Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
THE SENSETIVITY OF LIVER, KIDNEY ANDTESTIS OF RATS TO OXIDATIVE STRESS INDUCED BY DIFFERENT DOSES OF BISPHENOL A

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a world wide used endocrine disruptor that is incorporated in many plastic industries. The exposure of humans to such substances starts early during the fetal life, postnatal life and extends throughout the life of the individual. Many agencies raised warnings against the excessive use of such substances. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the extent to which BPA can affect the liver, kidney and testis by measuring the oxidative stress induced by two different doses of BPA in these organs. Adult male rats were subjected to different oral doses of BPA (25 mg/kg for 6 weeks and 10mg/kg for 6 and 10 weeks, 5 days a week). The oxidative stress arising from BPA was evaluated in liver, kidney and testis tissues. In addition, serum uric acid level as a marker of kidney function together with the activities of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) as markers of liver function were measured. The results of the present study showed significant changes in the antioxidant mechanisms in the liver and testis with the high dose of BPA (25 mg/kg). The low dose showed significant changes after 10 weeks in the case of the liver and 6 weeks in the case of the testis. In addition, significant increases in serum uric acid level were observed after the administration of the two doses of BPA for 6 weeks and in AST and ALT activities after the high dose (25
Volatility spillover between the US, Chinese and Australian stock markets

We assess the stock market volatility spillover between three closely related countries, the United States, China and Australia. This study considers industry data and hence provides a clear idea of the channels through which volatility is transmitted across these countries. We find that there is significant bilateral causality between the countries at the market index level and across most of the industries for the full sample period from July 2007 to May 2016. There is one-way volatility spillover from the United States to China in the financial services, industrials, consumer discretionary and utilities industry. There is insignificant volatility spillover from the Australian to Chinese stock markets in financial services, telecommunications and energy industries. Once we remove the effect of the global financial crisis (GFC), we find significant bilateral relationship across all of the industries across the three countries. JEL Classification: G15
Scaling a file system to many cores using an operation log

It is challenging to simultaneously achieve multicore scalability and high disk throughput in a file system. For example, even for commutative operations like creating different files in the same directory, current file systems introduce cache-line conflicts when updating an in-memory copy of the on-disk directory block, which limits scalability. ScaleFS is a novel file system design that decouples the in-memory file system from the on-disk file system using per-core operation logs. This design facilitates the use of highly concurrent data structures for the in-memory representation, which allows commutative operations to proceed without cache conflicts and hence scale perfectly. ScaleFS logs operations in a per-core log so that it can delay propagating updates to the disk representation (and the cache-line conflicts involved in doing so) until an fsync. The fsync call merges the per-core logs and applies the operations to disk. ScaleFS uses several techniques to perform the merge correctly while achieving good performance: timestamped linearization points to order updates without introducing cache-line conflicts, absorption of logged operations, and dependency tracking across operations. Experiments with a prototype of ScaleFS show that its implementation has no cache conflicts for 99% of test cases of commutative operations generated by Commuter, scales well on an 80-core machine, and provides on-disk performance that is comparable to that of Linux ext4.
Marginal Productivity Indices and Linear Programming Relaxations for Dynamic Resource Allocation in Queueing Systems

Many problems concerning resource management in modern communication systems can be simplified to queueing models under Markovian assumptions. The computation of the optimal policy is however often hindered by the curse of dimensionality especially for models that support multiple traffic or job classes. The research focus naturally turns to computationally efficient bounds and high performance heuristics. In this thesis, we apply the indexability theory to the study of admission control of a single server queue and to the buffer sharing problem for a multi-class queueing system. Our main contributions are the following: we derive the Marginal Productivity Index (MPI) and give a sufficient indexability condition for the admission control model by viewing the buffer as the resource; we construct hierarchical Linear Programming (LP) relaxations for the buffer sharing problem and propose an MPI based heuristic with its performance evaluated by discrete event simulation. In our study, the admission control model is used as the building block for the MPI heuristic deployed for the buffer sharing problem. Our condition for indexability only requires that the reward function is concavelike. We also give the explicit non-recursive expression for the MPI calculation. We compare with the previous result of the indexability condition and the MPI for the admission control model that penalizes the rejection action. The study of hierarchical LP relaxations for the buffer sharing problem is based on the exact but intractable LP formulation of the continuous-time Markov Decision Process (MDP). The number of hierarchy levels is equal to the number of job classes. The last one in the hierarchy is exact and corresponds to the exponentially sized LP formulation of the MDP. The first order relaxation is obtained by relaxing the constraint that no buffer overflow may occur in any sample path to the constraint that the average buffer utilization does not exceed the available capacity. Based on the Lagrangian decomposition of the first order relaxation, we propose a heuristic policy based on the concept of MPI. Each one of the decomposed subproblems corresponds to the admission control model we described above. The link to the decomposed sub-problems is the Lagrangian multiplier for the relaxed buffer size constraint in the first order relaxation. Our simulation study indicates the near optimal performance of the heuristic in the (randomly generated) instances investigated. (Less)
Evaluation of automated COBAS AMPLICOR PCR system for detection of several infectious agents and its impact on laboratory management

We evaluated the COBAS AMPLICOR (CA) PCR system (Roche Diagnostic Systems) designed for automated PCR amplification and detection of nucleic acids from infectious agents in clinical samples. The Roche AMPLICOR microwell plate (MWP) PCR was the reference method. CA amplifies target nucleic acid, captures the biotinylated amplification products by using magnetic particles coated with specific oligonucleotide probes, and detects the bound products colorimetrically. For Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the correlation of the results of CA tests with those of MWP tests was 100% with 230 samples, including 20 culture-positive samples. For hepatitis C virus, the correlation was 100% with 214 samples, including 60 positive samples. MultiPlex CA analysis of 199 cervical specimens for Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, and the internal control gave 100% concordance. These samples included 19 C. trachomatis and 3 N. gonorrhoeae culture-positive samples. Overall, the agreement between PCR methods for all 842 comparisons was 100%. Compared with culture, the sensitivities of the assays for C. trachomatis and M tuberculosis were > or = 95%. After spiking alternating amplification tubes in the CA system with 10(14) copies of the Chlamydia amplicon per ml, we were unable to demonstrate any carryover cross-contamination of negative samples. Using the criteria of the College of American Pathologists workload recording method, we found that the total hands-on time to produce CA PCR results was 4.4, 7.9, and 3.3 min for M. tuberculosis, hepatis C virus, and the MultiPlexed assay for chlamydia plus gonorrhea and an internal control, respectively. The CA system brings true PCR automation to laboratories. In addition to the accuracy of automated results, the CA system provides labor savings, provides containment of the amplification and detection components of PCR, and supports both MultiPlex amplification and sequential algorithm (ReFlex) detection of analytes.
Improved cross-correlated back-projection algorithm for through-wall-radar imaging

This paper mainly deal with the degradation of the cross-correlated back-projection (CBP) imaging quality in the case of through-wall low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and an improved CBP algorithm is proposed to implement high-quality through-wall-radar imaging. Through accumulating all the sampling points rather than one sampling point of the cross-correlated target echoes into target location, the formed image is provided with the higher SNR. Besides, the advantages of artifact suppression and cross-resolution enhancement in CBP are inherited by the improved CBP. This approach is validated by the simulation results.
Landing biomechanics in participants with different static lower extremity alignment profiles.

CONTEXT Whereas static lower extremity alignment (LEA) has been identified as a risk factor for anterior cruciate ligament injury, little is known about its influence on joint motion and moments commonly associated with anterior cruciate ligament injury. OBJECTIVE To cluster participants according to combinations of LEA variables and compare these clusters in hip- and knee-joint kinematics and kinetics during the landing phase of a drop-jump task. DESIGN Descriptive laboratory study. SETTING Research laboratory. PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS A total of 141 participants (50 men: age = 22.2 ± 2.8 years, height = 177.9 ± 9.3 cm, weight = 80.9 ± 13.3 kg; 91 women: age = 21.2 ± 2.6 years, height = 163.9 ± 6.6 cm, weight = 61.1 ± 8.7 kg). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S) Static LEA included pelvic angle, femoral anteversion, quadriceps angle, tibiofemoral angle, genu recurvatum, tibial torsion, and navicular drop. Cluster analysis grouped participants according to their static LEA profiles, and these groups were compared on their hip- and knee-joint kinematics and external moments during the landing phase of a double-legged drop jump. RESULTS Three distinct clusters (C1-C3) were identified based on their static LEAs. Participants in clusters characterized with static internally rotated hip and valgus knee posture (C1) and externally rotated knee and valgus knee posture (C3) alignments demonstrated greater knee-valgus motion and smaller hip-flexion moments than the cluster with more neutral static alignment (C2). Participants in C1 also experienced greater hip internal-rotation and knee external-rotation moments than those in C2 and C3. CONCLUSIONS Static LEA clusters that are positioned anatomically with a more rotated and valgus knee posture experienced greater dynamic valgus along with hip and knee moments during landing. Whereas static LEA contributes to differences in hip and knee rotational moments, sex may influence the differences in frontal-plane knee kinematics and sagittal-plane hip moments.
Safety and Efficacy of Exclusive Enteral Nutrition for Percutaneously Undrainable Abdominal Abscesses in Crohn's Disease

Background The percutaneously undrainable abdominal abscesses in Crohn's disease (CD) are not uncommon. The treatment protocol is still under debate. This study was conducted to assess the safety and efficacy of exclusive enteral nutrition (EEN) for percutaneously undrainable abscesses in CD. Methods A consecutive cohort of 83 CD patients with percutaneously undrainable abdominal abscesses between January 2011 and June 2015 was retrospectively analyzed. They were divided into the EEN group and the non-EEN group. Results The cumulative surgical rate was significantly lower in the EEN group than in the non-EEN group (P = 0.001). Fifteen percent patients treated with EEN avoided surgery. EEN (P = 0.002) was associated with a decreased need for surgery. Previous abdominal surgery (P = 0.009) and abscess diameter > 3 cm (P = 0.022) were associated with an increased need for operation. EEN increased the albumin level, while decreased ESR and CRP significantly for patients requiring surgery. The risk of postoperative intra-abdominal septic complications (P = 0.036) was significantly lower in the EEN group compared with the non-EEN group. Conclusions EEN is feasible in CD patients presenting with percutaneously undrainable abdominal abscesses. It is associated with a reduction in surgical rate, optimized preoperative condition, and improved postoperative outcomes in these specific groups of patients.
The prevalence of developmental dyscalculia in Brazilian public school system

ABSTRACT The goal of the study was to assess public school children at the end of the first stage of elementary school. We used a protocol applied concurrently with a writing test in the form of an unexpected activity in 28 public schools; 2,893 children assessed, 687 exhibited performance below 58 points, 184 were excluded due to change of address or lack of consent; 503 children subjected to a test of intellectual capacity and reading assessment and 71 considered intellectually disabled were excluded. 226 (7.8%) children, who could read, write, and had normal intellectual level, met the criteria of developmental dyscalculia (DD), 98 female and 128 male. The most influential factors in the prevalence were socioeconomic levels of the schools neighborhood, education level of parents, and being male, as demonstrated by the odds ratio and multiple logistic regression analysis. Further studies should be done so that educational policies are taken.
Multi-Objective Bilevel Coordinated Planning of Distributed Generation and Distribution Network Frame Based on Multiscenario Technique Considering Timing Characteristics

This paper presents a novel approach to planning distributed generation (DG) and distribution network frames based on a multiscenario technique. In view of the uncertainties of the load and intermittence of the DG output, the annual timing characteristics are analyzed, and the daily load and output of DG are divided into several typical situations according to respective influence factors. In the target planning year, the uncertain units are simulated using the typical daily forecast values, then the probability models are established considering the forecast errors; finally, multiple scenarios are achieved through Latin hypercube sampling and sample reduction. In view of the interaction of DG and distribution network frames, a bilevel coordinated planning model is proposed, in which the upper level planning is aimed to achieve the integrated optimal decision and the goal of the lower level planning is to comprehensively consider the benefits of DG. Finally, hybrid chaos binary particle swarm optimization based on Pareto set theory and niche sharing is applied to make a nested solving of the model, and the superiority and effectiveness of the proposed model are verified in the IEEE 33-node and 69-node distribution systems as the test cases.
Reliability-aware resource management for computational grid/cluster environments

The collective resource utilization achieved through grid computing is critical to the overall computing capacity of the collaborative community and should be guaranteed. Especially, in an existing environment where job sites are Beowulf cluster systems, a service node failure may render the whole system outage. Current grid fault tolerance techniques only address these issues in an opportunistic fashion. Thus, there is a need for complementing these approaches by pro actively handling failures at a job-site level, ensuring the system high availability with no loss of user submitted jobs. Our grid-aware cluster resource management effort was motivated by the fact that a cluster turns into a popular job site in the computational grid environment. We propose a solution dealing with fault tolerance at the service level complementing the task-based solutions as being done in some recent studies. We discuss various service availability issues related to the grid, and preliminary results obtained while implementing the smart failover and transparent job-queue replication mechanism and the automated grid installation package. Our report entails the benefits outweighing acceptable overhead after implementing our proof-of-concept framework.
Occurrence of RD9 Region and 500 bp Fragment among Clinical Isolates of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium bovis

The present investigation dealt with the identification of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and M. bovis by RD9 region and 500 bp fragment PCR assays. Eight M. tuberculosis and 5 M. bovis characterized and identified from 40 human sputum and 41 bovine lung specimens and 20 M. tuberculosis and 9 M. bovis strains maintained at Mycobacteria Laboratory, Indian Veterinary Research Institute were included in this study. In this way, 28 M. tuberculosis and 14 M. bovis strains and, for comparison and control purpose, M. tuberculosis H37Rv, M. bovis BCG, M. canetti, M. smegmatis, M. phlei, M. chelonae, M. kansasii, M. xenopi and M. avium were subjected to RD9 and 500 bp amplification by PCR. All M. tuberculosis strains, M. tuberculosis H37 Rv and M. canetti yielded a product of 333 bp which showed presence of RD9 region in these strains, whereas all M. bovis yielded a product of 206 bp with RD9 PCR assay. There was no amplification product found in M. bovis BCG, M. xenopi, M. smegmatis, M. phlei, M. chelonae, M. kansasii, and M. avium. PCR based on 500 bp fragment showed a product of 500 bp in all M. bovis strains and M. bovis BCG. There was no amplification product of 500 bp found in M. canetti, M. smegmatis, M. phlei, M. chelonae, M. avium, M. kansasii, M. xenopi and was absent in all M. tuberculosis strains. The PCR assay results correlated 100% with the culture and biochemical results of the isolates. Our study suggested that PCR based on RD9 and 500 bp may effectively identify two closely related species of M. tuberculosis and M. bovis.
Characterization of the surface glycoproteins of rat spermatozoa.

The present study investigates the macromolecular composition of a membrance fraction isolated from rat spermatozoa and uses specific biochemical probes to study the externally oriented plasma membrane glycoproteins of caput and cauda epididymal spermatozoa. A highly purified membrane fraction was isolated from rat cauda epididymal spermatozoa using sonication and differential centrifugation. SDS polyacrylamide gels of the isolated membrane fraction revealed a large number of Coomassie Blue staining bands (>25) and 5 PAS positive bands. The galactose oxidase-[3HI sodium borohydnide technique was employed on intact spermatozoa to radioactively label externally oriented plasma membrane glycoproteins possessing terminal galactose or galactosamine residues on their oligosaccharide chains. Cauda epididymal spermatozoa possess a 37,000 dalton glycoprotein on the cell surface which is labelled by this technique, but no such component is detected on caput epididymal spermatozoa. Similarly, radioactive labelling of surface sialo-glycoproteins by sequential treatment of spermatozoa with sodium metaperiodate and [3 HI sodium borohydride revealed that the 37,000 dalton glycoprotein could be labeled on cauda epididymal spermatozoa, but is not detected on caput epididymal spermatozoa. The significance of these results with respect to maturation of spermatozoa in the epididymis is discussed.
Inactivation of the inhA-Encoded Fatty Acid Synthase II (FASII) Enoyl-Acyl Carrier Protein Reductase Induces Accumulation of the FASI End Products and Cell Lysis of Mycobacterium smegmatis

ABSTRACT The mechanism of action of isoniazid (INH), a first-line antituberculosis drug, is complex, as mutations in at least five different genes (katG, inhA, ahpC,kasA, and ndh) have been found to correlate with isoniazid resistance. Despite this complexity, a preponderance of evidence implicates inhA, which codes for an enoyl-acyl carrier protein reductase of the fatty acid synthase II (FASII), as the primary target of INH. However, INH treatment of Mycobacterium tuberculosis causes the accumulation of hexacosanoic acid (C26:0), a result unexpected for the blocking of an enoyl-reductase. To test whether inactivation of InhA is identical to INH treatment of mycobacteria, we isolated a temperature-sensitive mutation in the inhA gene of Mycobacterium smegmatis that rendered InhA inactive at 42°C. Thermal inactivation of InhA in M. smegmatis resulted in the inhibition of mycolic acid biosynthesis, a decrease in hexadecanoic acid (C16:0) and a concomitant increase of tetracosanoic acid (C24:0) in a manner equivalent to that seen in INH-treated cells. Similarly, INH treatment of Mycobacterium bovis BCG caused an inhibition of mycolic acid biosynthesis, a decrease in C16:0, and a concomitant accumulation of C26:0. Moreover, the InhA-inactivated cells, like INH-treated cells, underwent a drastic morphological change, leading to cell lysis. These data show that InhA inactivation, alone, is sufficient to induce the accumulation of saturated fatty acids, cell wall alterations, and cell lysis and are consistent with InhA being a primary target of INH.
Selecting image retrieval parameters with a genetic algorithm

Image retrieval (IR) means taking a probe image and finding the most appropriate match in a (possibly very large) image database. Unlike keyword-indexing, our approach is to compute a feature vector (FV) for each image, and to compute the distance from the probe to each image in the database. As a starting point, we studied the system of Jacobs et al., developed at the University of Washington, which used the Haar wavelet transform to produce feature vectors from images. A genetic algorithm developed weighting parameters which yielded significantly improved image retrieval performance.