Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Secure spatial Top-k query processing via untrusted location based services accessing outsourced databases

This paper introduce a geographic information is present on the internet which is in the scattered format. When user search for any place then various locations based service providers find out the results. The commonly used location based service providers are Google, Bing, Yahoo etc. we considers a novel distributed system for collaborative location-based information generation and sharing which become increasingly popular due to the explosive growth of Internet-capable and location-aware mobile devices. The results that are given by location based service providers not fully processed. The system consists of a data collector, data contributors, location-based service providers (LBSPs), and system users. The data collector gathers reviews about points-of-interest (POIs) from data contributors, while LBSPs purchase POI data sets from the data collector and allow users to perform spatial zonal top-k queries which ask for the POIs in a certain region and with the highest k ratings for an interested POI attribute. The data contributor is the peoples or users who provide the information about the place. The user can gives comment and reviews to the product or the place. It's not necessary the LBSP provides proper information. In practice, LBSPs are untrusted and may return fake query results for various bad motives, e.g., in favour of POIs willing to pay. In our approach when the data contributor searches for any query, it will process by the LBSP. But before result showing to the user, it will process by the data collector. There are various results for the same query. So each query processed and special top result according to the location will provide to the users. This paper presents three novel schemes for users to detect fake spatial snapshot and arranging top-k query results as an effort to foster the practical deployment and use of the proposed system.
The Algorithm of Seed Selection for Maximizing the Behavioral Intentions in Mobile Social Networks

Marketing through mobile social networks is convenient, low-cost, and beneficial for small companies seeking to expand their customer numbers. In the literature, many studies address the influence maximization problem, which selects initial consumers (seeds) to spread the product information such that the number of consumers receiving the product information (the influenced consumers) is maximized. However, to date, none of these schemes take the beliefs of other persons that could significantly change the consumer's behavioral intention into account. In this paper, we fill this gap by proposing a new variant of the influence maximization problem, the Budgeted Seed Selection (BSS) problem, which asks for a set of seeds with the total cost not greater than a given budget in a mobile social network such that the total expected behavioral intentions of the consumers influenced by the selected seeds are maximized. In addition, we propose an approximation algorithm for the BSS problem. We also conduct simulations to evaluate the performance of our algorithm using real traces and synthesis data. Experimental results show that our algorithm evaluates an approximately optimal seed set for the BSS problem and outperforms several greedy algorithms.
[Synthesis of baicalin-copper and baicalin-aluminium complex and its bioactivity].

OBJECTIVE To study synthesis of baicalin-copper and baicalin-aluminium complex and its antimicrobial, anti-tumor activity and anti-tumor effect against macrophages. METHOD Baicalin was reacted with metallic salt under a weak base condition to produce baicalin-copper and baicalin-aluminium complex. Baicalin and its synthesized complex were detected for antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, Hay bacillus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella and Candida albicans by twofold broth dilution technique. Their anti-tumor activity against A549 and IC50 of HepG2 cells and anti-tumor effect against macrophages were detected by the MTT. And their phagocytic effect on macrophages was determined by the neutral red assay. RESULT The yields of baicalin-copper and baicalin-aluminium complex were 73.93% and 91.08%, respectively. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) value against Staphylococcus aureus, Hay bacillus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella and Candida albicans was 0.0004, 0.0009, 0.0004, 0.0009, 0.000 4 mol x L(-1) for baicalin-copper complex and 0.0011, 0.0011, 0.0011, 0.0011, 0.0005 mol x L(-1) for baicalin-aluminium complex. The IC50 values against A549 and HepG2 cells were 89.6, 22.6 micromol x L(-1) for baicalin-copper complex, and 138.8, 97.2 micromol x L(-1) for baicalin-aluminium complex. The inhibitory ratio of macrophage on A549 cell was 43.52%, 80.89%, 52.66%, respectively, after the macrophages were stimulated by baicalin, baicalin-copper and baicalin-aluminium complex at a concentration of 160 micromol x L(-1). CONCLUSION The acute toxicity test in mice showed that the complex was nontoxic to mice. Baicalin-copper complex showed the highest antimicrobial, anti-tumor activity, and the strongest effect on the anti-tumor activity of macrophage, while baicalin showed the lowest activities compared with baicalin-copper and baicalin-aluminium complex.
Transthyretin mutation Leu-55-Pro significantly alters tetramer stability and increases amyloidogenicity.

A recently reported variant of human transthyretin (TTR), Leu-55-Pro, implicated as the causative agent in early-onset familial amyloid polyneuropathy was expressed and characterized, and its denaturation pathway and amyloidogenicity were compared to those of wild-type transthyretin. The overlap-extension polymerase chain reaction (PCR) methodology was used to introduce the Leu-55-Pro mutation into the transthyretin DNA sequence and to construct a new expression system. The Leu-55-Pro variant of transthyretin was expressed with a leader sequence to ensure secretion into the periplasmic space of Escherichia coli. Transthyretin's resistance to sodium dodecyl sulfate- (SDS-) induced denaturation was utilized to measure the quaternary stability as a function of pH employing SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) in the presence and absence of an amyloid fibril inhibitor, Z 3-14. These studies reveal that the Leu-55-Pro TTR tetramer is significantly less stable than wild-type TTR. This is relevant because we have previously shown that the partial denaturation of transthyretin is sufficient to effect amyloid fibril formation from a denaturation intermediate which may be a structured monomer. The ability of Leu-55-Pro TTR to denature to the amyloidogenic intermediate at pHs where the wild-type protein is stable may explain the variant's propensity to form amyloid fibrils in vitro and in vivo where the wild-type protein remains stable and nonamyloidogenic. Congo red binding, polarized light microscopy, and electron microscopy confirm the characteristic structure of amyloid fibrils produced from Leu-55-Pro TTR in vitro. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Automatic sleep onset detection using single EEG sensor

Sleep has been shown to be imperative for the health and well-being of an individual. To design intelligent sleep management tools, such as the music-induce sleep-aid device, automatic detection of sleep onset is critical. In this work, we propose a simple yet accurate method for sleep onset prediction, which merely relies on Electroencephalogram (EEG) signal acquired from a single frontal electrode in a wireless headband. The proposed method first extracts energy power ratio of theta (4-8Hz) and alpha (8-12Hz) bands along a 3-second shifting window, then calculates the slow wave of each frequency band along the time domain. The resulting slow waves are then fed to a rule-based engine for sleep onset detection. To evaluate the effectiveness of the approach, polysomnographic (PSG) and headband EEG signals were obtained from 20 healthy adults, each of which underwent 2 sessions of sleep events. In total, data from 40 sleep events were collected. Each recording was then analyzed offline by a PSG technologist via visual observation of PSG waveforms, who annotated sleep stages N1 and N2 by using the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) scoring rules. Using this as the gold standard, our approach achieved a 87.5% accuracy for sleep onset detection. The result is better or at least comparable to the other state of the art methods which use either multi-or single- channel based data. The approach has laid down the foundations for our future work on developing intelligent sleep aid devices.
The Selectivity Filter of the Voltage-gated Sodium Channel Is Involved in Channel Activation*

Amino acids located in the outer vestibule of the voltage-gated Na+ channel determine the permeation properties of the channel. Recently, residues lining the outer pore have also been implicated in channel gating. The domain (D) IV P-loop residue alanine 1529 forms a part of the putative selectivity filter of the adult rat skeletal muscle (μ1) Na+ channel. Here we report that replacement of alanine 1529 by aspartic acid enhances entry to an ultra-slow inactivated state. Ultra-slow inactivation is characterized by recovery time constants on the order of ∼100 s from prolonged depolarizations and by the fact that entry to this state can be reduced by binding to the pore of a mutant μ-conotoxin GIIIA, suggesting that ultra-slow inactivation may reflect a structural rearrangement of the outer vestibule. The voltage dependence of ultra-slow inactivation in DIV-A1529D is U-shaped, with a local maximum near −60 mV, whereas activation is maximal only above −20 mV. Furthermore, a train of brief depolarizations produces more ultra-slow inactivation than a single maintained depolarization of the same duration. These data suggest that ultra-slow inactivation emanates from “partially activated” closed states and that the P-loop in DIV may undergo a conformational change during channel activation, which is accentuated by DIV-A1529D.
Evaluation of normalization and PCA on the performance of classifiers for protein crystallization images

In this paper, we investigate the performance of classification of protein crystallization images captured during protein crystal growth process. We group protein crystallization images into 3 categories: noncrystals, likely leads (conditions that may yield formation of crystals) and crystals. In this research, we only consider the subcategories of noncrystal and likely leads protein crystallization images separately. We use 5 different classifiers to solve this problem and we applied some data preprocessing methods such as principal component analysis (PCA), min-max (MM) normalization and z-score (ZS) normalization methods to our datasets in order to evaluate their effects on classifiers for the noncrystal and likely leads datasets. We performed our experiments on 1606 noncrystal and 245 likely leads images independently. We had satisfactory results for both datasets. We reached 96.8% accuracy for noncrystal dataset and 94.8% accuracy for likely leads dataset. Our target is to investigate the best classifiers with optimal preprocessing techniques on both noncrystal and likely leads datasets.
Production of human cells expressing individual transferred HLA-A,-B,-C genes using an HLA-A,-B,-C null human cell line.

We detail in this report the characterization of a human B-lymphoblastoid cell line, . 221, that does not express endogenous HLA-A, HLA-B, or HLA-C class I Ag due to gamma-ray-induced mutations in the HLA complex. Mutant . 221 is characterized by: 1) complete absence of HLA-A,-B,-C mRNA transcripts and alpha-chains, and 2) intracellular expression of two non-A,-B,-C class I alpha-chains with an abundance less than or equal to 1% of normal HLA-A,-B,-C expression on similar cells. However, transferred HLA-A, HLA-B, and HLA-C genomic genes are expressed as cell surface Ag in amounts similar to expression of the same endogenous genes in human B-lymphoblastoid cells. The amount of class I transcript produced from transferred class I genes is roughly proportional to the number of gene copies but, in every case studied, post-transcriptional processes limited cell surface Ag expressions to amounts approximately normal for the cell type. The ability of mutant . 221 to express quantitatively normal amounts of transferred class I genes suggests that: 1) it can serve as a recipient for, and then express, any cloned HLA-A,-B, or -C gene that would normally be expressible in human B-lymphoblastoid cells; 2) the absence of a background of HLA-A,-B,-C Ag permits its use for studying the expression of normal non-A,-B,-C class I genes and of class I genes that have mutations; 3) mutant . 221 can be used to create human cells that express on their surfaces just one defined class I Ag encoded by a transferred class I gene.
Shu-ichi Sugiyama Interspecific Variation in Heat Stress Tolerance and Oxidative Damage among 15 C 3 Species

The C3 plants are frequently suffering from exposure to high temperature stress which limits the growth and yield of these plants. This study seeks to clarify the physiological mechanisms of heat tolerance in relation to oxidative stress in C3 species. Fifteen C3 species were exposed to prolonged moderately high temperature stress 36/30°C for 40 days in a growth chamber. Chlorophyll fluorescence (Fv/Fm) showed great difference among species at 40 days of the stress. The species showed decreases in Fv/Fm and increases in malondialdehyde (MDA) content under stress condition as well as negative correlation between Fv/Fm and MDA (r = -0.61*) at 40 days of the stress. Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) content before and after stress in addition to its response under stress showed great differences among species. The results suggest that the difference in heat tolerance among C3 species is closely associated with the ability to suppress oxidative damage but not with the content of reactive oxygen species (ROS) which is regulated by complex network. Keywords—C3 species, Fv/Fm, heat stress, oxidative stress.
Productivity: Taylorism Revisited (Round Three)

Saturday Review published in January 1972 six articles which explored the "growing unreality and dehumanization some call it irrelevance of economic theory and analysis. "1 The statement is nowhere more applicable than to the subfield of economics, labeled microeconomics, which deals with the individual calculations of producers and consumers within market systems. Macroeconomics, conversely, deals with aggregate movements in income and output, and it is in this area that economics, as a discipline and as a tool of public policy, has registered its presumed accomplishments. The macroeconomists, moreover, are the best-known economists (Paul Samuelson, Milton Friedman, and those who join the Council of Economic Advisers). As John Kenneth Galbraith has made so clear, economists recognize but make no attempt to reconcile profound contradictions between the two subfields; conventional textbooks pronounce "inefficient" those individual market systems dominated by a few large producers (the oligopolies, or "bellwether" industries), but the same textbooks describe the overall economy as having proved itself "efficient" (through growth). 2 It is worth noting that all the management fads derived from economic thinking come from microeconomics (where "inefficiency" supposedly runs rampant); that is where we got the favorite of the 1960's, systems analysis, and the currently popular concepts of evaluation and productivity. As was the case with systems analysis, few are spending much time examining the underlying premises of the models they use. To do so would expose those premises for the anomalies they are, and it would demonstrate to all of us that little of useful
Cognitive processes involved in delayed non‐matching‐to‐sample  performance in Parkinson's disease

Visual recognition memory was assessed in terms of delay duration, memory load and amount of interference(s) in non‐demented patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) using an automated delayed non‐matching‐to‐sample (DNMS) task with trial‐unique stimuli. Special attention was focused on the different cognitive functions engaged by these patients in solving this recognition memory task. Thirteen patients with PD, carefully selected according to their stable regimen and anticholinergic medication, were compared to 12 controls matched by age and educational level. Besides the DNMS task, a neuropsychological battery that included tasks carefully selected according to processes potentially required to perform the DNMS task (e.g. attention, executive functions, visual discrimination and motor speed) was administered to the subjects. As compared with controls, patients with PD showed a deficit on most DNMS subscores, except those requiring the least cognitive load. The correlative analysis between the DNMS and other neuropsychological tasks suggests involvement of long‐term memory mainly in the DNMS performance for the control group, contrasting with a major involvement of executive functions for the patients with PD. These data indicate that visual recognition memory impairment in non‐demented patients with PD is largely due to an executive dysfunction, notably in working memory. Several hypotheses are proposed concerning the neuronal substrates underlying the impairment on the visual DNMS task in PD.
Bell's (idiopathic facial) palsy: The nerve excitability test in selection of cases for early treatment

LARGE doses of corticosteroids, and/or surgical decompression of the nerve are today the leading forms of treatment to be considered in Idiopathic Facial (Bell's) palsy. Following the work of Taverner (1971) and his colleagues, the former treatment may be considered less controversial than the latter, which has always been hotly disputed. Both, however, involve the risk of serious side effects and hazards, whilst the condition to be treated has no serious long term sequelae in about 90 per cent of cases (Taverner, 1973; Kristensen, 1968; Matthews, 1961; Groves, 1973). Therapeutic adventures, therefore, can only be justified for that small group who will be dissatisfied with the untreated outcome, and selection of the correct cases for steroid therapy (which appears to be beneficial) is now the urgent need. The case is far worse where surgery is concerned, since this is of unproven value, and cannot even be further tested ethically in a controlled trial unless very accurate selection can be devised. Groves (1965) and Mechelse et al. (1971) failed to demonstrate any advantage from early decompression, performed immediately nerve excitability was lost.
Towards predicting the lung fibrogenic activity of MWCNT: Key role of endocytosis, kinase receptors and ERK 1/2 signaling

Abstract Carbon nanotubes (CNT) have been reported to induce lung inflammation and fibrosis in rodents. We investigated the direct and indirect cellular mechanisms mediating the fibrogenic activity of multi-wall (MW) CNT on fibroblasts. We showed that MWCNT indirectly stimulate lung fibroblast (MLg) differentiation, via epithelial cells and macrophages, whereas no direct effect of MWCNT on fibroblast differentiation or collagen production was detected. MWCNT directly stimulated the proliferation of fibroblasts primed with low concentrations of growth factors, such as PDGF, TGF-β or EGF. MWCNT prolonged ERK 1/2 phosphorylation induced by low concentrations of PDGF or TGF-β in fibroblasts. This phenomenon and the proliferative activity of MWCNT on fibroblasts was abrogated by the inhibitors of ERK 1/2, PDGF-, TGF-β- and EGF-receptors. This activity was also reduced by amiloride, an endocytosis inhibitor. Finally, the lung fibrotic response to several MWCNT samples (different in length and diameter) correlated with their in vitro capacity to stimulate the proliferation of fibroblasts and to prolong ERK 1/2 signaling in these cells. Our findings point to a crosstalk between MWCNT, kinase receptors, ERK 1/2 signaling and endocytosis which stimulates the proliferation of fibroblasts. The mechanisms of action identified in this study contribute to predict the fibrogenic potential of MWCNT.
Features Extraction for Structured Light Stripe Image Based on OTSU Threshold

Computer vision systems are playing an important role in 3D measurement for industrial applications. A method of image process and features extraction for structured light stripe image of Tailored Weld Blanks with arc and splash disturbance is proposed. Then, the target image is pre-processed using image median filtering and setting range of interest. Furthermore, several thresholds of Gray Centroid Algorithm are determined based on OSTU. Finally, a k-times gray center of mass average method is used to extract mid-line of sub-pixel laser stripe. Experimental results are shown and the validity of the proposed algorithm has been proved.
Regulation of cytokine expression by Schwann cells in response to α2‐macroglobulin binding to LRP1

Binding of activated α2‐macroglobulin (α2M) to LDL receptor‐related protein‐1 (LRP1) in Schwann cells activates ERK/MAP kinase and Akt and thereby promotes cell survival and migration. The goal of this study was to determine whether α2M binding to LRP1 regulates expression of cytokines and chemokines. To assess the LRP1 response selectively, we studied primary cultures of rat Schwann cells. In a screening assay that detects 84 gene products, monocyte chemoattractant protein‐1 (MCP‐1/CCL2) mRNA expression was increased more than 13‐fold in Schwann cells treated with activated α2M. The effects of α2M on MCP‐1 expression were selective, because expression of the general proinflammatory cytokine tumor necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α) was not induced. We confirmed that α2M selectively induces expression of MCP‐1 and not TNF‐α in single‐target qPCR assays. MCP‐1 protein accumulated at increased levels in conditioned medium of α2M‐treated cells. LRP1 was necessary for induction of MCP‐1 expression, as determined in experiments with the LRP1 antagonist receptor‐associated protein, a mutated form of full‐length α2M that does not bind LRP1, and in studies with Schwann cells in which LRP1 was silenced. Inhibiting ERK/MAP kinase activation blocked expression of MCP‐1. These studies support a model in which LRP1 regulates multiple aspects of Schwann cell physiology in the response to PNS injury. © 2011 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Development of an Arabic Conversational Intelligent Tutoring System for Education of children with ASD

This paper presents a novel Arabic Conversational Intelligent Tutoring System (CITS) that adapts the learning styles VAK for autistic children to enhance their learning. The proposed CITS architecture uses a combination of Arabic Pattern Matching and Arabic Short Text Similarity to extract the responses from the resources. The new Arabic CITS, known as LANA, is aimed at children with autism (10 to 16 years old) who have reached a basic competency with the mechanics of Arabic writing. This paper describes the architecture of LANA and its components. The experimental methodology is explained in order to conduct a pilot study in future.
Oleuropein and Cancer Chemoprevention: The Link is Hot

Cancer comprises a collection of related diseases characterized by the existence of altered cellular pathways resulting in an abnormal tendency for uncontrolled growth. A broad spectrum, coordinated, and personalized approach focused on targeting diverse oncogenic pathways with low toxicity and economic natural compounds can provide a real benefit as a chemopreventive and/or treatment of this complex disease. Oleuropein, a bioactive phenolic compound mainly present in olive oil and other natural sources, has been reported to modulate several oncogenic signalling pathways. This review presents and critically discusses the available literature about the anticancer and onco-suppressive activity of oleuropein and the underlying molecular mechanisms implicated in the anticarcinogenic and therapeutic effects. The existence of limitations and the promising perspectives of research on this phenolic compound are also critically analyzed and discussed.