biotechnology have become powerful systems for studying cell biology and drug screening. These systems can produce more than 100 000 images per day, making their success dependent on automated image analysis. In this review, we describe the steps involved in quantifying microscopy images and different approaches for each step. Typically, individual cells are segmented from the background using a segmentation algorithm. Each cell is then quantified by extracting numerical features, such as area and intensity measurements. As these feature representations are typically high dimensional (>500), modern machine learning algorithms are used to classify, cluster and visualize cells in HCS experiments. Machine learning algorithms that learn feature representations, in addition to the classification or clustering task, have recently advanced the state of the art on several benchmarking tasks in the computer vision community. These techniques have also recently been applied to HCS image analysis.