Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Natural horizontal transfer of a naphthalene dioxygenase gene between bacteria native to a coal tar-contaminated field site

Horizontal transfer of genes responsible for pollutant biodegradation may play a key role in the evolution of bacterial populations and the adaptation of microbial communities to environmental contaminants. However, field evidence for horizontal gene transfer between microorganisms has traditionally been very difficult to obtain. In this study, the sequences of the 16S rRNA and naphthalene dioxygenase iron-sulfur protein (nahAc) genes of nine naphthalene-degrading bacteria isolated from a coal tar waste-contaminated site, as well as a naphthalene-degrading bacterium from a contaminated site in Washington state and two archetypal naphthalene-degrading strains, were compared. Seven strains from the study site had a single nahAc allele, whereas the 16S rRNA gene sequences of the strains differed by as much as 7.9%. No nahAc alleles from the site were identical to those of the archetypal strains, although the predominant allele was closely related to that of Pseudomonas putida NCIB 9816-4, isolated in the British Isles. However, one site-derived nahAc allele was identical to that of the Washington state strain. Lack of phylogenetic congruence of the nahAc and 16S rRNA genes indicates that relatively recent in situ horizontal transfer of the nahAc gene has occurred, possibly as a direct or indirect consequence of pollutant contamination. Alkaline lysis plasmid preparations and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis have revealed the presence of plasmids ranging in size from 70 to 88 kb in all site isolates. Southern hybridizations with a 407-bp nahAc probe have suggested that the nahAc gene is plasmid borne in all the site isolates but one, a strain isolated from subsurface sediment 400 m upstream from the source of the other site isolates. In this strain and in the naphthalene-degrading strain from Washington state, nahAc appears to be chromosomally located. In addition, one site isolate may carry nahAc on both chromosome and plasmid. Within the group of bacteria with identical nahAc sequences the Southern hybridizations showed that the gene was distributed between plasmids of different sizes and a chromosome. This suggests that plasmid modification after transfer may have been effected by transposons. Horizontal transfer of catabolic genes may play a significant role in the acclimation of microbial communities to pollutants.
The relationship between a night's sleep and subsequent daytime functioning in older poor and good sleepers

Those suffering insomnia symptoms generally report daytime impairments. However, research has not assessed whether this relationship holds on a nightly basis, despite the strongly held belief that a night of poor sleep impairs mood and functioning the following day. The objective of this study was to test this relationship in a group of older poor sleepers with insomnia symptoms compared with good sleepers. This study utilized a within‐subjects design to investigate day‐to‐day subjective daytime functioning and its relation to the previous night's sleep. Seventeen older individuals (mean age: 67.5 years) were identified with a retrospective questionnaire and 2 weeks of sleep–wake diary to have poor sleep consistent with insomnia. Seventeen good sleepers (mean age: 67.8 years) were selected using the same measures. Participants reported their beliefs about sleep and daytime functioning on the Dysfunctional Beliefs and Attitudes about Sleep Scale (DBAS‐16). One week later they commenced a 14‐day period of sleep–wake diaries and concurrent responses to a modified Daytime Insomnia Symptom Scale (DISS). Results showed significant night‐to‐day covariation between sleep efficiency and daytime functioning for individuals with poor sleep (r = 0.34), but not for good sleepers (r = 0.08). Those poor sleepers who held this covariation belief most strongly were those who subsequently showed this night‐to‐day relationship the most strongly (r = 0.56). This was not true for good sleepers. For those suffering insomnia, these findings demonstrate their belief that a poor sleep is followed by an impaired daytime, consistent with their experience.
Ceramides and Glucosylceramides Are Independent Antagonists of Insulin Signaling*

Background: Both ceramides and glucosylceramides have been implicated in the pathogenesis of insulin resistance. Results: These two classes of sphingolipids modulate insulin action but differ by both tissue specificity and mechanism of action. Conclusion: Ceramides and glucosylceramides are independent and separable antagonists of insulin signaling. Significance: These observations will contribute to our understanding of how sphingolipids contribute to obesity-related metabolic diseases. Inhibitors of sphingolipid synthesis protect mice from diet induced-insulin resistance, and sphingolipids such as ceramides and glucosylated-ceramides (e.g., GM3) are putative nutritional intermediates linking obesity to diabetes risk. Herein we investigated the role of each of these sphingolipids in muscle and adipose tissue and conclude that they are independent and separable antagonists of insulin signaling. Of particular note, ceramides antagonize insulin signaling in both myotubes and adipocytes, whereas glucosyceramides are only efficacious in adipocytes: 1) In myotubes exposed to saturated fats, inhibitors of enzymes required for ceramide synthesis enhance insulin signaling, but those targeting glucosylceramide synthase have no effect. 2) Exogenous ceramides antagonize insulin signaling in myotubes, whereas ganglioside precursors do not. 3) Overexpression of glucosylceramide synthase in myotubes induces glucosylceramide but enhances insulin signaling. In contrast, glucosylated ceramides have profound effects in adipocytes. For example, either ganglioside addition or human glucosylceramide synthase overexpression suppresses insulin signaling in adipocytes. These data have important mechanistic implications for understanding how these sphingolipids contribute to energy sensing and the disruption of anabolism under conditions of nutrient oversupply.
Characterization of oligomeric species in the fibrillization pathway of the yeast prion Ure2p

Abstract The [URE3] prion of Saccharomyces cerevisiae shares many features with mammalian prions and poly-glutamine related disorders and has become a model for studying amyloid diseases. The development of the [URE3] phenotype is thought to be caused by a structural switch in the Ure2p protein. In [URE3] cells, Ure2p is found predominantly in an aggregated state, while it is a soluble dimer in wild-type cells. In vitro, Ure2p forms fibrils with amyloid-like properties. Several studies suggest that the N-terminal domain of Ure2p is essential for prion formation. In this work, we investigated the fibril formation of Ure2p by isolating soluble oligomeric species, which are generated during fibrillization, and characterized them with respect to size and structure. Our data support the critical role of the N-terminal domain for fibril formation, as we observed fibrils in the presence of 5 M guanidinium chloride, conditions at which the C-terminal domain is completely unfolded. Based on fluorescence measurements, we conclude that the structure of the C-terminal domain is very similar in dimeric and fibrillar Ure2p. When studying the time course of fibrillization, we detected the formation of small, soluble oligomeric species during the early stages of the process. Their remarkable resistance against denaturants, their increased content of β-structure, and their ability to ‘seed’ Ure2p fibrillization suggest that conversion to the amyloid-like conformation has already occurred. Thus, they likely represent critical intermediates in the fibrillization pathway of Ure2p.
Study of Randomly Distributed Charge Traps by Measuring Frequency- and Time-Dependence of a DNTT-Based MIS Capacitor

The frequency and time dependence of capacitance of dinaphtho[2,3-b:2',3'-f]thieno[3,2-b]thiophene (DNTT)-based metal-insulator-semiconductor (MIS) capacitors were studied. The frequency spectra show a long and gradual slope over many orders of magnitude in frequency, and the time evolution in the subthreshold region exhibits a logarithmic dependence. These two phenomena are analyzed from a unified point of view on the basis of charge trapping models that were originally developed for Si-based MIS capacitors. The charge trapping model with a Gaussian-distributed surface potential in DNTT successfully reproduces both the frequency and time dependences with the same parameter set.
Universal Thermoelectric Characteristic in Phase Change Memories

Thermoelectric effects play an important role in phase change memory (PCM), where phase transition and atomic migration are accelerated by temperature. A deep understanding of thermoelectric effects may allow a physics-based design of the cell structure and materials to optimize programming speed/energy and reliability. In this work we study the polarity-dependence of PCM characteristics, including crystallization, melting, electrical switching/holding, and ion migration. These characteristics show slower kinetics at negative voltage, which we attribute to thermoelectric effects of electrically-induced heating. We demonstrate a universal correlation of positive/negative kinetics, which we reproduce by modelling Thomson and Peltier heating in the PCM device.
The predictive validity of the DEBQ-external eating scale for eating in response to food commercials while watching television.

OBJECTIVE To challenge the conclusion by Jansen et al., Int J Eat Disord 2011; 44:164-168, that the widely used Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ) External Eating subscale (DEBQ-EX) lacks validity for external eating, because of limitations of that study. METHOD In a seminaturalistic setting we measured participants' intake of crisps and M&Ms while they watched food commercials or neutral commercials spliced into a film. To avoid misclassification due to the use of median splits we used extreme scores on the DEBQ-ex (n = 60) in addition to the full range of scores (n = 125). RESULTS As was expected, high external eaters in the food commercial condition ate more crisps than did high external eaters in the neutral commercial condition, whereas low external eaters did not eat more crisps in one condition than in the other. No such moderator effect was found for emotional eating. No significant moderator effect was found for external eating in the original sample (n = 125) using the median-split procedure. DISCUSSION The DEBQ scale for external eating has validity and specificity for external eating provided that the participants have sufficiently extreme external eating scores and a natural setting is used.
Infrastructure-supported mobility in wireless sensor networks — A case study

Mobility support is one of the main requirements in current wireless sensor networks (WSN), as WSN technology becomes mature and its range of applications gets wider. Due to the very nature of WSNs, along with their use in all sorts of Internet of Things (IoT) scenarios, it is frequent that sensor nodes, or even groups of sensor nodes, need to change their wireless point of attachment without losing connectivity. Nevertheless, mobility support in WSNs has not yet been standardized and, therefore, mobility is still looked at as a challenge. This is even more so in critical, industrial scenarios. In this paper we present and evaluate a new infrastructure-based mobility solution for WSNs, named Network of Proxies (NoP), developed for the referred type of scenarios. NoP was deployed and tested in a critical use case, namely for monitoring employees' vital signs status in an oil refinery, with the aim of evaluating its feasibility and performance. The results show that NoP is capable of efficiently handling mobility, outperforming existing solutions and meeting the stringent case-study requirements.
Potential Role of Prenatal Inflammation in the Impairment of Lung Development Following Mechanical Ventilation of Preterm Lambs

Background: Our objective was to determine the effects of severe fetal inflammation, associated with an increase in the number and activation state of fetal polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNLs), on postnatal lung development in mechanically ventilated preterm lambs. Methods: Four groups of preterm fetal sheep (0.85 term) were surgically prepared: (1) a granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (GCSF) group received intravenous GCSF to increase fetal PMNL count, (2) a lipopolysaccharide (LPS) group received intra-amniotic LPS to activate the fetal PMNLs, (3) a GCSF + LPS group received both GCSF and LPS, and (4) a control group received saline. After 10-day mechanical ventilation following preterm delivery, the lungs were examined histologically and analyzed morphometrically. Results: Compared to the control group, the GCSF + LPS group exhibited necrotizing funisitis, lower surface density of alveolar walls, lower numerical density of alveoli, greater alveolar radius, and lower volume density of secondary septal crests (all P < .05). There was no evidence of tissue destruction, or elastin fragmentation or thick deposits of elastin, in the alveolar walls in any of the 4 groups. Conclusion: The mechanical ventilation following severe prenatal inflammation did not lead to overt lung injury or degradation of elastin but resulted in arrested alveolarization in the lungs of preterm lambs.
Spawning success in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.): a long‐term DNA profiling‐based study conducted in a natural stream

Spawning success of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.) was investigated, under near‐natural conditions, in the Girnock Burn, an 8‐km long tributary of the River Dee in Scotland. Employing minisatellite‐based DNA profiling, mating outcomes were resolved over three spawning seasons by assigning parentage to progeny samples removed from spawning nests (‘redds’). While individual spawning patterns differed markedly, consistent trends were present over the 3 years studied. Multiple spawning was found to be prevalent. More than 50% of anadromous spawners of both sexes contributed to more than one redd. Up to six redds for a single female and seven for a single male were detected. Both sexes ranged extensively. Distance between redds involving the same parent varied from a few metres to > 5 km. Distances > 1 km were common. Both males and females ranged to a similar extent. Range limit was not correlated to fish size. Pairs were not monogamous, both males and females mating with different partners at different sites. Size assortative mating was apparent among 1991 spawners but was not detected for 1992 or 1995. Redd superimposition was found to be common (17–22% of redds over the 3 years), although it was not correlated to the number of anadromous spawners present. High levels of nonanadromous mature parr mating success (40–50% of total progeny sampled) were recorded, and these likely contribute greatly to the effective population size. The relevance of these findings at the individual and population level is discussed, with particular reference to management implications.
Agency and market area factors affecting home health agency supply changes.

OBJECTIVE To use the natural experiment created by the Medicare interim payment system (IPS) to study supply change behavior of home health agencies (HHAs) in local market areas. DATA SOURCES One hundred percent Medicare home health claims for 1996 and 1999, linked with Medicare Provider of Service and Denominator files, and the Area Resource File. STUDY DESIGN Medicare home health care (HHC) claims data were used to distinguish HHAs that changed the local market supply of Medicare HHC by their market exit or by significant expansion or contraction of their geographic service area between 1996 and 1999 from other HHAs. Multinomial logit models were estimated to analyze how characteristics of agencies and the market areas in which they served were associated with these different agency-level supply changes. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Changes in local HHA supply stemming from geographic service area expansions and contractions rivaled those owing to agency closures and market entries. Agencies at greater risk of closure and service area contraction tended to be smaller, newer, freestanding agencies, operating with more visit-intensive practice styles in markets with more competitor agencies. Except for having much less visit-intensive practice styles, similar attributes characterized agencies that increased local supply through service area expansion. CONCLUSIONS Supply changes by HHAs largely reflected rational market responses by agencies to significant changes in financial incentives associated with the Medicare IPS. Recently certified agencies were among the most dynamic providers. Supply changes were more likely among agencies operating in more competitive market environments.
Correspondence Between Three Olfactory Tests and Suprathreshold Odor Intensity Ratings

Objectives —The capability of three olfactory tests (European Test of Olfactory Capabilities, Sniffin’ Sticks and Cross-Cultural Smell Identification Test) to similarly classify subjects as normosmics, hyposmics and anosmics as well as the relation between test performance and suprathreshold ortho- and retronasal odor intensity ratings were examined. Material and Methods —A total of 48 subjects (age range 15–84 years; mean age 49.5 years) completed the 3 olfactory tests, rated aqueous solutions of vanilla (0–0.31%) and lemon aroma (0–0.17%) for odor and flavor intensity and filled in a background questionnaire. Ten subjects had case histories indicating anosmia, with the remainder having subjectively normal olfaction. Results —The test results were highly correlated and differentiated anosmic, hyposmic and normosmic subjects. At an individual level, some discrepancy was seen in the olfactory diagnoses given by the three tests. In principal component analysis, olfactory measurements were loaded on three components: (i) odor detection, discrimination and identification; (ii) suprathreshold intensity ratings; and (iii) threshold for n-butanol. Advanced age was related to impaired olfactory performance. Conclusions —Although the three olfactory tests diagnosed the individuals slightly differently, all were considered to be valid for clinical evaluation of olfactory capabilities. The tests separated anosmics and normosmics highly significantly, and permitted an assessment of hyposmia. The suprathreshold odor intensity ratings reflected a different dimension of olfaction than the three olfactory tests.
Study on scale-free product collaborative design supporting platform

In this paper, a knowledge resource and grid idea based collaborative product design supporting platform was proposed which emphasized on the efficient organization and management of design supporting resources, and instead the database of traditional product design system with a dynamic and scale-free resource network. Furthermore, a new concept of scale-free product design resource network was proposed and used to discover the topology of the design resource network, and enable the design resource management more efficient and help to optimize the design resource configuration. Furthermore, a six-tiers platform architecture was proposed which enables substantial saving in the cost and the product development time in a network environment. The concept of scale-free network, the architecture of the platform, the involved key technologies and the application of a prototype were discussed.
A Buck Type Multi-Input Distributed Generation System With Parallel-Timesharing Power Supply

This paper proposes the circuit structure, topological family and energy management control strategy (EMCS) of a Buck type multi-input distributed generation system (DGS) with parallel-timesharing power supply. Also, the power supply modes (PSMs) and their smooth transition, as well as the control loops and multiple duty cycles expression are studied. The circuit structure is composed of a Buck type single-stage multi-input inverter and a single-stage isolated battery charging/discharging converter, with their outputs parallel-connected on the AC side. The topological family includes full-bridge etc. 3 types of circuit. By comparing the load power and the total generated multi-input sources power, the proposed EMCS achieves real-time control of charging/discharging converter’s power flow and the system’s smooth transition among different PSMs. The proposed “variable inductances equivalent method” regards the output filter inductor as the parallel connection of two virtual inductances, based on which the small signal model of multi-input inverter is established and the corresponding control loops are designed. Experimental results of a 3kVA laboratory prototype have shown that the proposed circuit topology has a good performance of high conversion efficiency, low distortion of output voltage, and galvanic isolation among load, multi-input sources and battery, etc.
Novel selective β1-adrenoceptor antagonists for concomitant cardiovascular and respiratory disease

β‐Blockers reduce mortality and improve symptoms in people with heart disease; however, current clinically available β‐blockers have poor selectivity for the cardiac β1‐adrenoceptor (AR) over the lung β2‐AR. Unwanted β2blockade risks causing life‐threatening bronchospasm and reduced efficacy of β2‐agonist emergency rescue therapy. Thus, current life‐prolonging β‐blockers are contraindicated in patients with both heart disease and asthma. Here, we describe NDD‐713 and ‐825, novel highly β1‐selective neutral antagonists with good pharmaceutical properties that can potentially overcome this limitation. Radioligand binding studies and functional assays that use human receptors expressed in Chinese hamster ovary cells demonstrate that NDD‐713 and ‐825 have nanomolar β1‐AR affinity >500‐fold β1‐AR vs. β2‐AR selectivity and no agonism. Studies in conscious rats demonstrate that these antagonists are orally bioavailable and cause pronounced β1‐mediated reduction of heart rate while showing no effect on β2‐mediated hindquarters vasodilatation. These compounds also have good disposition properties and show no adverse toxicologic effects. They potentially offer a truly cardioselective β‐blocker therapy for the large number of patients with heart and respiratory or peripheral vascular comorbidities. —Baker, J. G. , Gardiner, S. M. , Woolard, J., Fromont, C. , Jadhav, G. P., Mistry, S. N. , Thompson, K. S. J., Kellam, B. , Hill, S. J., Fischer, P. M. Novel selective β1‐adrenoceptor antagonists for concomitant cardiovascular and respiratory disease. FASEB J. 31, 3150–3166 (2017). www.fasebj. org
Can Spontaneous Emotions be Detected from Speech on TV Political Debates?

Decoding emotional states from multimodal signals is an increasingly active domain, within the framework of affective computing, which aims to a better understanding of Human-Human Communication as well as to improve Human- Computer Interaction. But the automatic recognition of spontaneous emotions from speech is a very complex task due to the lack of a certainty of the speaker states as well as to the difficulty to identify a variety of emotions in real scenarios.In this work we explore the extent to which emotional states can be decoded from speech signals extracted from TV political debates. The labelling procedure was supported by perception experiments where only a small set of emotions has been identified. In addition, some scaled judgements of valence, arousal and dominance were also provided. In this framework the paper shows meaningful comparisons between both, the dimensional and the categorical models of emotions, which is a new contribution when dealing with spontaneous emotions. To this end Support Vector Machines (SVM) as well as Feedforward Neural Networks (FNN) have been proposed to develop classifiers and predictors. The experimental evaluation over a Spanish corpus has shown the ability of both models to be identified in speech segments by the proposed artificial systems.