Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Assessment of Aortic Regurgitation by Live Three‐Dimensional Transthoracic Echocardiographic Measurements of Vena Contracta Area: Usefulness and Validation

In this report, we evaluate 56 consecutive adult patients who underwent standard two‐dimensional (2D) and live three‐dimensional transthoracic echocardiography (3D TTE), as well as left heart catheterization with aortography (45 patients) or cardiac surgery (11 patients), for evaluation of aortic insufficiency. Similar to the method we previously described for mitral insufficiency, aortic regurgitant vena contracta area (VCA) was obtained by 3D TTE by systematic and sequential cropping of the acquired 3D TTE data set. Assessments of aortic regurgitation (AR) by aortography and surgery are compared to measurements of VCA by 3D TTE and to 2D TTE measurements of vena contracta width (VCW). Aortographic or surgical grading correlated well with 2D TTE measurements of VCW (r = 0.92), but correlated better with 3D TTE measurements of VCA (r = 0.95), with improved dispersion between angiographic grades demonstrated by the 3D TTE technique. Live 3D TTE color Doppler measurements of VCA can be used for accurate assessment of AR and are comparable to assessment by aortography.
Nutritive value of cereal products with emphasis on the effect of milling.

Article de synthese sur 5 cereales: ble, mais, riz, orge, seigle. Pour chacune, rappels de la structure et de la composition chimique, effet de la mouture: aspects nutritionnels, energie, composition (aminoacides, vitamines, mineraux entre autres)
Image rectification with the pinax camera model in underwater stereo systems with verged cameras

Vision methods are very commonly used in underwater robotics. However, the cameras must be enclosed in a sealed housing for which flat-pane windows are the most economical and hence most popular solution. But they cause non-trivial refraction-based distortions at the air-glass-water interface. Recently, a new model for underwater cameras calibration called Pinax was introduced, which combines aspects of an axial and a pinhole camera model to derive an as accurate as possible and at the same time computational feasible solution. Here it is shown, how the Pinax model can be applied to stereo cameras when two verged cameras are behind a single flat glass panel. Real world experiments under different water conditions show that our method outperforms standard methods using pinhole models in combination with in-water calibration.
High slew-rate OTA with low quiescent current based on non-linear current mirror

This paper presents a high slew-rate OTA based on a non-linear current mirror which dramatically reduces the quiescent current. The proposed circuit achieves less quiescent current than previous proposed architectures since no additional bias branches are needed. The compactness of the proposed architecture does not require so much silicon area as other more complex adaptive bias architectures. The proposed circuit was simulated in a 0. 5μm CMOS process and compared with other previously presented works.
Targeted insertion of cysteine by decoding UGA codons with mammalian selenocysteine machinery

Cysteine (Cys) is inserted into proteins in response to UGC and UGU codons. Herein, we show that supplementation of mammalian cells with thiophosphate led to targeted insertion of Cys at the UGA codon of thioredoxin reductase 1 (TR1). This Cys was synthesized by selenocysteine (Sec) synthase on tRNA[Ser]Sec and its insertion was dependent on the Sec insertion sequence element in the 3′UTR of TR1 mRNA. The substrate for this reaction, thiophosphate, was synthesized by selenophosphate synthetase 2 from ATP and sulfide and reacted with phosphoseryl-tRNA[Ser]Sec to generate Cys-tRNA[Ser]Sec. Cys was inserted in vivo at UGA codons in natural mammalian TRs, and this process was regulated by dietary selenium and availability of thiophosphate. Cys occurred at 10% of the Sec levels in liver TR1 of mice maintained on a diet with normal amounts of selenium and at 50% in liver TR1 of mice maintained on a selenium deficient diet. These data reveal a novel Sec machinery-based mechanism for biosynthesis and insertion of Cys into protein at UGA codons and suggest new biological functions for thiophosphate and sulfide in mammals.
Towards Verifying Service Interoperability Requirements for Pervasive Computing Environments

Service interoperability verification is key to enable service continuity among pervasive computing environments. Pervasive computing is shifting the computing paradigm toward everywhere computing where number of heterogeneous and autonomous systems offer rich sets of services to assist inhabitants in their daily living. To support continuity of services these systems must provide seamless and flawless interoperability among devices and services. In this paper, We present our ongoing project on verifying the service interoperability in pervasive computing environments. We highlight the potential use of formal methods to verify the interoperability requirements and propose using design by contract technique to model and verify the semantic and pragmatic service interoperability requirements. We also present our verification requirement analysis and the benefits of using this technique with rich support from languages for implementation.
Unitary and Non-Unitary Precoders for a Limited Feedback Precoded OSTBC System

In this paper, a multiple-input–multiple-output (MIMO) system with finite-bit feedback first proposed by Love–Heath is considered, where a transmitted signal consists of a precode followed by an orthogonal space–time block code (OSTBC), such as Alamouti code. A new design criterion and a corresponding design method of precoders are proposed. Simulations show that the precoders obtained by our proposed criterion and method perform better than the existing ones. Furthermore, since our proposed precoders have a layered structure, their designs can be implemented in the simplest Grassmannian manifold. Moreover, a fast encoding algorithm can be applied, which can greatly reduce the complexity of codeword selection. In this paper, we also propose non-unitary precoders and their design criterion and method based on the performance analysis and the special property of an OSTBC. Interestingly, non-unitary precoders can significantly improve performance over unitary precoders.
Application of digital image analysis in dental radiography for the description of periapical bone lesions: a preliminary study

The use of digital image analysis in dental radiography for the description of periapical bone lesions is described. This technique circumvents the problem of observer variability and can eventually be used for the quantitative assessment of bone lesions. Since periapical bone lesions appear on a radiography as dark areas compared to the surrounding tissues, an edge-detection method was developed to extract the boundaries between anatomy and pathology. The original data were transformed in such a way that only the outlines remained. The lesion was assumed to be demarcated by a continuous outline, so all the contour points not being part of a continuous outline were excluded. With only limited operator interaction, the lesion contour could be projected successfully onto the original image. The result was a simplified diagnostic examination process promising a higher degree of objectivity in periapical bone lesion detection. It is concluded that the results encourage further development of image processing techniques that would yield definitive detection and diagnosis of periapical bone lesions. <<ETX>>
Visualization of complementary systems biology data with parallel heatmaps

The interpretation of large-scale biological data can be aided by the use of appropriate visualization tools. Heatmaps--pattern-revealing aggregate views of data--have emerged as a preferred technique for the display of genomics data, since they provide an extra dimension of information in a two-dimensional display. However, an increasing focus on the integration of data from multiple sources has created a need for the display of additional dimensions. To improve the identification of relationships between co-expressed genes identified in microarray experiments, a parallel dataset heatmap viewer has been developed for four-dimensional data display. The flexible data entry structure of the parallel heatmap viewer facilitates the display of both continuous and discrete data. Specific examples are presented for the analysis of diverse functional genomics yeast data related to gene regulation, expression, and annotation. The parallel heatmap viewer enables knowledgeable life science researchers to observe patterns and properties within high-throughput genomics data in order to rapidly identify biologically logical relationships.
Thermodynamic and Hydrodynamic Properties of Human Tropoelastin

Tropoelastin is the soluble precursor of elastin that bestows tissue elasticity in vertebrates. Tropoelastin is soluble at 20 °C in phosphate-buffered saline, pH 7.4, but at 37 °C equilibrium is established between soluble protein and insoluble coacervate. Sedimentation equilibrium studies performed before (20 °C) and after (37 °C) coacervation showed that the soluble component was strictly monomeric. Sedimentation velocity experiments revealed that at both temperatures soluble tropoelastin exists as two independently sedimenting monomeric species present in approximately equal concentrations. Species 1 had a frictional ratio at both temperatures of ∼2.2, suggesting a very highly expanded or asymmetric protein. Species 2 displayed a frictional ratio at 20 °C of 1.4 that increased to 1.7 at 37 °C, indicating a compact and symmetrical conformation that expanded or became asymmetric at the higher temperature. The slow interconversion of the two monomeric species contrasts with the rapid and reversible process of coacervation suggesting both efficiently incorporate into the coacervate. A hydrated protein of equivalent molecular weight modeled as a sphere and a flexible chain was predicted to have a frictional ratio of 1.2 and 1.6, respectively. Tropoelastin appeared as a single species when studied by pulsed field-gradient spin-echo NMR, but computer modeling showed that the method was insensitive to the presence of two species of equal concentration having similar diffusion coefficients. Scintillation proximity assays using radiolabeled tropoelastin and sedimentation analysis showed that the coacervation at 37 °C was a highly cooperative monomer-n-mer self-association. A critical concentration of 3.4 g/liter was obtained when the coacervate was modeled as a helical polymer formed from the monomers via oligomeric intermediates.
Metabolism of dietary fibre components in man assessed by breath hydrogen and methane

1. Breath hydrogen and methane were measured in eight normal individuals after acute and separate administration of different chemical components of dietary fibre. 2. Hemicellulose, raffinose and lactulose increased H2 production, while cellulose, pectin and lignin did not. Methane production was found to be individual and unaffected by any of the substances. Differences in physical properties of the same chemicals appear to have no influences on H2 and CH4 production.
The effect of adding whole-body vibration to squat training on the functional performance and self-report of disease status in elderly patients with knee osteoarthritis: a randomized, controlled clinical study.

OBJECTIVES The study objectives were to evaluate the effects of adding whole-body vibration to squat training on functional performance and self-report of disease in elderly individuals with knee osteoarthritis (OA). DESIGN This was a prospective, randomized trial in which selected variables were evaluated at three periods: 3 weeks prior to the training, immediately prior, and after the end of the training. SUBJECTS Twenty-three (23) elderly subjects were evaluated using four functional performance tests: Berg Balance Scale (BBS), Timed Get Up and Go Test (TGUG), Chair Stand Test (CST), and 6-Minute Walk Test (6MWT), and a self-report of the status of disease (WOMAC). INTERVENTIONS The intervention lasted for 12 weeks, 3 times per week. The participants were randomized into two groups: (1) squat training with whole-body vibration, and (2) squat training without vibration. RESULTS Although there was no statistical difference in functional performance and self-report of disease status between the groups, performance in all the functional tests and in all the domains of WOMAC improved in the vibration group compared to their initial status. In the exercise group, performance improved only two tests (BBS and 6MWT), and there was a reduction in self-reported pain (WOMAC) compared to their initial status. CONCLUSIONS Although the addition of whole-body vibration to squat training failed to result in a significant improvement in functional performance and self-reported status of knee osteoarthritis in the elderly, the intragroup results suggest that whole-body vibration may represent a feasible and effective way of improving the functionality and self-perception of disease status in older adults with knee OA.
Influence of Plasmodium berghei Infection on Susceptibility to Salmonella Infection.∗

Summary Concurrent infection in mice with P. berghei and S. typhimurium was more rapidly fatal than either infection alone. There was no consistent difference in mean hematocrit values between mice with both malaria and salmonella infection and mice with only malaria. Spleens removed from mice dying with P. berghei and S. typhimurium infection demonstrated more than 108 salmonella per gram of spleen. Therefore the decreased survival time seemed to be related to enhancement of salmonella infection and not to enhancement of malaria as the mice died with a lethal salmonella infection but with hematocrit values above the level at which mouse malaria was fatal.
Fully Spectral Partial Shape Matching

We propose an efficient procedure for calculating partial dense intrinsic correspondence between deformable shapes performed entirely in the spectral domain. Our technique relies on the recently introduced partial functional maps formalism and on the joint approximate diagonalization (JAD) of the Laplace‐Beltrami operators previously introduced for matching non‐isometric shapes. We show that a variant of the JAD problem with an appropriately modified coupling term (surprisingly) allows to construct quasi‐harmonic bases localized on the latent corresponding parts. This circumvents the need to explicitly compute the unknown parts by means of the cumbersome alternating minimization used in the previous approaches, and allows performing all the calculations in the spectral domain with constant complexity independent of the number of shape vertices. We provide an extensive evaluation of the proposed technique on standard non‐rigid correspondence benchmarks and show state‐of‐the‐art performance in various settings, including partiality and the presence of topological noise.
Elaboration of the Contextual Graphs representation: From a conceptual framework to an operational software

The paper presents the current status of research on context modeling and management that emerges from several real-world applications since 25 years. We now have a robust conceptual framework and its implementation as a piece of software called Contextual-Graphs (CxG) platform. The context modeling and management were limited to few relevant aspects of context in each application. Working on several applications imposed to develop a robust conceptual framework and software that are independent of applications. The CxG formalism is the syntax and the domain models are the semantics. The CxG formalism relies on four elements (action, contextual element, activity and executive structure of independent activities) and about 200 models were developed as contextual graphs. This success comes from the fact that the CxG formalism is used for modeling human behaviors during task realization, not task models. The robustness of the CxG formalism offers challenging perspectives in crucial domains like weak-signal management in emergency rooms or crisis or security problems.
Photonic Nanostructures Patterned by Thermal Nanoimprint Directly into Organo‐Metal Halide Perovskites

Photonic nanostructures are created in organo-metal halide perovskites by thermal nanoimprint lithography at a temperature of 100 °C. The imprinted layers are significantly smoothened compared to the initially rough, polycrystalline layers and the impact of surface defects is substantially mitigated upon imprint. As a case study, 2D photonic crystals are shown to afford lasing with ultralow lasing thresholds at room temperature.
Monocular Snapshot‐based Sensing and Control of Hover, Takeoff, and Landing for a Low‐cost Quadrotor

Autonomous control of a low‐cost micro air vehicle (MAV) is considered, using a single camera and inertial measurement unit. Integration of loom is used to determine the approximate height during takeoff and landing, and to provide an initial height for hover. Contrary to most optic‐flow‐based approaches that lack positional feedback, a “snapshot” paradigm is utilized in this paper that takes and stores an image of the ground under the MAV as a reference image, and the position of the vehicle can then be estimated from the transformation of the following images with respect to the reference image so that long‐term drift can be contained. In this new work, the implementation of the snapshot algorithm is considered with a focus on real‐time performance on a slow processor and the difficulties posed by illumination change and external disturbance. We also extend earlier work with extensive flight experiments conducted in various situations to evaluate the closed‐loop performance of the proposed algorithm.
Continuous Norming : A Solution to the Mentioned Problems ?

Conventional methods for producing test norms are often plagued with “jumps” or “gaps” (i.e., discontinuities) in norm tables and low confidence for assessing extreme scores. We propose a new approach for producing continuous test norms to address these problems that also has the added advantage of not requiring assumptions about the distribution of the raw data: Norm values are established from raw data by modeling the latter ones as a function of both percentile scores and an explanatory variable (e.g., age). The proposed method appears to minimize bias arising from sampling and measurement error, while handling marked deviations from normality—such as are commonplace in clinical samples. In addition to step-by-step instructions in how to apply this method, we demonstrate its advantages over conventional discrete norming procedures using norming data from two different psychometric tests, employing either age norms (N = 3,555) or grade norms (N = 1,400).
AirCache: A Crowd-Based Solution for Geoanchored Floating Data

The Internet edge has evolved from a simple consumer of information and data to eager producer feeding sensed data at a societal scale. The crowdsensing paradigm is a representative example which has the potential to revolutionize the way we acquire and consume data. Indeed, especially in the era of smartphones, the geographical and temporal scopus of data is often local. For instance, users’ queries are more and more frequently about a nearby object, event, person, location, and so forth. These queries could certainly be processed and answered locally, without the need for contacting a remote server through the Internet. In this scenario, the data is alimented (sensed) by the users and, as a consequence, data lifetime is limited by human organizational factors (e.g., mobility). From this basis, data survivability in the Area of Interest (AoI) is crucial and, if not guaranteed, could undermine system deployment. Addressing this scenario, we discuss and contribute with a novel protocol named AirCache, whose aim is to guarantee data availability in the AoI while at the same time reducing the data access costs at the network edges. We assess our proposal through a simulation analysis showing that our approach effectively fulfills its design objectives.
EXPRESSION OF MRF 4 IN CRANIAL REGIONS OF XENOPUS LAEVIS EMBRYOS Student Researcher :

Student Researcher: Kathelyn Larson, Mt. Edgecumbe High School Mentors: Dr. Timothy Hinterberger, WWAMI Biomedical Program; Emma Coleman, Smith College, Anchorage, Alaska Myogenic regulatory factors (MRFs) are transcription factors that regulate gene expression in skeletal muscle cells. In mammals, expression of the four genes that make up the MRF family, MyoD, Myf5, myogenin and MRF4, is largely confined to the skeletal muscle cell lineage. The frog Xenopus laevis is an attractive model system for studying MRF expression and the roles of these genes during embryogenesis. The embryonic cell populations that express these genes, particularly MRF4, are not, however, precisely known in Xenopus. Published in situ hybridization results have shown MRF4 mRNA in somites, but studies in our laboratory also show MRF4 expression in the anterior region, possibly in the eye primordia and the brain. To confirm this, we dissected embryos into ventral, anterior, and dorsal regions and assessed MRF4 mRNA from each region by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Our results indicate that MRF4 is expressed in the anterior region at a level comparable to that found in the dorsal region where the somites are located. This suggests that MRF4 may be involved more broadly in cell differentiation in Xenopus laevis than it is in mammals. BACKGROUND
Room-temperature continuous-wave lasing from stacked InAs/GaAs quantum dots grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition

We report on quantum dot (QD) lasers made of stacked InAs dots grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition. Successful growth of defect-free binary InAs/GaAs QDs with high lateral density (dl⩾4×1010 cm−2) was achieved in a narrow growth parameter window. The room-temperature photoluminescence (PL) intensity is enhanced up to a factor of 3 and the PL peak width is reduced by more than 30% when a thin layer of In0.3Ga0. 7As is deposited onto the InAs QDs. A QD laser with a single sheet of such InAs/InGaAs/GaAs QDs exhibits threshold current densities as low as 12.7 and 181 A/cm2 at 100 and 300 K, respectively. Lasers with threefold stacked QDs show ground-state lasing and allow for cw operation at room temperature.
Cerebral hyperperfusion after flow diversion of large intracranial aneurysms

Cerebral hyperperfusion syndrome has been proposed to be caused by rapidly increased blood flow into chronically hypoperfused parenchyma with resultant impaired autoregulation, and has been noted after clipping of intracranial aneurysms and carotid stenting. The occurrence of the syndrome after endovascular flow diversion, however, has not been previously described. A 52-year-old woman was admitted electively for flow diverter treatment of a recurrent ventral paraclinoid aneurysm arising within a dysplastic segment of the left internal carotid artery. During the immediate postprocedural period the patient was found to have confusion, right hemiparesis, facial droop and dysarthria, which resolved with blood pressure control. Subsequent CT perfusion on day 11 demonstrated mildly elevated cerebral blood flow, cerebral blood volume and permeability values in the left hemisphere.