Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Task adaptation through exploration and action sequencing

General-purpose autonomous robots need to have the ability to sequence and adapt the available sensorimotor knowledge, which is often given in the form of movement primitives. In order to solve a given task in situations that were not considered during the initial learning, it is necessary to adapt trajectories contained in the library of primitive motions to new situations. In this paper we explore how to apply reinforcement learning to modify the subgoals of primitive movements involved in the given task. As the underlying sensorimotor representation we selected nonlinear dynamic systems, which provide a powerful machinery for the modification of motion trajectories. We propose a new formulation for dynamic systems, which ensures that consecutive primitive movements can be splined together in a continuous way (up to second order derivatives).
University of Birmingham Hardware assisted fully homomorphic function evaluation and encrypted search

In this report we propose a scheme to perform homomorphic evaluations of arbitrary depth with the assistance of a special module recryption box . Existing somewhat homomorphic encryption schemes can only perform homomorphic operations until the noise in the ciphertexts reaches a critical bound depending on the parameters of the homomorphic encryption scheme. The classical approach of bootstrapping also allows for arbitrary depth evaluations, but has a detrimental impact on the size of the parameters, making the whole setup inefﬁcient. We describe two different instantiations of our recryption box for assisting homomorphic evaluations of arbitrary depth. The recryption box refreshes the ciphertexts by lowering the inherent noise and can be used with any instantiation of the parameters, i.e. there is no minimum size unlike bootstrapping. To demonstrate the practicality of the proposal, we design the recryption box on a Xilinx Virtex 6 FPGA board ML605 to support the FV somewhat homomorphic encryption scheme. The recryption box requires 0.43 ms to refresh one ciphertext. Further, we use this recryption box to boost the performance of encrypted search operation. On a 40 core Intel server, we can perform encrypted search in a table of 2 16 entries in around 20 seconds. This is roughly 20 times faster than the implementation without recryption box.
A Role for Oxytocin-Like Receptor in Social Habituation in a Teleost

Oxytocin (OT) mediates social habituation in rodent model systems, but its role in mediating this effect in other vertebrates is unknown. We used males of the African cichlid fish, Astatotilapia burtoni, to investigate two aspects of isotocin (IT; an OT homolog) signaling in social habituation. First, we examined the expression of IT receptor 2 (ITR2) as well as two immediate early genes in brain regions implicated in social recognition. Next, we examined IT neuron activity using immunohistochemistry. Patterns of gene expression in homologs of the amygdala and hippocampus implicate IT signaling in these regions in social habituation to a territorial neighbor. In the preoptic area, the expression of the ITR2 subtype and IT neuron activity respond to the presence of a male, independent of familiarity. Our results implicate IT in mediating social habituation in a teleost.
Assessing the need for arthritis training among paid carers in UK residential care homes: A focus group and interview study

OBJECTIVE The aim of the study was to perform an educational and training needs assessment for arthritis care in residential homes. METHODS Qualitative data were collected from three purposively selected residential homes: one independent, one in a regional chain and one in a national chain. Three researcher-led focus groups were conducted with paid carers (N = 22) using vignette exercises; interviews were undertaken with 12 residents with joint pain (N = 12), five managerial staff and two general practitioners (GPs). Data were compared and analysed thematically around care practices, communication and training. RESULTS There is a lack of arthritis awareness among paid carers, although they regularly identify and manage arthritic symptoms. Residents rely on paid carers to recognize when pain and mobility problems are treatable. Senior staff and GPs rely on carers to identify arthritic problems. However, paid carers themselves undervalued the health significance of their activities and lacked the confidence to communicate important information to healthcare professionals. Few of the paid carers had received training in arthritis and many expressed a strong desire to learn about it, to improve their ability to provide better care. CONCLUSIONS Education for paid carers regarding arthritis is lacking and lags behind education about conditions such as dementia and diabetes. To meet the expectations of their care roles fully, paid carers require an awareness of what arthritis is and how to recognize symptoms. We suggest that training should be aimed at improving confidence in communicating with colleagues, residents and health professionals, with senior care staff receiving more in-depth training.
Chemical activation of a food deprivation signal extends lifespan

Model organisms subject to dietary restriction (DR) generally live longer. Accompanying this lifespan extension are improvements in overall health, based on multiple metrics. This indicates that pharmacological treatments that mimic the effects of DR could improve health in humans. To find new chemical structures that extend lifespan, we screened 30 000 synthetic, diverse drug‐like chemicals in Caenorhabditis elegans and identified several structurally related compounds that acted through DR mechanisms. The most potent of these NP1 impinges upon a food perception pathway by promoting glutamate signaling in the pharynx. This results in the overriding of a GPCR pathway involved in the perception of food and which normally acts to decrease glutamate signals. Our results describe the activation of a dietary restriction response through the pharmacological masking of a novel sensory pathway that signals the presence of food. This suggests that primary sensory pathways may represent novel targets for human pharmacology.
Morphological changes and surface reactions of wood fibers in wood composites

This work addressed questions regarding the fate of wood pulp fibers in the composite manufacturing process, for instance whether the processing induced fiber damages, and the improved interfacial adhesion accelerated this function. A number of wood fibers were blended with various maleic anhydride-grafted polymers fully and partially to study their morphological changes. The fractured fibers were separated from wood composites with aromatic hydrocarbons and analyzed using Fiber quality analyses, Scanning electron microscope, Fourier transform infrared analysis and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy to validate the degree of fiber fractures and the esterification reaction. The fiber damages were related to the maleic anhydride grafting degree, molecular weight and molecular structures of maleated polymers.
A Review Study on Unique Way of Information Hiding: Steganography

Internet communication become the need of entire world, today internet is like a recourse of power that is used to run human life. The users, as a layman, may not know that internet, a way of communication, as the use of internet is increasing also data and information that is traveling through internet is increasing by every passing day every minute. In an internet environment where every user need security about their data and information that they want to share with other, such environment requires secrecy and security to safeguard the privacy. There are many approaches available that can be adopted to provide user data security, Steganography is one of the techniques which offer sufficient platform to tackle this aspect in a suitable way. The working is very easy; the information (data) can be hidden inside the other information (data) while viewers may see the cover and hidden data will be known to intended viewers only that know the way of decryption that is adopted at sender side. In simple world two images are selected, one as cover and other as message carrier, but the view and size of original image may not be changed. This paper discusses certain technique and algorithms in context to Least Significant Bit (LSB) and ascertains possible depth of LSB usage where the distortion of image starts and attracts the attacker/ hacker. It became a unique way of information hiding by merging images with cipher data or plain text.
beta-eudesmol, a sesquiterpene from Teucrium ramosissimum, inhibits superoxide production, proliferation, adhesion and migration of human tumor cell

Reactive oxygen species are well-known mediators of various biological responses. Recently, new homologues of the catalytic subunit of NADPH oxidase have been discovered in non phagocytic cells. These new homologues (Nox1–Nox5) produce low levels of superoxides compared to the phagocytic homologue Nox2/gp91phox. In this study we examined the effect of (cid:2) -eudesmol, a sesquiterpenoid alcohol isolated from Teucrium ramosissimum leaves, on proliferation, superoxide anion production, adhesion and migration of human lung (A549) and colon (HT29 and Caco-2) cancer cell lines. Proliferation of tumor cells was inhibited by (cid:2) -eudesmol. It also signiﬁcantly inhibited superoxide production in A549 cells. Furthermore, (cid:2) -eudesmol inhibited adhesion and migration of A549 and HT29 cell. These results demonstrate that (cid:2) -eudesmol may be a novel anticancer agent for the treatment of lung and colon cancer by different ways: by inhibition of superoxide production or by blocking proliferation, adhesion and migration.
Offspring sex ratios in tree swallows: females in better condition produce more sons

Organisms are expected to adjust the sex ratio of their offspring in relation to the relative fitness benefits of sons and daughters. We used a molecular sexing technique that amplifies an intron of the CHD1 gene in birds to examine the sex ratio at egg‐laying in socially monogamous tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor). We examined all individuals in 40 broods (210 young), including all unhatched eggs and nestlings. Thus, the sex ratio we measured was the same as the sex ratio at laying. Overall, the mean sex ratio per brood (± SD) was biased significantly towards males (57 ± 2% male). Within broods, male‐biased sex ratios were associated with females in better body condition, and these females were more likely to produce sons in better condition. Tree swallows have one of the highest known levels of extra‐pair paternity in birds (38–76% extra‐pair young), and, as a consequence, variance in male reproductive success is greater than that of females. Thus, in tree swallows, investment in sons has the potential for higher fitness returns than investment in daughters, assuming that sons in better condition have greater reproductive success.
A non-canonical RNA degradation pathway suppresses RNAi-dependent epimutations in the human fungal pathogen Mucor circinelloides

Mucorales are a group of basal fungi that includes the casual agents of the human emerging disease mucormycosis. Recent studies revealed that these pathogens activate an RNAi-based pathway to rapidly generate drug-resistant epimutant strains when exposed to stressful compounds such as the antifungal drug FK506. To elucidate the molecular mechanism of this epimutation pathway, we performed a genetic analysis in Mucor circinelloides that revealed an inhibitory role for the non-canonical RdRP-dependent Dicer-independent silencing pathway, which is an RNAi-based mechanism involved in mRNA degradation that was recently identified. Thus, mutations that specifically block the mRNA degradation pathway, such as those in the genes r3b2 and rdrp3, enhance the production of drug resistant epimutants, similar to the phenotype previously described for mutation of the gene rdrp1. Our genetic analysis also revealed two new specific components of the epimutation pathway related to the quelling induced protein (qip) and a Sad-3-like helicase (rnhA), as mutations in these genes prevented formation of drug-resistant epimutants. Remarkably, drug-resistant epimutant production was notably increased in M. circinelloides f. circinelloides isolates from humans or other animal hosts. The host-pathogen interaction could be a stressful environment in which the phenotypic plasticity provided by the epimutant pathway might provide an advantage for these strains. These results evoke a model whereby balanced regulation of two different RNAi pathways is determined by the activation of the RNAi-dependent epimutant pathway under stress conditions, or its repression when the regular maintenance of the mRNA degradation pathway operates under non-stress conditions.
gene2drug: a Computational Tool for Pathway-based Rational Drug Repositioning

Motivation Drug repositioning has been proposed as an effective shortcut to drug discovery. The availability of large collections of transcriptional responses to drugs enables computational approaches to drug repositioning directly based on measured molecular effects. Results We introduce a novel computational methodology for rational drug repositioning, which exploits the transcriptional responses following treatment with small molecule. Specifically, given a therapeutic target gene, a prioritisation of potential effective drugs is obtained by assessing their impact on the transcription of genes in the pathway(s) including the target. We performed in silico validation and comparison with a state-of-art technique based on similar principles. We next performed experimental validation in two different real-case drug repositioning scenarios: (i) upregulation of the glutamate-pyruvate transaminase, which has been shown to induce reduction of oxalate levels in a mouse model of primary hyperoxaluria, and (ii) activation of the transcription factor TFEB, a master regulator of lysosomal biogenesis and autophagy, whose modulation may be beneficial in neurodegenerative disorders. Availability free at http://gene2drug.tigem.it Contact dibernardo@tigem.it
Symbolic factorization methodology for multistage amplifier transfer functions

In this paper, we discuss a symbolic simplification methodology to derive approximated factorized forms of the transfer function of multistage amplifiers in the complex frequency domain. The developed approach is useful for hand calculation and is also suitable to be implemented in symbolic computer‐aided design tools. Although the proposed methodology is mainly intended for the analysis and design of operational transconductance amplifiers, it can straightforwardly be applied to the small‐signal analysis of any analog linear circuit. Design examples are provided to verify the effectiveness of the proposed approach implemented through a Matlab function. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Polyubiquitinylation Profile in Down Syndrome Brain Before and After the Development of Alzheimer Neuropathology

Abstract Aims: Among the putative mechanisms proposed to be common factors in Down syndrome (DS) and Alzheimer's disease (AD) neuropathology, deficits in protein quality control (PQC) have emerged as a unifying mechanism of neurodegeneration. Considering that disturbance of protein degradation systems is present in DS and that oxidized/misfolded proteins require polyubiquitinylation for degradation via the ubiquitin proteasome system, this study investigated if dysregulation of protein polyubiquitinylation is associated with AD neurodegeneration in DS. Results: Postmortem brains from DS cases before and after development of AD neuropathology and age-matched controls were analyzed. By selectively isolating polyubiquitinated proteins, we were able to identify specific proteins with an altered pattern of polyubiquitinylation as a function of age. Interestingly, we found that oxidation is coupled with polyubiquitinylation for most proteins mainly involved in PQC and energy metabolism. Innovation: This is the .
AC Magnetic Susceptibility Study in Co/Au Nanoparticles

In this work we report the study of magnetic relaxation process presented in the bimetallic Co/Au nanoparticles prepared utilizing the reverse micelle method. Structural analysis of the system using synchrotron X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy documented individual nanocrystalline particles of average size about 7 nm. Magnetic properties of the particles were examined by ac magnetic susceptibility measurements at temperature range 2 – 300 K at different frequencies of magnetic field. The relaxation process was revealed at temperature about 6 K. Application of several theoretical models on experimental data of magnetic susceptibility confirmed strong inter-particle interactions and novel superspin glass state in the nanoparticle system at low temperatures.
A Randomized Comparison of the Terms Estimated Average Glucose Versus Hemoglobin A1C

Purpose The purpose of this study was to evaluate the hypothesis that using estimated average glucose (eAG) while instructing patients yields better knowledge retention than using the term hemoglobin A1C (A1C). Methods Patients with diabetes who had poor baseline understanding of A1C (determined by a 4-question survey) were randomized into 1 of 2 groups: A1C or eAG. Depending on randomization, providers discussed patients' current status and personal targets for glycemic control using either the term A1C or estimated average glucose. Patients had a telephone survey 3—4 weeks later, assessing change in knowledge of glycemic control. Results The 80 participants who completed follow-up had similar baseline characteristics, including poor understanding of A1C and poor recall of previous A1C values. At the 3—4 week follow-up, average score for each survey question improved significantly in both groups, with mean composite score increasing in the A1C group by 32% and in the eAG group by 33%. There was no suggestion of a difference in degree of improvement between groups. Conclusions Patients previously unfamiliar with the meaning of A1C, using either term (A1C or eAG) resulted in an equal improvement in knowledge. Within this study, eAG was not a more understandable term, or an easier concept for patients to remember. Further research is needed to test whether use of the term A1C should be replaced by eAG.
Methylprednisolone release from agar-Carbomer-based hydrogel: a promising tool for local drug delivery

A number of studies and works in drug delivery literature are focused on the understanding and modelling of transport phenomena, the pivotal point of a good scaffold design for tissue engineering. Accurate knowledge of the diffusion coefficient of an active drug plays a key role in the analysis, prediction of their kinetics and formulation of efficient drug delivery systems. In this work, the kinetics of the release of methylprednisolone from agar-Carbomer hydrogel were studied taking into consideration the different drug concentrations and clearances typically achieved in in vitro or in vivo tests. Starting from the experiments it is possible to model the transport phenomenon and to calculate the diffusion coefficient through the hydrogel matrix.
Esthetic and Clinical Performance of Implant-Supported All-Ceramic Crowns Made with Prefabricated or CAD/CAM Zirconia Abutments: A Randomized, Multicenter Clinical Trial

Patients’ esthetic expectations are increasing, and the options of the prosthetic pathways are currently evolving. The objective of this randomized multicenter clinical trial was to assess and compare the esthetic outcome and clinical performance of anterior maxillary all-ceramic implant crowns (ICs) based either on prefabricated zirconia abutments veneered with pressed ceramics or on CAD/CAM zirconia abutments veneered with hand buildup technique. The null hypothesis was that there is no statistically significant difference between the 2 groups. Forty implants were inserted in sites 14 to 24 (FDI) in 40 patients in 2 centers, the Universities of Bern and Geneva, Switzerland. After final impression, 20 patients were randomized into group A, restored with a 1-piece screw-retained single crown made of a prefabricated zirconia abutment with pressed ceramic as the veneering material using the cut-back technique, or group B using an individualized CAD/CAM zirconia abutment (CARES abutment; Institut Straumann AG) with a hand buildup technique. At baseline, 6 mo, and 1 y clinical, esthetic and radiographic parameters were assessed. Group A exhibited 1 dropout patient and 1 failure, resulting in a survival rate of 94.7% after 1 y, in comparison to 100% for group B. No other complications occurred. Clinical parameters presented stable and healthy peri-implant soft tissues. Overall, no or only minimal crestal bone changes were observed with a mean DIB (distance from the implant shoulder to the first bone-to-implant contact) of −0.15 mm (group A) and 0.12 mm (group B) at 1 y. There were no significant differences at baseline, 6 mo, and 1 y for DIB values between the 2 groups. Pink esthetic score (PES) and white esthetic score (WES) values at all 3 examinations indicated stability over time for both groups and pleasing esthetic outcomes. Both implant-supported prosthetic pathways represent a valuable treatment option for the restoration of single ICs in the anterior maxilla (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02905838).
[Effect of stress and intesity of mobile phone using on the health and subjective symptoms in GSM workers].

BACKGROUND There are no available data on the health consequences that may result from the synergistic effects of electromagnetic fields (EMF) and stress. Understanding the mechanisms of the simultaneous exposure will make it possible to develop procedures to minimize adverse health effects in professionals using mobile phones. MATERIAL AND METHODS A questionnaire survey was conducted in 600 randomly selected people to obtain data on their health status and the prevalence of subjective symptoms related to the mobile phones using. Among them, there were 208 GSM Network employees, to whom the Perceived Stress Scale and Assessment of Stress at Work Questionnaire were sent. Eighty-nine completed questionnaires were returned (response rate - 42.8%). RESULTS The mean age of respondents was 30.3 years (standard deviation (SD) = 7.7), time of occupational use of mobile phone - 4.1 years (SD = 1.7), the level of occupational stress - 95.3 (SD = 19.1). A significant percentage of people (62.8%) complained of the frequent difficulties in coping with problems of everyday life, and 57.4% had a fairly frequent problems with managing their own affairs. Significant differences in the life stress were detected between groups with different time of phone use (p = 0.03), and in occupational stress level, significant differences were noted between the 2 groups differing in the length of the conversation (p = 0.05). The risk of headache, associated (odds ratio (OR) = 4.2, p = 0.008) or not associated (OR = 2.97, p = 0.04) with calls on mobile phone, adjusted for stress, was significantly higher in people speaking via mobile more than 60 min/day than in those talking less. CONCLUSIONS The study indicates that both stressors acting at the same time (EMF from cell phone and stress) adversely affect the well-being of workers and increase the risk of subjective symptoms. Med Pr 2017;68(5):617-628.