Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Phase Quality Optimization in Polarimetric Differential SAR Interferometry

In this paper, a study of polarimetric optimization techniques in the frame of differential synthetic aperture radar (SAR) interferometry (DInSAR) is considered. Historically, DInSAR techniques have been limited to the single-polarimetric case, mainly due to the unavailability of fully polarimetric data. Lately, the launch of satellites with polarimetric capabilities, such as the Advanced Land Observing Satellite (ALOS), RADARSAT-2, or TerraSAR-X, allowed merging polarimetric and interferometric techniques to improve the pixels' phase quality and, thus, the density and the reliability of the final DInSAR results. The relationship between the polarimetrically optimized coherence or amplitude dispersion maps and the final DInSAR results is carefully analyzed, using both orbital and ground-based SAR fully polarimetric data. DInSAR processing using polarimetric optimization techniques in the pixel selection process is compared with the classical single-polarimetric approach, achieving up to a threefold increase of the number of pixel candidates in the coherence case and up to a factor of seven in the amplitude dispersion case.
Matrix completion algorithms with optimal phase transition

We present new first order algorithm for matrix completion and show by numerical tests that they are able to recover rank r matrices of size m × n from only Const. · (m + n - r)r entries with Const. close to one. This evidence shows that matrix completion is achieved closer to the oracle limit than in compressed sensing.
PATRON DE POLYMORPHISME ET SIGNATURE MOLECULAIRE DE L'ADAPTATION AU MILIEU SALIN DE HELIANTHUS PARADOXUS

Deux especes sauvages de tournesols Helianthus annuus et H. petiolaris ont donne naissance il y a plusieurs milliers d'annees a une espece hybride H. paradoxus infeodee a des marais salins. Ma these a consiste a caracteriser les bases genetiques de l'adaptation de H. paradoxus a ce milieu extreme. J'ai recherche des signatures de selection a deux echelles : a l'echelle du genome et a une echelle plus fine comprise entre 20 et 90 cM. Pour cela j'ai analyse les patrons de diversite genetique pour des marqueurs microsatellites dans trois populations naturelles de H. paradoxus et des deux especes parentales, autour de trois QTL de survie et ailleurs dans le genome. A l'echelle du genome, une baisse de diversite autour de ces QTL a ete mise en evidence chez l'espece hybride et non chez ses parents indiquant qu'il est possible de detecter une signature de la selection a cette echelle chez cette espece. A l'echelle plus fine, le patron de diversite est en mosaique. L'ordre des marqueurs n'etant pas connu avec certitude chez l'espece hybride, une methode basee sur le desequilibre de liaison entre des marqueurs genotypes dans des populations naturelles a ete developpee. Cette methode permet de regrouper sur une carte des marqueurs en fort desequilibre de liaison. La correspondance entre carte de desequilibre de liaison et carte genetique varie selon les populations et l'echelle genetique. Parallelement une etude physiologique et d'expression genique visant a comprendre le mecanisme d'adaptation a la salinite de H. paradoxus a ete conduite. L'espece hybride est tres plastique, mais se porte mieux en milieu salin, ses feuilles sont plus succulentes, avec une concentration en sodium et sulfate tres elevee dans ses tissus. Plusieurs genes candidats, impliques dans differentes voies de reponse a la salinite, et dont certains sont cartographies dans les regions des QTL, sont differentiellement exprimes chez l'espece hybride et chez ses parents. Ces resultats confirment qu'ils sont des candidats potentiels importants dans l'adaptation de H. paradoxus aux marais salins et donc impliques dans le processus de speciation.
5‐Hydroxytryptamine contributes significantly to a reflex pathway by which the duodenal mucosa protects itself from gastric acid injury

Although duodenal mucosal bicarbonate secretion (DMBS) is currently accepted as an important defense mechanism against acid‐induced duodenal injury, the mechanism and the regulation of DMBS are largely unknown. 5‐HT may regulate DMBS, but little is known about its physiological relevance in DMBS and the underlying mechanism(s). Thus, the aims of the present study were to demonstrate the role of 5‐HT in acid‐stimulated DMBS and to further elucidate the precise mechanisms involved in this process. Luminal acid stimulation significantly increased 5‐HT release from the duodenal mucosa (P<0.01). SB204070, a selective 5‐HT4 receptor antagonist, dose‐dependently reduced luminal acid‐stimulated HCO3‐ secretion of onstrated to be involved in regulating this physiological mice in vivo. In Ussing chamber studies, 5‐HT‐induced Isc and DMBS were abolished by removal of extracel‐ lular Ca2+, and significantly attenuated by pharmaco‐ logical blockade of the Na+/Ca2+ exchanger (NCX), intermediate Ca2+‐activated K+ channels (IKCa), or cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR). 5‐HT increased cytoplasmic free calcium ([Ca2+]cyt) in SCBN cells, a duodenal epithelial cell line, and knockdown of NCX1 proteins with a specific siRNA greatly decreased this 5‐HT‐mediated Ca2+ sig‐ via both cytoplasmic free Ca2+ ([Ca2+]) ‐ and cAMP‐ naling. Taken together, our data suggest that 5‐HT plays a physiological role in acid‐stimulated DMBS via a Ca2+ signaling pathway, in which the plasma membrane NCX transporter as well as IKCa and CFTR channels may be involved. —Smith, A. J., Chappell, A. E. , Buret, A. G. , Barrett, K. E. , Dong, H. 5‐Hydroxytryptamine (5‐HT) contributes significantly to a reflex pathway by which the duodenal mucosa protects itself from gastric acid injury. FASEB J. 20, 2486–2495 (2006)
Semaphorin 3A

Semaphorin 3A (Sema3A) is a protein identified originally as a diffusible axonal chemorepellent. Sema3A has multifunctional roles in embryonic development, immune regulation, vascularization, and oncogenesis. Bone remodeling consists of two phases: the removal of mineralized bone by osteoclasts and the formation of new bone by osteoblasts, and plays an essential role in skeletal diseases such as osteoporosis. Recent studies have shown that Sema3A is implicated in the regulation of osteoblastgenesis and osteoclastgenesis. Moreover, low bone mass in mice with specific knockout of Sema3A in the neurons indicates that Sema3A regulates bone remodeling indirectly. This review highlights recent advances on our understanding of the role of sema3A as a new player in the regulation of bone remodeling and proposes the potential of sema3A in the diagnosis and therapy of bone diseases.
Genomic rearrangements on VCAM1, SELE, APEG1 and AIF1 loci in atherosclerosis

The inflammatory nature of atherosclerosis has been well established. However, the initial steps that trigger this reponse in the arterial intima remain obscure. Previous studies reported a significant rate of genomic alterations in human atheromas. The accumulation of genomic rearrangements in vascular endothelium and smooth muscle cells may be important for disease development. To address this issue, 78 post‐mortem obtained aortic atheromas were screened for microsatellite DNA alterations versus correspondent venous blood. To evaluate the significance of these observations, 33 additional histologically normal aortic specimens from age and sex‐matched cases were examined. Loss of heterozygosity (LOH) was found in 47,4% of the cases and in 18,2% of controls in at least one locus. The LOH occurrence in aortic tissue is associated to atherosclerosis risk (OR 4,06,95% CI 1,50 to 10,93). Significant genomic alterations were found on 1p32‐p31, 1q22‐q25, 2q35 and 6p21.3 where VCAM1, SELE, APEG1 and AIF1 genes have been mapped respectively. Our data implicate somatic DNA rearrangements, on loci associated to leukocyte adhesion, vascular smooth muscle cells growth, differentiation and migration, to atherosclerosis development as an inflammatory condition.
Design and shaping of offset dual-reflector antennas from far-field and near-field measurements of the feed horns

This work discusses an iterative procedure of shaping offset dual-reflector antennas based on geometrical optics considering both far-field and near-field measurements of amplitude and phase from the feed horn. The surfaces synthesized will transform a known radiation field of a feed to a desired aperture distribution. This technique is applied for both circular and elliptic apertures and has a main advantage which is to simplify the problem compared with other existing techniques based on solving nonlinear differential equations.
Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics of Amphotericin B Deoxycholate, Liposomal Amphotericin B, and Amphotericin B Lipid Complex in an In Vitro Model of Invasive Pulmonary Aspergillosis

ABSTRACT The pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic (PK-PD) properties of amphotericin B (AmB) formulations against invasive pulmonary aspergillosis (IPA) are not well understood. We used an in vitro model of IPA to further elucidate the PK-PD of amphotericin B deoxycholate (DAmB), liposomal amphotericin B (LAmB) and amphotericin B lipid complex (ABLC). The pharmacokinetics of these formulations for endovascular fluid, endothelial cells, and alveolar cells were estimated. Pharmacodynamic relationships were defined by measuring concentrations of galactomannan in endovascular and alveolar compartments. Confocal microscopy was used to visualize fungal biomass. A mathematical model was used to calculate the area under the concentration-time curve (AUC) in each compartment and estimate the extent of drug penetration. The interaction of LAmB with host cells and hyphae was visualized using sulforhodamine B-labeled liposomes. The MICs for the pure compound and the three formulations were comparable (0.125 to 0.25 mg/liter). For all formulations, concentrations of AmB progressively declined in the endovascular fluid as the drug distributed into the cellular bilayer. Depending on the formulation, the AUCs for AmB were 10 to 300 times higher within the cells than within endovascular fluid. The concentrations producing a 50% maximal effect (EC50) in the endovascular compartment were 0.12, 1.03, and 4.41 mg/liter for DAmB, LAmB, and ABLC, respectively, whereas, the EC50 in the alveolar compartment were 0.17, 7.76, and 39.34 mg/liter, respectively. Confocal microscopy suggested that liposomes interacted directly with hyphae and host cells. The PK-PD relationships of the three most widely used formulations of AmB differ markedly within an in vitro lung model of IPA.
Design, synthesis and molecular docking of novel N,N-dimethylbenzenesulfonamide derivatives as potential antiproliferative agents

Abstract Novel pyridine, thiophene, thiazole, chromene and benzochromene derivatives bearing a N,N-dimethylbenzenesulfonamide moiety 6–20 were synthesized. The target compounds were obtained through employing a series of heterocyclization reactions utilizing the key intermediate hydrazide hydrazone derivative 3. The structures of the newly synthesized compounds were confirmed by elemental analyses, IR, 1H-NMR and 13C-NMR spectral data. All the newly synthesized compounds were evaluated for their in vitro antiproliferative activity against the human breast cancer cell line MCF-7. Biological screening results showed that sulfonamides 6, 9, 11, 16 and 17 with IC50 values 21.81, 25.50, 20.60, 25.83 and 31.20 μM, respectively, possessed higher antiproliferative activity compared to doxorubicin, IC50 value 32.00 μM, as position control. Molecular docking study was also performed to assess the binding mode of the synthesized sulfonamides with their potential biomolecular target, carbonic anhydrase IX (CA IX), which is usually highly expressed in some types of cancer cells.
The NF-B p 50 Subunit Is Protective during Intestinal Entamoeba histolytica Infection of 129 and C 57 BL / 6 Mice

Entamoeba histolytica is the agent of amebic colitis. In this work we examined the intestinal NFB response to this parasite. Using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and an electrophoretic mobility shift assay, we found that the NFB subunit p50 predominated in nuclear extracts of whole cecal tissue and of isolated crypts from mice inoculated with E. histolytica. p50 was protective, since C57BL/6 and 129 mice in which there was targeted deletion of this subunit were more susceptible to E. histolytica infection as measured by culture results, cecal parasite ELISA results, and/or histologic scores. The transepithelial electrical resistance of cecal explants from C57BL/6 and 129 p50 knockout mice decreased markedly in response to the parasite compared with the transepithelial electrical resistance of their wild-type counterparts, suggesting that a protective function of p50 was present in the epithelium itself. This work shows that NFB activity, particularly activity of the p50 subunit, is one factor that contributes to resistance of the gut to E. histolytica infection.
Urban Concentration: The Role of Increasing Returns and Transport Costs

Very large urban centers are a conspicuous feature of many developing economies, yet the subject of the size distribution of cities (as opposed to such issues as rural-urban migration) has been neglected by development economists. This article argues that some important insights into urban concentration, especially the tendency of some developing countries to have very large primate cities, can be derived from recent approaches to economic geography. Three approaches are compared: the well-established neoclassical urban systems theory, which emphasizes the tradeoff between agglomeration economies and diseconomies of city size; the new economic geography, which attempts to derive agglomeration effects from the interactions among market size, transportation costs, and increasing returns at the firm level; and a nihilistic view that cities emerge out of a random process in which there are roughly constant returns to city size. The article suggests that Washington consensus policies of reduced government intervention and trade opening may tend to reduce the size of primate cities or at least slow their relative growth.
How patients feel about prolonged mechanical ventilation 1 yr later*

Objectives To elicit mechanical ventilation preferences among patients who previously received prolonged (≥48 hrs) mechanical ventilation, to identify patient characteristics associated with mechanical ventilation preferences, and to assess the association between the intensive care experience and mechanical ventilation preferences. Design Prospective cohort study conducted between June of 1997 and July of 2000. Setting Four intensive care units at a tertiary care institution. Patients Former critically ill patients (n = 133; mean age ± sd, 51.8 ± 17.1 yrs; 49% women) who survived for 12 months after prolonged mechanical ventilation. Measurements Patients’ preferences toward their actual mechanical ventilation experiences, by asking patients to reflect on the decision to apply mechanical ventilation made 1 yr earlier. Preferences for hypothetical situations, by asking patients to evaluate mechanical ventilation choices, assuming that their experiences had been different in terms of pain or discomfort, familial financial burden and stress, and health status after mechanical ventilation. Results Of the 133 patients, 115 (86.5%) would have chosen mechanical ventilation, with younger and healthier patients having higher odds of choosing mechanical ventilation than older and sicker patients, respectively. One fourth of patients who initially would have chosen mechanical ventilation would have refused this therapy had their families’ financial burdens been beyond certain thresholds. A similar proportion would have refused mechanical ventilation with greater mechanical ventilation pain or discomfort. Conclusion Although most subjects would have made the same decision to receive mechanical ventilation, younger and healthier subjects were most likely to favor mechanical ventilation. Many patients indicated that factors such as the amount of pain or discomfort from mechanical ventilation and their families’ financial burden would cause them to refuse this potentially life-saving intervention.
Equine Recurrent Uveitis

What you can do to keep your horse healthy: • The LP genetic test can be used to evaluate ERU risk in Appaloosas. • Horses with 2 copies of the LP mutation are at higher risk of developing ERU than horses with no leopard spotting pattern. • Horses who test LP/LP should have their eyes examined frequently by a veterinary ophthalmologist for early detection and treatment if and when inflammation is detected.
Urinary Biochemical Changes, Histopatologic Effect of Kidney Damage Observed in Rats Infected with Trypanosoma b. brucei

trapped in the kidney glomeruli, glomerular capillaries, interstitial glomerular spaces and the renal tubules. The membranes around these organelles where the trapped parasites are localized showed irregular thickening, splittings, vacuolar lesions and scattered lipid-like particles. Other ultrapathological features depicted in the micro-graphs of he diseased kidney and the trapped parasites included swollen mitochondria, free ribosomes, increased glycogen particles, increased number of lysosomes, de-generating endothelial cells, inflammed degenerating cell membranes, fused golgi complexes, broken flagellar shafts and puffy elongated mitochondria canals uniting with agranular secretory reticulum. These electron microscopic changes confirm the presence of kidney damage following parasitic infection. Their presence indicates that infection by the parasite Trypanosoma b. brucei can cause glomerular damage and nephrotic syndrome in rats. It is possible that this this parasite could have been transported to the prostate glands. This will be investigated.
Efficient implementation of PID control algorithm using FPGA technology

In this paper, an efficient design scheme for implementation of the proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller using field programmable gate array (FPGA) technology is presented. The algorithm is implemented using a distributed arithmetic (DA)-based scheme where a look-up-table (LUT) mechanism inside the FPGA is utilized. Two novel DA-based PID controllers have been proposed for FPGA implementation. The implementation results show that, the two DA methods require 13% and 4% of logic devices, respectively, compared to the design using multipliers. Furthermore, the power consumption is reduced by about 40%. A design which is efficient in terms of power consumption and chip area while having adequate speed means that the FPGA chip can be used to accommodate more controllers with low power consumption, resulting in a cost reduction of the controller hardware.
Extending standard cell library for aging mitigation

Transistor aging, mostly due to bias temperature instability (BTI), is one of the major unreliability sources at nano-scale technology nodes. BTI causes the circuit delay to increase and eventually leads to a decrease in the circuit lifetime. Typically, standard cells in the library are optimised according to the design time delay; however, because of the asymmetric effect of BTI, the rise and fall delays might become significantly imbalanced over the lifetime. In this study, the BTI effect is mitigated by balancing the rise and fall delays of the standard cells at the excepted lifetime. The authors find an optimal tradeoff between the increase in the library size and the lifetime improvement by non-uniform extension of the library cells for various ranges of the input signal probabilities. The simulation results reveal that this technique can prolong the circuit lifetime by around 150% with a negligible area overhead. Moreover, the effect of different realistic workloads on the distribution of internal node signal probabilities is investigated. This is done to obtain the sensitivity of the proposed static (design time) approach to different workloads during system lifetime. The results show that the proposed approach is still efficient if the workload changes during the runtime.
Nocardiosis in South Texas children

Primary cutaneous nocardiosis can present as cellulitis or abscess with or without lymphadenitis. In South Texas children with suspected Staphylococcus aureus or Streptococcus pyogenes skin and soft tissue infections who do not improve as expected with appropriate antibiotics, physicians should consider Nocardia brasiliensis in the differential diagnosis, especially if there are multiple lesions in a lymphocutaneous distribution.
Risk of developing BRONJ among patients exposed to intravenous bisphosphonates following tooth extraction.

OBJECTIVE A study was designed to measure of the incidence of bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of the jaws (BRONJ) following tooth extraction in patients receiving or who have received intravenous bisphosphonates (Zometa, zoledronic acid). METHOD AND MATERIALS A prospective cohort study was made of 36 patients subjected to 62 tooth extractions. All these 36 patients had been treated or were receiving treatment with zoledronic acid. RESULTS The incidence of BRONJ following 62 tooth extractions in patients treated with zoledronic acid 4 months after extraction was 14.5%. CONCLUSION No statistically significant associations were found with patient age, sex, hygiene index, total treatment time, surgical difficulty, or extraction site. However, the factors that significantly influenced the final presence of osteonecrosis were related to tooth extractions in the absence of periodontal disease, and if sockets remained unhealed at the month of extraction.
Refinements to Ice Particle Mass Dimensional and Terminal Velocity Relationships for Ice Clouds. Part II: Evaluation and Parameterizations of Ensemble Ice Particle Sedimentation Velocities

Abstract This two-part study addresses the development of reliable estimates of the mass and fall speed of single ice particles and ensembles. Part I of the study reports temperature-dependent coefficients for the mass-dimensional relationship, m = aDb, where D is particle maximum dimension. The fall velocity relationship, Vt = ADB, is developed from observations in synoptic and low-latitude, convectively generated, ice cloud layers, sampled over a wide range of temperatures using an assumed range for the exponent b. Values for a, A, and B were found that were consistent with the measured particle size distributions (PSD) and the ice water content (IWC). To refine the estimates of coefficients a and b to fit both lower and higher moments of the PSD and the associated values for A and B, Part II uses the PSD from Part I plus coincident, vertically pointing Doppler radar returns. The observations and derived coefficients are used to evaluate earlier, single-moment, bulk ice microphysical parameterization sc.
A Markov-decision-based price comparison problem for mobile agent-based Internet commerce system (MAGICS)

Mobile agents are well suited for facilitating the consumer buying process on the Internet, particularly for comparing prices. In this paper, we present a mobile agent-based e-commerce system, called MAGICS, that addresses some issues concerning price comparisons. After providing an overview of the MAGICS architecture, we use the Markov decision theory to formulate a price comparison problem. The objective of the problem is to obtain an optimal decision policy in order to buy a product at the lowest expected cost, including the traveling costs. The problem was solved using the backward induction algorithm. Some analytical results are presented and discussed.